Take these 3 steps to reduce your electricity bill by 40% instead
-
The government's 2009 fiscal budget is unlikely to contain help for UK energy consumers. Whatever money may have been available to directly support consumers was spent on bailing out banks, and implementing a cut on VAT, which excluded energy.
-
Energy consumers will not be bailed out by the government, even though the cost of gas and electricity now exceeds of most households disposable income. Consumers are only now paying now for their winter usage of the past month, and sky-high energy rates mean that many households will certainly be struggling to pay for gas and electricity.
-
We encourage you to follow these 3 tried-and-tested easy steps to take control of your own energy budget and cut your payments by up to 40% within weeks.
-
Step 1: Get the right information.
-
Do you really know how much energy you use in your home, at what times, and do you know which appliances do most damage to your bill?
-
Staying in control of your costs is now surprisingly easy, thanks to cheap and innovative new technology. Simply invest in a wireless electricity usage monitor (about GB40 in any decent electronics store ie Argos or Maplin) and you'll be in for a guaranteed surprise!
-
To test this for ourselves, we were kindly provided a device by energy supplier E.ON, which we tested in our own homes for a number of weeks. The results are astonishing. We now know that lighting makes up nearly 40% of our energy bill, far more than we expected, and that leaving the coffee machine in standby cost about GB10 a month. Each towel rail, on the other hand also cost GB10 per month to keep running.
-
There were positive surprises, too - for example, computers and flat screen television screens did not consume as much energy as we had expected them to.
-
Needless to say, we will now be replacing our 50 Watt halogen lighting with lower wattage bulbs. The coffee machine no longer idles away unused and the towel rails are on a timer. Hardly a sacrifice, and our monthly bill has come down by approximately 10%.
-
The monitor we used was installed in a matter of minutes, by clipping a sensor around the electric wire that connects the meter to the fuse box. The separate display device, which can be placed anywhere in the house, then instantly reads out the usage in real-time.
-
If you switch to E.ON's Energy Saver v8 tariff with this service, you can even get one of these devices for free with the welcome pack.
-
Result: Knowing how you use electricity will enable you to make easy changes, and help you save at least 10% on your bill.
-
Step 2: Make sure you don't overpay
-
Consumers who pay by Direct Debit should contact their supplier now and ask to review their monthly payments. Take down a meter reading, get the phone number from your last bill and ask your supplier to adjust your direct debit amounts for the summer months ahead, when you will be using less energy. If you have already run up a credit of GB150 or more, ask for your money back this is your right as a consumer.
-
Result: Adjusting your Direct Debit at this time of the year can save 10% on your Direct Debit.
-
Step 3: Switch.
-
Suppliers have in recent weeks launched attractive new rates, lifting the average savings from switching to about 20% - that's even if you switched last year. Even better, some of the most attractive rates are online-only deals (all available through this service) and suppliers now offer energy monitoring software through their websites, as part of the package. British Gas and E.ON have the best online energy efficiency services that we have seen.
-
Result: Switching energy supplier currently saves 20%
-
So, in summary, the message from the budget will be that we're on our own when it comes to containing the high cost of energy. Suppliers, on the other hand, will only offer you the best deal if you check the best available offers, if you stay on your current rate, you may well be losing out. And our experience with the usage monitor suggests that there are easy ways to help you reduce consumption.
-
Florian Ritzmann is Product Director at online comparison service Xelector.com, and has been working with energy suppliers for 10 years.

E.ON releases a great new offer for cash-strapped gas and electricity customers

On April 1st, the price drops announced by the leading energy suppliers became effective. Yet these new prices won't do much to help beleaguered consumers. As the table at the bottom of this article shows, energy remains very expensive. Furthermore, now that it is warmer and we need less energy anyway, the effect of the price cuts are not going to be as helpful as they would have been during the bitter cold period of months past.

But on the positive side, there now is a wealth of new discount tariffs to choose from. The one offer that stands out at this point is E.ON's just-released, Fix Online  tariff. As the name suggests, the product is a fixed price product, which guarantees the cost of your energy until 1st of June 2010, and it is available online only, through this service.

Since its launch just a few days ago, the offer has already been taken up by thousands of customers because unlike most other Fixed or Capped price tariffs this one is actually really cheap. Here are the details: prices are guaranteed to stay put until June 1st 2010. Customers must agree to service their account on the E.ON website, and in keeping with E.ON's common tradition the tariff also comes with Tesco Clubcard Points (1 Point for every £2 spent on energy).

To see how this tariff works out for your circumstances, please use our comparison service which compares the entire market. It is important that you compare prices first, your savings vary depending on where you live, how much energy you use and who you are using now for gas and electricity. Please also note that E.ON will charge a £30 penalty (£10 for electricity-only customers) if you don't stay with E.ON for the duration of the guarantee period.

Don't delay or you might be disappointed. Customers have already used our comparison service to switch to this tariff in strong numbers, so this tariff might not be around for long. Energy tariffs are sold on a first-come-first-serve basis, so once E.ON has met its target, the tariff will be withdrawn.

Table 1 Major price change announcements by leading supplier

This article also appeared on AOL and can be seen here

If you've ever wondered how energy switching sites work and if you're really getting the best deal by using them, then Simon Moynihan has some answers.

The home energy market

The home energy market can be bewildering. There are over 11,000 energy tariffs and dozens of energy suppliers out there. How you pay, whether you get your statements in the post or over the internet and of course how much you use all determine the size of your energy bills.

If you pay by direct debit you pay less. If you have a prepayment meter you pay more. If you take your gas and electricity from the same company you get a discount. Some suppliers pay discounts annually, some pay quarterly. Some are green and some are brown, and some are just expensive.

Big differences in cost

Even if you pay by direct debit and take gas and electricity from the same big name supplier you can fork out way more than you need to. Changing your supplier will not get you better electricity, or warmer gas. But it may be cheaper. Much cheaper. And that's where the comparison sites come in.

Simplifying one of the most complicated markets in the UK is a growing business. The idea is to list all available tariffs and rates according to price so you the consumer can easily choose the cheapest.

How they work

How they work is simple enough. You tell a comparison service who your suppliers are, how much gas and electricity you use, where you live and how you pay your bill. The comparison service then runs this information against all currently available tariffs in your region and gives you a table of results based on price. You'll be told how much you could save in a year, what the annual cost will be for your gas and electricity and if you want to switch, you can usually do so right there and then.

Energy comparison sites are essentially brokers. They earn commissions from suppliers for referring new customers. These commissions in turn make it possible for the sites to keep providing up-to-date information on all deals available.

Why energy companies use comparison sites

Energy companies know that most of their new customers come from comparison services and they play into it. If a big supplier is on a drive for new customers, it will launch a new tariff with new rates and target the top of the comparison charts. If they are number one, they will get the largest share of new customers. When they have as many as they want, they will "withdraw" the tariff and "launch" another one.

This kind of launching and re-launching of tariffs can be seen in their names. You can now sign up to E.ON Energy Online Extra Saver 12 or npower Sign Online 14. You may have already signed up to Click Energy 6 from British Gas. The suppliers skilfully nudge one another off the top spot in a game of one-upmanship that is determined by wholesale prices, market forces and of course the desire for new customers.

This is good news for consumers and the key is to take advantage of suppliers' cheapest offerings. Right now for an average customer living in London, the difference between npower's standard rate and their cheapest tariff is nearly £150. And if you're an npower customer, you can switch your npower tariff to their cheapest rate using a comparison service. This is because npower knows that if you're on a switching site, you're looking for a better deal. And they'll give you one to keep you as a customer, so shopping around is essential.

Special deals

A common misconception is that suppliers offer special rates to particular comparison sites. They don't. The deal you see on one is the same deal on another. You can test this by entering the same information on different services and you should come out with the same results.

One thing is true though. Some suppliers don't have relationships with certain comparison services. Some of the best known comparison services are unable to switch customers to some of the best deals. If the best deal is listed on the comparison service you're using and you're unable to switch because it's unavailable, use another service where you can switch to that supplier!

Can you trust comparison sites to be accurate and impartial?

The energy regulator Ofgem recommends the use of comparison services to find the best deals and watchdog Consumer Focus manages the code that regulates most comparison sites. The code has very strict rules on how results are listed and comparison services are audited regularly.

Although comparison sites want you to switch because they'll earn a commission, they still want you to get the best deal in an open and clear way. If you use them once and save? money, the hope is that you'll trust them and use them again. It's in nobodys interest to provide misleading results.

Who can save money?

According to Ofgem, half of UK households have never switched. These households will usually save the most. But because deals are always changing and prices fluctuate, there are always new deals coming on the market. Checking your tariff every six months to a year is a good way to stay ahead of the game and make sure you're on the best deal.

Is one comparison service better than another?

All comparison sites would like to think so! But the truth is that most of them list savings and prices in an accurate and easy to understand way. In addition to regulation, they test each others? sites regularly and if any discrepancies are found, they are reported to the watchdog.

As a consumer you need choice and ease of use. It is true that some comparison services are able to switch you to more suppliers than others. This is what makes a better comparison service. Accurate, impartial results and easy switching to the biggest choice of suppliers and the best deals.

Simon Moynihan is the Consumer Insight Manager for Xelector

first:utility, a company which has provided telephone services in the UK for many years, has recently expanded into the gas and electricity market with an innovative solution to an age-old problem - estimated, inaccurate billing.

It is not widely known, but your energy supplier is not required to come by more than once every two years to read your gas or electricity meters. So unless you are a diligent customer and regularly provide your own meter readings, you probably know firsthand how badly wrong a supplier can get it when setting direct debit amounts or generating statements.

But enough of that - first:utility have bravely thrown their hat in the ring, and are promising customers frustrated with the slow pace of change in the energy industry, a new 'smart' energy meter, free of charge. This new meter works by communicating directly with first:utility using GSM (mobile phone) technology. Your energy usage is periodically fed back to first:utility, allowing the company to always use real usage data when generating bills and setting direct debits.

Even better, first:utility will let customer analyse their energy usage online, or by using a handheld remote device that comes with the meter. Experts believe that knowing their energy usage profile can help users take easy steps to reduce consumption by up to 10%.

So what's the catch? You do need to stay with first:utilita for 2 years, or else there is a GBP100 exit penalty, but given that the meter installation is currently free that's fair enough. After that you can switch and we have been told that no matter where you take your energy supply, the new meter will still work, albeit without the smart function.

first:utility are based in Leamington Spa, and their offer is available throughout England, Scotland and Wales through this service.

Last Thursday, British Gas announced a 10% reduction in the price of gas for most of its customers. Any price cut is good news, but what was left out of British Gas' announcement is also of significance. Firstly, Britain's largest supplier did not announce any reduction in the price of electricity - which British Gas supplies to about 6 million households. Secondly, the company did not publish the new rates with the announcement.

British Gas' announcement should be seen as the first move in a poker game that is likely to last another four weeks, when British Gas' announcement becomes effective. Here is what you must know to benefit.

10% - is that it?

Probably yes. British Gas is the biggest gas supplier in the UK, so if it lowers its price by 10%, other suppliers won't feel pressure to move prices by more. Things may be different with electricity, where British Gas may well have taken the decision to wait for another supplier to cut first. In other words, a small cut on electricity (probably less than 10% across the board), is still on the cards in the coming weeks.

So when should I look for the best deal?

Because energy consumption varies by season, our tip is to check for the best rate when it is cold. We do not recommend waiting for a particular moment, as is sometimes recommended by other experts.

Anytime in the next four weeks will be a good time, but know this: energy suppliers tend to offer very attractive discount rates to sign up new customers.

These tariffs tend to be "versioned". This means that any particular version of a tariff is available for a few months only, before being replaced by the next version. Because energy prices have fallen since the summer, the next version of the same tariff is likely to be cheaper than the previous. By visiting a price comparison calculator every six months, you will be able to see if the deal that you signed up for is still the best.

What should I look out for?

The notes above should give you an idea of the main differences between the leading suppliers. There is more information on our website (and many more tariffs to choose from), so ensure that you read up on everything before signing up for a supplier switch.

Should I sign up for a guaranteed capped deal?

Capped prices (where unit rates are either fixed, or guaranteed not to rise for a set period of time) are important if you need to make sure that your energy budget remains stable. As a rule of thumb, a capped deal is recommended if it was within 10% of the cheapest uncapped offer, and if the capped period was for two years or more. If no such offer can be found, it is better to go for the cheapest uncapped deal.

I signed up for a capped price offer last year - what should I do?

This depends on when you signed up, as capped prices are all versioned. For example, if you signed up 12 months ago, when the market was awash in cheap long-term pricefix deals, then we strongly recommend that you stay where you are. Your rates would have been set way before the explosion in energy prices that drove the increases of last summer.

However, if you signed up after August 2008, then the picture is more varied, as you are likely to be on rates that could be significantly above current market prices. In either case, think carefully before abandoning your current capped rate.

Compare suppliers to determine the price difference between your current capped rate and the best offer, but also check with your supplier whether you'd be liable to pay a penalty if you leave your current capped offer before the end of the price guarantee period. Only consider switching if there is a saving to be had after paying such a penalty.

Should I go direct to the supplier?

We do not recommend this. Comparing and switching through our comparison service means that on those rare occasions where things go wrong and your supply is not taken over within the standard four weeks, you can fall back on us to help you out.

There have also been cases where customers ended up signing up to the wrong tariff, after contacting the supplier directly. Finally, you won't get it even cheaper by going direct. You cannot negotiate rates directly with an energy supplier to get an extra discount for your home.

We hope that with this information you'll be able to make the best decision for you and your family in the coming days and weeks. Don't forget to check out our comparison service, which can offer a lot more still.

Prices for flat-screen TVs are falling fast and with the January sales in full swing, it's a great time to find a bargain. On the high street this month, a quality 42" plasma TV can cost as little as £500 and an LCD of the same size will set you back only £600.

Almost all new TVs sold in the UK now are flat-screen, and when buying a new TV most consumers upgrade not just in style and technology, but also in size. The Energy Savings Trust says that the average flat-panel is now 50% larger than the TV it replaces.

Although prices on new TVs have never been lower, the running costs are much higher than their old-school predecessors. Most consumers aren't aware of the extra energy expense when shopping for a new TV but upgrading to flat-panel could cost you more than three times more to run than your old TV.

How much more energy does a new TV actually use?
A conventional 28" TV uses about 100 watts of electricity. A new 42" LCD TV will use about twice that, but it's the plasma TV that's the real energy-hog. An efficient 42" plasma TV will use about 300 watts and if the display is set to high and bright, it will use much more - up to 500 watts - making it the SUV of TVs.

Most TVs are on for about five hours a day and with a standard old TV, that would account for about 3% of annual household energy usage. A plasma will increase its share of your household electricity bill to about 10%. But it's not just new TVs that are adding to our energy bills. Xboxes, Playstations and set-top-boxes will add to that again. In fact, an Xbox 360 uses almost as much electricity when played as a plasma TV. When put together, your new TV and games console could add £100 a year to you electricity bill.

Legislation in the US
Across the pond in California, the extra energy used by flat-screens is causing such a worry to legislators that they are planning to pass laws banning retailers from selling all but the most efficient models. The new laws set to come into effect in 2011 are part of a larger plan to ease pressure on California's ageing grid. With an ageing grid here as well, it can only be a matter of time before MPs start looking at our TVs too.

To reduce the effect you new TV has on your pocket, look at the energy ratings before buying. Plasma TVs use much more energy, but they are becoming more efficient. And if you don't need a monster TV, go for an LCD.

Of course, you can compensate for the added usage of your new TV by cutting consumption elsewhere in your home such as shutting off standby gadgets, using efficient lighting and adding power-saver plugs. But if you've already taken these steps, the easiest way to offset the inevitable increase in cost is to switch energy suppliers to the cheapest deal. If you haven't switched for a while, you could save 15% so even with your new TV; you'll still come out ahead.

This article also appeared on MSN

Wholesale prices for energy have eased away from the extreme highs of 2008, raising expectations of price cuts on gas and electricity in the UK. Consumer groups and the government alike have begun calling for a reduction in domestic gas and electricity prices, creating a widely-held belief that such cuts are imminent.

Yet while the hopes of such cuts remain alive, dark clouds have begun to gather which might result in the delay, reduction, or cancellation of any planned price cuts.

What has happened?
The Russian prime minister recently said that "despite the current problems in finances, the era of cheap energy resources, of cheap gas, is of course coming to an end."

Oil prices up on Russia's announcement
In other words, the most powerful man in Russia is determined to keep high the price of his country's energy resources. This determination is already being played out: using the pretext of a billing dispute with Ukraine, Russia last week cut off gas supplies to Ukraine. The unresolved dispute is significant, as Ukraine hosts a major gas pipeline that connect Russia's gas fields with the west.

Quite predictably, the dispute has already resulted in major supply disruptions amongst many European countries, prompting a leading German supplier to state that its gas supplies via Ukraine had been "massively reduced", going so far as to predict that deliveries would completely stop in the next few days.

Gas markets are reacting nervously, wholesale prices are climbing
Should the cold weather of recent days continue for much longer, or the Ukrainian - Russian dispute prove as difficult to resolve as a similar conflict in 2006, British suppliers will hesitate to cut the price of energy by a significant amount, leaving most consumers to struggle though the cold of winter on sky-high rates.

But even beyond the current winter term, there are other powerful challenges which will translate into permanently high prices for gas and electricity.

A new gas OPEC to dictate prices
The price of gas has historically followed the price of oil, not least because many oil fields also produce natural gas as a by-product. The world's leading gas producers (Russia, Iran and Qatar account for 60% of world natural gas production) have over the last two years set up a new OPEC-style gas cartel. This new organisation will give its members the power to decouple the price of natural gas from oil.

The creation of a gas OPEC illustrates how energy-exporting countries have tightened their control over pricing in recent years, thus making a return to cheap energy highly unlikely. And because the UK uses natural gas to produce 40% of its electricity, prices there will continue to rise too.

The cost of the UK's energy policy
The UK government needs to secure the long-term supply of energy to the UK, without sacrificing the environment. Renewable energy and nuclear power therefore loom large in the government's energy policies. Creating clean new energy generation capacity is necessary, now that the UK's own North Sea resources are declining. the extremely high cost of diversifying the UK's electricity generation capacity will be paid for by the UK energy consumer through rising bills for decades to come.

Suppliers have never reduced prices in the past
After record price increases in 2006, energy suppliers in early 2007 trumpeted price cuts between 10-15% on the back of falling wholesale energy prices. But with 2007 wholesale prices off of their 2006 peak by as much as 65%, it is safe to say that suppliers made token (and short-term) price cuts only. The balance of the benefits found its way into the pockets of the suppliers, who all announced blockbuster profits in 2007.

The simple lesson is that there will be no letup to rising energy prices for the coming years if not decades:
- Those countries who give us our energy have gained control over the price at which they sell it.
- To reduce our dependence on energy imports and to generate clean electricity will cost astronomical amounts of money.
- Energy suppliers are businesses, not friends.

Switch and reduce
Suppliers do compete for your business and constantly introduce cheap tariffs to attract new customers. Savings are attractive - you can currently shave 20% (that's nearly £200) off the average bill just by switching to the best deal. Once you have switched you need to stay on your toes, as your supplier will not reward loyalty.

Suppliers will always offer the best deal to new customers, not their existing ones, so take action to ensure that you remain on the best deal - keep track of your consumption and visit comparison services on a regular basis.

Use less energy
Visit the Energy Savings Trust for a one-stop shop to help take control of your energy consumption. Learn where and how most of your energy is consumed at home, and then take steps to cut back. The site even offers a very helpful calculator to find home energy efficiency improvement grants.

So switch now and use less energy before the worst of the winter bills arrive on your doorstep.

This article also appeared on MSN

Why energy will never be cheap again

By Florian Ritzmann


Wholesale prices for energy have taken a tumble recently and, with the UK economy in full retreat, expectations for price cuts on gas and electricity have risen. Suppliers have pushed through 40% increases in 2008 by blaming sky-high oil prices - so now that the price of oil has halved, the price you pay for your gas and electricity should follow, right?

Wrong.

There are three powerful reasons why you will keep paying more for your gas and electricity through 2009 and beyond.

A new gas Opec to dictate prices

The price of gas has historically followed the price of oil, not least because many oil fields also produce natural gas as a byproduct. The world's leading gas producers (Russia, Iran and Qatar account for 60% of world natural gas production) have set up a new Opec-style gas cartel over the past two years. This new organisation, whose charter will be finalised in Moscow this month, will give its members the power to decouple the price of natural gas from that of oil.

The creation of a gas Opec illustrates how energy-exporting countries have tightened their control over pricing in recent years, thus making a return to cheap energy highly unlikely. And because the UK uses natural gas to produce 40% of its electricity, prices there will continue to rise too.

The cost of the UK's energy policy

The UK government needs to secure the long-term supply of energy to Britain but without sacrificing the environment. Renewable energy and nuclear power therefore loom large in the government's energy policies. Creating clean new energy generation capacity is necessary now that the UK's own North Sea resources are declining. However, the extremely high cost of diversifying the UK's electricity generation capacity will be paid for by the UK energy consumer through rising bills for decades to come.

Suppliers have never reduced prices in the past

After record price increases in 2006, energy suppliers in early 2007 trumpeted price cuts of between 10-15% on the back of falling wholesale energy prices. But with 2007 wholesale prices down from their 2006 peak by as much as 65%, it is safe to say suppliers made token (and short-term) price cuts only. The balance of the benefits found its way into the pockets of the suppliers, who all announced blockbuster profits in 2007.

The simple lesson is that there will be no letup to rising energy prices for the coming years if not decades:

- Those countries who give us our energy have gained control over the price at which they sell it.

- To reduce our dependence on energy exports and to generate clean electricity will cost an astronomical amount.

- Energy suppliers are businesses, not friends.

Short and simple advice to UK consumers

Switch energy supplier using independent price comparison services. Suppliers do compete for your business and constantly introduce new cheap tariffs to attract new customers. Savings are attractive - you can currently shave 20% (that's nearly £200) off the average bill just by switching to the best deal.

Once you have switched you need to stay on your toes, as your supplier will not reward your loyalty. Suppliers will always offer the best deal to new customers, not their existing ones.

Use less energy

Visit the excellent Energy Savings Trust for a one-stop shop to help take control of your energy consumption. Learn where and how most of your energy is consumed at home, and then take steps to cut back. The site even offers a very helpful calculator to help you.

So switch now and use less energy before the worst of the winter bills arrive on your doorstep.

This article appeared on MSN

As bad debt soars, UK credit card issuers are facing higher costs and lower revenues.  To fight the ever-falling bottom line, credit card issuers are looking to increase the frequency and level of credit card annual fees; a decision that could be met with resistance from UK consumers.

Currently, roughly less than 10% of UK cardholders are paying an annual fee.  However, some card issuer, sometime in the near future will implement annual fees across all of its products.  When that happens, we should expect a domino-effect where the remainder of the card issuers will follow suit.  By 2012 we could see high annual fees for pretty much all of the credit card products in the market. 

Implementing an annual fee on most credit cards in the market may cost some more than they think.  If you hold more than one card, you would then face paying annual fees on each of your cards.  If you hold many cards but don't use them all the time, the annual fee movement would be a costly time.

A recent survey from Auriemma Consulting Group reveals that most UK cardholders place a much higher value on cards without annual fees than those with a robust rewards program.  This is a sure sign that Brits are pinching every penny and then some.  Annual fees are primarily used by credit cards issuers to help finance rewards programs.  Cards that offer more enticing rewards programs are usually accompanied by annual fees.  For instance, the BMI Plus AMEX credit card offers its users a generous Destination Miles scheme. Every pound spent on the card will earn the user 2 destination miles.   These miles can be redeemed for travel, hotels etc...  This card also carries a high Annual Percentage Rate as well as an annual fee of £60.00.  Currently, one of the lowest interest cards is the Capital One Fixed Rate card (8.5% APR).  This card offers no rewards or cashback facility; but is considered a more attractive card in the current market.  So there is a straight forward tradeoff between annual fees and extra value (if that?s what you are looking for).

Raising current and imposing new annual fees will no doubt be a tough sell to an already disheartened credit card country.  Credit card issuers know this.  They will be faced with the onerous task of increasing and adding fees and keeping customers.  To offset the looming annual fee mandate, credit card issuers will no doubt come up with ways to sweeten the rewards programs to offset the annual fees. Or simply by adding rewards programs to cards that currently don't offer any.

Keep an eye on your current card(s):

Watch out for any increase in fees (however small);Keep a look out for better credit card deals;

• Only choose a card with a rewards program is it offers something that is important to you;
• Keep an eye on your other credit card fees - fees for cash advances and using the card abroad could also go up in the near future.

Hot Cards:

Right now, there are cards that still offer a great interest rate without charging annual fees for rewards.  If you are looking for a straight up low interest credit cards without the bells and whistles, you may want to look at:

• Capital One Bank: Fixed Rate Cards - No annual fee and an APR or 8.5% fixed for 44 months;
• American Express: Gold Credit Card - No annual fee and an APR of 12.9%; and
• The Egg Money Credit Card - No annual fee and a 12.9% APR

To learn more on these cards and what they can do for you or if you have to transfer your balance to a cheaper card, visit our service.

Simon Moynihan

As we move into October, home energy bills are arriving and UK households are seeing in bold print the effect of the summer's staggering price increases. It's estimated that bills this winter will be 40% higher than they were last year and experts believe that without government intervention, prices will increase again in the New Year.

These shock price increases have led many people to take action, and gas and electricity comparison services have seen a surge in the number of people checking for better deals - more people switched suppliers in August than any other month this year.

Energy comparison services are a great way to find the best deal on home energy, but the results are only as good as the information you provide. If you want to make sure you sign up to the best deal, you must know how much gas and electricity you use. Unlike our European neighbours, this information is not on our bills, but can be obtained with one short call to your supplier.

Knowing how much you use is important because the suppliers compete in different niches of the market. Some are cheaper for high users, some are cheaper for average users and there are an array of tariffs catering for everything from electricity only users, customers with Economy 7 night storage heaters and prepay customers to name a few.

Before contacting your supplier, check your meters and write down the readings. Call your energy company, give them the readings and ask how much gas and electricity you have used in the previous 12 months. You will be given your usage in kilowatt hours (kW/h). If you have an Economy 7 meter, make sure they tell you how much electricity was used at the night rate. The average home in the UK uses 3300 kW/h of electricity and 20,500 kW/h of gas per year.

When you know your annual consumption, use an Energywatch accredited comparison service like the ours to check for the best supplier. You'll be able to see how much your current supplier will charge in the coming year and how much all other suppliers will charge for the same amount of gas and electricity.

Running a comparison based on your annual spend or your monthly direct debits can provide you with a good idea of the best supplier but recent price changes and inaccuracies with direct debit can sometimes skew the results. So make that phone call. It will save you money, and if you want to try and reduce your usage in the coming year, it's the best information you can have. Best of all, if you switch, you should be able to get your direct debit just right, so it'll only need adjusting if prices change.

When you look at switching, do be aware of tariffs that may change in price soon. After the recent price hikes, two of the major suppliers kept their internet tariffs unchanged, scooped up customers looking to switch to a cheaper provider and then increased prices before many of them even went on supply. A number of quality price comparison sites, including ours, have now introduced price change alerts on their results pages to help warn customers of imminent rate hikes like these.

It is also worth being aware of energy company reps and promotions. At this time of year, the big suppliers know that people are thinking of switching before the colder winter weather takes hold, so they up their efforts to get new customers by phoning your home, calling door-to-door and running big promotions.

Be careful! If you are being pitched to switch, the company representatives may be right that their company is cheaper than yours, but they are not showing you the whole picture. There will almost certainly be a better deal available elsewhere because door-steppers and cold-callers only sell standard high-price deals. And worse, they can rarely if ever put you on their own company's best deal. Using an accredited energy comparison service to see the whole market will get you the best results.

For the 50% of us that have never switched, now should be the time. Prices have skyrocketed of course, but average user paying by cheque is handing over almost £20 per month more than he needs to. Gas and electricity are undifferentiated products, electricity from one company won't run your appliances any better than electricity from another, so why pay more than you need for it?

To get the best deal:

• Read your meters
• Call your supplier and provide the readings
• Ask how much gas and electricity you've used in the previous 12 months
• Compare all deals using an accredited energy comparison service
• Watch out for tariffs that may change in price soon
• Find to the cheapest deal or the one that suits your needs best
• Remember that paying by direct debit and managing your account online is usually cheapest
• Switch!

Energy companies respond to market forces and rarely reward loyalty. They usually only offer the best deals to new customers. So play them at their own game, find the best deal and be a new customer. It could save you a bundle.

The government today announced a package of measures to help the country cope with soaring fuel bills. These measures include:

• A partial reversal of previously announced cuts for the government's warm front scheme, which provides support to households on pension credit with the installation of central heating
• Doubling of winter fuel payments to pensioners. Help for disabled and families with children under five - but only if the coming winter is severe
• Free or half price insulation offers for all families and a price freeze for the remainder of this year for the poorest families

The measures have already been criticised as being overly focused on inducing long-term reductions in energy consumption, while providing little help for average families struggling to pay their bills this coming winter.

The current vagueness around the implementation of the longer term measures does not help. For example, it is unclear how the insulation offers will be marketed by the energy suppliers, and what the take-up will be.

The value of offering a price freeze for the poorest for the rest of the year (a period of a little over 3 months!) is also in doubt. The consensus is that suppliers had no intention of raising prices this year anyway, but that they will probably put through further increases in the New Year.

The measures also don't seem to include any new energy tariff initiatives that might help incentivise UK energy consumers to reduce their consumption, for example by introducing attractive fixed rate one year packages with usage limits.

We are also sorely missing any new initiatives to make bills more useful to the consumer, or example by forcing suppliers to clearly show the last 12 months of usage on every statement, within the context of the national average.

Most importantly, we are missing any special help for customers who use Prepayment meters - the most expensive way to purchase gas and electricity - and which are present in about 10% of UK households.

We were hoping that suppliers would be forced to offer their customers a free meter replacement, so that those willing and able to pay quarterly or by monthly Direct Debit, could benefit from cheaper prices, but this was not part of the package that was announced.

So unfortunately, the government's efforts are not going to help you this winter with the 25-35% extra that you will have to pay for your gas and electricity. This is the sad fact.

For the average family. the only way to save money on the energy bills is to somehow use less energy in the future and to switch to a cheaper tariff deal from another supplier, this can easily save up to 20%, so we do recommend that consumers take this step first.

Together with the terrible weather, shock increases on the price of gas and electricity have been distasteful features of this summer. And while we may yet enjoy a sunny autumn season, there is unfortunately no end in sight to spiralling energy prices, as energy providers are already setting their sights on further hikes of about 20% by early next year.

So if you have just come home from your summer holiday, here is the dismal picture of what you can look forward to:

From now on, UK consumers will have no option but to pay attention to their energy bills, or else these increases - when taking into account the rising cost of living overall will end up causing real hardship. So here is what to do if Eat or Heat, could be a question for you this winter.

Get a capped rate or the cheapest discount alternative

You may be thinking that you have missed out on signing up to the cheapest fixed price energy deal, these are limited availability tariffs that come with a guarantee against price increases.

The good news is that some suppliers have now re-entered the ring by offering between 1 to 3 years fixed Price tariffs, which are available from our comparison service

If you cannot find a capped rate that works within your budget, switch to the cheapest deal overall using our service, there are savings available of up to £300 on an annualised basis, but be prepared to switch again in 4-6 month's time when you are notified of a price increase. So be an aware consumer and keep your eyes peeled for deals, that means know where your bills are and have them ready so you can act when that price increase announcement comes through

Contact your supplier.

If you are already struggling with your bills or are in arrears at this time of year (when consumption is low), then that is a sign of trouble ahead for the winter. Contact your supplier and discuss your options, here are the hard and fast rules about being in debt to your supplier

• If you are in debt as a result of inaccurate billing, then the repayment of that debt should take as long as it took to run up the debt. For example, if you have not been billed correctly for a number of years, then your repayments should take just as long.
• Several Trust Funds exist to help people in serious difficulties, your supplier will know about these and will be able to tell you about your eligibility. Ask your supplier for an entitlement check, to find out what help is available.
• If you believe you are at risk, and someone in your household is of pensionable age, disabled or chronically sick, ask your supplier to add you to the Priority Services Register, which can be useful if you find yourself in debt later (if you are on that list, the supplier should offer you additional assistance).

Dealing with Disconnection

Suppliers can disconnect a home if no agreement is reached about debt settlements. The exceptions are:

• Elderly or chronically sick customer may not be disconnected during the winter months (October to March)
• If a debt is with a previous supplier, not the current supplier
• If a debt is not related to your gas and electricity consumption (for example if a customer defaults on the repayments of a boiler bought from the supplier)
• When a customer is officially declared bankrupt

There is no disconnection exception for families with small children.

In the event of disconnection, suppliers will provide instructions on how to get a household reconnected. Here are the things to note:

• Reconnection charges usually apply, and reconnection is usually made only after a debt settlement has been reached.
• The supplier may suggest to install a pre-payment meter at the property in order to reconnect and while this may be tempting, customers should know that getting your energy via prepayment meters costs about 20% more, which will not help in reducing energy bills
• Reconnection can take a week or more, as an engineer will have to come to the property, so customers are advised to keep engaging their suppliers to avoid disconnection in the first place
  
  

You may be able to get a Crisis Loan from the Department of Work and Pension if you cannot afford the reconnection fee. Click here for more information http://www.dwp.gov.uk/advisers/sb16/crisis.asp. This is an interest free loan from the Government. You will have to prove that you genuinely cannot afford to pay the reconnection fee, so this really is an option of last resort only.

Reducing your consumption

Paying more for each unit of gas and electricity is unavoidable given the recent price increases, but by using less energy, it is still possible to take the edge of price increases. The key is to act now, and take the necessary steps before the onset of colder weather. We recommend that you trawl through www.energysavingstrust.org.uk for ideas and also to check whether you may be eligible for a free home insulation improvement grant.

To keep in touch about future free energy benefits, you can sign up to the energywatch newsletter service. To register with energwatch click here http://www.energywatch.org.uk/help_and_advice/free_services/index.asp

Most important in dealing with the issue of energy debt is not to ignore it. Your supplier must offer you options if you are in trouble, and just by contacting them to talk about the problem you will be buying yourself valuable time.

Looking back, 30^th of July 2008 might well be marked as a watershed date for Britain's energy consumers. On that date, British Gas announced an unprecedented increase on the price of gas - an astounding 35% - marking the single biggest increase ever announced by any of the big six suppliers in the UK.

Because most consumers already pay about 60% of their household energy bills on gas, British Gas decision to raise electricity prices by only 9% at the same time will do nothing to undo the damage that has been done.

The energy markets are still struggling with the aftermath of this shock. Four of the Big 6 energy suppliers (E.ON, npower, ScottishPower, and the Scottish and Southern Group), which together supply about 70% of the UK's households, are furiously working their calculators, deciding by how much to up their own standard rate prices.

So while this is going on, what should energy consumers do to protect themselves?

First of all get angry. Suppliers are not about to reward you for loyalty. If you have not recently switched tariff or supplier, you will gain nothing by doing nothing.

Come early November, the effect of these recent price increases will be felt. And the effect will be massive if you have been paying £70 a month on your gas direct debit the average of what we see go through our service then your new annual gas bill will suddenly be £1,130. You need to ask yourself: can I really afford that?

Secondly start looking. You may be thinking that you have missed out on signing up to the cheapest fixed price energy deal, these are limited availability tariffs that come with a guarantee against price increases.

The good news is that ScottishPower has now re-entered the ring by offering an attractive one year price fix tariff which is available from our service (if you are currently supplier by ScottishPower you will need to contact them directly).

So now is a good time to look again. The ScottishPower offer does generally compare favourably against the current British Gas 2011 offer and the EDF Fixed Price 2009 offers (both available from the suppliers directly, but shown on our service for comparison purposes).

Thirdly switch tactically. If you cannot find a capped rate that works within your budget, switch to the cheapest deal overall using our service, there are savings available of up to £300 on an annualised basis, but be prepared to switch again in 4-6 month's time when you are notified of a price increase. So be an aware consumer and keep your eyes peeled for deals, that means know where your bills are and have them ready so you can act when that price increase announcement comes through.

Finally use less energy. When energy prices increase by 35% in one hit and there is no end in sight to future price increases, something has to give. Just visit the Energy Savings Trust website (www.est.org.uk) and follow their excellent advice,  the Energy Savings Trust really does offer the UK's one-stop shop for energy savings advice.

And be a little sceptical about some of the advice that is being given at the moment. We have noted with great concern that the self-appointed UK consumer champion Martin Lewis (also known as the Money Savings Expert) has recently told people not to switch energy supplier.

This advice has left us scratching our head the last time Mr Lewis told the country not to switch early in 2008, suppliers like npower and ScottishPower were offering generous 3 year capped rates that are now long withdrawn. Customers who followed Mr Lewis advice then totally lost out on those offers! With ScottishPower now offering a good capped rate it does not make sense to wait.

Simon Moynihan

British Gas increased prices on its Market Tracker tariff this week and every major news outlet covered the story. Many headlines were apocalyptic and spoke of 40% price increases, soaring bills and millions of hard-up Brits facing ruin.

In fact, only 2,500 households will be affected with a 14% price increase. British Gas's Market Tracker follows wholesale prices and is adjusted every three months. If wholesale prices go up, so does the Market Tracker.

When British Gas last increased prices on the Market Tracker in December, there were 5,000 customers on the tariff. Half of those have switched away since and British Gas has withdrawn the tariff from most comparison services. This latest hike should see the few remaining customers looking for another supplier.

It may be difficult to see why an increase in the price of an obscure tariff with hardly any customers should have created such media attention, but before the run of price increases at the beginning of the year, British Gas and their Market Tracker acted like an early warning system for consumers.

In December, British Gas's parent company Centrica made a statement declaring that prices for domestic consumers were unsustainable in light of soaring wholesale prices. Then they increased prices on the Market Tracker and one month later the major energy suppliers began hiking prices for millions of customers culminating in an overall increase of 13% and bringing energy bills back over the £1,000 mark.

Six months later, the same situation has just presented itself. Centrica made a statement in May hinting very strongly that they may have to increase domestic gas and electricity prices to sustain their level of profitability. Last week they increased prices on the Market Tracker. If history is in fact repeating itself, we should see the first of the major energy suppliers announce price increases within weeks.

This leaves consumers with a dilemma. Should they wait out the wave of increases or look for the cheapest deal now? Switching could just mean that they will see a price increase with their new supplier as happened to thousands of customers who switched at the start of the year.

Alternatively, consumers could choose a fixed price tariff which guarantees not to increase prices for a certain period. These are almost always more expensive than standard rates, but they provide security in an increasingly volatile market.

Says Florian Ritzmann of price comparison service Unravelit.com: "We're seeing a much higher number of consumers looking for fixed price tariffs. Scottish Power recently withdrew their fixed deal as they filled it much more quickly than they expected to which shows the level of demand. Probably the best fixed deal on the market is npower's Price Fix 2011. It's currently over 10% more expensive than a standard deal, but it's guaranteed for two and a half years, the longest of any fixed deal."

A new competitor has entered the gas and electricity market - Spark Energy. Spark Energy is a UK-based startup company, and the first new entrant into the consumer market since Zest4, a startup that failed in early 2006.

We wish them luck,

Spark Energy's prices can be reviewed on this service.

By Florian Ritzmann

With the first quarter behind us, now is a good time to take stock of what has happened to British energy consumers since the start of 2008.

Energy prices have shot up by 14% in the last three months on the back of surging gas and electricity wholesale cost, the price at which energy suppliers buy energy in bulk. The result of the price increases has been felt by every household, with the average cost rising by about £150 per year in one go. In total, UK energy consumers are being asked to pay in excess of £2 billion more for their gas and electricity this year.

UK energy consumers who have not switched suppliers before, can now expect to be spending between £1,017 to £1,050 per year for their gas and electricity, when billed on their suppliers standard rates*.

Details of recent price increases by supplier are below:

British Gas: 15% Gas increase, 15% Electricity increase

EDF Energy: 12.9% Gas increase, 7.9% Electricity increase

E.ON: 15% Gas increase, 9% Electricity increase

Npower: 13% Gas increase, 17% Electricity increase

Southern Electric/Scottish Hydro/Swalec/Atlantic Electric and Gas: 16% Gas increase, 17% Electricity increase

ScottishPower/Manweb: 15% Gas increase, 14% Electricity increase

So what now?

Despite these increases, the potential for savings from switching suppliers is actually better now than it was at the beginning of the year. This is because suppliers are actively competing with each other, trying to win new customers with alternative discounted rates that are typically not available to their own existing customers!

Here is how the savings have developed in the last three months:

The average annual switching savings presented to our customers in early January was £163, with high energy usage customers able to save to save around £450.

Since then, the average saving has increased significantly, the overall average saving from switching gas and electricity providers for all our customers by the end of March had climbed by 25% to £202 per year, with the savings for maximum users as high as £503.**

So not all is lost and it is possible to claw back at least some of the recent increases by switching suppliers! Energy providers are actively competing for your business with attractive prices and switching supplier online using our comparison service is as easy as ever - but you do need to act, whether you have switched before or not.

Doing nothing at this point means that you will be paying more for your gas and electricity than you have to.

And you might not even have to actually switch supplier to get the best savings: British Gas and Npower are two suppliers who have made their cheapest tariffs available to their current customers, and you can upgrade your account almost instantly using our comparison service, no strings attached!

Remember: You won't lock yourself into a minimum contract with your new supplier (meaning, you can switch as often as you like), so the only thing you can lose out on is an average annual saving of £202

-----------------------------------------------------

*average gas and electricity consumption of 20,500kWh gas and 3,300kWh electricity

**Average savings January period represents the average of savings quoted to 2,600 users between 26/12/07 and 06/01/08. March period represents the average of savings quoted to 4,500 users between 19/03/08 and 27/03/08. Maximum savings for both periods represents the average saving of the top 10% of energy users in the sample groups.

MPs announced yesterday that they will be launching a full scale inquiry into the energy market.

The decision came after four of the big six energy companies increased prices last month affecting millions of households across the country. All of the companies increased prices by about 15%.

The Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform select committee which is made up of MPs from all parties will look at how energy companies compete and whether that competition is working well for the consumer. They will also be investigating the wholesale markets which were cited by the energy companies as a reason for their increased prices.

In January npower, EDF, British Gas and Scottish Power all increased prices pushing most households over the £1,000 a year mark for home energy. They have come under considerable criticism by the press and watchdogs alike for introducing double digit increases at the coldest time of year.

Ofgem, the industry regulator has said that it would "welcome talking to the select committee and sharing with it our analysis of the market".

Adam Scorer of Energywatch also welcomed the announcement and said that they have long voiced concerns that there are serious problems in the way the energy markets works, or rather doesn't work?.

Of the big six energy suppliers, only E.ON and Scottish and Southern Energy have yet to increase prices but industry insiders are expecting a price announcement from E.ON within a week. Scottish and Southern have said they will not change their prices until at least March.

This investigation can only benefit consumers said Florian Ritzmann of price comparison service Unravelit.com. More effective competition will mean a better energy deal for British householders. But consumers shouldn't wait for the outcome of an investigation before looking for a better deal. There are still huge savings out there, especially for those that have had their prices increased and haven't switched before?.

Is it worth switching? Energy companies are increasing prices, but some are still offering good deals, especially to customers paying by direct debit and managing their account online.

British Gas announced today that it will increase gas and electricity prices for domestic customers by 15 per cent. The move will add over £130 per year to the average energy bill.

British Gas, the UK's largest energy provider, is the third major supplier to increase prices in the last two weeks. Both EDF and npower started the year with double digit increases, affecting almost 10 million customers.

British Gas, which supplies over 13 million customers and is the UK's largest energy provider, said that it could make a loss in 2008 unless it took action on prices.

Blaming higher wholesale energy costs, managing director Phil Bentley said the firm couldn't be expected to absorb the "burden" of these increases. He also said that British Gas wanted lower gas prices but "lower availability of supplies from both the UK and the Continent, coupled with higher global oil prices, have forced up wholesale prices."

However, Energywatch chief Allan Asher said he was "sick and tired of hearing energy companies try to justify the latest bout of pain they are inflicting on their customers".

Dual fuel customers can expect their bills to go up by £143 to £1,055, and customers paying by direct debit can expect an increase of £131, bringing annual bills up to £968.

There is some good news though. Customers on the Click Energy 4 tariff, British Gas's cheapest offering, will not be affected. The internet only tariff, which is the cheapest available in most regions, is still available for sign up and British Gas standard customers can switch to Click Energy 4 and bypass the increases altogether.

npower announced today that it will increase prices on its tracker tariff effective January 1st. npower became the second major energy supplier to increase prices following a similar announcement from British Gas just ten days ago. With winter closing in, the prospect of increased energy bills will be most unwelcome news to British householders.

npower says it will increase gas prices by 17 per cent and electricity prices by 13 per cent for all customers on its tracker tariff. The tracker tariff released at the beginning of the year was designed to follow the wholesale energy market and is reviewed every three months. npower tracker customers can now expect to pay an average of £87 more for electricity and £44 more for gas next year.

British Gas having introduced similar price increases to their tracker tariff last week announced today that they would be carefully monitoring high wholesale prices with regard to their pricing policy. Analysts believe that today's statement from British Gas makes it clear that overall price rises are likely and if British Gas increases standard prices, other major UK suppliers will follow their lead

Price increases in tracker tariffs give a very strong indication of how much standard prices are likely to go up by, and analysts believe that the average household may have to come up an extra £130 next year.

While the overall outlook for energy customers is gloomy, the Scottish and Southern group which includes Atlantic, Southern Electric and SWALEC is still selling its Price Fix 2008 tariff. This tariff, which is the cheapest option available for customers in many regions, guarantees not to increase prices until November 2008.

Commenting on today's announcements, Florian Ritzmann, utilities director with price comparison service Unravelit.com said "with price increases imminent across the board, we would advise energy customers to lock in the best deal possible while they still can. Offers like Scottish and Southern's Price Fix 2008 are unlikely to be available for much longer".

Simon Moynihan

Energy prices will increase by up to 17% after Christmas - take advantage of discounted fixed price offers now

When it rains it pours,  just as the credit crunch is taking hold by making consumer credit dearer, energy prices are set to make thinks even worse in the new year.

In an easily overlooked announcement, British Gas this week announced it was raising the price of its Market Tracker gas and electricity tariff for the first time since the tariff was introduced last July. As the name suggests the Market Tracker tariff bases itself on the underlying price of gas and electricity - the wholesale price at which utility companies buy gas and electricity in bulk - which makes it a bellweather for consumer energy prices as a whole.

In the companies own words, taken from the press statement that accompanied the tariff's first launch:

"In the same way that tracker mortgages are linked to Bank of England rates, the British Gas Market Tracker will follow changes in the wholesale gas and electricity markets more closely than the traditional energy bill, where price adjustments are smoothed over a period of time to protect customers from volatile commodity movements."

In other words if wholesales energy prices change significantly, then the Market Tracker price is the first to reflect these changes. So consumers need to sit up and take notice: The Gas price has gone up by 13%, while the electricity price has increased by an even higher 17%. Given the logic of this tariff, this increase means that soon all suppliers will raise their own prices by a similar margin. Brace yourself for the end of more reasonably priced gas and electricity in the next two months is our prediction.

What can you do? If you act now using our impartial price comparison calculator (and we really mean now), you can still take advantage of a fantastic offer by Scottish and Southern Energy, the company behind the Southern Electric, ScottishHydro and Swalec brands. This supplier currently offers a tariff called Price Fix 2008?, which is among the cheapest offers available, but with one crucial difference: it includes a price guarantee that expires November 30, 2008 enough time to get through the coming storm unscathed. Just visit our comparison service, which compares over 7,000 tariffs, and see this offer for yourself.

And why do you have to act now? Because Scottish and Southern are unlikely to leave this tariff on the market for much longer. So get signed up now to protect yourself against price increase! It takes only ten minutes, and you only need your last gas and electricity bill in front of you to do it.

Powergen today changed its brand name to E.ON. The change will bring Powergen into line with its German multi-national parent brand name. The change is to the brand only, no prices are changed.

E.ON employ over 18,000 people in the UK and the company's retail business has around 8.1 million electricity and gas customer accounts.

Winter is just about here, and this year it won't be just the Christmas decorations to remind us. The rain was everywhere last week, and with it came a sharp drop in temperatures across the UK.

The Met Office is predicting that this could mark the beginning of a trend  this coming winter's overall temperatures are set to drop far below last year's record high of 5.6 degrees Celsius. The Met's most recent prediction is for temperatures to be below 4.3C on average, with just a 45% chance that temperatures will go above.

One of the advantages of colder times ahead is that we won't be seeing daffodils blooming in December again, but cold temperatures can spell danger particularly for elderly or vulnerable people. Colder temperatures are also usually a reason why utility companies put through sharp price increases on gas and electricity.

The following simple pointers should help you in tackling both issues.

If you are a pensioner, or look after an elderly relative, here are some easy ways to help reduce your energy bills, so you can afford to keep warm.

Get help with the bills:

Winter Fuel payments is a scheme operated by the Pension Service and the most important benefit available to help vulnerable citizens deal with the cold! The benefit is worth between £100 and £300 this winter, depending on the age of the beneficiary, and the number of claimants in the household claiming.

The outline rules of the scheme are that anyone who was above the age of 60 between the 17th and 23rd of September qualifies for the payment. If you received Winter Fuel Payment benefit last year, you are automatically qualified to get it again this year, without doing anything.

A full set of rules for the Scheme are available from the Pension Service website as is a downloadable application form.

There are also energy tariffs available, which are specifically geared towards servicing the elderly. Powergen (which will soon change its name to e-On) has a joint offer with the Age Concern charity group. Customers benefit from a free hypothermia alarm, a device that sends out a piercing noise if temperatures fall below a danger threshold and a help number that is specifically geared towards advising elderly and vulnerable customers.

There are over 7,000 gas and electricity deals available to UK energy consumers, and the Age Concern tariff might not always be the cheapest. Other interesting deals currently on offer from our comparison service is Scottish and Southerns Fixed Price 2008 tariff, which combines a very attractive price, with a promise not to raise rates rates until November 30th next year. That is 12 months of not worrying about price increases which are almost certain to come in the months ahead!

But to get these deals you do need to hurry and use this impartial comparison service as winter draws nearer this particular deal will be withdrawn at some point, and it is strictly first come first served.

Get a grant to insulate your home

It is a little publicised fact that local councils, energy suppliers and even the government all offer grant schemes that can help you, or the person you look after, improve the energy efficiency of a home. And we are not talking about a telephone helpline this is hard cash for things like double glazing, cavity wall insulation or loft insulation.

For example, if you or the person you look after receive benefits, chances are that your energy suppliers will do cavity wall insulation for absolutely free, while a government grant could get you other efficiency improvements worth up to £2,700. And even if you don't receive benefits, help is available and the best way to check it out is to visit the Energy Savings Trust website. Here you'll find a tool that lets you view details all the available grants and schemes, using your postcode and current energy supply details.

So here is what you need to do this winter to stay warm:

1. Get help with the bills, by switching supplier if a saving is available, and by getting Winter Fuel Payments sorted either for yourself or the person you look after.
2. Take advantage of the grants that are out there to help you reduce energy consumption and stay warm.

This doesn't just sound easy it is easy. So what are you waiting for?

Winter is around the corner, spelling darker days, colder weather  and higher gas and electricity bills. Alarms are being raised over the uncertainties raised by the coming winter, because recent history has shown all too clearly what can go wrong. To remind ourselves, here is what happened just two years ago when energy prices spiked to unprecedented highs:

An explosion and subsequent fire at a key gas storage facility in the North Sea rendered the facility inoperable for months, and restricted supplies to the UK

- Gas imports from Europe via a sole pipeline operated from the Netherlands had been highly unreliable, highlighting the need for more import capacity

- A mild winter should have meant lower energy consumption, but considerable extremes of cold put extreme pressures on the country's energy infrastructure, driving up prices

Consumer Credit Crunch and what this means to you

One thing most of us share is the need for our credit cards. We have all come up a little short once in a while and used our plastic to bail us out. We tell ourselves that our credit is under control and that we don't spend beyond our means. But are we?

High street banks are beginning to say that we are not, and as a result they have started cutting credit limits and declining increasing numbers of credit-hungry consumers. Problem borrowers are now costing the banks millions and they are feeling the impact on their bottom line.

Barclaycard has thus far led the charge, as the credit crunch that has rocked the financial world at large tightens the squeeze on the consumer. Barclays has already lowered the credit limits of over half a million existing customers. The bank has also started to refuse credit to new customers - 50% of new credit applications are being turned down and the company is keeping a very close eye on its customers for further signs of trouble.

What does this mean for you?

This year, over 1.7 million people have already had their credit card application turned down, and while experts are saying that the credit crunch is here to stay, this number can only go up.

The likelihood that other credit card issuers will follow Barclaycard's example in the coming months is therefore big, so even if the Bank of England drops its interest rates in the coming months, chances are that consumer credit will become much harder to get at any rate. Consumers who have never had any issue with their personal Credit will be paying for the misdoings of those borrowers that overextended themselves.

Yet getting credit today is still relatively easy, ?but you must act now. Should you need credit, wish to transfer a balance, or even if you want just a different card that pays you more in terms of travel or shopping rewards ? it is advisable to get your application into your lender and approved as soon as possible, even if you don't need it right away. Click here to see what Cards are on offer with our Cards comparison tool.

So now is the time to act if you think this may affect you. Get your new credit card now or do some research to see if you can shift your existing debt to a more forgiving card with better rates and features. And here are some tips to make sure that you escape the credit crunch unscathed:

Good credit checklist:

1.Keep up with your payments! On your credit card statement, you will always see a minimum due? amount. Make sure AT THE VERY LEAST you pay this amount on time. Although it is better to pay more, just paying the minimum amount won't hurt your credit.

2.Keep to your limit! Make sure you don't exceed the credit limit set on your card. Every time you go over your limit, it is bad for your credit. It is good practice to keep at least a 15-20% buffer between your outstanding balance and your credit limit.

3.Keep account! Keep track of what you spend; the cheques you write and the cash you withdraw - it all adds up quickly. Always know how much money you have got available.

4.Keep to your budget! Make sure that the amount of money coming in is greater than the amount going out. You may have to give up a few nights out, but you'll thank yourself in the long run. Don't be paying for last night's dinner next year.

5.Get your credit report! Know where you stand, know what they know and make sure nobody else is using your identity. You are entitled to see your statutory credit report and can have it posted to you for £2. All credit reporting agencies are required to provide you with the information that they have on file.

And if you really are in trouble, whether it is with your mortgage, your credit card bill, or a loan, or really any other household bills make sure to pick up the phone to the lender and discuss the issue. If they know of the problem, they can help you.

Falling gas and electricity prices earlier in 2007 have made a difference to our pockets. Most suppliers (with the exception of EDF Energy, the main supplier to Londoners) lowered their gas and electricity prices to their customers in the first half of this year. Depending on where you live, and how you pay for your energy, you should have seen your energy cost come down between 5% and 20% compared to their peak in January 2007.

Since the last price cut announcement by a leading supplier, which now dates back to April, many months have passed, and nothing further has happened. To the contrary, many suppliers, including British Gas have hinted at the possibility of price increases in the coming winter. Why did the energy suppliers not cut deeper after all, gas and electricity consumers still pay out an extraordinary £1,200 per year, even at the current rates, and what does the future hold?

Part of the reason is clearly profit-related. Energy suppliers seek the maximum return for their shareholders, as any public company would. Falling wholesale prices for energy during the last winter have given suppliers an unparalleled opportunity to line their pockets, yet still have allowed them to appear generous in the public eye by reducing prices to some degree.

The other reason for the hesitation to cut deeper on behalf of the British energy consumer is that most sources of electricity (which includes gas) are natural commodities traded like stocks on a stock exchange. Energy suppliers try to minimise their risk by buying this commodity on a forward basis, which means that the gas and electricity you consume today might have been bought by your supplier as far back as last year. This will insure the supplier against shortages.

Suppliers therefore always keep an eye on the future cost of energy prices (particularly winter prices, when consumption is higher), and if these are high then they are far less likely to offer short term price cuts to their customers today and this is what has happened over the summer that is just past. It is widely believed that the wholesale price of winter gas needs to increase by only 10% from its current levels for suppliers to raise the raise the cost to consumers, just as the country will go into the winter of 2008. As gas is used for about 40% of the country's electricity generation, this effect of higher prices for gas will spill over into higher electricity prices as well.

First of all, your bills will not decrease automatically anymore. For the foreseeable future, savings will be had from switching supplier more on that below and from reducing consumption only. We urge consumers to do both now and take advantage of what are still benign market conditions for households looking to reduce their bills.

The market for consumers looking to switch suppliers and make savings has not looked this good in years. New independent energy suppliers have entered the market again (for example Utilita), and their efforts have contributed to the huge amount of choice British energy consumers have. Suppliers are not keen to pass savings to their existing customer base, but they know that to attract a new customer from a rival supplier, they must compete on price, and offer at least 10% savings.

A number of large and small suppliers have therefore recently launched attractive new offers to get new customers npower, for example, launched a new Sign Online tariff that offers consumers the benefits of online account management at a very cost-competitive price. Scottish and Southern Group, the company behind the Southern Electric, Swalec and Scottish Hydro brands have brought out a totally new stripped down Internet tariff which improves greatly on their standard offering, while ScottishPower and British Gas currently have offers that easily translate into savings of £160 or more for an average household.

But the same rule still applies: you have to look around for these deals and be prepared to switch energy supplier. Suppliers will not reduce your cost of gas and electricity without action from you, and our price comparison service, which compares over 7,000 tariffs, including all the lead green tariffs is just perfect for this.

So our advice is to lock in some savings with an attractive offer that reflects the low current cost of gas and electricity. And then make a point to check that you remain on the best deal by signing up to our integrated savings reminder service which will alert you to your best deal on a monthly basis by e-mail. Staying on the best deal is easy with our service.

Remember that the average annual utility bill now stands at £1200 per household, and that the signs are there for bills to yet again go up further! That amount is more likely than not more than what you spend on other household bills, including such big ticket items as car insurance or mobile phone charges and so your energy does deserve your attention.

The energy markets regulator Ofgem today announced it was scrapping the long-standing 28 day rule, by which customers are free to leave their energy suppliers and switch to another supplier without delay or penalty. The rule had been in place originally to prevent large suppliers from locking in their customer base on long-term contracts and thus preventing effective competition.

Ofgem's reasoning in scrapping the rule is to create incentives for suppliers to invest in longer term energy saving measures, such as replacing old meters with 'smart' meters that can inform energy consumers about their energy consumption in real time.

Ofgem's move somewhat obscures the fact that suppliers have long been able to incentivise their customers to remain with them, by, for example applying discounts on energy consumption retro-actively after a year of uninterrupted supply. Some suppliers, notably British Gas, have in the past applied penalties on customers wishing to switch away from certain tariffs before the expiry of a specified term.

Moves by suppliers to impose blanket sanctions for customers wishing to switch away will with certainty be met by widespread consumer dissatisfaction, and it is noteworthy to point out that past efforts by suppliers to impose penalties on switchers have so far consistently failed.

On the other hand, the scrapping of the 28 day rule offers a great opportunity for suppliers to develop innovative new tariff plans that incentivise customers to enter into fixed term contracts, in exchange for fixed prices, thus emulating the commercial market, which is based on renewable fixed price contracts.

Consumers should be able to switch mobile phone providers in two hours or less and keep their number, Ofcom announced today.

The Communications Regulator wants consumers to have the ability to select a new mobile phone company, buy a new SIM and start receiving calls in less than two hours. Under new regulations which will take effect on April 1st next year, mobile operators will be given no more than two days to transfer numbers.

It can take up to five days to transfer a number to a new provider today, with many consumers being unaware that they can keep their number. Ofcom wants the new regulations strengthened to ensure a two hour switching time by 2009.

“Today’s announcement from Ofcom is excellent news for consumers” said Tod Ward, head of home communications at Unravelit.com “speeding up number porting will improve competition and give people the freedom to move from higher prices without the fear of losing the number they’ve had for years”.

Fifteen thousand people across the nation are soon to get smart meters as part of an energy savings trial. Smart meters will tell consumers exactly how much electricity their power hungry gadgets are using and how much they cost to run.

The £20 million trial funded by the government and the energy industry is aimed at encouraging households to curb their use of gas and electricity and reduce Britain's emissions of greenhouse gases.

With smart meters, householders can see on a screen how much energy each appliance is using at any time. The government sees smart meters as a key tool for cutting energy waste. "Changing consumer habits is vital if we are to cut our energy use and reduce the impact of climate change," said Business and Enterprise Secretary John Hutton. Smart meters provide the cutting edge technology to enable this to happen."

It is intended that the trial, which is set to run for two years, will provide invaluable evidence to prove that smart meters help consumers reduce their energy consumption. If successful, it could speed the future rollout of smart meters across the nation.

With their new Go Green tariff, Powergen promises to match all electricity usage with renewable resources and offset the carbon from all gas used, making this a completely carbon neutral tariff.

But what's really interesting is the way Powergen has chosen to market their new product and build awareness of green issues. Enlisting the help of renowned marketers Publicis Dialog, Powergen has created Eco Spy, an online viral campaign that aims to name and shame energy hogs people that don't act responsibly towards the environment when it comes to energy consumption. By answering a few questions, friends and colleagues can create and send personalised online videos detailing energy waste. Each film should be unique based on the information provided.

The campaign is promoted on news and social networking sites and has generated plenty of interest since its recent launch. Eco Spy can be seen at www.ecospy.tv and of course, you can compare and switch to green tariffs including Go Green right here on Unravelit.

Unravelit is a carbon neutral company.

Today between 9 and 10 p.m. the lights will be turned off to raise awareness of global warming. Many of London's most famous landmarks, including Buckingham Palace, Canary Wharf, the BT Tower, Harrods, the Savoy, the Ritz, the National Theatre and some government ministries will have the lights turned off.

Lighting contributes approximately 10% of the average household's electricity consumption, with an increasing amount of electricity being consumed by ever more power hungry appliances, in particular Personal Computers and Flatscreen TVs.

Air Conditioners do's and don'ts: When you have young children, or are looking after the elderly, an air conditioner will be your weapon of last resort to beat the heat this summer. Here is what you need to do to make sure you get value for money.

The first rule of buying an air conditioning unit is to not wait until it gets hot! Air Conditioners sell out fast when you need them most, and chances are that by the time you get your hand on a unit, temperatures will have come down.

The second rule is that even a good air conditioner will use quite a bit of electricity, so make sure that you are getting the best deal on your energy at home before you buy! You could save up to £170 from switching your supplier, even if you have switched before - and these savings could pay towards buying and running air conditioning unit to keep you cool in the summer.

To figure out which air conditioning unit is most efficient for your property you need to give yourself time. You don't want to get stuck with an overpriced and inadequate no-brand air conditioner from your local hardware store, simply because everything else was sold out on the hottest day of the year...

Here are some simple pointers to getting value for money:

Type: Mobile air conditioners come in two types - 'integrated' or 'split' units.

• Integrated units work by housing the compressor unit (the bit that pumps the heat out of the air) inside the main control unit. This makes the unit more compact, and easier to move from room to room. On the downside, integrated units can be irritatingly noisy and tend to have less power, but they do cost less, with a decent unit priced around the £300 mark.
• Split air conditioners house the noisy bits in an external box, which you will have to find space for outside your window (they usually fit in the window box, and come with fittings). The outside unit is attached to the inside control unit by a thin pipe. This has the advantage of keeping the noise down. However, if you want to move your air conditioner from room to room, you need to consider that half of it sits outside. Split mobile units are also a bit more expensive, typically starting at £400.

Size: Buy an air conditioner with a cooling capacity that matches your property. Measure the room you wish to cool, and make sure that it corresponds with the stated capacity of the unit. An underpowered unit will have to run constantly without providing enough cooling, while an overly powerful machine will fail to remove enough moisture from the air and make the air feel clammy.

Noise: Air conditioners can be noisy. If you cannot demo a unit, ask for its noise performance in decibel - this is particularly important if you are buying an integrated unit. 36 to 40 decibel is considered a good performance. Noise is an important consideration if you wish to place the device in a bedroom.

Maintenance: All filters, air intakes, grilles and radiators need to be kept unblocked and clean at all times to maintain peak performance. Check that your unit allows easy access to all maintainable parts.

Usage: Most new units have a timer facility - before you leave your home, you can set the timer to start the machine 30 minutes before your return. You will enter into a nicely cooled home without wasting energy by letting the device run in your absence. Don't make your home too cold - set the temperature to around 24 Celsius for a comfortable environment.

Use a fan: Circulate the cold air with an extra standard fan to ensure efficient temperature distribution.

Make sure that you buy the most efficient unit - in the longer term an inefficient cheaper unit could cost you more than the slightly more expensive air conditioner that uses less energy or makes less noise.

Here is a simple list to help you stay cool without spending too much money or using an excessive amount of electricity

• Minimise sources of heat: Standard or halogen light bulbs, Big LCD or Plasma TV sets, refrigerators, washers, dryers, Personal Computers, ovens, hot water pipes and boilers are significant sources of heat, which will exacerbate the effect of a heat wave. Make sure you turn off what you don't use, use insulation where you can, and invest in more efficient lighting for your home. Visit the Energy Savings Trust (www.est.org.uk) for help and information on making your home more energy efficient.
• Double-glazing: Double glazed windows are great at keeping the heat in, but they also keep it out. Open your windows at night to circulate cooler night air, and keep them shut during the day when the outside air is hotter (get window locks if you are worried about security at night). Open windows on the breezy (and preferably shady) bottom side of the house, and open windows on the other side of the house at the top. This creates a cooling cross-current of air.
• Shades: If you've got a sunny side to your house, keep the curtains or blinds on that side closed during the day. Blocking or shading direct sunlight from coming through the windows is the easiest way to keep your home cool.
• Fans: Fans don't use much energy, and when air is circulating it feels much cooler. Ceiling fans are best, but a good portable fan can be very effective as well.
• Use a "Chillow" pillow: This inexpensive device fills with tap water and slides into your pillow. The Chillow absorbs your body heat and radiates it out, claiming to create a more comfortable sleep. Search online for the best price.
• Go Energy scaping: Windbreaking hedges can divert the force and direction of the wind in the winter, while a shady tree by the west or east of your home can cut the air conditioning cost of your home in the summer.
• Solar reflective films on your windows and conservatory: New heat reflecting films applied to your windows ensure that your windows reflect the outside heat, yet let the light in, so you get the best of both worlds without paying the earth.
• Flat Tops: If you've got a flat roof, paint it with a specially formulated reflective paint or just paint it white. The reflective effect will help to keep the rooms under the flat roof much cooler.

And remember - when the weather gets hot, stay out of the sun during the most intense periods, drink lots of water and avoid excessive physical labour if possible.

If you combine what all Brits will spend on their credit cards in a lifetime, it will add up to somewhere around £5.25 trillion, new research has revealed.

This recent survey has shown that on average, each of us will spend £157,530 on our credit cards in our lifetime. The majority of this amount is spent on items such as cars, clothes, shopping and general entertainment. This luxury adds roughly £3,500 to our yearly credit card balance. However, luxury is not the only culprit; 28% percent of the 2500 people surveyed say that they use their credit cards for everyday purchases such as lunch and petrol.

1% of us depend on our credit card to sustain our shopping addictions; not surprising as one-in-three of us have at least 3 credit cards. 14% say that it's impressive to others if you have a wallet full of credit cards.

What does this say about the ever-rising personal debt problem in this country? Experts are warning that it is very easy to get into a plastic-sinkhole if you don't manage you credit card spending.

Experts also warn that the more credit cards you have, the more your risk of being victimised by credit card fraudsters increases.

Energy Performance Certificates will be required by all home sellers in England and Wales from June 1st and experts predict that most homes will score poor marks. Whether poor EPC grades will translate into lower sale prices is yet to be seen, but the National Association of Estate Agents has reported a huge increase in properties coming onto the market recently.

Anyone putting their property on the market before June 1st will not have to provide a Home Information Pack of which EPCs are a key requirement. Because EPCs provide detailed information on the efficiency and running costs of a home, it is expected that they will become instrumental in negotiations over price.

The new Energy Performance Certificates will provide ratings similar to those seen on white goods like fridges and washing machines and will grade homes from A to G for energy efficiency and carbon emissions. EPCs will also include estimated annual costs for heating, lighting and hot water and will include recommendations on how to improve a home's efficiency. The reports, prepared by qualified home inspectors, will also advise on which measures ranging from insulation to double glazing will improve a home's energy rating.

Only 6% of the UK housing stock was built after 1995 when tougher building regulations were introduced. This means that most sellers will have to take action to improve the efficiency ratings of their homes. After June 1st, energy aware buyers will have more information available and could easily base a decision between two similar homes on a good energy rating.

Further adding to speculation that EPCs may affect house prices is the strong drive amongst Britons to reduce their carbon emissions. Consumers are choosing energy efficient cars and appliances and there is speculation that many Britons may consider the carbon footprint of a house when making a decision to buy. Add high energy prices to the mix and EPCs alone may put pressure on house prices.

With Home Information Packs expected to cost up to £1,000 per home and a shortage of qualified home inspectors, industry groups are predicting a slowdown in the market if the controversial legislation is not postponed. A House of Lords committee is expected to release a damning report this week and may even block the legislation.

Home Information Packs and EPCs in particular are strongly opposed by estate agents, mortgage lenders, surveyors and even the Law Society. These industry groups believe that HIPs combined with interest rate increases could catapult an already jittery market into freefall.

And the award for the most polluting mammal goes to...

It will surprise most people to learn that 7% of all UK greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture, and 86% of these gases are directly released from the digestive systems of animals (mainly cow burping).

David Miliband, the Secretary of State for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), recently commented on the speculation that German scientists have developed a food additive that will reduce these animal emissions. It seems that this new additive in pill form is not a myth. Mr. Miliband writes that the German work is at an early stage and any additives would need to be accepted by the EU before the large bolus (not a small pill!) can be fully developed.

Apparently UK scientists have been working on this problem for quite some time but no pill has been developed that does not created adverse side effects.

Miliband also writes that the three year research project began early [April] to develop nutrition regimes for cattle and sheep aimed specifically at reducing methane and nitrogen emissions.

DEFRA aims to build on existing knowledge and technology in close collaboration with the livestock industry in hopes to ensure that any new developments are adopted as soon as they are approved by the EU.

Why is the belching bovine phenomenon such an issue? In a perfect world, nature will produce an equilibrium level of cows (and other livestock); just enough to keep the methane emissions at a manageable level. However, we live in the time of the Big Mac and humans want meat. Overwhelming demand for meat is perpetuating an ever-growing beef industry. Breeding cattle above the level nature intended is causing a large increase in greenhouse gas emissions.

Even though burping cows are expediting the effects of global warming, humans are still at the heart of the cause.

Iberdrola, the second largest energy supplier in Spain completed its takeover of ScottishPower yesterday creating the third largest utility group in Europe. This news follows a number of high profile takeovers and mergers between UK and European energy suppliers in recent years.

ScottishPower has assured its customers that it will continue to provide the same level of service and there are no plans to change prices. The existing ScottishPower brand will also be maintained in all UK operations.

The news of the takeover comes at a time when Ofgem has critisised ScottishPower for failing to cut prices to domestic customers despite a huge fall in wholesale gas prices. EDF were also named in the same report.

Iberdrola is the world's largest producer of wind power and has operations worldwide.

Have you ever been victim to credit card fraud? If so, you know that it's not only a hassle but being a victim of fraud leaves you feeling invaded and insecure about using your card.

Here are some tips that may help you keep your credit card safe!

1. Sign it. When you receive your card in the post, make sure you sign the back right away with durable ink that won't ware or rub off.

2. Secure website. Never input your credit card details into a website that is not secure. You can tell the difference between a secure and non-secure website by looking at the website's address (URL):

A non-secure site will read http://www.websitename.com

A secure site will read https://www.websitename.com,  notice the S after http.

Keep in mind that the majority of websites will be non-secure until the point where you have to insert payment details. So only look for the HTTPS once you are prompted to insert your credit card details or any other personal information.

3. Beware of phishing. A common trick used by fraudsters is called phishing. This is where you receive an email asking you to either reply with your credit card details or go to a specific website to verify your credit card details. Never, under any circumstances, provide your credit card details by way of email.

4. Shred them. If you receive a Guaranteed Acceptance? or any credit card application that you don't plan on pursuing SHRED IT! It is very easy for fraudsters to pick through your rubbish and apply for a card in your name.

5. Receipts. There is a lot of information on a credit card receipt. Don't leave your receipts lying around, either keep them in a safe place or destroy them.

6. Commit your PIN number to memory. Pick a number that is easy for you to remember but not easy for fraudsters to figure out. Don't pick things like birthdays, anniversaries or phone numbers.

7. Credit spies. There have been many cases where a fraudster has stolen someone's credit card details by capturing a picture of a credit card on their mobile phone. In many cases, all a fraudster needs is your name and credit card number to use it!

8. Be conscious of who you give your credit card details. Legitimate companies will not initiate a call to you asking for your credit card details. Only give your credit card details over the phone if YOU initiate the call. For instance, if you receive an email that lets you know of a “problem processing your payment?, make sure it's from a legitimate company. It also never hurts to ask to speak with the manager or someone high up in the chain before you provide your details.

9. Keep an eye on it. If you use your card in a shop, make sure it never leaves your sight. Most credit card cloning machines are hidden below the counter. Also, make sure you get your card back immediately, don't let the shop attendant take your card into the back room.

10. Keep a list. Make sure you keep a list of all your card numbers, security codes (three digit number on the back) and your expiry dates. It's also advisable to keep an up-to-date list of contact numbers in your mobile phone or in your email address book so that you can contact your credit card company immediately once you realise your card is lost or you detect fraud.

The energy markets regulator Ofgem today announced that 4 million customers have switched suppliers in 2006, with 100,000 more switching in January and February this year than in the same period in 2006.

In the same press release, Ofgem also stated that 'a big price gap has opened up leaving EDF Energy and ScottishPower customers paying over £100 for remaining loyal'.

EDF Energy and ScottishPower have not yet announced any plans for reducing prices for their existing customers.

Ofgem encourages all consumers to 'shop around to get the best deal' and that 'even if a supplier has announced price cuts customers may still be able to get a better deal by switching to a competing supplier'.

This week, British Gas launched a new business unit aimed at marketing a range of green products and services to homes and businesses across the UK. The new unit named British Gas New Energy will provide environmentally-friendly products including energy efficient boilers, electricity generating solar panels and solar tubes for heating water.

As home sellers will be required to produce energy performance certificates from June onwards, British Gas New Energy will also provide advice on how to reduce the carbon footprint of households and has trained 500 of its engineers to put together the new certificates.

The New Energy venture continues with the company's commitment to greener practices: British Gas claims it has lower CO2 emissions per customer than any other big UK energy supplier and also contributes up to £100 million per year to the Energy Efficiency Commitment  a government directive aimed at delivering efficiency benefits to disadvantaged customers and thus helping to further reduce CO2 emissions.

We applaud British Gas on this new venture. Providing consumers with the tools they need to become more efficient and to power their homes with renewable energy shows the British Gas is committed to tackling climate change said Simon Moynihan, Consumer Insight Manager with Unravelit, we hope that other suppliers follow suit?.

Calculate your Carbon Footprint

Compare and switch energy suppliers, or switch to a green tariff

It may stand to reason that people in their early thirties are shouldering huge personal debt. Start making a little money and you begin to appreciate the finer things in life and you'lll choose a fine steak over fresh beans on toast any day! And it's also the time when you buy your first home, get married and have children and the expenses really begin to mount up.

But just how much are thirty somethings living on credit?

New figures from Alliance and Leicester (A&L) showing the nation's borrowing habits have revealed that those in their early 30s spend the highest percentage of their household income paying interest on personal loans, have the highest mortgage exposure and hold an average debt of £5,863 on credit cards.

Debt can be manageable if you play your cards right. Credit card debt can actually work in your favour provided you only spend what you can afford to pay off. Spending on your credit card and clearing your balance helps you build a good credit standing. A personal loan for home renovations can add value to your home making it more valuable at the time of re-sale. However, A&L say that thirty somethings are the most likely to only make minimum interest payments and the least likely to pay credit card balance and personal loans in full. The borrowing habits report also reveals that this group frequently misses monthly repayments. Depending on your interest rate, this means that every pound you spend (by credit card or personal loan) and don't clear every month could end up costing you £1.20 down the road.

When you buy your first home, you generally need to rely on a bank or building society to front you the money in the way of a mortgage. Most people in their 30s can't afford to buy a home outright. This means that if you look at all of the home owners in the UK (30s, 40s, 50s ) this 30s cohort is the least-leveraged of the group as they have the lowest amount of their mortgage paid off.

Once you couple credit card debt with personal loans and a mortgage, it doesn't take long to see what the financial state of the Hollyoaks generation really is.

Simon Moynihan, Unravelit.com's consumer insight manager says we frequently talk to younger people looking for cheaper loans and balance transfer credit card's?. He also mentions that the majority of loan seekers are looking to consolidate their household debt into one loan?. This is a good representation of where Brits in their early 30s stand on personal debt.

Consolidation loans have an easier repayment structure and in most cases add discipline to household bill repayments. Debt should be handled with care and rationality and finding the right loan is paramount.

To compare, research and apply for your consolidation loan, try us here.

Experts at a major climate change conference in Brussels have warned that those countries least equipped to deal with the impact of global warming will be hit hardest. In a soon to be published report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), scientists for the first time have used empirical data to prove the effect of climate change on poor countries. The stark findings of the report include:

• Up to 250 million Africans could face water shortages by 2020, while agriculture fed by rainfall could decrease by 50% in some African countries
• Crop yields could increase by 20% in East and Southeast Asia by 2020, but could fall by up to 30% in Central and South Asia
• 20-30% of all plant and animal species will be at increased risk of extinction if temperatures rise between 1.5-2.5C
• Glaciers and snow cover are expected to decline which will reduce water availability in countries reliant on melt water

The report draws on more than 29,000 pieces of data to reach its findings and is the second in a series of IPCC reports coming out this year.

The first instalment of the report, on the science of climate change, was released in February and concluded it was at least 90% likely that human activities have caused the warming observed since 1950.

A third and fourth (summary) report are also due later this year.

Those countries most responsible for creating the global warming effect (countries in North America, Europe and North East Asia), are likely to suffer least from global warming, with increasing temperatures raising crop yields and reducing the number of deaths resulting from freezing.

Ofcom has recently brought forward that 50% of Brit adults are living in homes with a broadband connection. Up from 11% in 2005, there are now over 13 million residential broadband connections in the UK.

63% of adults use their broadband connection daily and 30% at least once per week. Of these broadbanders, most use their broadband 9.1 hours per day; which is more than double the number of hours narrowband users surf (4.4 h). The quicker broadband is allowing people to view videos and download music with ease. 26% of broadband users download every week. Average broadband download speeds are 3.8 Mb up from 1.6 in 2005.

The cost of broadband is becoming more and more affordable too. A 2Mb line can be used for as little as £15 per month, a significant decrease from £50 per month in 2003. 8Mb speeds (usually from bundled packages) are available from as little as ?10 per month; a far cry from £40 per month in 2004.

British Gas, npower, Powergen and Scottish and Southern Group, who between them service about 70% of British homes with gas and electricity, have recently announced double-digit price decreases for their customers.

Yet when looking at the average prices for the suppliers that have published their new tariffs, UK households are only slightly better off than they were at the same time one year ago. In percentage terms, the average price cut announcement amounts to just 8% less compared to the prices that were valid as recently as last summer.

Energy prices began to climb in the middle of 2001, when an average household paid only £567 for their gas and electricity (paying by monthly Direct Debit, and using 20,500kWh of gas and 3,300kWh of electricity, supplied by British Gas for gas and the local incumbent electricity company). Households supplied by the four suppliers above today will thus still be paying an average of £300, or 53%, more.

The wholesale price of gas and electricity has stayed consistently low in recent months, and consumers are therefore right to demand and expect further cuts from their suppliers. The suggestion that suppliers are able to hang on to inflated profit margins at the expense of the UK consumer means that the market is not as competitive as it should be.

Plasma and liquid crystal display (LCD) televisions are becoming a hot item with British consumers. Eight of ten TVs sold today are flat screens. Even with their popularity, flat screen TVs are the latest 'gotta-have' gadgets being shunned by environmental groups

A 42 inch plasma TV needs roughly 9.4 watts per inch to run. At average kilowatt hour prices, that will cost £64 just to run for the year (if watched 5 hours per day). However, a 40 inch cathode ray tube TV needs only 3.4 watts per inch at an annual run-cost of £20.98.

The carbon emission effect is staggering as well. The above-mentioned plasma TV will emit 320 Kg of CO2 per year; the CRT will emit only a third of that 104 Kg of CO2.

Video game consoles are just as guilty as TVs. These extremely popular devices such as Xbox and Playstation are also energy hogs. The newest Sony product, Playstation 3, will emit 119 Kg of CO2 per year if played for 2 hours a day. This will add £72 to a household's annual energy bill. Nintendo's Wii product is a greener choice. Wii will emit only 5.34 Kg of CO2 per year at a cost of £17 is played the same amount.

Check your carbon footprint and offset your gaming on this website.

The European Union has taken a further step toward tightening the greenhouse gas emissions of its member states. The organisation has conditionally accepted the pollution plans of Poland and Czech for the 2008-2012 period (National Allocation Plans - NAPs), provided these countries accept further cuts in their planned CO2 emissions. The French Plan was also accepted, pending a minor modification request. The UK's plan, which allows for 246 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, was wholly accepted previously. The EU has to date assessed 17 of the plans submitted by European Union countries and has sent most of them back, demanding further cuts.

The EU's robust stance in enforcing CO2 reductions is seen as key to the continued success of the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme, as we get close to the start of the Second Phase of the Scheme. From 2008, the Scheme will cover over 11,000 industrial installations and a total volume of nearly 1.6 billion tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. The success of the Scheme is critical to the EU's goal of reaching the Kyoto Protocol target, which is to achieve a net reduction of 8% of greenhouse gas emissions, compared to 1990 emission levels.

On 19 March 2007, the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) hosted a carbon offsetting consultation to gather input from industry stakeholders to establishing a code of practise for this rapidly growing phenomenon.

A motley cohort of carbon-keeners attended to give their input about the current status and future expectations of the carbon offsetting market. Even though attendance varied from banks to energy suppliers to forestry programme supporters, the audience seemed to have a common goal: build consistency in the carbon offsetting market.

The all-day event held at the DTI Conference Centre in London, marked a day where the U.K. government solidified itself as a world leader in carbon offsetting. DEFRA held the first-of-its-kind conference in order to hear thoughts from those at the front lines about finding the best way to institute a voluntary code of best practise for offset providers. A democratic approach, n'est pas?

The conference, chaired by Matt Prescott the director of CarbonLimited, consisted of key-note speakers from government and non-government agencies. Attendees heard presentations from DEFRA employees, representatives of the UNFCCC, Tufts University and RAS.

Those who attended were also asked to participate in two of three creative workshops. Participants could gather with colleagues for one hour to discuss the voluntary market (VER), the clean development mechanism (CDM) and/or the communication of offsetting.

More often than not, those attending the workshops gave juxtaposing positions on nearly everything discussed. From the definition of a consumer's (individual v. business) to the best ways to inform said consumer about carbon offsetting; few subjects were whole-heartedly agreed upon.

Even though most issues did not have collective solutions, the atmosphere was enthusiastic and the attendees got to hear views points that otherwise may have been dismissed.

One thing is for certain, hearing several interpretations of the carbon market is paramount should DEFRA wish to establish a fair and usable code of practise. If nothing else, this conference personified that many different people have many different ideas as to what the carbon offsetting market should be.

Among the sea of conflicting ideas, the idea of consistency was supported by most. That is to say that the carbon market will be consistent if it is centralised, standardised and transparent.

Sellers of carbon offsets, whether EAUs, CERs or VERs demand a centralised registry to ensure that carbon offsets are not double-counted. A standard multiplier is a must as carbon footprints vary from one calculator to another. The attendees also feel that the pricing of offsets should be transparent.

The conference also addressed the issues of engaging the individual?. Most carbon emissions come from individuals; therefore the greatest impact on global warming will come if individuals learn to control their own emissions. As carbon offsetting is currently a new concept for most, motivating some to offset is proving difficult.

There is much confusion as to what carbon offsetting actually is, and what effect it has on global warming. Many individuals have an I'm-only-one-person outlook on offsetting. DEFRA is confident that proper steps can be taken to educate the great affect that one person can have on pollution.

Even though offsetting was the core of this conference, DEFRA propagated a mandate of treating offsetting as a secondary tool to reduce emissions.

First and foremost, the government wishes to encourage Britons to avoid emitting any unnecessary carbon. Avoidance can be anything from ensuring that all lights are turned off to not flying unless absolutely necessary.

DEFRA also stipulates the need to reduce individual emissions. There are certain emission-creating things that simply can't be avoided (driving, travelling or watching T.V.). However, there are ways to reduce emission without sacrificing too much. Ensuring that a home has double-glazing or taking the bus instead of driving a car are practical examples of reducing individual emissions.

One week's worth of discussion was compacted into one productive day. Several upon several issues and benefits not mentioned herein were discussed by all. The ideas presented were free from conventional wisdom and sincere. This conference was a 10-foot leap in the right direction and reassures those in the market that steps are being taken to steer carbon offsetting down the right path.

Check your carbon footprint and offset here.

We are facing a debt epidemic. For instance, credit card debt in the UK is second only to that of our mortgages. A nation of 60 million people, we have accumulated over £1Bn in personal debt. And that's only one kind of debt.

Most of us can use some advice to help us climb out of our current debt slump. Here are a few tips that may help:

Your Finances:

1. Your credit card should reflect your spending habits. Choosing the right card can not only save you money, but maybe earn you some too.
2. If you clear your balance every month, earn yourself some extra cash by applying for a cashback card or one that offers rewards.
3. If you carry a balance every month, but have good credit; try to source a card with low or 0% interest.

4. To avoid missing a credit card payment, have your bank set up a monthly direct debit (at least for the minimum amount). This will prevent you from paying late-payment charges.

5. Most people don't know that your lender will grant you a better interest rate provided you have kept up with your payments. Often a lender will reduce your interest rate to keep you as a customer...never hurts to ask.

6. Avoid store cards if you can. They may seem like a good idea, but most charge an average of 30% in interest on the purchases you make.

7. If you need insurance, try buying online. Because the insurance providers don't have to employ staff to make the sale, they can get you your insurance at a discounted rate.

8. Take a closer look at your bank account. There is lots of competition out there. That means there is usually a better deal on savings rates. Ask your bank to match a competitor's offer. If they can't, switch your bank...it's easy.

9. Avoid withdrawal charges - find a cash point that offers free withdrawals or get some cash-back from the supermarket.

Your Spending:

1. We all have products that we use on a regular basis: shampoo, toothpaste etc... Why not take advantage of two-for-one specials? This will save you money in the long run.
2. It seems that everything is on sale in January - stock up on next year's Christmas items such as wrapping paper and decorations. Those items can add up if you wait until December.
3. It seems silly, but you buy more when you're hungry. Do your supermarket shopping after you eat. This way you will indulge less on those extra sweets and pies.
4. If you travel, book your train and plane tickets as far ahead as possible. Fares get more expensive the closer your travel date.

There are many great ways to save money. Be conscientious with your money. Pay out less than what you bring in.

You are richer than you think.

To search for a new credit card, try us here.

David Miliband, the Labour party's Environment Secretary has recently made public his party's plans to institute legally-binding carbon reduction targets. Should Mr. Miliband succeed, the U.K. government would be the first to make itself legally accountable for carbon reductions.

Mr. Miliband suggests that an independent panel will set ministers a "carbon budget" every five years with hopes to reduce carbon emissions by 60% by 2050. This target would be binding, thus hindering its ability to change - regardless of economic, global or environmental changes from now until then. So, any future government that does not meet said targets would be subject to judicial review.

As potential future governments, the Tories and Lib Dems are accepting of the proposal, but propagate that carbon budgets be set annually, not every five years. Mr. Miliband says that annual budgets are too rigid and unrealistic.

He has declared the draft bill as "the first of its kind in any country" and said that the UK is "leading by example".

The Tory shadow environment minister claims the draft bill is a "welcome step forward" but some of the "key elements" are lacking.

The Opposition wish for "rolling annual rate of change targets" over the 5-year period proposed by the draft bill. It is felt by the Tories that annual targets would ensure that the UK remains on track towards a low-carbon economy and be held truly accountable. It is also felt that a five year target scheme could enable blame to be passed from one government to the next should the targets not be met.

Mr. Miliband's bill fails to stipulate how these targets are to be met, nay any specifics for businesses, boroughs or households. He has stated that the "big decisions" will be made about power sources such as nuclear. The draft bill is steadfast on reducing targets but is indifferent to how the reductions are to succeed. Faith is being placed in the market and the public to find the solution.

The Labour party's outline includes:

• Reducing UK carbon emissions by 60% by 2050
• Parliamentary reporting every year
• Focus on alternative sources or energy such as wind, wave and solar power
• Transforming household consumers into producers of their own energy
• Placing a ceiling on emissions levels every five years
• Using the draft bill as a trail-blazer to ensure that future climate legislation can be introduced more quickly and easily

To gain exposure, the Tories have laid fuel taxes on the table as a method of reducing the amount of domestic flights. Mr. Miliband however believes that true carbon neutrality will come from making households carbon neutral by 2016.

Will the government du jour during the life of the bill be truly accountable for its action, or rather inaction? If you strip the glitter and hype from this new accountability movement and look at the bones of it - will any government be accountable, in real time? Once the government is in, it's in for that term. So it would not have to answer for its failure to meet the carbon targets until it faces the electorate in the next election. Even if that party was not re-elected, its counterpart, under the draft bill, inherits the blame. So the original party may have evaded true accountability altogether.

There is no question that a re-gentrified climate policy is a must to ensure Britain's role as a world leader. Having written this, is this draft bill ostensibly an altruistic act to lead the world in the fight against global warming; or a clever marketing tool to gain re-election?

It is wise to support climate policy reform, but advisable to question it. Where do you stand?

A recent study has shown that smaller UK broadband companies are trouncing their larger counterparts in gaining customer satisfaction. Overall, smaller players in the broadband market such as Madasafish and Be*, are coming out on top after an independent study. The study measures customers' views on several companies' customer service, tech support, speed, billing and reliability.

Household brands such as Sky and Talk Talk are lagging behind on customer satisfaction. Not even their "free" broadband deals seem to be securing their customers' loyalty.

This study then begs the question: do Brits favour service over price? Perhaps. Would an alternative be that UK broadband users are not entirely satisfied with the current broadband market? Are we choosing better service over lower price because frustration levels with the larger companies are at a high?

With all of the freebie deals circulating, new customer applications seem to be drowning the larger companies and delaying activation for weeks and even months.

A mandate of "keeping every customer happy", however noble, seems to be more and more unrealistic.

The current broadband market is possibly one of the most demanding in recent years. Customers are calling for more and more from their broadband providers. Recently, mandatory MAC addresses were introduced by the OFT, hoping to offset some of the waiting time in getting a new broadband accounts activated. A great advancement in customer support.

Broadband is also one of the most dynamic markets. Ever-changing technologies and lower tariffs certainly seem to keep providers on their toes. Keeping up with current offers and altering models may also delay customers, as well as lessen satisfaction - however good the deal may be.

Broadband itself is a bit of a Trojan horse for some companies. Customers are now able to post reviews and hold forums about their experiences. Using a companies broadband provider's service against them. Getting a bad customer review means bad news. This is not the traditional word-of-mouth bad news, which travels fast, this cyber bad news, and it travels at super-sonic speeds.

There seems to be no room for companies that are happy with keeping the status quo these days. The bigger-better-faster gauntlet has been thrown down. Evolving as a buyers' market, broadband customers are not going to accept any less than perfection.

Will the power of the broadband customer stem the re-animation of service levels by the larger companies? We will have to keep our eyes peeled and hope for the best.

To compare and sign-up for a broadband package, click here.

In a historic summit, European leaders comitted to reducing greenhouse gas emissions of all 27 EU member states by 20%, compared to 1990 levels. The ambitious target could grow to 30% if other leading polluting nations, namely the United States, China and India, pledge similar commitments.

The European commitment marks a milestone in the fight against global warming and was reached after difficult negotiations over the inclusion of nuclear power as a low-carbon source of energy. How the burden of implementing these cuts will be shared amongst member states is yet to be clarified, as the majority of poorer Eastern European states are heavily dependent on coal-fired electricity generation.

Europe's move signifies its commitment to the continuation of the Kyoto Protocol process and signals further support for mandatory carbon dioxide reduction schemes like the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS).

It furthermore creates a strong incentive for other nations to join the emissions reduction process.

You may estimate and offset your own household carbon dioxide emissions using this service.

MPs have recently stressed the need for a travel insurance crackdown. Why now and not always? A recent study by a government-birthed task force known as the Treasury Select Committee (TSC) shows that 10 million UK holidaymakers were sold unsuitable policies in 2006.

The report propagates significant evidence of consumers being left exposed to problems whilst travelling overseas. John McFall MP, chair of the TSC, says that the number of people exposed to financial loss caused by terrorism whilst travelling is "astonishing".

The TSC report also stresses the need to improve travellers' awareness of exclusions in cover; not only for terrorism but pre-existing medical conditions as well. People who are not covered for medical bills if caught in a terrorist situation is an area of particular concern for the TSC.

Since exclusions are listed in a policy's wording, some feel that the rule of caveat emptor should apply. The theory of selling travel insurance is such that a customer is presented with all of the information, observes the levels of cover and decides if the price is right. However, the theory of selling insurance seems to vary quite a bit from the every-day practise. It seems that a key reason customers are uninformed is that not all information is presented at the time of purchase by the seller.

The TSC is targeting mainly travel agents and tour operators as the protagonists in the problem of information supply. If a customer is planning on using a travel agent or tour operator to facilitate their travel insurance, they are strongly advised to have all of the policy's exclusions presented to them before they commit.

Lloyds TSB's will charge customers who do not use their credit cards a £35 annual fee.

Credit card companies and banks generally regard customers who do not make much use of their cards as a drain on the business. They have to be provided with statements and other material, but do not generate any income for the banks with purchases, interest on balances, and charges.

Banks are also redrawing the rules for credit cards after they were forced to slash illegal and unfair penalty charges for those who miss payments.

The Office of Fair Trading told the industry last year to cut charges of around £25 to a maximum of £12 or face legal action.

A Lloyds TSB spokesman said: 'This fee applies to just one per cent of our card base. It is predominantly targeted at people who don't use their cards. We want to encourage people to start using their cards.'

Sandra Quinn, chief executive of UK payments association Apacs, suggests that the bank's move is designed to encourage customers to choose to use their Lloyds credit card over competitors' cards, Ms Quinn told Channel 4's News at Noon programme, noting that the average Briton has two such cards.

"The battle for credit card companies is to be the card that you pick up first when you open your handbag or your wallet," she commented.

MBNA has recently written to its British credit card holders, warning of a new service charge for being in credit for 12 months or more. The £10 annual charge will be effective on March 30. If the credit balance on the credit card account is less than £10, the credit cardholder will forfeit the remainder of the credit balance on the card.

A spokesperson for MBNA stated that this latest policy intended as a "tidying up exercise. We want people to get their money back. As well as not earning interest, positive balances do not have protection from fraud. This is not just about fining people for the sake of it".

Those who pay their credit card bills via standing order will likely find themselves most at risk of retaining a credit balance on the credit card as their monthly payment plans are fixed, whereas their expenditure is not.

To avoid paying the charge, MBNA are offering cardholders one of three option should they go in credit on their credit card account to transfer the credit balance to their current account, or to spend the credit balance on their credit card, or to donate the credit balance to MBNA's "nominated charity", which is currently Cancer Research UK.

On Monday April 2, MBNA will also raise fees for balance transfers and cheque transactions from 2.5 per cent to 3 per cent.

We are pleased to announce that Utilita, a startup gas and electricity supplier based in Winchester, has today relaunched itself exclusively on this service. Utilita is an independent UK supply company that is fully licensed and accredited by the regulator Ofgem to supply gas and electricity to UK homes.

Utilita offers highly competetive prices, plus planetpoints,a voucher scheme that offers customers the opportunity to get energy efficiency products and services from Utilita.

We are very pleased to see that the drop in wholesale prices has encouraged startup suppliers to re-enter the market, because more choice to the consumer means more competition. The only place to get Utilita's deals is on this service.

Two years into the Kyoto Protocol, some Europeans are wondering if it goes far enough. Kyoto calls for a 20% reduction in carbon emissions by the year 2020, or "20 by 20". If the EU meets Kyoto minimums, it will fulfill legally binding reduction targets set out in the intergovernmental agreement. Is this an arbitrary number or an accurately calculated representation of what most developed countries can achieve?

20 February 2007 may be the tipping point that will reveal the EU's true intentions on fighting global warming. It is the day when European environment ministers meet to discuss emission reduction targets. Environmentalists believe that the EU should go further. Could the EU lead the charge in the fight on global warming and set the bar for the rest of the world? Some feel that the EU should increase its targets to 30% by 2020.

These views are not only those of environmentalists, but some economists as well. The war on global warming is birthing new global markets that seem to be rendering billions of pounds in revenue. For example, the European Union Emission Trading Scheme (EU-ETS), with the UK and Spain already taking lead roles, is said to be worth over 7.6bn euros (5.1bn GBP) in 2005.

Whether your poison is environmental altruism or personal profit, there are several arguments to say that setting emission reduction targets higher than other continents can only bring positive results.

Conversely, there are those who feel that setting reduction targets higher than 20% is a fool's errand and needs to be curtailed in order to sustain current levels of global trade, industry and employment. More so, too much change too quickly can only adversely affect environmental and economic equilibriums.

Whichever side of the fence you may sit upon, there is no way to avoid recent reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which makes it clear that urgent action is a must to halt and reduce carbon emissions. Proponents of increasing the EU's target say they are not claiming that the EU has the power to make or break global warming, but only that a continent of 27 countries and 490 million people can make a pretty serious global statement. The EU countries emitted over 6,000 million tonnes of greenhouse gases in 2004. Is it unreasonable to assume that more that 20% of this can be reduced by 2020? Perhaps only time will tell.

Unravelit.com, the UK's leading price comparison website today launched their much anticipated carbon offsetting service. By working with the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme, Unravelit.com has developed a new online service that allows UK residents to calculate and offset their household CO2 emissions.

This new service is very simple. We purchase European carbon allowances in bulk from the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme and allow individuals to offset their personal emissions through Unravelit.coms' said David Kerr, managing director of Unravelit. The benefit of this system to the environment is considerable because we will be reducing the number of emissions allowances available in the EU and thus reducing the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?. Carbon certificates purchased through Unravelit are retired and cannot be re-used or re-sold.

Unravelit.com has developed an accurate and easy to use online calculator allowing individuals to calculate their annual carbon emissions from driving, flying and household energy use. They can then purchase ETS certificates and offset some or all of their carbon footprint.

By pioneering this service, we are confident that we will not only help reduce greenhouse gasses by empowering individuals? concluded Mr. Kerr, but we will help educate people on how their daily activities effect the environment.

Halting global warming, although conventional in its wisdom, is still leaving some economists cold. In particular, reducing the use of fossil fuels sets off alarm bells with labour economists around the world who believe that it will have a devastating effect on the global economy.

However, a recent report from Barclays Capital claims that the need to increase energy capacity by 50 per cent by 2035, while simultaneously reducing dependence on hydrocarbons, will spark an "energy revolution" reminiscent of the technology revolution which led to the dot.com boom.

"If ever the time were ripe for such an energy revolution, it is now," said Tim Bond, global head of asset allocation at Barclays Capital, and author of the report.

"And like all historical adoptions of general purpose technologies, the process should prove immensely stimulative to economic growth." Mr Bond says that those who couch the climate change debate in terms of the cost to growth are underestimating the impact of an energy revolution.

Sir Richard Branson recently fortified his role as Mr. Environment? by teaming up with Al Gore to announce a multi-million pound prize for the best method of removing thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

The prize - approximately £12.5 million - will go to the inventor who creates the best system capable of absorbing and storing one billion tonnes a year of the most common greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide. To oversee the project, Sir Richard has convened a panel of judges consisting of physicists, NASA engineers, and zoologists.

Branson has already pledged to invest £1.6bn in profits from his travel firms, including Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Trains, towards research into renewable energy technologies.

Other scientists are also looking at schemes that might "scrub" the air of CO2, collecting the gas for safe storage; but many critics say the energy required to achieve this would make such an approach self-defeating.

British Gas announced today that it will cut its standard tariffs for gas by 17 per cent and for electricity by 11 per cent beginning 12 March 2007. British Gas is the first of the leading suppliers to announce such a cut.

Current British Gas standard tariff customers are advised to take advantage of additional massive savings by switching to the Click Energy 2 tariff - British Gas' leading discounted gas and electricity offer, available through this service.

This service is up to date and reflects the new British Gas prices.

Scottish and Southern, the company behind the Atlantic Electric and Gas, Southern Electric, Scottish-Hydro and Swalec supplier brands, have re-affirmed their intention to cut gas and electricity prices in the coming months.

No firm date or target were given, as Alistair Phillips-Davies, energy supply director of SSE stated: "Since last September, we have made clear our intention to cut gas and electricity prices if there was a sustained fall in wholesale prices which would allow us to do so, and I am very pleased that we have now been able to confirm this."

Scottish and Southern's statement echoes the commitment of its rival British Gas to cut prices for its existing customer base in the months to come. Leading suppliers have yet to implement price cuts for their existing customers, which is not likely to happen before the spring, when energy usage from heating starts to decrease.

Customers looking for a better deal from switching supplies can already benefit from falling prices, as three suppliers (EDF Energy, ScottishPower and npower) have so far dropped the price of gas and electricity available to new customers.

Unravelit has discovered that over 25% of skiers are taking to the slopes without proper winter sports coverage and leaving themselves open to costly consequences in the case of injury.

“Taking a few minutes to purchase adequate cover can give you the peace of mind you need to truly enjoy your skiing holiday”, says Simon Moynihan of Unravelit, “but make sure you read your policy carefully and know what the exceptions are”.

Most travel insurance policies include a clause that says that if a traveller is under the influence of alcohol at the time of an incident, their policy will not be valid. Skiers should keep the Après Ski until they have taken off their skis at the end of the day.

Ebico and Unravelit.com announced today that they have partnered to offer Ebico's gas and electricity tariffs on the Unravelit network of energy comparison websites. Unravelit.com is the only energy comparison company to offer EQUIGAS and EQUIPOWER tariffs to UK consumers.

Ebico is the UK's only not-for-profit energy supplier and offers substantial savings to both pre-payment meter and cash customers through its EQUIGAS and EQUIPOWER tariffs. As the only provider offering the same rate to consumers on all payment methods, Ebico's cash and pre-payment tariffs are extremely competitive. With one in ten UK consumers pre-paying for their energy, the increased availability of Ebico will offer a new and fair alternative to this segment of the market.

Rapidly increasing gas and electricity prices have forced more than a million new households into fuel poverty over the last 3 years according Energywatch, the gas and electricity watchdog. Despite offering the fairest and most competitive pricing to many low income households, Ebico has until now been virtually hidden from the public due to its absence on energy comparison websites. Now however, that has all changed.

"We are very pleased to offer Ebico's EQUIGAS AND EQUIPOWER tariffs to our users said Simon Moynihan, Consumer Insight Manager with Unravelit. Ever increasing energy prices have made it more and more difficult for low income families to pay for energy. Most consumers can save up to £200 by switching energy suppliers and we wanted to offer lower income families such savings too. We see Ebico's EQUIGAS AND EQUIPOWER as key tariffs for this customer group.

Simon Moynihan concluded by saying I'm very glad to say we have been able to structure an arrangement that works for both companies and means that we can now offer our customers access to EQUIGAS and EQUIPOWER directly through our websites.

Phil Levermore, EBICO's Managing Director, welcomed the development. We're delighted to be working with such a key player in the price comparison sector to make it easier for households to access the savings that our tariffs can bring.

Christmas has come and gone, but the bills will last a while. With most of us receiving our December paycheques two weeks early, we are facing a 44 day lag in getting our January paycheque. Couple this with overspending last month, Britons are feeling the pinch.

Disposable spending is decreased by a third this month as we come to realise how much we spent over the holidays. Some analysts believe that many will default on their mortgage payments, council tax and other essential bills. Not to mention that personal borrowing in December accounts for nearly 18% of the annual total. "Past Due" is becoming a more and more common read for Britons.

Getting back-on-track can be difficult. Consolidation of debt, cutting down on luxuries and budgeting may help get the finances in check.

To find a consolidation loan, try us here.

Skyrocketing gas and electricity prices compelled a record breaking four million people to change energy suppliers in 2006. That figure was whopping 750,000 more than in 2005 according to the gas and electricity regulator Ofgem.

"Energy customers have given expensive suppliers the boot with over four million moving to a cheaper supplier in the first ten months of 2006," said Ofgem chief executive Alistair Buchanan. Customers who have never switched can cut their bills by around £150 by getting a better deal for their energy?. Customers can also cut their bills by an additional £35-40 by paying for their energy by direct debit.

Only a week after British households saw a hike in interest rates (to 5.25%), experts are predicting that the inflation rate for December will reach 3%.

Since the Bank of England (BOE) gained independence from the government, its ideal target inflation rate is 2% with a threshold of 3%. If the inflation rate rises above 3%, BOE governor Mervyn King must write a letter to the government with an explanation.

December will be the eighth consecutive month that the inflation rate surpassed the BOE target of 2%. For now, the BOE will publish its "game plan" as to its actions to lower the inflation rate to meet its target.

The Bank of England has raised UK bank interest rates to 5.25%. In a pre-emptive move to curb inflation, the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee said that it expected consumer inflation to rise further in the near future.

Currently, the inflation of 2.75% is already well above the government's 2% target and analysts are anticipating a nasty inflation number, exceeding 3%, to be published shortly.

The news comes as an unwelcome surprise to many groups. Homeowners with a £100,000 repayment mortgages will see £16 added to the monthly payments. Employer groups say it could harm already struggling businesses and that it is unlikely to dampen wage increases. The FTSE 100 fell on the news amid concerns that the rate rise could constrain companies' growth and slow the housing market.

But the rise is welcomed by savers, if bank and building societies pass on the increase to their savings rates.

Ebico and Unravelit.com announced today that they have partnered to offer Ebico's gas and electricity tariffs on the Unravelit network of energy comparison websites. Unravelit.com is the only energy comparison company to offer EQUIGAS and EQUIPOWER tariffs to UK consumers.

Ebico is the UK's only not-for-profit energy supplier and offers substantial savings to both pre-payment meter and cash customers through its EQUIGAS and EQUIPOWER tariffs. As the only provider offering the same rate to consumers on all payment methods, Ebico's cash and pre-payment tariffs are extremely competitive. With one in ten UK consumers pre-paying for their energy, the increased availability of Ebico will offer a new and fair alternative to this segment of the market. Rapidly increasing gas and electricity prices have forced more than a million new households into fuel poverty over the last 3 years according Energywatch, the gas and electricity watchdog.

Despite offering the fairest and most competitive pricing to many low income households, Ebico has until now been virtually hidden from the public due to its absence on energy comparison websites.

Now however, that has all changed. "We are very pleased to offer Ebico's EQUIGAS AND EQUIPOWER tariffs to our users" said Simon Moynihan, Consumer Insight Manager with Unravelit. "Ever increasing energy prices have made it more and more difficult for low income families to pay for energy. Most consumers can save up to £200 by switching energy suppliers and we wanted to offer lower income families such savings too. We see Ebico's EQUIGAS AND EQUIPOWER as key tariffs for this customer group." Simon Moynihan concluded by saying "I'm very glad to say we have been able to structure an arrangement that works for both companies and means that we can now offer our customers access to EQUIGAS and EQUIPOWER directly through our websites."

Phil Levermore, EBICo's Managing Director, welcomed the development. "We're delighted to be working with such a key player in the price comparison sector to make it easier for households to access the savings that our tariffs can bring."

We are very pleased to announce that Unravelit has been awarded the prestigious Energywatch Confidence Code kite-mark. Following a rigorous audit, Unravelit was found to have passed all nine requirements of the new code and will now display the Energywatch Confidence Code kite-mark on the Unravelit website, assuring consumers that the service is impartial and savings calculations are accurate and up-to-date.

Unravelit has a long history of working with Energywatch and the Energy Regulator Ofgem. In 2001, Unravelit was one of the first energy comparison services to receive accreditation and has worked closely with both services since then. In 2006 Energywatch strengthened the Confidence Code to further protect consumers and Unravelit looks forward to fully supporting the new code in the years to come.

Florian Ritzmann, Product Director at Unravelit, commented "We believe that strengthening the Confidence Code was necessary to protect consumers against misleading practices and to assure users of accredited energy comparison sites that they are receiving the best and most accurate advice. At Unravelit, we are committed to providing the best service to our users and fully support Energywatch in its efforts to protect consumers."

The recent spike in music downloads has tickled the selling bone of many UK insurers. They have brought to market separate download / digital cover that will insure you against the loss of your valuable downloaded music. Is this an innovative and modern idea; or an unnecessary scare-tactic?

This has come to life as recent studies have shown that most music lovers, who download, fail to backup of their music files. Should your computer crash or you have a fire in your flat, you could lose all of that great music.

Defining music downloads is split across most of the major British insurers. Some label music downloads as data files which would not be insured due to computer viruses, electronic failure, theft or fire. Others refer to music downloads as personal possessions, which are covered should you have the misfortune of losing your files. So before you go out and buy new download cover, make sure you are not already covered for them.

To find out how your insurer categorises your music files, read over your policy wording very carefully and absolutely exercise your right to contact your insurer directly to ask questions.

One of the most important things to remember is to store your digital receipts (from iTunes etc…) in a secondary location. You should either print them off or email them to a web-based email account. Even if your insurance covers your music, you will not receive compensation if you do not have receipts.

Your music is valuable and should be protected; but make sure the insurance you need is not the insurance you already have before you buy.

Unravelit.com has submitted a complaint to the consumer watchdog energywatch concerning the practices of leading comparison brokers in calculating gas and electricity savings amounts.

At issue is the treatment of one-off introductory discounts, specifically the £15 per fuel introductory discount offered by British Gas to new customers, and a 12 month introductory bonus discount of 5%, offered by Powergen on one of its tariffs.

The energywatch Code of Confidence, a nascent trust kitemark to which all of the leading energy comparison brokers are currrently applying, states that "[comparison services calculations] should not include: Introductory sign up offers that may be for a limited time/one-time discounts/special offers"

Unravelit.com believes that comparison services who include these discounts are undermining the essence of the Code of Confidence, and calls on Energywatch to protect the consumers' interest.

Links:

Mirror - Money - Your Money - FAULTY SWITCH

Energywatch Code of Confidence

List of applicants to the Energywatch Code of Confidence

Homeowners and tenants alike are being urged to check the the fine print on their home insurance policies this holiday season. Some insurers will increase the value of your contents cover by up to 10% to account for all of your presents and gadgets...automatically. Increase in cover means an increase in your premium.

With the parties, planning and family get-togethers, being burgled is probably the last thing on your mind. Not to mention that your home may be left unattended more often during the holidays. Take the time to protect your self against crime during the holidays.

Read the fine print in your policy. Make sure you are covered withough having to pay extra.

To compare competitive home insurance, try us here.

Winter's here and you're getting restless. It may be time to take that well-deserved ski holiday. Sounds good, right? As you should enjoy a relaxing time away, it is advisable to make sure you don't travel uninsured.

A recent survey has revealed that 1 in 5 Brits hit the slopes with no cover whatsoever! Of those who do get cover, most do not get specific ski insurance. Pretty surprising as the majority of UK travel insurance claims result from ski or ski-related accidents.

Contrary to past times, it is now affordable and fast to get the cover that suits your needs. A single person, skiing in Europe for two weeks can get full ski cover for as little as £20! On top of that, it takes only 10 minutes to secure your cover.

Don't let lack of ski cover ruin what could be a great holiday and memory.

To get affordable ski cover quickly, try us here.

The Office of The Telecommunications Adjudicator (OTA) has recently released that it has reached a key target in unbundling phones lines in the UK.

OTA scheme supported by Ofcom, the LLU Industry and BT Group PLC has been successful in achieving its primary objective. In July 2004, these groups set a target to be able to deliver One Million lines unbundled by the end of 2006. The total number of unbundled lines has now reached One Million.

When the OTA scheme started in July 2004 there had been approximately 15000 lines unbundled in the UK over the previous four years.

Peter McD. Black, OTA Telecommunications Adjudicator, believes that LLU has had a very significant effect in driving the Broadband Marketplace forward for the benefit of Consumers both in price and flexibility of product.

Powergen has today launched a new EnergyOnline Winter Warm gas and electricity tariff. The tariff features all the current benefits of the existing EnergyOnline tariff, but features an attractive 16% annual discount during the first year of service (the discount reverts to the standard 11% for gas and electricity users after the first year).

Customers can sign up to this tariff using our service, and should also note that the additional savings, which come to approximately £50 per fuel for an average gas and electricity user in the first year, are not included in the savings displayed on this service and are in addition to the savings shown.

Barclaycard has announced that the annual percentage rate (APR) on its Barclaycard Platinum credit card is to be lowered from 17.9 per cent to 14.9 per cent.

Three previous APR reductions have also been announced by Barclaycard this year, including those of the Flexi-Rate, Simplicity and Student credit cards.

All other features on the Platinum card will remain as before. The card offers a 12-month zero per cent rate on balance transfers and no interest on purchases for the first three months.

The UK credit card sector is one of the world's most innovative and competitive market and Barclaycard is fighting its corner with various new offers.

The Barclaycard Flexi-Rate Credit Card was launched in October, offering lower interest rate for more repayment. Barclaycard says that changing repayment behaviour saves money and that continually making only the minimum repayments can mean customers end up paying far more interest over a much longer period.

James Le Brocq, Head of Barclaycard UK Credit Cards, said: "Flexi-Rate is doing exactly what it was designed to do, encouraging people to pay back sensibly. Increasing the amount you pay back each month can dramatically reduce both interest costs and the time it takes to repay."

The customer chooses between three credit card options:

- 2.25% minimum monthly payments at 14.9% typical APR

- 5% minimum monthly payments at 12.9% typical APR

- 10% minimum monthly payments at 9.9% typical APR

The Barclaycard Flexi-Rate credit card would suit customers who don't pay off the balance on their credit card every month and have a good credit history. Don't wait around, this offer is only available until 31st December 2006.

October is the Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM). The major breast cancer and cancer charities all over the UK will champion the cause, employing the pink ribbon, now a global symbol of breast cancer awareness.

In 2002, there were 42,023 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed in the UK, of which 41,724 were women and 299 were men. (Many people are unaware that men can develop breast cancer because they do not think of men as having breasts, but they do!).

Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM) was introduced as a worldwide campaign in 1993 by Evelyn Lauder (of the Estee Lauder cosmetic family) to:

• increase awareness of breast cancer
• raise funds for research into the disease
• support people affected by the disease.

Many of UK's leading cancer charities (such as Cancer Research UK, Breakthrough Breast Cancer, Breast Cancer Care to name a few) are making a bid to highlight BCAM, with the aim of helping bring the subject of breast cancer and breast health to the forefront of people's minds and to the top of the health agenda in this country.

If you are looking to support the breast cancer campaign, consider the Breakthrough Breast Cancer MBNA Credit card, which helps you raise money for the Breakthrough as you spend, at no extra cost to yourself. When you first use your card, MBNA will pay a contribution of £5 to Breakthrough Breast Cancer. Plus, MBNA will pay a further:

• £2 for every year you continue to use your card.
• Contributions every time you make a purchase with your card (0.25% of the value of the purchase)

There are currently more than 50,000 Breakthrough Credit Cards in circulation and MBNA's contribution to Breakthrough has now hit the magic £1 million mark!

The card also offers competitive introductory deals, which positions it well in the credit card market:

• An outstanding introductory balance transfer rate of just 0% p.a. - available for twelve months from the date your account is opened. 2% handling fee applies.
• A fantastic 0% p.a. on card purchases for three months from the date your account is opened.
• Typical rate 15.9% APR (variable).

Click here to apply for the Breakthrough Breast Cancer MBNA credit card.

We are celebrating the launch of our new Broadband Comparison Service. Thanks to your feedback and suggestions, we've created a great new money saving comparison service that we're sure you'll love.

Our new broadband comparison service is a must for anyone looking to upgrade their internet service and save money. Now you don't need to spend hours contacting individual providers because we've brought them all together in one place for you to compare.

• Are you still struggling on an old 512kb connection? You could upgrade your speed to a lightning fast 8mb and pay as little as little as £8.99 per month!
• It's never been easier to compare broadband providers, act now and make sure you're getting the speed you need at the right price.

With our broadband comparison service, you can select the features that are most important to you. Our new filtering system, allows you to select broadband providers by price, speed and usage making it easy to select the package that's just right for your needs and your wallet.

Click to compare and switch broadband suppliers

Recent research has found that the number of UK households enjoying broadband access is set to nearly double from 34% in the beginnng of 2006 to 64% by the end of 2008. Free broadband deals as offered by Carphone Warehouse TalkTalk are contributing to this explosive growth.

There are 25 million households in the UK.

The report notes that there are 247 million broadband users worlwide. The US has most broadband users at 50 million, with the UK lying in 7th place, behind the US, China, Japan, South Korea, Germany and France.

From Monday (2nd October 2006), the Post Office Credit Card no longer charges commission on purchases made abroad.

As the UK's leading travel money business, the Post Office wants to give customers an even better deal on their travels.

Gary Fitton, Head of Post Office Credit Card, said:  Most credit cards charge 2.75% on every transaction made overseas. People become frustrated when they see it is costing them more to use their credit card abroad. We have listened to this and we have acted, now our customers have got one of the best deals going.

Further, the interest-free period for balance transfers has been extended from six to eight months. And for three months customers will be charged no interest on new purchases. In line with other cards on the market, the Post Office will introduce a balance transfer fee of 2.5% for its credit card.

After this period, Classic card customers will move on to a standard rate of 14.9% APR and Platinum card holders move on to 13.9% APR. Post Office Credit Card customers can still make even more savings by using the unique low rate facility after their 0% interest period has ended. They can transfer large purchases of between £500 and £2,000 onto a lower rate of 6.8% APR repayable over 12 months, offering them a great value way to pay for larger buys.

For the first time, customers can now take advantage of a completely paperless application process when they apply online at postoffice.co.uk and could have their card within a week, ideal for those planning a trip abroad at short notice.

Customers also get free insurance for goods they buy abroad, covering them against accidental damage, loss and theft for 90 days from date of purchase.

Thousands of students starting their university careers this year will depend on their parent's home insurance to cover their valuables (i.e. mobiles, iPods). Much to their dismay, over one quarter (26%) of all policies in the market will not cover students.

Students normally live in impoverished areas in bigger cities and normally leave their accommodation unattended when on holiday or leave. The issue is simply that due to certain exclusions in most policies, theft of items is only covered by forced-entry break-ins. The National Union of Students reports that most reported thefts at university are "walk-ins" resulting from parties of leaving the door unlocked. Thusly voiding any claim against the stolen material. To compare home insurers click here

Following on from its promise not to raise prices further in 2006, Scottish and Southern Energy, announced a price increase would become effective on 01 January 2007. The average price increase - which is blamed on the cost of wholesale energy - is 12.2% for gas customers and 9.4% for electricity customers.

Scottish and Southern is behind the Atlantic Electric and Gas, Southern Electric, Scottish Hydro and SWALEC brands. All prices on this service have been updated and the service is quoting post January 2007 prices.

Consumer watchdog energywatch has called into an official inquiry into high prices of as and electricity to settle "whether punishing energy prices in Britain are unavoidable or whether they can be explained".

Allan Asher, Chief Executive of energywatch, adds: "Despite reports that the wholesale price of gas is starting to fall, cheaper domestic energy bills will not follow this year and the market generally shows few signs of genuine competition. Upstream gas producers boast of staggering cash flows, vertically integrated energy companies reap the benefit from inflated electricity prices and new entrants cannot break into the market to compete with the big six [energy suppliers]." "Consumers have had enough of the relentless hammering"

So far, there has been no official response from Ofgem of the government in response to the call.

This month has seen an influx of news articles on student debts and advisory guides issued by governing bodies; all coinciding with the start of the new academic year. It is a real concern as the masses of 18 year olds leave their cosy homes for their first taste of independence, with little real experience of budgeting or managing finances. Swotting up on the theories of budgeting and finance does not prepare the student on how painstakingly difficult it is to keep to budget and how precariously simple to overspend. Living frugally is dull and certainly not in the carefree student lifestyle imagined by most.

Student loans and the question of debt, a paper released by the Department for Education and Skills states that the cost of going to university includes both course and living costs and involves choices about lifestyle and about the degree of debt that students are comfortable with. In other words, student debt is a foregone conclusion and it is now a matter of the degree of indebtedness that the student graduates with.

From 2006/2007, students are charged up to £3000 per year for their courses. The Student Income and Expenditure Survey (SIES) (2002/2003)? estimates that the average basic costs of living (including household and course related costs) as £3,665, but the average total expenditure (including entertainment and non-study-related travel was significantly higher at £6,897.

Students loans cover basic living costs only. Some students work part-time while studying; others work in the holidays and some rely on a combination of loans and parental contributions.

SIES estimates that the average student debt for final-year students in 2002/2003 was £8,666, rising to an average of £15,000 for those beginning their courses in 2006/2007. Where the student does not qualify for the fee remission grant and choose to defer the full fee, their loans will increase by £3,000 for each year taking the loan to at least £24,000, for a 3-years course.

So, these are the grim 'truths' of student debts.

The students who work through the rigours of budgeting and managing their finances well, will be graduating with their degrees, plus the invaluable life skill of money management. Good financial habits will bear fruit in the many years to come.

Sticking to a budget is tough but sometimes you can get relief and help in the most unlikely places. Help from your parents is the cheapest option by far but sometimes you need to stand on your own two feet. Get to know financial products that you commonly use, shop around and you will also find the breaks that you can take advantage of.

Student Bank Accounts

Take advantage of one of the special student bank accounts on offer, looking for the best overall deal to suit their circumstances rather than being distracted by free gifts e.g. portable music players, because they invariably hide the uncompetitive terms and conditions. Most students will be better off getting the bank account that offers the largest interest-free overdraft.

Typically, student accounts will offer larger interest-free overdrafts as you progress through university, so you might get an account like this:

Year

Interest-free overdraft

Year 1 £1,000

Year 2 £1,250

Year 3 £1,500

Year 4 ?1,750

Never go over an overdraft limit without permission; tell the bank you are struggling and work on an arrangement that buys you time and lower charges.

Borrowing

Consider your main options:

Borrowing from relativesIt goes without saying that borrowing from parents or other relatives is the cheapest way for you, presuming they're relaxed about repayment and won't charge you interest!

Student loansThe Student loan is the cheapest debt you can get (other than loans from family), as you're just charged interest at the rate of inflation (rising prices). The terms for paying back this loan are favourable too, as you need not commence repayments till you're earning £15,000 per year. Also, you only pay back 9% of what you're earning over the £15,000 mark, e.g. if you're earning £16,000, you pay 9% of £1,000, which is £90.

Credit cardsCredit cards can be an expensive way to borrow but they are useful if used responsibly. Select the right card you could buy goods and pay for them months later without paying interest, or you could be rewarded with store points or cashback without paying interest.

Income

Student income usually comes from parents, grants or part-time/holiday work.

ParentsTheir continued support would make your life much easier. By helping you out with a few hundred here and there, if you budget well you may end up paying thousands less in debt interest in your lifetime.

GrantsStudents from low-income families receive a full maintenance grant of £2,700 per year. Like the student loan, it's paid in three instalments at the start of each term. Students from middle-income families receive part of the grant, and students from high income families get zip.

Students receiving the full maintenance grant are entitled to further support from their university if it charges more than £2,765 in tuition fees. Generally, the university is expected to cover the difference.

You can get other grants if you're eligible for Income Support or other means-tested benefits, such as Housing Benefit. New students can't get both a maintenance grant and one of these special support grants; it's one or the other.

Get help from organisations that offer free financial advice, and speak to a student union adviser to make sure you are getting all the financial help you are entitled to.

Part-time or holiday workRealistically, you'll probably need one. You might choose to work during holidays, in the evenings or at weekends. Or possibly all three!

Budgeting

In a nutshell budgeting is adding up your income and deducting your expenses. It helps if you work out a budget for the whole year and another one on a monthly (or even weekly) basis. To do a monthly or weekly budget, you set aside money for food, travel, entertainment and so on. You also break down your big annual expenses, such as holidays and car maintenance, into manageable amounts. Hence, you can save up for your big purchases.

To get you started on the road to good financial habits, keep a spending diary. To do this, you carry a pen and a notepad around with you. You write down the amount of money you have spare for the month (or week) and, whenever you have a spare minute, you update the diary with any expenses you've made. OK, so your parents don't do this, but they probably don't need to count the pennies quite as much as you!

Money-saving

We're always collecting money-saving tips, as they can make a difference to almost anyone, regardless of their income. Recently, Halifax offered these tips for students:

• Pool resources. Students in year two and beyond can make the most of the friends that they've made by looking for a house together. If you're renting a whole house between you, you may find a landlord willing to offer you a deal rather then lose income through empty rooms.
• Save on transport costs. For those shorter journeys walking or cycling are the best way to get around. For longer journeys make sure you take advantage of the discounts available to students for coach, bus and rail travel.
• Save on clothes. Many university towns have lots of charity shops or dress agencies aimed at students where you can pick up bargains.
• Save on course books and equipment. Buying books for the new term is one of the most expensive parts of student life. Rather than buying new, you may be able to borrow your books from the university or town library. Alternatively second-hand copies are much cheaper. Local bookshops or ebay are a good place to look. Also check notice boards for books for sale. You could also speak to students who are on the same course as you but one year ahead and ask if you can buy their books when they've finished with them.
• Save on food. Eating out, takeaways and other convenience foods are expensive and will make a huge dent in your budget. If you can't cook then learning should be a priority. Eating healthily need not be difficult and will also mean you're in a better state to concentrate on your studies. There are several recipe books aimed at students living on a budget, such as "Vegetarian Grub on Grant" or "More Grub on Less Grant".
• Carry only what money you can afford to spend and leave the plastic at home. If you have excess cash or debit and credit cards on you it's easy to spend more than you intend or need to. Just taking out what money you can afford to spend.
• Manage your debts.For most students, debt is a way of life but there are ways to manage it without your finances spiralling out of control. Some forms of borrowing like student loans - are cheaper than others and give you a long time to repay your loan. Keep in contact with your bank if there are any changes in your circumstances or you're having money problems, it's much better to try and nip problems in the bud.
• Sell things you don't need anymore. Your loss can also be your gain if you visit www.ebay.co.uk or www.loot.com.
• Be on a constant look-out for savings opportunity. Be mean, lean and hungry!

If things get really bad, think long and hard before considering bankruptcy.

It stays on your credit report for six years and can have a permanent effect as mortgage lenders often ask if you have ever been bankrupt. Loans from the Student Loans Company are not wiped out by bankruptcy and still have to be repaid in full.

Student debt is becoming such a worry that a support service for those who have credit cards is being launched.

APACS, the UK payments association, has launched an online guide to credit cards for students in the UK. The new guide, Cards and Students, (published on 15/9/2006) provides comprehensive financial advice for students about to start university.

The guide provides a range of useful advice for cardholders, including tips for safe borrowing and good financial management, advice on fraud protection and details on various benefits and risks.

While APACS figures show that only one in four people (24 per cent) aged between 18 and 24 has a credit card, a large number of students remain concerned about personal finance issues.

Sandra Quinn, director of communications at APACS, said: "Nowadays, most students expect to be in debt when they graduate and whilst it might be impossible to avoid student loan debt, getting a handle on managing your finances can make the world of difference.

"We have an important role to play in educating all people, not just students, about responsible borrowing and the benefits and risks of using plastic cards."

APACS is the UK payments association. It provides the forum for the UK's financial institutions to come together on non-competitive issues, to develop banking systems for the future and to provide innovation and developments in payments. It is also the banking industry voice on payments issues such as plastic cards, payment fraud, cheques, electronic payments and cash and is the banking organisation coordinating chip and PIN roll-out.

Scottish and Southern Group spokesman Alan Young confirmed that prices for its 7 million gas and electricity customers would remain on hold until next year. Scottish and Southern, which supplies gas and electricity under the Atlantic Electric and Gas, Southern Electric, Scottish Hydro and SWALEC brands, does, however expect to implement a further price increase early in the next year.

Scottish and Southern's statement of pending price increases is likely to cause concern during a period of stagnant wholesale gas and electricity prices - the biggest cause of gas and electricity price increases in recent years.

Students starting at university this month face the many challenges of leaving home, making new friends and getting on top of studies. Taking care of finances is the last thing new students think about; indeed most young students have limited experience with budgeting and handling the level of expenses involved in getting their degrees.

With tuition fees soaring to £3,000 a year from now on, it is vital they plan carefully from the start of their course to ensure debts are kept to a minimum. The Student Income and Expenditure Survey (SIES) estimates that the average student debt will rise to an average of around £15,000 for those beginning their courses in 2006/2007. Research by NatWest has found completing a three-year degree costs £33,000 with living costs factored in.

A report from student accommodation service Unite found 56 per cent of students faced difficulties managing their finances. A third admitted to struggling from time to time, one in six found managing their money a constant struggle and one in 20 was seriously falling behind or had real financial problems. A third of students had an overdraft and one in eight owed money on a credit card.

The NUS, Citizens Advice and credit reference agency Experian warn students about some of the potential financial pitfalls.

Be careful about planning your budget and finances and the amounts you borrow don't get in too deep and shop around for the best deals.

Citizens Advice chief executive David Harker says: "Many students need to borrow money to help cover costs while studying. Problems can arise if they take on more commitments than they can afford to repay, particularly if their expected post-graduation earnings do not materialise. An unexpected cost or disaster can make matters worse."

Understand the credit-granting process and to get into the habit of checking their credit reports and their financial CV's?.

Regularly check your credit status with Equifax credit watch

Take advantage of one of the special student bank accounts on offer, looking for the best overall deal to suit their circumstances rather than being distracted by free gifts.

Never go over an overdraft limit without permission.

If applying for other forms of credit  such as a credit card, store card or personal loan working out the real cost of any credit obtained is paramount, including the total you will have to pay back. Draw up a budget to make sure you can afford the repayments and tell lenders if you are struggling.

Credit cards offer a "flexible" way of managing debt, as they do not rely on a borrower paying a fixed amount each month. Choose the right card to suit your circumstance, budget well, pay on time and you will have access to free credit for up to 55 days. Find out the interest charges and penalties. Know the good and the bad. Take advantage of the credit card facilities but don't let it take control of you!

Search and compare for the right card here

Get help from organisations that offer free financial advice, and speak to a student union adviser to make sure you are getting all the financial help you are entitled to.

If things get really bad, think long and hard before considering bankruptcy.

It stays on your credit report for six years and can have a permanent effect as mortgage lenders often ask if you have ever been bankrupt. Loans from the Student Loans Company are not wiped out by bankruptcy and still have to be repaid in full.

Students starting at university this month face the many challenges of leaving home, making new friends and getting on top of studies. Taking care of finances is the last thing new students think about; indeed most young students have limited experience with budgeting and handling the level of expenses involved in getting their degrees.

With tuition fees soaring to ?3,000 a year from now on, it is vital they plan carefully from the start of their course to ensure debts are kept to a minimum. The Student Income and Expenditure Survey (SIES) estimates that the average student debt will rise to an average of around ?15,000 for those beginning their courses in 2006/2007. Research by NatWest has found completing a three-year degree costs ?33,000 with living costs factored in.

A report from student accommodation service Unite found 56 per cent of students faced difficulties managing their finances. A third admitted to struggling from time to time, one in six found managing their money a constant struggle and one in 20 was seriously falling behind or had real financial problems. A third of students had an overdraft and one in eight owed money on a credit card.

The NUS, Citizens Advice and credit reference agency Experian warn students about some of the potential financial pitfalls.

Be careful about planning your budget and finances and the amounts you borrow don't get in too deep and shop around for the best deals.

Citizens Advice chief executive David Harker says: "Many students need to borrow money to help cover costs while studying. Problems can arise if they take on more commitments than they can afford to repay, particularly if their expected post-graduation earnings do not materialise. An unexpected cost or disaster can make matters worse."

Understand the credit-granting process and to get into the habit of checking their credit reports and their financial CV's?.

Regularly check your credit status with Equifax credit watch

Take advantage of one of the special student bank accounts on offer, looking for the best overall deal to suit their circumstances rather than being distracted by free gifts.

Never go over an overdraft limit without permission.

If applying for other forms of credit  such as a credit card, store card or personal loan working out the real cost of any credit obtained is paramount, including the total you will have to pay back. Draw up a budget to make sure you can afford the repayments and tell lenders if you are struggling.

Credit cards offer a "flexible" way of managing debt, as they do not rely on a borrower paying a fixed amount each month. Choose the right card to suit your circumstance, budget well, pay on time and you will have access to free credit for up to 55 days. Find out the interest charges and penalties. Know the good and the bad. Take advantage of the credit card facilities but don't let it take control of you!

Search and compare for the right card here

Get help from organisations that offer free financial advice, and speak to a student union adviser to make sure you are getting all the financial help you are entitled to.


If things get really bad, think long and hard before considering bankruptcy.

It stays on your credit report for six years and can have a permanent effect as mortgage lenders often ask if you have ever been bankrupt. Loans from the Student Loans Company are not wiped out by bankruptcy and still have to be repaid in full.

If someone makes off with your laptop, chances are you can get your money back...but what about all of the music you had stored on it? British insurers are catching up with technology and have begun to insure not only the storage device, but the music on it too! This will fall under your contents insurance.

Downloaded music sales in the EEA have doubled from £82m to £190m since last year. The number of people that have a portable media player has also risen from 2% to 7% since 2005. Insurers are requiring that claimants prove how many songs were lost. If the downloads were paid for with a credit card, that isn't too hard.

What value would you put on your downloads?

Who needs the FT when you can have unravelit for free? Yesterday we speculated in our monthly newsletter that gas and electricity prices may be due to fall in 2007. Today, the FT offers its readers the same story, citing predictions of a warmer winter ahead, combined with the seemingly successful completion of two new gas pipelines across the North Sea. Coincidence? Our lawyers are looking into it.

But jokes aside - the next six months will be a critical period. Suppliers will find it increasingly difficult to justify further price increases, so energy costs may have peaked at their current levels. Perhaps we might even see startup suppliers breathing competitive spirit into the market, as soon as the next year. So just keep checking back on unravelit and remember where you read it first.

One in six adults in the UK, borrow money to fund their holidays this summer. Most of this was funded by credit card spending, with the remainder using homeowner loans, according to a research by CreditExpert personal credit index.

Britons have spent some £9.02bn on credit cards abroad this summer according to another research by price comparison service Moneysupermarket.com found.

More than half (57 per cent) of the 16m Britons who travelled abroad this summer used a credit card to finance their summer breaks, running up an average spend of £799. Around 9pc spent more than £1,001 and a further 5pc flexed the plastic to the tune of more than £2,001.

They could collectively be hit with interest charges totalling £551m by New Year's Day, if they are not able to clear their credit card balance soon after arrival on home soil - or transfer it swiftly to an interest-free credit card.

Travellers unable to clear their holiday debt in full upon their return could see their credit card bill for summer spending rise by more than £50 per month by January.

The survey also found that younger travellers were more frugal with their cards than their elders - spending an average £549 on summer breaks, compared to more than £900 among the over-50s.

Around the regions, Scots were found to be the most cautious, spending an

Recently, Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander has made it public that he will meet with top airport officials to look at relaxing the new rules for airline travel. For now, US-bound travellers are not permitted any carry on luggage larger than laptop case and are prevented from taking anything on board other than essential medicine and baby food. The new announcement is music to musicians' ears.

The Musicians Union (MU) has begun lobbying lawmakers over these security measures that are preventing them from taking aboard expensive and fragile musical instruments. The MU is not only concerned with baggage handling, but more so the the effect that change in temperature and cabin pressure has on their instruments.

As it stands, no insurance company provides adequate cover to compensate all of the damage to the hundreds of musicians suffering these losses. The MU is hoping that this is the beginning of the end for what they see as unfair restrictions.

Tightening of security measures at UK airports have caused the number of lost laptops to triple in recent weeks. Since travellers to the United States are now unable to carry their laptops in plane cabins, hundreds are turning up missing. Sources at Heathrow airport are saying that 40% of lost laptops are going un-claimed and being auctioned off.

Travellers who find that their laptops are missing have reason to be somewhat optimistic. The lost property department at Heathrow say that a large majority of lost laptops are in fact being turned in to airport security and are able to be reclaimed by their rightful owners.

Britons travelling with their laptops are being urged to check their travel insurance policies to ensure that they will be covered should they have the misfortune of losing their laptop.

To compare travel insurance, just click here.

If you have a credit card, you will likely to have received credit card cheques in the post, from your provider. These cheques allow you to make additional purchases on credit and are under fire from consumer groups and the subject of an inquiry by the Department for Trade and Industry (DTI).

What are they?

Credit card cheques are similar to cheques issued on current accounts. You can use them to pay for things, in place of cash or credit card; to anyone you might pay with an ordinary cheque. Your purchase is backed by your credit card and is charged your credit card account.

What are the terms of use?

Although you can use a credit card cheque to pay for a purchase, it is treated as if you were advanced cash for the purchase. Unlike normal credit card purchases, cash advances are usually levied a higher interest rate. They are also excluded from any introductory offers. For example, Egg Card charges 20.9% APR for cash advance, while normal credit card purchases are levied 15.9% APR but are exempted until 1st March 2007 under the 0% introductory interest rate. They are also excluded from any introductory offers.

Further, interest is calculated from the day the cheque was handed over. In contrast, on purchases made with the card they get up to 45 days interest-free added unless the balance is not repaid in full and on time.

Despite the extra cost, consumers who use cheques actually get less protection than those who pay by card. Transactions using credit card cheques are not covered by section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, which makes the card provider jointly liable if there is an error with something paid for by card. This is because the card issuer does not have a direct relationship with the supplier.

What is in the news?

In part - consumer groups are also unhappy about the way the cheques tend to be issued. Instead of simply giving cardholders a book of cheques when they first apply for a card, card providers tend to send them out on an ad hoc basis, without waiting to be asked by their customers.

The problem is that people don't notice if they go astray, which increases the chances fraudulent use. Critics also say the cheques could prove a temptation to vulnerable borrowers who don't fully understand the implications of using them. Some groups have called for the cheques to be banned. This is unlikely to happen, but the DTI is currently considering how the industry could improve them.

What do the providers say to this?

The trade association for card providers, Apacs, has said that a ban would be unfair and that customers can opt out of receiving them if they wish. At the end of last month, APACS launched the new credit card cheque Summary Box. This coincides with the launch of APACS Best Practice Guidelines 2006 - a report that brings together all the credit card industry guidelines developed to improve the transparency of products and make lending more responsible for the benefit of credit card customers. The new Summary Box will accompany all credit card cheques sent out in the UK by the end of the year.

The credit card cheque Summary Box covers the following key product features:
Interest rates
Interest period
Allocation of payment
Charges
Stopping a cheque
Opt-out
Level of protection
Restrictions on use

But the criticism has forced providers to make some changes. Following a trial in which it stopped issuing cheques, Royal Bank of Scotland and its NatWest subsidiary, will withdraw credit card cheques and will not honour any written after the end of September. HSBC has also stopped issuing cheques on all but its Platinum card, which is no longer available to new customers and is only held by a small number of borrowers.

What happens next?

The DTI is due to report in the next couple of months and while it is expected to let card issuers continue to issue cheques, it is likely to insist that consumers are provided with certain information about how they work and could recommend that this is printed on the back of the cheques. It may also recommend that sending unsolicited cheques be banned.

A recent study by a top UK newspaper has revealed that Britons are far too careless when handing over their passports abroad. More than 250,000 passports were lost or stolen this year. One of the top venues for left were hotel front desks. Even though travellers are not obliged to hand over their passports to hotels, UK holidaymakers feel the need to do so.

It is also observed that Brits almost always ignore safety deposit boxes or room safes whilst staying at hotels. A common mistake is leaving passports in suitcases, under the mattress or in unlocked drawers. Because of this more than 6 million passports have been reported lost or stolen in the past 5 years.

To secure against this form of identity theft, UK insurers are urging holidaymakers to either make photocopies of their documents and handing those over to hotels en lieu of their actual passports or only to allow the hotel to take note of the passport details instead of holding it.

Loss of a passport is not only an important issue with your insurer, but also with the Home Office. Be sure to keep an eye on your papers. For all of your travel insurance needs, please visit us here

.

Bank of England released figured showing that UK mortgage lending rose by a net £9.79bn in July - its biggest monthly increase since September 2003.

The question now is whether the Bank's surprise quarter-point rise in UK base rates on August 3, to 4.75%, proves a brake on activity and inflation in the housing market.

Consumer credit, comprising personal loans, overdrafts and credit card borrowing, grew by ?1.12bn, in line with the average increase over the previous six months. Within this, credit card lending was anaemic. It showed a net increase of just £155m, further evidence that consumers may be moving away from more expensive unsecured debt and consolidating it on to mortgages.

The figures represent a period before the latest base rate rise, which will increase the cost of borrowing for consumers with credit cards and variable rate loans and mortgages.

With the UK public's combined debt totalling more than £1bn, advice groups have been warning of an increase in the number of people unable to meet their liabilities.

Figures from the Bank of England support those from the BBA showing that consumers have been cutting down on unsecured borrowing, but personal insolvencies are expected to reach 100,000 this year.

New borrowing on credit cards fell to an all-time low in July.

The British Bankers' Association (BBA), whose members provide 70% of credit card lending in the UK, said spending of £7bn over the month was the lowest figure since July 2002 and had been exceeded by repayments. The BBA said over the first six months of the year spending on plastic was down by an average of £0.1bn a month, suggesting the contraction was speeding up.

Meanwhile, mortgage lending remained buoyant in July, the BBA said, with gross lending of £19.1bn representing a 19% increase on the same period last year.

The number of mortgages approved but not yet paid out was down 2% on last July's figure at 178,438, but increased house prices pushed the value of those loans up 8% to a total of £18.4bn. The average loan for a house purchase was £139,200 - 5% higher than a year ago.

The figures provide further evidence that consumers may be moving away from more expensive unsecured debt and consolidating it on to mortgages.

Since the Post Office has implemented radical changes in its posting charges, UK insurance brokers are now looking more seriously at online options. No longer can you simply observe the weight of your package but now size and thickness are also factors. Paper-based insurance brokers in the UK are now wondering if online insurance sales are better suited for the industry going forward. As many insurance policy bundles are thick and heavy, sending them out by post may no longer be cost-effective. Get ahead of the game - compare quotations for you household insurance needs right here.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) is warning the UK government that more money must be spent defending British homes and businesses against flooding. Recent climate changes and sea levels rising faster than expected are causing higher-than-normal flood related claims. The ABI is concerned that the well is running dry. If this problem persists, many of the UK's private insurance providers will be forced to suspend flood cover policies. The ABI is asking for a 10% increase in government spending every year with a target of GBP 750 million by 2011. The ABI is urging UK home/business owners to review their policies to make sure that they do have adequate cover. For household insurance comparisons, click here.

Irish company www.steorn.com claim to have developed a source of free, clean and constant energy based on a specific constellation of fixed and moving magnets. The company states that its technology is more than 100% efficient - meaning that it generates more energy than it consumes, and has challenged leading scientists to come together and put the technology to the test. The company has even gone as far as taking out a page long advertisement in The Economist magazine to prove its sincerity.

So gas and electricity suppliers watch out! The days of ripping off British consumers with sky-high gas and electricity prices are surely about to come to an end. Or maybe not. In any case - we don't recommend consumers stop looking for a better deal on gas and electricity just yet. In the meantime, we'll be working on bringing you comparisons on best-price magnets. Watch this space.

Millions of Brits face security risk from identity fraudsters, through the dormant credit cards they carry around. A recent research from Morgan Stanley showed that a quarter of all Brits carried around an unused credit card during the last year. A further 11 per cent carries two such cards, while one in ten carries three.

These dormant cards present the greatest risk to personal financial security. While the account remains open and unused, fraudsters who have information about the card-holder can contact the credit-card provider and get new cards, pins and statements sent to a different address. They then have full access to the account and can take funds from it as they wish. Any loss of funds through theft could leave victims requiring bad credit loans and mortgages.

The chairman of the UK energy regulator Ofgem Sir John Mogg, has speculated in an interview with the Financial Times that gas prices may fall in the coming year.

The chairman's more relaxed view on the UK's gas supply situation stems from his belief that major gas infrastructure projects, notably the completion of two new gas pipelines into the UK from the Netherlands and Norway, are on track. The extra gas that will be shipped into the UK would help create a more transparent gas market, and ultimately result in cheaper gas for UK consumers.

In the same interview, the chairman underscored his determination to 'take action' if wholesale price falls do not translate into cheaper gas prices for consumers.

Have you ever read your insurance policy wording and not exactly understand what you just read? You're not alone. Here are a few examples, in no particular order, of common words used by your insurer and what they really mean:

Subrogation: When you pay off someone's debt and then try to get the money from the debtor yourself;

Umbrella Insurance: Additional coverage that "kicks in" once you have met your original coverage limits;

Fiduciary: A person who is legally entrusted to act on someone else's behalf.; and

Insurance to Value: Insurance written in an amount that approximates the value of the insured property.

These aren't even the worst ones. There are many uncommon terms used in your policy. If you have any questions regarding your policy's wording, don't hesitate to contact your insurer. For great household insurance quotes, click here.

EBICo - the not-for-profit energy supplier announced today that it will increase prices for both gas and electricity tariffs. Electricity tariffs will increase by an average of 21% and gas tariffs will increase by 31%. The price increase will be effective from 01 September 2006.

With Broadband these days, there always seems to be a better deal around the corner. Britons are constantly migrating to other ISPs. A common complaint from consumers when wishing to switch is the confusion they feel when attempting to acquire a Migration Authorisation Code (MAC) from their previous broadband supplier. Their complaints have not fallen on deaf ears.

British regulatory body Ofcom has recently said that it will begin regulating consumer ISP switches. Ofcom will work within the industry to hash out a standard practice for obtaining a MAC. This move will make ISP migration far more consumer-friendly as well as give the broadband industry more credibility among already wary broadband users as a MAC is a must when switching.

Powergen StayWarm customers are now able to compare the competitiveness of their tariff using this service. StayWarm is available to citizens 60 years of age or older. Customers pay a fixed price for their gas and electricity, and the price is reviewed once a year, based on the previous years' total kiloWatt hours consumption and any fluctuations in the number of household members.

Because StayWarm customers are not charged a unit rate for their gas and electricity consumption, other gas and electrcicity price comparison services have failed to offer customers a fair comparison against other deals. Customers using this service now merely need to select Powergen StayWarm as their current supplier and then follow the instructions provided.

This gas and electricity service is the only one of its kind to offer such an easy comparison against this unmetered tariff.

Unravelit has joined forces with the one of the UK's largest female portals - Handbag.com - to provide Financial and Energy comparison tools integrated into Handbag's Money area. The deal is set to run for 12 months and will see Handbag running bespoke promotions around the site to ensure the Handbag audience get access to Unravelit's best of breed financial comparison tools.

HSBC launches a new credit card offering a zero per cent interest rate on balance transfers for a period of 12 months or more. The new offer will include zero per cent interest on purchases for three months and a typical annual percentage rate (APR) of 15.9 per cent.

The high street bank is one of only five credit card providers, to buck the recent market trend of pulling back zero percent offers.

"At HSBC we continually look for ways in which we can help borrowers better manage their debt and we recognise that people are becoming more careful with their credit card borrowing," HSBC head of consumer cards Spencer May said.

The bank recognises the fact that shoppers were getting savvier with credit card spending and this is reflected in the fall in credit card borrowing in four of the last six months.

The new card includes the bank's unique price promise insurance, which guarantees that cardholder can claim the price difference of a branded item, bought in UK high street, if an identical item is priced cheaper in another shop.

HSBC's advanced fraud detection system also detects any unusual activity on a card in order to help prevent fraud and includes zero fraud liability.

Post Codes are a magical thing. When establishing premiums for buildings and contents cover, the majority of insurers will use the postcode of the insured property. Postcodes let your insurer know where your property is. Once they know that, they can use previous data to establish the claims history of your area. For example: if you are living in an area with a high flood risk, your insurer will use averages to set your claims risk.
But nothing's perfect. There are two significant disadvantages with using this method. One, the insurance industry has no say over the Royal Mail’s allocation of postcodes. Two, an individual postcode may not accurately reflect the risks of its surrounding area's averages.

Also, your insurer will also take into account your previous claims history and the nature of what you wish to insure.

Most insurers place different values on postcodes, so it's best to shop around to make sure you select the insurance that best suits your needs. To compare competitive quotes, visit us here.

.

Since the Bank of England's August rate rise, savvy landlords know that first-time home buyers are now further delayed from owning their own home. If you have been in the game for a while, you know that even with the recent rate rise, interest rates are still low, well, compared to 10 years ago anyway. Total loaned money to landlords is up from £14B to £17B from last year.With more landlords taking advantage of increased rates, they are now buying more property and therefore more insurance. For a competitive and fair insurance comparison experience, click here.

Powergen announces an 18.4% increase on its gas tariff and 9.7% increase on its electricity price. The increase affects all customers, except those that have previously signed up to a Capped price product from Powergen. The company blames unprecedented increases in the wholesale price of gas and electricity are behind the move.

New Powergen tariffs will be available for review on this service by Monday, August 21st, at Powergen's request.

The UK Treasury has recently announced a probe into allegations of travel insurance mis-selling. The government is reacting to an increasing number of reports of Britons who have suffered cancelled flights, lost valuables or medical emergencies - only to find their insurance policy does not offer the compensation they need. The policies in question are typically sold by high-street travel agents, who are still exempt from strict FSA regulation.

Consumers should make sure that they ask the right questions and get the cover they need before handing over the premium. If you are planning hazardous activities like waterskiing or diving - is this included? What is the lost luggage cover? What will the insurer do for you in a medical emergency or if your flight is cancelled? Are all your familiy members covered? Is the cost of the policy value-for-money? If the cover does not fit your needs, do not buy it.

For an informative, straight-forward and value-for-money travel insurance buying experience, click here.

A recent survey release from Zurich Insurance states that when an average Briton takes a stroll, or goes to work - they are carrying £851 worth of clothes, electronic devices and jewellery with them.

With high-worth items being taken out of the home more and more, citizens need to ensure that they are taking the proper steps to ensure their own safety and the security of their possessions. Consumers have been advised to check their household insurance policy to ensure that their personal possessions are covered. Your policy not up-to-snuff? Click here to find the policy that's right for you.

The Bank of England's recent quarter point increase in base lending rates to 4.75% highlights the extent to which the increasing cost of gas and electricity is putting pressure on the UK economy.

Annualised inflation figures for June 2006 came in at 2.5%, easily breaching the Bank of England's 2% target. Along with a resurgent housing market and growth in consumer spending, the high cost of energy was put on the spot as one of the biggest contributing factors.

For the first time in over two years the Bank of England raised interest rates on Friday - and where the Bank of England goes lenders will quickly follow. Now could be your last chance to transfer your credit card balance to a 0% offer before your interest rate goes up and the banks withdraw their transfer offers.

Don't miss out by leaving it too late! Find a great balance transfer offer here.

Unravelit.com now allows consumers to review the date on which a tariff is launched, as some tariffs that appear cheap today may be due for a price change in the short term. The date on which tariffs were last changed may provide some guidance as to whether a change is due, and will hopefully help consumers make better informed decisions about switching energy suppliers.

To check when a tariff was introduced, users of Unravelit simply need to run a search as before, and then review the 'Tariff Launch Date' that is shown next to the savings figure.

Travelers going abroad should keep an eye on their credit cards. A research by Barclaycard lists Turkey, France, Spain and America for accounting more than half of all credit card fraud recorded in 2005. Italy, China, Thailand, Ireland, India and the Netherlands complete the top 10 list.

Although new technology has slightly decreased fraud, the credit card industry has still suffered a loss of £82.8m in 2005, with a shocking 20% of all fraud involving UK-registered cards.

Despite this finding, plastic is still safer than cash. The risk of losing everything and getting hurt during a robbery is still higher, by carrying large amounts of cash. Further, most credit card companies do not hold the credit card holders liable for any losses from fraudulent activity.

Prevention is still better than cure; proving that you are a victim of fraud can be a frustrating and slow process. Some basic precautions are:

-inform your card company your travel destination and dates, this will help them monitor transactions,

-make a note of your card issuer's contact details, in case you should have a problem,

-memorise your pin number; don't have it written on a piece of paper,

-keep personal documents, normally used in identification checks, such as passport, separate from your credit cards,

-keep your credit card within sight and be aware of what happens to your card, when paying your bill,

-keep your credit card receipts in a safe place or dispose the receipts carefully,

-shield yourself from prying eyes when using the cash machine.

The UK insurance industry has created and launched a new investigation bureau to tighten up on organised insurance fraud, which is making almost £4m a week for criminal gangs according to the Association of British Insurers. The Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB), are to scrutinize industry data and information for abnormal claims and/or signs of fraud, such as multiple claims on the same policy. The IFB is advocating shared information between insurance companies to keep fraudsters at bay. It has also set up a snitch-line for honest consumers to anonymously report any suspected fraud.

Customers wondering how the latest British Gas price increases for gas and electricity will be affecting them when they come into effect on September 4th should note that these prices are now loaded for comparison purposes. Please refer to our earlier news release for details on the price increase.

British Gas has announced that it will raise gas bills by 12.4% for its 10.7 million customers. The firm's electricity customers will also face a 9.4% increase in their bills from September. British Gas said "unprecedented high wholesale energy costs" had made the price increases necessary.

All standard prices and Price Protection prices have been removed from this service in response to the announcement. 'Click Energy' prices will remain valid for the time being.

EDF Energy have today announced a price increase of 19% on gas and 8% on electricity. The company cites the continuing rise in wholesale energy costs as the reason behind the rise. As part of the announcement, EDF Energy also introduce a new 'Capped' price tariff, which will fix customers' prices until July 2010. Customers who signed up for an earlier version of EDF Energy's Capped price tariff will not be affected by this announcement.

EDF Energy has now also suspended its 'Energy Online' product, which is not available for sign-up until further notice.

A recent undercover study into UK travel agents has revealed some shocking results. A leading consumer website has found that travel agents are charging too much for travel insurance and not following basic procedures when making sales. This means that many UK travellers are paying too much for unsuitable insurance that may not cover them in their time of need.

Undercover reporters from Which? magazine visited 26 independent and affiliated travel agents across the UK and found that none of them made any reasonable effort to ensure that policies were suitable for buyers. Only five travel agents explained what their policies covered, two thirds didn’t ask their customers about previous medical histories and not a single travel agent explained what their policies did not cover. When you include pricing that can be up to 200% higher than online sellers, it seems that buying travel insurance from a travel agent is an all round bad deal.

Unlike travel agents, online comparison services like Unravelit are regulated by the Financial Services authority and have to adhere to strict codes of conduct when selling travel insurance. This means that details of all policies are clearly explained before being sold. Travel agents usually work with only one insurer and sell only one type of insurance – but services like Unravelit offer many policies from multiple insurers, allowing consumers to easily select the most suitable coverage at the best price.

Shopping around is still the best way to find a good deal on travel insurance and comparison services like Unravelit have made shopping around easy. By bringing the insurers to the consumers and comparing their prices and policies side by side, consumers can make smart choices at great prices and make sure they are properly covered when they travel.

"Every Summer we see an increased number of UK holidaymakers buying travel insurance online" said Tod Ward, Manager of Regulated Products for Unravelit. "Customers have the right to be informed when they buy and we’ve helped new and experienced e-shoppers see that buying insurance online is safe, easy and great value."

The UK government today published the results of its energy review, mapping out the thrust of energy policies to come. The most notable point in the review is a commitment to invest in nuclear power. "New nuclear power stations would make a significant contribution to meeting our energy policy goals," - which are to secure Britain's energy supply while reducing carbon dioxide emissions.

Critics of the report state that the report places too much emphasis on a centralised power system, which is considered inefficient due to the high energy losses which occur during the generation process itself and the overland transmission of electricity.

Almost one million UK consumers switched energy suppliers in March this year - the highest number ever for a single month. In response to huge price increases from the nation's top six energy suppliers, UK customers have decided it's time to look for a better deal.

In a report published today, energy regulator Ofgem showed a large increase in the number of people switching energy suppliers. Alistair Buchanan, Chief executive of Ofgem urged UK consumers to take advantage of the strong competitive energy market to shop around and get the best possible deals on gas and electricity?. He went on to say that across Britain there are unclaimed savings of around £1 billion.

200,000 more consumers switched energy suppliers in March 2006 over the same period last year according to Ofgem's Retail Market Report. High Winter fuel bills may have prompted many people who have never switched before into action. They were right to do so as there are still wide differences in the prices charged by different suppliers” says Alistair Buchannan.

Ofgem's report shows that competition is still vigorous between energy suppliers despite rising prices. There are many different tariffs which means that there should be savings available for almost everyone. Opting for a dual-fuel tariff and paying by direct debit will usually net the greatest savings.

Energy prices across the UK have increased by over 40% in the last two years and consumers are taking notice. David Kerr, managing director of Unravelit said Ofgem's report is consistent with what we have seen this year. When a number of major suppliers increased their prices we saw a large increase in the number of people switching gas and electricity. Despite rising prices, it is still possible to get a good deal on your energy switching suppliers often saves over £170 per year.

Powergen today introduces an electricity only version of its popular dual fuel EnergyOnline tariff. Customers without a gas supply can now benefit from Powergen's discounted electricity rate. The product is called ElectricityOnline and is available for signup on this service now.

In another announcement, Powergen also replaced the current version of its Capped 2010 tariff, with an updated and slightly more expensive version. Customers who previously signed up to Capped 2010 are of course not affected by this tariff change.

The UK energy regulator has announced an industry-wide intiative to speed up the development and deployment of 'smart meters'. Smart meters can be read remotely, and offer customers better information about their energy usage, which can help reduce energy consumption. The aim of the initiative is to create an industry group which will define technical standards and identify regulatory barriers that are currently holding back the implementation of smart meters.

Jun 29 2006

Ellesmere Port Pioneer - IC Cheshire

A 10% hike in energy prices by ScottishPower has been branded as 'the latest blow in a brutal assault on consumers' by a watchdog body.

The company, which supplies electricity and gas to this area, blamed the rise, payable from July 10, on an 80% increase in wholesale energy costs over the last 12 months.

But Karl Brookes, a spokesperson for energywatch, the gas and electricity consumer watchdog, said: 'This is the latest blow in a brutal assault on Britain's energy consumers. More and more people will find it harder to pay their bills and the numbers in fuel poverty will rise yet again.

'With water bills also soaring it is difficult to imagine how consumers can comprehend the need for such massive rises in bills from utility companies.'

He added: 'energywatch understands that ScottishPower is taking steps to make sure its poorest customers aren't hit harder than everyone else by this rise.

'I hope this is the case as it's the least the company can do. Safeguarding the interests of poorer customers should be at the forefront of every utility company's pricing structure.' ScottishPower says electri-city prices will rise by an average of 10%, while gas prices will increase by an average of 17%. But it points out that even after the increases, Scottish-Power's standard Gas & Electricity Offer will remain cheaper than British Gas for the fourth year running. Willie MacDiarmid, Scot-tishPower's director of energy retail, said: 'As we indicated last month, wholesale energy costs continue to rise and are now a record 80% higher than this time last year.

'We have absorbed most of the impact and our last price increase announced in February was one of the smallest in the sector. However, we now need to pass on some of these increased wholesale energy costs.'

ScottishPower has launched a new Capped Price Offer to shield customers from further increases until October 2008.

Around one million of Scot-tishPower's 5.2 million customers will avoid the increase as they are already on a Capped Price Offer and the company says switching now to the new offer will protect customers from any further rises for more than two years.

Similarly, people paying by cheque can offset most of the increase by switching to direct debit, saving on average £79 a year, it adds.

ScottishPower today announced a price increase on all its tariffs. The company is raising the price of electricity by 10% and the price of gas by 17% respectively. The increase is effective as of 10/07/2006.

It was forty years ago that Barclays Bank first introduced the UK to that little bit of plastic known as a credit card. At that time, only half of UKers had bank accounts and most consumers paid with cash or cheque. However, it didn't take long for the Credit Revolution to explode into a country-wide phenomenon. Today, over 1300 new brands of credit cards are being used all over the UK. For some, credit cards are a necessary evil, for others, they are as much a part of their daily life as breathing. Either way, we say happy birthday to you, credit card, and hope that you have many more.

Please use your credit card carefully and make sure you keep your details private.

British Gas on 09/09 announced a price increase of 14.2% for its standard gas and electricity tariffs, effective from 19th September 2005. The new prices have been loaded and current British Gas customers can already compare alternative prices on unravelit.

Inflation in May was measured at 2.2% by the Office of National Statistics (ONS), against a government target of 2%. Increases in gas and electricity prices are largely to blame, with energy prices currently growing at a rate that is ten times faster than inflation overall. The government has already announced its intention to resist expected demands for above-average public sector wage increases.

Britaina's banks are under pressure to cut the fees imposed on people who go into the red. The consumer magazine, Which?, studied bank charges and found that account holders paid an average of £20 to £30 for exceeding their authorised limits. Additionally, customers were typically charged £25 to £30 for standing orders or direct debits paid out whilst over their limits. According to the study, bank customers paid £4.7 billion in overdraft charges last year.

In April, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) warned the banks to cut excessive penalties and had presumed charges above 12 pounds to be unfair. The watchdog cannot impose a cap on fees but has threatened court action against any bank refusing to adjust its penalty charges for exceeding overdraft and credit card limits. However, the British Bankers' Association demanded a showdown meeting with the OFT late next month before any reform.

Credit card companies were told by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), in April, to cut penalties for the late payment of bills by about half and signalled other bank charges needed to come down.

Excessive penalties on credit card default payments had led to unlawful charges of more than 300 million pounds a year across the industry. OFT had presumed charges above 12 pounds to be unfair, but estimated cardholders currently paid 20 to 25 pounds for each penalty. The watchdog cannot impose a cap on fees, but said it expected credit-card issuers to adjust their default fee quickly and would take legal action if necessary.

The credit-card decision marks the first major price intervention in the bank sector since measures imposed on small business banking in 2002, but charges are coming under increasing regulatory scrutiny in a number of other areas, notably insurance covering the repayment of loans.

In response, Barclays, Lloyds TSB and HSBC are to nearly halve penalties for late payment of credit card bills.

Lloyds, Britain's fifth biggest bank and the biggest unsecured lender, told Reuters it will cut its penalty on credit card default to 12 pounds from 20 pounds from June 28.

Barclaycard, which has over 11 million UK cardholders, said it would cut its default charge to 12 pounds from about 20 pounds, effective from August 1. It said from that date it would increase the interest charge for cash advances on its cards.

HSBC, the country's second largest bank, later said it was also moving to 12 pounds from June 28, in response to the competitive market moves by its rivals. Other banks are similarly expected to cut penalties for customers who fail to pay their bill on time, exceed the credit limit or if their payment fails to go through.

Summer's here and if you live in a high-subsidence area, you know what that means; you home is at a higher risk of sinking. Before you're left with that sinking feeling, make sure you have adequate household insurance. Check your policy carefully so that you're covered. Should you need additional cover, please visit Unravelit's panel of Household insurers to get the cover you need.

The UK Department Health is advising holidaymakers to make sure they are aware that foreign health cover has changed. The old European heath cover form, the E111 is no more. If you are travelling to a European desticnation (EEA), you will now need an European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). Don't leave yourself open for unecessary stress during your trip, get the proper card. For more information please visit www.dh.gov.uk.

A study comissioned by British Gas has found that Reading households produce 6,189 Kg of carbon dioxide each, the equivalent environmental impact of flying 13,000 miles (two return flights between London and New York). Hull, at the other end of the spectrum produces 40% less greenhouse gases per household.

The highest CO2 emitting UK cities are: Reading, Leicester, Bradford, Sunderland and Birmingham.

EU antitrust regulators have carried out "unannounced inspections" on energy companies in six EU countries on suspicion of abusing their market power. The raids targeted gas groups in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, and Italy and electricity firms in Hungary. The inspections mark the first step in probes into suspected anti-competitive practices. The UK energy regulator Ofgem commented that the European Commission "is now demonstrably serious about tackling anti-competitive practices in the European energy markets".

Ofcom has released new statistics on mis-selling activities by telephone services providers. The research establishes that there are 0.16 average complaints per 100 customer switches and that some smaller companies generate higher than average complaints levels. For an overview of the results and to see how your phone company compares, click here Ofcom research into slamming.

The Government has released new figures showing that the number of people becoming insolvent during the first three months of 2006 soared to its highest level since records began in 1987. A total of 23,251 people in England and Wales became insolvent during the quarter, 73 per cent more than in the same period last year.

At the same time, the number of people taking out individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs), under which they agree to repay a set amount each month in exchange for interest on their debts being frozen, leapt to 7,961 - an increase of 141 per cent on the first quarter of 2005.

Increasing financial pressure and recent legal changes have made bankruptcy and other forms of insolvency more attractive. Under the 2002 Enterprise Act, which came into force two years ago, a bankrupt's debts can be discharged after just one year, compared with the previous three-year term.

However, be aware that although bankruptcy or an IVA might seem an easy way out, a bankruptcy record will stay on a credit file for a further five years, making it difficult if not impossible to obtain even a mobile phone contract, let alone a bank account or mortgage. Best rates deals are out of the equation.

Consumers shop around for the best prices and bargains when it comes to groceries, consumables, electrical products and gadgets, but tend to be less motivated with their financial facilities (credit cards, overdrafts and loans). Yet, a little effort into research and comparison can show up substantial savings to be made from switching credit cards or loans. The UK credit card market is highly competitive; 0% introductory rate offers are commonly offered. Consumers can pick up great deals to get on top of their finances. The bargain mindset can also apply with getting credit.

Based on a credit card holder (typical APR 18.9%) with a balance of £2,000.00, monthly purchases of £300.00 and monthly payments of £500.00. Switching to a new card offering typical APR 12.9% and introductory rate (0%) on balance transfer and new purchases for 6 months will save you £171.22. Plus you would have the balance cleared in 11 months versus 11 months on your old card.

The canny consumer should also look out for reward programs (cash rebates/ travel/shopping points) on offer. Getting cash back as you spend or jetting away on a free flight is entirely achievable; it is more of a certainty than winning on the lottery. These deals are not going to be around forever. Already, some of the major credit cards companies have withdrawn cash rebates offers. Travel and shopping rewards schemes are costly to manage.

Comparison websites, such as Unravelit, take the hard work out of the research/compare process. These sites maintain up-to-date databases of financial products in the UK market - all in one place for comparison and online application. Further, various tools are available to assist with the decision-making such as the Savings Calculator (calculates the savings made based on credit spending and payment).

A new survey by the communications regulator OFCOM highlights the availability and usage levels of internet, telecommunications and broadcasting services across the UK. The report finds that Londoners spend an average of £18.20 per week on communications services, the highest in the country.

The communications regulator OFCOM has published the results of a survey which shows that primary school children are more adept at dealing with the latest digital technology than their parents. Two-thirds of adults admitted their children know more about the internet than they do, according to the survey.

Customers of small specialist green energy suppliers are being put at a price disadvantage. Analysis carried out by unravelit shows that the price of electricity as supplied by smaller 'green-only' electricity suppliers has doubled since April 2000, while the price of green electricity sold by large-scale traditional suppliers has gone up by approximately 50%.

Are you wondering by just how much energy prices have gone up in the last few years? We have compared average gas and electricity tariff data going back to January 2002, and found that consumers' average bills have risen by over 60% since then. This means that if you were paying £600 back then, your bill is now likely to stand at £1,000.

Sign up for a Texaco fastfuel card on unravelit. You could save on every litre of petrol for your car with this handy little card - and even better, pay monthly by Direct Debit. Click on the link for more detail.

British Gas has announced that standard gas and electricity prices will increase by 22% as of March 01. Customers who signed up to British Gas's Discounted Electricity" tariff after 20/01/2006 will be maintained on the price they signed up for until June 1st 2006.

Not sure about switching the first time you get a savings quote from Unravelit.com? You can now save your energy quote details with Unravelit.com. Just run a search, store your details and return to retrieve your savings at any point. For added convenience, you can also store your quote details on Unravelit.com, and let the service check your savings automatically on a monthly basis. You'll be informed of the best deal by e-mail.

Ofcom has recently changed the way you switch your broadband providers. Before you are able to switch your provider, you must first receive a unique 17 - 18 digit code, known as a Migration Authorisation Code (MAC). Ofcom has received several complaints that broadband providers would delay or refuse supplying its departing customers their MAC. Transferring a MAC can take up to two weeks and some companies have even been found to charge a fee for this service.

Ofcom has made it so broadband providers must now supply its customers their MAC free of charge and upon request. This new rule will make the transition between providers smoother and faster. Claudio Pollack, Ofcom Director of Consumer Policy says "these new rules are intended to ensure that switching is a quick and easy process for all."

To compare broadband providers and switch to a better deal, click here.

Ofcom has recently changed the way you switch your broadband providers. Before you are able to switch your provider, you must first receive a unique 17 - 18 digit code, known as a Migration Authorisation Code (MAC). Ofcom has received several complaints that broadband providers would delay or refuse supplying its departing customers their MAC. Transferring a MAC can take up to two weeks and some companies have even been found to charge a fee for this service.

Ofcom has made it so broadband providers must now supply its customers their MAC free of charge and upon request. This new rule will make the transition between providers smoother and faster. Claudio Pollack, Ofcom Director of Consumer Policy says "these new rules are intended to ensure that switching is a quick and easy process for all."

To compare broadband providers and switch to a better deal, click here.

A unique advanced search tool for energy customers has been launched. The enhancement allows customers with non-standard energy tariffs to perform always accurate savings comparison searches, and will particularly benefit those who have previously switched to Capped energy price deals.

The energy markets regulator Ofgem has agreed to allow the 4 leading UK gas pipeline operators to invest about £3.6 billion over the next 5 years. The investment plan is tied in with demands for efficiency gains, but allows the operators to recoup approximately £2 per annum from all UK gas consumers via price increases to their bills.

The companies are Northern Gas Networks, Scotia Gas Networks and Wales and West Utilities.