Gas consumption by businesses fell by 15% and electricity use fell by 12% in the first ten months of 2011 compared to the same period last year. Domestic customers are also cutting their energy use, with gas consumption in homes falling by 17% and electricity by 3%. Although these results are just for British Gas customers, other energy suppliers are likely to have similar figures.

As a result of people cutting back and the heatwave in the autumn, Centrica have said that they will be expecting a smaller profit at the end of 2011 – however, they are still expecting to make £2.48billion in profit despite many domestic and business customers struggling with their bills.

With many companies finding that their current business electricity prices are simply too high, switching suppliers is recommended to ensure that business owners are getting the best possible price and not spending more than they have to on essential outgoings.

As well as using the services of the Big Six, there are a number of smaller business electricity suppliers that offer a variety of different tariffs. Due to this, business decision makers should ensure that they are not just sticking with the basic tariff from their current energy supplier and instead dedicate a period of time to exploring other options.

Spending a small amount of time searching around for another energy plan could help businesses reduce the amount of money that they are spending on their business gas and electricity, so it is definitely a worthwhile use of your time no matter how busy and hectic your schedule may be.

The deadline for returning a paper tax return was October 31, but if you’re one of an increasing number of people that do their taxes online, you have until the end of January to fill in and submit your forms.

Although many people are aware of the January 31 deadline, there is an earlier deadline of December 30 for anyone that owes less than £3,000 and wants to pay it through their tax code.

If you miss the deadline, there are penalties to pay. For being one day late in submitting, there is an automatic £100 fixed penalty and for each day it is late there is an extra £10 charge. There are also higher penalties if you are 6 or more months later, so make sure you send it off in good time to avoid the fines.

If you’re struggling with your tax return, contact Liptrott and Woosey Accountants for assistance with completing and filing your return as well as help with all aspects of business accountancy.

From helping with business plans to assisting with cashflow, Liptrott and Woosey Accountants Manchester aim to help all their clients succeed in business by providing honest and accurate advice.

The team behind Liptrott and Woosey have considerable experience in the industry and set up the company as they believed that the larger companies they worked for simply weren’t providing clients with the personal touch. Liptrott and Woosey are fixed fee and pride themselves on their friendly service and being just a phone call away should a client need any help or advice.

It has been said that a large number of whiplash claims are ending with the standard car insurance policy rising by £90.

According to a survey of GPs by the King’s Fund, the accident rate came down by 16% and yet a ‘whiplash epidemic’ over the UK is causing a huge £2billion a year craze.

The amount of claims has grown by 30% in the past three years, jumping to 570,000 a year- or simply one claim each minute.

Conclusions from the Insurance Fraud Bureau, declare that a minimum of 30,000 whiplash claims are outright fraudulent and are priced at £350 million a year. Insurers say several doctors and ambulance-chasing lawyers are ‘scamming the system’ and details shows that 47% of UK doctors think the claims method is flawed.

They are calling on the government to implement new recommendations to handle the culture; one that has a better quality process for diagnosing, treating and coping with whiplash insurance claims. One insurer declared the current system, as evident of the findings, is open up to abuse and allows false claims to be made.

There are over 1,600 whiplash diagnoses a day, consider getting specialist insurance claims advice with expert loss assessors.
For all claims more than £1,000, your insurance company will find its own loss adjusters who’ll check out the claim. For the insurance help whether it’s for whiplash, fire, burglary or flood; get in touch with Insurance Claims today- the best recognized insurance claims management experts in the UK.

The Nordic country has enforced a ‘fat tax’ on foods such as butter, oil and chocolate in an effort to control unhealthy eating habits.

The newly introduced tax will increase the price of foods like burger, sugar and soft drinks and it is believed to be the first country in the world to tax fatty foods.

The Walled Garden Bistro only uses excellent foods that are bursting with flavours, so rest assured you can eat what you want at a price you can afford without a fee increase.

The price rise on small packages will only increase slightly, however at the end of the shop it could have a hefty effect on the shopping bill.

The scheme is to help increase the average life expectancy of Danes which is currently below the average at 79 years-old. Hungary already has a new tax known as Hamburger Law but it only involves higher taxes on pastries, food flavourings and salty snacks.

Other countries are reportedly considering similar taxes as a possible way to target Europe’s growing obesity crisis. Some experts argue though that it will do nothing to change consumer’s harmful eating habits. It is claimed 70% of the British population will be obese or overweight by 2050.

Eat fine food that is nourishing as well as tasty at the award-winning Bistro Preston, the Walled Garden.

Companies who put on an annual Christmas party Lancashire for all their employees can receive a £150 per head entitlement towards it, which means that the cost of the event is not liable to tax or National Insurance payments.

There are a number of points that have to be considered with this entitlement. It is not an allowance – an employer can’t put on a more expensive event and use the £150 entitlement to offset this.  The event must also be open to all employees at a location, so an event just for senior staff would not receive this entitlement.

All costs must be taken into account; including venue hire, transportation and food and drink, and is then divided by the number of employees attending. If it comes to more than £150 per person, there is no tax reduction.

There are many options available for employers looking for the ideal venue for their Christmas do, and if you’re considering hotels Preston, the Barton Grange Hotel could be your perfect location. Located just north of Preston in the charming village of Barton, the hotel has great transport links as it’s just a few minutes away from both the M6 and M55, so all employees at your company can easily get to and from the party.

If you feel like making it that bit more special, why not stay over afterwards? The Barton Grange Hotel offer double or twin rooms for just £55 per night so you can enjoy a relaxing night’s sleep after your event and wake up refreshed for the next day!

Research has discovered that over a 3rd of all farmers in the UK like to set up renewable sources on their own land, with 80% identifying that renewable energy conserve expenses and 60% seeing this as an extra kind of income.

The actual loan fund is being given by Barclays, as well as the bank plans that almost all of the projects are going to be solar panels or wind farms mainly because are definitely the most affordable to build. The fund offers an limitless budget, using the very first £100million obtainable anticipated to aid above 100 projects.

It’s not only those who own large volumes of land who are able to gain from using renewable energy sources. People will be able to fit sustainable energy equipment for instance solar panels as well as heat pumps to their houses to cut domestic energy charges and even as an extra revenue.

Many of us believe that the expenses of installing the equipment could be far too expensive, however as a result of government’s array of renewable energy grants homeowners could get help with installment fees to allow them to afford to fit the equipment and begin conserving money on their own energy bills.

The London Energy Efficiency Fund delivers inexpensive loans for organisations for example hospitals, local authorities and police and fire stations to set up energy efficiency equipment within their premises.

The fund provides loans of between £3 million and £10 million for setting up measures for example energy efficient lighting systems, upgrading boilers and fitting smart meters. It’s expected that NHS Trusts, housing groups and establishments in the voluntary sector will be among those which will borrow money from the fund.

Presently, 10 per cent of all carbon emissions in the capital come from public sector buildings alone so decreasing emissions from these buildings is important to assist the city in reducing its carbon footprint.

Nevertheless, it is not just big organisations who ought to look to reducing their CO2 emissions. Smaller businesses can also have a positive effect on the environment by reducing their carbon emissions. Making use of the solutions of a company which provides environmental consultancy services including Apollo Enviro can help you find areas were you could minimize your carbon emissions.

From installing voltage optimisation units to reduce the energy used by a business’ equipment, to arranging environmental awareness workshops to show staff how tiny changes to their routines can make a big distinction, Apollo Enviro can help businesses reduce their carbon footprint and potential cut costs on their energy costs.

There are many reasons why you may have to sell your home quick but as several buyers are not able to get mortgages, the whole process can now take a extended time to finish which can be difficult.

Nevertheless, Quick Purchase can help you with selling property quickly by buying your home from you, within as few as seven days. This can assist you to proceed on with your life.

No matter what your cause for wanting to sell property quickly, Quick Purchase could provide you with the perfect solution. They buy homes in any state, with all styles and sizes of property regarded, and can help to make an offer in just 24 hours. So regardless of whether you’re need to move due to the fact you’re relocating, going through a divorce or facing repossession, Quick Purchase can assist.

Save money during these turbulent times and deploy a new phone system in your business today with Abbey Telecom.