I have found that my own building society has all but closed up shop with regards to their branches and you have to travel into the city to find the only two branch outlets there. Once there you are not even welcome inside unless you are making some major transaction – so you are expected, or forced, to be more specific, to use the machines outside. I expect pretty soon we will all have to join the ever growing longer queues at the post office to do our banking s more branches close down, which is another issue altogether, have you tried to simply post a letter these days and stood for half an hour behind other people doing everything else expect buying a stamp…? I’ll save my rant about that inconvenience for another time!

The first thing to do is to check what currency is used at your destination. If it’s a mainstream currency such as dollars or euros then it’s best to take the money in that form. However, if you’re going off to less mainstream countries, check which of the principal currencies is most commonly used there (if in doubt, take dollars). Sometimes you can’t get the currency used outside the country or can’t get sensible amounts of it so you need to take dollars or euros eg India used to only allow you to import £5 of their currency which wasn’t really worthwhile getting.

What about taking cash? Well, if you’re in America then it’s always worthwhile to take, say, $100 with you (nothing larger than a $20 bill) and likewise for those living in euro-land. However, if that’s not the currency of the country you’re going to, it’s going to be expensive to convert to the local currency. The other option is to buy some of the local currency before you go but beware that this is usually quite expensive and not as cheap as you would think from the advertisements eg when I bought $150 for about £100 in a shop advertising that the commission was £3.50, the actual charge was over £10 ie 10%. The other main downside of cash is that if it’s stolen, it’s gone as holiday insurance rarely covers cash to any significant amount so if you are taking it, limit the amount to $100 or so. If you buy foreign currency on a card, it counts as a cash advance with all the charges that implies.

Travellers cheques (or checks) are much better than cash in that they can be replaced fairly easily if stolen (keep a note of the numbers, date bought and where you bought them). However, they are equally expensive to purchase and there is often a charge to cash them too. If you’re going to America or Canada you can use dollar cheques as though they were cash in shops (even where they say “no checks accepted”). Again, take them in the currency of the country you’re going to if it’s a mainstream one, otherwise dollars or euros. If you have any left over after your holiday, keep them rather than cash them in your bank as you can use them later (there is no expiry date) and this will save you paying the commission again. If you buy travellers cheques on a card, it counts as a cash advance with all the charges that implies. Make sure that your travellers cheques come with the Visa or Mastercard or American Express brands as others may not be accepted. You can’t use American Express travellers cheques in Cuba or Vietnam nor any issued by American banks.

Credit/Charge cards are used nearly everywhere these days. If you don’t have a card already, you should get one (Visa or Mastercard) even if you only plan to use it for emergencies. Bear in mind that not everywhere accepts them though and also that not all places take both Visa and Mastercard. If pushed, you can get cash on these cards either in an ATM or over the counter in a bank but save this for emergencies only as you’ll get charged a cash advance fee, currency conversion fee and interest. The exchange rate used is much better than you’ll get for either cash or travellers cheques so that $150 that I got would have cost me around £2.75 vs the £10 that I was charged had I used the card in a shop, around £7 had I used it to get cash (assuming I’d paid the full balance when I returned home). In those countries which don’t have ATMs, you can usually still use the card to buy things and get cash over the counter in banks. I say usually because it isn’t always the case eg in India we couldn’t use the card in shops and the banks weren’t practical either.

Credit/Charge cards come in four basic international-use versions. Visa/Mastercard are the most accepted worldwide but note that in some countries one may be more accepted than the other and in particular don’t rely on shops accepting both cards so, if you can, take both types. American Express is the next most accepted but it is widely accepted only in countries that are “American/British” influenced; the one principle advantage it has is that it can be replaced by any American Express office although note that these are not very widespread and may be difficult to get to. One thing to avoid is their Travellers Check Card: best to get one of their proper cards if you can, but only if it’s free in your country. Diners Club is very far behind Amex in acceptance worldwide and not worth paying for. You cannot use cards issued by American banks in Cuba or Vietnam which notably includes MBNA (owned by Bank of America). Discover isn’t accepted outside America. JCB acceptance is patchy: good where Japanese tourists are common, poor otherwise.

Debit cards are almost always branded Visa/Electron/Plus or Mastercard/Maestro/Cirrus and work in the corresponding systems however sometimes you may be issued with a card which can only be used in your own country: check that one of the Visa/Electron/Plus or Mastercard/Maestro/Cirrus symbols are on your card as if they aren’t you probably can’t use the card internationally. Charges are as per credit cards except that you don’t get charged interest on cash advances.

Cash cards are often limited to the country in which they are issued but if they have a Plus or Cirrus symbol on them, you can use them abroad too (this should change in 2008 with the introduction of the Single European Payment Area ie all European cards should be useable in all European countries, but don’t rely on that date). Charges are usually the same as for debit cards in ATMs. The principle advantage of having a cash card is that they are a lot less attractive for thieves as they can’t be used without the PIN.

Prepaid cards are becoming increasingly popular with travel agents, mainly because they see it as a way of getting even more commission than they can on travellers cheques. If you have a normal Visa/Mastercard credit or debit card, don’t bother with these. Charges are usually around £20 for the card, plus commission to convert to the currency of the card, plus cash advance fees ie a good deal more expensive than travellers cheques which in turn are a good deal more expensive than just using your own card. For example, had I got my $150 on a card, the cost would have been around £30 vs the £10 that it actually was and the £2.75 that it would have been on a credit card.

As well as the above options you also have a choice of providers of the various methods of payment. Travellers cheques may be offered “commission free” by your bank (and the UK Post Office), although note that this is not the same as “free” eg my $150 would have cost around £7 “commission free” (vs £10 with commission).

In the UK, the Nationwide Building Society offer a totally free debit card (ie no transaction fees, no ATM fees, no currency conversion fees) so my $150 would have cost nothing; their credit card is almost as good in that it’s free for purchases but is a bit expensive for cash advances. If you like to have large chunks of cash available to you, the Egg money account is excellent (2.75% currency conversion when used in shops or ATMs) and a good alternative to a prepaid card. Most UK cheque accounts come with a debit card with Maestro or Visa Debit facilities. For a UK cash card you seem to be limited to Egg’s savings account (Plus system) and Royal Bank of Scotlands Instant Savings account (Cirrus system).

In America you can get quite a range of systems listed on the card eg NYCE, Star, etc. but in reality the only two that matter are Plus and Cirrus for cash, Visa and Mastercard/Maestro for debit/credit card use as none of the others are accepted internationally. The costs for international use are rarely clearly laid out on American card agreements and smaller banks may not even know how much you’ll be charged for using your card abroad.

If you use one of the banks within the Global Alliance banks (BNPParibas, Bank of Nova Scotia, Bank of America, Barclays, Deutsche Bank and Westpac) can use machines from one of the other Global Alliance banks without transaction charges (currency conversion fees still apply).

On the other hand, while I welcome this re-introduction, charges are likely to be introduced on these smallish withdrawals and there is the possibility of the ATM’s running out of cash faster than usual. I, however, like the idea of the small-change dispenser – ever dashed in a hurry to withdraw some cash to pay for your bus ticket on a Monday morning only to get a £50.00 note pop out…? and then there’s the look on the face of the bus driver…

These bonuses and fixed-rate deals are running out, leaving savers with poor returns. New rules introduced last month demand banks and building societies warn you before your bonus runs out. Any bonus which ran out before the start of May would have been exempt from these rules. Last week Egg, now part of Citibank, launched another version of its Internet Saver Issue 2 paying 2.24pc (2.8pc), including a 1.84 (2.3) percentage point bonus payable for a year. The offer is open only to savers bringing new money to the bank. Existing customers cannot move their account here. But if you are in its older Egg Savings Account (Internet) you will see much less interest. Savers who have been in this account for more than a year earn a much lower 1pc (1.25pc).

Savers in the Halifax Guaranteed Saver Reward version on sale until July last year will see their rate drop from 1.6pc (2pc) to 0.4pc (0.5pc) once they have been in the account for 12 months. The account offered a fixed rate for a year, after which you earn its Guaranteed Saver rate, currently 0.4pc (0.5pc). And if you bought the attractive version launched in July last year, your rate will be cut from 2.08pc (2.6pc) to 0.4pc (0.5pc) next month, bringing your interest down from £208 to just £40 a year on £10,000.

If you were tempted by Halifax’s tax-free Isa Direct Reward – on sale until May 29 last year – your rate will drop to 0.5pc from 3pc once you have been in the account for a year. You’ll also see your rate plummet to 0.4pc (0.5pc) on Santander’s (the old Abbey) eSaver 2, launched last May, once your 1.6 (2) point bonus runs out after a year. It’s not as bad as the 0.08pc (0.1pc) that savers in the original Abbey eSaver earn, but well below the best deals on internet accounts.

One of the most common practices is hunting down an insurance policy issued by a company that seems to have vanished. Many of these are so-called ‘penny policies’ taken out years ago with an insurer or a friendly society for a small monthly premium, often collected door-to-door. Insurers stopped collecting premiums on these years ago because of the cost, but they still have a value. Don’t expect more than a few pounds, though…if you locate your policy that is.

Many old insurance policies were issued by friendly societies, often with a name reflecting the occupation or beliefs of the people the policies were sold to. At the end of World War II, there were more than 1,000 of these member-owned institutions: today, there are just 40. Both the FSA and Policy Detective should carry details, or try the Association of Financial Mutuals. For example, the Domestic Servants Insurance Society now comes under Reliance Mutual.

Shares Certificates: First, check if the company is still trading under the name on your shares – a look at the share price page in newspapers should help with bigger companies.If you can’t find the company, then it might have been renamed, taken over or disappeared. Companies House can help and has drop-in centres in London, edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast. If you haven’t received any communication from the company for a while, you may need to update your details with its registrar. You can find this out from the London Stock exchange website if you select the Tools & Services option and then company profile.

If you think you own shares in a company ( i.e. an electronics company) but have lost the certificate, then you need to find out who the registrar is. Be prepared to pay for a replacement certificate.

The Premium Bond prize draw has been taking place for 53 years and prizes are always claimable, regardless of time. The oldest unclaimed Premium Bond prize – £25 in today’s money – dates back to the November 1957 draw. There is more than £30 million in unclaimed prize money: there are two prizes for £100,000 dating back to the same draw in Febuary 2007. One is on a £25 bond bought by a lady with a last known address in Outer London, number is 8LK522839; the other is also held by a lady, last known address in Australia, with just a £ 6 holding ( number 5eT395766). Premium bonds can always be cashed in at their face value: you can get a repayment form from a post office or from its website.

Now go get your detectives hat on and find those missing pounds!

Although Lloyds said predictions of a return to the black were based on current expectations for the economy and regulatory burdens, the bank is ‘pleased’ with its performance so far. The bank, which has three million small shareholders, reported ‘strong’ trading in the first 10 weeks of 2010 and has clamped down on costs after the HBOS merger. In February’s annual results, it increased annual cost saving targets to £2 billion by the end of next year as a result of the takeover. Bad debts in the second half of 2009 were around 20% lower than in the first six months of last year and Lloyds had previously guided a similar rate of improvement during 2010.

But the bank’s impairment charges are falling at a faster rate than expected, improving profitability. The unexpected update will be a boost for chief executive Eric Daniels, who has defended the HBOS deal for more than a year to former Lloyds TSB shareholders who have seen dividends cut and the Government step in as a result of the takeover.

Bosses hope the new line will filter out their customers who do not have the money to buy the bank’s products so their British staff will potentially be able to sell to every caller. Barclays is testing the system and call centre staff have been briefed that it will start on April 1. I have already closed my Barclays account due to the way they treat smaller account holders – I despise speaking to foreign call centre operators who read to you from a script, cannot answer even the most basic questions and have no geographical knowledge of the people they are talking to. I refuse to deal with them at all.

These days with the recession, the priority for many couples will be sorting out debts and other joint liabilities, such as household bills. Many people do not realise that with joint loans, overdrafts or credit cards, both parties are liable for the full amount. This is known as “joint and several liability”. It means that if, for example, you have a £10,000 loan with your ex-partner, you will not owe £5,000 each — you will both owe the full amount.

Joint and several liability can also apply to rent or mortgage arrears, as well as council tax, utility and other household bills. It is, therefore, important to ensure that your name is removed from all bills before moving out of the property. An old partner’s finances may also have an impact on your credit rating. If a couple share any form of joint bank account or credit, such as a loan, this “financial connection” will appear on both party’s credit ratings.

If your partner or ex-partner has a bad credit rating and you have a financial connection with them, this will have an adverse effect on your rating as well. This is why it is very important to keep your finances totally separate for at least six years from when your partner had debt problems — since it takes that long for their record to become clean again. Once you have severed all financial connections from your partner, you can write to a credit-reference agency — Experian, Call Credit or Equifax — to “dissociate” yourself from your ex. The agency will share this disassociation with the others, so only one needs to be contacted.

Also remember that your ex-partner will have access to any savings and current accounts in joint names. So it is vital to ensure these assets are divided fairly at the outset of a separation.

A fifth of parents admit they have dipped into their child’s savings account to make ends meet, a survey showed today. Around 22 per cent of parents said they had been forced to raid their child’s savings, with 44 per cent borrowing between £200 and £500, according to savings provider Engage Mutual Assurance. Four out of 10 parents said they were forced to use their child’s savings to pay bills, while 20 per cent faced unexpected car repairs.

Around 14 per cent used the money to pay for a family holiday, 12 per cent needed it to cover the cost of house repairs and 8 per cent put the money towards the cost of Christmas. Two-thirds of parents said they only borrowed money from their children when there was no alternative, and 13 per cent said they did not know where else they could get the money from quickly. Eight out of 10 parents who borrowed money said they saw it as a loan and would pay it back when they could.

But 30 per cent of parents admitted they felt guilty about borrowing money from their children and 27 per cent said they felt sad that their financial situation had become so dire. But look at it this way – you enable your kids to save, you provide them with the funds to do so – so what is the problem with taking back some of that which you gave them…?

Now thousands who hoped to have their meagre monthly incomes boosted by the deal, are having their cheques returned. At the last count more than 1,000 a day were being posted back. Many more applications are still to be received from savers who never realised the rates had been withdrawn. They will now be forced to seek out one of the lesser deals from elsewhere on the high street – the Post Office is doing a one year growth bond at 3.70% fixed for one year and a 4.25% rate for the two year deal.

This will be a further blow to those whose incomes have been devastated by the fall in the Bank of England base rate to a record low of 0.5 per cent. In some cases investors are getting just £8 interest a year for £10,000 of savings. If you do not need to depend on an income from your savings for the time being it would also do to look at investing in gold, shares or otherwise.