Why do I have to wait to go to court to access my daughter’s Child Trust Fund?

Tammie Squire has been allowed to manage her disabled youngest daughter’s benefits for 18 years, but still faces a trip to court to try and unlock more than £7,000 she has saved for her future. The mother-of-two, from Tettenhall Wood, Wolverhampton, saved thousands of pounds into a Child Trust Fund, and later a Junior Isa, … Read more

Inflation unmasked: How it affects your savings and why it matters

Rising inflation continues to ‘erode’ gains on millions of people’s savings accounts up and down the country, new findings reveal.    Fresh figures from the Office for National Statistics today showed that rising furniture and food prices pushed the Consumer Prices Index up to 0.7 per cent in January, up from 0.6 in the year to … Read more

Aviva Save: Investment giant launches a cash savings platform

Insurance and investment giant Aviva has launched its own cash savings platform, This is Money can reveal, but savers will earn more by going to the banks directly. Britain’s largest insurance firm’s answer to the likes of Hargreaves Lansdown Active Savings and Flagstone has opened with 15 fixed-rate bonds offered by Aldermore, Oaknorth and Paragon … Read more

Best current accounts: First Direct brings back £100 switching bonus

New logo, old switching deal: First Direct brings back £100 cash carrot as current account switching battle returns The bank closed its doors to newcomers last March amid the pandemic  Its £100 switching bonus hadn’t been available for almost a year Its parent bank HSBC brought back £125 to switch since last week Virgin Money … Read more

Ministers again refuse to back proposals aimed at helping disabled trust fund savers

The Government has again refused to publicly back proposals designed to make it easier for the parents of disabled children to access Child Trust Fund savings, as it was warned as much as £107million could be ‘lost’ over the next decade. Responding to questions in the House of Lords on Thursday, justice minister Lord Wolfson … Read more

Is click and collect money answer to Britain’s cash crisis?

Most pizza delivery firms offer an array of extras, from tubs of ice cream to bottles of fizzy drink. But another, more unexpected, side order could soon be offered: cash.  A lack of access to cash is an escalating crisis in the UK. As bank branches and ATMs close down every day, many communities are … Read more

Oxbury Bank opens its doors to savers with competitive rates

Britain’s first bank in 100 years to lend money solely to farmers has opened its doors to everyday savers with a range of competitive deals, This is Money can reveal. Cheshire-based Oxbury Bank, which obtained its banking licence in January 2020, will pay savers 0.58 per cent on a 95-day notice account, the third-best rate … Read more

How the banks are betraying start-up firms just when we need them most

Britain’s banks have been accused of ‘sending a terrible message’ to entrepreneurs by leaving new business account customers out in the cold. Many High Street giants stopped offering business accounts at the start of the pandemic, claiming they wanted to focus on existing customers.  But while some have finally started accepting applications again, wildly divergent … Read more