Between 0% deals on balance transfers, purchases and general stoozing, the number of credit cards you acquire can build up quickly. The more credit cards you have, the more organised you have to be to ensure that each credit card is paid on time each month and you don’t rack up any of those dreaded late payment charges.

It is possible to juggle a large number of credit cards easily – it just takes a little organisation and planning. So, here at MoneyTowers, we have put together our guide to helping you manage your mountain of credit cards.  Read more... (641 words, estimated 2:34 mins reading time)

It’s nearly the fifth anniversary of Child Trust Funds, having been introduced on 2nd September 2002. Child Trust Funds (CTFs) are started with a £250 or £500 deposit from the State, depending on the financial status of the parents. Parents, relatives and friends can then top the CTF account up with £1,200 a year. The money is either held in a cash savings account or in a stock market-linked fund. The money is tax-free until the child reaches the age of 18.  Read more... (286 words, estimated 1:09 mins reading time)

Millions of pounds have been left untouched in dormant bank and building society accounts. However, the government has plans to tap in on this dormant money and put it to use in good causes.

What is a Dormant Account?
The term dormant account can apply to money in bank accounts, building society accounts, NS&I accounts and bonds. It refers to money which has not been touched in a given period of time. The money may not have been touched because the account holder has died, the account holder has forgotten about the account, or just because they no longer wish to use that particular account.  Read more... (717 words, estimated 2:52 mins reading time)

Chip and pin celebrated it’s 1 year anniversary yesterday. Chip and pin was heralded as a great tool to aid people in fighting card fruad – in fact, it was meant to all but eradicate fraud. However, scammers have managed to get around chip and pin and find ways to scam customers.

Last week, two men were jailed for five years after they tampered with a chip and pin machine at a Shell garage to allow them to copy details from a customer’s card along with their PIN. Over 200 people were caught by this particular scam. However, authorities have said that they know of 42 machines which have been tampered with, showing that this sort of crime is very widespread.  Read more... (315 words, estimated 1:16 mins reading time)

Many people with the option of travelling by train or car will often pick to choose by car, not just because of the convenience, but also because of the price. In fact, Passenger Focus claims that just 41% of rail users are satisfied with the cost of rail fares, and a massive 70% of leisure passengers will choose to travel by car rather than rail because of the price.

With air fares often being cheaper than rail fares even when booking in advance, and coach fares even cheaper, and some rail fares marching past the £200 mark – a fare which could easily be spent on an entire holiday instead – it’s easy to see why rail is not always the first choice for people.  Read more... (416 words, estimated 1:40 mins reading time)

Teach them young and get them into good financial habits early, and it’s more likely that your children will grow up to be financially savvy. Starting their savings young can also be a big bonus for them when they reach adulthood – the money can go towards things which they need which they may not otherwise have been able to afford, such as a new car, university fees or a deposit for their first house.

Getting children involved at a low level is an excellent thing to do – school-leavers currently are not taught financial planning and know little about interest rates and credit and so often will not make the most of their finances.  Read more... (942 words, estimated 3:46 mins reading time)

There is a lot negative publicity about payment protection insurance, however it can be useful for providing short-term financial protection of your debts. You will most likely be offered PPI when you take out a loan, mortgage or credit card however you can actually shop around and get PPI from a cheaper source. Watch out for PPI when you are signing up for any financial product – it is often automatically included with just a small checkbox to opt out.  Read more... (500 words, estimated 2:00 mins reading time)