Cut energy bills
People aged 70 or more and younger people on benefits such as pension
credit, income support, council tax benefit, or attendance allowance will soon
be able to get their loft or cavity walls insulated free. Everyone else will be
able to get those things done for half the actual cost. The plans are part of a
new drive by the Government to get all homes properly insulated by 2011. The
Prime Minister said that could save people up to £300 if their home was not
already insulated.
But Gordon Brown showed his confusion about the scheme when he announced "all pensioner households will be eligible for free loft and cavity wall insulation". And Environment Secretary Hilary Benn compounded the error when he told journalists "For pensioners…the loft and cavity wall insulation is available free". In fact the scheme excludes millions of people over pension age but under 70 who do not get one of the specified benefits.
The deals will be available through the current Warm Front scheme which has been around for some years. But that scheme is already finding it hard to cope with demand. And with everyone now entitled to discounts of 50% or 100% there are concerns that backlogs will simply get longer. Certainly only a limited number of people will be able to get their homes insulated before this winter bites.
More information 0800 512 012
Tax allowance update
Many people are still confused about the extra changes in tax allowances
which were announced in May and which should have cut the tax deducted from
wages or pensions in September. The confusion extended to local tax offices
which were challenging the information in Saga in July (it was correct).
Allowances were changed in response to the concerns about the five million
people who were due to pay more tax this year after the 10p rate was scrapped.
The change will cut their numbers to one million and reduce the extra tax that
is due.
If you are under 65 this tax year then your tax allowance should have been raised by £600 from £5435 to £6035. This change was put into the PAYE system with September’s pay or pension payment. That meant a one off cut in the tax due of £60 and then each subsequent month tax should be £10 lower than it was earlier in the year. If you are aged 65 or more and you get the higher age allowance of £9030 (or £9180 over 75) then this change in the personal allowance will not affect you. That allowance was already raised by £1180 above inflation and no-one over 65 should pay more tax in 2008/09 – on the same income – than they did in 2007/08. However, one group of over 65s will benefit. The age allowances are reduced for those with an income above £21,800. At £27,790 (£28,090 for the over 75s) the tax allowance is reduced to the standard amount which is now £6035. Some tax offices have said the over 65s do not get this allowance. That is not true.
People of any age whose income is high enough to pay higher rate tax will not gain from the increase in the personal allowance. That is because the threshold at which the 40% higher rate tax cuts in was reduced from £36,000 to £34,800. That will take back the advantage of the higher tax allowance for anyone whose income is £41,435 or more. More details at
www.hmrc.gov.uk/employers/epa.htmISA transfer guidance
How long should it take to move a cash ISA from one bank or building society
to another? After a summer of complaints about the weeks some banks were taking
the British Banker’s Association has issued a new Code of Practice. Sadly the
answer is still up to 23 days. And those of course are not normal days but
banking days so divide that by five and you get more than a month in real time
before your money is safely with the new provider and earning more interest.
Such delays undermine competition. If the process is difficult and time
consuming people are not going to bother just to get a small rise in the
percentage paid on their money. As part of the new code the BBA has promised
that even though the process might still take a while there will no "interest
dead periods" in future. So customers should not end up worse off if they choose
to move. One reason it takes so long is that the banks move the money from the
old account to the new by putting a cheque in the post! Finally, eleven years
after ISAs began, the banks are finally discussing how they might move from
cheques to electronic transfers. More here
Financial Advice
Whether it is about pensions, investment, or raising money many people,
especially those in their fifties and sixties, need good financial advice. But
knowing where to get it can be very hard indeed. Many are tempted to go to their
bank. That is always a bad idea as the advice is not independent. Banks have
their own products which they sell and sometimes have tie-ups with big insurers
or pension providers. But they cannot find the best deal for you from the whole
market. SO it is vital that you get independent financial advice from a well
qualified adviser. There are three key words you need to look for.
Independent
. That word means they have to search the whole market for the best product for you. Only those that do are legally allowed to call themselves independent financial advisers.Fees. Most advisers make most of their money through the commission they earn on the products they sell. That immediately gives them a conflict of interest – are they recommending the product because it is good for you? Or because it pays them well? All independent financial advisers have to offer fees as an option. But it is safest to choose that only charge fees. Otherwise there is a danger that fees and commission will get mixed up.
Qualifications. You can become a registered IFA with very few and very general qualifications. Make sure your adviser specialises in what you want to talk to them about. And has the qualifications to do so. You can do that through the website
www.unbiased.co.uk. You can specify fees, what advice you want, the qualifications they should have (always go for the highest). You can even choose whether the adviser is male or female if that make you feel more confident. Get two or three local contacts and get a first, free meeting with tem. Then choose who you will go with.Dr Who
There is no new Doctor Who series on BBC television until 2010. But this
Christmas sees the first of four one-off specials. And that could push up the
prices of old – and I mean old – Doctor Who toys and souvenirs. A few
weeks ago a seven inch tall rubber dalek dating back to 1965 was sold at auction
for £1500. Made by Newfeld Ltd it sold then for 10/6 – 52.5p which is around £7
at today’s prices.
Current Dr Who items are made in such large numbers they are fairly worthless. But some of the older material from the 1960s can fetch a lot of money. David Howe, a writer and Doctor Who specialist says…
November 2008