AI Money Advice and Heating Oil Costs Rise

New research published this week found that free AI chatbots gave inaccurate answers to financial questions more than half of the time. This research was carried out by a company called Saturn AI which works with financial advice firms. It ran a series of financial questions through 18 different AI platforms more than 10 thousand times, checking them against key criteria to decide whether they passed or failed. The research identified errors relating to student loans, mortgages, pensions, tax, savings and debt. What's the best advice for using AI to help with your personal finance?

The price of heating oil has risen sharply this month to around £1,100 to fill a 1,000 litre tank, £400 more than it cost in early July. The price spiked in March to as much as £1,340 because of the Middle East conflict. Before that prices were stable at around £600 for a tank. What should people do now as we head into winter?

Is there enough information available when it comes to choosing your home or travel insurance?

And, the government has paid out more than £300 million pounds since the start of a scheme designed to help those on low incomes to build up a savings pot. This week new figures show that more than 650,000 people are now using the Help to Save Scheme, which was set up in 2018. Who's eligible and how do you apply?

Presenter: Paul Lewis
Reporters: Dan Whitworth and Jo Krasner
Researchers: Eimear Devlin and Amber Mehmood.
Editor: Jess Quayle
Senior News Editor: Sara Wadeson

(First broadcast 12pm Saturday 26th September 2026)