Watchdogs, including the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the Bank for International Settlements, are concerned about the onset of another crisis. Consultants at McKinsey believe that global debt has risen by £37trillion or 17 per cent of global income since the fall of Lehman, while a report by BIS warns that debt levels have reached extreme levels - leaving the financial system vulnerable to higher interest rates in the US.

The move follows rises from Sky, Plusnet and Virgin Media, and imminent hikes from BT. Hannah Maundrell, editor in chief of comparison website money.co.uk, said: 'This isn't the first time TalkTalk has hit customer with increases, in fact over the last year alone they have increased the cost of their flagship product by 114 per cent.'

It can be difficult to get a good mortgage rate when you can only scrape together a 5% deposit. These two deals aim to help get buyers on the ladder to buy their first home. The YBS rate and fees are lower, but Nationwide offers cashback to new buyers to sweeten the deal.

We could be about to witness a market rout, according to the FinaMetrica co-founder, but investors need to stick with their asset allocation and avoid knee-jerk reactions.
Stay within a risk range you are comfortable with and make sure not all your eggs are in one basket.

Small energy suppliers are using novel approaches to loosen the grip of the biggest providers and inject greater competition into the market. From the newest non-profit making outfit Robin Hood Energy to collective switching, here The Mail on Sunday assesses the deals disrupting the Big Six. Jeff and Jillian MacNamara (pictured) switched firms.

We have lived separately in our own homes for `` years because we both had children from previous relationships. Now we are planning to sell my house and live together in hers. How will CGT rules affect us? We have never declared to HMRC which is the main residence as there was no main residence.

Spurred on by the success of British cyclists in the Olympic Games and Tour de France, one in five adults now regularly cycles for fun or commutes to work. The number of cyclists in Britain is soaring. Ten million of us now go out on our bikes at least once a month. Toby Walne looks at how you can join the revolution - and save yourself money.

If orders materialise from 20 or so automotive companies it is working with, or the integration into machine-to-machine technology takes off, then the current share price will seem laughable. Investors lucky enough to get in at March's £2.5million fund-raising, priced at 1p a share, are sitting on a near 600% paper profit. However, there is an argument the current price of 7p a share is merely a staging post to a valuation way in excess of the current market cap of £19million.

A flaw in the banking system could have cost a reader his house and ended in bankruptcy. He was contacted by a bogus claims management company that said he had been overcharged on his mortgage. Crooks had registered a bogus internet address in the same name as a genuine claims company, except for a tiny difference in punctuation. The emails and documents he sent had been copied from the real firm's own website and even carried the genuine firm's address and phone number.

Behind a series of recent bad news stories concerning boardroom departures, there is a strongly growing business, which at its current share price could mark a real opportunity for investors. Shares in the AIM-listed group, which specialises in recruiting staff in the digital economy, have fallen from about 100p in June to 91½p. A year ago they were trading at 130p.

Edinburgh has beaten all other buy-to-let contenders in the student market, offering an average income of 6.11 per cent on a four bedroom property. But Middlesburgh landlords get the lowest yield of just 1.47%

As fears about China's growth continued, the Wall Street giant's stark analysis of the global crude market pummelled prices again. The price of Brent Crude fell more than 2 per cent after analysts at Goldman and Commerzbank slashed their forecasts. Oil has more than halved since last summer as supply increased due to the surging production of the US shale industry.

Whether you are a bull or a bear, quality companies will give you a reliable return regardless of what is going on in the stock market. The key is to look for strong brands and products that consumers will buy into regardless of the economic backdrop. Our columnist Maike Currie explains the hunt for quality.

The cheapest five-year fixed rate deals have disappeared ahead of the first interest rate rise in more than six years, but rates remain near highly competitive. Speculation over an upcoming interest rate rise in the UK has heightened, and accordingly the rate-cutting trend seems to have abruptly come to an end.

Four in five homebuyers choose to skip a survey of before before they buy costing an average£5,750 in repairs to their dream home. Forgoing a Home Condition Report, HomeBuyers Report, or Building Survey cost new home owners a total of £3.56 million collectively last year.

If my wife or I have to go into a nursing home, will the council acquire the value of our home? We are tenants in common - does that make a difference? What should we do to ensure that neither of us lose our home or our share of its value if they other has to go into a nursing home?

A German-based savings platform which offers residents in the country access to top rates across the continent is set to launch in Britain the coming years. SavingGlobal, based in Berlin, allows Germans to open savings accounts around Europe without having to visit branches or learn the local lingo.

Among companies that have suffered a long absence by a member of staff, 76 per cent said that it had had a 'significant impact' on their business. And half of all companies say their business's growth would be damaged if a staff member took an extended leave because of illness. The findings emerged from a survey of 500 small firms carried out for Bupa by polling group OnePoll to assess companies' interest in employee health.

To clear the average national household debt of £13,000 at 6% interest with a monthly repayment of £100 will take around 17 years. There are, however, plenty of simple ways to make significant savings on your regular spending that could clear your debt - or boost your savings - in less than a year. This is Money's top 50 - updated - money-saving tips may appear light-hearted but are deadly serious.

Choosing the right DIY platform is crucial but a wealth of choice and changes to charges have left many investors scratching their heads. We pick some of the best. We also highlight why investing in an Isa makes sense, as it should protect your hopefully growing investments from tax forever.

Unemployment has increased for the second month in a row, adding weight to the arguments of ratesetters in the lower for longer camp. This follows the outlook for when interest rates will rise shifting forwards slightly to about February 2016 in the recent inflation report.

For many buy-to-let looks an attractive income investment in a time of low rates and stock market volatility. Climbing house prices, rising rents and improving mortgage deals are tempting investors - although they will need a big deposit. Read This is Money's top ten buy-to-let tips

The influence of financial services on the economy is spelled out again as City brokers steal top spot in this year's official list of highest earners. According to the detailed 2014 annual salaries survey, brokers pocketed around 40 times more this year than those at the bottom of the list - the people responsible for keeping children safe on the way to school. Lollipop crossing patrols earned around £3,400.