Thousands of victims of collapsed occupational pensions won support from judges in the Court of Appeal this week. The court ruled that the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) could not “rationally disagree” with advice from the Parliamentary Ombudsman to compensate workers who had lost their life savings. The price of gas and electricity for five million E.ON customers rose on Friday after the German-owned energy supplier announced above-inflation increases. Electricity rose 9.7 per cent and gas by 15 per cent, taking the average household bill on a dual-fuel tariff from £913 to £999, according to Uswitch.com, the comparison website.
Egg, the internet-only bank owned by Citi group, has been accused of trying to block the spending of unprofitable credit-card customers after it sent letters advising 161,000 card holders that their agreements will end within weeks. The bank says they were considered high risk, but it is accused of also blocking customers with excellent credit profiles. Experts expect other credit providers to follow this move as the credit crunch continues to damage lenders. The battle for new current account customers intensified this week with the launch of a high interest account from HSBC. The Bank Account Plus pays 8 per cent on in-credit balances, although there is a £12.95 monthly fee. Alliance & Leicester retaliated by increasing rates on its Premier and Premier 50 accounts to 8.5 per cent.
Teenagers have only a few weeks left to enter a writing competition that tests their understanding of finance. The ifs School of Finance Young Business Writer of the Year competition is open to any 14 to 19-year-old who can write 1,000 words on the subject of saving for retirement. The prize is £500. For details visit ifslearning.ac.uk .