Nearly one in 10 workers has been forced to delay their retirement due to a financial emergency, a survey has shown.

Around 9% of people aged over 45 said they had put their retirement plans on hold due to the impact of financial emergencies and the recession, according to insurer Prudential.

A further 7% of people claim they have decided to work for longer than they had originally planned to in order to build up a bigger pension fund.

Half of people who have delayed their retirement think they will have to wait for between one and five years longer than they had intended before they give up work, while 17% expect to have to work for at least five years longer.

But one in four people who have put off retiring fear they may never be able to afford to give up work completely.

Martyn Bogira, of Prudential, said: "It is imperative for people to realise what's at stake before they come to retire.

"It's one thing to want to continue to work, but quite another to be forced to as a result of not having saved enough money to be able to retire."

Source: Press Association

The imbalance between supply and demand showed further signs of easing during February as potential new buyers stayed away from the housing market, research has shown.

Only 258 house-hunters registered with estate agents during the month, the lowest level for a year and down from 291 in January, according to the National Association of Estate Agents.

At the same time, the average number of homes estate agents had on their books rose slightly to 56 from 55, as recent price rises tempted sellers back to the market.

The group said bad weather during February may have caused buyers to stay away, while numbers may also have been hit by people receiving their Christmas credit card bills and the end of the stamp duty holiday. But the fall in demand, combined with a slight easing in supply, is likely to stoke concerns that the housing market recovery is running out of stream.

The shortage of homes for sale has been one of the key factors in helping to push up prices during the past year, but many economists predict they could resume their downward trend as more homes come on to the market.

Sorce: Press Association

The interest charged on two-year fixed rate mortgages fell to a six-and-a-half-year low during February in a further sign that competition was slowly returning to the market, figures have shown.

The average cost of a two-year loan dropped to 3.88% during the month, down from 3.97% in January, to stand at its lowest level since July 2003, according to the Bank of England.

There was also a fall in the average cost of a five-year fixed rate mortgage, with this dropping to 5.49% from 5.56%, while tracker rates increased slightly to 3.69%, although they remained at their second lowest level since records began in 1997.

A number of banks and building societies cut their rates during February, with many launching new best-buy deals in a bid to tempt borrowers to remortgage away from their lenders' standard variable rates.

There was also a big increase in the number of products available for people with only small deposits, as lenders became more comfortable with the risk these borrowers represented.

The number of different mortgage products available also broke through the 2,000 barrier for the first time in more than a year during the month.

But despite the improvement in mortgage rates, the cost of unsecured borrowing increased or remained the same during February.

The average rate charged on a credit card rose to 16.51%, up from 16.37% in January.

A spokeswoman said: "The changes are in response to very strong demand for our mortgages over recent weeks.

"It is important for us to preserve a controlled level of business that ensures we meet our desired levels of service."

Source: Press Association

UK credit or debit cardholders can now spend up to £15 without offering a Pin number or a signature after the payment limit was raised for contactless cards.

A request by Visa and Mastercard to raise the limit from £10 was agreed by banks and other card providers.

An estimated one in seven UK residents will have a contactless card by the end of the year, allowing them to put it close to a sensor to pay for items.

The new threshold brings the UK closer in line with European limits.

In the eurozone, contactless cards can be used for total purchases of up to 25 euros (£22.60).

Contactless technology allows cardholders to press their debit card to a sensor in more than 8,000 UK shops to register a payment.
The money is automatically deducted from their bank account or added to their credit card bill.

In East Asia the chip found in a plastic card is placed in an everyday item such as a mobile phone or a watch. This is then pushed against a sensor in a shop to pay.

The UK has been relatively slow to take up the technology, partly owing to security concerns, but plans to phase out cheques by 2018 could put more focus on the service.

Occasionally, cardholders are asked to enter their Pin, as they are for purchases above £15. No cash-back is available.

The card provider covers any losses if a card is stolen and the customer reports the loss at the earliest opportunity and does not act negligently.

Source: BBC News

Energy firms deserve to be celebrated for making profits but should cut their prices "now", fuel poverty minister David Kidney has said.

After British Gas announced a 58% rise in profits last year to £595 million, Mr Kidney said it was time for falling wholesale prices to be passed on to the consumer.

The minister told MPs that energy companies could "afford" to give help to households that had struggled through one of the coldest winters on record.

During Commons question time, Mr Kidney was asked whether the firms should cut household bills or invest in large scale projects.

Tory Julie Kirkbride (Bromsgrove) said £200 billion of investment in energy production would be needed in the next decade to stop the lights going out.

Mr Kidney said it was "one of the key questions", adding: "We do want energy companies to invest £200 billion on infrastructure projects in this country over the next decade, and so we should celebrate that they are successful global companies that do make profits.

"But when those profits are excessive, and when members of the public are really struggling to pay high energy bills after four years of successive very big increases, I think we are entitled to say as world prices fall the customers should share in that benefit."

Labour's Jim Sheridan (Paisley and Renfrewshire North) demanded immediate cuts, saying: "Now is the time for energy companies such as British Gas to cut their prices to the consumers."

Source: Press Association

A former government advisor has called for an investigation into the profit margins of credit card companies.

Ros Altmann says credit card rates of around 18% are excessive and argues there could be a case for a regulator to oversee the rates they charge.

Credit card customers are now paying the highest interest rates for 12 years, according to financial information service Moneyfacts.

This is despite the fact that base rates are at an all-time low of 0.5%.

The card companies say rates are high because of the large number of people failing to pay their bills during the recession.

The government is currently examining some of the charging methods used by card companies, although there are no plans to look at the level of the rates they charge.

But Ros Altmann says credit card rates cannot be justified and is calling for an enquiry into how the market works.

Source: BBC News

Satisfaction with estate agents has improved, a study has found, but a trade body says an opportunity to regulate the sector has been missed.

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has given a largely clean bill of health to estate agents after a year-long study into standards in the industry.

However, it found a third of sellers were unhappy with their agents' fees.

An estate agents' body criticised the report for failing to suggest "robust" protection for buyers and sellers.

The OFT's report found that:

• most buyers and sellers are satisfied with their estate agent's service

• price competition among estate agents is still weak

• haggling over commission rates could save a buyer £800 when selling a £200,000 home

• existing laws on estate agency make it hard for competitors to use the internet to set up business and drive down prices.

Trevor Kent - a former president of the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) - said that the OFT should have introduced minimum standards of competence for those running an estate agency business.

"A poodle clipper today can be an estate agent tomorrow," he said.

The current chief executive of the NAEA, Peter Bolton King, also criticised the lack of regulation.

"Once again the OFT has categorically failed to see that better regulation of the home buying and selling market is required," he said.

"Buying a home is often the largest single transaction of a person's life and it is disappointing that the OFT has not thought it appropriate to acknowledge that a robust and appropriate level of consumer protection is needed."

Source: BBC News

A team of computer researchers say they have uncovered flaws in the Chip and Pin system which are being exploited by fraudsters to use stolen cards.

The group from the University of Cambridge's Computer Laboratory found that criminals can insert a "wedge" between the stolen card and terminal, tricking it into believing the pin has been correctly verified, when in fact any pin can be used for the transaction to go through. The card meanwhile thinks it was authorised by signature.

Dr Steven Murdoch said: "We have tested this attack against cards issued by most major UK banks. All have been found to be vulnerable."

The discovery is likely to place some question marks over the existing Chip and Pin design and its security.

Victims of this type of fraud may encounter problems obtaining refunds from their banks as the receipt produced states "Verified by Pin".

Professor Ross Anderson said: "Over the past five years, thousands of cardholders have had stolen Chip and Pin cards used by criminals. The banks often tell customers that their pin was used and so it's their fault.

"Yet we've shown that it's easy to use a card without knowing the pin - and the receipt will say the transaction was 'Verified by Pin' even though it wasn't."

"This is not just a failure of bank technology. It's a failure of bank regulation. The ombudsman supported the banks and the regulators have refused to do anything. They were just too eager to believe the banks."

Source: Press Association

Thousands of pensioners may have been issued with the wrong tax code following the introduction of a new computer system at HM Revenue & Customs, it has emerged.

HMRC warned that people who started to claim their state pension during the 2009/2010 tax year may have been given the wrong tax code for this April, meaning they could pay too little or too much tax.

But it does not know how many people have been affected by the problem, and could not say how much people may be overcharged by.

It is also thought married couples and civil partners aged 76 and over could lose their married couples allowance, which was worth up to £6,965 during the current tax year, due to the glitch.

The problem has been caused by the introduction of a new computer system, which combines information on people's National Insurance contributions and the Pay As You Earn scheme for the first time.

In some cases, the system appears not to have information on people leaving jobs, meaning those who have stopped working and started drawing a pension are being treated as if they have two income streams. The problems are also affecting people with more than one job, or those who have changed jobs in the past few years.

The Low Incomes Tax Reform Group said: "Like many new computer systems, the information going in has produced unexpected errors coming out and although HMRC are battling hard to resolve them, they will not totally succeed before tax codes are issued, or even before tax starts to be deducted in April. So out of the millions of pensioner tax codes going out over the next few weeks, a significant number will be incorrect."

An HMRC spokeswoman said: "We are continuing to improve the system and address any issues brought to our attention.

"We accept and very much regret that errors have occurred in some of the notices that have issued but the majority of codes are right. We recognise that some of the data brought forward from previous systems may be inaccurate and we are taking every opportunity to correct that.

"If any customer has concerns about the accuracy of their coding notice they should contact us so that we can review and correct as necessary."

The Revenue has already advised people to check with their tax office to let them know if a code seems to be wrong, or ring 0845 3000 627, so it can be corrected before 6 April 2010.

Source: Press Association

House prices have risen for the seventh consecutive month - rising by 0.6% in January compared with December, the Halifax has said.

The average UK home was valued some 3.6% higher in January than a year earlier, at £169,777.

The figures show the continued trend of rising prices which has helped mortgage providers ease their lending criteria slightly.

However, the Halifax is predicting that prices will stay flat overall in 2010.

The Halifax, which is now owned by the Lloyds Banking Group, said that the average price of a UK home was now 9.9% above its trough in April 2009.

However, housing economist Martin Ellis said that January's rise was more modest than in any of the previous six months. The average rise of the previous six months was 1.1%.

Rising values

The annual rise is calculated using an average of the last three months with the same three months a year earlier.

This has risen sharply owing to the low levels of a year ago. Interest rates have also been at a historically low level, which has inflated prices, Mr Ellis said.

"The marked reduction in interest rates over the past 15 months has, from a low base, boosted housing demand from those with a sufficient deposit to enter the market," he said.

"Increased demand has combined with a low supply of properties available for sale to push up prices."

He added that the state of the economy would be the dominant factor for the future trend for house prices.

However, he said that there were signs that more people were putting up homes for sale, which would curb any future rises.

Source: BBC News