THE next few days look set to deliver this year's second round of energy price hikes. EDF yesterday announced it was increasing gas and electricity prices and British Gas is likely to follow suit when it unveils its latest results on Thursday.
Past experience tells us that when one of the big six suppliers hikes bills, the other five follow in quick succession, and the increases could be as painful as they are predictable. This means new rules laid down by the energy regulator aimed at mak
ing suppliers offer the cheapest energy deals available to their lowest income customers were welcome and timely. Some suppliers already do this but others continue to price social tariffs – available to vulnerable customers and those in fuel poverty – more expensively than their online deals.
So much more needs to be done to ease the burden of rising fuel bills, however, leaving aside the argument that the price of gas should be based on supply and demand and not tied to the price of oil. Awareness remains a problem – thousands of people are unaware they are eligible for social tariffs – and the onus is on suppliers to address this urgently.
CONSUMER group Which? this week gave mortgage advisers a bit of a kicking. Its latest research found that just four out of the 50 mortgage advisers its undercover researchers spoke to met the standards it set out. Of the 50, 41 failed to provide all the information required under Financial Services Authority rules, while an alarming 35 omitted to check the customer's affordability.
But the research didn't distinguish between the different types of adviser. In other words, the 50 advisers were taken from banks and building societies, estate agents and independent mortgage advisers in Scotland and England. This fundamentally undermines the findings. Would it not have been better – particularly in the current climate, when the quality of advice is all-important – to assess the different types of advice individually?
Only if you go to an independent adviser for guidance on mortgages will you get whole-of-market advice where the focus is on understanding your needs. Banks and building societies offer only generic information. In short, if you want good advice on the mortgage market, you go to an independent adviser.
As it happens, of the four advisers that passed the test, three were independent. Of the 24 banks, just one made the grade, while none of the 13 estate agents passed.
Of course this still means that ten independent advisers fell short. However, with fewer mortgages available, tighter lending criteria to negotiate, fees rising (and becoming more complicated) and tied advisers flogging inappropriate insurance with mortgages, the cost of not taking independent advice can be extortionate.
FINANCIALLY, the end of the month is often the hardest and credit cards could take a battering over the coming days. But the cost of credit has increased – particularly when withdrawing cash from a card – with almost a third of credit card providers hiking their APR (annual percentage rate) in the last year, according to Moneysupermarket.com. Some of the biggest lenders are the worst culprits, including Barclays, Lloyds and Egg, and the average interest rate charged to customers who withdraw money from their card now exceeds 25 per cent.
So if you're tempted to dip into your credit card at the cash machine, check how much you're paying for it, consider other cash options first and clear your balance as soon as possible.
