World Leaks

Q) FLIXBUS is refusing to refund me and my wife £115 after it let us board a coach in Slovenia travelling to Germany instead of Croatia.

We were waiting in Ljubljana, Slovenia for a coach to Umag in Croatia – the service 943.

When a 943 service finally showed up half an hour late, we boarded and asked if it was the right bus and the driver nodded, scanned our tickets and let us board.

But we later found out it was going to Munich, Germany, 350 miles in the wrong direction.

Flixbus has refused to take responsibility, but I feel the driver should have told us it was the wrong bus when we gave him our tickets to board.

Can you help us get some compensation?

Stuart McCulloch, Edinburgh

A)WHAT a nightmare you had when you realised you were on a bus heading to Munich, Germany, 350 miles away from your intended destination of Umag in Croatia.

You arrived at Llublana bus station 20 minutes early and waited for 50 minutes before a Flixbus coach labelled service 943, the service you needed, finally showed up.

As no other 943 buses had come and gone, you assumed it was yours and handed your tickets to the driver, and you asked if it was the right bus.

They nodded and scanned your tickets before allowing you to board – without mentioning it was a 943 service going in the other direction.

A little while into the journey, you realised you were going the wrong way and asked the driver, who then confirmed you were on the wrong bus.

You got off the coach in Bled, Slovenia, around 55km North of Ljubljana, and contacted Flixbus for help – but no one responded.

Eventually, you managed to get another bus back to Ljubljana, and then booked another coach to Umag a few hours later.

Having already lost the £43 you paid for your original tickets, you forked out another £75 for the new tickets, plus £10 to get back to Ljubljana from Bled.

You were hopeful you would at least get a refund for the original unused tickets.

But when you eventually got through to Flixbus, it said your case was “an exception, not the standard” and refused to take any responsibility for what happened.

It eventually agreed to refund you £13 after deducting various fees. But this meant you were still £115 out of pocket.

When I spoke with Flixbus, it acknowledged that the driver should have told you it was the wrong 943 service when you asked and showed your tickets.

It did say it looked like your original bus had departed and couldn’t explain why you hadn’t seen it come and go.

But, it has now agreed to refund all your extra travel expenses, plus your original tickets in full, amounting to £115 extra compensation.

A spokesperson for FlixBus said: “We apologise that the passengers ended up travelling in the wrong direction, as their tickets should have been more thoroughly checked by the driver. 

“FlixBus acknowledges the inconvenience caused and has offered a full refund for the original tickets purchased and the additional tickets needed for travel.”

Our Squeeze Team has won back £183,110 for readers with refunding and billing issues.

PENSIONERS are in for a windfall next year, as weekly State Pension payments are due to rise by around 4%.

But how much extra you’ll get in pounds and pence depends on whether you receive the old version of the benefit or the newer full state pension.

How much will the state pension increase by next year?

Increases to the State Pension are determined by something called the Triple Lock, which was introduced by the Conservative and Lib Dem coalition government in 2010.

It promises that each year, payments will go up by the higher of:

• Inflation, according to the Consumer Prices Index (CPI)
• Average wage increases 
• 2.5%.

This year, preliminary figures from the Office for National Statistics, show that earnings increased by 4% in the relevant month (which is July).

By comparison, the September inflation figures came in at around 2.2%, significantly lower than earnings growth.

That means that state pensions should rise by the earnings figure. However, the final decision will be made by the Work and Pensions Secretary, usually around the time of the Autumn Statement, which is on October 30.

If the official earnings or inflation figures are revised, the amount the state pension increases by could also change.

For people on the new state pension

Currently, the new full state pension is £221.20 a week, which works out as £11,502.40 a year.

If pension payments do go up by 4%, that means weekly payments will go up to £230.05 a week, which works out as £11,962.50 a year.

That’s an increase of just over £460 per annum. However, that number only applies to people who get the full new state pension. 

To get the full state pension, you need to have 35 years of national insurance contributions. 

If you’re only getting some of the new state pension, for instance because you have less than 35 years of NI credits but more than 10, then your payment increase will be less. You’ll still get a 4% uplift, but the total amount will continue to be lower.

For instance, someone with just 20 years of National Insurance contributions or credits would get around £126.40 a week. Per year, that works out as £6,572.80.

If that increases by 4% in line with the current earnings data, then it will rise to £6,835.71. So, someone would be better off by just under £263 a year. 

You can check your national insurance record on gov.uk. To calculate what state pension payment you’d receive, divide £221.20 by 35 and then multiply that by the number of years of contributions you expect to have. 

For people on the old basic state pension

If you’re a man born before 6 April 1951 or a woman born before 6 April 1953, you’ll get the basic state pension instead. 

This currently pays just £169.50 a week, which adds up to £8,814 a year. If it’s boosted by 4%, the annual payments would rise £9,167.60 – which is an increase of over £353.

To get the full basic State Pension you still need a certain number of qualifying years of National Insurance.

If you’re a man, you usually need:

• 30 qualifying years if you were born between 1945 and 1951
• 44 qualifying years if you were born before 1945

If you’re a woman you usually need:

• 30 qualifying years if you were born between 1950 and 1953
• 39 qualifying years if you were born before 1950

If you don’t have enough qualifying years, then your basic State Pension will be less than £169.50 per week. 

If you qualify for additional state pension

Lots of people who get the basic state pension, also qualify for the additional state pension. This is extra money on top of the basic payment.

To qualify you need to be either:

• a man born before 6 April 1951
• a woman born before 6 April 1953

There is no fixed amount and how much you get depends on your national insurance record, your income, and whether you contracted out of the schemes.

But NI Direct says that the maximum amount anyone can get is £218.39 per week, not including the state pension top up. This means that between your basic state pension and your additional payments, you could be getting significantly more than the new full state pension. 

The Additional State Pension is made up of 3 schemes, and you might have contributed to more than one of them.

For instance, you might have been eligible for the State Second Pension if you were employed and earned over a certain threshold or claimed certain benefits between 2002 and 2016. 

Equally, people could choose to top up their basic State Pension between 12 October 2015 and 5 April 2017. If you did this, you will get some additional state pension.

Finally, those people who were employed between 1978 and 2002 may have benefitted from the State Earnings-Related Pension Scheme (SERPS).

You do not have to do anything to claim the Additional State Pension. If you’re eligible, you’ll automatically get it when you claim your State Pension.

Whatever amount you’re given should also rise by 4% from next April. 

James Bore and Nikki Kopelman are around £12,000 better off after ditching their estate agent and selling their three-bedroom bungalow themselves.

The couple decided they would rather arrange their own viewings at times that suited their work schedules which led James, 41, to think – what else would they need an estate agent for? 

“It didn’t really add that much [value] to have the marketing done by the agent compared to what we could do ourselves,” said James, owner of security and technology consultancy Bores who lives in Stanmore, London. 

“I’m not saying estate agents are worthless, but they weren’t in a place to add much value to us, they just gave us added hassle and took extra fees.”

The couple had been quoted between 1% and 2% commission from local agents to sell their £650,000 home.

James and 36-year-old Nikki, a translator, used a combination of marketing techniques to get their property noticed by the local community. 

They posted their home in the local neighbourhood WhatsApp group, placed a classified advert in their local paper costing £35 and made their own for sale sign which also cost £35.

To widen their reach the couple also used Facebook Marketplace and Nextdoor.co.uk – a platform for buying and selling items and sharing tips with people who live in your postcode area. 

“The sign got us more attention than anything else,” said James. 

A neighbour saw the sign and told their friend who wanted to move house.

Two months after listing their home for sale and more than 20 viewings later, James and Nikki accepted an offer of £625,000, £25,000 below the asking price. 

Their sale completed at the end of September.

Lewis Buckley, co-founder of house selling platform Hiizzy, said: “Selling your own home requires motivation. You must take responsibility for the process.

“But, those who do can benefit from significant cost savings. It is up to 95% cheaper than traditional estate agents.”

How to sell your own home for cheap

If you do decide to sell your own home, getting it noticed is your main goal. 

First you need to create an online listing that you can post on social media. 

If you’re using marketplaces such as Facebook, Gumtree or Nextdoor.co.uk you must create your property listing on their platform following some simple steps.

To maximise the number of people who see your property you can pay for extra advertising.

Gumtree, for example, charges £9.99 for a basic listing and £19.99 for premium advertising. 

Nextdoor.co.uk recommends advertising your listing in its For Sale and Free section as well as posting your property in the general news feed. Its free and can reach users in a 100-mile radius.

If, like James and Nikki, you want to advertise in the local paper and use a For Sale board as well, you can create your own online listing and add the URL link address to your adverts. The couple used a website called Canva to design their free listing. 

Your advert should include the price, high quality photos, a video of your home, floor plans and a description. 

If you lack the know-how, you can use Purple Bricks’ free service which lets you build your listing and promotes your property through Zoopla. The team also value your home.

Or, for £395, you can use new platform Hiizzy. Once your property advert is ready, you can promote it through your own social media channels as well as the Hiizzy marketplace. It provides sold price data to value your home and gives prompts to help you describe your property. 

If you are flying solo, invite three estate agents to view your property to tell you how much it would sell for. Choose the valuation in the middle. Be prepared for lots of follow up calls to win your business.

Search through the sold prices on Zoopla and Rightmove to find out how much local homes like yours are selling for.

Or, pay for a valuation. James and Nikki did all three to get the most accurate price, paying £600 for a valuation. 

The positives of DIY selling

With the average estate agent fee coming in at 1.42% of the selling price, according to consumer group HomeOwners Alliance, sellers stand to save £4,153 on a property with an average price tag of £292,505. 

You have direct contact with your buyers instead of waiting for messages to be passed through a middleman which could speed up the sale. You are also in the best position to sell your home as you will be more familiar with its features.

Drawbacks of ditching an agent

If you’re advertising your property across lots of different social media channels you will have to create multiple listings which is time consuming. 

It’s likely that less potential buyers will see your advert without using the big property portals, which private sellers are blocked from. 

Without a good grasp of technology, you could struggle to create and advertise your own property listing and keep on top of the enquiries about your home. Speedy responses are essential to avoid losing buyers.

Most buyers will want to haggle over the asking price so you need to be a confident negotiator, something not all sellers may be comfortable with. 

Paula Higgins, chief executive of HomeOwners Alliance, said DIY sellers risk missing out estate agents’ expertise.

“Only when you go through the sales process will you find that just listing a property on a portal may not be enough,” she said. “This is even more so when the market is subdued.

“Local estate agents will have a list of serious buyers looking in the area,” she said. “On receipt of your instruction, they will contact them before the listing pops up on a portal and when a sale has been agreed they will chase all parties to help get the sale over the line.” 

PENSIONERS are facing a tough few months after access to the Winter Fuel Payment was slashed to only those who claim Pension Credit, but thankfully, other help is at hand.

There are 12 freebies and discounts you can claim if you are over state pension age and on a low income that could help boost your budget.

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There are a number of freebies and benefits that can boost a pensioner’s income[/caption]

According to charity Age UK, billions of pounds’ worth of benefits go unclaimed every year, so it’s worth checking what support you might be entitled to.

The support available covers everything from help with rental costs, assistance for those requiring care, pension top-ups and discounted transport.

If you are eligible for these benefits or freebies and discounts, you could find yourself thousands of pounds better off this winter.

Pension Credit

Many people who found themselves losing the Winter Fuel Payment this year could actually still be eligible.

This is because they may not realise they could actually claim Pension Credit.

It’s estimated that more than 800,000 people who qualify aren’t claiming the benefit.

Pension Credit is a tax-free benefit that will top up your income to a minimum limit.

The weekly benefit comes in two parts – guarantee credit and savings credit – and is completely separate from your State Pension.

You can claim Pension Credit if you have reached State Pension age and your weekly income is less than:

• £218.15 if you’re single
• £332.95 if you’re a couple.

Pension Credit tops up what you are currently receiving to meet the above amounts.

If you’ve saved money towards retirement this amount is topped up further via the savings credit part of the benefit.

Pension credit is described as a “gateway benefit” because it also opens up a host of other perks.

This can include help with housing costs, council tax or heating bills and even a free TV licence if you are 75 or older.

It will also give you access to the winter fuel payment, worth up £300.

You may also get additional pension credit if you are disabled, have caring responsibilities or have to pay certain housing costs such as mortgage interest payments.

Applications can be made on the Government website or by calling the Pension Credit claim line on 0800 99 1234.

Attendance Allowance

Attendance Allowance is a benefit which helps with extra costs if you have a severe disability that requires someone to help look after you.

It’s paid at two different rates and how much you get depends on the level of care that you need.

The lower rate is worth £72.65 a week, while the higher rate is £108.55 a week.

Those who receive the lower rate must require frequent help or constant supervision during the day, or supervision at night.

Those who require supervision throughout the day and night will receive the higher rate.

There are 56 categories of medical conditions that enable you to make a claim, including heart disease, Parkinson’s disease and diabetes.

You are also entitled to claim if a medical professional has said you might have 12 months or less to live.

To apply online, visit www.gov.uk/attendance-allowance/how-to-claim.

Council tax reduction

If you’re on a low income or receive certain benefits, you can get help towards your council tax bill from your local authority.

The amount your bill might be cut by depends on your circumstances.

But, if you receive the guarantee element of pension credit your council tax could be written off in full.

If you live alone, you will get the 25% reduction, even if you’re not entitled to any other benefits.

To apply for a council tax reduction you need to contact your local council.

State Pension

State Pension is paid to both men and women from the age of 66.

Not everyone gets the same amount, with the payment rate based on an individual’s National Insurance (NI) record.

Workers must have 35 qualifying years of NI to get the maximum amount of the new state pension.

You earn NI qualifying years through work, or by getting credits, for instance when you are looking after children and claiming child benefit.

If you have gaps, you can top up your record by paying in voluntary NI contributions. 

To get the old, full basic state pension, you will need 30 years of contributions or credits. 

You will need at least 10 years on your NI record to get any state pension. 

Last month, it was confirmed that the maximum payment for the new State Pension will rise from £8,814 to £9,167.

You won’t automatically get the state pension – you need to claim it once you’re eligible.

You should receive a letter no later than two months before you reach state pension age, explaining what to do.

Housing benefit

Housing benefit can cover rental costs, if you’re of state pension age or over and on a low income.

To receive the benefit you will also need to have savings of less than £16,000.

If you live with a partner you both need to be of state pension age to claim housing benefit, if not you’ll need to make a Universal Credit claim.

Housing benefit is means tested, so the amount you will receive depends on your income and how much you have in savings.

But if you get the guarantee element of pension credit, your income and savings won’t be taken into account – so you may get your rent paid in full.

To apply for housing benefit, contact your local council.

Cold weather payment

Cold weather payments are made to eligible residents in areas where the temperature is recorded at zero degrees Celsius or below, for seven consecutive days.

A £25 payment will be made for each seven day period of very cold weather between November 1 2024 and March 31 2025.

You may be eligible for the payments if you receive:

• Pension Credit
• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Universal Credit
• Support for Mortgage Interest

Payments are made automatically, so you do not need to apply for the benefit.

Warm home discount

The £150 warm home discount is available to pensioners and those on low incomes.

Those who qualify for the discount will have £150 deducted from their energy bills by the end of March 2025.

You’ll be eligible if you receive the guarantee credit element of Pension Credit, or are on a low income and have high energy costs.

The discount should be automatically deducted from your energy bill this winter if your eligible, but those on low-incomes living in Scotland need to apply through their energy providers.

If you were eligible for the payment last winter and did not receive it, contact your energy supplier.

If your energy supplier is unable to help write to the warm home discount scheme on 110552 Warm Home Discount Scheme,
PO Box 26965, Glasgow, G1 9BW.

Carer’s Allowance

Carer’s allowance is available to those who look after someone who would find it difficult to manage without their support.

You don’t need to be related to the person you care for to make the claim.

Carer’s allowance and the state pension are overlapping benefits, so you can’t claim both independently.

But if you receive less than £81.90 through your state pension, you can claim carer’s allowance to top it up to that level.

To be eligible you must spend at least 35 hours a week caring for someone who is ill or disabled.

To apply call the Carer’s Allowance helpline on 0800 731 0297

Free TV licence

You can claim a free TV licence if you’re 75 or older and either receive Pension Credit yourself or live with a partner who gets Pension Credit.

You can apply for a free licence when you’re 74, but will still have to pay until the end of the month before your 75^th birthday.

You can apply for your free licence online or by calling 0300 790 6071.

If you’re not entitled to a free licence, you could still receive a discount.

You could be eligible for a discounted TV licence if you live in residential care or sheltered accommodation, or if you’re registered blind.

If you live in sheltered accommodation or residential care and are over 60 or disabled you can get a licence for just £7.50.

Your housing manager should be able to check if you’re eligible and will apply for you.

If you’re registered blind, or live with someone who is, you’re in line for a 50% discount.

The licence must be in the name if the person registered blind, but if your existing licence is not in their name you can make an application to transfer it.

You can apply for the discount on the TV Licensing website.

Transport concessions

In England, you can get a bus pass for free travel when you reach the State Pension age.

Plus, if you live in London, you can travel free on buses, tubes and other transport when you’re 60, but only within London.

In Wales, you can get a bus pass when you reach 60.

You get an older person’s bus pass when you’re 60 if you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland.

You can apply for the pass via your local council’s website which will have more information.

Pensioners can also apply for a Senior Railcard to get discounted rail fares.

There is an annual cost of £30 for the card and gets you 1/3 off train travel.

People with a Senior Railcard save on average £142 a year, according to the government.

The Senior Railcard is available to travellers aged 60 or over.

You can apply for the card on the National Rail website.

Free prescriptions

Once you reach 60, you can get free prescriptions from your local pharmacy – prescriptions usually cost £9.90 each in England.

So if you usually buy a single prescription each month you could save £118.80 over the year.

This benefit is automatic and there’s no need to apply.

If you’re 60 or over you’re also entitled to a free NHS sight test, so you should let your optician know when you reach 60 if you haven’t already. 

Eye tests can usually cost between £20 and £30.

Household Support Fund

Struggling households can get help with the cost of living via the Household Support Fund (HSF).

The fund has recently has been extended for the sixth time, with £421million set to be made available to regional councils to distribute from this month.

The support you can access depends on where you live, but funds can be paid out as shopping or fuel vouchers, cash payments or other means.

Under the previous round of funding, households in Leicester could apply to receive £300 payments to help with utilities and essential costs.

In Plymouth eligible residents could receive a maximum of £740 in vouchers.

This included £240 in supermarket vouchers, £200 in energy vouchers as well as an essential item of household furniture or white goods or £300 of clothing vouchers.

Schemes vary across the country, but every council will receive funding to distribute.

To see what’s on offer where you live, contact your local council.

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.

Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories

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IT seems pop fans are having a light bulb moment after a TikTok star revealed they’ve been mishearing the lyrics to the 2001 hit Family Affair by Mary J. Blige for years.

The part in question is the catchy chorus when many believed Mary, 53, was singing “Don’t need no hateration holleration, in this dancery.”

@kamilleofficial

This TikTok star revealed that fans had the wrong lyrics all along[/caption]

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Mary J Blige’s 2001 hit Family Affair was the song in question[/caption]

TikTok star @Kamilleoffical took to the app to correct fans on the actual lyrics which has left viewers in shock.

In the clip TikToker Kamille explained: “She’s not actually saying ‘dancery’ I’m gonna inform you Mary J Blige is actually saying Dance Soiree like a Soiree party you know”

Soiree by definition is “an evening party or gathering, typically in a private house, for conversation or music,” which definitely makes more sense than dancery.

Fans took to the comment in disbelief about the misheard lyrics.

“Nahhhh it’s dancery, Mary is wrong,” one fan commented.

Another penned: “Listen, people.. I need a full lyrical review on all old skool R&B songs from the 90’s and 2000’s because I am NOT ok.”

“Dancery is just so much better though!” added a third.

A fourth said: “OMG dance soirée! Newfound respect for Mary and no respect for me for not realising this.”

The famed song was produced by R&B Heavyweight Dr Dre and topped the Billboard Hot 100 for six weeks.

It became Mary’s first and only Hot 100 number-one single as well as her first top-10 single in five years.

Dubbed The Queen of Hip-Hop Soul by fans Mary remains an icon in the music scene.

Mary J. Blige has won nine Grammy Awards, four American Music Awards, and 12 Billboard Music Awards over her career.

The singer has also tried her hand at acting. even being nominated for three Golden Globe Awards and two Academy Awards.

This included one for the song Mighty River and her supporting role in the movie Mudbound (2017).

Some of Blige’s biggest albums include No More Drama, Love & Life, Growing Pains, Stronger with Each Tear, and What’s the 411?