Finance and Business

Why should we bail out EU countries in trouble?
I'm sick and tired of our hard earned cash propping up countries in the EU such as Portugal, Greece, Ireland and now Italy. It's a damn disgrace and there's no way we should be doing it anyway when we have our own economic issues.
16-Jul-11 14:17

Indiscreet bank cashier with a loud voice
I thought that bank staff were supposed to be discreet when it comes to dealing with the financial affairs of customers? We're clearly the young lady that I was served by today hasn't been on that particular training course.
12-Jun-11 13:58

Royal Wedding, the money could be better spent
I don't have a problem with people getting married and I guess I don't mind the royals. What I do mind,however, is obscene levels of spending like this at a time when we're all having to tighten our belts and watch the pennies.
26-Apr-11 13:57

MBNA Virgin Credit card problems
All this has left me with a very bad taste in my mouth. Imagine our dismay when it turns out that if you have to cancel an MBNA credit card they'll keep the £115 annual fee if you've made any purchases at all.
21-Mar-11 16:29

Dirty debt collectors and their tricks
Many of these companies operate, quite literally, on the fringes of the law and actually have very little power. There are ways to challenge these ripoff merchants, join the Consumer Action Group and find out how to fight back.
8-Dec-10 19:28

Home contents insurance, always shop around!
I bought some Home Contents Insurance many years ago, with Norwich Union underwritten by Lloyds TSB, and I remember quite clearly being told by the sale rep that if I didn't make a claim, I'd be entitled to a no claims bonus.
30-Nov-10 18:58

The housing bubble in the UK, house prices falling
Yes house prices are falling and will continue to fall. UK house prices are one of the biggest economic bubbles schemes in this pathetic country's history. It will burst as all bubbles do, but the question is are you ready?
17-Nov-10 21:40

Car insurance is far too expensive
Many years ago, I passed my driving test at the second attempt. I felt an unprecedented level of joy because this was it, my ticket to freedom. I could finally look cool and drive around my babe magnet...
28-Sep-10 09:32

Bank accounts offering bonus interest rates
There is a plague of bank accounts offering bonus interest rates to new customers for the first year, after which the rate plummets to less than 1%. What's the point in all of this when they then move on?
14-Sep-10 19:33

Get off my back you whining sponger
Why should I, as a pensioner, support these moaners via my taxes, so that they can live the life of Reilly and I have to think carefully as to whether I can eat or heat.  It's about time the plug was pulled on ALL benefits.
6-Jul-10 21:08

HSBC Bank error left us out of pocket
It's just after Christmas and needless to say I don't have large sums of money at my disposal.  Luckily I was able to borrow money to pay my rent but I have not been able to pay credit cards and household bills thanks to HSBC.
27-Jan-10 18:07

Ex not paying child support
My sister has been split from her ex husband for a number of years and he has always been pretty elusive in making child support payments... for example stopping whenever he felt like it.
26-Jan-10 17:32

Payment protection insurance nothing but a scam
It has come to my attention that payment protection insurance (PPI) is nothing but a scam and I'm not falling for it any more. It's basically a protection racket dreamt up by greedy financial institutions so they can milk us for more cash.
19-May-09 21:16

Paypal bank transfer, why is it so slow?
Why does it take so long to transfer money from PayPal to your bank account? In this day and age of electronic or online banking there's surely no reason why a bank transfer transaction should take so long?
30-Apr-09 15:02

Banks send out too many letters
Why do they have to send out so many of them? When I downgraded my bank account recently I received a letter informing me I had downgraded and a second one to tell me my overdraft is the same. Why???
17-Apr-09 13:49

Fat cat greedy brokers and banks, sick of them all!
We went to a broker in the hopes of decreasing our monthly outgoings. He was very charming and made all the right noises but heavens I was shocked to find out how much they really get.
13-Apr-09 13:24

Being self employed, is it worth it?
There's no incentive to run a small business or be self employed is there? I've been landed with a tax bill that I will struggle to pay this year. I'd almost be better off on the dole claiming benefits than trying to make an honest living...
4-Jan-09 13:53

Bank interest rate cut benefits us how exactly?
Bank rate cut just isn't reaching the people it's supposed to help. What is the point of the bank of england cutting the base rate if the mortgage lenders aren't going to pass the benefit on to the public by reducing mortgage rates?
5-Dec-08 11:40

No sympathy for greedy bankers any more
You can't open a newspaper or turn on the TV these days without fnding a story about some investment bank or other that has gone to the wall. Companies left, right and centre are announcing job cuts.
20-Nov-08 18:49

Virgin credit card problems
I've been having some problems with my Virgin credit card recently and not sure where I stand. The obvious thing to do would be to ring them but Ive just spent 45 minutes on hold to a national rate line before hanging up.
2-Oct-08 14:29

Why don't solicitors use plain English?
If you've ever had to have a solicitor draw up a legal document you may know what I'm talking about. The formal language used can be quite stuffy and repetitive. In this day and age, why can't they use plain English?
3-Mar-08 22:52

Cash point problems and bank charges
I am disgusted with the way that Lloyd's TSB have treated me as a customer. I have recieved an insufficient funds charge on a payment I made to another personal account, all because of cash point card problems in the first place!
13-Dec-07 12:07

Solicitors fees and hourly charges are a bit steep
I read a gripe recently about solicitors and I must say I totally agree with the author. Having challenged the charges I have been fobbed off with a Frankenstein list of hourly work and legal drivel.
1-Oct-07 14:02

BT phone problems, getting 'incorrect number'
Let's start with the fact I'm starting a new business. This is obviously stressful enough without the additional and to be frank, quite definitely unwanted problems that come with dealing with BT!
22-Aug-07 20:54

Older generation have the cash
Can anyone explain to me why the vast majority of this country's businesses and manufacturers have so little interest in profit that they address all their advertising campaigns to the wrong market?
23-May-07 17:38

Inefficient banking systems
This is the second time I've been charged a penalty fee thanks to inefficient banking systems and I'm fuming about it. I paid the balance on my Nationwide credit card 3 days ago, but checking online I see that it hasn't arrived there yet.
29-Apr-07 12:59

Low-usage charge for NOT using my credit card
I read in the news today that Lloyds TSB are to introduce a £35 annual charge for customers who either use their credit card rarely or don't use it at all. Is this some kind of sick joke or something?
23-Feb-07 12:21

Customers fed up with overcharging banks
The big banks despite making huge profits and announcing that they intend to make even more profit by charging customers an annual fee, also charge inflated and illegal charges when customers exceed their overdraft limit.
20-Feb-07 15:39

A question about state pension and tax deductions
For 35 years I worked and was deducted high national insurance contributions towards a SERPS pension - (known as State Second Pension). Now I am retired, I am told that 7% of my State Pension is to be clawed back as tax!
7-Feb-07 15:42

The end of free banking with endless bank charges?
Is the notion of free banking about to become a thing of the past then? I certainly hope not, because I think that the major banks such as First Direct make enough money out of us as it is.
15-Nov-06 15:16

Bank charges are too high and so unfair
I received a letter from my bank telling me that there were insufficient funds in my account. A direct debit had gone out on the same day money went in, but I still end up paying bank charges.
19-Oct-06 16:21

Automated telephone services are so annoying
When you ring up the bank or some other service these days, you get the run around through a dozen automated telephone services just to talk to someone that is probably only sat down the road.
15-Aug-06 20:36

Automatic subscription renewal fees on credit card
Don't get sucked in by subscriptinons and memberships etc. where they automatically renew and take money from your bank account or credit card.
1-Jun-06 22:20

Why can't I make payments the easy way?
How hard can it be to pay your bills the easy way, online through a direct payment transfer? Depends on who you are dealing with and how stuborn they can be. Come on folks, cheques and cash are a thing of the past!
25-May-06 15:41

Junk mail from banks and credit card companies
I applied for this online banking account because I didn't want as much junk mail, yet they are still sending me credit card application forms. Why do banks, credit card companies etc. insist on bombarding us with junk mail?
3-Mar-06 12:16

Banks are slow to pay you money back
I had a mortgage with a certain large high street bank.  Now as you may know, it’s worth shopping around every now and again to get a better mortgage deal and I'm keen to make sure I don’t pay more in interest than I have to.
16-Nov-05 17:50

Bombarded with offers of loans and credit
It feels like everywhere you turn, credit card companies and banks are falling over each other to try and persuade you to borrow more money.
6-Jul-05 11:37

Cancelled credit card still pays out
Did you know that if you pay off or transferred the outstanding balance on your credit card, then cancel the card that that isn't necessarily the end of the story?
17-May-05 18:21