This is Money Blog

Someone's been sitting on my cash

I received my energy bills from Powergen yesterday and finally decided to claim back my overpayments. The bill informed me in huge letters: 'You are £129.42 in credit.' But underneath it said: 'We will carry your balance forward to the next statement.'

Oh no you won't I thought. Why should they sit on my cash? It's estimated that these energy companies sit on hundreds of millions and possibly billions of pounds of our money by charging too much on direct debits.

Even the regulator, Ofgem, has no idea how much of our money they are sitting on - and what's more they are under no obligation to reveal the figures. In their home countries, most of our foreign-owned utilities refund overpayment - but not here. Instead they keep our cash, earn interest on it and use it to boost their profitability.

So why not claim it back?

I was forced to sit on hold for 12 minutes before I got through but at least it was a free number. The call centre operator actually checked whether she could send me a cheque. The cheek of it - it's my money. Then she asked whether I wanted the whole amount back.

I said yes - unless they wanted to send me some extra so I could earn interest on their money  for a change.

So in seven to 10 days I should receive a cheque. You might think £129.42 is a small sum to bother about but multiply that by the number of customers and you've got a hefty pile of cash.

And this is the middle of the summer - my credit balance is only likely to increase over the coming three or four months.

There's one other piece of good news for the Hazell household. This excess means I must be using less electricity and gas than last year because I'm on a fixed price tariff.

Our energy bill for the last year is a tad under £825 which is quite a bit less than the national average and shows the benefit of cracking down on standby, turning off lights and generally being an energy miser.

Tony Hazell, Money Mail editor

RELATED STORIES ON THIS IS MONEY:

>> Fuel bills update: Should you switch?

>> Energy giants cash £1bn overpayments

>> Energy firms sit on direct debit millions

Teenage car insurance woes

Aaah! I'm suffering car insurance agony with my 17-year-old son. Our insurance is coming up for renewal and we'd like to put my son on it. We've rung around and been quoted £400 without him and £1,400 with him. It's hardly as if we drive a souped up car. We've got a 1 litre S-reg Nissan Micra.

Now, I understand that teenagers are more risky, but if they're this expensive to insure on our policy how the hell can they be expected to buy their own insurance? You can just see the mindset - 'I'll drive without cover and risk the £250 fine' - which is what thousands choose to do.

What's really shocked me is the rise in premiums since we put other son on the policy five years ago - that cost around £700. One insurer told us it would be cheaper to insure for any driver over 17 than for our son as a named driver.

The problem is I promised to get him driving lessons if he promised never to ride a motorbike - a fair compromise if you've seen the stats for motorbike accidents among youngsters.

There must be a sensible solution here, but I can't see it. Meanwhile my wife is spending the week on the phone searching for a cheaper insurer while I brace myself to lose a sizeable chunk of money for daring to want my son to learn to drive responsibly.

- Tony Hazell, Money Mail

>> News and advice on car insurance 

My TalkTalk broadband upgrade problem

I spent 2006 trying to save cash as one of Money Mail's Money Misers. Swopping energy, internet and broadband suppliers and some juggling with credit and loyalty cards eventually left me more than £1,200 better off.

One of the most frequent questions I've had is whether I ran into any problems. The answer is 'no' except for on my phone and broadband. I swopped to TalkTalk and initially all was well, but since the line was upgraded to 8megabit broadband my phone has never worked properly. And the customer service has ranged from irritating to pathetic.

All I want is a call waiting service that tells callers when I'm on the phone and lets me switch between callers. Instead when I am on the phone callers get a constant ringing with no message leading them to believe that we are out and our answerphone isn't working.

I've been passed from pillar to post (or more accurately India to Warrington) and receive regular texts telling me they have fixed it but several weeks later it still doesn't work. This makes it: difficult for me to work from home; impossible to get through to my wife when she is talking to her mother/sister/work colleagues and enormously frustrating for anyone trying to call me.

So why am I blaming my broadband upgrade? Well, my brother in law, has never had a decent internet connection since BT 'upgraded' his broadband to 8 megabits. BT has sent him from India to Wales and back as each side of the business has refused to take responsibility.

So, I wonder are we the only people having this problem, or are there more general problems with the 8megabit broadband that no-one is telling us?

- Tony Hazell, Editor, Money Mail

Useful link - News, features and advice on broadband

Avoid the property slump: move to the coast

My favourite theory at the moment is the gloomy prediction that the impact of Britain's post-War baby boom will send the UK stock market and house prices into a decade-long decline starting 2007/08.

Essentially the idea is that economic growth will slow and even go into reverse as the expansion of non-earning pensioners swamp a smaller pool of high-earning middle-age workers. According to the theory, it was the trigger for the 15-year economic decline in Japan (1990-2005). Read more about the theory in my previous blog.

However, HS Dent, the American financial author and consultant who came up with the detail on the theory, says there are various silver-lined edges to the gloom: invest in shares the Far East and other emerging markets, for example.

But there's something you can do closer to home: buy a house by the sea. 

The theory is that house prices in coastal 'retirement' areas should continue to power ahead thanks to demand from the boom in pensioners.

That's why this story today about top 10 retirement hotspots is so fascinating. It looks like the sensible money is on the likes of Christchurch in Dorset or Rother in East Sussex.

I'll be closely watching those property hotspot surveys in years to come.

- Andrew Oxlade, Editor, This is Money

Useful links

Blog: Why UK shares and house prices will slump

How to invest in the Far East

Taking a risk on emerging markets

Money Misers - Tony's Not Talk-Talking

I'm fast coming to the conclusion that nobody actually works at Talk Talk and this is the UK's first fully-automated humanity-free computer-run company.

Since signing up for its landline phone service on January 3 I have yet to receive a bill. Yet they have now taken £29.50 from my current account as a first payment without so much as a by your leave.

I've tried phoning them but after wading my way through their electronic menu I finally reach a message which says: 'All our operators are busy now please call back later.'  They then hang up on me. These operators have been busy for the past week.

Doesn't any of them ever get off the phone? Perhaps they're all on extended lunch breaks?

I've tried emailing but all I get are automated responses. I emailed on February 22. They replied: 'Due to increased volumes we are currently experiencing delays in responding to e-mail. We will make every effort to answer your e-mail as quickly as possible.'

Today they've sent another automated response: 'This is an automated courtesy response to let you know we have received your e-mail. The offices are open: Monday-Friday: 8am - 8pm, Saturday: 9am - 6pm, Sunday & Bank Holidays: 10am - 5pm.'

They might be open, but what's the point of opening if nobody ever answers the ruddy phone?

They even have the cheek to tag on the following message: 'We are pleased to announce that we now offer line rental and calls on one, easy to understand bill. In order to receive the benefits of these improved services, or for more information, you are invited to call our Contact Centre on 0870 444 1820. Please quote reference TTLR when calling.'

That's precisely what I'm trying to call about. I want a bill. Any bill will do. Just something that tells me how much they are going to take from my bank account before they actually take it.

- Tony Hazell   

Meet the wiser misers

It takes energy to switch

Help. Does anyone know anything about Scottish Power. Are they any good?

I've decided to switch my energy supplier, but can't decide whether to fix my charges or  just go for the cheapest now and buy a new fleece to keep warm.

I've tried three switching sites and they are unanimous in suggesting I switch to Scottish Power's online tarrif. They even come to roughly the same conclusion on my annual energy bill  - somewhere between £885 and £887 a year.

But where they differ is in how much I'll save. USwitch suggests £102, (which is certainly worth switching for), Simply Switch and Energy Helpline both suggest I'll save £56.

When it comes to fixing uswitch suggest I'll be slightly better off, while the other suggest I'll be worse off - but Scottish Power again comes out on top.

My other fear is that something could go wrong with the switch. Uswitch gives Scottish Power three out of five for customer service, which is neither here nor there.

So what I need to know is whether you'd recommend Scottish Power or would I be better just staying put?

- Tony Hazell

Meet the Money Misers

Money Misers - Tony's internet shopping

I'Ve finally discovered how to make some money out of internet supermarket shopping. Use them a couple of times and then ignore them.

This strategy has worked a couple of times for us with Ocado, which handles Waitrose online.

Both my wife Val and I had ordered groceries from our separate email addresses. Then we stopped using them after a dispute on sell-by dates; they sent me some orange juice which was due to expire the next day. I complained, they couldn't be bothered to do anything about it.

Well, now it seems they do want out business after all. Val has since received a voucher for £10 if she spends £75. Then on Saturday I received a voucher worth £20 if I spend £100.

I'm now hoping a I get a similar response from Tesco, which I've used two or three times and then ignored.

I still think internet supermarket shopping sucks, but I might as well order my beer and wine from Ocado and make use of these vouchers.

- Tony Hazell

Meet the Money Misers

Internet Shopping Overtakes Catalogues

Money Misers - Tackling those little extras

RUNNING a car costs enough without garages tacking little extras on to your bill. We recently took our modest little Fiesta in for a service and found ourselves served with a far higher bill than we expected.
   A closer look at the £159.39 bill revealed some little gems such as 'Gas treatment and engine flush £22' listed under 'labour'. We were also charged an extra quid for the screen wash we had just refilled to be filled up again. This came under 'parts' a long with a couple of other minor additions.
   Close questioning (before we paid) by my wife led to some shuffling of feet and a cut in the bill to £132.37 which has saved us £27.02 and neither of us know a lot about cars.
   So next time you want to get money out of a mechanic don't kick the car tyres, query the bill instead.

- James Hopegood

Meet the Money Misers

Useful links

>Find cheaper car insurance in minutes

> Compare car loans on This is Money

> AA/RAC to dear? Find breakdown cover for a fraction of the cost

Money Misers - Tony switches

OK. I've finally sorted out my internet and phone service.

I'm set up with TalkTalk on both. But this wasn't the hassle-free experience I'd been promised. I was particularly 'thrilled' to have to spend 10 minutes or so on the phone on Saturday evening with a Virgin account manager who seemed under the impression I was still their customer.

He claimed that TalkTalk had simply taken my broadband over without issuing the correct codes to Virgin.

Naturally TalkTalk denies this. After some serious negotiating Virgin agreed to call it quits and won't be trying to charge me for what they see as a failure to give notice of quitting.

There's been a tremendous amount of mud slinging between Virgin, TalkTalk and BT over what went wrong with my move - and as the customer stuck in the middle I'm the one who gets covered in sludge.

So on to the next project. Last week I applied for a Barclays Bank account. I've no intention of switching my current account, but it appears their willing to give me £100 simple for depositing £1,000 a month for two months. And I thought Lloyds TSB was the sign of the gift horse.

I did almost stumble with the inline application when I was asked five random questions put up by Equifax to prove I was really me. I managed to blag me way through it despite having no idea  which store card I was supposed to have applied for at one stage last year.

So today I'll head off to the nearest branch clutching my two forms of ID. I'll report back on how I got on later.

- Tony Hazell

Meet the Money Misers

Money Misers - James' running tips

Are you feeling fit? Did you drunkenly agree to run the London marathon and now feel unable to wriggle out if it?

If so, join a running club and you will get cheaper entry into most road and cross-country races you enter.

The discount is usually about £2 but it can be as much as a fiver and running club membership is cheap.

Family membership of my own club, Witham Running Club, costs just £25 a year. We get double bubble, or did until Karen became pregnant as we are both runners.

Modest savings, I agree, but it all builds up. I am, after all, a miser.

- James Hopegood.

Meet the Money Misers

Money Misers - Tony's switching begins

Da, da, da da-da. Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. With the sounds of Also Sprach Zarathustra (or the Theme to 2001, A Space Odyssey) I discovered we’ve finally got our Caller ID back on our phone – and my mother in law was calling. So that’s one switching issue resolved.
  A rather nastier one was that we had our broadband cut off for two days this week (more of this in next Wednesday’s Money Mail).

But we should be at least £84 a year better off through switching broadband from Virgin at £24.99 a month to TalkTalk at £17.99 a month.

I suppose next stop is to try to switch the gas and electricity but every time I try to decipher those bills I just want to give up in despair. Does anyone know what a therm is?

And why is some of my gas more expensive than other bits? And why on a domestic bill can they get away with quoting prices excluding VAT?

Meanwhile my wife has presented me with literature for something called Countdown  which arrived from the National Union of Teachers. The problem is I can’t make head nor tail of it.

It appears we could get discounts from it, but do we have to apply, does it cost any money and do we get a free Carol Vorderman? None of these crucial questions are answered. I may investigate further if the recycling men don’t get to it first.

Post your comments below

- Tony Hazell

Meet the Money Misers

Tony's Phone Fiasco

Money Misers -Tony's phone fiasco

I'VE a confession to make. I actually started trying to save money at the start of the year when I switched my phone landline from BT to TalkTalk.

I thought this had gone smoothly until suddenly my phone rang. I've got nerdy phone which has a different ring depending on who's calling.

What TalkTalk failed to tell me was that I'd lose all my network services if I switched from BT. So no call waiting, no 1571 and no caller identification - so no instead of Air on a G-String I get 'ring-ring'. So I don't know if it's a call I want to take or a double glazing salesman.

TalkTalk promised they could set up these services but warned they first had to set up my account properly and then it would take five working days to provide the services. Ten days later nothing has happened.

How much time does it take to push a switch? And what's this about working days anyway? I thought nobody outside the banks and public sector had working days any more.

Does TalkTalk shut down completely on Saturday and Sunday? Imagine if Tesco introduced 'working days' - you can buy food from us Monday to Friday, but not on Saturday and Sunday.

Surely TalkTalk should check which services you use when you sign up for a switch and make sure they are available to you from day one. I'm irritated, disgruntled and getting close to throwing my toys out of my pram. I think I'll give them another 48 hours to sort it out. Watch this space.

Tony Hazell

Find out about the Money Misers

Money Misers

Members of the Money Mail team have decided to put their money where their mouths are........by taking our own advice.

This year four members of the team will be trying to slash their bills by up to £2,300. How will they do this?

Well, not be scrimping and cutting back on life's luxuries, but by having a complete overhaul of their finances - switching their phone, gas, electricity and internet to make sure they have the cheapest deals, remortgaging where necessary, using credit cards and loyalty schemes wisely, and shopping around for vouchers and money off at shops.

To kick it all off they have outlined what they spend their money on now. You can catch the first installment by clicking on the link below, and their money saving capers will be featured on this blog as well as in the Money Mail section of the Daily Mail on Wednesdays.

Post your comments below.

Meet the Money Misers

- James Coney