2019

Owners of all but the most carbon-efficient cars will pay more vehicle tax this year, with inflation-linked rises kicking in from Monday 1 April – and van and motorcycle rates are also going up.

The Government has announced it is selling off 66,000 mortgages and unsecured loans originally held by NRAM, formerly part of failed lender Northern Rock. 

Nationwide Building Society is to close applications for its 5% regular savings account. If you're a Nationwide current account holder and wish to open one, you must do so before 11.59pm on Friday 5 April.

Thousands of former customers of failed energy providers Iresa and Extra Energy have been told they'll be contacted by debt collectors – but many dispute the amount they've been told they owe.

Most broadband and home phone customers will be automatically compensated for loss of service, delayed installations or missed appointments, under an agreement struck between the biggest telecoms providers and the industry watchdog.

Unhappy customers who have used claims management firms will be able to escalate their complaints to the financial ombudsman from today, as the sector will now be regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. 

A new wave of price hikes have hit, from council tax and prescriptions to energy and broadband - but there are still plenty of ways to cut these bills. 

Update: 12.01pm, Mon 1 April: Ooops, this story isn't correct. Sorry, we made a FOOL of ourselves by publishing it... The national smart meter rollout has been temporarily halted after ministers raised concerns that newer devices were becoming "too smart for their own good" and in some cases could take control of other networked household electronics such as TVs, radios and speaker systems.

Millions of workers have received a pay rise today as the national minimum wages rises kick in.

Passengers will no longer have to pay to spend a penny in the busiest train stations, as all toilets in Network Rail-operated stations are free to use from today.