Business News Articles

35,000 new cars bought using scrappage scheme
Over 35,000 new cars have been ordered through the new scrappage scheme since its inception in April, according to official government figures. These figures equate to one in five of new car buyers using the scheme, which provides a £2,000 discount when a new car is bought and a car over ten years old is exchanged. The money is equally provided by the government and the car industry. "It is... more

90% of franchises trading profitably
Over 90% of franchises are trading profitably and the industry contributed over £11bn to the UK's GDP last year, according to figures released by NatWest and the British Franchsie Association (bfa). Last year saw significant expansion in the industry, with the total number of franchise systems reaching 838 - an increase of 3.6% on the 809 systems recorded last year. Estimated start-up costs... more

Small business owners advised to check staff expenses
40% of small and medium-sized companies in the UK have lost money as a result of inaccurate expense claims from staff, according to new research from networking site LinkedIn. Around a quarter of the businesses polled admitted to having no idea regarding the state of their employees expenses and only 50% said that they were confident that staff weren't taking undeserved company funds. "Most ... more

Cloud computing providing benefits for small companies
Increasing numbers of small businesses are using remote working to increase their flexibility and productivity due to the emergence of the internet and email communications. However, for some small companies with limited funds, such as charity da21, there can be cost issues when it comes to implementing data sharing schemes. "During busy periods much of my day was being taken up purely by di... more

New training regulations could harm small IT firms
A government initiative requiring IT suppliers bidding for public sector contracts to adopt certain training schemes could exclude small firms from winning new business. Skills secretary John Denham announced last week that all IT firms will be expected to have specific training procedures in place before they are awarded government contracts as part of a drive to bridge the IT skills gap in th... more

Rising staff stress threatens businesses productivity
Small business owners have been warned that if they do not address the increasing stress levels of staff then their company's productivity will suffer. Recent research by Investors in People and YouGov has found that 38% of employees in the UK say that their stress levels are higher than a year ago, but only 29% think their business is doing anything to address this. Only 5% of employees sai... more

70% of under 30s without a pension scheme
Only one third of adults in the UK aged under 30 years old are putting aside money into pensions, according to a survey of over 1,350 people by consumer agency Gfk NOP. The survey also revealed that only half of UK adults between 20 and 60 years of age are putting aside any funds into a pension. The main reason given for this was affordability - many are currently using any extra money to pay o... more

Virgin Atlantic's profits double
Virgin Atlantic has bucked the trend of other airlines by reporting annual pre-tax profits of £68.4m, nearly double the £34.8m experienced the year earlier. The results are in direct contrast to other airlines, such as British Airways, which reported an annual loss before tax of £401m last week. One of the reasons that Virgin experienced such a rise in profits is due to a rise in business cl... more

Only 27% of small firms credit checking new customers
Only 27% of small and medium-sized companies in the UK are credit checking new customers, according to research by Cattles Invoice Finance. Unpaid invoices and a lack of cash flow are two of the main problems experienced by small businesses at the moment, with some firms only one large fulfilled but unpaid invoice away from collapse. "It is never a good idea to take chances with new customer... more

Over 50% of complaints against financial firms upheld
Over half of businesses and individuals that complained against financial service firms in the last year were awarded compensation by the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). The FOS found in favour of consumers a record 57% of the time, with this percentage even higher in some areas. In cases involving payment protection insurance the compensation rate was 89% and the consumer was sided with in ... more