The top 10 Money Moral Dilemmas of 2023 ORIGINAL

We found out we're in a higher council tax band than some bigger, more expensive properties on our street, so asked for our band to be reassessed. We were told it wouldn't be lowered, and were asked to indicate which houses on our street are in a lower band so they could be reassessed! There's not much to be gained by grassing up our neighbours, but we're annoyed we're paying a higher rate when they have larger, pricier homes. Should we say which houses are in a lower band so we might at least one day benefit from the extra council tax paid?

For my birthday, a close relative always gives me two lottery tickets, and I do the same for her. This year, I won a significant amount of money, and I'm not sure whether she might expect me to split it with her, given the reciprocal nature of the exchange. I've considered keeping quiet for six months, then saying the money came from another ticket, so I can share it around the family as I choose. But when I give her tickets, I make a note of the numbers so I can check if she's won, so there's a chance she's done the same. Should I tell her?

I placed an order worth about £50 with a major retailer, which it sent using a courier that is well known for bad service. The order was delivered to the wrong address. After getting no response from the courier, I contacted the retailer, which sent a replacement (using a different courier). The original parcel has since been dumped outside my house. Should I bother arranging a return, or keep both as I'm fed up with firms using terrible couriers and think they should take responsibility for their poor choices?

My wife agreed to be her friend's maid of honour, but the bride has since divulged that the wedding will be in Cyprus. It will cost more than £2,000 to attend, and mutual friends have declined invites because of this, so we won't know anyone else there. Given the bride was my wife's maid of honour, and we got married locally and paid for as much as we could at the time, should we ask the bride and groom to make a contribution towards our costs?

Some friends and I booked to stay in a nice house over New Year's, with me the only single person going. At the last minute, another couple joined us, and it was decided that they'd get my double room overlooking a lake as they're a couple, and I'd sleep on the sofa bed in the TV room as I'm single. I didn't want to kick off about it and spoil the stay, and I did have a good time, but since then no one has mentioned compensating me for not getting the room I paid for. Should I say something?

Four years ago I remortgaged my cottage to help my daughter buy a house, and since then she's been paying me back in monthly instalments. But after her recent wedding we fell out, and she's stopped repaying me. I'm not well and live on a low income, and have started to think the only way to get my money back is to take legal action. Yet her husband has no idea I bought half the house, and I worry that if I do take legal action I'll cause problems in their marriage and she'll never speak to me again. But why should I struggle when they have a decent joint-income?

My other half of eight years earns more than twice what I do, but we both pay the same towards our household bills. With the current high energy prices, splitting bills this way puts me into fuel poverty, as more than 10% of my income is spent on energy. Yet I get no grants or benefits to help with this as my partner's income means that, as a household, we're not eligible. I have very little left over after living expenses, so should I ask my partner to pay more or is it fairer to keep bills 50/50?

Given the massive rise in energy prices over the last couple of years, I've been wondering whether I should ask family and friends to contribute to my bills when they charge their electric cars at my home when they visit. I have a petrol car, and when l visit others I obviously wouldn't ask them to fill it up for me, so I'm not sure what the right thing to do is.

I live in a semi-detached house where the water supply used to be shared with the house next door through a lead pipe. I put in a plastic pipe with a new stopcock to provide water to our house 25 years ago. But the lead pipe (that now only feeds the house next door) passes through my property and has developed a leak. I contacted a plumber who quoted me £650 to repair it. My neighbours are refusing to share the cost, but should I have to pay for it?

For many years, we've socialised as a couple with a large group, which now includes many children of all ages. We're the only couple that don't have kids. We've always split restaurant bills equally, yet now some of the older kids eat more than the grown-ups and soft drinks can cost the same as alcoholic ones. Should we continue to subsidise the others' children, or ask that the bills be divided more fairly and risk causing disharmony in the group?