Share Sounds. from This is Money presented by Georgie Frost

Is buy now, pay later the demon it’s made out to be? Klarna, Laybuy and the rest of the delayed spending crew are coming in for lots of scrutiny at the moment. Shoppers love them and shops pay them, but there are concerns on over-spending and the cost of not meeting payments. Yet, surely spreading the cost of a purchase interest-free is a sensible financial move? On this week’s podcast, Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and Simon Lambert discuss the rise of the buy now, pay later firms, how they work, how they make their money on interest-free credit, and why there are worries over what on the surface looks like a great deal. On the topic of shopping, the team also talk trying to avoid Amazoning everything this Christmas – and where to turn to get things from local shops with convenience. Also, the team looks at why the Bank of England held interest rates even as more tiers pain descended on Britain, the website that matches start-up ideas and the people who can do the work and finally Grace Gausden joins the show to discuss her Grace on the Case consumer column.

This week, a new in-depth report from the Wealth Tax Commission recommended a one-off 'wealth tax' on the richest households rather than hiking taxes for the masses. It comes as the national debt has spiralled this year as the Government spent more than £280billion tackling the pandemic and its financial fallout, with Chancellor Rishi Sunak claiming the 'economic emergency' has only just begun. How would it work, could it be a good idea and how unpopular would it prove? Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost take a look. Elsewhere, millions of mortgage payment holidays have been handed out since March - an agreement with lenders to help homeowners during the coronavirus crisis. But for one couple who extended the payment holiday, it turned into a credit report headache when they looked to downsize. In the property market, a new report suggests that stamp duty savings are now being wiped out by house price gains in recent months. Should investors run to the hills if one of the companies that you are invested in or are tempted by has a big pension scheme? And lastly, we give yet another update on the port fiasco in Britain, with the perfect storm of coronavirus, Brexit and Christmas.

December had barely begun when two of Britain's biggest High Street names collapsed. Sir Philip Green's Arcadia, the group that contains Topshop and Miss Selfridge, fell first - followed swiftly by Debenhams. Bonmarché, owned by retail tycoon Philip Day, then also slumped into administration. So how bad is the crisis on the High Street, if these stores couldn't even make it through the Christmas trading period? Can traditional bricks and mortar compete against the online giants and upstarts? Have the likes of Boohoo and Asos, put the fashion High Street online-only and there is no place for the likes of Topshop anymore? Or is there more that lies behind this story, such as financial engineering, debt, sale and leasebacks, and the lack of wriggle room that leaves when things take a downturn? On this week's podcast, Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and Simon Lambert discuss the pre-Christmas High St collapse. Plus, why you should avoid gift vouchers and cards this year, the art of flipping houses for a profit - and why those after a quick buck should beware - and why it is worth having a pension.

'Be greedy when others are fearful.' Warren Buffett's investment adage was tested this year when the coronavirus crash hit and sent stock markets tumbling in late February and early March. But as nations went into lockdown, economies nosedived and draconian measures surpassing most seen in living memory were introduced, it was hard for most investors to get up too much of an appetite, however many times they may have heard that line. There seemed to be no way that markets would recover for some time and the most likely course was down. Then the rebound came, but still it all looked to good to be true - as if it was just fools and their money being parted in a FOMO rally. Except, it turned out to have legs. The world's dominant stock market, the US, has been on a tear since late March and many other countries have bounced back too. So, has the opportunity to go bargain hunting passed? Could our own humble stock market be one of the last places left where you can do it? Are we missing a trick and ignoring the fact the world has changed and there is no point talking about cheap value investments, just get on the tech train? On this week's podcast, Georgie Frost and Simon Lambert discuss investing bargains: what that means and whether there are any left? Also, while the stock market has been on the rise, the economy has been taking another lockdown beating. Chancellor Rishi Sunak updated us this week on the state of the UK economy, so how bad was the news? Also this week, NS&I and Marcus cut rates, so what can savers do now, and finally, is triple glazing worth splashing out on?

For better or worse the internal combustion engined car has shaped economies and the way we live over the past century. Now Britain has been told that new petrol and diesel engine cars will not be allowed to be sold in just nine years’ time. But the car itself isn’t going anywhere – just the way it is propelled and hybrids will still be allowed – so how much difference will the 2030 ban on new petrol and diesel cars make? Is the rise of the electric car inevitable anyway and even with Brexit is it more important what Germany, France and the rest of Europe choose to do, than what the UK decides? On this week’s podcast, Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and Simon Lambert talk electric cars: from what the shift to them means, to what they are like to drive, charge and live with. Simon explains his experiences of charging electric cars without a home wallbox and why he thinks the Government needs to buck its ideas up on public charging and stop making policy only for those with a drive. He also talks through what three popular electric cars, the Renault Zoe, Peugeot 208 and Tesla Model 3 are like to drive and why the Porsche Cayenne with a conscience shows the way forward for those who feel they need a big, fast, luxury SUV. Also on this week’s podcast, the team discuss yet more pain for savers and the chaos at major port Felixstowe and why it matters to businesses and consumers. And finally, Bitcoin’s back… but as it climbs towards its previous peak, is it different this time?

There have been some clear winners and losers in the rebound from the stock market crash as coronavirus and lockdown hit. Tech stars, companies with a strong digital presence and those who have seen business increase as a result of lockdown – from B&Q-owner Kingfisher, to cycle and motoring store Halfords, and takeaway deliverer Just Eat - have been the only game in town. But, as news of the most successful Covid-19 vaccine trials yet was revealed by Pfizer on Monday, there was a dramatic reversal of fortune: it was the companies beaten-down by lockdown that soared. From aerospace engineer Rolls-Royce, to cinema operator Cineworld and travel-focussed caterer and retailer SSP, shares that had been languishing at lowly valuations and clouded by pessimism got a sudden dose of optimism. So why did they rise so strongly, is this the much-heralded switch from growth to value investing and what does that even mean? On this week’s podcast, Simon Lambert and Georgie Frost look at the vaccine rally, whether this marks a new chapter for investors and the economy… and what the risk of being disappointed again is. Some investors hoping to take advantage this week couldn’t, however, as DIY investing platforms struggled under the weight of record days of trading from customers. Can those Hargreaves Lansdown, or other platform, clients try to claim any money back for trades missed? Also on this week’s podcast, the potential capital gains tax raid being lined up – with perhaps some unintended consequences – and the surge of Curry’s PC World complains to This is Money. And finally, the Government is soon expected to bring forward its ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars, with the favoured alternative being electric. But if you act now and go electric but don’t have a driveway for home charging is it practical – and can you take a lead across the pavement instead?

When lockdown arrived in March it sunk the UK economy. The message was clear: Stay home. And people did just that; there was a dramatic shift to either working from home or shutting down businesses entirely. For a couple of weeks pretty much the only place you could go was the supermarket, followed a little while later by the opportunity to head to B&Q to queue for an hour and try to do a click and collect. Now a second lockdown has arrived for England and the message is once again stay home, but things are very different this time: considerably more remains open. As England’s lockdown arrived, Wales and Northern Ireland were already in some form of lockdown and Scotland is running its own tight tiers system. Yet, while rules vary across the nations, more businesses remain open, Britain has got used to working from home, and industries that can’t do that are permitted to keep going. So, what happens now to the economy? How bad will the hit be? And is it just the hospitality sector and leisure sector that will be hammered this time round? On this week’s podcast, Georgie Frost, Lee Boyce and Simon Lambert look at the economic effects of Lockdown 2 and how things could be better or worse. Meanwhile, the Bank of England responded to the lockdown by keep rates in positive territory, but pumping another £150billion into the financial system through quantitative easing. More QE has been done since March that in all the years after the financial crisis: what does this mean for the economy and normal people? Also on this week’s podcast: is it time to call the end of the property mini-boom, why are some of the self-employed still being left out while furlough is extended – and should Simon bother to try and get his Ryanair flight money back in vouchers?

Murmurs from HSBC HQ this week warned that an overhaul of its business model could leave customers paying a monthly fee for their current accounts. This week, Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost ask whether this is really a possibility, if banking actually is free anyway and what happens next. We also look at who is winning the battle of current account switchers and whether people are just too loyal to their bank. This weekend marks the end of the furlough scheme, replaced by something new – while other financial support is also changing, including free overdrafts and mortgage payment holidays. What impact did the second wave fear and upcoming US election have on the stock market this week? Bitcoin has seen a surge in price this week, what has behind its rise to the highest level since the crazy end of 2017? And boilers – one reader has been told that their 28 year model is too ancient to service. Is this a fair call?

Has the V-shaped recovery been put on hold ?Lockdowns across Britain’s major cities, the tier system and more businesses being forced to close their doors or operate far below usual business levels means the direction of travel has shifted dramatically from the summer’s optimistic reopening of the economy. It's likely that the UK will emerge from recession with growth over this quarter, but is it on track to head straight back into another slump? Coronavirus measures, rules that hobble some sectors and a renewed sense of fear will slam the brakes on – and the effect was great enough to make Rishi Sunak upgrade his support for jobs and businesses again this week. On this week’s podcast, Georgie Frost and Simon Lambert look at how bad this winter will be and whether Britain can battle its way out of the slump thanks to the resilience in parts of the economy that has surprised many this year. One element of the economy that is doing much better than expected is the property market and Rishi’s stamp duty holiday has come under fire for driving up house prices, so is it time to make it permanent, ease the need to rush and encourage people to move more often? Also on this week’s podcast, Georgie and Simon look at the latest temperature check of Britain’s retirement prospects and how hard the pandemic has hit them. And finally, buy a new appliance and it comes with a guarantee but do you really need to fill in that little form or go online to register it? Or is that just a swizz to get your personal details?

While the world worries about coronavirus, there is another decade-defining event going on – the US election. Will Donald Trump win a second term as US President and have the world dance to his tune for four more years, or will Joe Biden take charge – and what on earth would that mean for people? There is less than a month to go until the US election and under normal circumstances you would expect all the focus of stock market commentators to be on that. It’s not normal circumstances though. The second wave of coronavirus and renewed lockdowns have the world’s attention and the election, if not a sideshow, is definitely not as centre stage as we would usually expect. So, does that mean it doesn’t matter for investors, or should be thinking about it and positioning themselves for the outcome? Does it even matter if Trump or Biden wins, as long as the Fed keeps printing and stimulus keeps coming, and would any decisive win be better than a disputed result? On this week’s podcast, Simon Lambert, Georgie Frost and Sarah Davidson, discuss the US election and what it could mean for our money over here in the UK. And if two septuagenarians arguing about who is going to be the boss of the free world isn’t your thing, what about investing in the future beyond that? Keeping on the investment tip, the team dive into the world of green money and how to invest to back improving the world, or even get a green mortgage or current account.