As we struggle to make ends meet in our own homes it’s sometimes easy to forget the charities on which so many others depend. So  a recession, do we cut our charity giving during recession or continue to dig deep in the knowledge that charities need the money even more than ever?

When the recession first hit the country nearly four years ago, charitable giving reduced from 2006/2007 to 2007/08 as people gave smaller donations and fewer people put their hands in their pockets, but since then we have been making up for lost time.

Despite the on-going difficult economic uncertainty and possibility of a double-dip recession in the near future, it seems us Brits are going out of our way to ensure they are still giving despite tighter purse strings.

Research in 2011 from PayYOURway.org.uk has found that 86% of people in the UK are still donating to charity, with 62% of them donating to charities close to their hearts at least once a month. The survey also found that the average donation is around £100 per year, with many people planning to increase their charity donations next year.

How much do we give?
As a nation we are pretty generous with the amount donated to charities hovering at around £10 billion per year. An £11.3bn peak was reached in 2007/08 just before the recession hit, this has understandably dipped (by 11% the next year to £10.2bn), but is was still more than the £9.2bn we gave during the relatively affluent period of 2004/05.

How do we donate?
The PayYOURway.org.uk research found that by far most common way to give to charity is by sponsoring someone you know who is fundraising, with almost half (44%) donating this way. In second place was by cash in collection tins at 34%, closely followed by regular charity support and seasonal appeals such as Children In Need at 33% and 32% respectively.

Although cash was the most common way to pay for donations, technology is starting to play a significant part in the way we raise money. Fundraising websites such as justgiving.com (which accept charity credit card  payments) and text messages are becoming more popular ways to donate to charity, and could even be the boost the rest of us need to get our hands in our pockets.

The increase in the use of the internet is seen as a massive opportunity for people to start giving more to charities, but with a lack of funding it could also mean that smaller charities are forgotten in favour of those advertising heavily on the internet.

Who do we give to?
The UK Charitable Giving 2011 report found that this year the majority of donors gave to charities relating to medical research, which is no surprise as it is continually one of the best-supported causes.

Other charities that tug on our heart strings are hospitals and hospices, and children and young people, which collectively are supported by 50% of those who donate to charity. Overseas causes received support from 17% of donors this year which is about average, but in 2009/10 this peaked at 24% due to the Haiti appeal.

Could you give more (understanding Gift Aid)?
When you make a charitable donation there is usually a little check box which asks your permission for the charity to claim Gift Aid. Just 57% of the people surveyed were aware that this allowed the charity to reclaim the basic rate of tax on their donations. Of the people that were aware of Gift Aid, 22% did not know how it benefitted the charities.

Did you know what Gift Aid was, or how it could help a charity close to your heart? Just by ticking this check box you could be giving the charity an extra 20p for every £1 donated. The Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) estimates that through a lack of understanding charities are losing out on an extra £700m every single year.

Charity isn’t all about money!
If charity where all about money then those of us less wealthy could never match the wallets of our richer brethren, but everyone can charitable. We can help encourage others to give, we can give up our time to help others, we can get sponsored, we can give unwanted clothes etc to charity shops – The important thing is that we do it! To quote the Dalai Lama, “Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.”

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Every now and then we mention Section 75 with reference to the protection credit cards offer consumers, but what is it? Well, being the diligent money savers we know you are you’ve probably been reading up elsewhere on the intricacies of the Consumer Credit Act, but in case you haven’t (or you’ve only read what you want to hear) we’ve pulled together a quick Savvy Shopper guide to our favourite Section.

What is Section 75?
Section 75 means that the credit card provider must protect any goods you buy for over the value of £100 completely free of charge because they have equal responsibility with the retailer. This law, implemented in the 1970s, applies when you spend between £100 and £30,000 on a credit card.

“75. — (1) If the debtor under a debtor-creditor-supplier agreement falling within section 12(b) or (c) has, in relation to a transaction financed by the agreement, any claim against the supplier in respect of a misrepresentation or breach of contract, he shall have a like claim against the creditor, who, with the supplier, shall accordingly be jointly and severally liable to the debtor.”

Why does Section 75 exist (A history lesson)?
Prior to the enactment of Consumer Credit Act 1974, legislation covering consumer credit in the UK was disjointed and piecemeal. It focused on specific areas of credit and lending rather than taking a holistic view of the credit industry.

In 1971 Lord Crowther (fresh from advising the government to raise the school leaving age to 16) was commissioned to advice on UK consumer credit law. His Committee on Consumer Credit advised for the need of sweeping changes; the abolition of previous legislation and the harmonisation of credit legislation hence forth. As part of these reforms, and largely to protect against unscrupulous hire-purchase operators, “The Crowther Committee also suggest that defective goods bought under a loan agreement linked to purchase should become the responsibility of the lender.”

In presenting the bill to Parliament Baroness Phillips drew attention to cases highlighted by the Daily Mirror in 1973 where “…families had bought home freezers. Before these appliances were even delivered the firm supplying them had collapsed. The unfortunate clients then discovered that they were committed to pay for the next three years, under a moneylender’s agreement, for articles which they had never received.”

Despite the general election in 1974, the Consumer Credit Act passed quickly through Parliament thanks to support from both the minority Labour government and the opposition, coming into law on 31 July 1974 and we’ve had Section 75 ever since.

What can I buy?
Absolutely anything. It doesn’t matter whether you are booking a holiday, buying a computer, or ordering a new kitchen. As long as the value of the goods is between £100 and £30,000 and purchased using a credit card you should be protected under Section 75. However, sometimes it isn’t quite as simple as this as you will find out below.

When can I put it to use?
Technically, Section 75 can be applied when a supplier breaches the contract with the consumer, generally when they have failed to meet the Sale of Goods Act.

In times of economic uncertainty there are stories of companies going bust left, right and centre, particularly in the travel and holiday industry. However, if you are paying for your goods with a credit card, you don’t need to worry about losing your cash as the credit card provider have to give you a refund.

Section 75 doesn’t just come into use when businesses go bust, it provides the same legal protection if you have received faulty goods, they are not as described, or your goods have simply not been delivered. If the value of the goods was more than £100 and paid for with a credit card, the credit card company is equally responsible for the breach in contract as the supplier.

This amazing piece of consumer protection gives you the right to receive a refund within 6 years in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and 5 years in Scotland. What’s more, you don’t even have to have paid the full amount on your credit card to receive a full refund as part payments are covered by the Act.

For example, let’s say you buy a car worth £5,000, £10,000, or even £29,999, and pay the initial deposit on your credit card. If there was a problem with the purchase, or the company went bust, you could claim the full cost of the car under Section 75 even though you only spent £100 on your credit card.

Remember: always keep your receipts as well as credit card statements to make any potential claims easier.

Although credit card transactions are the most common things to be claimed back under Section 75, it does also provide protection for store cards, hire-purchase agreements, and in some cases other credit agreements such as car loans.

Since 2007 the same protection applies when goods have been purchased abroad as the House of Lords ruled that the Act did not have any limits on territory, and therefore goods from foreign suppliers would also be covered by Section 75.

What doesn’t it cover?
Although Section 75 of the Act might sound like a piece of protection that can make you invincible, it does rely on a direct relationship between you and the credit card provider. If there are any additional steps in the buying process, Section 75 might not apply. Here are some examples of when you might not be covered under the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

Third parties
If you are using a payment system to complete the transaction (PayPal, WorldPay, Google Checkout) there is not a direct relationship between you can the credit card provider. It is important to consider the likelihood of anything going wrong when adding a third party, as although PayPal does offer protection to its buyers, it is not as effective as Section 75. Using third party payment systems is not always a bad idea as they often offer additional protection for purchases under £100.

Travel agents
Booking a holiday is usually a huge expense and so is often booked with a credit card, but if you have paid for your trip via a travel agent you might not be covered under Section 75. In this situation the travel agents are classed as an obstacle between you and the credit card provider. If this has happened to you, it is worth checking out who owns the travel agent and whether you paid the airline directly or not. This information could give you a chance of claiming.

Additional Cards
If you’ve got additional cards on your account for spouses, partners or children etc, the purchases they make might not be covered under section 75. If they have made a purchase that have faltered and you want to claim under section 75 you will need to demonstrate that the purchase provides a benefit to the you as the primary cardholder. So what is benefit? A lovely birthday present would probably qualify, but the pair of Jimmy Choo’s your daughter has bought for herself are unlikely to qualify (no matter how much joy you get from seeing her smile whilst she’s wearing them!).

The Saavy Shopper
So now you know the ups and the downs of Section 75 you should be a Saavyer shopper. Of course you need to follow the rules to get the benefits, but if you do it could be the best perk you’ve ever had. Happy Shopping!

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No one can deny that 2011 was, in many respects, one the toughest ever years financially for people, businesses, and governments around the world. However, it also saw consumers benefit from some of the longest interest free balance transfer periods on credit cards ever seen, the new Consumer Credit Directive change the balance of payments hierarchy for everyone benefit. So given the mix of tasty fruit and banana skins 2011 offered we thought we’d look into our crystal ball to give our view as to what 2012 might hold for UK personal finance.

Double Dip Recession?
The main thing everyone wants to know is whether the UK will slip back into another recession and there are as many answers are there are experts on the subject. Our answer is, “possibly” – although don’t quote us on that! Yes, you want more information than that but it’s impossible to give a definite answer. Some analysts are predicting that whilst the Eurozone may end up in recession, the UK could come out of it relatively unscathed. Whereas others believe that the UK will be just as badly affected, as things will get worse before they get better, with the second dip being even tougher than the first in 2008.

Either way UK personal finances are more likely to be affected this year by Government cuts and public sector job losses. The private sector is not in a position to pick up the pieces and even if it were it would be questionable whether private sector wages would match Inflation, which rose to a record high towards the end of 2011. Although it is thought that this will decrease throughout 2012 it will continue to put pressure on households to tighten their belts and get more finance savvy.

Personal Debt
The total UK personal debt decreased by 0.02% to £1451bn from October 2010 to October 2011 and the average household debt decreasing by just less than 7% to £7,984 (excluding mortgages). The average consumer borrowing on credit cards and other forms of unsecured finance also decreased, down to £4,226 per average UK adult. Despite this slight decline in the amount owed by UK consumers, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) still predicts that household debt will increase to £1823bn by end of 2015, and £2045bn by Q1 2017.

These statistics from Credit Action coupled with the fact that three in ten of us decided to go overboard and plunge into debt for Christmas and New Year, make it look likely that personal debt will deepen further into 2012. Research has shown that it takes most of us around six months to pay off Christmas debt, with 8% of us still struggling with it 12 months later. So, it looks like 2012 will be just as tough on our wallets as last year. Ouch!

The Housing Market
The figures published at the end of 2011 suggested that house prices were on the rise as did the gross mortgage lending reported by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). The CML went on to say that it did not know what to expect for the remainder of 2012 as economic uncertainty was expected to widen. However, there is some good news for mortgage holders though as the Bank of England base rate is expected to remain at 0.5%.

Savings & Investments
If predictions are correct and the Bank of England base rate does stay at its record low for some time, savers could struggle to see the benefit. On the plus side inflation is expected to fall, which is good news as the value of your savings should at least stay intact. Due to the poor savings climate it is more important than ever that you take full advantage of your ISA allowance.

Finance Bill 2012
One of the most important things on the 2012 agenda for personal finance is the Finance Bill 2012. The draft legislation for consultation was released by the Government in December, and is expected to be published after the Spring 2012 Budget in March.

There are a number of changes on personal tax, corporate tax, and charities included in the Finance Bill 2012, a summary of the draft legislation is below.

Personal Tax
• Income tax thresholds and rates will be updated
• Details of the 50% tax relief scheme for SMEs (Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme) will be unveiled
• Statutory resistance test delayed until 2013
• Inheritance tax nil band and capital gains tax exempt amount to increase with RPI from 2015/16 and 2013 respectively

Corporate Tax
• Main corporation tax rate to reduce to 24% in 2013
• Improvements to Research & Development tax relief for SMEs
• Easing of conditions relating to real estate investment trust
• Bank Levy to increase to 0.088% from January 2012
• Changes to UK accounting practice

Charities
• Tax liability reduction
• Rate of inheritance tax to decrease to 36% when 10% of an estate is left to charity
• Withdrawal of Self Assessment Donate Scheme in April 2012.

What can I do?
With all the uncertainty it is tempting to simply shrug our shoulders and say, “…it’s out of my hands.” but that’s not the case. Worry about your little bit. If you can get you finances ship shape when everyone else is struggling there will be opportunities. Perhaps a bigger house, cheaper stocks & shares, bargains in the shops, but you’ll need to be in control of your finances to take advantage – Anything else is simply an illusion.

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2011 proved to be a difficult time for many people financially, and with the economy unlikely to improve any time soon, getting the best value for money will continue to be top priority for most in 2012. Given that January is traditionally the time of year we start to flick through holiday brochures and dream of distant (warmer) lands we thought we’d investigate how to get the biggest bang for your Buck (or Euro etc). Where to go, how to get the best deals, when should you book, what type of holiday to go on and whether any other saving techniques are worthwhile.

Where To Go
Spain has been the UK’s favourite holiday destination since the rise of mass tourism in the sixties, it’s beaches, resorts, close proximity, and cheap deals are just some of the reasons that we keep going back year after year. However, as the pound has struggled against the Euro (making European travel more expensive) it is has fared slightly better against some other currencies, meaning there have been significant drops in prices on long haul destinations.

The Post Office carried out a Long Haul Report in 2011 which found that the costs had fallen most in Sri Lanka and are actually 30% lower than the previous year. The research compared how much a ‘basket’ of 10 items would cost in 28 different countries. Sri Lanka faired the best at just £31.81, runner up Thailand at £51.48, but Hong Kong proved to be most expensive at £132.06 although this is 11% lower than the 2010 report.

Other destinations which give a surprisingly big bang for your buck are the Caribbean Islands, Mexico, Argentina, Florida and Egypt. It may be hard to leave your sangria behind but why not experience something a little different for a lot less cash?

When To Book
Do you remember the days of your parents sitting in front of Teletext searching for last minute deals on holidays, panicking when the page turned and you had forgotten to hold? I certainly do, and whilst it may not be quite the same experience these days, last minute holidays can still be discovered.

Websites have been set up specifically to offer these cheap deals (lastminute.com and latedeals.co.uk). However, in recent years we have seen marked benefits to booking early. Travel firms are replicating the business models used by low-cost airlines and hotel chains – They cover their costs with cheap early bird offers and making their profits on less decisive customers. By getting in months, or even a year in advance, you could be bagging all sorts of bargains such as buy-one-get-one-free weeks.

Does this mean there are no nail-biting last minute bargains? No. The truth is that both do exist and whether you book earlier or later will depend on your personal circumstances. For example, if you need to get your annual leave in at the start of the year, you would probably not get away with booking a few days prior to the flight.

The most important thing is not to book when Jo(e) Average books. If you are looking to save some cash an early bird booking needs to be at least nine months in advance, whereas a last minute deal needs to be left until around eight weeks before departure. The time in between these periods is more likely to be the most expensive.

What To Choose
Choosing the type of holiday you go on has always been a bit of a dilemma, as all-inclusive packages give you the freedom to eat and drink all you desire for two weeks of bliss, but they can end up costing an arm and a leg. Alternatively, you could just opt for self-catering, where you are responsible for all your own meals.

At the time of booking this sounds like a bargain, but depending on your holiday destination you could end up shelling out more than the cost of an all-inclusive holiday.

If you are thinking about self-catering or half-board it’s a good idea to research the cost of living in the local area. Sri Lanka would prove to be a bargain, whereas Hong Kong could prove very costly.

That said be sure you like the local cuisine if you want to cut costs with self catering. Anything imported is likely to be expensive local staples are likely to be the cheapest. Oh, and if you can’t live without a fry-up every morning – Go All Inclusive!

Where To Buy
If you are a regular internet user there are all sorts of possibilities open to you that could potentially provide you with even more savings on your bargain holiday. Cashback websites such as quidco.com and topcashback.co.uk have become increasingly popular in recent years. The idea of these websites is to provide the customer with ‘cashback’ from the commission they earn for referring any customer.

Quidco, which was ranked as the number one cash back website by the Daily Telegraph is very simple to use and can save consumers a fortune if used well. The savings don’t end there either, Quidco can be used to save on suitcases, swimwear, activities, and car rentals, allowing you to free up your cash for holiday spends.

Be sure that you are comparing the final price though – It’s easy to get blinded by the promise of cashback and forget that you’re paying more just to get the cashback.

How To Pay
No matter how much money you’ve saved on your holiday through our tips it’s still likely to be one of the most expensive purchases you make this year which means you ought to be using a credit card to pay. This is due to the cover that you get as a result of Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act.

It’s always tucked away in the small print but the nuts & bolts of it are that if you spend more than £100 on a single purchase, using your credit card means the card issuer (ie. The bank) is equally liable to refund you should anything go wrong. It’s the kind of cover we get sold as an add-on, but it’s standard for credit card purchases and with the economy still looking volatile it’s not worth the risk of not using a credit card.

Happy Holidays!
Hopefully with these tips you can avoid sharks; save and relax on your 2012 holiday.

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