Financial news

• When smart meters save money – and the overheating planet | Letters

  20-05-2024 19:00
  
  Michael Wilkinson has had a good experience using a smart meter when charging his electric car and using a heat pump. But other readers remain unconvinced about their benefitsRecent letters about smart meters (14 May) reported some readers’ bad experiences, but it’s not all negative – our smart meter is allowing our household to cut carbon and save money. In combination with our electric vehicle charger, the smart meter allows us to automatically charge our car at times when th
  
  Read more

• A generation of students is being ripped off – and our blood should be boiling | Zoe Williams

  20-05-2024 18:14
  
  Politicians talk about tuition fees as if the students were somehow getting a good deal. In reality, they’re being shockingly exploitedWhether or not universities are at risk of going bust is often talked about like a second-order problem. Sure, it’s sad and all, but is it as serious as a local authority going bankrupt? Is anyone actually going to die if non-Russell Group universities can no longer afford to run humanities degrees? Is it the end of the world for students to leave wit
  
  Read more

• Young people: have you relocated to a more affordable UK town, small city or village?

  20-05-2024 14:23
  
  We’re interested to hear from people under 45 in the UK who have moved to a smaller community with a lower cost of living, and how they’ve been finding itWe’re keen to hear from people under the age of 45 who have in recent years relocated to a smaller, more affordable community in the UK – whether that’s a small city, town or village.We’d like to know why people have made such a move, how their new life has been working out, and what the positives and the neg
  
  Read more

• ‘Free money’ and 10% interest: carrots UK banks are dangling to get you to switch

  20-05-2024 10:00
  
  Better deals are on offer in the battle to tempt new current account customers. But, be warned, there are a few strings attachedThe battle to attract current account customers is hotting up, with two banks offering £175 “free money”, and a third tempting people with a 10% interest rate.The payments from Santander and First Direct, and the inflation-busting interest rate offered by Virgin Money, are the latest carrots being dangled in front of potential customers in an attempt t
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• UK state pension top-ups: paying now could pay dividends later

  20-05-2024 09:00
  
  Until next April people under new system can fill gaps in their NI records going back to 2006-07UK state pensions: are older retirees getting a bad deal?It may not sound very exciting, but for many people in their 40s, 50s and 60s topping up your state pension can generate a better return than almost any other way of using your savings cash. In very simple terms, if you invest about £800-£900 now and end up living well into retirement, you could get back £6,500-plus. Live to a
  
  Read more

• A botched RAC rescue turned our French road trip into an ordeal

  20-05-2024 08:00
  
  When our new motorhome broke down in France we felt unsafe and were stranded for five daysWhen I retired from work last year, my wife and I set off on a road trip to France in our new motorhome. Two weeks into our trip, the engine failed on a campsite. We’d bought a £284 breakdown policy with the RAC, including European cover, and a recovery vehicle arrived promptly. The mechanic was unable to fix the problem, so we were told it would be towed to a dealership. However, the recovery t
  
  Read more

• Young buyers face paying 191 percent more than parents’ generation for first home

  20-05-2024 01:01 via express.co.uk
  
  The figure, which represents a rise on top of normal inflation, is further evidence of the punishing impact of spiralling prices.
  
  Read more

Follow @financialnwsUK on Twitter!