Bank of England interest-rate change

The Bank of England interest rate (Bank Rate) is important because it affects how much it costs you to borrow money and how much you earn on your savings.

Moneymadeclear service has launched

The FSA, in partnership with Government, has launched a one-year pilot to test delivery of a money guidance service in the North West and North East of England, using the Moneymadeclear brand.

Banking reform

Last year the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) increased the limit for deposits from £35,000 to £50,000 per person. We have proposed some other compensation changes – find out what these are.

Building society mergers and compensation

We have introduced a temporary rule to allow merging building societies to keep separate FSCS compensation limits for customers who already have accounts with each society.

Unauthorised overdraft charges

The OFT, seven banks and one building society have initiated a test case in the High Court about unauthorised overdraft charges. Find out what this means for you if you've made a complaint or are thinking of making one.

Critical illness cover

Critical illness cover (CIC) pays out a lump sum if you are diagnosed with certain illnesses – it won't replace your income. The illnesses covered will be specified in the policy along with any exclusions – these differ between insurers – so make sure you check what you're actually covered for.

Mobile phone insurance

Be wary of any calls you receive soon after buying a mobile phone from companies offering you insurance cover. Various unauthorised providers claim they are linked to shops and mobile phone providers but they may not be who they say they are.

Payment protection insurance

Payment protection insurance (PPI) will cover monthly repayments on mortgages, loans, credit/store cards or catalogue payments if you have an accident or sickness and are unable to work, or you become unemployed – but for a fixed period of time. You don't have to take it out but if you do, make sure you check what you're actually covered for.

Pension term assurance

Pension term assurance (PTA) is a type of term assurance which uses the rules for pension schemes to provide life cover. You don't pay pension contributions so you won't get an income in retirement – it only pays out on your death.

Mortgage arrears and repossessions (including home purchase plans)

Are you having problems paying your mortgage (or home purchase plan), or do you expect to have these problems soon? Is your lender trying to repossess your home? It is best to act sooner rather than later. So here are some useful tips to help you.

Pension transfers

We recently looked at the advice some firms have given consumers to transfer money from their pensions to a new personal pension or self-invested personal pension (SIPP). We found that in most cases people were given suitable advice, but in a small number of cases people were wrongly advised to transfer their pension.

Increase to UK compensation limit

We have increased the compensation limit on deposits you hold with banks, building societies and credit unions that fail from £35,000 up to a total of £50,000 for each customer's claim. This increase applies from Tuesday 7 October 2008.

ISAs (Individual Savings Accounts)

By using an ISA you can invest in cash or longer-term investments and not pay tax on the income you get from it.

You'll see that providers are competing hard to get you to take up any unused ISA allowances – but don’t get hooked by the headline interest rates – they may have strings attached.

Landbanking

Have you been approached to invest in land? Companies operating these schemes are looking for investors to buy plots of land in areas which have not yet been granted planning permission, and may be in Greenfield or Greenbelt zones.

Mortgage endowments

Because of stock market conditions, many endowment policies taken out in the 1980s and 1990s are unlikely to pay out the amounts originally estimated. So if you’re using your endowment policy to pay off a mortgage, it may not pay out enough to do so.

Split capital investment trusts

Splits are investment companies and most are listed on the London Stock Exchange. They were in the news a few years back as there was concern about their financial position and a lot of people lost money they had invested. An independent company, Fund Distribution Limited (FDL), was created in 2005 to administer a distribution fund and make payments to qualifying investors.

Spread betting

Spread betting can be on anything – sports, politics or reality TV. With spread betting, the more right you are, the more you can win but the more wrong you are, the more you can lose – and your loss is not limited to the amount of your stake.

Venture capital trusts

Venture capital trusts (VCTs) provide a valuable source of capital for small companies and help the UK economy to develop, but make sure you understand the risks as well as the benefits before investing.