Countrywide, the estate agency group that owns Hamptons International and Gascoigne-Pees, has received a £82m takeover approach from its rival Connells. Countrywide, the UK’s largest listed estate agent group with 731 branches, said it had received an indicative approach from Connells at 250p a share in cash, which would take it back into private ownership….
Our VW Passat GTE – a plug-in electric hybrid – completely died a few months ago. Because it is just outside its three-year warranty, VW wants to charge me more than £2,500 to fix it. The car refused to turn on and, instead, displayed a “hybrid system error”. My breakdown firm took it to my…
Which consumer topics has the pandemic brought to the fore? Coronavirus has proved to be a disaster for consumer rights in the UK, as the airlines, travel firms, and some insurers have behaved as if they were above the law. Even to a seasoned consumer champ it’s been shocking. It’s been interesting to see how…
Q My wife, son and I have decided to up sticks from east London in order to try out my home town of Belfast on a two-year trial basis. Given recent buy-to-let tax changes, we’d be losing money on our flat if we wished to rent it out in the meantime. Therefore I think we’d…
The pandemic has put back attitudes to driving versus public transport by two decades, with almost two-thirds of UK car owners now considering their vehicle essential, research has found. A clear majority would now refuse to switch to a greener alternative even if better trains or buses were available, according to the RAC. The research…
Five stores email you on the same day. There’s a big sale coming tomorrow. You make a note in your calendar, planning to get some Christmas shopping done. By the time you log off the next day, a little dazed, you have an extra set of bedsheets and a popcorn machine you had no intention…
