New Jersey based car rental provider, Avis , is introducing a cheap weekly rental package for its UK clients. British customers can expect to rent a vehicle from £126 which means that a car can be hired for a daily rate of £18. Compact cars will be available from £136 per week and larger carriers from £150.

To benefit from Avis’ new vehicle hire offer, customers must reserve their car between the dates of the 26th May and the 30th June 2008 . The full term of the hire must also end before 30th June 2008. Additionally, cars must be hired for between 3 and 27 days, consecutively.

Those seeking to take advantage of the deal will find that carrying out bookings online will save time. The car agency requires 24 hours notice prior to collection and full payment is required at the time when the booking is made.

The leading car company has approximately 4000 branches worldwide.

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Insurance company , Zurich, has said that DIY enthusiasts should ensure that they have adequate insurance before they engage in any household repair jobs. It is estimated that unsuccessful attempts to improve home fixtures are costing UK homeowners up to £1.5 billion annually. The insurance giant also claimed that around 16% of homeowners were unable to correct their disastrous efforts without assistance.

As a result of this DIY chaos, many homeowners have had to call in professionals to fix their home improvement experiments. Zurich have also found that over 70% of DIY chancers have no idea if they have enough insurance cover for their ‘work’ if it goes wrong. The research also revealed that nearly 50% of DIY amateurs do not inform their insurers if they or their partners are engaged in substantial DIY jobs.

The Alliance and Leicester bank claimed that a majority of DIY repairs were inspired by tv shows and it cost an average of £11,000 to conduct home improvement work.

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The UK’s largest building society, Nationwide, has revealed that it saw a 40% dip in mortgage lending in the last 12 months. Analysts believe the latest figures are another sign that the credit crisis is continuing to have a detrimental impact on the housing sector. The mortgage lender has also decided to concentrate on altering its financial products to attract savers as opposed to those customers that are applying for mortgages.

A Nationwide spokesman commented on the unpredictability of the housing market and said that the building society would adopt a cautious approach to mortgage lending . The lender has made a strategic business decision to reduce its involvement in the mortgage market as the housing sector was becoming too unstable.

Previously , the Council of Mortgage Lenders, had predicted that the housing market would suffer its most serious decline since the 1970’s.

The economic slowdown has also led to building societies’ experiencing difficulty in raising capital.

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Software powerhouse ‘Microsoft, has unveiled plans to reduce the price of its Windows Mobile phone. Current models are available for under $100. The computer giant is set to release a new handset that will also retail at under $100.

Microsoft is being forced to respond to the imminent release of Apple inc’s 3G phone and a reduction in cost of its current iPhone device. The legendary Blackberry is also proving to be hard to displace in the mobile phone market.

Industry experts now believe that standard mobile phones will be replaced by smartphones. The speed at which high tech features are being integrated into mobile phones has led to consumers discarding ‘regular’ mobile phones. Market research has also shown that phone users are now expecting more technology on their mobile phones for cheaper prices.

It is predicted that smartphone sales will increase to nearly 15 million units in 2008, in comparison to the 7 million that were sold last year.

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Energywatch, the energy watchdog, has accused power suppliers of monopolizing the energy market which has resulted in consumers paying higher prices for gas and electricity.

A spokesman for Energywatch stated that the UK energy market was now dominated by 6 large providers ( British Gas, EDF, Scottish Power, SSE, E.ON and nPower ), which contrasts with 10 years ago when there were 20 suppliers. The spokesman also added that British Gas often takes the lead in hiking prices and other suppliers do likewise. A representative of British Gas rejected Energywatch’s claims and stated that nPower was the first to raise its prices this year.

The watchdog also alleged that the lack of competition in the market has meant that suppliers are no longer motivated to produce value for money products for their customers.

As more families feel the impact of the credit crisis, energy providers are facing increasing scrutiny of their pricing practices. A number of leading charities have also reported that fuel poverty cases are on the rise.

A parliamentary committee is currently investigating allegations of price-rigging between the providers and is expected to report on its findings after hearing evidence from a variety of sources in the energy industry. However, there is currently no direct evidence of collusion between these giant companies.

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The well publicized drive to raise public awareness in environmental issues has led to consumers increasing expenditure ,on ethical products, to nearly £30 billion. But despite this widespread publicity approximately only one percent of UK consumers have contractually agreed to environmentally friendly energy tariffs.

There is no set explanation for consumers failure to commit to more green and carbon saving payment methods. It may well be that a lack of clarity on these environmental packages could have resulted in consumers opting for other types of tariff. Despite power suppliers declarations that they are increasingly ‘green’ and ethical in their operations, the nature of their business means that they need to expend huge amounts of energy to get their products to consumers.

However, not all consumers have access to solar panels and other energy saving devices and will have to make do with the energy saving tariffs that are currently offered by providers.
There are three types of green tariff.

Green electricity – this type of electricity is supplied by an energy provider that guarantees it will purchase a green unit of energy for every unit that is bought by a consumer
Green Fund – energy providers use this type of tariff to invest in innovative ways of developing green electricity.

Carbon Offset – this tariff is aimed at reducing the carbon footprint of the UK population by producing natural ways of offsetting carbon dioxide production.

Consumers are largely unaware of the existence of these green tariffs which energy providers are legally required to subscribe to. Unfortunately, there is no method of proving energy providers assertions that they are as green as they say they are.

Energywatch, the energy watchdog, currently provides a ‘green tariff’ guide for consumers.

The government funded non-profit organization, Energysavingtrust ,also provides sound advice on energy conservation practices.

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Finnish telecommunications company ,Nokia ,has agreed a deal with Europe’s largest photography company ,CeWe Color, to launch a new copying service. The Nokia Xpress Print feature will enable owners of the Nokia Nseries mobiles to print photographs directly from their handset. Photos can be delivered to any European destination within 72 hours.

The Nseries handsets can contain 5 megapixels of high tech armoury which will allow the device to deliver high definition pictures. Phone users will also be able to have their photo content replicated on cards and other items.

Another phone giant ,Samsung, has launched the Guru 200 which allows users to record music from its FM radio feature and convert it into ringtones. However, owners will be unable to record more than 5 minutes of radio content. The device which replaces the Guru 100 also comes with mobile tracking and game functions.

Mobile phone providers are continuing their battle for dominance in the mobile phone market by adding an increasing number of gadgets to their products, which can only be good news for consumers.

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Finance giant,Citibank, has axed nearly seven hundred jobs as it moved to close major sections of its operations that focus on loans.

Nearly 400 of these jobs will be axed from its Sunderland base which will face complete closure within the next 12 months.

The financial sector shows no signs of recovery from the current credit crisis and the Citibank group appears to be unwilling to issue loans to new customers. Major credit corporations are now imposing stricter measures in a bid to reduce any involvement in risky investments

The loan arm of the corporation, which has almost 100,000 customers, will relocate any associated administrative functions to another area of the company.

The beleaguered group recently announced that it had offloaded nearly 50 branches of its New York operations to Irish investors for a sum of $100 million.

Citigroup also released details of plans to dispose of a further $400 billion of assets in order to regain some kind of financial stability and increase revenue.

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Analysts within the housing sector have revealed that the onset of the credit crunch has resulted in a steep rise in mortgage rates. Research shows that the financial burden placed on householders who are unable to keep up with repayments is causing thousands of consumers to remortgage their homes as they seek alternatives to their current mortgage package.

Financial body, The Council of Mortgage Lenders, has predicted that over 40,000 homeowners will suffer from having their properties repossessed in 2008.

The pressure for homeowners is compounded by official figures which reveal that inflation has risen to 3% ,which is the highest increase in over 5 years. The Bank of England is now unlikely to cut interest rates as inflation now costs the average family around £600 annually.

According to industry experts, borrowers should seek out the best mortgage deals by searching the internet to compare rates. Thousands of pounds can be saved by switching mortgage packages. Homeowners are also advised to think seriously about arranging mortgage insurance to cover the costs of repayments if they fall out of employment.

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Holiday sector companies are showing signs of resistance to the effects of the current credit crunch. Major tour operators are now reporting that their profits are remaining relatively untroubled by the economic malaise that is creating market instability in other industries. Giant travel corporation ,Thomas Cook , has also stated that its quarterly results are on target.

The travel industry was expected to be hit by the global economic slowdown as consumers begin to curb their spending habits in the face of financial hardship. However, holidaymakers are proving that they are not yet willing to give up on their vacations.

Some industry analysts, predict that tour operators will be unable to maintain their current profitability and the financial outlook will be bleak when the sector feels the full impact of the oncoming recession. Additionally, the continued unpredictability of the oil market will have an adverse affect the price of fuel and lead to a steep, rise in the cost of holiday packages.

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