Welcome to the Money blog, Sky News’ personal finance and consumer hub. Today, we speak to a hair stylist in our Monday careers feature, we report on a warning for pensioners earning over \u00a335,000, and we’ll have updates on car finance compensation.
Monday 4 August 2025 21:06, UK
Average quoted home insurance prices are falling due to increased competition in the market, an index has found.
Premiums have fallen by 7.9% on average over the past year and by 3.9% over the past quarter, insurance market insights provider Consumer Intelligence said.
Customers were most commonly quoted between \u00a3150 and \u00a3199, with 29% of quotes falling within that range.
In June, 62.5% of consumers could potentially source quotes for less than \u00a3200, compared with 56% a year ago.
“There is a greater array of choice for consumers – 75% of the best prices in the market came from nine brands in June 2025, up from six in the previous year,” Laura Vas, senior insight analyst at Consumer Intelligence, said.
The biggest fall in prices is in the North East, with premiums down by 10.5%.
The South West has had the smallest decrease, at 2%.
Here are the average annual falls in quoted premiums across nations and regions in June… <\/p>\n
Tesla hands almost $30bn in shares to Musk<\/b>
Tesla has awarded chief executive Elon Musk $29bn in shares to ensure he stays at its helm.
The award is designed to gradually boost Musk’s voting power, something he and shareholders have consistently said was key to keeping him focused on Tesla – after a controversial stint as an adviser to Donald Trump.
Musk is fighting a court ruling that voided his original $50bn pay deal for being unfair to shareholders in 2024.
Dishoom crosses the pond<\/b>
Dishoom will open its first US store after securing investment from luxury goods conglomerate LVMH, whose brands include Louis Vuitton and Moet Hennessy.
The Indian restaurant, which launched in London in 2010, has allowed LVMH partner L Catterton to take an undisclosed stake in the business.
The American branch will open in 2026, while back across the pond, Dishoom’s first Glasgow restaurant – and 12th overall – will open on 29 August.
Ottolenghi rolls out Waitrose ice cream<\/b>
Chef Yotam Ottolenghi is debuting three ice cream flavours with Waitrose.
Madagascan vanilla and miso salted caramel, roasted pistachio and sour cherry swirl, and coffee and cardamom will be available in freezers from 4 August.
The 500ml tubs cost \u00a36 each.
Sky News is keen to hear from people who are due to refix their mortgages this year, are on variable rates or are trying to get on the housing ladder.
Send us a message on Whatsapp here<\/a> or email your stories to sky.today@sky.uk.<\/a>
Our weekend long read exploring if, when and how much parents should charge their kids rent drew a lot of comments from readers.
Some were emphatic in thinking it’s a terrible idea, some thought it was more complicated than that and others appeared to still be holding on to some childhood trauma…
Children paying ‘rent’ is just mental – don’t have them, this is like something out of Dickens.
LordCrumb<\/b>
You bring a child into this world (no choice of their own). What happened to love in the family, nurturing and caring for your children until they are at an age where they can fend for themselves?
Takis<\/b>
The person who gave birth to me still charged me ‘rent’ even though I wasn’t living there for five months over the summer season. Her reason? The mortgage still needs paying. Truly despicable person.
Paul<\/b>
Some were so vexed they forgot to turn off caps lock…
NO CHILD SHOULD PAY RENT, I STARTED CONTRIBUTING TOWARDS BILLS WHEN I STARTED WORKING, NOT BEFORE.
Barry9<\/b>
These readers had a different take…
Children should pay rent once they turn 18. If they earn and want to contribute before 18, then that should be their choice.
Luco<\/b>
I was never asked to contribute as I was an only child in a middle class family. However, my husband was the middle one of five in a working class family in the early 40s. At age nine he got a paper round paying 10 shillings a week and gave five shillings for his keep.
moya.day<\/b>
When I started work my father charged me and sister 25% of our take home pay ‘for bills’. Both of us weren’t very happy but when we left home we were used to paying our way. I did the same for my son and it helped him to budget when he left home. Some 20 years later my dad returned it.
Sensible Parent<\/b>
I “charge” my son \u00a346 a week for rent – because as I only have a state pension income and renting, therefore claiming housing benefit which has a non-dependent charge. This is calculated as my son’s gross income is between between \u00a3183 and \u00a3265.99. No choice.
Scotbox<\/b>
Doubts have been raised over the fairness of a potential scheme to redress motor finances.
The head of the Finance and Leasing Association said he had “concerns” about whether consumers or firms would still have the paperwork needed.
Cases go back to 2007, but firms have not been required to hold such dated information.
“The evidence base will be patchy at best,” said FLA director general Stephen Haddrill.
“We have concerns about whether it is possible to have a fair redress scheme.”
The Financial Conduct Authority said it would consult on an industry-wide compensation scheme for customers of motor finance firms that did not provide information about a commission paid by lenders to the car dealers who sold the loans.
If the compensation scheme goes ahead, the first payments should be made in 2026.
The regulator estimates most people will receive less than \u00a3950 in compensation.
Think you have a claim?<\/b>
The FCA says people who have already complained do not need to do anything.
Consumers who are concerned they were not told about commission and think they may have paid too much should complain now.
People do not need to use a claims management company or law firm and doing so could cost them around 30% of any compensation paid, the FCA warns.
A third of UK adults admit to sneaking off early from work on a Friday, according to Virgin Media data.
More than 60% feel they’ve earned an early start to the weekend after a hard week, and 59% don’t feel guilty about doing it, a survey by the broadband provider found.
One in 10 people say they’ve worked from a pub garden on a summer Friday, while 15% say they’ve worked from a train station.
Nearly a third (30%) say they have a formal early Friday finish in place during the summer.
But despite almost half of adults saying they’re not authorised to finish early on a Friday, 32% say they regularly log off with or without official permission.
Not everyone feels the benefit of an early finish, with more than a third saying they often plan to log off early on Fridays but end up working late.
Do you sneak in an early finish on a Friday without telling your boss? And are there any other techniques for skiving you’ve heard about (and of course would never indulge in yourself)? Let us know in the comments – or take part in our polls on YouTube<\/a> and LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/b>
People are rejecting pay rises, turning down promotions and asking to work fewer hours so they don’t breach the \u00a3100,000 threshold for 30 hours of free childcare from September, experts say.
Only one parent has to earn above that threshold to lose out on childcare support from the state. But two parents can earn \u00a370,000 each, for example, and still be eligible.
A parent in London with two children at nursery from September would need to earn more than \u00a3149,000 to compensate, according to analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
The \u00a3100,000 threshold was introduced in 2017 and hasn’t changed since, meaning more people are passing it each year and finding themselves significantly worse off.
We’ll have all the details in the Money blog next week and want to hear from you ahead of publication. Have you been affected by this threshold and if so, what are you doing about it? Email moneyblog@sky.uk over the weekend and we’ll be in touch.
Pensioners who earn more than \u00a335,000 can avoid a “tax headache” by opting out of the winter fuel payment, a leading tax advice firm says.
Most people of state pension age get the payment of between \u00a3100 and \u00a3300 towards heating bills automatically, but if your income is more than \u00a335,000, HMRC will take it back.
To do so, HMRC will change your tax code for the 2026-27 tax year or add the amount to your 2025-26 self assessment tax return.
To avoid this, you can opt out of the payment – but you need to do it by 15 September.
John Havard, a consultant at Blick Rothenberg, said: “The default is that any age qualified individual will receive the winter fuel payment.
“But a “wealthier” individual with an income over \u00a335,000 will be subject to a tax clawback, where the WFP they receive is required to be returned to the government. Given this will be a complex process, and just \u00a31 of income above the \u00a335,000 limit is enough to trigger a clawback, those in favour of a simple life will need to opt out of WFP before the deadline.”
How can you opt out of the payment? <\/b>
You can opt out of the payment on the gov.uk<\/a> website. You must live in England, Wales or Northern Ireland to do so.
You can also contact the Winter Fuel Payment Centre via the telephone or post to opt out.
You’ll need to provide your name, address, national insurance number and date of birth.
Those affected by the car finance scandal do not need to use a claims firm.
Any compensation scheme will be easy to participate in, without drivers needing to use a claims management company or law firm.
The Financial Conduct Authority has warned motorists that doing so could end up costing you 30% of any compensation in fees.
Martin Lewis echoed these sentiments in an interview with Sky News.
“They’re hardly going to do anything for you and you might get the money paid to you automatically anyway, in which case you’re giving them 30% for nothing,” he said.
You may be affected if you bought a car under a finance scheme, including hire purchase agreements, before 28 January 2021.
Anyone who has already complained does not need to do anything.
The FCA added: “Consumers concerned that they were not told about commission, and who think they may have paid too much for the finance, should complain now”.
Its website advises drivers to complain to their finance provider first.
If you’re unhappy with the response, you can then contact the Financial Ombudsman.
Sky News has launched a free Money newsletter – bringing the kind of content you enjoy in the Money blog directly to your inbox.
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This week, we reveal which brand of instant Americano coffee – from supermarket own brands to Nescafe and Costa – came out on top with our blind taste testers.
We’ll also have tips on saving big money on your kids’ school uniform ahead of the new term next month.
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