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Money Box: 15/09/2012

15/09/2012

BBC Radio 4 - Money Box, 15/09/2012

Banks refusing to cancel recurring payments, and potentially unfair income drawdown rules.

Some banks are still refusing to cancel recurring payments. Plus, are income drawdown rules fair to people with a reduced life expectancy? Finance news and advice with Paul Lewis.

On Money Box with Paul Lewis:

Some banks are breaking the law and defying the City watchdog, the Financial Services Authority, by refusing to let customers stop payments on debit cards. In particular, several are refusing to stop payments to payday loan companies. Most pay day lenders set up what's known as a continuous payment authority to allow them to make a number of attempts to take cash from a customer's account if the loan has not been paid back. Bob Howard reveals which banks are still not helping their customers by cancelling such recurring payments when asked to do so. The programme also hears from Laura Wale from the charity National Debtline and Mike Dailly, from the FSA's Consumer Panel join the programme. 

Also: If you want to keep your pension pot intact, you can choose to draw money down from it rather than buying an annuity. But the amount you can draw is based on the annuity a fit, single person could get. As annuity rates have fallen steeply over the past few years many people drawing income in retirement, like Money Box listener Tony Ellis, have seen the amount they can access each year fall by as much as a third. Tony has serious health problems and argues that he should be allowed to draw down more income. Are the income drawdown rules unfair to people with a reduced life expectancy? Pension experts Dr Ros Altmann, director general of Saga and Billy Burrows from the Better Retirement Group debate the issues.

Plus: A couple who were mis-sold investments by HSBC have been awarded £112,000 after an HSBC adviser put the proceeds of selling their home in a risky investment. Adrian and Elisa Rubenstein were advised to invest more than one million pounds into the AIG Premier Access Bond's enhanced variable rate fund which they thought was not a risky investment. But the turmoil in the markets in 2008 led to a loss of £180,000 to the Rubensteins. HSBC says the product was appropriate for the circumstances in the investment market at the time the bond was taken out in 2005. Financial litigation specialist Robert Morfee at Clarke Willmott LLP, which took on the case for the Rubensteins, explains the importance of the case. 

And: It's been described as the biggest shake-up in the welfare system for 60 years. And from October next year, the Universal Credit is being introduced - a new single payment for those looking for work or on a low income. It will replace all manner of benefits including income support, housing benefit, child tax credit and working tax credit. And it's supposed to make the benefits system easier and ensure it always pays to find a job. But how will it work and who will be affected? Phil Agulnik from the online benefits calculator, Entitled To, highlights some of the how detail and what problems may lie ahead.

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15/09/2012

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