Dear Listener

BANKS: What do you think of banks? And would you like to take part in a debate to let them know? It will be in London near the Houses of Parliament on Monday 13 December from 1830 to 1945. And 20 tickets have been set aside for Money Box newsletter readers. The event is part of a review of retail banking by the Independent Banking Commission and is an opportunity for you to put your views to an audience of bankers – among others. I’ll be in the chair, but don’t let that put you off.

To get a ticket you have to apply by Wednesday 8 December. Send an email to pernille.thomsen@consumerfocus.org.uk and put ‘ICB event’ in the subject line. Don’t forget to give your name and provide a phone number.

TAX: The tax details for 2011/12 were finally released on Thursday. Highlights are that the personal tax allowance will rise by £1000 to £7,475 – as we knew – and the higher allowance for those aged 65-74 and aged 75 or more will both go up by £450 to £9,940 and £10,090 – though only if your income is less than £24,000 (up from £22,900 last year). Above that the higher allowance tapers back down to the standard. Higher rate tax will begin to be paid on annual incomes above £42,475 which is £1400 less than the limit this year (£43,875). The intention is that higher rate tax payers will not gain from the £1000 rise in the personal tax allowance. But changes in National Insurance limits and rates make the arithmetic very complex and lead to this big cut in the threshold.

Next year, if there is another £1000 rise in the personal allowance, there will be another cut in the income at which higher rate tax is paid and that will be the income limit which is used in January 2013 to take back Child Benefit from higher rate taxpayers. So that claw back could affect people with an annual income of less than £42,000, far lower than anticipated during the big debate on the Child Benefit change this year.

The thresholds for the 50p tax – called additional rate – stays at £150,000 and the income at which the personal allowance begins to be clawed back remains at £100,000. So anyone with an income between £100,000 and of £114,950 – when personal allowance disappears altogether – will be paying an effective rate of tax of 60% on some of it (each extra £1 of income is taxed at 40% and brings another 50p of income in which is also taxed at 40% so the tax on £1 is effectively 40p+20p = 60p).

**IN MONEY BOX THIS WEEK***

Snow. Even Money Box cannot avoid stories about snow. Can you claim on your insurance if you miss a flight or a concert or a train due to the snow? And which insurance – travel, car, home – is likely to be the one to pay up, if any?

Should you fit snow tyres to your car? And if you do should you tell your insurer? And what will they say?

Are the old, poor and disabled discriminated against by energy firms that give the best deals – and the easiest way of switching – to people who are online? Hear a surprising call from an influential MP.

Spend up to £15 just by waving your plastic card over a device and without entering your PIN. Convenient for you – and any thief who nicks your card. So why are millions of cards having this facility fitted willy nilly?

Find out what makes it into our snowbound Money Box live on Saturday at 1204. Or catch the repeat at 9pm on Sunday. Or listen again any time on our website www.bbc.co.uk/moneybox. There you can also read web pieces, download transcripts, follow links, and send us stories or ideas you want us to look into and Have Your Say on snow and insurance.

Best wishes,

Paul

PS don’t forget the programme trail on Breakfast on BBC 1 between 0845 and 0900 on Saturday. And I am now on every Monday around 0640 and 0810 with a personal finance story and answering emails.

e-mail Paul Lewis