Brits shy away from a place in the sun, plus it's the last day to spend old fivers

Before the EU referendum a €300,000 villa in Spain would have cost a UK buyer £229,000. Now, it would set them back around £254,000. Photograph: Stone/Getty Images

Hello and welcome to this week’s Money Talks – a roundup of the week’s biggest stories and some things you may have missed.

Money news

Debt-ridden courier’s suicide after bailiff visit prompts call for reforms

Weak pound melts the British dream of a place in the sun

London rents fall sharply as monthly bill drops across UK

UK house prices fall again in April as buyers feel the pinch

Smaller deposits raise hopes for UK first-time homebuyers

Feature

Whiplash: the myth that funds a £20bn gravy train

Accident victims receive £2bn a year in payouts for whiplash, a fair chunk of which goes to personal injury lawyers. Photograph: Alamy Stock Photo

In pictures

Wooden homes

This house in Aboyne, Aberdeenshire, is a hymn to wood with its larch cladding, hardwood floors and staircase and exposed beams. Photograph: Strutt & Parker/Jim Henderson

In the spotlight

There is as much as £800m worth of paper £5 notes still in circulation, but from Friday they will no longer be legal tender, Patrick Collinson reports.

Paper £5 notes are destined for the scrapheap … but the Bank of England promises they will ‘retain their face value for all time’ Photograph: Nils Jorgensen/Rex/Shutterstock

Consumer champions

Switching our phone and broadband provider turned into a nightmare

Don’t be duped by paid-for booking websites

Warranty work on my VW’s audio system turned into an £1,800 accident repair bill

Bovis keeps delaying the completion date for our new home

NatWest closed my child’s savings account without telling me

Money deals

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