Search Results

The amount of mortgage deals on offer to borrowers has suddenly dropped, after rising towards the end of last year. 

Unemployment levels for 16 to 24- year-olds are now record high after rising to over 1 million this October.

Along with the UK government target inflation rates rising in July, due to the increase of financial service fees and higher prices for clothing.

The number of people in the UK facing unemployment and rising bills have convinced MPs that people need a better financial education.

It seems like online identity theft and online credit card fraud is rising at an alarming rate.

Research by ING Direct suggests that the prospect of university fees rising to £9,000 a year is prompting parents to save more for their children's education.

Relying on your savings to supplement your income puts you at risk of greater pain from the rising rate of inflation.

The economic situation in the UK remains grim. Recent unemployment figures show that joblessness continues to hover around 8%, jumping to 20% for 16 – 24 year-olds

The UK’s energy regulator has stated that £32 billion is needed for improvement in the distribution infrastructure.

Official figures show a significant increase in UK inflation in March 2010. In the previous month, the rate of inflation was at 3%, sharply rising to 3.4% in March.

Regardless of which party prevails in the coming elections, UK residents can anticipate an increase in taxes.

As if many people were not already facing enough financial challenges, interest rates on credit cards are on the rise.

Homeowners are seeing mortgage rates rise despite the Bank of England’s base rate remaining stuck at rock bottom. 

UK economic activity shrank by 0.2% in the last three months of last year according to official figures.

Consumers have been experiencing a decrease in take-home pay for nine months this August.

Between the months of July and August almost 40% of homeowners witnessed their finances deteriorate according to a study under 1,500 adults.

Since 1991, the amount of consumers actively saving in corporate pension schemes within the UK's private sector has been halved.

Due to a fall in property values in July, surveyors are "pessimistic" about UK house prices.

Since the government expects to make changes with public sector pensions, people have expressed their concerns.

Increasing demand for properties to rent has caused rents in the private sector to increase to an average of £701 per month throughout England and Wales.

New data shows that UK Consumer Prices Index inflation remained unchanged in May, holding steady at 4.5%.

Government figures show that more than one-fifth of UK households experienced fuel poverty in 2009.

More holidaymakers will soon see their holiday budgets shrinking from additional charges on debit card use.

Recent figures have shown that UK retail sales fell 1.4% in May.

 Social housing costs are proving too expensive, resulting in housing benefit changes currently going through Parliament.

A BBC investigation has uncovered some unsavoury practices in the debt management industry, including some companies holding the money they receive from clients instead of paying creditors.

Chairman of the eurozone finance ministers, Jean Claude-Juncker, recently announced that Greece may need further assistance via financial bail-out.

The most recent survey put out by the Nationwide building society shows that the housing market in the UK remains subdued.

A leading economic think tank has warned that UK households may face the biggest drop in income for 30 years.

There has been a huge rise in the number of home buyers paying for their new homes in cash.

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has closed down four companies that misled people in debt

The president of the World Bank has warned that the world is "one shock away from a full-blown crisis".

Thousands of Jobcentre staff are set to strike after a dispute about working conditions and management targets.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has recorded its worst fall in sales since records began in 1996, which is a further signal of difficult times on the High Street.

As consumers face increased prices for food and fuel, retailers are gearing up for a tough year with sales expected to be lower than usual.

Psychiatrists have warned that changes in Western society could fuel a rise in the number of men with depression.

Higher UK postage prices have come into force –with the result that a first-class stamp now costs 46p.

Will inflation rates ever come down again? In January, the UK Consumer Prices Index stood at 4%; today it stands at 4.4%.

Savers are finding it harder than ever to protect their funds from inflation erosion.

Winter fuel payments for older people are due to fall this year.

The Royal Mail will be cutting more than 1,700 jobs and close two mail centres in London.

Telecoms giant BT has announced that, from 28 April 2011 call charges will increase by 9% and the monthly standard line rental charge will increase by 30 pence.

According to a survey carried out by Vocalink, private sector pay at UK listed companies has risen at the slowest rate on record.

According to the latest survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics), the property market is flat everywhere in the UK except London.

Between October and December 2010, unemployment rose 44,000, to a total of 2.5 million people unemployed.

The United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reports that wholesale food costs reached the highest monthly amount ever recorded last month

In January 2011, the UK's Consumer Prices Index (CPI) rose by 4%.

According to recently released figures, the UK GDP shrank 0.5% in the last three months of 2010, partially due to the significant economic impact of  December’s freezing weather.

A recent study shows that UK consumers have experienced their largest monthly fall in confidence in 16 years when it comes to their own finances and the economy.

The United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) has reported a new high in global food prices as of December.

Unemployment is on the rise in the UK once again, reaching 2.5 million (7.9%) in October. This resulted from an increase of 35,000 during the previous three months.

The economic recovery occurring across the globe has caused an increase in demand for oil.

Leading energy company bosses told the Parliament’s Energy Committee that they expect increases in energy bills in the coming years.

Rail industry figures show that travellers will see an increase in rail fares in 2011. The average fare increase will be 6.2%, with some fares increasing by as much as 10.8%.

British Gas has announced that customers will see a 7% increase in electricity and gas bills this winter, making it the second major energy supplier in the UK to announce an increase in prices for this winter.

In an unexpected turn of events, the UK saw the Consumer Prices Index inflation rate rise 0.1% to reach 3.2% in October.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) reports that housing prices are continuing to drop, due to a shortage of buyers.

According to a warning from the Bank of England, the UK economy’s future continues to be uncertain.

Oil prices appear to be on the rise and have hit their highest point in six months.

An independent commission reports that higher contributions may be required from public sector pension scheme members.

A report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed an unexpected drop in retail sales in the UK in August, which was the first time retail sales has dropped since January.

The consumer advocate group Which? has uncovered charges of up to 3% added by some councils when customers pay their council services bills with a credit card.

Purchasing a new home is becoming increasingly cost-prohibitive, and it doesn’t look like the situation will improve any time soon.

My Home Finance is a pilot scheme testing a new lending option for financially marginalized groups.

The Pensions Policy Institute Think Tank has put forth a statement saying that the state pension age will need to increase to 72 sometime within the next 20 years in order to keep government costs at their 1981 level

Rampant wildfires and drought have devastated Russia’s wheat harvest, causing the prime minister to make the unprecedented move of placing a ban on the exportation of wheat.

Companies listed in the FTSE 100 share index paid out a record £17.5 billion extra into pension schemes in 2009 as part of their efforts to pay off accumulated deficits.

In the 12 months to Q1 2010, banks and building societies in the UK wrote off loans to individuals totaling £9.6 billion.

According to insurance companies, the UK saw a significant increase in the number of fraudulent claims in 2009, resulting in a record high.

Currently, residents of England who are 60 or older are eligible to receive free bus passes.

BT customers will soon see a 10% increase in call charges, as well as a 50p increase in monthly line rental.

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) has released figures regarding the minimum income needed to have an acceptable standard of living in the UK.

Fewer UK-listed companies issued profit warnings in the second quarter of this year, with only 45 firms issuing warnings between April and June, according to Ernst & Young.

Bankruptcies in the UK are on the rise, with figures showing a distinct increase in the first quarter of this year in the number of residents of England and Wales trying to be declared bankrupt.

According to the financial information service, Moneyfacts, rates on authorised overdrafts are now the highest they have been in the last decade.

The National Insurance Contributions Bill, as included in the Queen’s Speech, is scheduled to increase national insurance contribution rates as of April 2011.

According to the Pension Protection Fund (PPF), the collective deficit for final-salary pension schemes in the UK’s private sector increased in May.

The volcanic eruption in Iceland had a larger effect than simply annoying travelers when flights in the UK were grounded for approximately six days.

Part of the new Budget includes a two-year pay freeze for those working in the public sector. This will affect all workers earning more than £21,000 per year.

New restrictions on benefits for expectant mums and new parents are poised to make raising children significantly more expensive.

UK residents can expect to see many changes as the government undertakes its reforms. One of the first reforms includes a change in the pension age, which is scheduled to go from 65 to 68.

The UK experienced rather cold weather during the months of December and January, which brought the issue of high energy bills back to our attention.

The effects of the recent recession are still being felt as financial pressures force the NHS to put a hold on proposals to provide no-cost prescriptions to England residents.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies reports that building work being completed through Labour’s school renewal programme may have to stop if the free schools policy is to be fully implemented.

We may have started hoping that pay freezes and redundancies would now come to an end as the economy struggles to recover; however, this is unfortunately not the case.

Petrol prices have been on the rise for a number of reasons, including the higher cost of refining, increasing oil prices and the relative strength of the dollar.

It is no secret that personal debt has been steadily increasing for over a decade and that the number of people going bankrupt or being declared insolvent has risen alongside it.

Individual borrowing is increasing in the UK, undoubtedly in part from the effects of the economic crisis making it more difficult to make ends meet each month.

Average consumer debt and household debt in the UK continues to increase.

Recently, families have enjoyed lower monthly bills due to the government’s efforts to boost the UK economy by temporarily reducing the VAT from 17.5% to 15%. However...

The CML (Council of Mortgage Lenders) has announced that mortgage lending in May was 2% lower than in April - at approximately £10.3bn - and 58% lower than May 2008.