Despite the ongoing cost of living squeeze, Brits are expected to spend a record £94 billion this festive season. The Christmas splurge is almost 3% more than last year but according to a leading consumer expert this is probably more to do with rising prices than people feeling generous.

With fewer than 70 shopping days until Christmas – or two pay days – you might be tempted by the interest free benefits of ‘buy now, pay later’ deals to help you with spreading the cost of your Christmas shopping. And getting the presents bought early might save you a lot of time and stress as you avoid long queues and rammed car parks.

Our consumer champion and founder of the Lady Janey blog Jane Hawkes, says businesses need to put people before processes as National Customer Service Week highlights the importance of getting customer service right Good customer service should make life easier, not leave customers…

As households face another rise in energy prices, our consumer expert, Jane Hawkes, who runs the consumer advice website www.ladyjaney.co.uk, shares her ten checks everyone should be making to help keep their bills down. The changes coming into force on 1st October make now the right time to give your energy account a five-minute MOT.

Jane Hawkes, the ‘Queen of Customer Service’ who runs the consumer advice website www.ladyjaney.co.uk says repeated posting on social media puts your complaint at risk of being lost and puts you at risk of scams. Jane suggests we get off social media to be successful when *one* makes a complaint.

Our consumer advice expert has shared the signs which point towards the tricks most criminals use to fool Brits into falling for their scams.

The UK housing market has edged past a symbolic £300,000 average price mark, but new analysis suggests the milestone masks a far more cautious reality. Halifax’s latest House Price Index places the average property at £300,077 in January, up 0.7% on the month. Annual growth, however, stands at just 1.0%, with quarterly growth at 0.1%.

With the cost of living still biting many households, and projections of declining disposable incomes for the rest of the decade, many people are looking at ways of making extra cash. And around half of UK adults now have a second job, or a ‘side hustle’. Whilst average earnings are often modest, at around £200 a week, others can do well enough that it becomes their main form of income.

With the new energy price cap coming on the 1st April, many people will be thinking of switching their energy provider to benefit from the best deals. The switching itself is the easy part as your new supplier will organise the transfer for you. The more difficult bit is ensuring you’ve switched to the right provider.

Our consumer expert Jane Hawkes has shared her advice on dealing with delivery firms. Her tips come as delivery disasters become an increasing irritant of modern life. According to OFCOM, who regulate parcel deliveries, Evri and Yodel customers are the least satisfied with their experience when it comes to contacting parcel firms for help. Amazon and DHL are the best performers.

January is always a really hard month for everybody due to the aftermath of the overspend of Christmas. That January pay slip also always seems to take much longer to arrive. “It’s little wonder then that many people end up with the blues at this time of the month. “But as hard as it is, January can also be the springboard to financial change by adopting a few changes.