INSIDE

July 2011

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REGULARS 5 Welcome 17 Savings Watch The best deals on the market this month 18 Fight for Your Rights Got a financial problem? Moneywise will take up the fight on your behalf

COLUMNISTS 21 Editor’s letter Looks like we’re in for another three years of pain 29 George Pitcher Let’s stop pretending banks care about us 31 Jeff Prestridge Don’t put your trust in the big banks 96 That’s Life with Esther Rantzen You can’t put a price on a lovely garden UPFRONT6YourShout 11 Steal of the Month 16 Moneywise Housing Market Round-up SORTED! 22 Money Makeover 24 Your Finances Fixed COMPETITIONS 30 WIN a two-night stay in a Cheshire hotel 46 WIN £1,000 to invest for your children

The high street banks should watch their backs: supermarkets are muscling in on their game scam

32 Supermarkets: the new banks? You could soon be loading your shopping trolley with groceries, toilet rolls – and a mortgage 38 A little promiscuity pays Savvy ‘rate tarts’ keep switching their savings accounts to make sure they are always on the best deals

41 Five insurance rip-offs You can buy cover for everything you can think of, but which policies do you really need? Here are the ones to avoid 42 The postcode lottery Ever been refused cover or quoted sky-high premiums for no reason? It could be your postcode talking work

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Where you live can affect your insurance premiums

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Which one’s for you: knuckling down for a boss or risking everything to set up on your own?

How much risk you can bear before investing leaves you tossing in your bed at night?

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47 Five-minute guide How to avoid those DIY disasters 48 Cowboys banged to rights Tell that dodgy tradesman: “see you in court”. We guide you through the process 51 Tenants and landlords beware Rogue letting agents are the sharks of the rental world, taking your fees with very little to show for it 54 Family feuds Money is the root of many bitter family rows but a sound financial plan can ensure sweet harmony

65 Investment News The FSA clamps down on structured products 66 The Briefing We look at the Balanced Managed sector 69 Buy, Hold, Sell

PSigma’s Bill Mott reveals his top picks 70 Investing for all ages The second part of our series looks at investing at 40 74 Gambling vs investing We pit a professional gambler against the market: can he turn a bigger profit than an investor? 76 Do you dare? All investment involves a little danger: but do you know your appetite for risk?

59 Whose side is HR on? Your human resources manager should help sort out your problems at work, but bear in mind who pays their wages 60 Fancy going it alone? We look at the pros and cons of both working for a boss and taking the self-employment route work

79 Easing the pension pain

Ros Altmann’s radical prescription for the pensions crisis 81 Retirement idyll An easy life in the sun is not out of reach but careful planning is the key to realising your dream scam

63 Andrew Pitts scam

Don’t let Russia’s reputation put you off: its stockmarkets have been star performers over the past decade

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85 The best products at your fingertips

Our pick of the top products and funds for consumers and investors

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