MONEY MORSELS

Spam crackdown

UNWANTED texts and emails about pension transfers should be banned alongside the Government’s planned crackdown on cold-calling. Andrew Warwick-Thompson, of The Pensions Regulator, also called for a ban on pension transfers into small self-administered schemes ( SSAS) that provide little protection to savers.

Families renting

ALMOST a million more families with children are renting privately than a decade ago. The latest English Housing Survey found there are now 4.5 million people who rent privately. They spend 35 pc of their income on housing, compared with 18 pc for home owners with mortgages.

Stock market fears

SAVERS pulled nearly £700 million out of shares in January over concerns the stock market might fall. This was a turnaround on December, when nearly £600 million was pumped into shares, according to The Investment Association.

Energy price hikes

SMALL energy suppliers are copying the Big Six and hitting customers with inflation-busting price hikes. Co-op Energy and First Utility will raise prices from April by 5 pc and 9.7 pc respectively, adding £58 and £102 to the average annual household bill.

Money on tap

CONTACTLESS spending increased more than threefold last year. Tap-and-go customers made £25 billion of payments in 2016, up from £7.75 billion in 2015. In all, customers spent £647 billion on cards in 2016, and made 469 trans-actions every second, according to the UK Cards Association.

Free wills month

OVER-55s can have a will written for nothing this month as part of Free Wills Month ( free wills month.

org.uk). Major charities such as the National Trust, Mind and Marie Curie back the scheme — so call and ask for more details.

Lifetime Isa risk

CITY watchdog the Financial Con-duct Authority has warned that Lifetime Isa customers may not understand they’ll likely be worse off if than if they use a pension. If you use the Isa to save for retire-ment, you’ll miss out on employer contributions and extra tax relief.

Overdraft rip-off

PRESSURE is mounting on banks to scrap rip-off overdraft fees. An all-party parliamentary group of MPs has called on the City watchdog to investigate ‘problem’ overdraft charges faced by customers who go over their agreed limit.

Rail compensation

SOUTHERN RAIL commuters hit by delays can demand a one- off payment equal to a month’s fare. you must have 12 weeks’ worth of season tickets from between April 1 and December 31 last year. Call 0345 647 0745 or email season ticketcomp@southernrailway.com.