keeping up appearances

 

As many as 15 million Britons are using credit cards and loans in the struggle to keep up appearances as they mistakenly consider themselves to be middle class.

New research from Moneysupermarket.com has shown that around a quarter of the UK population are so desperate to live up to the middle class ideal that they are mounting up debts of almost £13,000 per person.

According to the research, 6 million Britons purporting to be middle class earn as little as £15,000 a year. The average annual income for working class households is £23,000, whereas middle class families earn an average of £33,000. This gap illustrates how wrong 6 million Brits are in classing themselves as middle class.

As a result of lower earnings, millions of actual working class Brits are turning to unsecured credit and loans in order to keep up with their middle class peers. The research showed that although many turned to secured credit, 2.7 million had resorted to unsecured loans or credit card debt, with a collective secured and unsecured debt of £35 billion.

 

sorry your application was rejected.

 

Sorry, your application for a credit card was rejected. Sound familiar? Credit card companies are rejecting 18,000 applications every day as they continue to tighten up on risky lending, according to research from MoneyExpert.com.

According to reports, more than 3.24 million card applications have been declined in the past 6 months, even more evidence that Britains love for credit has been ended in fast fashion from lenders.

MoneyExpert has voiced concern that these millions of rejected applicants – more than for any other form of credit – are harming their credit record, and suggests that each potential credit card customer get a free credit report and consider the strength of their credit rating before applying.

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 Have more with MBNA! The MBNA Platinum Credit Card now gives you 0% p.a. on balance transfers until your statement date in August 2009 (2.9% handling fee applies) AND 0% p.a. on card purchases* until your statement date in October 2008,15.9% APR typical (variable). Plus, unlike some other lenders, we guarantee that if your application is successful the rate you apply for is the rate you’ll get - no exceptions! There is no annual fee to pay and no liability or excess to pay for theft, loss or fraudulent Internet use - as long as you tell us as soon as your card cannot be found or you notice any unusual transactions on your account. On top of that, there is a free 24-hour worldwide telephone helpline and online banking service that provide control and flexibility in managing your account. MBNA Platinum Credit Card. Long promotional rates on balance transfers AND card purchases. 

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MBNA Platinum credit card

 Have more with MBNA! The MBNA Platinum Credit Card now gives you 0% p.a. on card purchases* until your statement date in August 2008 AND 0% p.a. on balance transfers until your statement date in June 2009 (2.9% handling fee applies).15.9% APR typical (variable).
Plus, unlike some other lenders, we guarantee that if your application is successful the rate you apply for is the rate you’ll get - no exceptions!
There is no annual fee to pay and no liability or excess to pay for theft, loss or fraudulent Internet use - as long as you tell us as soon as your card cannot be found or you notice any unusual transactions on your account. On top of that, there is a free 24-hour worldwide telephone helpline and online banking service that provide control and flexibility in managing your account.
MBNA Platinum Credit Card. Long promotional rates on balance transfers AND card purchases.
*See summary box for details of how payments to the account will be allocated

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Up to £7,500 cover for vet’s fees with Homebase Pet Insurance. Homebase could protect your cat or dog from just 2 months old with no maximum age limit to cover vet’s fees. Our Silver, Gold and Platinum policies let you choose cover to suit you and your pocket. Vet’s fees from £3,000 to £7,500 can be covered – our best ever Platinum cover protects your pet with up to £7,500 for each condition. USP’s Homebase gives you three choices of cover to suit your needs:
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Gold – up to £5,000 in vet’s fees for 12 months per condition
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Older pets can be covered – unlike other providers there is no upper age limit to cover vet’s fees
Online prices for our Silver cover start from £4.54 a month for a cat and £6.86 for a crossbreed dog and £7.87 for a pedigree dog (including 5% online discount)
A choice of cover to protect yourself against unexpected costs
No upper age limit to cover your pet for vet’s fees – unlike some other insurance companies
We can pay the vet direct giving you one less thing to worry about
Spread the cost by paying monthly with no extra fee
Cover includes help if your pet is lost or stolen
Bereavement counselling and other helplines included as standard
As with all insurances terms and conditions apply, cover is provided as long as policies are renewed and premiums are up to date
Click here for a pet insurance quote from Homebase pet insurance

bt credit card

The BT Visa Credit Card gives you 0% p.a. on card purchases* for 12 months from the date your account is opened AND 0% p.a. on balance transfers for 3 months (3% handling fee applies). 16.9% APR typical (variable).

Plus, unlike some other lenders, we guarantee that if your application is successful the rate you apply for is the rate you’ll get - no exceptions!

There is no annual fee to pay and no liability or excess to pay for theft, loss or fraudulent Internet use - as long as you tell us as soon as your card cannot be found or you notice any unusual transactions on your account. On top of that, there is a free 24-hour worldwide telephone helpline and online banking service that provide control and flexibility in managing your account.

BT Visa Credit Card.
Great promotional rates on balance transfers AND card purchases.

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*See summary box for details of how payments to the account will be allocated

MBNA wwf credit card

  The WWF credit card - contribute as you spend and enjoy great rates!
• 0% p.a. on balance transfers for 12 months from the date your account is opened (3% handling fee applies)
• 0% p.a. on card purchases* for 3 months from the date the account is opened
• 15.9% APR typical rate (variable)
When you first use your card MBNA will contribute to WWF, provided you apply online for your card, and MBNA will continue to contribute every year you continue to use your card. In addition, every time you use your WWF Credit Card to make a card purchase, WWF will receive another contribution. These contributions are made at no extra cost to you. With great rates and the chance to contribute at no extra cost to you, there is no better time to lend your support to WWF. *See summary box for details of how payments to the account will be allocated

Click here to apply for the WWF credit card issued by MBNA.

 

Compensation for victims of income tax change

Gordon Brown bought off the great 10p tax revolt today with cash payments for pensioners and childless people.

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In a major retreat, women aged 60 to 64 will get a lump sum, probably £100 or more, to compensate them if they lost out from the scrapping of the starter rate of income tax.
It will be delivered into bank accounts by the autumn in the same way as the annual winter fuel allowance.

Money will also be found for people without children on low incomes who do not qualify for tax credits.

Mr Darling gave no details except that Treasury officials were trying to reward those who lost out, probably using the tax credit system and averaging £2 a week.

The U-turn - the third major rewriting of tax reforms this year - was rushed out to try to get Mr Brown off the hook before Prime Minister’s Questions.

bank charges ruling expected Thursday

  It has been announced that the judge hearing the bank charges test case will be handing down his judgement this Thursday.

The case, which started in January this year, involves the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) and the UK’s eight major banks and building societies.

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The OFT took on the banks and building societies over the fees charged when someone goes over their agreed overdraft limit on their current account or when a direct debit or cheque bounces.

According to the OFT, banks receive almost £10m revenue a day in ‘unauthorised overdraft fees’ which amounts to as much as £3.5bn in a year.

Banks levy charges of as much as £39 for a bounced cheque, direct debit or standing order.

Those in criticism of the current system claim that this amount is not a fair amount to charge because it does not reflect the true amount it costs the bank to recover their money.

In legal terms, the OFT is claiming that the charges are illegal as per the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulation 1999.

If the OFT wins the test case, it will likely force those providing current accounts to reduce the fees they levy under the above circumstances. Additionally, banks could be made to return the millions of pounds worth of ‘unfair’ charges already paid by customers.

The judge hearing the case, Mr Justice Andrew Smith, listened to 14 days of evidence presented by the OFT and the banks, who represent 90% of the current account market, in January this year.

According to consumer group Which?, the ruling could result in one of these possible outcomes for the test case:

The OFT could win: The ruling could say that all the terms and conditions used by those banks involved in the test case over the past six years can be assessed by the OFT for fairness
 
The banks could win: The ruling could say that none of the terms and conditions used by those banks involved in the test case over the past six years can be assessed by the OFT for fairness

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