Helen Nugent

It’s the modern malaise: online fraud. In a world where so many of our transactions happen over the internet, it’s little wonder that fraudsters have descended on the web in droves. The latest statistics paint a bleak picture. According to the Office for National Statistics, there were 11.5 million incidents of crime relating to computer misuse

A decade ago, while working for a national newspaper, I forced the then Labour government to release documents under the Freedom of Information Act. The papers showed that Gordon Brown defied repeated warnings from his own officials about the potentially devastating impact of this £5 billion-a-year raid on pension funds and went ahead with it

This week’s Best Buys, provided by Moneyfacts, are Two-Year Fixed Rate Bonds.

When the sun shineth…go shopping. That’s what we did in our droves during April, boosting retail sales by 4 per cent compared to the same month last year. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), anecdotal evidence from retailers suggests that good weather contributed to growth in sales, which increased by 2.3 per cent in the three

Ah, Chelsea. Or in my case, ah, Tatton. It’s that time of year again when the Royal Horticultural Society revs up for its slew of annual flower shows, allowing us green-fingered enthusiasts the chance to seek out the lesser-spotted Titchmarsh and the perennially pleasing Monty Don. It’s also a good time to do an inventory of our

This week’s Best Buys, provided by Moneyfacts, are Five-Year Fixed Rate Buy-to-Let Mortgages.

I am immensely cheered by the news that one of the worst perpetrators of cold calling has been fined a record amount for making almost 100 million nuisance calls. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has issued its highest ever penalty of £400,000 to Keurboom Communications after more than 1,000 people complained about recorded – also known

As I watched the water creep across the kitchen floor, powerless to prevent a mini tsunami, I had an inkling of how it must feel to be the victim of flooding or burst pipes. By the third time the water invaded my kitchen, I was at the end of my tether. It later transpired that

Do we trust politicians? Is that the same as asking if we trust estate agents, door-to-door salesmen or, er, journalists? According to new research by Comparethemarket.com, consumers overwhelmingly believe that the main political parties and their leaders do not understand the financial anxieties of ordinary people and that the next government will not have the

I’m in one of those moods. The one where I’m beset by delusions of adequacy, I can’t work up the energy to pretend I like people, and every email is filled with doom and gloom and stories of bad behaviour. Which brings me to today’s missive from the comparison site uSwitch. According to new research, consumers

As lenders’ names go, The Bank of Mum and Dad is rather appealing. There’s instant brand awareness, the prospect of small or non-existent interest rates, and the likelihood that financial negotiations will end with a hug and a few happy tears. I’m a member of this institution. When I moved back up North following 14

This week’s Best Buys, provided by Moneyfacts, are Two-Year Fixed Rate Bonds.

I’ll never forget the estate agent who tried to flog me my first flat. As I waited on the kerb in North London, he roared up in a Mercedes-Benz convertible, bling glittering from his hands and neck, a belt emblazoned with the word ‘STUD’ and a knuckle tattoo that can’t be shared in a respectable publication.