News in November 2005
- 30 Nov 2005 Empire have misled consumers... again A catalogue shopping company exposed by Which? for its misleading mailshots has fallen foul of the advertising watchdog for the fifth time in a year.
- 30 Nov 2005 Pension scheme lifeline Proposals announced today for a national pension saving scheme are a lifeline which could save UK pension provision.
- 29 Nov 2005 Watchdogs failing MPs in a select committee have branded the consumer watchdogs Energywatch and Postwatch 'feeble'.
- 29 Nov 2005 OFT raps scammers The company behind a scam which lured thousands into calling an expensive phone line has been forced to give legal undertakings to curb its behaviour.
- 28 Nov 2005 Oil company investigated Ofgem has called for an urgent enquiry to investigate allegations that major gas suppliers have been withholding supplies to artificially push up prices.
- 26 Nov 2005 Sony's best buys Entertainment giant Sony is the best audio visual brand of 2005, according to new Which? Awards.
- 26 Nov 2005 Nintendo wins in 2005 The portable Nintendo DS has been heralded as the most innovative new product in the Which? Awards 2005.
- 26 Nov 2005 Metronet's top honours Internet company Metronet has come out on top as the Best Broadband ISP in the inaugural Which? Awards.
- 26 Nov 2005 New Which? awards Which? has launched new annual awards to honour companies who have produced the best products and services over the past year.
- 26 Nov 2005 Bosch are the best That's the verdict of new Which? Awards honouring the companies who have produced the best products over the past year.
- 26 Nov 2005 BT enhances car security BT has launched a new car security system which uses global positioning technology to pinpoint the location of a stolen vehicle to within a few feet.
- 24 Nov 2005 Tesco gets sums wrong Supermarket giant Tesco has been fined thousands of pounds for misleading shoppers about the cost of its wine.
- 23 Nov 2005 Xmas Xbox shortage British stores are already warning that games fans face a wait to get their hands on the Xbox 360 after it's launched in the UK next week.
- 22 Nov 2005 Stop internet fraudsters The telecoms regulator has warned that tougher measures are needed to stop the internet dial-up scams that can add hundreds of pounds to victims' phone bills.
- 22 Nov 2005 Flu vaccines diminished Britain's stocks of winter flu vaccine are dwindling after bird flu fears apparently spurred many more patients to get a jab.
- 17 Nov 2005 OFT to act more speedily Britain's competition watchdog is too slow in cracking down on rip-off businesses according to a new report.
- 17 Nov 2005 Catch bad estate agents Which? is urging the House of Lords to take on the rogue estate agents who fleece and hoodwink homeowners.
- 17 Nov 2005 HIPs from 2007 Which? has welcomed news that Home Information Packs (HIPs) will be compulsory for anyone selling a home from June 2007.
- 16 Nov 2005 Online prices 'hiked up' Leading electronics companies have been accused of giving shoppers a raw deal by forcing up the cost of online goods.
- 16 Nov 2005 Rising electrical costs Internet traders complain that manufacturers are charging them 10 to 15 per cent more than they charge high street stores for TVs, DVD players and other electrical products.
- 15 Nov 2005 Driving refresher courses Older drivers are in favour of refresher courses to help them deal with the hazards of busy modern roads, a new survey reveals today.
- 14 Nov 2005 Savings accounts slammed One in six 'easy access' savings accounts penalise customers for withdrawing money, claims research published today.
- 13 Nov 2005 Older motorists to brush up skills Older drivers are in favour of refresher courses to help them deal with the hazards of busy modern roads, a new survey reveals today.
- 10 Nov 2005 Scammer convicted A prize-hotline conman who raked in thousands of pounds by duping people into calling because they thought they'd won a car has been sentenced to 200 hours' community service.
- 10 Nov 2005 Open all day Sunday A consumer group is calling for Sunday trading hours to be extended so that people could shop when they wanted to.
- 10 Nov 2005 Rental cut plan for BT Phone customers look set to get a better deal after the phone regulator put pressure on BT to cut the amount it charges other companies for renting its lines.
- 10 Nov 2005 Energy firm's price hike Millions of homeowners are facing steep rises in their fuel bills after one of the UK's largest energy companies announced a price hike.
- 09 Nov 2005 BBC reveal donation The BBC has agreed to be clearer about the GBP 2 it's donating to Children in Need out of the GBP 12.50 price of special charity egg cups, following intervention from Which?.
- 09 Nov 2005 Jersey's cheap DVDs A scrap between Tesco and Amazon over which one sells the cheapest CDs and DVDs has highlighted the savings offered at Jersey-based websites.
- 08 Nov 2005 Uninsured cars seized The government is proposing a major expansion in wheel clamping to deal with minor motoring offences and announced tough new powers to tackle the UK's two million uninsured drivers.
- 07 Nov 2005 Kid's knives and alcohol Children as young 13 are able to buy alcohol and knives over the internet, a new survey has found.
- 07 Nov 2005 Payment protection Companies which sell payment protection insurance (PPI) have been reprimanded for failing to check whether those buying it would be barred from using the policy.
- 07 Nov 2005 Sony MP3 Walkman Sony has released its new MP3 Walkman which it calls the 'most stylish and sophisticated digital audio player' ever.
- 07 Nov 2005 New logo for HDTV A new logo has been unveiled to help consumers identify bona fide high-definition televison (HDTV) receivers.
- 03 Nov 2005 Driven mad by parking Which? is calling on the government to sort out Britain's parking problems after our research found many motorists feel bamboozled by the current system.
- 03 Nov 2005 Internet bargains Shoppers can cut the price of some goods by a quarter if they buy them online rather than on the high street.
- 02 Nov 2005 eBay fraud gang jailed The mastermind behind a gang of fraudsters who conned eBay users out of almost GBP 200,000 has been jailed for four years.
- 02 Nov 2005 Fitness club fees gaffe A health and fitness club helped itself to more than GBP 10 million of its members' cash when a new computer system wiped out the decimal point in all the direct debits.
- 01 Nov 2005 Hi-tech bargains Lesser-known online stores often provide better deals on hi-tech goods than their big-name rivals, says a new survey from Computing Which?.
- 01 Nov 2005 Internet fraud warning Fraud experts have warned internet shoppers to be extra vigilant after three people were jailed for conning thousands of customers of the online auction site eBay.
