Today in Money: Apple TV+ has raised prices; a Trump row is hurting the dollar and global markets; three items are driving UK food inflation; and a driver left stranded on the motorway by the RAC seeks help in our latest Money Problem.
Tuesday 26 August 2025 16:00, UK
The Sky News Money newsletter, now in its 13th week, brings the kind of content you enjoy here in the Money blog directly to your inbox for free.
Every Friday, subscribers get exclusive money-saving tips and features. Sign up today and here’s what you’ll find in the newsletter this week:
M&S is launching its first second-hand clothing site – and is offering customers money off their shop for donating old clothes. 
The retailer is setting up a preloved marketplace on eBay as it looks to reduce textile waste. 
Fifteen per cent of profits made through sales on the site will also be donated to Oxfam.
From today, customers will be given a £5 voucher to use when they spend £35 or more at the retailer for sending their preloved items to the take-back scheme.
Shoppers will have to complete a short form on M&S.com or scan a QR code in-store, then send their items to the company’s resale partner, Reskinned, using a free local courier service. 
If your package includes an M&S labelled item, you’ll get the voucher, which you’ll have four weeks to use. 
Items that can be worn again will be cleaned, repaired and listed on the eBay store for customers to purchase.  Any that cannot be listed will be repurposed or recycled.
Monique Leewenburgh, director of sourcing and technology in fashion, home and beauty at M&S, said: “This not only offers more ways for customers to give items another life, but also an opportunity for customers to purchase items they might have missed from previous seasons – which are preloved.”
Apple TV+ has become the latest streaming service to increase its prices. 
The platform has upped its monthly fees from £8.99 to £9.99 – that’s double the price it launched at six years ago.
The price of an annual subscription has stayed the same at £89. 
If you are a new subscriber, you’ll have to pay the increased rate as soon as you sign up. 
For existing subscribers, the new fee will apply to their next monthly bill. 
Money has contacted Apple for comment. 
Disney+, Netflix and Paramount+ have all upped their prices in the past year. 
If you want to keep your Apple TV+ subscription, but don’t want to pay the new fee, there are some tactics you try…
Make the most of free trials
Existing customers on a rolling contract can cancel penalty-free and take up short-term free trials if they’re eligible. This is a temporary solution, but it will mean you can watch your shows for up to six months for nothing. 
According to MoneySavingExpert, you can get up to six months free with certain EE, O2 and Virgin Media offers. 
If you’ve recently purchased an Apple device, you might be able to get three months for free.
Apple offers a seven-day free trial for new customers, and Money found deals available for a month-long trial for new and existing customers. 
Check your bank rewards
Some bank accounts offer Apple TV+ as a free perk for customers, so it’s worth checking if it’s something you can claim.
For example, Barclays Blue Rewards members or Premier customers get access for no charge – even if they’re already Apple TV+ customers.
Make sure you check all the terms and conditions of any new bank account you sign up for.
Committing could save you 
If you know you can afford it and you’ll use Apple TV+ for a year, it’ll work out cheaper if you commit to an annual plan and pay upfront. 
You’ll end up paying £89 for a year of access, instead of £119.88 if you pay monthly. 
Rotate, rotate, rotate
It might sound like a hassle, but you could save by rotating your streaming services. 
Just sign up for the one that has a show you are interested in and cancel it once you’re finished before selecting a new one. 
Royal Mail has temporarily suspended deliveries to the US due to changes made by Donald Trump. 
The postal service is one of many across Europe to temporarily pause deliveries to the country while it prepares to follow new customs requirements coming into force on Friday. 
Trump signed an executive order last month ending the global import tax exemption on low value parcels. 
This means that from 29 August, goods shipped through the postal system will face one of two tariffs: either a duty equal to the tariff rate of the package’s country of origin or, for six months, a specific tariff of $80 to $200, depending on the country of origin’s tariff rate.
These fees must be paid by UK senders before they enter Royal Mail’s network. 
People sending gifts valued at $100 or less will not have to pay a duty. 
Royal Mail said consumer and business deliveries would be paused from today, while it sets up a new service before the rules take effect. 
Royal Mail told Money: “We have been working hard with US authorities and international partners to adapt our services to meet the new US de minimis requirements so UK consumers and businesses can continue to use our services when they come into effect.
“We have temporarily paused existing services to the USA from today while we put a new service in place. 
“Consumers sending gifts worth less than $100 will not have to pay duty.” 
Australia Post, Swiss Post, DHL, Japan Post and Korea Post have all made similar moves in recent days due to the new rules. 
The number of entry-level job vacancies has fallen to the lowest level in five years, a leading survey has found. 
Roles spanning graduate jobs, apprenticeships and junior positions fell by 6.8% since the same time last year, according to job search site Adzuna. 
It found entry-level roles now made up just 21.9% of all UK vacancies, with 209,778 starter jobs on the market in July – the lowest share recorded in the past five years. 
Businesses have been warning for months that tax changes made in April and a national minimum wage rise would cause the number of roles in sectors popular with seasonal workers and students to fall. 
Overall, vacancies fell across all regions last month, with the steepest monthly declines recorded in Northern Ireland and the South West.
Competition for jobs has grown as well, with an average of close to two job-seekers for every vacancy. 
“After a hopeful uptick in June, July saw the pendulum swing back with vacancies falling again,” Andrew Hunter, co-founder of Adzuna, said. 
He added: “While salary growth remains one of the few consistent positives – continuing to outpace inflation – hiring appetite is clearly uneven.”
What’s happened to salaries? 
On the plus side, average advertised salaries have continued to climb, reaching £42,264 – up 8.76% in the past year. 
Some regions have seen bigger increases than others, with Northern Ireland recording a 14.3% annual jump.
See the typical advertised salary for your region below…
Petrol prices have fallen week-on-week for the first time since June, official data shows. 
The price at the pump fell to an average of 134.3p per litre last week – down from 134.39p the week before, according to government figures. 
It was the first fall recorded for nine weeks, when petrol went from 131.45p to 131.35p on 9 June. 
It takes the cost of filling up an average family-sized car to around £73.87. 
This time last year, it cost 141.96p per litre – around £78.07 for a full tank. 
Last month, fuel prices climbed by almost 1p for petrol and 2p for diesel.
By James Sillars, business and economics reporter 
We’d had four days of record closing highs for the FTSE 100 heading into Tuesday’s trading after the Bank Holiday shutdown.
But there’s now a sharp pullback in play globally for stock markets.
It’s being put down to renewed concerns over US central bank independence after Donald Trump said he was to fire a Federal Reserve governor over alleged mortgage fraud.
Lisa Cook, who denies there is cause to dismiss her, was a Biden pick for the Fed’s board – part of the panel to vote on interest rate decisions.
Trump has been pushing for rate cuts to help US growth but his calls have been falling on deaf ears to the extent that he has long wanted Fed chair Jerome Powell out of the way.
If Cook were to leave, and the president replaces her, Trump appointments would have a 4-3 majority on the board.
The row has unsettled investor trust – given that the Fed is supposed to be independent of White House influence.
As such, the FTSE is 0.6% lower at 9,260.
Declines on the continent have been even more extensive, and US futures are also negative.
The dollar has lost ground against most major currencies, including the euro and the pound. Sterling is trading at $1.3440.
Some long-term US borrowing costs were also higher, reflecting a perception of increased risk.
Market commentators suggest that the Fed issue is exacerbating worries about the outlook more widely, given continuing US import tariffs on most global goods.
Food prices have risen at their fastest pace for 18 months, the latest figures show. 
Surges in the cost of chocolate, butter and eggs have driven the 4.2% rise this month, up from 4% in July, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC)-NIQ Shop Price Monitor.
It marked the highest level since February 2024.
The trade body warned that the fast pace of increases will add pressure to families already grappling with high costs. 
The BRC data comes after figures from the Office for National Statistics last week showed food inflation rose to 4.1% for the month on the back of rising dairy prices, up from 3.2% in July.
Mike Watkins, head of retailer and business insight at NIQ, said: “The uptick in prices reflects several factors: global supply costs, seasonal food inflation driven by weather conditions, the conclusion of promotional activity linked to recent sporting events, and a rise in underlying operational costs.
“As shoppers return from their summer holidays, many may need to reassess household budgets in response to rising household bills.”
Every Tuesday, we get an expert to answer your financial problems or consumer disputes – you can WhatsApp us here or email moneyblog@sky.uk. Today’s problem is…
I was driving from Portsmouth to Guildford when my vehicle suddenly lost power in the fast lane of the M275. I managed to coast to the hard shoulder of an elevated section of the motorway. I called RAC and told them I was not in a safe place, but they took almost four hours to come rescue me and tow my vehicle. While I was waiting, two other vehicles collided while trying to avoid my broken down car. I submitted a complaint and they only offered me a two month extension on my policy (equivalent to £8). Can you help?
Jason
You sent over a very detailed summary of what had happened to you. In short, you registered the breakdown at 4.11pm via the RAC app, but it took almost four hours for you to be rescued.
You called the company repeatedly and were told help was minutes away, but this failed to materialise.
At one point, two other vehicles collided while trying to avoid your broken-down car, further highlighting what a dangerous situation you were in.
When the patrol car did arrive, you told me the engineer said it was “absolutely unbelievable that [you had] been left on a dangerous bend on a high-speed road for almost four hours”. 
You also had to pay £148 because once you were rescued, the patrol car didn’t have enough time left on shift to take you to your final destination, only a local garage, so you had to arrange separately to get your car home.
All in all, this was a pretty rubbish and, at times, scary incident for you. 
However, when you complained to the RAC, you did not feel that the type of compensation offered was appropriate.
You then filed a subject access request and were able to see all the data the RAC held about you. 
It showed that, at one point, a patrol car declined to attend your breakdown, but you were not given an update about this.
The RAC response
I reached out to the RAC to find out what had gone wrong
It said: “While roadside assistance companies come to the rescue of thousands of drivers every day of the year, it’s important to realise they’re not an emergency service and don’t have the legal right to control traffic to protect the scene of a breakdown. 
“As such, they can only attend live-lane breakdowns when the area has been made safe by the police or, on motorways and major A roads, the appropriate highways authority. 
“Only when the scene is safe should drivers contact their breakdown company.”
The company also reached out to you directly and was very apologetic. It told you it had let you down, both during the incident and with the handling of the subsequent complaint. 
Because Sky News had brought the issue to the RAC’s attention, you were told the right people were now aware and would look to make sure this didn’t happen again in the future.
The RAC also offered you £250, which you were pleased to accept.
Who to call if you break down on a motorway
A motorway can be one of the scariest places to break down, and while you would think the first thing to do would be to call your breakdown cover, you should actually call the police. 
Jason had broken down on a particularly dangerous part of the M275 – there wasn’t really a proper hard shoulder, and so a breakdown recovery van would not have been able to stop until the scene had been made safe. This would have been the responsibility of the police.
The RAC says: “It’s vital after breaking down that drivers assess the safety of their situation quickly and thoroughly and take the right course of action to protect themselves and others.”
Here’s what you should do if you find yourself in a similar situation…
What is a subject access request, and how can it help with a complaint?
A subject access request gives you, the consumer, the power to ask a company: “What data do you hold about me?”
Under Article 15 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you have a right to obtain a copy of any information which relates to you, whether this is kept on a computer or in a structured manual filing system.
Anyone can make a SAR, and under UK GDPR rules, the company has one month to locate, review and disclose the information. If they don’t, you can make a formal complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office. The company can redact certain confidential information, but if you feel it has wrongly been redacted, you can complain to the ICO.
In this instance, Jason was able to see all of the details the RAC held about his breakdown, including information he wasn’t given at the time (such as the patrol car cancellation). 
Although the complaint was not successful until the Money team stepped in, it helped his case significantly. 
His next steps (as we can’t always be on hand to help) would have been to take this to the Financial Ombudsman Service – the RAC has all the information about this on its website.
This feature is not intended as financial advice – the aim is to give an overview of the things you should think about. Submit your dilemma or consumer dispute via:
HMRC received a record number of tax-fraud tip-offs last year, analysis by accountancy firm Price Bailey has found. 
A total of 164,670 reports were made to the tax office’s fraud hotline channels, up from 151,763 in the previous year, the data obtained through a freedom of information request showed. 
HMRC pays discretionary amounts to informants based on a number of factors, such as how much time is saved in their investigation based on the information, or how much tax is recovered.
Despite the record number of tips, the amount it paid out fell 13% to £852,438. 
The government is planning to strengthen the reward scheme to encourage reporting of high value tax fraud and tax avoidance. 
An HMRC spokesperson told Money: “The government is strengthening our scheme for rewarding informants to encourage reporting of high value tax fraud and tax avoidance.
“We value the information we receive and urge anyone with information about tax fraud to report it to us online by going to GOV.UK and searching ‘report fraud HMRC’.” 
Be the first to get Breaking News
Install the Sky News app for free

source