On November  21, I parked in a multi-storey car park in Norwich. Three days later, I received a letter from my insurer, Hastings Direct, claiming I'd been in an accident. I phoned to say this was not the case. On December 9, I received a further letter saying their review had found I was responsible.

Once again, BT has been crowned the winner of Money Mail's annual Wooden Spoon award and we were meeting the firm's bosses to find out what had gone wrong. It is the second year in a row the telecoms giant has scooped the crown for shoddy service - and it has now won three out of our last four Wooden Spoon awards.

In our series Money Pit Stop, we ask an investing expert to give one of our readers a free portfolio makeover. This week, a 60-year-old fireman and former postman, who has built up a healthy portfolio, with £152,000 in investments, £183,000 in cash and some buy-to-lets, wants to boost his retirement income and fund future holidays.

The UK version of the muscle car lacks 'basic life-saving technology,' say crash-test examiners who have condemned it by awarding the first 'two-star' rating for safety since 2008 - stating that it 'bucks the positive trend towards safer cars'. Orders have poured in for the Mustang since it went on sale in Britain, but safety watchdogs say Ford made a 'deliberate decision' to exclude key safety features that are available to consumers in the USA.

Richard Barber, 69, a former editor of Ok! magazine, transferred £4,000 to his trusted Polish builder after an email from his usual address asked for cash upfront for a loft conversion. But five days later Richard discovered his builder's email account had been hacked and the money had gone to a fraudster's bank account. Because he handed over cash voluntarily he will not get it back and has been sent a cheque by Barclays for the £4.33 that was left over (pictured). The retired journalist is one of thousands of victims falling for sophisticated bank transfer scams, with no way of clawing back their cash.

The Crit-Air scheme now in force in Paris requires all vehicles to display a round sticker in the windscreen to confirm which emissions group the vehicle fits into by the colour of the badge. While most British holidaymakers driving in France will give Paris a wide berth, a sizeable number will make a trip into the city - and they will now find they need to sign up to an emissions scheme, or that older cars may even be banned.

When I lent my friend the £25,000 I never thought there would be a problem with him paying me back, as we both agreed I would need it by the time I retired, and I didn't know he was struggling with money. As we're so close it's very hard to ask for the money back, but I'm now worried I won't see it again.

Rolls-Royce built and delivered a total of 4,011 vehicles last year. No two cars leaving its British factory at Goodwood are ever exactly alike. But these seven cars are extraordinarily tailored to the requests of buyers. From tiger-themed armrests to champagne tables in the boot, take a look at some of the surprising requests customers made in the last 12 months.

Adults are advised by the National Health Service to do 150 minutes of weekly physical activity to keep healthy. If you fancy getting fit for less, or even for free, try our 14-step guide to keeping down the cost of workouts and gym membership.

Markets were stunned by the group's admission that 'inappropriate behaviour' had caused it to exaggerate profits in Italy for a number of years. The scandal first emerged last summer but yesterday the firm admitted to the stock market that the problems were 'far greater than previously identified'.

The firm said it expected full-year sales and profits to be 'materially ahead of its expectations', with UK sales set to rise approximately by 118 per cent compared to 2015. Fever-Tree, which was founded in 2005, has soared since it listed on London's junior AIM market in November 2014. Today shares soared 5 per cent to 1,192p, which is a 630 per cent increase compared to its floating price of 165p.

Inflation is picking up. It rose to 1.6 per cent last month and most experts now believe it will break through two per cent by the summer. We look at what rising prices mean for savers and borrowers and explain how it is still possible with a bit of work to get a real return on your money.

The car industry will unveil its best manufacturing figures for 44 years this week - including soaring exports - but news of the boom may be overshadowed by fresh warnings of the threat from Brexit. However, one critic has warned that the automotive industry is at risk of talking itself into a crisis, and it should not be derailed.

Investment fund names are often a baffling mixture of impressive but vague words, which mean little to people who aren't already clued up on financial jargon. People hoping to boost their savings by buying a fund or trust face a steep learning curve, unless they're lucky enough to have a friend in the know or are willing to fork out fees to a financial adviser. We offer a short cut, and explain what all the fancy terms really mean.

Jewellery is more than just a luxury accessory. It is a fabulous fashion statement which can be looked upon as an investment. But those who decide to buy pieces need to know exactly what they are hunting for, while those who own jewellery could find something they think is worthless is worth a fortune. We explain what you need to look out for.

Energy giants look set to defy Ofgem's demand not to raise prices after accusing the regulator of getting its sums wrong on their costs. Senior executives at some of the firms said Ofgem had underestimated the costs the industry is facing. Their stance increases the prospect of higher energy bills as households brace themselves for a raft of other price rises this year driven by the falling value of the pound.

Frontier markets are small, risky and can be incredibly volatile - the companies which make up the FTSE 100 are worth almost £2trillion, compared to just £25billion for the Romanian stock market. As a result, not many people are looking at them or investing in them. And experts say that means there are opportunities to be had.

The new car tax system coming in April has the signature whiff of something drawn up on the back of a fag packet. It manages to base showroom tax on C02, then junk emissions ratings for a flat tax that rewards polluting vehicles and add a seemingly arbitrary extra charge for cars costing more than £40,000. Would it just be better to axe car tax and add some extra duty to petrol?

The rules of turning a profit from property have shifted, but don't despair. Yes, tax changes have made buy to let less lucrative, but there are still ways to make your home work for you, even in a challenging 2017.

Doesn't it make your blood boil when you feel like you are getting conned by companies piling on extra fees and charges? 'My answer is an emphatic yes', says Andy Yates.
He outlines his five-point manifesto to outlaw sneakiness and right some of the worst money wrongs.

A growing number of landlords are at risk of becoming 'buy-to-let mortgage prisoners' as a direct result of tougher mortgage rules and the removal of tax reliefs. And without paying off a large part of their existing buy-to-let mortgage, landlords could find they are forced to sell up altogether to avoid falling behind on their mortgage repayments.

To clear the average national household debt of ?13,000 at 6% interest with a monthly repayment of ?100 will take around 17 years. There are, however, plenty of simple ways to make significant savings on your regular spending that could clear your debt - or boost your savings - in less than a year. This is Money's top 50 - updated - money-saving tips may appear light-hearted but are deadly serious.

Choosing the right DIY platform is crucial but a wealth of choice and changes to charges have left many investors scratching their heads. We pick some of the best. We also highlight why investing in an Isa makes sense, as it should protect your hopefully growing investments from tax forever.

The amount you can save into a pension ultimately depends on what you can afford - but the longer you leave it the more you will need to save. We tend to put ambitious targets on our hoped-for income in retirement and then underestimate how much we will need to set aside to achieve that. So how much should you save?

An interest rate cut before the end of the year looks less likely following the plunge in the pound. However, the Bank of England has indicated that higher inflation driven by rising import costs won't make it lift rates.

Despite endless media coverage of the political wrangling and financial speculation, the average Briton can be forgiven for remaining confused about what 'soft' and 'hard' Brexit really mean. But a clever table put together by HSBC cleaves some clarity from the murk.

Compare your pay to the national average and see whether your employer treated you to a pay rise in line with the the rest of your profession. Farmers, care and air travel assistants were big winners on the pay scales in 2016. Travel agents, careers advisers and probation officers lost out.