Financial news

• Justice for garage door and dodgy used motor victims

  01-09-2017 22:33 via feedproxy.google.com
  Two happy customers are quids in after long battles for justice.
  
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• Husband and wife bank £400m from sale of Matchesfashion.com

  01-09-2017 20:44
  Tom and Ruth Chapman join the ranks of the mega-rich after selling their online designer fashion empire to investorsA husband and wife who started in fashion retail with one shop in Wimbledon 30 years ago have banked £400m after selling their online designer empire Matchesfashion.com to private equity investors.
  Tom and Ruth Chapman will join the ranks of the mega-rich after taking their business, which sells brands including Gucci, Prada and Stella McCartney, as well as their own label Ra
  
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• Upgrade downturn: why are people holding on to their old phones?

  01-09-2017 19:24 via theguardian.com
  Smartphone manufacturers are looking to the new iPhone to boost a lagging market, which has seen annual sales growth slumpIt is less than a fortnight until the launch of the new iPhone, but shoppers outside Apple’s flagship London store express no enthusiasm at the thought of queuing up for it.A common refrain among phone owners outside the shop is to point to their handset and state: “I’ll probably wait till it breaks.” The new iPhone makes its debut on 12 September and
  
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• Five more carmakers launch UK scrappage schemes as sales falter

  01-09-2017 19:16
  Renault, Nissan, Toyota and Kia and VW offering discounts on a new car amid threat of renewed action against polluting vehicles Five more carmakers have launched scrappage schemes as the auto industry tries to kickstart the stuttering UK market by offering thousands of pounds off new, less polluting models. Renault, Nissan, Toyota and Kia announced deals whereby owners of cars registered before 2010 could save up to £2,000 by trading in their vehicles for a new one. Continue reading...
  
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• Sports Direct workers invited to press sad or happy emoji clocking in

  01-09-2017 17:33
  Union says use of fingerprint recognition technology in survey system at warehouse means grievances unlikely to be raisedSports Direct warehouse staff who say they are unhappy with their working conditions are being identified by their fingerprints and asked to explain their grievances to management, according to the trade union Unite.The leisurewear company has introduced a staff survey system at its Shirebrook warehouse, Derbyshire, which was at the centre of allegations of “gulag”
  
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• Let’s move to Arundel, West Sussex: land of turrets and tea rooms

  01-09-2017 17:30 via theguardian.com
  No, this is not Frozen’s Arendelle. But it’s an easy mistake to makeWhat’s going for it? Arundel or Arendelle? Sometimes it’s hard to tell them apart. Both fairytale towns, with romantic skylines, turreted castles and gothic twiddles. Both dominated by benevolent if powerful rulers: King Agnarr and Queen Iduna of the Ancient House of Frozen, or the Dukes of Norfolk, whose castle and Catholic cathedral loom over Arundel. There’s no escaping the Norfolks here. They ha
  
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• David Davis takes aim at Trump's isolationist rhetoric in US speech

  01-09-2017 17:14
  Brexit secretary also tells US Chamber of Commerce Britain will not take part in a ‘race to the bottom’ to secure trade dealsThe Brexit secretary, David Davis, has taken aim at the isolationist rhetoric of Donald Trump in a pointed speech in which he told US business leaders that free trade was the solution to, not the cause of, global turmoil.Speaking to the US Chamber of Commerce, Davis said Britain would not take part in a “race to the bottom” in order to secure new fr
  
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• A £7,600-plus service charge on my flat above a shop is bankrupting me

  01-09-2017 14:17 via theguardian.com
  Her bill has soared by 1,420% – to more than her mortgage – after Heinz’ property arm bought the freehold. Included is £1,236 for cleaning a corridorHeinz is bankrupting me. That was the claim this week from Mary-Anne Thompson, who has seen the annual service charge on her London flat rocket from around £500 to more than £7,600.She claims the £640 a month she has been asked to pay is “extortionate” and represents a sizeable chunk of her month
  
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• UK petrol prices likely to soar owing to Tropical Storm Harvey, says RAC

  01-09-2017 14:06 via theguardian.com
  Unleaded petrol could rise by 4p a litre, its highest level in more than two years, after storm curtails US oil productionThe price of petrol at UK pumps is likely to rise to its highest level in more than two years owing to the effects of Tropical Storm Harvey, motoring association the RAC has warned. Unleaded petrol could rise in cost by 4p a litre in the coming days, making it more expensive than diesel for the first time in more than a year. Continue reading...
  
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• UK manufacturing beats forecasts with strong growth in August

  01-09-2017 12:00
  Weak pound reported to have helped competitiveness, but rising raw material prices could cause problemsBritain’s manufacturers increased production at the fastest pace in seven months in August, taking on more workers to keep up with strong domestic and international demand. The closely watched Markit/Cips UK manufacturing PMI barometer of factory sentiment showed activity jumped to 56.9 last month from 55.3 in July, the second-highest level in more than three years, helped by the weak val
  
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• Third of UK employees lack financial safety net - FT Adviser

  01-09-2017 09:08
  FT Adviser
  Third of UK employees lack financial safety net
  FT Adviser
  Almost a third (30 per cent) of UK employees have no financial back-up plans in place should they or a loved one lose their primary source of income. Figures released by Legal and General reveal the extent of the country's protection gap, with just 13 ...
  
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• Meet the UK energy company that will give profits back to customers

  01-09-2017 08:04
  People’s Energy seeks ‘fairer, simpler’ way to supply energy while undermining dominance of big six suppliers
  It’s a common grumble: lured in by a big energy supplier offering a low tariff, you find your bills skyrocketing a year later when the agreement expires and the standard variable rate kicks in.For one couple, David Pike and Karin Sode, the irritation became so great that they decided to start their own energy company. Continue reading...
  
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• Why don't universities better prepare students for self-employment?

  01-09-2017 08:00
  There’s a steep rise in the number of young people going freelance, yet many universities still don’t educate them enough about self-employmentEntrepreneurship is a hot topic within universities, and there are innovative programmes helping guide the next generation of business founders. But many students are still not accessing the support needed to go it alone. The student population has the potential to drive the UK’s boom in self-employment – since 2008 there has been
  
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• UK's low-paid workers 'penalised for taking children to hospital'

  01-09-2017 01:01 via theguardian.com
  TUC study finds many employees taking time off for childcare are punished by bosses with some fearing for their jobBosses are punishing parents for taking their sick children to hospital, according to a “shocking” TUC study that finds many low-paid workers are disciplined for taking time off for childcare.One mother who works in retail said: “My baby stopped breathing and I had to go to hospital – I got threatened with a disciplinary.”Continue reading...
  
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