Money Box

Latest Episodes:

Money Box Live: Cost of Food Apr 05, 2023

Show notes

Grocery prices have increased by 17.1% in the four weeks to 19th February, meaning it’s at the highest level they’ve ever been recorded. This could mean households see over £800 extra on their annual food shop (Kantar).

With grocery inflation being the second most important financial issue for the public, behind energy costs, we speak to shopper’s about how their household budgets are being affected.

The experts on the panel are, Kris Hamer, Director of Insights at the British Retail Consortium, Sabine Goodwin, Coordinator at the Independent Food Aid Network and Lisa Webb, consumer expert at Which.

Presenter: Dan Whitworth Producer: Amber Mehmood Editor: Clare Worden

Rising Rents and Energy Bills Apr 01, 2023

Show notes

The BBC understands that the Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, is expected to extend the Energy Price Guarantee at current levels for a further three months- but what does that mean for your energy bills?

One of the UK's biggest flat share websites has told Money Box that rents are rising very fast: up almost 13% last year. In January 2022, the average UK monthly rent listed on SpareRoom was just over £650. By January this year it had risen to almost £750 pounds a month. We'll hear from them and also speak to a renter and landlord.

And, as food inflation rises, we'll also look at what kind of impact that's having on household finances? Dan Whitworth speaks to supermarket shoppers in Halifax.

Presenter: Felicity Hannah Reporters: Dan Whitworth and Star MacFarlane Researchers: Sandra Hardial and Jo Krasner Editor: Jess Quayle

(First broadcast 12pm Saturday 4th March, 2023)

Money Box Live: Working Over 50 Mar 29, 2023

Show notes

The Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, is expected to introduce measures in his March Budget to encourage people who have retired early to return to work in-order to help revive the economy.

In this podcast, we speak to people who are retired, people who are over 50 and looking for a new job, and some who are continuing to work after 70. With them, we identify what the barriers are keeping them out of work, and what the incentives are to keep them in the workforce.

The experts on the panel are, Kim Chaplain, specialist advisor for work at the Centre for Ageing Better, and Adrian Adair, chief operating officer at Morson Group.

Presenter: Felicity Hannah Producer: Amber Mehmood Researcher: Dan Bater Editor: Jess Quayle

(First broadcast 3pm Wednesday 1st March, 2023)

Over 50s Workers and Faulty Prepayment Meters Mar 25, 2023

Show notes

The Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, is expected to use his Budget on March 15th to introduce measures to to encourage people over 50 to return to work. Since 2019 there has been a rise in the number of people defined as economically inactive. That means they are not working, self-employed, or looking for work to claim benefits. The number rose by 830,000 between 2019 and 2022, with three quarters of that increase among those aged 50 and over. The Department for Work and Pensions has a programme to encourage people over 50 back into work by offering help with health support, pension planning and flexible working opportunities. Clare Worden visits Shrewsbury Job Centre to find out more.

Some energy customers are being left for months with faulty prepayment meters. Several people have told Money Box that although their electricity has not been disconnected the screens showing their credit has been blank since Christmas and they cannot top up, so they have no idea how much electricity they're using or what it is costing them. The law says suppliers should take 'appropriate action' within hours - arranging to fix or replace the meter. Or at the least to arrange an appointment. We'll get reaction from their suppliers and talk to Matt Cole from the Fuel Bank Foundation.

And where should you put your money to make the most out of it? We'll talk savings with Anna Bowes from Savings Champion.

Presenter: Paul Lewis Reporter: Clare Worden Researchers: Sandra Hardial and Jo Krasner Editor: Jess Quayle

(First broadcast 12pm, Saturday 25th February, 2023)

Money Box Live: Your Pensions and Investments Mar 22, 2023

Show notes

With the end of the tax year fast approaching, people are looking at their finances and investments. But in a cost of living crisis with unstable markets, are they performing, and how should we be investing?

The experts on the panel are Sangita Chawla, Managing Director at Standard Life, and Kirsty Stone, Chartered Financial Adviser at The Private Office.

Presenter: Adam Shaw Producer: Amber Mehmood Editor: Elisabeth Mahy

(First broadcast 3pm, Wednesday 22nd February 2023)

Lasting Power of Attorney delays and Mortgages Mar 18, 2023

Show notes

The Office of the Public Guardian has told Money Box it apologises to its customers for the distress caused by delays in dealing with applications for Lasting Powers of Attorney. Its target is turning them round in eight weeks. But its own website says people should expect to wait twenty. It also says it has recruited more staff to process applications and teams have been working around the clock to reduce wait times and are now registering around 18,000 more LPAs a month than before the pandemic. We'll hear from listeners and speak to a legal expert. If you're one of the millions of people who have a mortgage, or indeed would like to get one, you might have struggled to keep up with ongoing changes to the market in the last few months. In the past two weeks nine lenders have started offering fixed term deals at less than 4% while another has doubled the amount borrowers can overpay. We'll look at how they’re affecting new and existing customers.

How should I invest? New research looks at active and passive investing, we'll speak to co-author Professor Crawford Spence of King's College London.

And how can you avoid an huge estimated bill from your energy company?

Presenter: Paul Lewis Reporter: Dan Whitworth Researchers: Sandra Hardial and Jo Krasner Editor: Jess Quayle

(First broadcast 12pm Saturday 18th January, 2023)

Money Box Live: Are you worried about debt? Mar 15, 2023

Show notes

The problem of debt is never too far from the headlines at the moment. This week a group of charities - Citizens Advice, Step Change and Christians Against Poverty - told the BBC they're seeing record numbers of people coming to them for help with problem debt. Why is that and what can people who're worried about debt do? We'll also look at the "Buy Now Pay Later" industry as the government looks impose regulation on the sector for the first time. And we'll talk about when credit can be used in the right way. All that and more with our panel of experts, Sarah Pennells, a consumer Finance Specialist at Royal London and Richard Lane, policy Director at debt charity Stepchange.

Presenter: Dan Whitworth Producer: Sarah Rogers Researchers: Jo Krasner and Star McFarlane Editor: Jess Quayle

(First broadcast 3pm Wednesday 15th January, 2023)

Cost of Living Crisis: Working People Mar 11, 2023

Show notes

The charity Citizens Advice says it's seen a sharp rise in the number of working people accessing crisis support in the past few years. In 2022, of the 200,000 people helped with a food bank voucher or an emergency grant, almost 24,000 - about 1 in 8 of them - worked. That figure was up more than double the number in 2020. We'll speak to Citizens Advice and get a response from the government.

We'll hear from Harriett Baldwin, the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee, on how she wants banks to stop dragging their feet when it comes to implementing changes designed to stop people from becoming victims of push payment fraud. UK Finance, which speaks for banks, says the industry is investing billions to try to keep customers' money safe and is working on plans to slow down certain high-risk payments to prevent fraud.

From this week unmarried parents whose partner dies can claim bereavement support payment worth up to £9800. We reported a few weeks ago that the change was coming and this week the application process has opened. Anyone who thinks they should be eligible can now put in a claim online via gov.uk, over the phone or using a paper application form. More details here: www.gov.uk/bereavement-support-payment and from the charities Child Bereavement Network (https://childhoodbereavementnetwork.org.uk/) and Widowed and Young (https://www.widowedandyoung.org.uk/).

And we'll discuss what GDP means for our personal finance with Diane Coyle, Bennett Professor of Public Policy at the University of Cambridge and a former advisor to the UK Treasury.

Presenter: Paul Lewis Reporter: Dan Whitworth Researchers: Eimear Devlin and Jo Krasner Editor: Jess Quayle

(First broadcast 12pm Saturday 11th Feb, 2023)

Money Box Live: The Art of a Complaint Mar 08, 2023

Show notes

In the UK, millions of people go without the refunds, the replacements and resolutions they're entitled to - because they don’t know how to complain. In this podcast, we talk about the art of the complaint. What are your rights and how can you enforce them?

The experts on the panel are Lisa Webb, senior lawyer at the consumer rights company Which?, and Helen Dewdney, a consumer champion.

Presenter: Felicity Hannah Producer: Amber Mehmood Editor: Elisabeth Mahy

Energy complaints rise to record levels Mar 04, 2023

Show notes

Paul Lewis hears how complaints to the Energy Ombudsman reached a record high last year. Plus, the child benefit trap that is catching parents unawares. And we hear one listener's difficult experiences trying to sort out the financial affairs of her terminally ill father.

Presented by Paul Lewis. Reporter is Dan Whitworth. Researchers were Sandra Hardial and Jo Krasner, studio manager Paul Lewis. Our editor is Clare Worden.

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