Share Sounds. presented by Georgie Frost related to Personal Finance

Women have already been hit by a huge state pension blunder in recent years, but now it seems the DWP is messing up again. After This is Money's Steve Webb and Tanya Jefferies exposed a £1 billion women's state pension scandal, which emerged from a reader question sent in to his column, you'd think the Government would be keeping on top of payments. But it has turned out that more women appear to being told they aren't due the right amount, or in one case that we reported on this week, anything at all. Tanya joins Georgie Frost and Simon Lambert to talk through the problems. Plus, are we saving enough for retirement? Steve sounded a warning this week that auto-enrolment was lulling people into a false sense of security and said that employers need to do more. The team discuss what you can do to make sure you are putting enough into your pension and why the self-employed need to pay particular attention. Also, the investment themes that could run for years and make you a profit, and is it time for investors to weigh up buying back into Scottish Mortgage after its 40% slump this year? And finally — petrol prices are rocketing, so is it time for a VAT cut to ease the double whammy of tax?

Just when you thought it was safe to go back on holiday... Britain descended into holiday chaos this week, as airlines cancelled hundreds of flights, airports struggled to cope and even Eurostar ended up with a day of disruption. For those who suffered at the hands of airline chaos, it was a harsh and unfair experience - with many of those travellers taking their first post-Covid trip abroad and others heading off for what were meant to be celebratory family events. Both airlines and airports let their passengers down - after all, they knew how many would be travelling, as they'd all booked tickets - and then got involved in a finger-pointing blame game with the Government. Georgie Frost, Helen Crane and Simon Lambert discuss where the blame lies for the disruption, what people's rights are if their flights are cancelled and what we can all do to protect ourselves if we hope to go away over the summer. Also, the team talk about why some of the best mortgages are currently being offered by lesser-known building societies and how long you'd have to wait for an electric car's lower running costs to pay off. And finally, from travel chaos to energy firm blunders: how did Bulb swing from telling someone they were owed almost £2,000 and refunding them their cash when they moved, to declaring six months later that the customer now owed Bulb almost £2,000? Helen talks through a recent Crane on the Case, where Bulb seemingly decided Ofgem's one-year back billing rule didn't apply to it.

Sudden Wealth Syndrome. It's a thing apparently and something that many of us probably wouldn't mind suffering from. That's the term used to describe those who suddenly - and perhaps unexpectedly - come into a very large sum of money. And doing so brings plenty of benefits but also its own problems. Over the past week, we have heard about the couple who won £184million on the Euromillions, but what are the challenges they will face and how do you deal with that sum of money. We spoke to a number of experts about this and on this episode Georgie Frost, Helen Crane and Simon Lambert discuss that they said - and why apparently going public is the right thing to do. The team also conjure up dreams of how they might use so much money, from the long-term, to the first thing they would do. Also on the agenda are the boost to the Premium Bonds prize fund and rate and whether this makes them a good option for savers and why buying a fixer-upper could end up costing you far more than a house that's already 'done'. And finally, just when you thought it was safe to go back on holiday ... the car hire crunch has got even worse. How bad is it and why?

Inflation continues to surge, the Bank of England says there is little it can do to stall it but is raising rates any way, and at the same time is warning of a potential recession looming. It seems safe to say this isn’t the Covid recovery year that many people were hoping for: the longed-for bout of calm and optimism has turned out to be a cost of living crisis instead. So, with inflation now at 9% and set to rise further and central banks swiftly changing their tune on low interest rates, is a recession inevitable? Georgie Frost, Helen Crane and Simon Lambert take a look at what is driving inflation, whether there is anything the Bank of England can do, if it should have acted sooner and whether we can hope for a nice surprise with inflationary pressure subsiding quicker than expected. The new proposal for a four times a year energy price cap change rather than one every six months is also on the agenda, along with the sting in the tail that some say means energy firms will be much less likely to offer cheap fixes once prices start falling. But in one part of the energy market prices are falling already. The cost of gas in Britain has plummeted recently: Simon explains how that has happened and why we can’t take advantage to lower our energy bills now. And finally, Crane on the Case continues to rack up consumer victory after consumer victory. Helen fills us in on her latest cases and what readers are flocking for help on.

Is there any point trying to save when inflation is so high? Interest rates are rising and savers can now get a far better return than a year ago, but compare those rates to inflation and they are losing even more money. So why bother? That's the question that Georgie Frost and Simon Lambert tackle in this podcast. From what the best rates are and where you can get them, to why you should avoid what Simon calls your bank or building society's 'insult account' – with a special mention for Nationwide - and how to turn a savings habit into an investing one that should hopefully get you a better return, the podcast team talk all things saving. Also on the agenda: where are the best places to start investing a small amount, and why that has got so much easier in recent years? Simon shares a bit of behind the scenes knowledge on investing platforms and why they are pushing so hard for new investors – and gives some tips on getting started the easy way. But not everyone will be feeling like they have money to stash away right now: the cost of living crisis is seeing people cut back, the ONS, revealed this week – and that's before most bills spiked. Where are they cutting back and is there anything we can do to help them? (Bonkers two-year MOT ideas excluded). And finally - just when you thought printing at home couldn't get any worse, printer firms came up with a way to make it better… and then made it worse.

Much bigger energy bills are on their way to households for and a warning was sounded this week that there is much worse to come. Energy bosses told MPs that 40% of households could end up in fuel poverty and raised the prospect of a ‘truly horrific’ winter, with the price cap tipped to rise another 30% or more in October just as the heating goes back on. Energy firms are not responsible for the surge in gas and electricity prices but watchdog Ofgem warned that some may not be treating customers fairly on monthly direct debit payments. Meanwhile, This is Money has been contacted by reams of customers struggling to get incorrect bills fixed but being threatened with debt collectors by bullying energy firms. What can be done to help customers struggling with soaring bills? Will Rishi Sunak have to step in with more meaningful help than his £200 off now, pay it back later deal? Should wealthier customers subsidise the bills of the poorer? And how do we make energy firms get their act together? All these questions and more are tackled by Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and Simon Lambert. Also on this show, how do you know if you are saving enough for retirement and are there any positives to encourage you, as more gloom-laden warnings about our pension pots pot being big enough land? Plus, why has the Great British Rail Sale managed to get not one, not two, but all three of our podcasters riled? And finally, why is Netflix having a wobble and does it mark a change in consumer and investor behaviour?

This week has seen a number of changes to our personal finances in the wake of energy bill and council tax rises, along with a number of key utilities such as broadband and mobile contracts. It also marks the start of a new tax year and with it a National Insurance rise, a meagre state pension hike and the start of new 'no fault' divorce system. Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and Helen Crane run through what these changes potentially mean for you and why they're important. Renting is set to become cheaper than mortgage repayments for the first time in 14 years according to a study. This could signal 'trouble ahead,' as the data shows that when this happens, often a recession follows shortly afterwards. We discuss why. The pandemic boom could also leave high-earning homeowners trapped and unable to move, if they've overstretched themselves to buy. They may be unable to remortgage as lenders consider their squeezed incomes during the cost of living crisis. And finally, with the energy price cap soaring, are there gadgets that could help you save money? Lee comes with a warning with his own 'smart' thermostat.

It's the time of year when we are urged to put our money into an Isa or pension, but faced with the choice which should you pick? After all, most of us don't have the £52,000 needed to max out both (£20,000 into an Isa and £32,000 into a pension plus the £8,000 tax relief added). So, we must make a decision: take the upfront tax relief of a pension and that lovely boost to the money you pay in, but not be able to get the cash until at least age 55, or opt for the tax-free gains of an ISA and its flexibility, but no contribution booster. Georgie Frost and Simon Lambert look at the perks of each, where the drawbacks are and how you can make an informed decision. Plus, is the Lifetime ISA a better option for your hard-earned cash? Also, they discuss the child benefit mess and how many mums are missing our on vital state pension credits, whether Chase's bank account is now Britain's best, and how to work out if buying an expensive electric car might save you money.

Why would you cut tax and raise the same tax at the same time? That’s been the slightly baffled response from many people to Rishi Sunak’s Spring Statement. Effectively, the Chancellor both cut and raised National Insurance – lifting the threshold it is paid at but ignoring calls to 'spike the hike' and ploughing ahead with the 1.25% being added to rates. Bizarrely, the tax rate goes up in April, only for the threshold to rise and reduce bills shortly afterwards in July. And we wonder why people find tax taxing? Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and Simon Lambert dive into the detail of the Spring Budget to explain what the NI hike/cut means for you. Depending on their earnings some will be in the group paying more than now and some will pay less? The team also look at the other measures in the Spring Statement and whether a 5p petrol duty cut and some money off solar panels really cuts the mustard in the face of a cost of living crisis. The Office of Budget Responsibility also had some bad news for us: inflation is tipped to hit almost 9%, energy bills are likely to rise another 40% or so, and there’s the not so trivial matter of the biggest fall in living standards since records began in the 1950s. How bad will this feel? Away from the Spring Statement, ths episode looks at what’s going on with building costs and how to try to get the best quote from a builder, stick to a budget and protect against price rises. And finally, you might not go fully down the secretive POA (price on application) route when selling your home, but should you name an asking price, guide price, or ask for offers over a certain amount? Georgie, Lee and Simon dabble with a bit of estate agentese.

It's a hat trick. After all those years of waiting in vain for a rate rise after the financial crisis, now the Bank of England has the wind in its sails and has raised rates three times since December. The shift up in the base rate to 0.75% hardly takes rates into the stratosphere but moving from 0.1% to here in four months stands at serious odds with the lower for longer mantra that dominated the past decade and a bit of central bank thinking. It's being done to combat inflation that's now forecast to hit 8% (or maybe higher admits the Bank). The irony is that interest rate rises will do little to tackle imported inflation. So is the Bank making the right moves? Is it right to try to crack down on inflation now, or is it putting the Covid recovery at risk? And what does this mean for savers, borrowers and investors? Tanya Jefferies, Georgie Frost and Simon Lambert discuss the rate hike - if you can call a quarter point rise a hike - and how much more of this may be coming down the line. Plus, what are the best shares and funds to stash in your ISA in volatile times, do you have to pay tax on a £20,000 bitcoin profit, and would you swap your device trash for cash at Currys?