MONEY MORSELS
Savings opening
NOTTINGHAM Building Society is launching a cash Lifetime Isa, only the second of its kind in the UK after Skipton Building Society. The deal gives a 25 pc bonus for buying a first home or if you’re saving for retirement. Nottingham has yet to reveal the rate it will offer.
Energy hike
FIRST Utility is hiking prices on its First Variable tariff by an average of 5.9 pc from July 23. The increase will add an extra £5.58 to the average household’s monthly bill, pushing the annual cost from £1,132 to £1,199.
Holiday refunds
MOre than 40 pc of travel insurance policies analysed by Defaqto will not pay out if an airline collapses, and two-thirds of policies do not protect travellers whose accommodation firm or tour company fails. eU rules set to be introduced on July 1 mean that those who buy a ‘package holiday’ will be refunded and returned home if the hotel or airline goes bust.
Landlord cities
MANCHESTER is the best place in the UK to be a landlord, according to comparison site GoCompare. Manchester had the highest rental yield in the country at 5.55 pc and a rental price growth of 5.76 pc. Bottom of the list was Belfast, where landlords can expect a yield of 3.77 pc and rental prices have grown just 2.19 pc over five years.
Billing blunders
ALMOST 3 million people in the UK have been overcharged by their phone providers, with average errors costing £23. Comparison site uSwitch suggested that 16.5 million people had been hit with ‘surprise charges’ after calling premium numbers or exceeding their data allowance. These add £18.70 to monthly bills.
Leasehold charges
HOMEOWNERS with leasehold properties are being slapped with permission fees, including charges of £252 to own a pet and £60 to install a bell. Which? says freeholders and managing agents charge an initial fee for a request to carry out improvements, and then another to get permission. Charges include £2,500 for people who want to build a conservatory and £300 to erect a fence.
£9.2bn tax errors
HMrC is owed £9.2 billion due to taxpayer mistakes and carelessness when filing returns. Official figures show the ‘tax gap’ — the difference between the amount of tax that should have been paid in 2016/17 and what was paid — has increased by £1 billion since the previous financial year to £33 billion. Some £9.2 billion of this is down to errors.
Lucy Brennan, partner at Saffery Champness, says: ‘ Part of the problem remains a worrying lack of understanding amongst taxpayers about their obligations, and the tax system.’