This is Money Podcast

Every year, between March and April, there used to be a cash Isa season. Banks and building societies clambered over each other in the race to top the best buy tables. This hasn't been the case for a while. However, Nationwide - with a new savings lottery - and Coventry - with a new deal - have offered signs of some green shoots this year, but is it even worth having a tax-free savings account anymore? On this week's podcast, Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost go to Isa-town, to talk cash savings deals, the best services to invest, and how to overcome the fear that coronavirus-induced stock market falls have delivered.   Elsewhere, the coronavirus also hit the Geneva Motor Show, but the motor industry decided many of the launches could take place online instead.  What cars were unveiled? Well it broadly fell into two camps, very expensive limited edition hypercars and electric cars that might be the future for the mass market. Simon and Lee talk through the best of them. Meanwhile, a reader takes the taxman to court over a child benefit penalty and finally Lee cracks open a low-alcohol beer at Adnams brewery, in Suffolk, and asks: has the taste become better... and why?

On this episode of Making the Money Work podcast, comedian Shappi Khorsandi joins Andi Peters and Simon Lambert to discuss how she built a career in comedy, her unusual life as the daughter of an exiled Iranian poet - and how she once hired Alan Carr to work in a charity call centre. This is the final episode of five in the Making the Money Work series, in partnership with FSCS, that has appeared in the This is Money podcast feed every fortnight since the start of the year. We hope you have enjoyed them. Your usual This is Money podcast will continue to be published every Friday How do you make comedy pay the bills? That’s not a problem for the handful of star names with giant arena tours, but what about the majority of comedians who’ve dedicated a life’s work to standing up and making people laugh without raking in millions? Shappi tells of her route to becoming a comedian and how she realised a job in an office wasn’t for her early on, swapping that for being a cleaner and nude life model for art students - because she could do those jobs while daydreaming.  Later on, she says having stripped off to sit for artists meant she was less worried about getting up on stage and doing stand-up in front of a crowd. The comedian, who has appeared on popular TV shows including Have I Got News for You, QI, Live at the Apollo and Mock the Week, is a single mother-of-two who supports her and her two children alone and has struggled to make ends meet. Shappi says she spent many years being ‘skint’ but that when her career took off, she was so taken aback at suddenly having money that she had to learn she had earned it and was worth it, and not to be overly generous in giving it away. She says she loves her work so much that she cannot imagine ever doing anything else, but now plans her comedy and writing so that the money she earns enables her to spend the time she wants to with her children. And as for the money she earned for doing I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here?  That, says Shappi, bought her entire year of bedtimes with her children.

Bull markets don't die of old age, we've been told countless times in recent years, but do they die of coronavirus? That is the question that rattled investors are asking themselves after an astonishing week in which the FTSE 100 has fallen 12 per cent. Stock markets around the world have sold off, as investors dump shares driven by a combination of the fear that a crash is finally arriving and the forecasts that coronavirus and attempts to stop it spreading will cause a global slowdown. The UK stock market is down 15 per cent from its mid-January recent peak - what should investors do at times like these? On this week's podcast, Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost discuss why coronavirus has hit markets so hard, why investors should not act rashly out of fear and panic, and consider the advice from investing experts. Elsewhere, we reveal how we helped a couple get their £25,000 savings back after their phone number was ported away without consent. Things get a little silly as we talk about how to deal with those difficult and bizarre interview questions that don't have a correct answer. And finally, the 100 most iconic cars of all time have been named in a survey voted for by Boundless members – previously known as the Civil Service Motoring Association. We reveal what topped the charts.

This week, savings have been in the spotlight with National Savings and Investments cutting rates on a number of its offerings, including popular Premium Bonds. Both Marcus Bank and Saga also cut easy-access rates. On this week's podcast, Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost look at what's behind the cuts and question: should savers head elsewhere, and what is the point of tucking money away for little interest? Nationwide Building Society has launched a Start to Save easy-access account with a £100 lottery – is it any good and can it help get people into the savings habit? We cover a curious case of one reader who found their Spotify infiltrated by someone with appalling music taste. Simon reveals how he was stung by the loyalty penalty when a renewal letter came through from his insurer Halifax. It hiked his premium, but after weeks of back-and-forth, couldn't give him a concrete reason as to why. And Lee looks at whether a Fitbit is worth the money and how a fitness tracker helped his mum, with an underlying health condition, become healthier.

From hosting their podcast Nobody Panic, to being in comedy trio Massive Dad, writing scripts and articles, and putting on Edinburgh shows, Stevie and Tessa have a lot of things to juggle. The pair tell Andi Peters and Simon Lambert their tales of living on a shoestring to get ahead in the London publishing world, including sharing a one-bedroom flat and sleeping under the kitchen table. The duo also explain how to set up an Edinburgh Fringe show and why it is similar to launching a small business, from fronting the cost to book a venue, to selling tickets and hoping you can break even or maybe even make a little money. And Tessa tells of the difficulties of trying to get a mortgage, even with a contract to write a pilot season of a new show for US television. In the Making the Money Work series, in partnership with the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, we talk earnings, budgeting and savings with those whose lives and finances roam far from the norm. The five podcasts are hosted by Andi Peters, alongside This is Money’s Simon Lambert, and every fortnight you can listen to a new interview with different special guests talking about their financial lives.

This week started with rumours of a pension tax relief cut and mansion tax, saw the Chancellor fall on his sword, and ended with people none the wiser about whether a Budget tax raid is more or less likely after all that. Sajid Javid exited the stage to be replaced by one of his own men, Rishi Sunak, after an attempt by Boris Johnson and Dominic Cummings to take back control at the Treasury was rebuffed by the short-lived Chancellor. The question now is just whose idea the pension tax relief and mansion tax plans were and whether they are now on the cards or not (or was the whole shebang just a bit of Machiavellian manoeuvring)? What we do know is that a Budget is due in less than a month, so other than the national purse strings being loosened for the ‘levelling-up’ agenda what are we likely to see? On this week’s podcast, Simon Lambert, Tanya Jefferies and Georgie Frost delve into the Chancellor saga, what we know about the new man, and what could happen in the Budget that will affect your finances, from a stamp duty cut, to IR35 easing and a tax raid on the wealthier. Also on the show, the team discuss an inheritance puzzler where a reader asked if it’s possible to challenge his father’s will that would leave him £25,000, while his brother would get £5million. Another reader problem about paying for care is answered too, where a reader fears losing the house they live in now his mother requires care for dementia. And finally, on a lighter note, do you drive one of Britain’s most popular second hand cars? And what makes a car a contender to get onto that list?

Would you swap your car for an electric one? If the government gets it way, soon many more of us will have to. The proposed ban on selling new petrol and diesel cars was dragged forward by five years to 2035 this week – and hybrid cars were bundled into the showroom clear-out too. If that sticks, this means that by 2030 – just a decade from now – it’s highly likely the vast majority of cars being sold new will be pure electric. For a modern world that has been shaped by the internal combustion-engined motor car that’s quite the change. On this week’s podcast, we deliver an electric car special. Simon Lambert, Georgie Frost and Lee Boyce look at the logic behind banning the sale of petrol and diesel cars, whether the move can be pulled off and why hybrids are now also on the naughty list. Charging infrastructure, range anxiety and questions over their lifecycle environmental costs are issues flagged by electric car sceptics, are they right? Meanwhile, the thing holding many people back from buying them, argues Simon, is cost. Second hand supply of electric cars is thin and choice is limited; and while the pipeline of new models is picking up dramatically, they remain pricey compared to a standard petrol car. But there could be a game-changer in the form of a salary sacrifice perk combined with a change to benefit-in-kind rules, so should you be badgering your boss to sign the company up so that you can buy a new electric car at 32% or 42% off? Fittingly, this week the great Tesla adventure tale delivered another riveting chapter. In the first two days of the week, shares rocketed more than 35 per cent and have doubled since the start of 2020. Can Elon Musk’s stock heading for the moon be justified in any way? Also, on this week’s show we talk about the 5 per cent interest offered by Zeuk – and our exclusive on the Financial Conduct Authority hitting back at adverts. And finally, why did Lee Boyce take his wife and daughter out to lunch with a set of scales to eat a watermelon steak?

How do you decide to become an adventurer? For Alastair Humphreys, the decision in his twenties stemmed from his love of a challenge, the outdoors and curiosity about the world. The decision led to a life of adventure, in which Alastair has spent four years cycling round the world, run six Sahara Desert marathons, been on an Arctic expedition, busked his way round Spain, spending only money he could earn, and has written 13 books. But Alastair’s adventure philosophy isn’t about big expensive trips, he would rather do things on a shoestring - and wrote a book encouraging others to have their own cheap ‘microadventures’ close to home. Alastair joins Andi Peters and Simon Lambert on the third episode of the Making the Money Work podcast to tell us about funding the life of an adventurer and building a career out of his exploits. He also explains why he wants to help people live more adventurously – even if that’s just heading out of town and sleeping under the stars on a hillside. As well as talking microadventures - and encouraging Andi to try out sleeping in his garden - Alastair reveals how he comes up with ideas and money for his feats, whether it is walking a desert or rowing the Atlantic. He tells Andi and Simon about how he once headed for Spain without a euro in his pocket and no bank or credit cards, with the aim of busking his way round and only spending the money that he could earn from playing the violin. Alastair also reveals how he manages his money and saves, shares his thoughts on writing books and why self-publishing can pay off, and explains why being told he was an idiot for not having a pension - after a talk to a pensions firm - spurred him into saving for retirement.

It’s Brexit Day – and whether you voted leave or remain, are celebrating, or commiserating, we wish you a happy one. After 11pm on Friday 31 January 2019, Britain is officially no longer a member of the European Union. The big question is, what happens next? On this week’s podcast, Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost discuss both what Brexit means immediately for consumers and travellers, and how things may pan out for the economy and our finances over the year ahead. Where do we stand on Ehic medical cover in Europe, driving on the continent, mobile phone roaming, flight compensation and expat pensions? And what will the trade discussions on our future relationship with Europe and the rest of the world mean for the nation’s finances, businesses, inflation, the pound and interest rates? Also on this week’s podcast, the team dive much deeper into house prices than the usual survey, with a look at 174 years of property affordability and whether we can learn anything from a 70 year period when they got cheaper. They discuss Neil Woodford’s investors getting some money back and finding out how much they have lost so far and the curious case of the Lloyds customer of years who won a surprise bumper PPI payout that proved to be the ultimate loyalty penalty for being ripped off.

Are tax returns too taxing, why did new overdraft rules backfire, are challenger banks biting and what are the cars that hold their value best? We answer these questions on this week’s This is Money podcast.  It’s tax return time. The organised will have safely filed their tax returns long ago, but there are still plenty of people who don’t yet feel the last minute has arrived. But what if you are meant to fill in a tax return and don’t realise? On this week’s podcast, Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost discuss the ten reasons that people may have to fill a tax return in, even though they are employees paid through PAYE. The team also discuss whether much of the tax return is really needed, or whether people are needlessly spending time filling in an over complicated form for an overly complex system. Also on this week’s podcast is the overdraft row that’s blown up on the back of the FCA’s attempt to improve borrowing and bank’s deciding that 39.9 per cent rates sounded about right. The team discuss whether the challenger banks are starting to bite and why people are attracted to them. The ten cars that should hold their value best are also revealed, from a Dacia to a Bentley. But remember that even the best of these will lose you 35 per cent. And finally, Simon tells us about the new episode of the Making the Money Work podcast with London 2012 Olympic-medal winning boxer Anthony Ogogo.