STRAIGHT TO THE POINT
I AM 76 and own a property worth £425,000. My husband died in 2000 and left his share to me. I remarried and my second husband’s children inherited his bungalow when he died in 2014.
When I die, I want to leave my home to my children. Can I use my first husband’s £325,000 inheritance tax allowance?
D. B., London. YES, you can use any of the allowance he didn’t use when he died — in this case, the full £325,000. So your total allowance is £650,000, which means your children shouldn’t pay any tax. MANY years ago, I paid into a pension with National Provident Institution (NPI) but, after four or five years, I stopped. I need some information about my pension, but I do not have access to a computer. Could you please help me find NPI’s address?
D. C., Spain. All NPI policies were transferred to a firm called Phoenix life Assurance in June 2015. Its address is Phoenix life, lynch Wood Park, lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6FY.
The firm asks that in your letter you include your name, policy number, signature and the date. If you’re calling from overseas, ring +44 1733 470470. I RECEIVED a call from a firm with a name that sounded like PensionWise, saying it could help me cut charges on one of my workplace pensions if I agree to a pension review. Should I?
A. F., Harrogate, N. Yorks. No. PENSIoNWISE is the official Government help service and it is against the law to impersonate it.
Ignore any firm that cold-calls you offering a free pensions review. You could have your money put into risky investments or face losing everything. I RECENTLY travelled with Norwegian Air on holiday to Italy and my flight was delayed by six hours. I have tried to claim compensation online, but the website is confusing. All I can find is a form to claim expenses.
R. S., London. I SPokE to Norwegian and it is adding a drop-down option to the expenses form. It says it aims to make the process clearer and easier for passengers. It should work easily for you now. WE HAD a broadband and phone contract with BT, but decided not to renew it. I rang to cancel and was told we owed nothing.
Since then I’ve heard from a debt collection agency chasing me for £134. What’s going on?
S. I., Royston, Herts. BT HAS apologised for the mix-up and confirmed you owe nothing. You will not be hearing from debt collectors or BT again.