Money Box

A quarter of British employees have been furloughed since the Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s announcement in March. Under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme workers are entitled to receive 80% of their pay up to a maximum of £2500 a month but they’re not allowed to do any work for their employer while on furlough. Earlier this month the scheme was extended until October - but from August the government will expect employers to contribute to the huge ongoing costs - estimated at between £10-£15 billion a month.Furloughing is working well for the majority of people but it is causing a number of different problems for some - both employees and employers. Paul and guests talk to some of them.Panel: Susie Al-Qassab, employment partner at Hodge, Jones and Allen Sarah Chilton, employment partner at CM Murray Presenter: Paul Lewis Producer: Ben Carter Editor: Ravin Sampat

Festival goers are trying to get their money back from the organisers of Afro Nation but are being told that Portuguese law means they’re not entitled to a refund – what can they do? Lenders are cutting credit card limits and that could affect your credit rating... but not in the way you might think. Former pensions minister Steve Webb tells us that tens of thousands of older married women pensioners are being paid up to £80 a week too little - how do you go about seeing if you're missing out and how can you claim if you are? Mortgage repayment holidays have helped ease the finances of millions of struggling home owners during coronavirus but how much will the delay in paying cost in the long run?Check out if you are owed pension money here https://www.lcp.uk.com/is-your-state-pension-being-underpaid/Presenter: Paul Lewis Producer: Ben Carter Reporters: Felicity Hannah and Kafui Okpattah Editor: Emma Rippon

Your questions on the challenges of getting and holding on to a mortgage or re-mortgage during coronavirus. How does being furloughed affect your prospects? Are some job sectors now less desirable to mortgage providers? What if pandemic-related delays in conveyancing are pushing you close to the expiry of your existing mortgage offer? Should fears of a market dip make you reconsider and sit tight where you are - or is it time to reduce your offer? Why are interest rates rising for some types of mortgages and falling for others? We hear what's happening in the mortgage and re-mortgage market from experts Jane King, independent mortgage advisor with Ash Ridge Private Finance - and from Martin Stewart, director of the independent mortgage broker, London Money. Email Money Box moneybox@bbc.co.ukPresenter: Louise Cooper Producer: Paul Waters

Money Box has been hearing from furloughed workers who say their employers are abusing the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. It allows staff to be put on leave while the government pays 80 per cent of their wages up to £2500 a month. One worker says he’s being forced to keep working and another says she’s been furloughed but isn’t being paid. Guest Sarah Chilton, partner with employment law specialists CM MurrayWe hear from Endija who bought her two-bedroom home after viewing it through a virtual tour. Guest Mark Hayward, chief executive of the National Association of Estate AgentsAnd the programme looks at the latest measures to help insurance customers with financial difficulties caused by coronavirus. Email moneybox@bbc.co.uk with any questions for the programme.Presenter: Paul Lewis Producer: Charmaine Cozier Reporter: Dan Whitworth Editor: Emma Rippon

Felicity Hannah and guests talk to young entrepreneurs who've started businesses during the lockdown. She'll hear about the successes and challenges they encountered along the way. Guests:Emma Jones, founder of Enterprise Nation Zara Khalique, creator of Keep It BrightEmail moneybox@bbc.co.uk or tweet @Moneybox with stories, experiences or questions for the panel.Producer: Ben Carter Editor: Emma Rippon

Pandemic-related salary cuts and being furloughed could affect your ability to get a mortgage. What will mortgage providers take into account - your previous normal salary or your 80% rate? And will job types in sectors hit badly by the coronavirus now be deemed less desirable by lenders? We hear your stories and get advice from Martin Stewart, Director of the independent mortgage broker, London Money.Millions of self-employed workers are being offered help through the government's new Self-Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS). But Money Box listeners say they've experienced problems with the SEISS online checker and complain they've been wrongly rejected. We discover what's going on with the scheme and hear from the chief executive of HMRC, Jim Harra - the man in charge.Many of us are being forced to work from home during the pandemic and that can means extra costs for the employee. We find out from Heather Self, Tax Director at Blick Rothenberg, how your employer can offset your extra costs and what you can claim against tax.Good news for some Virgin Money customers who had their credit cards frozen this week and there's a cancelled holiday chargeback success story in the Money Box podcast.Email moneybox@bbc.co.uk or tweet @Moneybox with any personal finance questions or queries.Presenter: Paul Lewis Producer: Paul Waters Editor: Emma Rippon Reporter: Ben Carter

Graduates and young workers face huge challenges getting and staying in a job as coronavirus changes the employment picture. Louise Cooper discusses the consequences and solutions.Guests: Laura Gardiner, Research Director at the Resolution Foundation Michele Farmer, Regional Director at the Prince's TrustEmail questions and experiences to moneybox@bbc.co.ukReporter: Kafui Okpattah Producer: Ben Carter Editor: Emma Rippon

On this week’s Money Box we hear from people who’ve been furloughed by their employer but are being pressured into working anyway - something very much against the rules of the Job Retention Scheme. And can an employer force those people still working to take a pay cut? Paul talks through the legal implications with Susie Al-Qassab, partner at Hodge, Jones and Allen Solicitors.As the consumer watchdog threatens legal action against companies refusing to refund customers during the coronavirus pandemic, we hear about the struggles some listeners have been having with various companies. Gary Rycroft, partner at Joseph A Jones Solicitors, and consumer rights champion Helen Dewdney from The Complaining Cow website talk through the issues.And we have exclusive figures from the National Gambling Helpline about a sharp drop in callers and how it’s worried about what that might mean for 100,000s of problem gamblers during lockdown. Paul talks to one of the problem gamblers affected and speaks to Anna Hemmings, CEO at Gamcare.Reporter: Dan Whitworth Producer: Ben Carter Editor: Emma Rippon

Many people are having to claim benefits for the first time due to coronavirus. Paul Lewis and guests find out how some people have found this experience. Was it clear how to claim? Did you find the rules easy to understand? Have you got your money yet? Is it enough? What other help is out there?Guests: Victoria Todd from Low Income Tax Reform Group and Will Hadwen, a welfare rights advisor with Working Families.Email: moneybox@bbc.co.ukProducer: Alex Lewis and Ben Carter Editor: Emma Rippon

650,000 people work as contractors in a wide range of jobs across the UK – supply teachers, IT engineers, health care workers. But some of them have told Money Box they’ve been left in limbo by umbrella companies who say they need more clarity from the government before they can decide to furlough them or not. Issues about how much the contractors would get, how much holiday pay they’d be owed and what the industry will do if they don’t get any more guidance from the government means huge financial stress and worry for all those involved. Guest: Julia Kermode, Chief Executive, The Freelancer & Contractor Services Association.There's a glimmer of hope for cash savers as NS&I abandons plans for major interest rate cuts to its variable rate savings products which were due to happen on May 1. Anna Bowes Co-Founder of Savings Champion also rounds up what’s happening elsewhere in the cash savings market.We look at ways to safely access cash for people who are self-isolating and relying on relatives or volunteers to do their shopping for them. Guest: Helen Saxon, Banking Editor MoneySavingExpertPresenter: Paul Lewis Reporter: Dan Whitworth Producer: Charmaine Cozier Editor: Emma Rippon