Budgeting & Planning
Could you be caught by self assessment deadline?
Filed under: Taxes, Budgeting & Planning
This Saturday, 31 July, is the deadline for three things: outstanding income tax self assessment returns, as well as self assessment tax payments, and the renewal of tax credits.If your heart is sinking at the prospect of having to pay your tax bill, consider the consequences of late filing/payment. You'll end up paying hefty penalties so it's worth gritting your teeth and sorting out your tax affairs asap.
Brits overspend by £9 billion on holiday
Filed under: Credit Cards, Travel, Budgeting & Planning
A new study by voucher code website Savoo, has found that British holidaymakers collectively go over their holiday budgets by a whopping £9 billion. Our carefree holiday attitude means that two thirds of us spend almost £300 more than we plan to every time we go away. Even more worryingly we typically spend three months after we get back from our break paying it off.So what can we do about it?
Cheapest energy deals dry up
Filed under: House and Home, Budgeting & Planning
Out of the top six energy providers, three have pulled their cheapest deals on the market over the past few weeks and replaced them with tariffs that are an inflation-busting average of 3.4% more expensive. moneysupermarket.com urges customers to move quickly to take advantage of the best tariffs currently available, which still give dual fuel customers a saving of £259 a year compared to the average standard tariff - before they too disappear.
NatWest and RBS launch market leading 0% balance transfer offer
Filed under: Credit Cards, Budgeting & Planning
NatWest and RBS have launched a table-topping 0% balance transfer deal of 16 months on their Platinum credit card. Which? credit card expert Martyn Saville said: "The new deal from NatWest and RBS is excellent news for consumers with a balance on their credit card that they're keen to transfer to a 0% deal."However, it's worth knowing about all the small print.
Least trusted financial companies revealed
Filed under: Budgeting & Planning
Nationwide has been voted the UK's 'most trusted' financial services company, followed by the Co-operative Bank and Barclays. At the other end of the scale Northern Rock and Admiral came out bottom of the survey.
However, the survey found that financial service companies struggle to gain consumers' trust and that retailers are more trusted.
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Cold callers are the second biggest time-wasters
Filed under: Budgeting & Planning
Even in the age of email spam, one in four people say that old-fashioned cold callers are still the second biggest time-wasters. Brits say their absolute biggest waste of time is the daily commute, as cited by 29% of people, with 51% having a daily commute of an hour or more. But even if you have a long commute, there are other ways of saving time in your daily life.
New office to simplify 'spaghetti bowl' of tax laws
Filed under: Taxes, Budgeting & Planning
The government wants to untangle the "spaghetti bowl" of UK tax laws to reduce the burden on families and businesses.To this effect, chancellor George Osborne launched an Office for Tax Simplification this week – a move that was welcomed by business organisations (although unions were less enthusiastic).
Britons to miss out on £3.9 billion in tax credits
Filed under: Taxes, Families, Budgeting & Planning
Millions of people will either forget to claim their child tax or pension credits this year, or simply won't bother – which means they're losing out on a massive £3.9 billion.Nearly one out of every 10 of entitled families will probably fail to claim their child tax credits this year, resulting in £1.5 billion unclaimed. And as much as £2.4 billion of pension credits will also go unclaimed. Those entitled need to get their skates on and claim all available tax credits ahead of the 31 July deadline.
Over a quarter of women want to be 'kept'
Filed under: Work & Careers, House and Home, Budgeting & Planning
A shocking new study reveals that more than a quarter of females wouldn't mind being a 'kept woman' and just over half regularly accept money from their other half for purchases.So much for modern, independent woman? Given that men usually earn quite a bit more than their partners, it's only fair that they pay more towards the bills... but 'being kept' is obviously a different matter.
Is there a fortune waiting for you in the bank? Can the government take it?
Filed under: Saving, Budgeting & Planning
Yesterday David Cameron announced that he plans to run the 'Big Society' using the £400 million that is sitting in 'dormant' bank accounts. He reckons he can use this cash, and combine it with private investment, to help people build the kind of community projects that change lives.It's a bold statement, and the critics and supporters are out in force today. But wait a minute... if Dave can easily get his hands on £400 million sitting in the bank, shouldn't we be checking whether we're entitled to some of this money too?
