A new credit card from Halifax could help holidaymakers save money while they are on their travels.

The firm’s Clarity card will not charge a foreign exchange fee on any transaction or a cash withdrawal fee when used abroad, meaning savings for anyone leaving British shores.

Other benefits of the card include no balance transfer fee and no annual fee, while a rate of 12.9 per cent APR applies to all transactions including purchases, balance transfers and cash withdrawals.

Mark Powys of Halifax Credit Cards said: “Our research shows that three quarters of holidaymakers would be more likely to use a credit card abroad if they knew they wouldn’t incur any fees.

“The Halifax Clarity card is the best value option for customers planning their holiday budget, and with no cash fees and a single low rate however you use the card it’s a winner at home too.”

Another way in which holidaymakers can save money is to use prepaid cards, which not only provide an alternative to travellers’ cheques, but can also help to cut costs on budget airline flights . Read full article…

A lot of advice on savings focuses on little, day-to-day things: Making your own coffee instead of buying Starbucks; buying generic instead of brand-name; eating out less; and occasionally biking instead of taking the car.

That’s fine, and it can help trim the fat from your budget. But for real savings, it’s often necessary to step back, look at your life holistically and ask yourself some painful questions.

Books like Jeff Yeager’s The Ultimate Cheapskate’s Road Map to True Riches and Thomas Stanley’s classic The Millionaire Next Door point out that it’s big decisions that save big money.

Instead of trading down to a cheaper car, what would happen if you sold your car and took the train or biked? Read full article…

Financial reform bill brings sweeping changes for consumers.

Consumers that have found themselves deeply in debt thanks to the recession are about to receive some help from the federal government.

Thanks to the new financial reform bill, which passed the Senate with a 60-39 vote and only awaits the signature of President Barack Obama to make it law, Americans are going to get more safety from the predatory practices of lenders in the form of a new body which will oversee these banks.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which will operate as part of the Federal Reserve System, will have unprecedented power to govern the rates and fees lenders issue on everything from credit cards to mortgages. Read full article…

Four banks currently being sued as part of a huge class action to recover alleged unfair fees could face further legal action if they do not supply information vital to the case by the end of the week.

Commonwealth Bank and its subsidiary BankWest, ANZ and the Bank of Queensland have all been served notice to comply with law firm Maurice Blackburn’s May 31st written request by Friday (July 16th) or face action in the Federal Court, the Herald Sun reported.

“We intend to institute proceedings promptly unless we get satisfactory responses by the end of the week,” said Andrew Watson, principal of Maurice Blackburn.

The law firm is currently targeting 12 banks on behalf of litigation funders IMF Australia and Financial Redress for what they argue are excessive punitive fees on transaction and credit card accounts since 2004.

Maurice Blackburn is aiming to launch the first of several class actions against individual banks in six weeks but is currently assessing which actions should be pursued against specific banks. T Read full article…

The “wage gap” between men and women – often said to be the equivalent of women earning 77 cents for each dollar a man earns – turns out to be a little more complicated, according to figures from the Labor Department. In terms of median weekly earnings for full-time workers in 2009, women aged 45 to 55 fared the worst, earning only 73.6 percent of equivalent men’s earnings.

For women aged 25-34, on the other hand, the gap was much smaller, at 88.7 percent of their male peers’ earnings, and women aged 20-24 had the best situation of any female demographic, pulling in 92.9 percent of the earnings of men in their age group.

While the pay gap will remain galling for women (and men) young and old, the Labor Department figures suggest that improvement may be on the way. Read full article…