Corrections log
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In short: This is the dated public record of substantive corrections and editorial changes on Money Guide. Earlier entries remain as historical records; later entries may supersede them. To report an error, email editor@moneyguide.org.uk with the page URL and a primary-source link.
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What has been corrected?
Newest first. Entries explain substantive factual, calculation or editorial-policy changes. Routine updates are not evidence that the entire page was reviewed. The method is on how corrections work.
Scotland LBTT vs SDLT — UK property tax compared
Corrected the statement that SDLT returns are filed within 30 days: the SDLT deadline is 14 days after completion (LBTT and LTT are 30 days). The Wales LTT comparison no longer describes the higher rates as a flat 5% surcharge — they are a separate band table from 5% to 17% — and the December 2024 change is described as a 1 percentage point rise in each band.
Mortgage offer to completion: the UK homebuying timeline
Removed unsourced timings (8–14, 8–16 and 12–16 weeks) and an unsourced £1,500–£2,500 conveyancing fee range from this guide and the 'What is conveyancing?' and 'How long from mortgage offer to completion?' answers. They now cite GOV.UK (buying a home takes about 5 months on average) and the government's 2026 reform roadmap (around 120 days from an accepted offer to completion). The guide also wrongly said both sides pay a deposit at exchange; the buyer does.
Leasehold reform: which changes are in force and which are still to come
This article (31 March 2026) wrongly said the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 had abolished ground rents and removed marriage value from lease extension prices in spring 2026. Peppercorn ground rents on most new long leases date from the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 (in force 30 June 2022), and the 2024 Act's valuation reforms and 990-year extensions are not in force (legislation.gov.uk commencement regulations; GOV.UK). The article now carries a dated correction notice and lists what is and is not in force.
How to report fraud or a scam in the UK
Report Fraud replaced Action Fraud on 4 December 2025, not in November 2025 (GOV.UK, City of London Police announcement). Corrected on this how-to and the contact page.
Graduate scheme salary guide UK
Removed unsourced graduate salary ranges (£28,000–£35,000, £35,000–£45,000 and a £5,000–£15,000 London premium) and pension contribution ranges. The guide now points to the Department for Education's LEO graduate earnings data. It also wrongly said Plan 5 repayments start from the first month of employment; they start the April after you leave your course, once income is above the threshold (GOV.UK).
Student loan repayment calculator
The calculator used out-of-date 2026/27 repayment thresholds for Plan 1 (£24,990; correct figure £26,900) and Plan 4 (£31,395; correct figure £33,795), a 7.3% default interest rate that is above every current rate, and the undergraduate rate for postgraduate loans. It now uses GOV.UK's thresholds and the interest rates from 1 September 2026 (Plan 1 and Plan 5 4.1%, Plan 2 up to a 6% cap, postgraduate 6%), shows a 6% marginal rate when only a postgraduate loan is being repaid, and states write-off rules in GOV.UK's terms. The Plan 2 vs Plan 5 guide no longer says most borrowers won't repay in full: the Department for Education forecasts 55% of 2025/26 full-time starters will (July 2026).
Bank switch bonuses return as competition heats up
This article (12 May 2026) and the contact page gave the FSCS deposit protection limit as £85,000. It has been £120,000 per person, per banking licence, since 1 December 2025 (FSCS). The separate £85,000 limit for investment claims is unchanged.
How much does a UK funeral cost?
Replaced unsourced funeral cost ranges with SunLife's Cost of Dying Report 2026 averages, credited on the page. Corrected the statements that doctors' cremation fees were abolished in May 2024 (doctors' cremation forms ended on 9 September 2024 in England and Wales) and that help with funeral costs can only be claimed after the funeral. The pre-paid funeral plans guide now says FSCS cover applies where a provider fails on or after 29 July 2022 and that intermediary commission is banned, not capped; the bank accounts after death guide no longer quotes an unsourced £25,000–£50,000 release range; the Funeral Expenses Payment guide now explains mandatory reconsideration.
Inheritance Tax explained
Budget 2025 extended the freeze on the Inheritance Tax nil-rate band (£325,000) and residence nil-rate band (£175,000) by a year, to 5 April 2031 (HM Treasury, Budget 2025 rates and allowances). Pages that said April 2030 — including the Inheritance Tax calculator, glossary, eligibility and bereavement guides — were updated.
How much does probate cost in the UK?
The probate application fee in England and Wales is £526 for estates over £5,000, with extra copies at £2 each when you apply or £16 later (GOV.UK). Several pages still gave £300 or £273 and £1.50 copies; they were corrected, including the probate how-to, the bereavement guides and a quick answer. Unsourced solicitor fee ranges were removed from this page.
Renters' Rights Act: what tenants need to know
Checked the renting guides against legislation.gov.uk and GOV.UK. Corrected: rent can only rise through a Section 13 notice or a tribunal decision; challenging a rent increase costs £47; the tribunal can't set more than the landlord proposed; the EPC C plan for 2030 is not yet law; section 21 notices served before 1 May 2026 needed court proceedings by 31 July 2026; the landlord database opens from 15 December 2026, region by region; the Act's discrimination rules also apply in Scotland and Wales; tenants' notice can be shorter if the landlord agrees and can't be restricted by the agreement; landlords can still charge their actual loss if a tenant leaves without the required notice; grounds 10 and 11 also need four weeks' notice.
Care home funding options: who pays and what help exists
Corrected care funding pages against the Care Act 2014 statutory guidance and 2026/27 charging rules: residents can top up from their own money in limited cases (12-week property disregard, deferred payment agreements); Northern Ireland uses England's capital limits; below £14,250 capital is ignored but income is still assessed (it is not 'council pays in full'); protected relatives include your child under 18 and incapacitated relatives; the deprivation test is 'a significant motivation'; deferred payment interest is capped at a national maximum (4.65% from 1 July 2026). Removed an unsourced weekly cost figure and an unsourced attribution about asset protection trusts.
Debt relief orders explained: bankruptcy for smaller debts
The guide said a Debt Relief Order is available in Northern Ireland; GOV.UK says you can't apply for this DRO if you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland (Northern Ireland has its own scheme). The debt, savings and vehicle limits are 'less than' £50,000, £2,000 and £4,000, and a vehicle is assessed separately from the £2,000 limit. Also corrected on the how-to and quick answer.
Car insurance groups
Corrected the claim that Direct Line is not on comparison sites: its online car policies are listed on Compare the Market. Clarified that the ABI Group Rating Panel sets groups using Thatcham data, and that Thatcham is replacing groups 1–50 with Vehicle Risk Rating. Updated green card guidance and replaced the source with the FCA pricing-rules announcement.
Buildings and contents insurance, and Flood Re
Corrected the Flood Re figure from “around 5 million” homes to about 353,000 policies (year to March 2026), and “at least 2039” to its planned end in 2039. Corrected funding (a £160m annual levy on insurers, not a per-policy levy) and eligibility (up to three homes per building; eligible buy-to-let included). Replaced the outdated ABI source.
Broadband social tariffs and mid-contract price rules
Updated the social tariff price range from £10–£25 to Ofcom's current £10–£24. Corrected the DWP eligibility-check start to August 2022; it needs customer consent, not a National Insurance number. Corrected the claim that other providers' social tariffs can always be joined without exit fees. Clarified that the price-rise rule also covers pay TV, renewals and percentage rises.
Water bills, social tariffs and WaterSure
Corrected WaterSure eligibility. It requires Child Benefit for three or more children under 19 (there is no full-time education test) and metered charging (not “waiting for a meter”). It is statutory in England only, lasts 12 months per application, and Welsh companies run voluntary equivalents. Social tariff discounts can reach 99%. Corrected the meter switch-back right to 12 months in law and an outdated scheme name. Added Ofwat's planned abolition and replaced the source with CCW.
Priority vs non-priority debts
Updated the Buy Now Pay Later answer to reflect FCA regulation of deferred payment credit from 15 July 2026. Clarified the council tax committal answer: Wales removed the power from 1 April 2019. Updated the source link.
DRO, IVA and bankruptcy compared
Corrected IVA approval: creditors now vote through a decision procedure rather than a meeting, and approval needs 75% by value of those voting. Clarified the DRO property rule: property counts towards the £2,000 asset limit, rather than a separate home-ownership ban. Noted instalment payment of the £680 bankruptcy fee and Individual Insolvency Register removal timing. Updated the source link.
Breathing Space scheme
Corrected the Mental Health Crisis route: an AMHP certifies crisis treatment, and the application is made to a debt adviser. Removed TV licence arrears from the excluded-debts list, where they were wrongly included. Added the other excluded debts. Corrected the credit-file answer: no Breathing Space marker is added and the register is private. Updated the source link.
How credit scoring works
Corrected credit score scales: Experian 0–999 → 0–1250 and TransUnion 0–710 → 0–999 (rolling out from September 2026). Corrected hard-search retention, which is two years at TransUnion. Updated Buy Now Pay Later to reflect FCA regulation from 15 July 2026 and that FCA rules do not require credit reporting. Replaced a broken ICO source link.
Index funds vs active funds
Replaced the understated “70%–90%” 10-year underperformance range with SPIVA Europe Year-End 2025 figures for sterling equity funds (about 77%–97%). Corrected the claim that survivorship bias flatters SPIVA's figures: closed and merged funds are included.
Investment fees explained
Corrected the 30-year fee illustration: £100,000 growing at 5% is worth about £375,000 after 0.5% annual fees and £281,000 after 1.5%, not £384,000 and £288,000. Added the FCA's new product summary replacing the KID/KIID (optional from 6 April 2026, mandatory from 8 June 2027) and the three-year SDRT exemption for newly listed UK companies.
Stocks & Shares ISA basics
Corrected the ISA allowance freeze from “until at least 2030” to April 2031 and updated the tax year to 2026/27. Added the £12,000 cash ISA limit for under-65s from 6 April 2027 and the related transfer restrictions, plus the April 2026 rule on cryptoasset ETNs. Clarified that the Junior ISA limit is a separate allowance, not a sub-limit of the adult allowance.
Capital Gains Tax on investments
Updated to 2026/27. Corrected the carried-interest statement: from 6 April 2026 carried interest is charged to Income Tax and National Insurance, not CGT at a higher rate. Added that Business Asset Disposal Relief gains are taxed at 18% from 6 April 2026 (14% in 2025/26).
Vehicle Excise Duty rates
Updated from 2025/26 to 2026/27 rates: standard rate £195 → £200, expensive car supplement £425 → £440 and top first-year rate £5,690. The supplement threshold for zero-emission cars registered from 1 April 2025 is now £50,000 rather than £40,000. Replaced the obsolete reference to renewing a “tax disc” for historic vehicles and clarified untaxed-vehicle penalties. Added the planned pay-per-mile eVED charge from April 2028.
Key UK rates and allowances
Updated Bank Rate after the 17 September 2026 MPC hold at 3.75% (next decision 5 November 2026) and CPI from 2.9% (July) to 3.1% (August 2026; next release 21 October 2026). Replaced the fuel duty note that the 5p cut “remains in place” with its extension to 31 December 2026 and the legislated rises that follow. Added the ISA freeze to April 2031 and the under-65 cash ISA limit from April 2027, and replaced a broken Lump Sum Allowance source link.
Cited sources across the site
Replaced 122 cited source addresses that returned “page not found” (mostly GOV.UK, FCA, Ofgem, nidirect, mygov.scot and NHS pages) with the current official page on the same subject, or the closest official guidance where the original no longer exists. Where the replacement is from a different body (for example MoneyHelper, the CAA or Ofcom), its label now names that body. Moved third-party pages that could not be verified (a UK Finance, an RAC and a Hitched page) were removed or replaced with the organisation's home page; the closed Advice Cymru service was replaced with Citizens Advice Cymru.
Mortgage affordability and stress test
Corrected the loan-to-income rule: since July 2025 the 15% limit on lending at 4.5× income or more applies across the whole market, and individual lenders can exceed 15% of their own lending (Bank of England Financial Stability Report, July 2026).
Working from home tax relief
Rewrote the guide: employees cannot claim working-from-home tax relief for 2026/27, only for the four previous years and only if they had to work from home, with evidence (GOV.UK). Removed the claims that the £6 flat rate needs no evidence and that self-employed people use a £6 weekly rate (they use £10/£18/£26 monthly flat rates). The home-working energy tariff answer was corrected to match.
UK dividend tax explained
Dividend tax rates for 2026/27 corrected from 8.75% and 33.75% to 10.75% (basic) and 35.75% (higher); the additional rate stays 39.35% (GOV.UK, tax on dividends). Also corrected on the dividend allowance and dividend tax rate answers, the glossary, the investing guide and the ETFs guide.
Household Support Fund ends: Crisis and Resilience Fund starts in England
This article (26 March 2026) and the 7 June 2026 article on summer applications wrongly said the Household Support Fund had been extended to March 2027 / for 2026/27. Both now carry a dated correction notice and describe the Crisis and Resilience Fund that replaced it.
Crisis and Resilience Fund (formerly the Household Support Fund)
Corrected pages that described the Household Support Fund as running in 2026/27. Its final period ended on 31 March 2026; in England the Crisis and Resilience Fund replaced it from 1 April 2026, with funding to 31 March 2029 (GOV.UK). The guide, eligibility page, two quick answers, the cost-of-living timeline and help guides, the Wales benefits and DAF guides and four news items were updated, and the Wales guide no longer says the fund operated in Wales.
Editorial policy and review attribution
Removed unsupported claims of universal second-editor checks, fixed review schedules and specialist sign-off inferred from a profile. Disclosed AI assistance and separated scoped source checks from professional reviews. No page-specific professional review has been evidenced for this release.
Will and deed-poll service guidance
Expanded jurisdiction, process, free-route and provider-selection guidance; added clearly disclosed recommendations for SwiftWill and Instant Deed Poll with common ownership. This supersedes the July 2026 decision to omit will-service names; it is not a whole-market ranking or professional endorsement.
Benefits support finder
Replaced unsupported numerical eligibility and award estimates with circumstances-based signposting to official and independent benefit checks, including nation, State Pension age and mixed-age-couple considerations.
Source comparison: GOV.UK benefits calculators; GOV.UK State Pension age; GOV.UK Pension Credit eligibility; GOV.UK Pension Credit calculator; Northern Ireland benefits calculator; Northern Ireland Pension Credit; Scottish benefits. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
Name-change notification guidance
Removed the suggestion that a name change alone requires an existing will to be replaced or re-signed. Clarified linking evidence, life-event reviews, passport surname evidence and flexible notification order.
Source comparison: GOV.UK name changes by deed poll; Passport marriage or civil partnership; Passport other name changes. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
Personal Allowance freeze
Corrected the freeze end date from April 2028 to April 2031 in the rate table and related explanatory content following the Budget 2025 measure.
Source comparison: HMRC thresholds through 5 April 2031. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
Power of attorney registration costs
Corrected the obsolete £82 England and Wales fee to £92 per LPA, with revised examples and fee-help distinctions. Added separate Scottish and Northern Irish registration fees and processes.
Source comparison: GOV.UK registering an LPA; GOV.UK LPA120 reduced fee; Scottish OPG fees; Northern Ireland EPA registration. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
NI top-up break-even calculator
Removed the assumption that each missing NI year always adds 1/35 of the full pension. The calculation now requires the user’s HMRC quoted cost and DWP-confirmed increase.
Source comparison: Voluntary NI rates; Check your State Pension forecast. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
FSCS deposit protection
Replaced obsolete eligible-deposit limits with £120,000 per person per banking licence and the qualifying £1.4 million temporary-high-balance limit; clarified joint/personal account aggregation and separate investment/scam protections.
Source comparison: FSCS deposit protection; FSCS temporary high balances. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
Key UK rates and allowances
Corrected stale headline figures including Bank Rate, CPI, State Pension, National Living Wage and GB redundancy limits. Refreshed only individually checked rows and clarified their effective dates and jurisdiction.
Source comparison: Bank of England Bank Rate; ONS July 2026 CPI; DWP new State Pension; State Pension age timetable; National Minimum Wage rates; Statutory redundancy pay; FSCS deposit protection; Voluntary NI rates. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
State Pension and pension age guidance
Corrected remaining duplicate guidance that treated 35 NI years as universally sufficient, used stale State Pension amounts, or misstated the private pension age change. Added transitional-record and individual-forecast caveats and corrected the private minimum age change to 55→57 from 6 April 2028.
Source comparison: DWP new State Pension; State Pension age timetable; HMRC normal minimum pension age; GOV.UK voluntary NI. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
Selected financial offer examples
Removed unsupported historical rates, promised percentage savings and fixed deal prices. Clarified campaign eligibility and current-information routes. Replaced the GoHenry offer with prepaid-card guidance because its current scope includes investments; no purchase or eligibility outcome was tested.
Source comparison: Trading 212 Cash ISA help; Octopus tariffs; Community Fibre price-change terms; Lebara SIM deals; Wise pricing; Raisin UK process; MoneyHelper prepaid cards. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
Will witnessing and preparation answer scope
Changed generic UK-wide will-answer wording to explicit England and Wales scope and directed Scottish and Northern Irish readers to appropriate guidance. Clarified standard witnessing requirements and the limits of related document-preparation services.
Source comparison: GOV.UK will validity and witnessing; GOV.UK writing a will. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
Tax-Free Childcare contribution calculation
Corrected the government contribution from “20% on top” of a deposit to £2 for every £8 paid in. This is 25% of the parent’s payment, or 20% of the combined childcare amount. Fixed matching explanations and added a worked example.
Source comparison: GOV.UK Tax-Free Childcare contributions and caps; GOV.UK Tax-Free Childcare eligibility. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
Bereavement Support Payment eligibility
Corrected the false statement that cohabiting partners cannot claim. Qualifying cohabiting survivors can claim when Child Benefit or pregnancy conditions and other eligibility rules are met. Updated duplicate answers, the guide and claim steps, including late-claim payment consequences.
Source comparison: GOV.UK BSP eligibility; GOV.UK BSP payment amounts and deadlines; GOV.UK BSP claim routes. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
Child Trust Funds and Junior ISAs: ownership and transfers
Corrected an article that conflated Child Trust Funds and Junior ISAs with pension transfers and made unsupported claims about inherited junior workplace pensions. It now explains the supported savings-account ownership, control, access and provider-transfer rules. The original publication date and URL are retained, with a dated correction and updated title.
Source comparison: GOV.UK Child Trust Funds; GOV.UK Junior ISAs. AI-assisted check of the stated scope, not professional approval of the page.
UK bank switch, Cash ISA & balance transfer offers
Softened 'best buy' framing; clarified affiliate disclosure and changed CTA wording to 'Apply via provider'.
Free and low-cost will-writing options in the UK
Removed third-party will-service brand references; rewrote online-route guidance to be provider-neutral and aligned with YMYL editorial standards.