The Guardian Money 01.09.2012

7/31/2019 The Guardian Money 01.09.2012

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Saturday 01.09.12 | guardian.co.uk I fought Orange through the courts and won Page 5

Is this the best ever mortgagedeal for first-time buyers?

ILLUSTRATIONBYWARWICKJOHNSONCADWELLATEASTWING

M

ortgage brokersare hailing a newloan from HSBC asa cracking dealfor strugglingfirst-time buyers.

They hope the loan, which has a smalldeposit and charges less than 5%interest, could spark a price war amonglenders.

The deal is priced at 4.89%, fixedfor seven years, and crucially the bankwill offer the rate to buyers with a 10%deposit, and has discarded the 1,000-plus fees commonly charged on thesesorts of mortgages. The rate substan-tially undercuts the first-time buyerdeals at most other major lenders. Forexample, Nationwide is charging first-time buyers with 10% deposits 5.7%-6.5%, while Halifax and Woolwich/Barclays charge more than 6%.

First-time buyers could consider arecent new deal from NatWest, pricedsimilarly although over a shorter fixedperiod. But the advantage of a seven-year fix is that borrowers can lock into

todays low rates and wont face a pay-

150,000, it could mean paying almost6,000 to leave after three years.

A spokeswoman for HSBC says thebank recognises that not everyone willwant to fix for that long. Differentpeople want that stability for a differ-

ent amount of time, so we are offer-ing them the same rate over differentterms, she says. Those terms are two,three and five years, and are also fee-free to homebuyers (those remortgag-ing will pay 599 plus a valuation fee).

But the biggest problem for first-time buyers is the ultra-strict l end-ing criteria imposed by most banksand building societies. The mort-gage industry is awash with tales ofapplicants turned down for the tiniestinfringement on their credit record not least by HSBC.

In June Money reported on howone couple who applied for an HSBCmortgage were grilled for four hours bythe bank, during which every aspectof their spending habits was put underscrutiny.

Overall, mortgage approvals

slumped to an 18-month low

ment shock if the Bank of England in-creases rates over the next few years.

Until now, most of the price compe-tition in the mortgage market has beenfor safe borrowers with 40% depositsor more, who can access deals charged

at around 2.5%-3.5%. Meanwhile,first-time buyers have faced a doublewhammy of interest rates of 6%-plusand demands for deposits of as muchas a quarter of the value of the home.

Mortgage brokers say the HSBC dealoffers aspiring homeowners a lifeline.At 90% this mortgage is a crackingdeal, says Stuart Gregory of mortgagebroker Lentune Mortgage Consultancy.Look back a couple of years and Ihad clients wanting to borrow 75%who couldnt get a rate for five yearsunder 5%. Mark Harris, chief execu-tive of mortgage broker SPF PrivateClients, agrees: HSBC has pricedkeenly so we could see more lenderscompete in this space.

Last week Halifax said mortgagecosts have fallen to their lowest in 15years, with a typical mortgage on a

new property now costing the aver-

age buyer 26% of their take-home pay,compared with 48% at the peak in late2007 before the credit crunch.

But separate figures from Land Reg-istry revealed that the absolute levelof house prices remains high, and in

the south prices are still rising. Theyrose 0.8% nationally in July, althoughthe picture varies enormously acrossthe country. In London, prices leaped2.7% in July alone, hitting an average of367,785, while in the north-east theyfell 2.1% to an average of 98,557.

According to the Offi ce for NationalStatistics, the average price a first-time buyer pays for a property isnow 173,000. So even a 10% depositequates to 17,300. On HSBCs newdeal the repayments on this, assumingthe buyer has the deposit, are 900.26a month. But can you actually get t hisdeal? And what are the drawbacks?

First, fixing for seven years willdeter some buyers. James Cotton ofmortgage broker London & Countrysays : It is a pretty long period. Whenpeople buy their first property they are

not usually buying somewhere they 2

To say you willstick to a firstproperty forseven years may

be too much

anticipate being in for the long term they may be s ingle, dont have a family,and may be stretching just to buy a flat.To say you will stick to that propertyfor that period may be too much.

However, HSBC says it wil l allow

you to take the mortgage with youif you move house, but that will besubject to it approving a loan on thenext property you want to buy and toyour salary circumstances remainingthe same, so dont regard it as a cast-iron guarantee.

Getting out of a seven-year fixeddeal can be expensive. In HSBCs case,it will charge a percentage of the loan,decreasing each year. On a mortgage of

HSBCs fee-free loan opens the door for borrowers with a small deposit to secure alow rate for seven years. Other lenders could well follow, reports Hilary Osborne

The ethics of betting on food prices Page 6


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2 Money Saturday Guardian 01.09.12

in July, the Bank of England said, andare running at about half the level ofthe 1990s and 2000s. HSBC insists itaccepts four out of five applicants, butit admits that the money for its latestdeal may dry up in a couple of months.

What if you think seven years is toolong to fix? There is a five-year mort-gage from NatWest, fixed at 4.79%,while at three years you can fix at the

Best ever mortgage for first-time buyers? Continued from front page

Im thinking ofbuying a classic car an old MG,Morgan, or maybe something from the 1970s.Ideally it will be cheap to repair and insure,with no car tax. Any advice on models that workfinancially? Or do they all turn into money pits?

Personal effectsWe want your expert opinion

Yes, go for it. I suggest an MGB GTwith a full width sunroof. Bodyworkcondition is everything, so look for acar which has had a documented bodyrebuild or a new body shell. A pre-1974 car will have chrome bumpers,be free of road tax, and have a verylow insurance premium for limitedmiles with an agreed value. You canmodernise some parts of the car withsuch things as electronic ignition,

which will reduce maintenance andparts costs. There are numeroussuppliers of MG parts, and pricescompare well with modern cars. Youcan then join the MG Car Club, basedin Abingdon, and receive a glossymonthly magazine, friendship, adviceand access to a huge number of events.Paul GoodmanPoynton, Cheshire

Most people with a classic car havea grasp of the way it functions and dosome repairs themselves. With evenquite basic skills and a Haynes manual,you can do major repairs if required. Ifyou want a vehicle to use rather thanrestore, buy the best you can afford.Previous owners who have spent a lotof money on the car can never recoupthe cost when they sell. MGBs andMidgets are good classics as most new

parts are available. Morris Minors arealso well served with spares. Whateveryou choose, join an owners club whereyou will find other members a mine ofuseful advice, and the clubs are often agood place to find decent cars for sale.Peter DumenilBakewell, Derbyshire

Invariably, they do turn into moneypits. Spare parts will be hard to comeby, meaning you will need specialistknowledge to keep them running. Ifyoure buying a classic car you reallyshouldnt be thinking financially. Useyour heart and buy whatever you likemost. Classic cars are hobbies, notinvestments.CanWeAllJustGetAlong at guardian.co.uk/money

What is it you wish to get out of

owning a sports car? If it is simplythe feeling of bowling along countrylanes with the wind in your hair, youmight be as well off with a convertibleversion of a hatchback a VW Golf,mks 1-3 would serve very well. But ifyou want a sports car for the pleasureof turning heads then while there aremany choices the cars to considerare the Austin-Healey Sprite, the (verysimilar) MG Midget, the TriumphSpitfire or the MGB. These are all verysimple mechanically and, as long as thebody shell and subframe are all right,shouldnt be expensive to run. Havingdecided the way to go, you need to

buy Classic and Sports Car magazine or one of the many specialist carmagazines to get an idea of whatdifferent cars cost. Then find out aboutthe owners/enthusiasts clubs andvisit their meetings to talk to owners.Bruce PurvisWinchester, Hants, whowins this weeks 25 National Book Token

I bought a 1971 MGB five years agoand have never regretted it. No road

tax and cheap insurance (less than200pa). There is a very adequatesupply of reasonably priced spare partsand maintenance can be cheap if youare prepared for a bit of DIY at leastyou can get at the mechanics, unlikein modern cars. The only really majorcost Ive had has been bodywork.Stan ZetieStreetly, West Midlands

A classic car is a 2,000-mile-a-yearshow pony that just eats money. Unlessyouve paid all your debt off and arewell on the way to a 500k pensionpot, you cant afford it.ManchesterOat guardian.co.uk/money

Using a classic car on a daily basiswill merely accelerate its passage tocar heaven with increasing repairbills. If money is not a major issue I

personally would opt for a Series 1/2SWB Land Rover, Mk III Jaguar or a niceMercedes Convertible. On the otherhand, just go out and buy a Bromptonfolding bike now that is a classic!ChrisBlue1963 at guardian.co.uk/money

Classic cars dont have to be moneypits. They can turn a nice profit if youare careful. Keep the miles down,store it sympathetically, use classiccar insurance and choose a model anygarage can fix. Id go for a classic sixtiesMini. These have appreciated in valueenormously over the yearsShanHandyat guardian.co.uk/money

The resale value of classic cars isaffected by fashion. They pick up whenthe economy does as people are beingpaid large bonuses and have no idea

what to do with them. So about every10-12 years.fabcat21at guardian.co.uk/money

Reply Email your suggestions to [email protected] orwrite to us at Personal Effects, Money, The Guardian, Kings Place, 90 YorkWay, London N1 9GU. Theres a 25 National Book Token for the best

answer. And do you have a problem readers could solve? Let us know.

For more ideas go to www.guardian.co.uk/money then click on Blogs andPersonal Effects

ILLUSTRATION BY BILL BROWN

House fears delay parenthood

Property High prices and large deposits mean a longwait to have children. Patrick Collinson reports

O

ne in five 31 to 44-year-oldswho dont have childrenare delaying starting a

family because of the lackof affordable housing, according to areport by Shelter this week.

The housing charity found thanone in four (26%) of those who de-cided to wait say they have beendoing so for five years or more. Thefigures, revealed in a YouGov surveycommissioned by Shelter, represent a63% increase since 2009.

High house prices and the l arge de-posits required mean one in three first-time buyers are over the age of 35.

Meanwhile, ma ny are trapped insmall rental apartments that are unsuit-able for raising a family but rising rentsmean few are able to put aside enoughcash to save for a deposit on a house.

Rents demanded by landlords arehitting record highs, said LSL PropertyServices, which owns the UKs largest

lettings agent network, including YourMove and Reeds Rains. It found thatthe average rent in July hit a recordhigh of 725 a month in England and

Wales. It added that four in 10 land-lords expect to increase rents in thecoming 12 months by an average of4.5%, with just one in 100 investorslikely to reduce them .

It also emerged this week that an

influx of foreign investors is driving arevival in Britains buy-to-let market,threatening to push up rents andcrowd out first-time buyers. The Bank

of England said: Foreign investorshave branched out of commercial prop-erty and begun to invest in London

residential lettings.Shelter is now calling on the govern-

ment to take radical action to stop anentire generation being held back bythe desperate shortage of affordablehomes.

Kay Boycott, director of commu-nications at Shelter, said: Its heart-breaking that so many people are beingforced to put their lives on hold in thisway. The government has a responsi-bility to act now to ensure that todaysyoung people, and the generation after,arent denied something as basic as aproper home to raise their children in.

Netmums founder Sally Russelladded: One of the most basic require-ments is to have a family home, yetthis is becoming increasingly unattain-able for many. Sadly, leaving it too latemeans they may never be able to have

children. For others, it could meanboth parents forced to work full timewhen their baby is tiny just to keep aroof over their heads.

Money onthe webFor all thelatest onmortgages,propertyprices andmoreguardian.co.uk/

money

Trapped: As rents and deposits rise

Any answers? Our 22-year-old sonis about to move back in with us afterthree years at university. Hes got a job(paying 13,000). How much rentshould we charge (100 a month?/200?). What tasks should we get himto do? Id also like him to put aside 250a month in savings is that reasonable?

same rate with the Nottingham build-ing society, with a 299 fee.

However there are good reasonswhy it might not be wise to fix for sucha short period. For a start, any fees youpay for the first mortgage will have abigger effect on the overall cost of yourloan pay 900 for a two-year dealand you have effectively paid 37.50a month for it; pay the same fee on afive-year deal and you have effectivelypaid 15 a month. Also, you should

consider what you think will happen tomortgage rates over the next few years.Gregory believes they could rise. Myown view is that it would be wise to fixfor longer than two years my concernis that even if the base rate doesnt rise,if the market does pick up then lend-ers may start to t weak rates upwardsbecause they do not need to work sohard to attract business.

If you agree, a seven-year fix mightlook quite attractive.


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Money Saturday Guardian 01.09.12 3

Money onthe webFollow usthroughoutthe weektwitter.com/guardianmoney

Hundreds of thousands

of students will thismonth be movinginto private rentedaccommodationfor the first time.

Meanwhile, millions of other people,unable to get a foot on the propertyladder, also have little choice but torent sometimes into their 30s or even40s. Disputes between letting agents,tenants and landlords are rife, so whatcan you do to make the whole processas stress-free as possible?

Fight the fees

Anyone can set themselves up as aletting agent, and most of us haveheard horror stories about tenantssuffering at the hands of dodgy orincompetent agents, and being hitwith demands for exorbitant fees forspurious services.

The good news for those rentingin Scotland is that last weekend thegovernment banned letting agents andlandlords from charging any tenantfees. Ministers said the law would beclarified so that all charges to tenants,other than rent and a refundable de-posit, will be deemed illegal.

But there is no sign of this being ex-tended to the rest of the UK, so manywill continue to be charged for thingssuch as checking references, creditchecks, providing an inventory, hand-ing over keys, phone calls and postage.Also watch out for tenancy renewalfees and late payment fees. Earlier thisyear Shelters Welsh arm said someagents were charging new tenants upto 600 in administration fees.

Always get clear information abouta letting agents fees. Use one that is amember of a body or scheme such asthe Association of Residential LettingsAgents (arla.co.uk), the National Ap-proved Letting Scheme (nalscheme.co.uk) or the National Association ofEstate Agents (naea.co.uk).

You will almost certainly be asked tohand over a deposit (usually a monthsrent sometimes more) and the firstmonths rent in advance. Dont pay afee to register with an agency or fora list of properties - its a criminal of-fence to charge for those.

Dont ignore the small print

Make sure youre clear about what kindof tenancy agreement youre signing.If all the people living in the propertysign one agreement with the landlordwhen you move in, thats a joi nttenancy. If each of you signs a separateone, you have separate tenancies.

Check the agreement includes allthe relevant information, such as whatthe rent covers (does it include bills?),whether you can leave before the endof the tenancy and how much noticeyou have to give, and any rules onthings like pets, guests and smoking.

If you have a joint tenancy, all thetenants have the same rights. You areall equally responsible for paying therent and keeping to the terms of youragreement, says Shelter. Your land-lord may be entitled to keep the de-posit if there is any rent owing or dam-age to the property at the end of thetenancy even if its not your fault.

Check how your depositwill be protected

Since 2007, private landlords andletting agents in England and Waleshave had to use a government-approved tenancy deposit protectionscheme to safeguard peoples cash.A similar system began operating inScotland in July, and fully takes effecton 13 November.

Your landlord should protect yourdeposit in one of the schemes within30 days of the start of your tenancy,and must give you details of which onethey are using. In England and Wales,the three schemes are the DepositProtection Service (depositprotection.com), mydeposits (mydeposits.co.uk)and the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (the-

disputeservice.co.uk). In Scotland theyare SafeDeposits Scotland (safedepos-

itsscotland.com), mydeposits Scotland(mydepositsscotland.co.uk) and theLetting Protection Service Scotland(lettingprotectionscotland.com).

Each offers a dispute resolutionservice which landlords and tenantscan use to sort out disagreements.

Help from mum and dad?

The landlord may ask students toprovide a guarantor usually mumor dad who will cover costs if the rentisnt paid or the house is trashed. Thecrucial thing for parents to know isthat if its a joint tenancy, with a singleagreement, any guarantor will alsobe jointly liable for overdue rent ordamage caused by the other tenants.

On his Letti ngFocus.com website,aimed at landlords, property expertDavid Lawrenson explains that manyparents may not realise this. It meansthat while they are comfortable withcovering Toby or Amelias share,they are not happy to cover Toby orAmelias friends [But] if the carpetthat was ruined was in Tobys druggiehousemates room, you [the landlord]still have every right to pursue Tobysparents. And you may want to do this ifthe chances of recovery are better fromTobys parents.

Parents can try to limit their liabil-ity by writing it into their guarantoragreement.

Make sure the inventoryis accurate

The inventory is a list of everythingthats provided with the property ,including furniture, carpets, curtains,appliances, crockery and cutlery.It should also record the conditioneverything is in for example, existingdamage or wear, such as an old stainon the carpet. Always make sure youare provided with an inventory askfor one if necessar y. If youre notgiven one, write one up yourself, get itsigned by an independent witness andsend a copy to the landlord. Shelter hasa sample inventory form on its websitethat people can download.

Remember the bills

Dont forget to factor in costs on top ofthe rent, such as utility bills, TV licence

and internet access costs. Rememberthat full-time students are usually

exempt from paying council tax.Watch out for any funny business

with utility bills. Last month, researchfrom comparison website uSwitch.com showed that some landlords andletting agents are breaking the law byissuing contracts preventing tenantsfrom switching energy supplier to geta cheaper deal. A rental contract canstipulate that tenants ask a landlordbefore switching energy supplier, but itcant refuse permission to switch.

Some letting agents have struckdeals with energy companies such asUtility Warehouse, where the agentis paid commission if tenants use thefirms services. As a tenant, would yoube happy knowing the letting agentwas pocketing commission generatedfrom your phone or electricity bills?

Safety, security andinsurance

If youre renting a big place withseveral other people, check whetherthe landlord has, or needs, a house inmultiple occupation (HMO) licence forthe property. Landlords of HMOs haveextra legal responsibilities coveringthings such as fire safety. Your landlordmust register their HMO with thecouncil if it has five or more unrelatedpeople sharing and is at least threestoreys high.

Make sure all gas appliances havebeen checked by a Gas Safe-registeredengineer. Landlords have a legal dutyto have all gas appliances in their prop-erties inspected every year. And fitat least one smoke alarm and carbonmonoxide detector if theyre not al-ready installed.

If youre a student, your parentsmay agree to include your possessionson their home contents insurancewhere this is allowed. Check the word-ing. If you arent covered by your par-ents policy and need insurance, shoparound. There are student-specificpolicies but they can be poor value.

Housemate troubles

If things get really bad, can you forcesomeone to leave? Citizens Advicesays that if youre all joint tenants, youusually have equal rights to remain inthe property and one of you cant beforced to move out.

In a flatshare, you usually all shareresponsibility for the rent, it adds. If

one person doesnt pay and its a jointtenancy, you have joint liability andwill have to cover their share and thentry to get it back from them.

Meanwhile, if its your name on t hegas or electricity bill and the otherswont pay, you will usually have to payit and then pursue them for the money.

Keep good records

This could be vital if theres a disputewhen you eventually come to moveout. Useful items might include photostaken when you moved in (ideally,dated and labelled), receipts for anyitems youve replaced, correspondenceabout repairs and copies of bills.

When its time to leave

At the end of the tenancy you shouldget your deposit back within 10 daysif you and your landlord agree theamount, says Citizens Advice. Yourlandlord cant keep your depositbecause of general wear and tear,adds Shelter. For example, if thecarpet gets a bit worn out, its probablywear and tear, but if you burn a holein it, its damage. It says tenancyagreements often state that thingssuch as carpets and curtains must becleaned to a professional standardbefore you go, but this does not meanthey have to be as clean or cleaner thanwhen you moved in.

Top 10 tips if youre about to rentProperty More people are tenants than ever before, with a flood of students joined bypeople in their 30s and 40s. Rupert Jones looks at how to avoid the pitfalls and rip-offs

440 bill for amystery clean-up

When Vaughan George movedout of his rented Nottinghamhome, he imagined it would bestraightforward, writes PennyAnderson.

However, after he and his partnerhad gone, the agents inspectionwas completed. To his horror, theagent said the property neededprofessional cleaning (despitethe carpet being marked as fairon arrival and departure.) Thefirm deducted 440 almost halfhis deposit for cleaning andgardening.

However, George, 62, knows theowner of the cleaning company theagent claims to have used. And thecleaners denied having cleaned thehouse. Yes, they had submitted anestimate, but they claimed theyoften provided quotes for thesame letting agent, but were nevercommissioned to do the work.

George suspected this was fraud,so he called the police. But theysuggested he and the letting agentshould sort this out between them.He knows the sum involved isntthat large, but, as he says: Imlucky I had enough money put byfor another deposit, but what aboutthose who suffer from deductions?Its wrong.

His next port of call (apart fromhis local trading standards) is hisdeposit protection scheme, whichprovides arbitration if there is adispute. But George would stilllike his day in court. He is waitingfor the agent concerned to eitheradmit it wrongly charged him forwork that was not done, or maintainthey did the work so he can takefurther legal action. George is nowawaiting the decision of the DepositProtection Service, to come afterthe letting agent has submitted itsside of the story.

The lesson from all this is beon your guard. Take good qualityphotographs of the state of theproperty on leaving. Above all, ifyou do not agree with deductions,contest them, as the process is notcomplicated.

However, George says: I wouldlike to see some prosecutions, ifonly to help other victims and deteragents from trying similar scams.Penny Anderson is a writerand artist. She blogs at rentergirl.blogspot.com

Fighting back: Vaughan George

No let up after finding a property, negotiating the letting agreement can be a minefield of small print and dodgy fees


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Your shoutLetters

Dodgy lettingfees? Ban the lot

Our story this week

of Vaughan George,charged at the endof his tenancy apreposterous 440cleaning fee which wasnt evencarried out is

sadly indicative of practices that arerife across parts of the unregulatedlettings industry.

First-time tenants are particularlyeasy picking for the vultures. Shel-ter has uncovered numerous caseswhere tenants are charged hundredsof pounds for credit checks andinventories which only cost theagents a few pounds.

We often receive let-ters from readers askingif the credit check fee(150?), the inventory

fee (80?), the insur-ance fee, the renewalfee, the checking-outfee, the cleaning fee,etc, etc, are legal.

The latest wheeze hasbeen to skim money fromelectricity and gas bills paid bytenants. Many are told that they cantswitch to cheaper suppliers because,behind the scenes, the agent has strucka deal with a utility company that paysthem commission.

Such deals are on the fringes of legal-ity. The other charges? As far as we cansee, the law around lettings fees seemsto be make them up as you go alongand see what you can get away with.

But the Scottish government hascome up with a simple and elegant solu-tion to the endless disputes over dodgy

fees. It has banned the lot of them.In future, letting agents and land-

lords in Scotland will only be able tocharge tenants the rent (and deposit),and can no longer throw in all the

other makey-uppy fees. This has,predictably, led to howls of outragefrom the lettings industry.

Landlords and agents will have nochoice but to put rents up instead,they say. These are the same people

who have had no choice but to putup rents over the past few years, de-spite the fact that the cost of servicingbuy-to-let loans has fallen. Do theyhave no choice but to be g reedy?

Bed bug infestation, blankets thatstink of vomit, covers that get washedonce a year its all in a fascinatingdiscussion thread on Reddit, a US so-cial news website which asked hotelemployees to reveal their secrets andwhich has garnered nearly 5,600 re-sponses. The juiciest have been pickedout by tnooz.com and many are about

how best to save money.Top tip? Ask for discounts.We would regularly take

care of guests that justhad the nerve to ask,said one. If they are

at a lower occupancy,they will jump onthis a room for 269

a night can easily betaken down to 150-190 a

night with no managersapproval. But be nice.

There is a fine line betweenhaggling, and being an asshole. Protip for hagglers: do not try to haggle alower rate in front of other guests. If Iagree to give you a lower rate in frontof 10 other people, Im going to haveto give 10 more discounts. Negotiatewhen nobody else is around.

Another offered advice on cancel-ling. I do this for people all the time.They call and need to cancel after thecut-off time, so I tell them I will changethe arrival date, and that they shouldcall back in two or three days and can-

cel it then. That way, they do not getcharged, and I do not get in t roublewith the boss.

[email protected]

Why would anyone assume they couldshow anything but the same prices?A few might have small hotels not onother sites, but basically they are alldoing the same numbers churn and anydifference is going to be rounding.

Having talked to small-ish hotelowners, the agents charge a heftycommission and they would rather notdeal with them, but its the only waythey get exposure to a wider market. Ifyou do find a small hotel you like andwant to return, book directly next time.Although the agent sites forbid it, makeit known you are booking directly afterstaying there with an online bookingand some owners will give a discount,first choice of rooms or some other wayof showing their appreciation.leadballoonat guardian.co.uk/money

PPI mis-sellingremains in firing line

It seems the only area of growth in

the economy is these litigious vermin(Are you a victim of PPI pestering?25 August). They crawl from undertheir stones and create misery, forcingeveryone to take out insurance againstsome capricious claim that does nothave much, if any, merit. The only peo-ple who make any money really are thepeople running these claims c ompanies.They employ, usually on quite lowpay, people to ring you up or text youwith what are, at best, dubious claims.I have lost count of the number of timesI have got texts telling me I am owedthousands of pounds for mis-sold PPI.I have never had a PPI policy.

And then there are the solicitors.What paragons of virtue they are. Haveyou had an accident that wasnt yourfault? Have you ever seen one of thesefirms offering to sue other solicitors for

bad service you have received?Escapee99at guardian.co.uk/money

How can the Guardian justify theheading Are the ambulance-chasinglawyers now spinning out of control?in an article dealing exclusively withclaims management companies, whichthe vast majority of lawyers would loveto abolish?thegoodlawyer at guardian.co.uk/money

Getting to the core oflaptop computing

If youre only going to be using a laptopfor the web, documents and videosthen it doesnt matter how many mega-thingys or giga-wotsits its got. Modern

PCs are so fast almost anything with twocores and 2GB RAM will be fine for manypeople (The best value laptops under350, 25 August).

Things such as the quality of thedisplay, keyboard and trackpad are farmore likely to affect the pleasure ofusing the device. High quality displaysand good build quality adds to the costand this is where many manufacturerschose to save money. Unfortunately,youll have to visit a shop with displaymodels in order to evaluate this.Zippypat guardian.co.uk/money

Cost v conscience: theelectric cars debate

I am going to gag (throws up in corner) but I am with (Jeremy) Clarkson on this.

(Is the time right for you to plug into anelectric car? 25 August). Trouble is Jezzais correct: its the batteries, all thoseheavy metals, which have to be shippedhalfway across the world, which if youdo the cost-benefit analysis, is moredamaging to the environment than awell-engineered, effi cient petrol engine.There, I said it now Im going to liedown in a darkened roomMadMontyat guardian.co.uk/money

Although the Ampera is 10,000 morethan a Ford Mondeo, as you say, its stillless money than one of the new BMWMinis parked outside the dealer here inBournemouth. But perhaps the debateover how a Mini gets to be 31,000 isone for another article.Corozinatguardian.co.uk/money

Super-green? If only that were trueThere are a number of problems withelectric cars at the moment, some ofwhich initial purchase cost, batterylife, charging infrastructure youtouched on. However, the total costshave been overlooked in your analysis,as have the environmental costs ofmining raw materials for the batteries,replacing and disposing of them.

Then theres electricity. The UKselectricity generation industry is notexactly the greenest in the world andthe environmental cost of charging anelectric car from the juice generated bya coal-fired power station is arguablymore harmful, from a CO2 emissionsperspective, than running one of thelatest generation of effi cient diesel cars.

Both the Ampera and Mini E arerewarding to drive and will assuage any

fears motorists may have that electriccars are by their very nature inferior tothose powered by internal combustionengines. But the true costs are hiddenfrom all but those who do their sums andlook at a cars whole-life costs in detail.CraigThomas101at guardian.co.uk/money

If you drive 20,000 miles a year youmay recover the additional cost of theelectric car after five years. The warrantyon the battery is only 100,000 miles, soyouve just covered the initial additionaloutlay, now you have to fork out 10,000on new batteries. It doesnt make finan-cial sense, even if you drive 20,000 milesa year and have charging points avail-able. And it certainly isnt green. I wishthe government would invest heavily inpublic transport instead of subsidisingrich peoples smug-symbols.

Hamptonfancher at guardian.co.uk/money

I take it the council charging pointsare funded by council tax? This hardlyseems fair given council tax already dis-proportionately penalises the poor andthis subsidy will be used by people whohappen to have 30,000 lying around.JB10294 atguardian.co.uk/money

Of course, we need to invest in publictransport but some of us are never goingto have any alternative to a car (in ourcase two cars). We live 35 miles outsidethe city. Theres a train but it takeslonger than driving and costs doublewhat my fuel does. My wife works ina hospital in a rural area in a differentdirection, which would take her threetimes as long by public transport andthree times the cost. That gap is never

going to be closed.Fuel costs are a massive problem for

people in rural areas. One month wespent 550 on diesel for our very fr ugalcars. We had high hopes for the Ampera,

but the purchase cost is a joke.RitchiePKat guardian.co.uk/money

There is a huge amount of researchgoing into batteries and much is verypromising. In the next 10 years we canexpect to see batteries with significantlygreater capacity, lower weight and lowercost. The current generation of electriccars are not realistic consumer products,and if the manufacturers are honest arenot intended to be.

It is important for the manufacturersto learn about producing and supportingthese vehicles in volume under real con-ditions before they go mainstream. You

cannot establish reliable products based

on a few hundred prototypes beingdriven by your own engineers: you haveto get thousands of them in the hands ofthe public. So, unless someone is payingyou to drive one, leave well alone.Forlornehopeat guardian.co.uk/money

The battery components of a Li-ionbattery are recyclable. Nothing is lost.Im with Renault, the solution is notcharging points but a swapable battery.You drive into a service station and arobot takes your low-charge battery and

installs a fully charged one. You pay anddrive away, like filling up with petrol.muscleguyat guardian.co.uk/money

Hotel bookings benefitfrom a direct approach

You should check the hotels website(Hardly grand hotel savings, 25 August)and book directly if you can, but it is notalways cheaper to do it that way. I have

just booked a hotel on one of the biggestbooking websites for 125 per night: thehotels site would have charged 190.Abertaweat guardian.co.uk/money

They are large corporate agents usu-ally offering the same corporate chains.

Write to Money, The Guardian, KingsPlace, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU.Email [email protected]

The true costs[of electric cars]

are hidden fromall but those whodo their sums

Thanks to Damian Morgan, whospotted this not-so-delicious dealin the Co-op in Heaton Moor,Stockport. Please send yourexamples of silly pricing at anyretailer to [email protected]

Daft deal of the week

On reflectionPatrick CollinsonEditor, Money

Money onthe webHave yoursay on allthe latestconsumeraffairsissuesguardian.co.uk/

money


5/10


It was a shock to open thebill from Orange and seethey wanted 2,170 fromme. I had only just returnedfrom working with the UNin Cambodia and there was

no way I could afford to pay it, andindeed no reason why I should pay forthe actions of fraudsters. But I calmeddown quickly. After all, I had cancelledthe contract nine months earlier andthought this obvious mistake would bequickly corrected.

But I soon realised it would be any-thing but simple. Orange persisted inits demands; letters and calls becamemore aggressive with a debt collec-tion agency pursuing me with veiledthreats of prosecution as well as itsown bill for 600. But after a 13-monthbattle I can now celebrate a small vic-tory over Orange (and thank my uncle,a barrister, who guided me throughit). The bills have been written off andI hope my experience can be of helpto the many others who receive thesesorts of demands.

In recent years Guardian Money hasfeatured several stories of people whohave had their phones stolen abroadand huge bills racked up. My experi-ence was slightly different in that Ithought my sim card had been deac-tivated and discarded, when in fact itwas found and then used fraudulently.

It started in August 2010 when Icalled Orange to cancel my phone con-tract after getting the job in Cambodia.My 24-month deal was due to termi-nate at the end of September 2010, so Itook my phone with me to call my fam-ily and friends from the airport.

On my second day in Cambodia Idiscarded what I thought was a deac-tivated Orange sim card and replacedit with a Cambodian sim. I put theOrange sim at the back of a wardrobe. Ileft Cambodia to travel seven monthslater, and in moving out of my Cambo-

dian flat the sim must have ended upin the bin. Its the only conclusion I canreach as the fraudulent calls started theday after I left Cambodia.

Unfortunately, I did not receive anywritten confirmation from Orange ofthe cancellation, which I now know iswhat should happened. The situationwas complicated by the fact I was con-currently cancelling a separate iPhonecontract with Orange. When speakingto them I reminded them several timesthat I wanted to cancel the sim as well.Looking back, I now know they shouldhave transferred me to the cancellationdepartment, but because I informedthem while discussing the iPhone theyonly verbally acknowledged it, which Ithought would be enough.

Back in the UK my attempts toresolve the bill with Orange were re-buffed. In August 2011 I put my caseto the adjudicator scheme CISAS, butit found in Oranges favour due to alack of evidence that I had actuallycancelled my contract. Determined to

fight on, I contacted my local citizensadvice bureau, which said my chancesof winning in a small claims court wereslim and I should consider a repay-ment plan. So I made an offer to paya third of the charges, which is what Iestimated to be the true cost to Orangeof the calls made by the fraudsters. Butthis was rejected, with Orange insistingI was liable for the whole bill.

I was in a quandrary. The threat ofthe bill would loom over me for a longtime, the debt collection agency wouldkeep coming at me, and Orange mighteven take me to court. The turningpoint came when I spoke to my uncle.He suggested I make a claim to Lam-beth county court for 222, the amountOrange had taken out of my account.This, as we expected, forced Orangeshand. It decided to defend my claimand put in a counterclaim for 2,170.

Up to this point I had been receivingletters and phone calls from debt col-lection agencies, which I felt were ag-gressive in nature. They then slappedthe 600 administrative charge on me.But it was these phone calls and lettersthat eventually resulted in my success.

The debt collection agency, directed

by Orange, continued to send methreats during the CISAS process, andagain while we were going through thecourt proceedings. I alerted Orangeto this, stating that it amounted toharassment and was in contempt ofcourt. The debt collection threats thenstopped for the duration of the CISASprocess, but failed to do so during thecourt proceedings.

Four months later Orange and I wereinvolved in a telephone mediation.Before this I sent Orange an applicationand witness statement I had preparedfor Lambeth county court. It asked thecourt to strike out Oranges defenceand counterclaim, and stated that theharassment by its directed debt collec-tion agency was in contempt of courtand perverted the course of just ice. Wefailed to reach an agreement. However,

while I was preparing this application Ireceived an email from Orange sayingthat although they denied they wereliable, they would like to resolve thematter amicably and swiftly. Theyagreed to withdraw their counterclaimif I would withdraw my claim.

I was relieved this was the result Iwanted, so I accepted the offer. As Or-ange had previously stonewalled everyattempt I had made to end the matter, Iwas sure this offer was due to the con-tempt of court application they knew Iwas about to make.

The whole process lasted 13 monthsand was a constant uphill struggle.Without the help and encouragementof my uncle this might have been adifferent story. I recognise I was ex-tremely fortunate to have his help andI have since learned the importanceof checking my bank statements thor-oughly and getting confirmation ofcontract cancellations in writing.

Going up against a giant corporationwith huge resources is daunting. How-ever, as the months drew on I grew lessand less intimidated as I realised theyhad more to lose than I did.

If I lost, the judge would determinea sensible amount for me to pay backthat would be within my means, andwould be far less than the 181 a monthOrange wanted from me. Neitherwould I have to pay the extra 600charges to the debt collection agency,and by going through the courts theamount I owed could not increase, as Iwas not liable for their costs.

I was confident no judge would al-low Oranges claim for the full cost ofthe fraudulent calls, but would onlyallow it to recover its costs rather thanprofiting from the fraudulent calls.

There must be hundreds of similarcases to mine. It is my view that mobilephone providers have a lot to lose bygoing up against individual consum-ers in court. My only regret from thewhole saga is that Orange have escapeda court judgment against them.

Mobile phones Gabi Sibley was hitwith a 2,000 bill for calls madeafter her sim card was stolen.But unlike others, she fought hercorner in the courts and won

The future wasnot bright after

Orange put thesqueeze on me

Claim and counterclaim: Gabi Sibleysdecision to take her case to the countycourt forced Orange to call a haltPhotograph: Linda Nylind

Money onthe webGet thelowdownon the latestbroadband,landlineand mobilephone dealsguardian.co.uk/

money

Leeds targets embattled savers withtop-paying instant access account

Savings There are stillgood deals if you lookhard, say Rupert Jones

and Sylvia WaycotNew research from Moneyfacts thisweek underlined just how bad thingshave got for savers in recent years. Itshows that in order to earn just 100interest annually before tax, you wouldhave to have more than 11,000 savedin a typical no-notice account. Butthere are still some good deals around this week, an instant access accountpaying 2.65% was launched.

Savings rates will be in the spotlightagain next week when the Bank of Eng-land announces its base rate amid talkabout a possible further reduction.

Moneyfacts says that last month,the average no-notice savings accountoffered 0.9% interest, while a typicalnotice account paid 1.17%. Five yearsago the equivalent figures were 4.08%

and 4.23%. That means that to get thesame 100 return on your savings cash

as five years ago, you would need toput an additional 8,660 into an in-stant access account, says the data pro-vider. This highlights the heartbreakcurrently facing pensioners trying tosupplement incomes, it adds.

There are some accounts payinghalf-decent rates available if you lookhard enough. This week, Leeds build-ing society launched Bonus AccessSaver, paying 2.65% gross, which it saidwas the top paying account availableon the high street with instant access.

Bonus Access Saver pays a variable2.05%, boosted by a bonus of 0.6% un-til 30 September 2013. The minimuminvestment is 100, with a maximuminvestment of 20,000 (40,000 forjoint accounts). Unlimited withdrawalscan be made at any time, while addi-tional payments in can be made whilethe account is open to new customers.

The Leeds this week also launchedits Bonus Isa, which has a headline tax-free rate of 3%. It is aimed at those whohavent yet used their 2012-13 Isa al-

lowance of 5,640. The accounts inter-est rate is 1.3%, plus a 1.7% bonus until

30 September 2013, and the minimuminvestment is 1. During the bonus pe-riod, two withdrawals or transfers canbe made without notice or loss of inter-est, and from 1 October 2013 there areno restrictions on w ithdrawals. How-ever, transfers in of previous years Isasubscriptions are not allowed.

Both accounts can be opened on-line at leedsbuildingsociety.co.uk, inbranch or by post.

In other savings news, Nationwidebuilding society has reduced the rateand bonus on its MySave Online Plusaccount to 2.86% monthly (2.9% AER),which includes a 1.36% bonus for 12months. However, it remains in the top10 comparable accounts with a bonus,said Moneyfacts. The account can beopened with 1,000-plus. Only onefree withdrawal is allowed per year.

Meanwhile, Derbyshire building so-ciety replaced its NetSaver with a newversion paying a lower rate and bonus.Issue 5 pays 2.9% yearly; this includesa 1.9% bonus until 31 January 2014. The

account is available to those over 16with 1,000 or more to hand.

Orange says:

We sympathise with theexceptional circumstances of MsSibleys situation, and can confirmthat we have agreed a settlementwith her. When a customer ends apay monthly contract with us wewould advise them to destroy theirsim when they have finished withit. This will ensure against anyunauthorised use.

Its also worth noting that,while we hope to be able to assistcustomers who have their phone orsim used fraudulently, it remainstheir responsibility to tell us assoon as it goes missing. Only thencan we prevent calls or data used

being charged to their account.


6/10


Is it ethical to bet on food prices?Investing As crops wither in the Midwest and Ukraine and the price of staples soars,speculators are rubbing their hands in glee. Patrick Collinson asks if its time to join in

Americas worst droughtin half a century, poorharvests in Russia andUkraine, and Britainswashout early summerwill all push up the

costs of basic staple foods such asbread and pasta, while rising animalfeed prices will send the price of meatsoaring, experts are warning.

Shoppers are already feeling thepinch, according to mySupermarket.co.uk, which compares prices at themajor retailers. It said minced beef isup 19% over the past year, while peas,carrots and potatoes are up by 4%-8% though some of this is due to seasonalfactors. Overall, global food prices roseby 6% in July, according to the UN.

Americas searing summer, whichhas seen temperatures hit 43C (110F)day after day, has left the once-richcornfields of the Midwest brown andshrivelled. The worst-hit farmers arereporting corn harvests of just a 10th ofthe previous year. It is estimated that,in total, 45% of the corn and 35% of thesoya bean crop has been destroyed.

The impact on family budgets,already hit by a steep rise in train faresand near-record petrol prices, could besevere, with economists nervous it willfurther delay any economic recovery.

But while the crops are withering,speculators are rubbing their hands.At Glencore, the worlds biggest com-modities trader, the head of its foodtrading business said this month thatthe US drought will be good for Glen-core because it will lead to opportuni-ties to exploit soaring prices. The Swissand Jersey-based dealer in wheat, corn,

oil and copper, made a profit of $2.3bn(1.5bn) in the first half of 2012.

Its not just big traders that havejumped on the food price bandwagon.Small investors are being encouragedto use exchange traded funds (ETFs)that track the price of individualcommodities, and where minimuminvestments are as low as 2.

Trawl the internet and youll findarticles such as How to invest forthe global food crisis by SeekingAlpha, which claims it is home tosavvy and inquisitive investors. AtInvestorDaily, the headline is Foodstocks whet investors appetites,while over at Nasdaq its Six agricul-ture ETFs on a roll. So far this year theETF for soya beans is up 44%, wheat isahead 34% and corn is up 25%.

should be looking at agribusinessstocks, such as fertiliser companies andfarm machinery makers, as the solu-tion to the worlds food challenges. In arecent research note Food: from crisisto crisis, Fidelity highlighted WorldBank estimates that demand will riseby 50% by 2030. Much of that will bedriven by population growth and a bigshift in Asian diets to more meat anddairy products. This has a significantknock-on effect on grain demand as ittakes 7 kilos to produce 1 kilo of meat.

Fidelity reckons there could be asecond green revolution as increasedfertiliser usage improves yields inAfrica and Asia. It tips fertiliser compa-nies such as Potash Corp, Uralkali andMosaic as potentially star stocks.

Currently, British investors have anumber of specialist agricultural fundsto choose from including Allianz RCMGlobal Agricultural Trends, Baring Glo-bal Agriculture, Eclectica Agriculture,

First State Global Agribusiness andSarasin Agrisar.

James Govan, manager of the 132mBaring Global Agriculture fund, says:The things we are investing in areabout expanding food supply, such asfertilisers, drought-resistant seed, ir-rigation equipment and so on.

Although volumes are down inAmerica, farm incomes are up becauseof rising prices, which has sparked aninvestment boom. Its one reason whyGovan is a holder of stocks such astractor maker John Deere, whose shareprice has more than doubled over thepast three years.

But despite the rise in global foodprices, the agricultural funds have hadsurprisingly weak performance. Bar-ings fund is up just 4.6% over the pastyear, Sarasin 9.7%, First State 6.2% andAllianz 3.6%. Eclecticas fund has fallen2%. In contrast, the average fund in theUK All Companies sector is up about16% over the past year.

The hot money suggests there willbe a fall in agricultural prices ratherthan a drought-inspired rise. Accord-ing to ETF Securities, there has beenan outflow of $622m from agriculturalETFs in the past year, much of it inrecent months. Meanwhile, the ETFswhich short agricultural prices inother words, they bet on a fall in prices are seeing inflows.

Says Nick Brooks of ETF Securities:Many investors built up positions inagricultural ETFs a year to 18 monthsago, but have been selling this year. Alot of investors view agricultural pricesas too high, are selling their long posi-tions, and some are going short.

... and fund increases

Soya beans 44%

Wheat 34%

Cocoa 15%

Sugar -16%

Coffee -29%

Year-to-date rise in price of exchange traded fundsSource: mysupermarket.co.uk and ETF Securities

Price hikes

2011 2012 Increase

Minced beef (500g) 2.36 2.81 18.9%

Frozen peas (90 0g) 1.75 1.90 8.6%

Carrots (1kg) 80p 85p 7.1%

Potatoes (2.5kg) 1.91 1.99 4.2%

Trying to puzzle out why gold has lost its shine

Is the great gold rush over? The price ofthe precious metal has soared over thelast decade, jumping from below $300(189) in 2001 to peak at $1,920 (1,211)in September 2011. But, since then, ithas fallen to around $1,660 (1,047)defying predictions and the hopes ofspeculators that it would continueto hit new peaks during the ongoingfinancial turmoil.

The fall has puzzled analysts. At theend of 2011, Goldman Sachs predictedanother glittering year with a risetowards $2,000 (1,262), averaging

around $1,800 (1,135).It said low interest rates, limited

appetite for risky assets and con-strained supply would keep it shining.Others fretted that quantitative eas-ing could spark a collapse in confi-dence in so-called fiat money (issu-ing paper money without the backingof gold reserves).

Typical was this analysis, madein mid-2011, by Julian Jessop, chiefinternational economist at Capital Eco-nomics, There is a new type of crisis.Investors are losing confidence in gov-ernments and paper currencies ... theflight to the safety of gold could easilysee the price surge well above $1,950(1,250).

Yet in the final quarter of 2011the price fell sharply, with only abrief recovery in early 2012 beforeit began sliding again. Figures fromfinancial adviser group HargreavesLansdown reveal that seven of the 10worst-performing funds for small in-

vestors in 2012 have been gold, as thevalue of shares in gold mining compa-

nies fell even harder than gold itself.But critics will welcome losses for

speculators, given the conditions un-der which some gold is mined. An in-vestigation by Channel 4s Dispatchesin June 2011 revealed that an estimated90% of gold miners worldwide, manyof them children, work for a pittance,using methods that do huge damageboth to health and the environment.

So why is gold falling in value, willthe fall continue, or will it bounce back?

In part, the decline of gold is be-cause investors have preferred the dol-lar as a safe haven during the economicturmoil. Generally, when the dollar isstrong, gold is weak.

Neil Gregson, manager of JP Mor-gans 1.6bn Natural Resources fund,says shares in gold mining companieshave fallen faster than the price of golditself. They have been the worst of-fenders on blowing out capital costsand operating costs, so there has beena substantial margin squeeze, he says.

But more important is the behaviourof investors in India, which is the big-gest buyer of gold in the world andthey have been selling. Says Gregson:The gold price is all about investmentdemand, not supply. India is impor-tant, as they are the biggest individualholders, with probably $1 trillion-worth

of gold. But they are very price sensi-tive and buy less as the price goes up.

Investors can choose between buy-ing gold directly through an exchangetraded fund, or through a fund thatbuys shares in gold mines. Many finan-cial advisers currently favour the fundsbecause they have fallen harder thanthe gold price.

Danny Cox, head of advice at Har-greaves Landsdown, says there is a rec-ognisable breakdown in the relation-ship between mining shares and physi-cal gold. He believes this is likely toeventually correct itself, so there maybe an opportunity to invest in under-valued gold funds, such as JPM NaturalResources and Smith and WilliamsonGlobal Gold and Resources.

But Charlie Parker, director ofCitywire, an online financial news andadvice site, believes any investmentin gold should be strictly long term,as a means of providing insulationand protection from an unpredictable

economic environment, rather than amechanism for short-term gains.

The price of this metalhas fallen, defyingthe experts. PatrickCollinson and JoAustin investigate

But Friends of the Earth Europe iscalling for a ban on institutional specu-lation in food commodity derivativesand commodity ETFs. The hunger ofpeople must come before the hunger offinancial in stitutions, it says.

Make Finance Work, a group of or-ganisations committed to alternativesolutions to the global economic crisis,is pressing the European parliament tocontrol food price speculation when itvotes next month on proposed reformsto financial regulation. Its calling forconsumers to sign a petition aimedat MEPs on its website, makefinance-work.org. If done right, it could pro-tect the worlds most vulnerable fromthe whims of Europes big financialplayers, campaigners say.

But the MEPs, whose votes are vi-tal, are being heavily lobbied by the fi-nancial industry. We need to tell MEPsto vote to end excessive food specula-tion, and put the hunger of people be-fore the greed of banks.

A German lobby group, Foodwatch,last month claimed success in itscampaign against speculation afterCommerzbank removed agriculturalproducts from its ETF offering.

It is reacting to the debate abouta series of studies which show thatinvestment in this type of commodityfund pushes food prices upwards andso contributes to the hunger crisis inmany parts of the world, Foodwatchsays. Last year, Deutsche Bank alsosaid it would refrain from launchingnew staples-based exchange tradedproducts this year.

But Fidelity Investments, the big-gest fund manager, says investors

Gold prices

Sep 2011 Nov Jan 2012 Mar Ma y Jul

1,500

1,600

1,700

1,800

1,900

Forex Gold Index, $ per ounce

It is not just big traders who havejumped on the food price bandwagon

Scorched corn in Indiana, as the USsuffers its worst drought in half acentury Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP


7/10


Best buys

Key All rates are shown as AER unless otherwise stated. *Intro rate for ltd period; A Funding of 1K p.m. req; B Op by post/phone; C Funding of

1K p.m. req. 1.98% paid at 1K, 2.96% at 3K and zero % paid on portion of balance over 5K; D Acct fee of 2 p.m. req. Funding of 500 p.m.

req. Zero % paid on portion of balance over 20K; E Min opening balance 100; F Fixed rate; G 1 yr reg sav acct min 10, max 100 p.m. Earlier

access on closure only subject to loss; H Op by internet/phone; K Op by internet/phone/post; L Reg salary/pension funding req; OM Interest paid

on maturity; P Op by post; S Aged 50+; T Op by phone; W Op by internet. All rates and terms subject to change without notice and should be

checked before finalising any arrangement. No liability can be accepted for any direct or consequential loss arising from the use of, or reliance

upon, this information. Readers who are not financial professionals should seek expert advice.Figures correct as of 30 August 2012 Source: moneyfacts.co.uk

Branch AccountInstant Access (top five)

Contact Notice or term Minimumdeposit ()

AER (%) Interestpaid

Leeds BS 0845 045 4048 Instant 100 2.61* Yly

Virgin Money 0845 154 6303 Instant 1 2.60 Yly

Newcastle BS 0845 606 5522 Instant 1 2.60 Yly

Bath BS Via branch Instant 1,000 2.35* Yly

West Brom BS Via branch Instant 1,000 2.26 Yly

Instant Access (top five high street)

Santander 0800 100801 Instant 5,000 2.30* Yly

Halifax 0845 122 1348 Instant 1 2.00* Yly

Cheltenham & Gloucester 0845 602 0022 Instant 1 1.90* Yly

Lloyds TSB Via branch Instant 1 1.60* Yly

Cheltenham & Gloucester 0845 602 0022 Instant 1,000 0.88* Yly

No Notice Accounts (with bonus)

ING Direct 0800 376 7799 None (H) 1 3.00* Mly

Allied Irish Bank (GB) 0845 455 2222 None (B) 1 2.80* Yly

Scottish Widows Bank 0845 845 0829 None (K) 1 2.50* Yly

BM Savings 0845 602 2828 None (T) 1 2.40* Yly

M&S Money 0808 001 3131 None (K) 1 2.35* Mly

No Notice Accounts (without bonus)

Teachers BS 0800 783 2367 None (T) 25,000 2.80 Yly

Shepshed BS 01509 822000 None (P) 25,000 2.80 Yly

Leeds BS 0845 045 4048 None (P) 1,000 2.75 Yly

Aldermore 0845 604 2678 None (K) 1,000 2.75 Yly

Sainsburys Bank 0800 028 5269 None (H) 1 2.50 Yly

Notice Accounts

krbs krbs.com 60 Day (W) 1,000 3.35 Yly

Shawbrook Bank shawbrook.co.uk 120 Day 1,000 3.30 Yly

krbs 08451 220022 60 Day (P) 1,000 3.25 Yly

Investec Bank plc 0845 366 6333 6 Month (K) 25,000 3.23 Yly

Shawbrook Bank shawbrook.co.uk 95 Day 1,000 3.20 Yly

Monthly Interest

krbs krbs.com 60 Day (W) 1,000 3.35 Mly

krbs 08451 220022 60 Day (P) 1,000 3.25 Mly

Investec Bank plc 0845 366 6333 6 Month (K) 25,000 3.23 Mly

Aldermore 0845 604 2678 120 Day (K) 1,000 3.20 Mly

Melton Mowbray BS mmbs.co.uk 100 Day 1,000 3.14 Mly

Monthly Interest (top five high street)

Santander santander.co.uk None (W) 1 3.00* Mly

Lloyds TSB 0845 730 140018 Month

Bnd2,000 3.00 Mly

Nationwide BS nationwide.co.uk None (W) 1,000 2.90* Mly

Cheltenham & Gloucester 0845 602 0022 Instant 25,000 2.02* Mly

Halifax 0845 122 1348 Instant 1 2.00* Mly

Internet Only Accounts

Post Offi ce postoffi ce.co.uk None 1 3.01* Yly

Santander santander.co.uk None 1 3.00* Yly

Nationwide BS nationwide.co.uk None 1,000 2.90* Mly

Derbyshire BS thederbyshire.co.uk None 1,000 2.90* Yly

Principality BS principality.co.uk None 1 2.85* Yly

Current accountsInterest paying

Halifax 0845 720 3040 Instant (A) 1 6.25pm Mly

Lloyds TSB 0800 015 4000 Instant (C) 1 1.49 Mly

Coventry BS 0845 766 5522 Instant (A) 1 1.09* Mly

Santander 0800 731 7774 Instant (D) 1,000 1.00 Mly

Leeds BS Via branch Instant (E) 100 0.05 Yly

Bonds

Fixed Rate BondsState Bank of India 0207 454 4315 5 Yr Bnd 1,000 4.50 F Yly

Halifax halifax.co.uk 3 Yr Bnd 500 3.85 F Yly

State Bank of India 0207 454 4315 3 Yr Bnd 1,000 3.85 F Yly

FirstSave firstsave.co.uk 1 Yr Bnd 1,000 3.45 F OM

United Bank UK ublukonlinesaver.com 1 Yr Bnd 2,000 3.45 F OM

Individual Savings AccountsCash Isas

Coventry BS 08457 665522 60 Day 1 3.25* Yly

West Brom BS westbrom.co.uk 60 Day 1,000 3.18* Yly

Aldermore 0845 604 2678 60 Day (K) 1,000 3.15 Yly

Manchester BS 0161 923 8015 Instant 1,000 3.06* Yly

Post Offi ce 0800 169 9622 None (B) 100 3.01* Yly

Childrens accountsChildrens Accounts

Halifax 0845 122 1348 G 10 6.00 F OM

Halifax Via branch 5 Yr Bnd 500 4.00 F Yly

Northern Rock 0845 600 4466 Instant 1 3.00 Yly

Lloyds TSB Via branch Instant 1 3.00 QlyBuckinghamshire BS 01494 879500 100 Day 1,000 3.00 Yly

National SavingsAccounts & bonds (gross)

Notice () min Deposit Gross Rate(%) Int paid

NS&I Direct Saver None 1 1.50 Yly

Income Bonds None 500 1.46 Mly

Investment None 20 0.75 Yly

Tax-free products

Direct ISA None 100 2.50 Yly

Childrens Bonus Bond - Issue 34 5 Year 25 2.50F OM

Key: ASU: accident, sickness and unemployment insurance; B: compulsory lenders b uildings insurance applies; B&C: compulsory lenders buildings & contents insurance apply; D: discounted rate; F: fixed rate;

FTB: first time buyer; HLC: high lending charge; HP: house purchase; U: unemployment insurance; V: variable rate. Incentive of free or discounted legal fees may only be available through lenders nominated solicitor.

Lenders standard redemption conditions may also apply at any time. All rates and terms subject to change without notice and should be checked before finalising any arrangement. No liability can be accepted for any

direct or consequential loss arising from the use of, or reliance upon, this information. Readers who are not financial professionals should seek expert advice.

Figures correct as of 30 August 2012 Source: moneyfacts.co.uk

Mortgages

Money onthe webTo findthe bestdeals ona range offinancialproductsandservicesgo to:guardian.co.uk/money-

deals

Variable tracker rateTop 5 Overall

Contact Rate% Period MaxLTV%

Fee ()Incentive Early repayment penalty period

Furness BS 0800 220568 3.09 for 2 years 70 250Remortgages free valuation (max 335). Remortgages in England &Wales free legal fees or remortgages 150 rebate. No HLC

1st 2 yrs: 3% of advance

Yorkshire BS 0845 120 0874 3.39 to 31.12.15 75 295 Flexible option. No HLC To 31.12.15: 3% of sum repaid

Nationwide BS 08000 304048 4.29 for 5 years 80 99 Free valuation. Remortgages free legal fees in Great Britain. No HLC None

HSBC 0800 022 3588 2.64 for term 60 999 Remortgages free legal fees. No HLC None

first direct 0800 482448 4.99 for term 90 - Fr ee val uati on . Re mor tga ges fr ee l ega l fee s. No HLC Non e

Fixed rate with no tie-in beyond loan termTop 5 Overall

West Brom BS 0800 298 0008 2.95 to 31.8.14 75 999 No HLC To 31.8.14: 3% of sum repaid

H anley Economi c BS 01782 255000 4. 29 to 30.11.14 90 900Free valuation (max 240). House purchase 250 rebate. Remortgagesfree legal fees (max 250). No HLC

To 30.11.14: 2% of sum repaid

Leeds BS 0845 045 4049 3.25 to 30.11.15 75 999 Lenders B+C required. No HLC To 30.11.15: 4/3/2% of sum repaid

first direct 0800 482448 4.99 for 5 years 90 - Free valua tion. Rem ortgages free lega l f ees. No HLC 1st 5 y rs: 3/2/2/2/2% of a dvance

Leeds BS 0845 045 4049 4.58 to 30.9.22 75 999 No HLCTo 30.9.22: 6/6/5/5/5/5/4/4/3/2%of sum repaid

Top 5 High StreetNatWest MortgageServices

0800 587 6599 3.55 to 31.10.14 75 995 Remortgages free valuation. Remortgages free legal fees. No HLC To 31.10.14: 3% of sum repaid

HSBC 0800 022 3588 4.99 to 30.11.14 90 599 Remortgages free legal fees. No HLC To 30.11.14: 2/1% of sum repaid

W ool wi ch fr om Ba rcl ay s 08 45 607 11 11 3. 99 t o 3 0. 9. 15 8 0 49 9Remortgages free valuation. Remortgages free legal fees orremortgages 200 rebate. No HLC

To 30.9.15: 3% of sum repaid

Halifax 0845 727 3747 3.99 to 30.11.17 75 245 Flexible option. No HLC To 30.11.17: 5/4/3/3/3% of advance

HSBC 0800 022 3588 4.99 to 30.11.17 90 599 Remortgages free legal fees. No HLCTo 30.11.17: 5/4/3/2/1% of sum

repaid

Remortgages (variable unless stated)Top 5 Overall

Leeds BS 0845 045 4049 3.00D for 2 years 75 199 F re e v al ua ti on (m ax 3 35 ). Fr ee le ga l f ee s. No HL C 1 st 2 y rs : 3 /2 % o f s um re pa id

Nor wich & P boro BS 0845 300 2522 3.34V for 2 yea rs 75 295 Flexible option. Free valua tion. Free legal f ees. No HLC 1st 2 yrs: 3% of o/s balance

Furness BS 0800 220568 3.29D for 3 years 80 -Free valuation (max 335). Free legal fees in England & Wales or 150towards legal fees. No HLC

1st 2 yrs: 3% of advance

Leeds BS 0845 045 4049 3.75F to 30.11.15 75 199Free valuation (max 335). Free legal fees. No HLC. Lenders B+Crequired

To 30.11.15: 4/3/2% of sum repaid

Hinckley & Rugby BS 0800 774499 4.15F to 31.8.17 80 890 Free valuation. Free legal fees. No HLCTo 31.8.17: 5/4/3/2/1% of sumrepaid

Top 5 High Street

HSBC 0800 022 3588 2.49D for 2 years 60 499 Free legal fees. No HLC 1st 2 yrs: 2/1% of sum repaid

NatWest MortgageServices

0800 587 6599 3.29F to 31.10.14 60 - Free valuation. Free legal fees. No HLC To 31.10.14: 3% of sum repaid

Woolwic h f rom Barclays 0 84 5 6 07 1 11 1 3 .9 9F to 3 0.9.15 8 0 4 99 Free valua tion. Free legal fees or 200 reba te. N o HLC To 30.9.15: 3% of sum repa id

Nationwide BS 08000 304048 3.59V for 5 years 70 99 F re e v al ua ti on . F re e l eg al fe es in Gr ea t B ri ta in . N o H LC N on e

HSBC 0800 022 3588 3.29V for term 70 - Free valuation. Free legal fees. No HLC None

Savings


8/10

8WorkSaturday Guardian 01.09.12

Should I go back to

being an engineer orenjoy my retirement?I am a retired professional engineer,living very comfortably on my pensionand voluntary redundancy paymentaccumulated after 42 years with onecompany. This former company, nowvery short of engineers, is unable tofind younger engineers and is look-ing to take on retirees on what arevery lucrative short-term contracts.I am struggling to decide whether to

become re-employed.I have no need of extra money as

I own my own home, can take severalholidays each year and be happythat my wife occasionally shops inWaitrose. I enjoy a close involvementwith my grandchildren, taking themto school, dance classes, seasideexcursions and music festivals.

But I like being defined as anengineer working on a complexproject rather than a taxi driver,nanny and unpaid maintenance man.Perhaps more significantly I strongly

believe that the UKs economy canonly recover if we all contribute to the

best of our ability which will not befrom my gardening. Can you adviseme on this dilemma?

Jeremy says

With one proviso, to which I shall re-turn, my advice is go for it. Thousandsof retired professionals would love tobe faced with this dilemma.

You are already, as you freelyrecognise, hugely fortunate. Youhave a retirement life that many can

only dream about. But for 42 years,being an engineer working on

projects, working things out, applyingyour skills, having ideas, beingapprehensive about challenges,passing on your expertise to others,earning their respect has been asmuch a part of you, as a person, asyour family has been. And while youmay have failed to get the work-familybalance right all the time, I bet yourwife recognises that your professionalcareer benefited the whole familyin more than material ways. Thosefortunate enough to experience jobsatisfaction are usually more rounded,more contented people.

So its my belief that you shouldcertainly take on at least one of theseshort-term contracts (the fact they arelucrative is a pleasant bonus, but it isnot why you should go for them).

You are not making an irrevocabledecision, your family will certainly ad-just to your more limited availability and will probably value your continuedcontributions even more.

My one proviso is this: if Im wrongin my assumptions, and if such a deci-sion is going to lead to some definitedecline in the standard of life foryour wife and your children, then itis not such a simple decision as I havesuggested. But it may still be the rightone: for all of you.

Readers say

You are in a position to get the bestof both worlds. Could you go backpart-time on the condition that you aretraining and mentoring someone to beable to be successful in the role in thefuture? RDUK123

Getting a young person training andproviding him with the skills you value

so highly will make a far bigger differ-ence to the trainee and the economy.Gargoyle76

Retirement should be about doingwhat you choose to do. If you like theengineering side, then look on it as ahobby that happens to also pay you.Its a win-win.jayaess

My boss is a nightmare,and a bully, but I cantget anything doneI have been working at the samecompany for more than a year. At firstI thought my boss was just an oddball,

but since Christmas he has becomea complete bully. He is ridiculouslystupid and it is unfair that someonethis idiotic should be the boss of any-one, but hey, mummy and daddy lefthim money and so he has a company.

He doesnt listen to what anyonehas to say, and blames everyone else

but his own bad judgment. On one oc-casion I had to explain the same thingto him 26 times but he still didnt getit. I dont cry often or get angry, andI care about the job, but I am findingit difficult to cope because he is con-stantly putting me down. Since Christ-mas I have had to leave the office atleast once a day to calm myself downand not show weakness or show himthat his behaviour is affecting me.

I can take criticism if it is accurateand worthy, but he gives me grief justfor the hell of it and Ive had enough.Since its a very small company, he isthe top boss so I cant complain to any-

one higher up, and we certainly donthave a union. Im in a foreign country

and learning the language so finding anew job isnt easy. What do I do?

Jeremy says

Small companies run by their ownerscan be a joy to work for. Communi-cations are swift, problems can beresolved over a coffee, nobody has toget agreement from upstairs, peo-ple are only too happy to do whateverneeds to be done, irrespective of status.

All that, of course, depends on justone crucial factor: the nature of theboss/owner. If the boss/owner is seento be competent, fair minded andapproachable, almost everything elsefalls into place. But when all thosebenign characteristics are absent, to bereplaced by bullying and crass stupid-ity, then the potential disadvantages ofa boss/owner business become starklyapparent. Nobody to appeal to; nounion; no HR department; no higherauthority: youve nowhere to go.

Nowhere, that is, but out. Im alwaysreluctant to advise my readers to cutand run. Theres usually some wayto lessen tension, to achieve greaterunderstanding of anothers point ofview and make it possible for uncom-fortable personal relationships to be

resolved. But in your case, primarilybecause of the nature of the company, I

fear there is not.I urge you to realise that the pressure

you are under and the misery it i scausing could have a serious andlong-term effect on your health andconfidence. You must not let it dragon. Your self-assurance is low becauseyou are in a foreign country and work-ing in a language not your own. Thatis understandable. But your lettershows an admirable grasp of English and I sense an indomitable spirit onlytemporarily intimidated. I know itwont be easy but youve got to makethat jump.

Readers say

I had a boss like that. He eventuallygot sacked through incompetence, butnot before causing me so much stressI ended up seeking medical help. Itseasy to say quit, but it appears to beyour only option. Its not worth yourhealth and sanity working with thisfool. BigDukeSix

Bide your time, keep learning thelanguage and stepping outside everynow and then so you dont explode,and continue to make other job appli-cations. If its a case of having to take aposition you dont want just to get outof there, then do it then take stockand go from there. ZadigCity

Read more problems and offer youradvice well run the best of italongside Jeremys in next Saturdayscolumn guardian.co.uk/work

Problems at work? Our agony uncle and you, the readers have the answers

DearJeremy

Next week onthe website

For Jeremy Bullmores adviceon a work issue, send a brief emailto [email protected] note that he is unable toanswer questions of a legal natureor reply personally


9/10

WorkGuardian GeneralMore jobs at guardianjobs.co.ukSaturday 1 September 2012 9

Business Developmentand Marketing Manager

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and dynamic organisation looking to expand and

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For further information, please

visit our website

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Closing date:Wednesday

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Customer RelationshipManagement (CRM)Manager32,429 - 40,864 pa (dependingon experience) plus benefits36 hours per week18 month fixed-term appointment

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Turn ambition into reality with expertadvice, guidance and coaching fromPersonal Career Management.In association with Guardian Jobs.Get in touch for exclusive offers and

a free initial meeting.

Sefton Jobswww.sefton.gov.uk/jobs

Sefton Council Arts & Cultural Services

ManagerMuseums & GalleriesGrade K 38,961 39,855The Manager - Museums & Galleries will be an equal member

of the Atkinson programme management team which includes

expertise in performing and visual arts, community engagement

and marketing. Through interdisciplinary working with the team,

you will develop an innovative approach to the creation of high

profile, original exhibitions, to the display and appreciation of

Seftons own collections and to supporting the work of immerging

artists and craft people. Community engagement lies at theheart of every aspect of the programme and the successful

candidate will know how to foster productive links between the

Atkinson and its host community. This 18m project opens to

the public in the Spring of 2013

For details of the Atkinson, an introduction pack, job

description and an application form go to www.sefton.gov.uk

Sefton Council Arts & Cultural Services, 2nd Floor,

Merton House, Stanley Rd, Bootle L20 3JA

Closing date for applications is 21st September 2012.

Interviews to be held 1st, 2nd and 3rd October in Southport

Sefton is an equal opportunities employer and welcomesapplications from all sections of the community


10/10


Pinning down Axa

on buildings coverI live in a house that was underpinnedin 1990, which is now on the market.Axa, my buildings insurer, is refusingto cover any future owner. I havelost one buyer for this reason. I havewritten to Axa but have had no reply.Without insurance the house isunsaleable.

I am told insurers are obliged tocontinue cover in these circumstances is this so?JS, Chislehurst, Kent

It looks like Axa has done a U-turnon this since we became involved;either that or it needs to work on stafftraining.

Once your prospective buyerdropped out, you are adamant youspoke to two separate people at Axaon two different occasions and weretold both times that, indeed, yourinsurance cover could not be offered toa future owner.

However, Axa says it not only hasno record of being contacted by apotential buyer for your property butthat it has a clear stance that it willoffer insurance in this situation.

It is not actually obliged to continuecover for subsidence but the Associa-tion of British Insurers says insurersshould do under its voluntary bestpractice guidelines.

These state: Where an insurer haspreviously agreed to continue coverand the property is subsequently sold,it would be good practice to extend thearrangement to the purchaser, subjectto satisfactory information about thenew owners, especially their previousclaims record and the new ownersagreement to continue management ofongoing risks (where appropriate).

Axa has now contacted you to con-firm that it will extend cover to a new

owner. It has provided you with a letterto this effect that you can show to any

prospective buyers. Good luck with thehouse sale.

Council wins tax claimdespite 10-year delay

BPO Collections havewritten to me trying torecover some counciltax arrears on behalf ofGlasgow city council.The amount outstandingis 106.02 and relates tocharges for 2002 whenI left the property mid-way through the year. I wentto Edinburgh for 18 months

but then returned to Glasgow whereI have continued to pay council taxvia direct debit and have never misseda payment.

This letter turned up out of the blueas Glasgow city council appear notto have been able to find me on theirsystem in the eight or so subsequentyears since I returned to Glasgow.

BPO tell me that some of the directdebit payments I had set up backthen didnt go through. The councilcannot confirm the details of the pay-ments because their systems do not gothat far back. I am unable to confirmpayments with my bank as they onlyhold records for seven years. Do I haveto pay this?MON, Glasgow

It is unfortunate that Glasgow citycouncil has taken so long to track youdown for this debt as, had it actedsooner, you may have been able toprove you did in fact pay it. However,unfortunately for you, the council hasthe upper hand regardless.

At first we thought that too muchtime had passed for it to chase the

transfer. Santander has apologisedfor its mistake and has made you an

additional goodwill payment of 125.

Exclusive Olympicfare was no bargain

I had a ticket to the Olympic Gameson 6 August. I commute regularly bytrain and I saw posters, both on thetrain and at the station, advertisingthe nationalrailgamestravel.co.ukwebsite, which offered exclusivefares for London 2012 Games ticketholders. The implication from thiswas that, as a Games ticket holder,I would get a discounted fare down toLondon.

On the website I found that anexample fare from York to Londonwas 15 one way. My tickets however,

bought on 19 April, cost 90 return,far more than the example given,although I appreciate it often dependson the time of day that you travel.

In mid-July I decided to check theEast Coast website, to see how much aticket to London was on the day I wastravelling. I was very disappointed tofind that, had I waited, I could h avegot a return ticket to London for under70, considerably less than the 90 Ipaid. As mentioned above I was led to

believe that as a Games ticket holder,I would be entitled to a cheap fare to

London if I booked in advance, butI now find that I have been

ripped off.I wonder if other

people have had a similarexperience and whetherthis website shouldhave been allowed to getaway with this?

LN, York

We can understand whyyou thought you would get a

cheaper train ticket. Exclusive faresdoes seem to suggest that but, in fact,the fares are exclusive because theyinclude extra flexibility that would notnormally be allowed under the termsand conditions of travel.

Train companies launched thesefares for London 2012 more than ayear ago for Olympic and Paralympicticketholders. They are being sold viathe website nationalrailgamestravel.

Contact us

debt as unsecured debt in Scotlandcan become statute-barred after five

years (six years in England and Wales),meaning it cannot be chased.

However, the case is different forcouncil tax. Debt advice charity theConsumer Credit Counselling Servicetells us that council tax is excluded

from this five-year rule again, un-like England and Wales, where

it does become statute-barred. In Scotland, coun-

cils can pursue the debtfor 20 years.

The council is entitledto recover any non-payment if the debt is

still due even if it madean error and closed the

account before it was settled.Although the amount in this

case is small, the CCCS says the councilwill always want to collect, and there isnever any write-off.

At least you know the legal positionnow and should pay the debt as soonas possible.

Isa transfer lost onroute to Santander

I opened an Isa account at the end ofMarch 2012 attracted by Santanderswidely advertising campaign. Inresponse to the formal requestfrom Santander, my previous Isaprovider, NatWest, transferred20,000 to Santander inmid-April. The 20,000has still not beenallocated to my account

by Santander, despitenumerous phone calls.

No progress is beingmade and my faith in theBritish banking system isseverely shaken.BB,Aldeburgh, Suffolk

Your money was apparentlytransferred into a different Santandercustomers account, although thebank was unable to tell you how thishappened. All it told us is that it was aclerical error.

The good news is t hat the 20,000has now been transferred into youraccount and the interest has beenbackdated to the day you made the

co.uk, operated on behalf of train com-panies by Atoc, the Association of Train

Operating Companies.The idea was that, for the fare you

would normally pay for the cheapesttickets that require you to stick to a settrain, you would also get a three-hourwindow to catch a different service ifyou were delayed. The delay could bebecause the event you were watchingoverran or simply because you choseto potter around the Olympic Park andget a later service, according to Atoc.

You bought two single tickets viathis website. One was from York toLondon on the 8.30am train on Mon-day 6 August and the other was areturn on the 8pm train the same day.With your particular tickets, the looserterms and conditions meant you couldhave got any direct service from Yorkthat day if you changed your mindabout your departure time and couldhave got any train back before 11pm.

The galling thing with these ticketsis that lots of people, like you, probablypaid for flexibility they didnt reallyneed. Anyone planning a day at t heGames would be likely to have builtin a few hours between an event andcatching a train anyway.

Having said that, we checked theprices of the exact same trains youtook in August two months ahead andthe cheapest fare we could find wasa 90 return. So, although you man-aged to find a cheaper, inflexible 70return fare closer to your departuredate, we dont feel you have paid muchover the odds.

Atoc also says: On the very fewoccasions where tickets becameavailable that were cheaper thanthe special Games fares, and wherecustomers contacted us before theirjourney, we were able to offer them arefund or to book a standard fare andrefund the difference, although thesetickets did not offer the extra flexibilityand peace of mind.

We welcome letters but cannotanswer individually. Email us [email protected] write to Bachelor & Brignall,Money, the Guardian, 90 York Way,London N1 9GU. Please include adaytime phone number

1062002 arrears

council claimsit is owed

20,000

restored afterfour monthsin transit

Bachelor&BrignallConsumer champions Lisa Bachelor and Miles Brignall fight for your rights

s

Documents

The Guardian Money 01.09.2012