Press Association

Around 15,000 savers with the UK arm of stricken Cypriot bank Laiki will have their deposits protected under British rules and will escape the Cyprus banking levy, it was announced today.

House prices recorded an annual increase this month for the first time in more than a year, with some areas of the UK showing strong signs of recovery, according to Nationwide.

Around 2.4 million families in England face an average hike in their council tax bills of £138 next week, according to an anti-poverty charity.

The Government has warned energy companies that the current cold weather is "no excuse" for putting up electricity and gas bills.

A minister from the Government department responsible for energy policy has insisted current high gas prices show "our market's working".

Savers in Cyprus with under €100,000 (£85,000) have been spared from a Cypriot government tax by a last-minute EU deal.

Mortgage approvals for house purchases fell to their lowest level in seven months in February, industry figures showed today.

Low-cost airlines, estate agents and gyms are among businesses which face being taken to court over hidden charges under proposals put forward by legal reform bodies.

Tougher action is needed to stop people being plagued by firms pushing them to make payment protection insurance (PPI) and personal injury claims, consumer campaigners said today.

Inflation slipped to 3.2% last month, largely due to falling food prices, the Office of National Statistics announced today.

Private rents in England and Wales fell slightly for the fourth month in a row in February, as a more vibrant sales market eased some of the strain on housing, a lettings network says.

The average price of petrol at the pumps has reached the 140p-per-litre mark again, the AA has said today.

Used cars bought from independent dealers drew the highest number of complaints from disgruntled consumers in the last year, according to new figures.

Tenants facing soaring rents are resorting to drastic measures such as using payday loans and dipping into their children's savings just to hang on to their homes, a charity warned today.

Millions of NatWest and Royal Bank of Scotland customers will be able to send payments to anyone with a Visa card by using their mobile phones.

UK house sales reached their highest level in more than two and-a-half years last month as confidence continued to return to the market, surveyors said today.