This page is quite old hence its rather spartan appearance.
Why not check out our Latest Stories page for our newest articles or search our site for anything.
FOOL'S EYE VIEW
I don't know if you've noticed, but financial services marketing usually goes through the roof at this time of year, and I don't expect 2005 to be any exception. You see, financial firms know that we spend a fortune during December and January, on a whole range of goods and services, including Christmas gifts, winter holidays, leisure and entertainment, plus food and drink. What's more, as we currently spend about £110 for every £100 of take-home pay, banks and credit-card companies know that there are rich pickings to be had as one year ends and another begins. So, by all means, please enjoy the festive season, but don't get caught out by these ten cruel tricks! 1. Unsolicited credit-card cheques One credit-card issuer has made me very cross this week. That's because it sent me (and my wife, too!) a book of unsolicited credit-card cheques, with an unsubtle suggestion that I use them to subsidise my Yuletide spending. However, I wouldn't touch these with the proverbial bargepole, because they are charged at the same rate as cash withdrawals (a monstrous 21.9% APR), plus they incur a handling free of 1.5% of the cheque amount, maximum £2. I'd have to be plain daft to use these cheques; instead, they've been shredded. I never use this card anymore anyway, because I spend every penny on my Best Buy cashback credit card. 2. Great deals for new customers Over the coming months, banks and other financial firms will launch hundreds of glossy advertising campaigns, promoting a whole range of attractive products. Sadly, most financial firms are only after one thing - shiny, new customers - so countless deals exclude existing customers. If you're not happy with this approach, vote with your feet, because, to rival firms, you are the new customer that they're after. Nowadays, there's no mileage in being a loyal or long-standing customer. Fed up with your mortgage lender? Check out these handsome home loans! 3. Fines for plastic slip-ups As I warned in A Triple Whammy For Cardholders, penalty charges on credit cards have risen by two-fifths (40%) since October 2002. In fact, you can expect to pay a fine of £20-£25 for paying your credit-card bill late or for exceeding your credit limit. Given that we'll spend around £11 billion on our credit cards in December alone, the banks are looking forward to a festive season of fat fines! To avoid missing a repayment in the Xmas rush, set up a Direct Debit for at least your minimum monthly repayment or, ideally, your entire balance. Also, remember that you have a credit limit, not a debt target! Whatever your needs, you'll find your perfect plastic in our Credit Card centre! 4. Extortionate overdraft charges Penalties for unauthorised overdrafts are equally ridiculous: slipping into the red, or bouncing a few cheques or automated payments, can mean charges of up to £35 a day. Last month, I did a money makeover for a couple who had three bank accounts and didn't keep a proper eye on any of them. So far this year, they'd paid about £700 in overdraft fines, plus hundreds of pounds more in interest. Ouch! I recommended that they open a single Best Buy current account and keep a close eye on it! Fed up with your bank? Check out these choice current accounts! 5. Rip-off home insurance Weather forecasters have warned that this winter is shaping up to be the coldest for more than a decade - brrrr! Before the big freeze arrives, make sure that you read these Twelve Tips To Protect Your Home. Also, dig out a copy of your home insurance policy and keep it somewhere safe, so that you know who to call if you have an emergency. Then again, the next time that your buildings and contents policies come up for renewal, don't just automatically renew with the same insurer. Did you know that insurance companies have a long-established tradition of raising premiums for existing customers, even if they haven't made a claim? In particular, if your cover has been arranged via your mortgage lender, you've been taken for a ride, thanks to my Rule of Three. Shopping around for buildings and contents insurance saves a typical household over £133 a year, according to The AA's latest British Insurance Premium Index. Get a quality quote for cheaper cover in our Insurance centre! 6. Malevolent minimum monthly repayments You know how it is: you spend far too much during the festive season, almost to the point where your credit card is too hot to touch. Rather than make a big effort to pay off your bloated balance, you decide to pay minimum monthly repayments (MMRs) for a while. Please, please, please don't go down this route, because it can turn a relatively minor burden, say, £2,000, into a lifelong debt. Don't be tempted to pay just MMRs; instead, set up a standing order or Direct Debit for an affordable fixed monthly amount which is at least a little larger than your MMR. This will stop a debt that should last three years from turning into a debt that lasts forty or more years! Why pay interest at all, when you can use a cheeky 0% credit card? 7. Shabby savings accounts With the arrival of winter weather, many Brits start to put a bit more money aside each month, for example, to pay for bigger fuel bills, emergencies and so on. If you open a savings account this winter, be sure to keep an eye on the interest rate. Banks have a nasty habit of launching headline-grabbing accounts, attracting their fill of new customers, then withdrawing them and slashing the interest rate on the sly. I call it the "bait and switch" approach to marketing! The solution is to find a Best Buy savings account, check the rate each month, and be prepared to move if it becomes uncompetitive. We have a selection of ace accounts in our Savings centre! 8. Sky-high interest rates Oh boy, do banks and credit-card firms love Christmas, because we all spend like crazy without thinking about how we're going to pay off all this extra debt when our Yuletide hangovers have gone! Although the Bank of England's base rate is currently a lowly 4.5% a year, the average credit card charges an annual interest rate close to 16% APR, or about 3½ times the base rate. If you don't want to spend several hours each week working to pay the interest on your credit card or overdraft, why not transfer your debts to a "0% on balance transfer" credit card? I explained all the rules of the 0% game in Your Ultimate Guide To Credit Cards. Check out these 0% balance-transfer and low-rate transfers for life credit cards! 9. Paltry personal loans January is a bumper month for lenders, because hundreds of thousands of us rush out to arrange a personal loan to bolster our finances after the end-of-year festivities are over. However, if you don't read my Five Tips To Choose A Loan before shopping around, expect to be taken to the cleaners by your bank! You'll find your perfect personal loan in our Personal Loan centre! 10. Extra fees for foreign spending If you go abroad for a winter holiday and use the wrong credit card, it can cost you up to £7 for every £100 that you spend, thanks to sneaky "foreign currency loading" and other hidden fees. Most credit cards charge a fee of 2.75% of each overseas purchase. The best cards to take on holiday are those issued by Nationwide BS, which doesn't charge currency-conversion fees or any other sneaky charges. Enjoy the rest of the year, and may 2006 be even more rewarding! More: We'll help you to find better bank accounts, credit cards, insurance, mortgages, personal loans and savings accounts. Cliff owns shares in Lloyds TSB and HBOS, the Halifax/Bank of Scotland group.