This week, CashQuestions delivers the best deals and offers available through VoucherCodes.co.uk, including discount short breaks - and cheaper summer shoes and holiday cosmetics to take with you. Or, if you are staying at home this summer to beat the crunch, check out the latest Pizza Hut delivery deals.

This week, CashQuestions brings to you a raft of carefully-selected offers available through VoucherCodes.co.uk, including cut-price Benefits cosmetics and a 30-day free trial with LOVEFiLM, plus a £10 M&S voucher thrown in. Just click on the link that appeals and watch the savings pile up...

To celebrate the arrival of the summer weather, Café Rouge is offering two main meals for the price of one until 28 June. The voucher can be used between Sunday and Thursday at any of its restaurants excluding Gatwick Airport and Center Parcs. Take your pick from the a la carte menu and get the cheapest main mean for free. Click here to download a voucher.

Leading phone and broadband provider TalkTalk (www.talktalk.co.uk) is offering FREE connection worth £29.99 for new customers who sign up to its Essentials phone and broadband product between now and 13 June.

The Essentials phone and broadband package at £6.49 a month includes broadband up to 8mg with 40gb download limit, free wireless router and free technical support - plus unlimited phone calls to UK landlines in the evenings and weekends.

Save some money and a few worry lines as well this month by buying the June issue of Harper’s Bazaar magazine (£3.99). Inside, you’ll find inside three sample sachets of NUDE skincare products. The card that the samples come in is a voucher for a free NUDE Skincare Cleansing Facial Oil with a price tag of £15. Go into your local Space NK store to redeem until 30 June (while stocks last).

The card also carries 0% interest on card purchases for the first three months, before reverting to a typical rate of 15.9% APR (variable). There will also be a 3% balance transfer handling fee.

The minimum amount of investment is £10,000 into the HIDB and World Selection, i.e. a minimum £20,000 in total.

Make a meal of promotions on offer at leading Spanish restaurants in London during A Taste of Spain 2009, a festival of food, culture and lifestyle that starts in Regent Street on Sunday 31 May, and continues at Borough Market on Tuesday 2 and Wednesday 3 June.

Offers include 50% off food at Barcelona Tapas and two glasses of sherry or 20% off your food bill at El Faro, E14.

Special nights out are even better if you don’t have to drive home again. Good news, then, that budget hotel chain Travelodge has extended its summer sale by 50,000 rooms across 396 hotels all over the UK.

Pizza Express has a voucher that you can print off which entitles you to two main courses for the price of one. Offer expires 24 May, so be quick.

Churchill Insurance has announced it will offer all new customers a 50% discount off buildings and contents insurance if the products are bought together before 31 May this year.

Martin Scott, Head of Churchill Home Insurance, said: "Householders are experiencing increasing financial pressure and many homeowners are looking at ways to cut back. But now, more than ever, households can’t afford to go without home insurance.

This deal allows savers to transfer in all of their ISA subscriptions from previous years' plus any interest accrued. There is also unlimited access to 25% of the amount invested at any time, without notice or penalty, and a minimum opening balance of just £1.

The Abbey Zero credit card, which does not make a charge for using it abroad, returns today, after a couple of months’ absence – which is good news for holidaymakers. Other cards charge up to 3% for use abroad, which can add substantially to holiday bills.

Annie Shaw of CashQuestions.com welcomes the move, saying: “Now that Nationwide has brought in charges on its credit cards for overseas use outside Europe from this month it is great news for consumers that they can still get a card that makes no charge for use abroad.

Get a FREE broadband internet dongle, providing broadband speeds of up to 3.6Mbps  from www.3dongle4free.co.uk .  The 3-branded broadband dongle enables you to have connectivity when at home or on the move, its Pay As You Go so no contracts! 

Simply top up from £10, and then plug and play.  Easy-to-use Internet access whenever and wherever you need it.

Hurry over to http://www.3dongle4free.co.uk  for more details. There's a £4.95 charge for P&P.

Yorkshire Bank has announced that, from today, Tuesday 5 May, it will waive arrangement fees for all new customers looking to re-mortgage on a range of fixed rate, offset and current account mortgages.  The offer, which is available for an unstated 'limited' time, will mean a saving of £999 for borrowers.

Download a voucher for 30% off between Thursday 23 April and Monday 4 May 2009 at Gap, GapKids, babyGap and Gap Outlets. All you need to do is click on the following link:

New desserts include a warm chocolate and walnut brownie with vanilla ice cream and an Assortiment de Desserts of chocolate truffle torte, rum baba and lemon tart. For crème brûlée fans, there’s a Trio of Crème Brûlée: dark chocolate, fresh raspberry and classic vanilla.

Typically, the weather has turned for this Easter break so you may be heading inside after all. But at least All Bar One is offering meals (from the full range of burgers, skewers and salads) for the cut price of £5 for parties of up to six.

Customers that sign up to Sainsbury’s Energy online will receive £25 Gift card, delivered  to your door. If you take both gas and electricity from Sainsbury’s Energy, you could also earn up to 4,700 Nectar Points, the store claims.

EasyJet is offering up to 50% more than 250,000 seats for travel between

22 April and 10 June 2009, including May bank holidays and half term.

The sale ends at midnight on Tuesday 31 March 2009 - and when they’re

gone, they’re gone.

Cahoot, which is part of Abbey, launches today a two-year fixed-rate bond paying 4.01% gross/AER. The minimum outlay is £30,000 (maximum £2m), and the full rate is paid on deposits that are left untouched for the two-year term.

Both the two-year and three-year bonds have a minimum balance of £10,000 and maximum of £100,000, and earn 4% interest. Withdrawals are not permitted during the term of the bond, but they can be closed subject to loss of 180 days’ gross interest.

Cater Allen Private Bank this week launches two fixed-rate savings bonds paying up to 4.11% AER. The minimum deposit for the two- and three-year bonds are available is £5,000.

There will be an annual opportunity, on the anniversary of the account opening, to withdraw part, or all, of the funds. These withdrawn funds will be subject to reduced interest rates, but the remaining funds will still qualify for the original rate.

In a credit crunch world, if you don't Ask you don't get. From now until 9 April, you can get two for one on main dishes at all Ask restaurants. The offer is valid from Sunday until Thursday but excludes Mother's Day which falls on Sunday 22 April. The offer should shed a little light onto financially dull times - only paying for one meal means you can afford a dessert!

Click here for your voucher

Direct Line Home Insurance has announced it is offering 12 months' home insurance for the price of 10 with the purchase of any home insurance policy. The offer is open to new customers until 30 April 2009. The deal is on the back of research that found the majority of UK householders find January (68%) and February (52%) their two least favourite months of the year, said the insurer.

Savers with the Online Access Account and Online ISA will receive a rise of 0.25%, giving the accounts a rate of 2.75% (including a 0.50% bonus for the first six months) and 2.25%, respectively.

Credit crunch munch has arrived at All Bar One, with any burger, salad or grilled skewer combination from the regular food menu for £5 for lunch or an evening bite, from Sunday to Thursday, at any of the 37 All Bar One sites located across the UK.

Choose from dishes such as the famous beef and coriander burger, crispy duck salad or organic salmon with oriental noodles for just £5! This fantastic offer can be redeemed at All Bar One until 12th March 2009.

To claim this incredible meal deal, simply log onto www.allbarone.co.uk, or download the voucher and present it at your nearest All Bar One.

To locate your nearest All Bar One, visit www.all-bar-one.co.uk .

Get 2 for 1 main meals at Cafe Rouge French restaurants. Simply go to the Cafe Rouge website here,  fill in your details and print off a voucher - which can be used Sundays to Thursdays until Thursday 5 March. One voucher is required per free meal.

The first thing to cut out when trying to rein in your daily spend is pricey take-away. But if you read the Guardian, you needn't worry.  Every day until Thursday 5 March The Guardian (90p) will come with a voucher for a free Starbucks Fair Trade coffee.

This could mean a saving of up to £999 - the previous re-mortgage arrangement fee for some products.

Lighten the gloom with a cheap night out at Bella Italia Italian restaurants, where you can buy two main meals and get the cheaper one free. One voucher is required per free main course, but you can use up to three vouchers per table. The offer is valid all day from Sunday to Thursday until 26 February 2009.

Click here to print off voucher.

Get a free prepaid foreign currency card from retailer Matalan in association with currency dealer FairFX.

The internationally-accepted Mastercard can be used anywhere in the world, and nomally costs £9.95, unless you load the card with £500.

However, you can get the card absolutely free and - even better - the card comes pre-loaded with £5, also absolutely free.

Cash-strapped lovers will be pleased to learn of Tesco's new offer - a Valentines Special 'meal deal'. For a total of £9, you will receive two starters, two main meals from the supermarket's Finest range, with an additional side dish, two desserts and a bottle of wine.

The minimum deposit is £100 as a lump sum, or £25 by monthly direct debit, up to the Cash ISA allowance of £3,600 per tax year. Transfers from other ISA providers are allowed.

Get 50% off your food bill at the Spanish Tapas restaurant and bar La Tasca with the attached La Tasca voucher. The voucher is  valid until Friday 30 January.

The voucher can only be used for tables of eight and under and only one voucher can be used per day. It can't be used in conjunction with any other offer, set menu or promotional menu, including Tapas for a Tenner and the Lunch Menu.

Find your nearest La Tasca.

Voucher to print off

Standard Life Bank has announced a nine-month fixed-rate Business Bond, bond designed, it says, to help businesses make their money work harder. The £12,000+ bond pays 3.40% AER, 2.72% net.

"Recent research from Standard Life shows that small and medium businesses across the UK could be missing out on valuable interest. Many businesses are holding large amounts in a business current account and not making the most of higher paying savings accounts and bonds. In the current falling interest rate climate and challenging economic backdrop, every little bit helps. Planning ahead and actively managing savings can result in significant financial gains and peace of mind for organisations," said Garry Mullen, Marketing Manager - Cash Savings.

Vintage Inns are offering 2 Meals for £10 until Friday 6 February. Vouchers are available in the Daily Express on 17 January and The Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail on 22 January.

To claim this offer take your voucher to any Vintage Inn at any time until 6 February and order two mains courses from the selected Pub Classics range.

Direct Line is to offer new customers 12 months' car or van insurance for the price of 10, the insurer has announced today. Maggie Game, head of car insurance at Direct Line, said: "We are not on price comparison websites so we don't pay them commissions. This means that when you come to us direct we could give you savings."  The offer is also available to commercial van owners wishing to insure their vehicle with Direct Line.

Pizza Express is offering "two for one" on all meals at any of its restaurants from 5 to 29 January, which should help  to brighten up what can seem like a long month, after all the fun and festivities are over - and a light purse doesn't help matters. The big restaurants need to do all they can to get customers through their doors as the credit crunch kicks in.  

Click here to download the voucher.

Alliance & Leicester and First Direct are both offering £100 to bank customers who switch their current accounts. A&L is offering the bait to encourage people to move over to its Premier Account range. At the same time First Direct is similarly giving account switchers £100, with the promise that if  they  are not happy after six months, the bank will help the customer move to another bank and hand over yet another £100.

The First Direct offer is for new customers only, who must open a  1st Account and transfer income of at least £1,500 within 3 months to qualify for the £100 reward.

Get 50% off your food bill at any Slug & Lettuce until 8 January.

Voucher cannot be redeemed on Mondays (when you can get 50% off food with S&L's standard ‘Happy Mondays’ promotion anyway). Not in conjunction with any other voucher, promotion or promotional menu, including the ‘nibbles card’. 50% off food only, drinks will be charged at full price.

Click here to get a voucher to print off

Sainsbury's Finance Loans has cut its rate for lending between £7,000 to £15,000 to 8.2% (typical APR), down by 7 percentage points from 8.9% for applications made online.  This is a limited offer, and Sainsbury's claims it is one of the lowest rates in the market.

West Bromwich Building Society is offering a High Income Over-65 90-day notice account for a minimum investment of £5,000. The account pays 4.75% monthly, or 5.00% on deposits over £100,000.

Earlier access is permitted in exchange for 90 days' loss of interest. All withdrawals  must be made via BACS to a nominated bank account.

The account is open to anyone aged aged 65 or over. The maximum investment is £250,000.

Start saving for next Christmas now. Chorley Building Society is offering a "Santa Saver" account, paying 6% gross. The account deposit period commences on opening and finishes on the 25th November each year. The minimum opening balance is £1 and the maximum total deposit allowed per month is £150.

Multiple deposit transactions are allowed subject to the above maximum monthly allowance, and prior months' missed deposits or shortfalls can be made up (advance deposits not allowed), but no withdrawals are allowed until the maturity date.

Café Rouge restaurants are offering dinner for two – two courses plus a bottle of wine – for £15 a head on Monday to Thursday from 5 pm throughout December.

The Telegraph is also promoting a 2 for 1 main meals at Café Rouge, Sundays to Wednesdays until 17 December. Vouchers are printed in the Daily Telegraph.

Marks and Spencer is holding a one-day 20%-off sale today, the second in two weeks. The sale applies to clothing, homewares and wine in M&S stores, many of which will remain open until midnight, and via its website.

M&S boss Sir Stuart Rose said the company understood that customers were "feeling the pinch", and wanted to give shoppers "a helping hand in the run-up to Christmas". The 20% discounts also cover Christmas cakes and puddings.

National Express coaches are offering 50,000 one way fares from £5 for travel on selected routes between 1 and 24 December inclusive. The tickets are available exclusively online. Click here for details.

Strada Italian restaurants are running a monthly prize draw, which gives the chance to win a meal at a Strada of your choice to the value of £100. Winners will be randomly selected on the last day of each month and notified by email. A voucher will be posted to the winner.

Just go the the Strada website (http://www.strada.co.uk/prize-draw.html), fill in your details and follow the instructions.

You can get 30% off Gap's Holiday collections and gifts at Gap, GapKids, babyGap and Gap Outlet between Wednesday 19th and Sunday 30th November 2008.

Get more details here.

Simply click on the 'Join' button, fill in your details and print your voucher.

Alliance & Leicester, which is now part of the Santander Group, is re-entering the tracker market, with a two-year base rate tracker at a rate of 4.89%. There is a 1% arrangement fee and 60% loan-to-value.

The product also allows customers to overpay every month by any amount, or in lump sums of £500 or more. With the overpayment "credit" customers can build up, they can borrow money back, take payment holidays or pay less in some months.

T-Mobile is offering a new service called Boosters, which increases the value of both pay-as-you-go and contract price plans.

The Boosters add-ons can be activated immediately, have no tie-in and can be changed from month to month.

Scottish Widows Bank is offering from today an increased bonus of 1.50% on its E-Cash ISA for 12 months, giving an initial AER of 6.00% tax free, variable.  This rate is available for new cash deposits and for those who wish to transfer in from another provider.

"We are delighted to improve an already competitive account.  Along with the very competitive interest rate, customers can benefit from easy online access to savings and peace of mind that their savings are held in a tax-free account," said Mandy Webster, Marketing Manager at Scottish Widows Bank.

Abbey has launched a new credit card aimed at helping consumers whose finances are being squeezed by the increasing cost of living and the credit crunch.

This latest card in Abbey's innovative product range offers 3% cashback on supermarket and petrol purchases for the first six months, plus 0% on balance transfers for nine months and 0% on purchases for three months from account opening.

Café Rouge restaurants are offering a 2 for 1 deal Sunday to Thursday between now and 23 November.  The menu ranges from French classics such as steak frites and boeuf bourguignon to casserole of salmon, dory and mussels in a light and creamy white wine velouté.
 
There are also regularly changing specials to ensure there is always something new to try on every visit.

First Great Western is offering 2FOR1 savings on attractions, hotels, restaurants and more in the historic cities of Bath, Bristol and Oxford from now until 31st May 2009.

Offers range from Thermae Bath Spa  to Bristol Packet boat trips and the Modern Art Oxford gallery.

The Daily Express has teamed up with nearly 300 gastro pubs around the country to offer you a mouth-watering free meal at some quality establishments.

You and your friends could soon be enjoying dinner or lunch at one of our great participating pubs.

Alliance & Leicester has increased the interest rate on its Online Tracker savings account to 6.30% AER, including a 1.30% gross bonus until 4 January 2010, with a guarantee that the underlying rate will track the Bank of England Base Rate until 31 January 2011.

Online Tracker used to pay tiered interest rates of 4.25% for balances below £100,000 and 4.75% for balances above £100,000.

Virgin Money has improved its balance transfer 0% deal by adding an extra month. The new deal gives borrowers a total of 16 months interest-free from the date they take out the card. The firm has also doubled its 0% offering on purchases from three months to six months.

Coventry Building Society's new Sixty-Plus PostSave account pays customers over 60 a market-leading rate of 6.60% (AER/gross pa), which includes a 0.85% AER bonus for the first year.  It also offers a long-term guarantee that the AERs will be at least 0.25% above the Bank of England Base Rate until 31 March 2010.

Rachel Haworth, Head of Marketing at the Coventry said: “As an award-winning provider of savings products specifically for the older generation, this postal account is a natural extension to our range.  It gives customers even more options to choose from when they save with the Coventry.

Homeowners have a few days left to take advantage of a 25% discount plus a £20 shopping voucher when they buy Sainsbury's Home Insurance - and a further 10% discount if they apply online. The offer is available to all new customers purchasing both buildings and contents cover together before 6 October 2008.

Neil Laird, Home Insurance Manager, Sainsbury's, said: "Home insurance policies vary dramatically, so it's essential people compare policies not only on price but also on the level of cover they provide. Quality cover such as unlimited buildings insurance doesn't have to be expensive, and although premiums have been rising, by shopping around and taking advantage of discounts such as ours, there are significant savings to be made. Unlike some other promotions available at the moment, ours is open to all new customers."

To find out more about Sainsbury's Bank Home Insurance, call 0800 731 7978 or log on to the Sainsbury's Bank website.

Compare home insurance here

Kent Reliance is offering a new variable rate cash ISA for the under-25s paying 6.26%. Existing KRBS Direct ISA savers who are under the age of 25 will be transferred into the new account automatically and need do nothing to obtain the higher rate. Other savers wanting to transfer in to the KRBS are welcome.

Alliance & Leicester has  launched a new fixed-rate bond paying 6.50% gross on lump sum investments between £1,000 and £10,000, which replaces the Premier Regular Saver.

The bond is available to all existing customers of the Premier current account range, and all new customers who switch to one of the Premier range of current accounts in-branch, using the Premier Switching Service.

Nottingham Building Society has launched a new savings account offering 6.55% gross interest. The so-called Postal Tracker 45 is a notice account catering for the needs of the experienced saver, says the society. Its key features include a guaranteed rate of at least the Base Rate plus 0.25% - currently 5.25% - until October 2009 and at least the Base Rate plus 0.1% - currently 5.1% - until October 2010.

M&S Money is offering to refund in full foreign currency purchased from M&S by customers who had booked holidays with the XL Leisure Group and are now unable to travel. Customers can take their unused currency into any of the 113 M&S bureau de change until close of business on Tuesday September 23rd 2008 and exchange for the full amount of sterling that they paid for the currency.

Over 50 and struggling with your household bills? Saga Home Insurance is offering the chance to win free home energy for a year in the face of rising energy bills.

Anyone who obtains an online quote for Saga Home Insurance during the month of September will be entered into a weekly prize draw to win the cash equivalent of a years' worth of energy.

The limit is £3,000 and includes coal, gas, electricity and oil.

Full terms and conditions are available here.

Obtain your online quote here.

M&S Money is offering a 25% cashback reward to customers who take out a personal loan before 29 October 2008. The offer is available on all personal loans taken out over 36 months or more, though customers will only receive the refund - of 25% of the total interest they have paid - once their final repayment has been made. When the cashback reward is taken into account, the typical rate of 9.9% APR on a £10,000 loan over a 36 month period is equivalent to a rate 7.7% p.a.

Cash back examples:

Loan amount      Loan term           Cashback

£7,500                36 months          £320.78
£7,500                60 months          £523.91
£12,500              36 months          £534.64
£12,500              60 months          £873.18
£15,000              36 months          £641.57
£15,000              60 months          £1,047.82

Compare personal loans here

Heritable Bank, the specialist savings provider, is launching today its first online easy access savings account – known as “Online Saver” - at a rate of 6.51% AER (variable). 

Interest can be paid annually or monthly to suit the customer. The interest rate applicable to the annual interest payment option is 6.51% gross pa/AER and for the monthly interest option 6.32% gross pa/6.51% AER, both of which include a 0.61% gross pa bonus payable for the first 12 months.

An online conveyancing cost comparison service launched by Yorkshire Building Society to its borrowers last year is to be offered to the general public.

The website www.compareconveyancers.co.uk allows customers to get an online quotation from  170 solicitors around the country, and to choose one based on price, service or location or a combination of all three. Once instructed online, cases can be tracked 24 hours a day via the internet, with real-time email or SMS alerts. All of the solicitors offering the service offer a ‘no sale, no fee' promise (excluding disbursements).

Yorkshire Bank has launched a new "packaged account", called the Signature Current Account, aimed at busy professionals.

The account, which can be linked to a high interest savings account, or to an offset mortgage, comes with a range of lifestyle benefits.

Cheshire Building Society has launched a new issue of its Portfolio Reserve guaranteed equity bond investment product, with a guaranteed fixed rate of up to10% gross/AER for 12 months.

Portfolio Reserve combines the security of a fixed-rate savings account from the Cheshire with the potential for long term investment growth from a Norwich Union Portfolio bond. Investors can place up to 30% of their total investment in the Cheshire's 10% gross/AER fixed rate reserve account. There is also the option of interest paid monthly at a rate of 9.57% gross (10% AER) for added flexibility.

Skipton, the sixth-largest building society, is offering £25 of free travel money for next year to customers who open a one-year Special Saver Account at a Skipton branch during September. They will receive the money when they buy at least £275 worth of foreign currency or travellers' cheques through Skipton following the maturity of the account.

The cost of a week's holiday is set to rise next summer: the weakness of the pound and higher fuel costs mean the average week away could cost more than £500 in 2009, according to research by Thomas Cook.

Sainsbury’s Car Insurance is offering new customers 12 months’ car insurance for the price of 10. The offer is open until 8 September, and customers can also receive a 10% discount if they apply online.

“The cost of motoring has gone up significantly in recent years, and high petrol prices continue to be a burden for motorists. However, shopping around for car insurance and taking advantage of discounts such as ours can help drivers make important savings,” said Joanne Mallon, Car Insurance Manager.

Britannia Building Society has launched an "Inflation Beater 2-year Bond" which  guarantees an interest rate higher than the rate of inflation.

The interest is adjusted each month to beat the rate of inflation - currently 5%, according to the Retail Price Index (RPI) - plus an extra 1.75% gross.

Leeds Building Society is cutting rates on its fixed-rate mortgage range by up to 0.50% from tomorrow. A 2-year fixed rate deal has been reduced from 5.75% to 5.25%, with 80% loan-to-value and a completion fee of 3% of the loan amount.

There are also new 3-year fixed rate options available, beginning at 5.99% at 80% LTV, rising to 6.49% up to 90% LTV. There is a £999 completion fee up to £500,000, and over £500,000 the fee will be 1% of the loan amount.

Britannia has trimmed up to 0.30% from its two and five-year fixed rate mortgages.

The two-year fixed rate options start at 5.99% for a 50% loan-to-value mortgage, while a 75% LTV costs 6.39% and 90% LTV charges 6.79%. All three have an arrangement fee of £499. A free-fee option has interest rates of 6.34%, 6.69% and 7.09% respectively, while a two-year fixed option with a £999 arrangement fee has interest rates of  5.64% for 75% LTV and 6.39% for 90% LTV.

Halifax is cutting rates on some of its mortgages by up to 0.45%, and is to introduce four new fee-free products tomorrow.
 
The new rates include a two-year tracker at 5.59%, down from 5.69%, with up to 75% loan-to-value and a £1,999 fee. There is also a three-year fixed rate at 6.04%, down from 6.49%, up to 75% LTV and a £499 fee. The deals have to be arranged through a mortgage broker.

Yorkshire Building Society is launching a new range of 2, 3, 5, and 10-year fixed-rate mortgages tomorrow, with interest rate reductions of up to 0.45% from the current range.

The 2, 3 and 5-year fixes are available at 5.74% with a maximum loan-to-value of 75% and a £995 fee. The 10-year fix also has a 75% loan-to-value and £995 fee, but the interest rate is slightly higher, at 5.84%.

Woolwich is offering fixed-rate mortgages at below 6% from today, with reductions of up to 0.32%.

The new rates include three and five-year fixed rates of 5.97% (both reduced by 0.32%), and a ten year fixed rate of 5.87% (reduced by 0.07%), all at a maximum of 60% loan-to-to value. A new two year fixed rate is also available at 5.99% for loans up to 60% loan-to-value.

The product includes a free valuation, free legal services for remortgages, no higher lending charge and allows 10% capital repayments each year, without penalty.

LV= Asset Management (LVAM), the fund management arm of mutual insurance and investment group LV=, has launched its Diversified Income Fund, a lower risk multi-asset class vehicle which aims to provide an attractive level of income with above-inflation capital growth over a typical three-year market cycle.

The fund has an income target of 4% gross p.a. at launch and an expected TER of around 1.8% p.a.

LV= is the largest friendly society in the UK, and LVAM, its wholly-owned subsidiary, manages around £8bn of assets on behalf of LV= and a range of partner organisations.

Families are reeling from the effects of rising fuel bills. CashQuestions shows you how to switch your fuel provider and save money on energy.

Fight back on fuel bills

Competition in the broadband market means there are better introductory offers than ever - but anyone tempted by the short-term deals could end up being a long-term loser. A third of people stay with the company that they first signed up with, even though the deal may not be best for them, warned BroadbandChoices.co.uk.

Alliance & Leicester is launching launches two new savings products for the over-50s. The first, the Premier 50 Fixed Rate Bond, pays 7.50% gross pa/AER and is available for a limited time only.

Hetal Parmar, Savings Manager at Alliance & Leicester, said: "Our Premier 50 Fixed Rate Bond is ideal for the over-50s who don't like to take risks with their finances - it pays a fixed 7.5% in interest and is available to customers who open or hold a Premier 50 Current Account.

Ikea is launching a sim-only mobile phone package, which it claims is the UK's cheapest PAYG on the market. The deal will be offered from the end of this week to members of the furniture retailer's loyalty programme, known as Ikea Family.

The package is being offered in partnership with Mobile Partners UK and the company says there are no hidden charges. Scheme members pay only for the air time they use at the rate of 9p a minute for all UK calls and 6p for all UK text messages – any day, any time. 

Tesco is targeting holiday motorists with its latest offer. It says it will cut the cost of car breakdown cover by 30% for people who apply online. The offer is available for those driving in the UK as well as abroad.

Wills & Co Stockbrokers is offering readers a free guide to shareholder perks.

Many UK companies reward their shareholders with discounts when they use their shops, hotels or restaurants, or buy holidays or flights through their operations. However, these deals can be difficult to find out about. This easy-to-use guide is a simple reference tool to provide further information on what perks to expect when investing in shares.

Britannia has introduced a new one-year fixed rate ISA paying 6.3% tax-free fixed to 30 September 2009. It's available from Friday 18 July, but can only be opened with an investment of £3,600. Tim Franklin, managing director of Britannia, said: "The new ISA is available to new and existing savers looking to take advantage of their tax-free allowance.

Norwich and Peterborough Building Society (N&P) has launched two new savings accounts giving customers the choice to manage their savings by post or online.

The first account is an online savings account called E-Saver. Although the account can be opened online or by post, it can only be managed online thereafter.  The account comes with a variable rate interest of 6.3% gross (incorporating a 1.55% bonus) for the first year and 4.75% from year two onwards. It is an easy access account which means savers can access their money without notice or loss of interest on withdrawals. It can be opened with a minimum investment of £1. 

The second account is a 90-day postal notice account, which can only be opened by post, and then operated by post or the internet. The rate payable is 6.3% gross, including a 1% bonus, followed by a variable rate of 5.3% from year two onwards. Savers who keep a minimunm balance of £1,000 will retain the bonus rate of interest.

Gary Lacey, group product manager for N&P, said:  "At a time when the market is at its most appealing to savers, people with some cash to put in savings should make the most of the great rates currently available."

Click here to compare the best savings rates.

Edward Jones has today launched a new cash product designed to offer investors a fair and competitive return and easy access to their money, called The Edward Jones Premier Cash Funds Shares. With a minimum investment of £5,000, the Fund is professionally managed and buys short-term cash orientated investments at the highest credit rating possible.

The return is distributed daily and investors qualify to receive the return on their entire Fund balance every day they are invested. Other monies such as share dividends or interest payments can be transferred directly into the Fund where it can continue to grow until needed.

The Edward Jones Premier Cash Fund Shares has an Aaa/MR1+ rating from independent agency Moody's - the highest possible for a cash fund and cash in the fund can be accessed on any working day and be paid directly into a bank or building society account.

Tim Kirley, Edward Jones UK Principal, said: "This is the first time we have offered a cash orientated product and we don't believe there is anything currently like it on the market. All the money invested in the Fund will receive the same level of return from day one. While this will change from day to day we believe the returns will be highly competitive compared to bank or building society accounts."

One of the benefits of this investment is the return is paid gross and treated as an overseas dividend for tax purposes. Therefore a basic rate tax payer will be taxed at 10 per cent and 32.5 per cent for a higher rate tax payer.

While there is no charge to own this investment if the balance drops below £5,000 there is a £6 monthly fee.

If you have a lump sum to invest and are looking for an attractive rate of return and security of your capital, the new three-year year Escalator Bond from Stroud & Swindon Building Society may appeal to you.

With rising interest rates over the period, the Escalator Bond offers an attractive shelter for your money.

Alliance & Leicester is extending its 8.5% AER interest offer on both its Premier Direct and Premier 50 current accounts until 30 September 2008. It is also extending the 10% AER interest rate on its Premier 21 current account for 16-21 year-olds.

The 8.5% (8.19% gross) introductory interest rate is available on balances up to £2,500 fixed for one year. After that, customers revert to the Bank of England Base Rate minus 1% (which currently equates to 4% AER).

Minimum investment is £50, and the maximum is £3,600 for the current tax year.
 

Overseas dental specialist VitalEurope is celebrating its 5,000th patient by offering free accommodation to anyone who has treatment during the months of July and August. VitalEurope's surgery in Budapest, Hungary, will carry out treatments such as crowns, bridges and implants, for between 50% and 70% less than patients would pay in the UK. With each treatment lasting an average of four days, VitalEurope is offering three nights' free accommodation for two people within the city itself for the two summer months.

To book an initial consultation at VitalEurope's central London clinic visit VitalEurope or call VitalEurope's free booking line 0800 075 4400. To take advantage of the free accommodation offer state 'CashQuestions', in the 'Where did you hear about us?' section when booking.

Barclays is to give all its two million online banking customers free internet security software covering. The offer is available to all Barclays customers who sign up for its online banking. The software provided by leading internet security firm Kaspersky normally retails for £51 for an annual subscription, but Barclays will offer it free of charge, with customers able to download it from its online banking website.  The package includes not only anti-virus software but also spyware, adware, firewalls, parental controls and spam filters.

HSBC has launched a range of discount mortgage deals today, including a 4.99% two-year discount loan that the bank claims is the only two-year sub-5% discount mortgage on the market. But the deal is only available  direct from HSBC, comes with a £2,499 fee, maximum LTV of 80% and borrowing limit of £250,000.

For customers seeking to borrow up to £500,000, HSBC is offering two-year discount mortgages at 5.49% with a £999 fee, and 5.69% with a £249 fee.  HSBC is also continuing to offer its Remortgage Tracker at 5.79% with a £599 booking fee.

Tesco is to help customers cut their fuel costs by making their shopping count at the petrol station.

Customers who spend £50 or more either in store or online from Monday 30 June to Sunday 20 July 2008 will receive a coupon giving them 5 pence off every full litre of petrol or diesel they buy, up to a maximum of 100 litres.

The Post Office has launched a one-year Growth Bond paying 7.05%. The minimum investment is £500. Post Office also offers three- and five-year fixed term bonds paying a rate of 6% interest.

The new bond, along with other growth bonds in the Post Office range, is available at all UK Post Office branches, by telephone and online.

Newcastle announced today the launch of its new postal bond, with a fixed rate of 6.8% Gross/AER on a minimum investment of £5,000. The bond is operated by post and is available now with a maturity date of 28th August 2009.

Unusually for a one year fixed-rate postal bond at this competitive rate, the Society allows customers access to up to 25% of the invested amount at any time, without notice or loss of interest.

Bradford & Bingley today launched a notice account paying up to 5.75% AER. It is known as the Notice Saver account, offers savers access to their money without any loss of interest after a notice period of 30 days, and rewards customers with a higher rate of interest the more they save.

The Notice Saver pays a variable annual interest rate of 5.35% gross/AER on balances between £1,000 and £49,999.99, 5.60% gross/AER on balances between £50,000 and £249,999.99, and 5.75% gross/AER on balances between £250,000 and £2,000,000.

People going abroad this year can now pick up their holiday money at the same time as their summer reads. Shoppers dashing around the high street for last minute holiday bits and pieces will be able to use 50 new Post Office bureau de change kiosks at selected branches of WH Smith.

A new website where people can design and send their own "real" greeting cards (as opposed to e-cards), is offering a free Father’s Day card (inc. P&P) to everyone who registers on the website before Thursday, 12th June

If you’re feeling creative, you can even design the card yourself using an image of your own. It sounds fancy but is super easy and super fun. Most importantly, of course, it’s a great way to show dad you care on June 15th! The site is  www.Greetz.co.uk.