Pocket money... shop around for cheaper broadband

⬤ Protect yourself from bill rises in 2024 and switch broadband or phone provider today. “Some 26% of broadband and 34% of mobilephone customers were out of contract at the end of June, according to the telecoms regulator Ofcom, and they could save hundreds of pounds by signing up for a new deal,” says George Nixon in The Sunday Times.

According to the regulator, the average broadband customer could save £100 a year by shopping around for a better deal. Meanwhile, comparison website Uswitch estimates that you could save £360 a year at the end of your mobile-phone contract if you switch to a sim-only deal.

Before you commit to a new contract check whether your new provider “imposes mid-contract price rises, where companies put up their bills each year in line with inflation”. Ofcom is hopefully going to end this practice soon, but the change is unlikely to occur before the next round of price increases in March or April.

⬤ Santander is taking drastic steps to reduce the amount of money customers are losing to Facebook scams. “More than 7,000 Santander customers have reported losses of £6.5m to fraudsters on the site, up 50% on last year,” reports Jessica Beard in the Daily Mail.

Anyone who now tries to pay on Facebook Marketplace using Santander’s online banking app will have the payment blocked unless they confirm they have seen the goods.“In some cases, items listed on Facebook Marketplace never turn up after payment, leaving users out of pocket.” Santander is the first UK bank to single out Facebook within its payment systems.

Don’t tick the box when you haven’t seen the item. You may struggle to get your money back if it turns out it was a scam.

⬤ “Petrol prices have fallen to their lowest in more than two years,” reports Sammy Gecsoyler in The Guardian. A litre of unleaded petrol now costs an average 142.57p, according to data from the RAC. That’s 10p less than in the run-up to Christmas last year and 14p less than two months ago. Moreover, prices should keep declining as we approach Christmas because wholesale prices have fallen “significantly” of late, says Simon Williams from the RAC.