Money Box

Care home leaders are the latest group criticising the Government for failing to get £400 of winter fuel help to the people entitled to it. The Energy Bill Support Scheme Alternative Fund was supposed to help nearly one million households who don't pay an energy supplier directly. 20,000 households in care homes got this money, but according to new BBC Verify analysis for this programme that suggests 1 in 7 who were eligible, didn't. The government says it spent billions of pounds helping millions of households last winter with their energy bills, covering nearly half the cost of a typical household's bill. On Monday major changes begin in the way we are sold financial products and services by regulated firms like banks, insurers, advisers. Not only will they have to stick to the 20 year old rules about treating customers fairly. They will be subject to a new Consumer Duty. What is it and what does it mean? A scheme which offers debt advice and help with money problems through doctors’ surgeries, is being extended thanks to some new funding. We first reported on the trial two years ago. Since then the Centre for Responsible Credit which runs the scheme says hundreds of people have been helped to access hundreds of thousands of pounds in support.Plus, from 1st August most old first and second class stamps without barcodes are no longer valid. What should you do if you still have any old stamps?Presenter: Paul Lewis Reporter: Dan Whitworth Researchers: Sandra Hardial and Jo Krasner Editor: Jess Quayle(First broadcast, 12pm Saturday 29th July, 2023)

An average of 20 potential tenants request to view each available rental home, more than triple the amount in 2019, according to data commissioned by the BBC. The queue to view is even longer in some regions, reaching 30 in the North West of England, according to the property portal Rightmove.From facing tough competition for a home to receiving a section 21 notice of eviction, we hear what renters are experiencing in the current market and we offer advice on what their rights are. The experts on the panel are Nyree Applegarth, Partner at Higgs LLP, Tim Bannister, Director at Rightmove and Ben Beadle, Chief Executive at National Residential Landlords Association.For tips on how to get ahead in the race to secure a rental property and information on your rights as a tenant go to the Tackling it Together section on the front page of the BBC News website.Presenter: Felicity Hannah Producer: Amber Mehmood Reporter: Sam Gruet Researcher: Luke Smithurst Editor: Jess Quayle(First Broadcast at 3pm, Wednesday 26th July, 2023)

Sick people in England are being caught out by the complex rules which exempt some from NHS prescription charges. The Patients Association says the rules surrounding the £9.65 per item levy should be simplified. The call comes after Money Box listeners told us how they struggled to navigate the rules. The NHS Business Services Authority which runs the system told us "Patients can check they are eligible for free NHS prescriptions before claiming by using the free eligibility checker at www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/check. It takes just three minutes".Money Box can exclusively reveal that £55 million of fraud was prevented last year by bank and building society employees deliberately ignoring customers' instructions to transfer their money to thieves. They're allowed to do that in a branch because of what is called the banking protocol - a UK-wide law that allows staff in the branch to stop transfers and ask customers what they're doing with their money and why. We'll hear from Sophie who saved one of her customers £90,000.And, what does this week's fall in inflation really mean for your personal finances?Presenter: Paul Lewis Reporter: Dan Whitworth Researchers: Sandra Hardial and Jo Krasner Editor: Jess Quayle(First broadcast 12pm Saturday 22nd July, 2023)

"Money Box Live" discusses the impact of UK government's pension reforms. Nigel Peaple and Alice Guy explain complexities of investing pension funds and strategies in defined contribution schemes. They also address inheritance tax and retirement.

A “staggering failure” is how one senior MP has described a government scheme designed to help nearly a million households with their energy bills last winter. Former SNP and now independent MP Angus MacNeil, who's Chair of Parliament’s Energy Security and Net Zero committee, has called on the government to reopen the scheme after a Money Box investigation reported that 750,000 eligible households have not received the £400 to help with their fuel costs and can't now apply for it. The Energy Bill Support Scheme Alternative Funding was launched in February to give the £400 to people who live in park homes, on narrow boats, in care homes, and travellers who had not automatically had the £400 which was sent to households with an electricity meter. In response, a government spokesperson said: "We spent billions to protect families when prices rose over winter, covering nearly half a typical household's energy bill – this includes more than £50m supporting 130,000 households without a domestic energy supplier".What do the government’s new proposals for pensions mean for the millions of people with money invested and how risky are the plans?There's a warning about mortgage scams where people are being tricked into giving away personal details by phishing emails and texts.And will government plans to reform consumer credit law strengthen or weaken our rights? Presenter: Paul Lewis Reporter: Dan Whitworth Researchers: Sandra Hardial and Jo Krasner Editor: Jess Quayle(First broadcast 12pm Saturday 15th July, 2023)

Millions of people are booking their holidays right now, but with hundreds of flights already cancelled and the threat of air traffic control strikes looming, how do you fight for your rights if your travel plans get disrupted? What's the best way to manage your money overseas? And how is the cost of living impacting people's plans if you are lucky enough to be getting away?The experts in this podcast are: Cathy Adams, Senior Content Editor (Travel) at The Times and Sunday Times, Alan Dean, Managing Director at CoverForYou and Cedar Tree, and Sean Tipton, Media Relations Manager at the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA).Presenter: Dan Whitworth Reporter: Sarah Rogers Researcher: Luke Smithurst Producer: Amber Mehmood Editor: Elisabeth Mahy(First broadcast 3pm, Wednesday 12th July, 2023)

New data shows more than 700,000 households across Great Britain have missed out on £300 million worth of support with their energy bills. The government said in February 900,000 households were eligible to apply for a one-off £400 payment because they did not have an energy supplier that would apply it automatically. The government said it had spent more than £50m 'supporting households without a domestic energy supplier', but this data suggests just over £300 million of the possible £360 million in Great Britain had not been claimed before the deadline. The big high street banks have been told to be more open with their customers about savings rates - what will that mean in practice?And could Artificial Intelligence transform how banks decide whether to lend us money?Presenter: Paul Lewis Reporters: Dan Whitworth and Sarah Rogers Researcher: Sandra Hardial Editor: Jess Quayle(First broadcast 12pm Saturday 8th July, 2023)

Bank bosses are being asked to explain why interest rates on savings aren't keeping up with the rising cost of borrowing. The heads of Lloyds, HSBC, NatWest and Barclays banks will meet the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on Thursday.Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has already stepped in to tell banks to put up rates for savers.At the moment the Bank of England base rate is 5 per cent, following last months 13th consecutive rise. UK Finance who speak for banks say "savings rates are driven by a number of factors," not just the base rate.Laura Suter, head of Personal Finance at AJ Bell and Kirsty Stone, Chartered Financial Planner at The Private Office, are here to help make sense of your savings.Presenter: Adam Shaw Producer: Sarah Rogers Editor: Jess Quayle(First broadcast 3pm, Wednesday 5th July, 2023)

The Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has stepped in to tell banks to put up the rates paid to savers after the Bank of England raised the official Bank Rate to 5%. Many mortgage rates went up at once and more have been increased this week, but the rates paid on savings by the banks have not followed them. The gap between the two has almost doubled from December 2021. We hear from Gillian who runs a business in Bromsgrove and ask how banks make decisions on savings rates.More than two million calls to a helpline for people wanting to boost their state pension have been blocked by the Department for Work and Pensions. The Minister in charge of what is called the Future Pension Centre, Laura Trott, has admitted that in the first five months of the year more than two million calls were cut off without even being allowed to join the call waiting queue. A new energy price cap comes into effect today. This will see households pay an average of 2,074 pounds a year. This is lower than the level at which government subsidies kept bills but still 800 pounds more than two years ago. We'll also look at how smart meter data is being used to research fuel poverty. Presenter: Paul Lewis Reporters: Dan Whitworth and Felicity Hannah Researcher: Sandra Hardial Editor: Jess Quayle(First broadcast 12pm, Saturday 1st July, 2023)

Amidst a cost of living crisis, almost 9 in 10 young adults say that simply having enough money to cover their basic needs is classed as aspirational, according to a survey by the children's charity Barnardo's. We hear about some of the financial pressures burdening young people - from renting, to food costs and car expenses. In this podcast, BBC Newsbeat's Cost of Living Reporter, Sam Gruet, joins Felicity Hannah and Alice Haine, Personal Finance Analyst at Bestinvest.Presenter: Felicity Hannah Producer: Amber Mehmood and Sarah Rogers Reporter: Sam Gruet (Newsbeat Cost of Living Reporter) Editor: Beatrice Pickup(First broadcast 3pm, Wednesday 28th June, 2023)