STRAIGHT TO THE POINT
CAN I throw old pound coins into the Metro Bank coin-counting machine, or do I need to pay them in separately now that they are no longer accepted in shops? V. J., London. MeTro bank’s so- called Magic Money Machines have been updated and will only accept new pound coins. but you can still pay in old pound coins over the counter at any bank of which you are a customer. I READ in Money Mail that TSB offers a personal loan rate of 2.9 pc, meaning someone borrowing £10,000 over five years would repay £10,755 including interest.
I recently took out a £10,000 loan with Lloyds TSB and must repay £12,353 over five years. Why am I paying more? K. H., Suffolk. IF yoU took out a loan recently, it was likely with Lloyds, rather than Lloyds TSb. TSb is no longer part of Lloyds bank. The group split in 2013, and Lloyds and TSb offer different products and rates. WHEN I tried to pay for car hire at Malaga airport, my Tesco credit card was declined — despite being nowhere near my limit.
I had to pay £470 for extra insurance so the company would accept a different card to the one with which I booked.
When I rang Tesco Bank, I was told it didn’t like dealing with that car hire firm. Is that why my card was rejected? J. N., Newport. TeSCo bank says that your card was not declined, but referred. This means the merchant needed to call for an authorisation code. If it had done so, the payment would have gone through. Tesco bank says the comments made by its employee do not reflect the company’s view, and it is offering you £235 as a gesture of goodwill. MY WIFE cancelled a phone contract with iD Mobile in April. It sent a final bill for £11 and I sent a cheque by recorded delivery, as she has been in and out of hospital being treated for cancer.
But iD continues to send letters claiming she owes money and threatening legal action. I’ve called many times, to no avail. R. B., Poole, Dorset. id MobILe, part of Carphone Warehouse, apologises for its errors and the time taken to resolve the matter. you don’t owe any money and it is giving you £50 as a gesture of goodwill, which you wish to donate to Poole Hospital Cancer Treatment Trust.