e-mail Paul LewisDear listener,
Another week, another threat by regulators to the profits made by banks. The Office of Fair Trading says customers are wasting up to £1bn a year on insurance to protect repayments on loans because competition isn't working properly. It is likely to ask the Competition Commission to step in. And the Financial Services Authority has found evidence of widespread mistakes in the way the insurance is sold. We hear from them both.
Many older people on low incomes still have to fill in a self-assessment tax return. And it can be a daunting task. But help from a qualified accountant or tax adviser can be expensive. We report from the Dorset headquarters of a new free national service, Tax Help for Older People.
Inflation is rising - the Retail Prices Index is at an eight year high. An economist tells us if this is a trend or whether inflation will fall back. And we find out who suffers most from rising prices.
How much is your monthly mortgage payment? And could you afford to pay it not once, not twice but three times in a week? One high street bank has done just that to thousands of customers, taking the October mortgage payment again and again! How can it happen? And should the victims get compensation?
The government confirms it is going to clamp down on pension freedom for the over-75s, and change a rule that it only brought in last April.
More on all those stories on Money Box - Saturday at noon, Sunday at 9pm and on the web any time – and there's loads more information on our website about these items now.
Best wishes,
Paul Lewis
e-mail Paul Lewis