Tesco have been trialing a system that changes the accepted way of operating a buy-one-get-one-free offer (BOGOF).

We all enjoy getting something for nothing and for those of us who need to count the pennies an offer where you can buy one item and get another free is very appealing, not least because it can help families make their household budget go further.

One of the problems with this type of special offer has been that by the time you get around to using your free item it may be past its sell by date. So, in a response to this problem Tesco have been running a trial which changes the usual way these deals operate. Instead of having to take both products at the same time you will be given a voucher that entitles you to get your free item the next week when you visit the store.

The trial was to run for two weeks in selected stores and customers choosing pineapple, melon, salad and lettuce offers are able to claim their free product the following week.

Tesco say they will await the results of the trial to see what customer feedback they get but I would expect to see that customers would like this a lot. It would maintain customer loyalty for the individual store since you are more likely to return to the store the following week to get your free product rather than visit the rival stores. Another big benefit of such a scheme is that far less foods will be thrown away unused because it has gone over the sell-by date. So, everybody wins.

It will be interesting to see what develops but it sounds like a great scheme and I would hope this will be rolled out nationally very soon.

Money Magic: Seven Simple Steps to True Financial Freedom (Quick Reads)

There is some positive news on the homes sale and rent back market. This is where a householder sells their property to a buyer on the understanding that they can remain in their home and rent it from the new owner. This has been a growing market in recent years and it is easy to understand why that would be.

For many people their home is their largest, perhaps only, investment and to raise money to enjoy a better lifestyle they might be tempted to sell their home. Most people would prefer to stay where they are so the idea that you could sell your home yet continue to live there as a rent payer is appealing.

Unfortunately there have been lots of cases where this process has been widely abused. The homes are usually purchased at a significant discount from the market value which has tempted some unscrupulous purchasers to evict their new tenant as soon as they can so the house can be sold at a considerable profit while other cases have been reported where the tenant has been evicted by the new mortgage holder after the buyer has failed to make the payments on their mortgage.

People who had been promised that they could remain in their home for the rest of their lives have found themselves evicted within a year or eighteen months and something clearly needed to be done about this.

Now the Financial Services Authority (FSA) have announced new rules on these types of transactions.
The FSA has:-

* banned exploitative advertising and high-pressure sales techniques and prohibited the use of emotive terms like ‘fast sale’, ‘mortgage rescue’ and ‘cash quickly’ in promotional literature;

* introduced a 14 day cooling-off period to give consumers more time to make decisions on sale and rent back;

* banned cold calling and prohibited firms from dropping promotional leaflets through letter boxes;

* confirmed rules to ensure consumers have a security of tenure for a minimum of five years;

* introduced an affordability and appropriateness check across all sales to check that the sale and rent back deal is right for the consumer; and

* put in place measures to ensure all risks are clearly signposted to the customer, via FSA literature and during the sales process.

Security of tenure for 5 years is better than nothing but if you sell and rent back on the assumption you can remain in your home for the rest of your life 5 years doesn’t sound so much. It is, however, a very positive thing that the FSA are acting to curb some of the excesses that have grown up within this industry.

The FSA have also made it compulsory for firms engaged in home sale and rent back to be licenced. All firms active in the sale and rent back market must be authorised otherwise they face potential fines or imprisonment. The FSA is proactively monitoring the SRB market for unauthorised activity, and will take action if necessary.

Consumers should ensure that they only deal with authorised firms and be aware of the risks involved in sale and rent back schemes. Consumers are encouraged to call 0300 500 5000 immediately if they are aware of sale and rent back firms who continue to trade without being authorised.

You can find out more about Home Sale And Rent Back by <clicking here>

Money Magic: Seven Simple Steps to True Financial Freedom (Quick Reads)