Money Box

A Money Box investigation has resulted in a £150,000 refund for a vulnerable romance fraud victim, after their bank initially refused to reimburse. The victim's family were told that a voluntary code, known as the Contingent Reimbursement Model or CRM, designed to protect victims of fraud would not apply in their case, because the payments had been made to an international bank account. We look at what, if anything, banks can do to prevent payments to criminal accounts overseas.

In the Spring Budget the Chancellor promised to end the so-called prepayment meter penalty, where customers currently pay an extra £45 compared to direct debit customers. We look at how the new policy will work, and if it's feasible to level the playing field between pre-payment meter customers and direct debit customers long term. And where does this leave customers who pay by cash or cheque?

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has announced another extension to the Help to Buy Equity loan scheme. For many buyers this extension came at the last possible moment, the previous deadline was the 31st March and some stood to lose their sales. Other buyers had already received their deposits back and won't benefit from the two-month extension. We hear from a buyer and a conveyancing solicitor.

Presenter: Dan Whitworth

In this podcast we breakdown what was in the Spring 2023 budget and how the chancellor’s announcements impact your finances.

The experts on the panel are:

Laura Suter, Head of Personal Finance at AJ Bell

Presenter: Felicity Hannah

Felicity Hannah hears how HMRC have extended the National Insurance top up deadline after a surge in calls plus a listener asks if a drop in house prices means they should worry about negative equity?

Presenter: Felicity Hannah

Grocery prices have increased by 17.1% in the four weeks to 19th February, meaning it’s at the highest level they’ve ever been recorded. This could mean households see over £800 extra on their annual food shop (Kantar).

With grocery inflation being the second most important financial issue for the public, behind energy costs, we speak to shopper’s about how their household budgets are being affected.

The experts on the panel are, Kris Hamer, Director of Insights at the British Retail Consortium, Sabine Goodwin, Coordinator at the Independent Food Aid Network and Lisa Webb, consumer expert at Which.

Presenter: Dan Whitworth

The BBC understands that the Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, is expected to extend the Energy Price Guarantee at current levels for a further three months- but what does that mean for your energy bills?

One of the UK's biggest flat share websites has told Money Box that rents are rising very fast: up almost 13% last year. In January 2022, the average UK monthly rent listed on SpareRoom was just over £650. By January this year it had risen to almost £750 pounds a month. We'll hear from them and also speak to a renter and landlord.

And, as food inflation rises, we'll also look at what kind of impact that's having on household finances? Dan Whitworth speaks to supermarket shoppers in Halifax.

Presenter: Felicity Hannah

(First broadcast 12pm Saturday 4th March, 2023)

The Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, is expected to introduce measures in his March Budget to encourage people who have retired early to return to work in-order to help revive the economy.

In this podcast, we speak to people who are retired, people who are over 50 and looking for a new job, and some who are continuing to work after 70. With them, we identify what the barriers are keeping them out of work, and what the incentives are to keep them in the workforce.

The experts on the panel are, Kim Chaplain, specialist advisor for work at the Centre for Ageing Better, and Adrian Adair, chief operating officer at Morson Group.

Presenter: Felicity Hannah

(First broadcast 3pm Wednesday 1st March, 2023)

The Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, is expected to use his Budget on March 15th to introduce measures to to encourage people over 50 to return to work.

Some energy customers are being left for months with faulty prepayment meters. Several people have told Money Box that although their electricity has not been disconnected the screens showing their credit has been blank since Christmas and they cannot top up, so they have no idea how much electricity they're using or what it is costing them. The law says suppliers should take 'appropriate action' within hours - arranging to fix or replace the meter. Or at the least to arrange an appointment.

And where should you put your money to make the most out of it? We'll talk savings with Anna Bowes from Savings Champion.

Presenter: Paul Lewis

(First broadcast 12pm, Saturday 25th February, 2023)

With the end of the tax year fast approaching, people are looking at their finances and investments. But in a cost of living crisis with unstable markets, are they performing, and how should we be investing?

The experts on the panel are Sangita Chawla, Managing Director at Standard Life, and Kirsty Stone, Chartered Financial Adviser at The Private Office.

Presenter: Adam Shaw

(First broadcast 3pm, Wednesday 22nd February 2023)

The Office of the Public Guardian has told Money Box it apologises to its customers for the distress caused by delays in dealing with applications for Lasting Powers of Attorney. Its target is turning them round in eight weeks. But its own website says people should expect to wait twenty. It also says it has recruited more staff to process applications and teams have been working around the clock to reduce wait times and are now registering around 18,000 more LPAs a month than before the pandemic. We'll hear from listeners and speak to a legal expert.

How should I invest? New research looks at active and passive investing, we'll speak to co-author Professor Crawford Spence of King's College London.

And how can you avoid an huge estimated bill from your energy company?

Presenter: Paul Lewis

(First broadcast 12pm Saturday 18th January, 2023)

The problem of debt is never too far from the headlines at the moment. This week a group of charities - Citizens Advice, Step Change and Christians Against Poverty - told the BBC they're seeing record numbers of people coming to them for help with problem debt. Why is that and what can people who're worried about debt do?

Presenter: Dan Whitworth

(First broadcast 3pm Wednesday 15th January, 2023)