AA says car insurance premiums cheaper than they were a year ago April 19, 2018 Car insurance premiums are cheaper than they were one year ago while premiums for combined home and contents insurance fell in the last quarter. According to a report by break down and insurance company AA, car insurance premiums peaked during the second quarter of 2017 but have fallen steadily since then to an average premium [...]
Provident Financial share price falls after completing a £331m rights issue April 10, 2018 Doorstep lender Provident Financial has completed a £331m cash call from investors, it announced this morning. A deadline for rights issue acceptances passed yesterday at 11am with 96.3 per cent of shareholders backing the capital raise. The success of the rights issue will come as little surprise to many traders as almost three-quarters (73.4 per [...]
Death of the deposit: A new type of rental model is emerging, but could it be the next PPI scandal in the making? April 10, 2018 Most renters will be familiar with the drama that surrounds deposits. The average deposit in London is an eye-watering £1,765, according to the Tenancy Deposit Scheme. But saving up hundreds of pounds is only half of the battle. Recouping all of your cash at the end of your tenancy is often a huge headache, and [...]
Car insurance premiums set to rise in the two years say insurance bosses April 4, 2018 Eight out of 10 insurance bosses in the UK, EU and US predict that motor premiums will rise in the next two years, with 43 percent thinking they will rise by at least 10 per cent. Telematics company The Floow surveyed 280 decision makers at insurance companies and found that those in the UK were [...]
Artemis: Investing for income March 23, 2018 On Britain’s railways, a double yellow light is an instruction to exercise “preliminary caution”. On seeing it, a train driver should continue to move forward but be prepared to begin slowing at the next signal; there may be an obstruction ahead. These are the conditions under which investors seeking income currently operate. Financial assets in [...]
An investment to hold when volatility strikes? March 7, 2018 Funds in the Targeted Absolute Return sector aim to produce positive returns in a variety of market conditions through using sophisticated investment techniques such as short selling (profiting when prices fall). They generally aim to make modest yet consistent gains with smoother performance than traditional funds; admirable objectives that resonate with many investors, but there [...]
Pious attacks on the finance sector are socially destructive February 28, 2018 Attacks on the financial sector are commonplace. The Pope, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and Jeremy Corbyn have all been critical of modern finance while demanding a financial sector that serves the “real economy”. Of course, religion and finance have always been uncomfortable bedfellows, and the extreme left now has a clear preference for a centrally [...]
The Steeda Q500 Enforcer review: Meet the UK’s best modified Mustang February 26, 2018 Ford hit the jackpot with the 1965 Mustang. It offered sporty styling, an upwardly-mobile image and enough power for the interstate highway, all for just $2,368. Detroit churned out more than a million in the first 18 months, and the Mustang quickly became part of America’s popular culture – eulogised in songs such as Wilson [...]
NRA boycott: Companies like Delta, Hertz and Chubb have ditched the National Rifle Association (NRA) February 24, 2018 A number of companies have cut ties with the US National Rifle Association (NRA) as outrage bubbles up following a deadly high school shooting in Florida. More than a dozen firms including Delta Airlines have ended their corporate partnerships with the controversial organisation as pressure builds from supporters of gun control, led on Twitter by [...]
AA share price crashes: Can new boss Simon Breakwell get road recovery giant the AA back on track after a series of setbacks? February 22, 2018 Shortly after the AA’s float back in 2014, boss Chris Jansen handed the reins over to Bob Mackenzie, a man he had referred to only weeks earlier as an “elder statesman”. Mackenzie was credited at the time with driving through the AA’s innovative management-buyout-cum-stock-market listing, a manoeuvre backed by big-name investors including Neil Woodford and [...]