Learn How You Can Beat Online Fraud

Did you know that students are the group of consumers that is most at risk for becoming victims of online fraud? For the majority of young people using the Internet for their shopping and banking needs is second nature and they spend more time online than they do actually shopping in stores or conducting business at a bank. Read more

Tags: behaviours, make, id theft, online fraud, software, avoid online fraud, Marketing

Price comparison sites part of new crackdown

It has recently been reported that price comparison sites are now part of another regulatory crackdown, and tougher rules and regulations have been put into place to stop these sites from giving consumers confusing or misleading information. Read more

Tags: comparison site, voluntary code, compare prices, Marketing, price comparison sites, Recreation and Sports, certain service, personal details

Credit card summary boxes will be easier to understand for consumers

From June of this year credit card applicants and customers should find that the credit card summary boxes on the application forms and marketing materials of credit card providers is far easier to understand. Read more

Tags: credit card summary box, Payment systems, Credit Cards, Marketing, shop

Food prices could go up again due to harvest

Over the past year consumers have had a lot of rising costs to cope with, ranging from bills and energy prices through to petrol and food. In fact, inflation on food as been one of the most marked rises that consumers have had to put up with, and many households – especially those that have children and larger families – have seen the cost of their weekly or monthly shop rocket. Read more

Tags: effect, Marketing, small percentage, harvest, grocery

‘Fixed-rates offer peace of mind’

The Newcastle Building Society has said that savers looking for “peace of mind” when they open a savings account should opt for fixed-rates, as they can be sure of the returns on these types of products.

Steve Urwin, senior marketing executive at the building society, said accounts with building societies not only give savers good returns on their money, they also act as a “safe” because they have additional protection.

Mr Urwin commented: “Savings are protected by the investor protection scheme, in addition to housing their money in a trusted institution.”

The number of people opening accounts with building societies reached record levels last September, according to reports.

It was also found that savings accounts and cash Isas were the most popular products, with the demand for Isas up by almost a fifth.

Mr Urwin said that people should take advantage of Isas because most other types of savings are subject to tax.

Tags: investor protection, money, Banking, Financial services, society, Business Finance, building, Marketing

Christmas consumers expect debt to hang around

Only 61 per cent of spenders expect to clear their Christmas debt by end of January, according to new research.

Research from Sainsbury’s Bank revealed that 483,000 consumers believe paying off their debts will take over a year and 71 per cent of this figure are female.

Donald MacLeod, head of cards, Sainsbury’s said: “We estimate that around 18 per cent of Christmas spending was placed on credit cards.”

“Our research indicates that around 8.6 million people intended to put half or more of their festive spending on cards,” he continued.

He advised that those Christmas consumers who anticipate having difficulty in paying off their debts should look at spreading the cost of their festive debts.

Sainsburys announced news of better-than-expected turnover with sales over the third quarter were up by 3.7 per cent, excluding petrol. This compares with 3.1 per cent in the second quarter and is Sainsbury’s 12th consecutive quarter of growth

The bank predicted nearly £1.5 million per minute would be spent in the Christmas Eve rush.

Tags: spending, cost, Marketing, christmas, sainsburys, 6 million, spenders, 5 million

Majority prefer printed bank statements

Managing your finances online may be a growing trend, but the vast majority of people still prefer to put their faith in the printed word and the postal service.

A new survey on consumer attitudes towards banking has found that almost nine out of ten people (88 per cent) still prefer to receive bank statements by mail, and that the post remains the favoured means of communicating about financial matters for 70 per cent.

Even amongst those who are keen on internet banking, 68 per cent still like to see a physical copy of their statements drop through the letterbox.

A similar proportion (67 per cent) find it easier to understand their bank statements in print than on screen.

The research has been carried out by the Henley Centre for Royal Mail.

Abi Wood, Head of Financial Marketing at Royal Mail commented on the findings, saying: “Internet banking has undeniably revolutionised modern financial services as more consumers want the accessibility it provides.

“However it is clear that traditional communication methods are still incredibly important to individuals of all age groups. Banks should continue to investigate the different and complementary roles that the different channels play for the modern consumer.”

Tags: post, abi, Banking, trend, Financial services, Marketing, online

Fraud warning not being heeded

Millions of credit card holders in the UK are leaving themselves open to fraud.

Despite continual warnings about the dangers of identity theft, many people are not heeding the advice, says Morgan Stanley Consumer Banking.

The most common mistake made by British people is failing to shred documents such as credit card statements when throwing them away.

Figures from Morgan Stanley show that 40 per cent of people fail to do this, with that number rising to 59 per cent among people under 30.

Another risk taken by many people (27 per cent) is using the same pin number for a variety of different cards and accounts, while the third most common (12 per cent) is storing pins on personal computers or laptops.

“The findings fuel concerns that Britons are not taking heed of warnings to protect themselves,” said Patrick Muir, marketing director at Morgan Stanley Consumer Banking.

“There has been a lot of attention placed on the issue of ID theft but, worryingly, many people still don’t believe it could happen to them.”

Morgan Stanley found that younger people (under thirties) are the least likely to be aware that they are the victim of ID theft as 45 per cent do not check their statements.

Tags: director, Stanley Consumer Banking.The, identity theft, cards, Financial economics, Caterpillar