MONEY MORSELS

Mortgage cuts

six of Britain’s biggest banks and building societies have slashed their mortgage rates over the past two weeks. halifax and Virgin Money reduced some of their fixed-rates by up to 0.3 percentage points, while skipton Bs, Clydesdale Bank, Post Office and Yorkshire Bs cut theirs by up to 0.2, 0.3, 0.19 and 0.05 percentage points respectively.

Junior Isa pain

THERE are just three junior Isa accounts that currently beat inflation, which is now 3.1pc. These are the Coventry BS Junior Cash Isa, which pays 3.5pc, the Nationwide Smart Junior Isa at 3.25 pc and Tesco Bank Junior Cash Isa at 3.15 pc, according to research by money website SavvyWoman.

Cruise cover

ONE in three travel insurance policies do not cover cruise holidays as standard. Of the 931 single-trip travel insurance policies on offer, 539 include cruise cover automatically, 267 offer it as a paid-for extra and 125 do not offer it at all, according to analyst Defaqto.

Cheaper loans

TSB has cut the rate on personal loans between £7,500 and £25,000 from 3.2 pc to 2.9pc, which is the cheapest on the market. On a £10,000 loan over five years, you would pay £10,755 including interest.

Advert ban

BOOKiNG.COM has been rapped by the advertising watchdog for ‘misleading’ customers. in a Tv advert, it led customers to believe they could cancel their reservation for free ‘most of the time’. in fact, travellers must pay a premium to be able to cancel for free. the firm cannot show the ad again.

Energy waste

AROUND 17 million households are sitting on expensive standard variable-rate energy tariffs and missing out on savings of around £300 a year, according to energy watchdog Ofgem. Analysis of the figures by comparison service Energyhelpline suggests the Big Six suppliers raked in £4.5 billion over 2017 as a result.