Money news: page 38
- August 2023
Plan 5 applies to courses started on or after 1 August 2023
Students who began undergraduate courses through Student Finance England on or after 1 August 2023 are on repayment Plan 5, with a £25,000 income threshold and a 40-year write-off.
PSR to consult on claim excess and reimbursement cap
The Payment Systems Regulator will consult in August 2023 on the claim excess banks may charge fraud victims, the maximum reimbursement cap and guidance on the gross negligence test.
Student loan repayment rules changed for new students from August 2023
Students starting university from August 2023 face a lower repayment threshold of £25,000, a 40 year write-off period and interest capped at RPI, under repayment rules that differ from earlier cohorts.
- July 2023
FCA guidance on insurance customers in financial difficulty comes into force
The Financial Conduct Authority's guidance on how insurers should treat customers in financial difficulty took effect on 31 July 2023, sitting alongside the Consumer Duty.
FCA sets out 14-point action plan on cash savings
The Financial Conduct Authority has launched its Consumer Duty rules and set out a 14-point plan on cash savings to make banks and building societies pass on interest rate rises to savers.
Consumer Duty implementation deadline for firms
The Financial Ombudsman Service says its Consumer Duty engagement work will continue past the 31 July implementation deadline, as the new rules start to apply to firms' acts and omissions.
JRF publishes summary arguing inadequate Universal Credit is a barrier to work and calls for an Essentials Guarantee
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has published a summary arguing that inadequate Universal Credit acts as a barrier to work, and calling for an Essentials Guarantee setting support against the cost of essentials.
Tax information and impact note published on abolishing the pensions lifetime allowance
HMRC has published a tax information and impact note on abolishing the pensions lifetime allowance from April 2024, limiting tax-free cash to £268,275 and lump sums before marginal rate taxation to £1,073,100.
Government, FCA and TPR publish Value for Money consultation response
The government, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Pensions Regulator have published their response to a consultation on disclosing, assessing and comparing the value for money of workplace pension schemes.
Government publishes CCA reform consultation response
The government has published its response to the first stage consultation on reforming the Consumer Credit Act 1974, saying stakeholders backed an overhaul, with a second consultation planned for 2024.
Participating lenders to offer rate lock up to six months ahead of expiry
From 10 July 2023, lenders signed up to the Mortgage Charter began letting borrowers lock in a new mortgage rate up to six months before their existing fixed deal ends.
Which? finds six of top 10 instant-access accounts restrict penalty-free withdrawals
Which? analysis of Moneyfacts data has found that six of the ten highest-paying instant-access savings accounts limit withdrawals or require a minimum balance before penalties apply.
End of £400 universal winter Government energy support
The £400 universal Government energy support paid to households over the winter ended as the Ofgem price cap replaced the Energy Price Guarantee, cutting typical annual bills to £2,074 from July.
Energy price cap reductions began lowering domestic fuel budgets
Reductions in the energy price cap from July 2023 cut the domestic fuel element of the Pensions UK Retirement Living Standards budgets by more than a quarter for every household type, new research shows.
Energy Price Guarantee coverage narrowed to prepayment meter customers
Households without a prepayment meter lost Energy Price Guarantee support from July 2023, while prepayment customers remain covered so their costs align with Direct Debit customers.
Energy Price Guarantee made less generous, rising to £3,000 a year
The Energy Price Guarantee became less generous in July 2023, rising to £3,000 a year, but a fall in the price cap meant it no longer set maximum prices and bills fell.
FCA Consumer Duty comes into force
The Financial Conduct Authority's Consumer Duty came into force in July 2023, setting higher standards of consumer protection and supporting the Mortgage Charter agreed with lenders and the Chancellor.
Government announces plan to let employed customers pay the HICBC through their tax code
The government has set out plans to let employed parents pay the High Income Child Benefit Charge through their tax code rather than registering for Self Assessment.
HM Treasury published policy statement proposing contract termination reforms
HM Treasury has published an explanatory memorandum to 2025 regulations requiring payment firms to give at least 90 days' notice and specific reasons before terminating an indefinite-period payment contract.
Lower energy price cap commenced
The lower energy price cap that took effect in July 2023 pushed the headline rate of CPI down materially again, as UK Finance reported in its Q2 2023 household finance review.
Ofgem cuts typical domestic consumption values used in price caps
Ofgem has cut the typical domestic consumption values used to calculate the typical household bill in the energy price cap, reducing assumed gas use by 17 per cent and electricity use by 7 per cent.
Ofgem lowers energy price cap to £2,074 for England, Wales and Scotland
Ofgem has lowered its energy price cap for England, Wales and Scotland so that a typical household bill falls to £2,074 a year from July, £426 less than under the Energy Price Guarantee.
Prepayment price premium removed
Households with prepayment meters have not been charged more for their energy than comparable direct debit customers since 1 July 2023, when a long-standing price premium on prepayment tariffs ended.
PSR to consult on draft legal instruments for reimbursement
The Payment Systems Regulator will consult in July on draft legal instruments for mandatory reimbursement of authorised push payment fraud victims, with the requirement due to come into force in 2024.
Universal Credit childcare maximum amounts to rise
The maximum childcare costs that working parents on Universal Credit can claim rise from July 2023 to £951 a month for one child and £1,630 for two or more.
- June 2023
Barclaycard payment protection and income protection policies automatically end
Barclaycard payment protection and income protection policies closed on 30 June 2023, with cover and new claims limited to events before that date, except Barclaycard PPI.
Barclays withdraws Android NFC contactless payments from its app
Barclays has withdrawn contactless payments of up to £300 made through its app on NFC-enabled Android devices, with the feature ending on 30 June 2023 under terms issued in April and October 2023.
FCA publishes policy statement and revised rules to bring the Mortgage Charter into force
The FCA published a policy statement and revised rules on 30 June 2023 to bring the government's Mortgage Charter into force, giving lenders new options for borrowers in financial difficulty.
Mortgage Charter support for borrowers up to date with payments takes effect
From 30 June 2023 borrowers who are up to date with their mortgage can ask their lender to switch to interest only for up to six months or extend their term without an affordability assessment.
Financial Services and Markets Act receives Royal Assent
The Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 became law on 29 June 2023, giving the Financial Conduct Authority a duty to seek reasonable provision of cash withdrawal and deposit services across the UK.