Rising insurance; Cash for Christmas; Phones cut off; The Resolver

Available for over a year

Some listeners tell us they are being quoted home insurance premiums that are double or treble last year's with their insurer blaming new flood risks. But the official line is nothing has changed. Has a new deal to ensure affordable flood cover been sandbagged? Some of us cannot imagine going to a cash machine and leaving the cash behind. But others say 'Oh yes, I've done that'. Some of the latter group are getting a nice surprise. Banks are trawling through their records back to 2005 and reimbursing people. Time was we replaced things when they wore out or stopped working. Not now. We upgrade when our technology is slightly out of date. But what do you do with the old tech that is still usable and can be valuable? We look at firm that offers cash for your phone but often promises more than it gives. An online alternative to tearing your hair out and shouting has just gone live. You have a complaint. You go through the proper channels and get silence or, perhaps worse, blandishments. What next? Resolver.co.uk is said to be the answer to making a complaint - from the first contact to the resolution. We try it out.