My partner has been living with me for about four years. I would really like us to get married but he has debts from his previous marriage from credit cards with his ex wife amounting to about £90,000. If we get married will I be liable for those debts? Am I liable even if we live together but do not get married?
I am about to retire with a £100k pension pot but am too tight to pay for financial advice, what should I do?
Ideally I'd like to not have to buy an annuity, and hopefully keep some or all of my £100,000 pension pot to pass on to my wife or the next generation. I'm hopeless at choosing and am too tight to want to pay an IFA, what can I do? Alan Higham, of Fidelity Worldwide Investment, answers a reader's pension question in our video.
I think my block's managing agent is overcharging me, what happens if I refuse to pay service charges?
I am convinced that the managing agent of the block in which I live is levying excessive service charges. We pay £2,000 a year, yet nothing seems to happen other than a broom being taken around the hallway and stairs once a month. What would happen if I refused to pay? ...read
TONY HETHERINGTON: Tesco knew 20,000 shoppers were at risk of points theft - but it didn't sound the alarm
I went to Tesco in Southport before Christmas to take advantage of Clubcard points which I had saved since February last year. After choosing presents, I was told in front of a large queue that my points had already been redeemed, and I had to put back my shopping. I rang Clubcard and was surprised to hear a recorded message about what to do if someone had redeemed your vouchers, which suggests Tesco already knew it was an issue.
I have inherited half my dad's house but I don't want it, can I give it to my children instead without risking inheritance tax?
I live in an expensive area, so my home takes me over the inheritance tax threshold and I do not need the money from my dad's estate. I would rather that my children had it to help them buy their own homes or move. Can I turn down the bequest in the will, or do I have to accept it and pass it on myself?
Metro Bank lost our cash Isas, took eight months to get our statements right and now it's ignoring us...
My wife and I are having problems with Metro Bank regarding one-year cash Isa bonds. We reinvested our money in February 2014. We each received statements, but the amounts invested were not recorded - call centre staff could not tell us why.We each invested more money in April 2014 and, once again, the statements excluded the amounts invested.
ASK TONY: Barclays wants to hike the interest rate on my mortgage for ten buy-to-let properties to 7.55%
I have ten buy-to-let properties using a £600,000 interest-only loan from Barclays. At a meeting I was told the loan was for five years and was overdue - and Barclays did not intend to extend it. During a period of eight months I have had several letters asking me to agree to an increase in interest rate to 7.05 per cent above base rate i.e. 7.55 per cent.
Do we have the right to ask for a dummy CCTV camera or alarm box for our rented home - and would it make it safer?
Last month, I had my car stolen from outside the rental house I live in with my partner. We have asked for our landlord to up security with a dummy camera or alarm - but he isn't keen on the idea. Is it unreasonable to ask a landlord to install one of these? What are the best dummy cameras and alarm boxes available? And are they worth getting?
I made an error while transferring my fixed-rate cash Isa with Halifax and lost my tax-free allowance. Is there anything I can do?
I clicked the box to transfer money from my four-year matured Isa account into my online cash Isa thinking that this was the right way as to not lose my tax free allowance. I have been told by my bank that I have lost my tax free allowance as I should only transferred between Isas via an Isa transfer as this is against HMRC regulations. What can I do?
My bank closed my current account when I moved to Thailand: can I open a new British account without a UK address and manage it from here?
I am an expat living in Thailand and because I have no address in the UK my bank has closed my account. Can you suggest a bank/account in the UK that offers internet banking and a debit card that would be suitable. I intend to open the account with £3,000 and will continue paying in but not every month.
We're mortgage-free but considering getting one to release money to help our son get on the housing ladder - is that a good idea?
We have paid off our mortgage and are now retired, but have watched our son struggle to save for a deposit for his own home as house prices continue to climb almost out of his reach. My wife and I want to help him and have talked about equity release to boost his deposit and lower the amount he would need for a mortgage.
My elderly grandmother may be caught by inheritance tax - can she use the nil rate bands of both her late husbands?
My Grandmother is now quite elderly and, as she owns a reasonably sized house in Surrey, my family and I are beginning to wonder whether her estate will be caught by inheritance tax. I understand that husbands and wives can pass their nil-rate band to their surviving spouses - but can they do this more than once?
I have a lot of Clubcard, Nectar points and airmiles. What will happen to unspent points when I die?
My kids and I had to depend on food banks after Child Support Agency demanded I pay £21k within two years
I received a letter from the Child Support Agency saying I owed almost £21,000, which had to be paid back in two years. I returned to full-time employment in 2008, and at this time the CSA caught up with my ex. I began to receive random sums that they collected from his earnings. Now my CSA payments have stopped, though my ex is still paying them £1,000 a month and I still have two children at home.
MONEY MORALS
Money Morals: Should I take the lousy part-exchange offer on our car or take on the hassle of selling it myself?
I've checked our car's value on a number of websites and the price the dealer has come back with is almost £1,250 below the private selling price they quote. I had been hoping to part-exchange our car to save the hassle of selling it ourselves but I just can't see how I can justify accepting the dealer's low offer.
Money Morals: I lent a girlfriend £600 and now she won't pay it back claiming I gave it to her. What should I do?
Despite the fact that we have fallen out, I still expected her to pay me back as while we had a heated argument about it her last text had said she would. In our Money Morals series we invite readers to help solve a dilemma. This week what should you do if you lent someone money and now they won't return it?
MORE MORTGAGE EXPERTS
If I can repay my mortgage sooner than planned, why does the total I must pay stay the same?
Why is it that, when you pay off your mortgage before the end of its original term, you don't get a reduction in the amount outstanding? Our experts help explain to a reader why paying off your mortgage early may mean that you save on future interest but doesn't mean that you get a discount on your debt.
MORE INSURANCE EXPERTS
We live in a flood risk area and worry we won't get insurance against flooding next year, making our home impossible to sell. Is that the case?
We live in a flood risk part of Sussex in an old Rectory and are concerned that we may not be able to get insurance cover against flooding from next year. This is because only homes in council tax bands A to G will be covered by the new flood cover guarantee, which will come into effect in June 2015.
Money Morals: Should I pay £700 vet fees for my 15-year-old cat?
The vet says our cat's teeth are rotten and will need to be removed - at a cost of £700. If not treated, the condition could become life threatening. Should we pay? She has been part of our family for 15 years - but £700 is a lot of money to us and we know she cannot have many years left to live even if she is treated.
MORE PENSION EXPERTS
Can a company offering to unlock pension cash via an account in Belize solve my son's debt problems?
MORE HOUSEHOLD EXPERTS
I thought my energy tariff with Npower was fixed... so why are my bills going up 14.3%?
I am on a tariff called Energy Online August 2014, which I thought was fixed until this time. But Npower has just told me my bills are going up. If I'm on a variable tariff, why does it have 'August 2014' in the name? If I had realised it was variable I would have switched weeks ago before the best deals were withdrawn from the market.
'EBay have come after my son with the heavy mob for £75 even though we can prove buyer received the item'
My son sold an exhaust system on eBay, but the buyer says he did not receive it and eBay is claiming the £75.71 back. I have supplied all the relevant paperwork from the carrier, Parcel Force, with tracking details and the recipient's signature acknowledging receipt, but eBay is using an aggressive debt collector.
MORE SAVING AND BANKING EXPERTS
MORE INVESTING EXPERTS
My bitcoins have increased in value considerably. Will I have to pay any tax when I sell them?
Since they're a 'virtual currency' are they liable for income tax or capital gains tax when I sell them? Can I shelter them in an Isa? Rachel Rickard Straus of This is Money says: 'The verdict is still out over bitcoins. Are they the latest internet bubble waiting to burst or a new currency that's here to stay?'
ASK TONY: Is our investments adviser bleeding us dry with his £11,500 fee?
We have £300,000 to invest, but this money has to last us for the rest of our lives. A financial adviser has suggested investing in five different funds with a £11,500 initial charge to set up the fund. Our adviser is a very nice man who works for a BS who has said that we can make more than £81,000 in total if we keep the investments for ten years. Can I trust his advice?
MORE CREDIT AND DEBT EXPERTS
Orange charged me £17 a month for FIVE YEARS for a phone line I didn't know I had and never used. How has this happened?
My father went into an Orange store to update his contract in 2007 and walked out with another phone line that he claims he didn't know he had. How can Orange not have noticed the account was dormant for five years? My father just pays by direct debit every month without checking the details of his bill.
My ex loaned me £12,000 before we split up. I have repaid most of it. Am I still liable for the full amount?
Am I still liable for repaying my ex partner the full £18,000 she lent me? I have now paid her back more than both the original sum and more than the £12k is worth at today's index. The extra money was meant to be used a savings tactic for our life together, so do can I stop paying? Our experts answer
MORE TAX EXPERTS
MORE WORK EXPERTS
How can we get our street food business going - can we patent our recipes and which certificates do we need?
My friend and I want to start selling a recipe (which is top secret) at a local food market but have no idea where to start. The recipe has come from his mother and as far as we are aware, nothing like it is currently being sold elsewhere in Britain. She is keen for us to get it out there - we really believe it will be a hit and have tested it on friends who agree.
There are rumours of redundancies at work so I am thinking of getting income insurance - but will the insurer reject a claim because my job was already under threat?
I'm afraid I might get made redundant some time in the next year, as there have been rumours going around our offices. Can I get this insurance if there is already a threat I could lose my job? Nothing is definite yet but will the insurer say I knew about the job cuts before starting the policy, and therefore get out of paying up?
EXPERT ANSWERS BY SECTION
FIX YOUR FINANCES
- This is Money's five favourite cash Isas Essential Isa reading kept up-to-date throughout the year
- Should you fix your mortgage? The latest on the best deals and what next for mortgage rates
- How to plan for a richer retirement Whatever your age, there's a plan for you. Follow our decade-by-decade guide
- How to pick the best DIY investing Isa We explain how to decide and pick five of the best (and cheapest) available
- Energy bills: Is it worth switching? What are the best deals and should you fix?
- How to get out of debt Read our ten-step guide to getting back into the black
ANSWERS FROM THE Experts
- TONY HETHERINGTON: The divorce order that's not worth the paper it's written on
- Two-year fixed savings account from Access Bank is offering best-buy 2.38% - but is it a safe place for my cash?
- After the savings tax changes should I still save into my cash Isa - and does it mean I can put more in funds?
- ASK TONY: I transferred £1,300, but Santander lost my cash - how can I get it back?
- ASK TONY: Will I be liable for capital gains tax when I sell my property I'm renting out to a tenant?
- My partner shares £90k in debt with his ex-wife and their house is being repossessed - will I or my credit rating be at risk if we get married?
- I am about to retire with a £100k pension pot but am too tight to pay for financial advice, what should I do?
- I think my block's managing agent is overcharging me, what happens if I refuse to pay service charges?
- Can I give away assets so that I am below the local threshold of £23,250 and don't have to pay for respite care?
- Hailstones the size my fist destroyed our hire car - and Hertz is trying to make us pay the excess
DON'T MISS
- 'I will pay bills and hit the road' New dawn for savers after pension freedom reforms - but there's no need to rush
- TONY HETHERINGTON The divorce order that's not worth the paper it's written on
- Put down 10% when buying a home Scraping together a bigger deposit will open door to much better mortgage deals
- I'm not afraid to give things a go' How to boost the value of your home - and avoid a botch job - when tackling DIY
- JEFF PRESTRIDGE Frustration, rather than freedom, will rule as many people are thwarted from taking pension cash
- SUNDAY NEWSPAPER SHARE TIPS Lookers, Gulf Keystone Petroleum and Marks & Spencer
- Got the keys to your new pad? Now here's how to trim back all those household bills
- 'We won £300,000 in our bank's Superdraw' Do you feel lucky...? Then it's time to 'play' a raft of accounts where you can scoop big prizes
- MIDAS SHARE TIPS Car seller Lookers earns its loyal following by ditching the spivs and focusing on John Lewis-style service
- MONKS INVESTMENT TRUST Old managers ousted and half the portfolio jettisoned in new drive for growth
- Preparing for unemployment? Top Gear stars James May and Richard Hammond sell off £66k worth of their classic motorbikes
- Secret diary of a first-time buyer How the property market brings out the darker sides of human nature...
THIS IS MONEY: CALCULATORS
LATEST ON HOUSEHOLD Bills
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- Prepayment energy customers finally able to top up online as Ovo launches Britain's first PAYG app
- Millions of households 'leak cash' every winter because they lack insulation - and cold homes cost NHS £1.36bn a year
- The best websites for giving to charity: How to ensure your fundraising cash goes towards good causes and not profit-making websites
- Victory as cancer victim Michael Brown wins £500,000 payout after insurer initially refused life claim
- Meerkat Movies replaces Orange Wednesdays as Comparethemarket.com takes over 2for1 cinema deal
- Mobile phone customers face contract exit fees of up to £800 despite not receiving promised service, claims charity
- £15 a month to see world's best doctors: New health insurance promises to fly people wherever for best treatment
BEST CASHBACK CREDIT CARDS
Provider | Cashback |
Amex Platinum | 5% | |
RBS | 5% | |
Santander 123 | 3% | |
Amex Everyday | 1.25% | |
NatWest | to 1% |
FIVE TOP CURRENT ACCOUNTS
Provider | Incentive |
First Direct | Free £100 | |
The Co-op | Cashback | |
Nationwide | Travel cover | |
Santander | 3% cashback | |
Halifax | £5 a month |
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