Finance Matters

• 10Mar

  Warning on packaged bank accounts

  Money No Comments

  From The BBC:

  Bank accounts which charge fees for extra benefits such as insurance may be being mis-sold, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has warned.It says the danger lies in people buying packaged accounts with insurance that is too expensive or inadequate. The FSA says about 15% of the adult population already have these accounts, so large numbers of people might be disadvantaged by them. The warning comes in the FSA’s Financial Risk Outlook for 2010. “Packaged accounts may offer value for money for some consumers, but they may not benefit all,” the FSA said. “Consumers could be better off purchasing products individually or not at all. “And some may find that where the add-ons are insurance products, they do not provide the expected level of cover,” it added. ‘Unfair treatment’The central point of the Financial Risk Outlook is that the financial system, and the firms that operate in it, are going to be under considerable pressure in the coming years because of the lingering effects of the…

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• 10Mar

  Top public servants’ pay frozen

  Money No Comments

  From The BBC:

  Thousands of top-earning public sector workers, including judges, GPs, NHS managers and senior civil servants, are to have their pay frozen in 2010/11.The Senior Salaries Review Body (SSRB) said there was “no justification for general pay increases”. It did propose rises for some NHS managers and civil servants, but they were rejected by ministers. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the “tough approach” to public sector pay would save £3 billion by 2013/14. The SSRB is independent of the government, but its recommendations are not binding and ministers will have the final say.
  In a speech on Wednesday, the prime minister said: “Part of our tough approach to spending will be our tough approach to pay in the public sector. “So today I can say that after the reports of the review bodies we will also freeze the salaries of senior staff in the civil service, senior staff in the military, the judiciary, senior managers in the health service and the pay of consultants, GPs and dentists.”…

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• 10Mar

  Mobile phone that allows boss to snoop

  Business No Comments

  From The BBC:

  Researchers have produced a mobile phone that could be a boon for prying bosses wanting to keep tabs on the movements of their staff.Japanese phone giant KDDI Corporation has developed technology that tracks even the tiniest movement of the user and beams the information back to HQ. It works by analysing the movement of accelerometers, found in many handsets. Activities such as walking, climbing stairs or even cleaning can be identified, the researchers say. The company plans to sell the service to clients such as managers, foremen and employment agencies. “Technically, I think this is an incredibly important innovation,” says Philip Sugai, director of the mobile consumer lab at the International University of Japan. “For example, when applied to the issue of telemedicine, or other situations in which remotely monitoring or accessing an individual’s personal movements is vital to that service. “But there will surely be negative consequences when applied to employee tracking or salesfor…

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• 10Mar

  Standard Life enjoys profit boost

  Money No Comments

  From The BBC:

  Insurance firm Standard Life has reported better-than-expected profits in 2009 and unveiled plans for an extra £100m of cost-cuts by 2012.Operating profit at the Edinburgh-based firm fell 1.5% to £919m, but the result beat expectations thanks to its Asian unit and rising investor confidence. The firm, which employs 10,000 people, made £47m of cuts last year towards its target of £75m by the end of 2010. Standard added it would spend more than £200m to develop and promote products.
  “The year 2009 was a successful year for Standard Life in which we delivered against our strategic objectives and built a strong platform for future profitable growth,” said chief executive David Nish. The cost reductions achieved during the year included outsourcing some IT development and restructuring some European service operations. The results were also boosted by reducing risk in its existing business, analysts said. Without these risk reductions, the profit figure would…

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• 10Mar

  Banking fraud ‘moves to internet’

  Money No Comments

  From The BBC:

  Fraudsters are continuing their switch from traditional card fraud to raiding online bank accounts, according to new research.Fraud losses on UK credit and debit cards totalled £440m in 2009 – a drop of 28% compared with the previous year – the UK Cards Association said. But the number of “phishing” attacks rose by 16% in the same period. This is when fraudsters trick people into entering their personal details on a website or in an e-mail. Fraud kitsThe fall in card fraud is the first recorded for three years, with criminals now using a series of methods aimed at targeting online banking, which has risen in popularity.
  The UK Cards Association said that criminals were hoping to avoid banks’ own security controls by tricking people out of their personal details through scams, or by infecting home computers with software that gathers these details. As a result, the total amount of online banking losses reached £59.7m in 2009, a 14% rise compared with the previous year. Mela…

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• 28Nov

  Keeping pensions safe – improving scheme governance and administration

  Pensions No Comments

  From The Pensions Regulator:

  The regulator today launches a campaign aimed at encouraging good governance and administration and better management of pension scheme risks. A statement published alongside results of the 2009 pension scheme governance survey outlines the regulator’s key focus areas.

  The regulator makes clear that trustees responsible for running pension schemes need to be sure that:

  Pensions Regulator chief executive Tony Hobman said:

  “Good governance underpins secure pensions.

  “Scheme members entrust their pension savings into the hands of others to a total estimate of more than £1 trillion in assets, often for decades of their working lives.

  “The scale of the market and the importance of the task of managing people’s life savings to secure their income in retirement require robust standards of…

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• 28Nov

  Regulator’s 2009 recovery plan report shows how schemes are coping in the downturn

  Pensions No Comments

  From The Pensions Regulator:

  The Pensions Regulator today published the latest edition of its annual

  Pensions Regulator chair, David Norgrove said: “The three tranches of scheme valuations have been conducted in very different economic circumstances and this analysis explores some of the effects that the downturn, and other factors such as longevity improvements, have had on scheme funding.

  “We urge trustees to continue to take a prudent approach to assessing schemes’ technical provisions, to maintain an honest and open dialogue with employers, and to remain aware of the changing economic situation as they focus on the long term interests of scheme members. The regulator will continue to focus on this shared goal.”

  Some of the key findings are:…

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• 28Nov

  Crackdown on dodgy debt firms

  IVAs No Comments

  From IVANews:

  clampdown on firms which promise to help struggling borrowers repay debts could lead to unscrupulous companies being banned.
  The Office of Fair Trading is launching a probe into debt management firms following fears that consumers who are already in distress are being left worse off. Misleading advertising and poor advice can result in borrowers signing up to costly and inappropriate plans.
  There are about 150 debt management companies which claim to put borrowers with several debts on to repayment plans. They negotiate with debt collectors and credit firms to get interest payments frozen and repayments lowered.
  However, some firms falsely claim to be charities or government-backed. Others have made unlawful, unsolicited calls and sent mailings about repayment plans to customers already laden with debt.
  The companies make their money from commission paid by credit firms. However, many also sell insurance alongside the debts.
  In particular, the OFT will probe online advertising.
  Source…

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• 28Nov

  BBA: Mortgage lending double 2008 levels

  Mortgages No Comments

  From This is Money:

  Net lending, which strips out redemptions and repayments, also held firm at £3.1bn, slightly higher than the £2.8bn figure recorded in August.

  Both spending and repayments on credit cards were unchanged from the previous month at £5.7bn and £6bn respectively.

  David Dooks, BBA statistics director, said: ‘The longer it takes to emerge from recession, the longer we will see households and businesses continue to borrow with caution.

  Remortgaging levels also remained subdued during the month, as low interest rates mean many people are better off staying on their lender’s standard variable rate when their existing deal comes to an end.

  The low levels of remortgaging meant total mortgage advances also remained depressed during October at £9bn, slightly ahead of the previous month’s figure but still 20% lower than a year ago….

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• 28Nov

  House prices – ‘five years to recover’

  Mortgages No Comments

  From This is Money:

  The average estimate suggests it will take five years for the market to recover. One group, Capital Economics, claimed it could take until 2019, while others said it would be any time between 2012 and 2016.

  ‘Prices need to fall a further 20% to 25% to get back their long-term trend.

  Others including Fitch and Savills are predicting a fall of between six and 8%.
  But the Bloomberg survey also showed the Centre for Economics and Business Research forecasting a 4% rise, while Citigroup say it could be anything from five to 10%.

  The UK’s third biggest mortgage lender said the value of new loans agreed for the six months to the end of September was down 47% to £70.5bn….

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