The financial advertisement about there being no “sneaky” conditions comes to mind in relation to the Bank of Ireland decision to slap an interest rate hike on its credit cards days before Christmas.

IRISH Rail has increased its online prices, sparking outrage among customers.

ROAD safety watchdogs claimed that a new learner driver training programme, to be introduced next month, could stop motorists going for tests.

THE price of rail tickets has soared by a third in the past six years.

IRISH RAIL is considering offering free tickets on its Cork-Dublin route as part of a price war.

A WAR is raging in the electricity and gas market with annual savings of more than €200 to be gained by changing from traditional providers.

European judges were urged today to rule that insurance companies are breaking EU law if they charge women lower premiums than men because they pose a lower risk.

QUINN Insurance is standing by its commitment that its claims and policies would be processed as normal.

SPENDING on luxury items is down 40% as consumers cut back on eating out, visits to the hairdresser and shopping for clothes.

AGGRIEVED motorists are having to dig deeper than their European neighbours to pay for fuel, shelling out more than 20% extra for some oil products.

The Consumer Association is calling for better labelling on children's breakfast cereals to show parents how much fat, sugar and salt they contain.

The Consumers Association of Ireland has criticised eircom for its latest price hike.

TESCO will not honour orders placed on its website for 1 cent beer because it has run out of stock.

WITH the price of diesel and petrol soaring there is a strong argument for the Government to heed consumer calls to reduce fuel tax.

Ulster Bank today admitted it has overcharged 25,000 customers more than €4m.

IRISH shoppers are being forced to pay more than their British counterparts for the same items of clothing in leading high-street stores.

Broadband service in Ireland needs to be radically overhauled, the Consumer Association said today.

The energy regulator is coming under fire today for granting two price rises to the ESB last year amid reports that the company made a profit of €500m in 2005.

A legal row over sales tactics for World Cup 2006 tickets has been resolved after a deal was struck today between Fifa and the German consumers’ association.

THE Consumer Association has warned people to watch out for price hikes on toys and games in the run-up to Christmas.

Petrol stations that are fined for charging a higher price for fuel than is displayed deserve everything they get, a consumer chief said today.

FROM banks to phone companies, insurance brokers and the ESB, the scandal of rip-off Ireland continues.

WORRIED staff and customers of Bank of Ireland have been bombarding the main banking union with pleas for information in advance of the company’s expected announcement of 2,000 job cuts this morning.

THE Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority’s second report into the AIB foreign exchange debacle stopped short of blasting the bank for covering up its past misdemeanours.

PATIENTS who pay to see their family doctor are not put off by cost but visit their GP less often than medical card holders, a survey has found.

NOT for the first time, the Consumer Association is challenging the findings of an official survey on the prices charged by professionals in rip-off Ireland.

Political Editor Harry McGee says questions of who, how and why still persist.

TICKETMASTER stand to make up to half a million euro in service charges alone from ticket sales to Madonna’s concert in Slane Castle in August.

MOTORISTS are being ripped-off at the pumps with many petrol stations taking advantage of the recent rise in oil prices, the Consumer Association said yesterday.

THE massive increase in the level of credit card debt in the past three years has fuelled fears tens of thousands of people face crippling bills.

A survey by a British magazine has reportedly labelled Ireland as one of Europe’s most expensive holiday destinations.

SPINAL injuries due to road accidents are on the increase again despite a dramatic 50% drop in the first six months of the penalty points system.

EQUITY investors who want to trade shares regularly should use British stockbrokers until the status of shares held in trust by Irish stockbrokers is changed to safeguard investors’ interests, the Consumer Association warned last night.

INVESTORS with billions of euro in shares held in trust by stockbrokers should get their hands on their share certificates to avoid their assets being seized in a default situation, the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority's prudential director advised last night.

THE stockbroking community has been thrown into turmoil by a High Court judgment which undermines the secure status of billions of euro worth of shares held in trustee accounts and electronically.

GERMAN-made cars have slipped down a few gears in terms of efficiency, according to a consumer watchdog magazine.

CABLE company NTL has vowed to cut off services to 25,000 customers who refuse to pay their bills. The firm said it was losing 5m each year from the minority of defaulters among its 368,000 subscribers.

BANK of Scotland’s new interest bearing and low interest rate current accounts could cause mayhem for AIB and Bank of Ireland, according to financial analyst Eddie Hobbs.

HOTEL bosses are demanding VAT cuts and rates exemptions to offset the fall in bookings for the summer.

The Consumers Association of Ireland has called on the Government to take action against retailers who contribute to inflation by hiking up their prices.

The Consumer Association has warned that the Government will face higher wage demands if it fails to reign in price hikes affecting consumers.

An Post has come under fire from the Consumer Association for the decision to ask postal workers to carry out mail sorting in their homes.

IF insurance companies proceed with plans to impose a 25% hike on the premiums of motorists caught speeding under the penalty points system, the reverse must also apply.