How well do you monitor your savings account?

A recent report has suggested that many Brits with savings fail to monitor their savings accounts to the degree where many would not even notice right away if there was £1000 was missing from the account.

The report suggests that around 10% of those with savings would not immediately realize if £1000 went missing from their accounts. The survey was carried out by the mobile banking service Monilink, and comes at a time when many people may be at risk of fraudulent transactions following the loss of 25 million account details by HM Revenue and Customs.

It is thought that the reason why so many people are so lax about checking their bank accounts is a condition known as finance phobia, which is a condition where people are afraid to look at their accounts in case the balance is lower than expected. Officials from Monilink state that many people would simply prefer to ignore their accounts than risk looking at them and finding that their account balance was lower than they expected it to be. It is thought that around 20% of those that do not check their accounts blame finance phobia.

On a national basis there is over £43 billion pounds stored away in accounts that are not monitored by account holders. Around 50% of the British public do check their bank account balances on a weekly basis, but a further 25% only check their savings accounts once a month. Around 25% of those that were polled said that checking their accounts would materially affect their lives because they suffered sleepless nights as a result of their finances.

‘These findings suggest consumers need all the help they can get to keep tabs on their money. Poor money management and existence of “finance-phobia” in Britain is worrying considering the rising levels of debt problems Britons face.’

Tom Smith
1st December 2007

Tags: accounts, balance, money, bank, lose, savings

Brits losing a fortune by failing to put their cash in savings accounts

In the olden days stashing your money in various cunning locations around the house seemed to be the norm, as many people did not have access to savings accounts as they do today.

However, according to a recent survey there are still an alarming number of Brits that insist on keeping their cash in the house, which not only raises security issues but also means that collectively Brits could be losing out on millions of pounds worth of interest from banks and building societies each and every year.

A recent survey was carried out by Virgin Money, and according to the result of the survey around one in every six adults in Britain are still keeping cash in the home rather than opting to place it in a savings account. The results indicate that if these people were to put the cash that they have kept in the house into an average Internet savings account they could be accruing around £174 million each year in interest collectively. Instead, this money simply sits around earning nothing for them, and increased the risk of financial losses through theft in the event that the cash is stolen by a visitor or the house is burgled.

The survey showed that one percent of Brits that were surveyed admitted to having up to one thousand pounds in the home, whereas two percent of Brits stated that they had up to five thousand stashed in the home. Experts warn that since inflation has been on the rise, and the money is simply lying around failing to accrue any interest, it is in danger of losing its purchasing power, so consumers are doing nothing to help themselves by leaving it in the home.

Industry professional add that there is around three and a half billion pounds in total that is lying around the homes of Brits rather than being placed into savings account, and that this amount could depreciate by two hundred million pounds within the next three years.

Tom Smith
10th June 2007

Tags: lose, value, bank, savings, earn, inflation, spend

Banks warned by judge over unreasonable behaviour

A judge in the UK has issued a warning to banks in relation to unreasonable behaviour in cases where consumers try to claim back charges that have been deemed unlawful and unfair.

Many consumers in the UK have made claims for bank charges going back up to six years, and although in all cases but one the claims have been successful a number of banks have been acting in a manner deemed unreasonable, using retaliatory measured such as account closures to get back at the consumer.

And another tactic being used by some banks is the pretence that they will be defending claims in court, when in actual fact they have no intention of doing this at all.

It is this tactic that is being objected to by the High Court judge, David Mackie, who claims that the banks are wasting court time and resources with this pretence. He further stated that he was looking into awarding damages against the banks if they continued to do this in instances where a consumer has filed a claim in court.

The London Mercantile Court has had hundreds of these bank charge cases referred through lower courts this year, and the hope is that at some point one of the cases will be heard, producing a test decision.

Judge Mackie stated: “If the banks had won, many fewer customers would have sued. If the banks had lost, the claims would have been much easier to sort out than they are now.”

With banks deciding to settle the claim at the last minute before a case is heard, the likelihood of a test decision is a slim one.

Judge Mackie added: “On the face of things each case raises serious issues which the court would permit to proceed to trial. But this is fantasy because, at least for the moment, we all know that there will be no trial.”

Tom Smith
30th May 2007

Tags: charges, lose, judge, account, penalties, fees

Making sure that you have adequate mortgage protection cover

Recent surveys carried out in the latter part of 2006 seemed to indicate that many homeowners in the UK had failed to take out adequate mortgage protection insurance, and experts warned consumers to make sure that they looked into the type and level of insurance cover that they had for their mortgages. For most people in the UK a mortgage is a long term financial commitment and property purchasing is one of the most costly and important investments that they will make, which is why protecting both is so important.

Most people don’t think about the possibility of not being able to meet repayments on the mortgage when they first take out this loan, but there are many unexpected situations that can arise, which can render is unable to keep up with repayments. For instance, sickness, accidents, and redundancy could leave us unable to earn an income for a certain period of time, which would leave most people struggling to repay the mortgage. Being diagnosed with terminal illness or a critical illness could mean that you can no longer work or earn an income. And if you were to die your family may be left struggling to meet repayments without your income to keep them going. All of these circumstances could result in the loss of your home.

There are different mortgage protection plans available on the UK market these days, and consumers should ensure that they have as comprehensive a plan as possible in place in order to enjoy full peace of mind. Mortgage life insurance is a type of cover that decreases over the term and will ensure that your mortgage is repaid in full in the event of terminal illness, critical illness, or death. Mortgage repayment protection will cover your repayments for a specified period if you are unable to work due to redundancy, sickness, or injury, giving you time to get back on your feet and start work again without worrying about your mortgage.

Tags: Insurance, unemployed, income, house, home