"It’s cool to have a letters page": Moneywise readers best comments and letters in April 2019

Each month we publish the best comments, emails and letters from our readers the star of which will win a £50 M&S giftcard. Here are the best of April 2019

It’s cool to have a letters page

I picked up Moneywise for the first time recently (March 2019 issue) and I found the magazine to be a great read. It was also very timely, given that I have been considering an Isa recently.

The article on cinema savings was interesting. I did have a Cineworld card, but I just wasn’t finding compelling films to watch on a regular basis. However, with the savings mentioned in the article, such as the Vue savings every Monday, I imagine I’ll save a lot for some time to come (I only really like watching superhero and/or ghost films at the cinema).

The energy-saving article was informative, too. Little things like that really do matter, and I would never have considered those ideas.

And it’s always great to see a letters page in a publication. So many magazines now don’t bother to have letters columns. I think even in the age of internet forums and social media chat, it’s pretty cool to see a letters page. Long may it continue. Overall, a very accessible read, I only wish I had discovered the magazine sooner. Always the way, eh? Finance can risk being a dry subject, but there was absolutely nothing dry about the Moneywise articles. Quite the reverse, in fact.

Very happy to be on board as a new reader.

SP/via email

No time for Cash Isas

Ahead of the end of the last tax year, Moneywise highlighted eight tips to help you avoid losing out on the annual Isa allowance.

In response to this a reader wrote:

I would suggest avoiding all that unnecessary ‘administration’ by simply saying sign up with an investment platform.

That way, you can do it online, no form to fill in every year, no cheques, no messing with banks and a wide range of investments.

Save by regular instalments and you can completely ignore the so-called ‘Isa season’ and all the silly hype around it, as well as gaining from pound cost averaging.

I have no time for Cash Isas either.

DH/via site comments

Moneywise says: We agree with DH, investing online is a simple and effective way to build up a nest egg for the future. However, there is still a place for Cash Isas and savings accounts, especially for shorter-term savings plans.

Why did it take so long to ban exit fees?

In mid-March, the financial regulator the Financial Conduct Authority announced plans to ban the fees on leaving an investment platform.

One reader took issue:

Why do these regulators take years to do the right thing? It should have been done and dusted years ago, including reducing management fees for safe, non-volatile investments that, by definition, don’t get moved around.

How do these managers justify charging the same amount as the more strictly managed ones?

Maybe the regulators will look at this issue, after the current tranche of managers have made their kill at investors’ expense, in 50 years’ time!

MA/via site comments

Cheaper bills – but only for new-build owners

In March, Chancellor Philip Hammond announced plans to ban the use of carbon fuel boilers in new homes after 2025. This drew the ire of many readers. One commented:

So they plan to reduce the bills for those people who can afford shiny new homes…

Meanwhile the existing gas-supply grid will have fewer people using it, but will still need maintaining. The cost of heating and cooking will soar beyond belief for the rest of the population who are unable to buy a new home and are struggling to pay rent and mortgages on properties they cannot afford to retrofit.

If the government has their way, we won’t even be able to cook a meal at a reasonable cost.

LJ/via site comments

Not another firm with a credit card

On 25 March, tech firm Apple announced it was entering the financial services market with the introduction of a credit card that it said would “help customers lead a healthier financial life”.

One reader commented:

I’m sick of hearing the phrase “helping customers take control of their financial lives”.

I am in control of my financial life already and I don’t need apps or an Apple credit card dedicated to a mobile phone.

Come to think of it, that includes any other credit card linked to a phone!

HD/via site comments

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