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Read all about how to get cheaper car and life insurance from our blog section. |
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Archive for September, 2011
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Thursday, September 29th, 2011
With only two days left before the end of September (if you include today that is), most of the UK would be surprised to be enjoying the high temperatures that we have had of late. Don’t let the weather now fool you though because it is not a sign that we will have a milder winter than we had last year. In fact, many experts are already warning that we are likely to have more of the same this year. As such, now is the time to take a look at your home insurance to see whether you have the necessary protection in place to survive another winter of the extreme cold.
Think back to last year and any problems you may have had with the boiler, heating or maybe even the pipes. Is there anything you can do to prevent that again? For example, could you add insulation to the pipes to prevent them freezing and potentially flooding the house? You may even want to get an engineer in to service the boiler in advance. However, although there are steps that you can take within your house to protect it from the elements this winter, you may also want to consider checking out your home insurance.
For example, does your home insurance policy cover you for flooding or boiler damage? Does it cover burst pipes or offer an emergency call out package in addition to your general cover? All of these questions are definitely worth asking because they point to the level of protection and indeed peace of mind that you can have. You need to make sure that your home and property is protected in every eventuality this winter to either avoid claiming where possible and then get the right payout should you have to. Shop around if you have not got the cover you need because your peace of mind is priceless.
Posted in Home Insurance | 1 Comment »
Monday, September 26th, 2011
A recent report highlighted one of the main problems behind the increasing premiums for car insurance as being the referral fees that some car insurance providers are paid to let no win no fee companies know who has had an accident in the recent past and may want to claim for personal injury sustained during that accident. There was a huge outcry when it was revealed that car insurance companies made money this way, especially when some were simultaneously moaning about the amount of money personal injury claims were costing them, which they were having to pass on to consumers in the form of premium hikes. The problem is though, that those companies, despite the fact they will not be getting referral fees for much longer should the government have its way, have made a rod for their own back that does not look like it is about to break any time soon.
A recent blog by a car insurance expert came to the conclusion that banning referral fees will not halt the tide of personal injury claims because the UK has now adopted a suing culture that is similar to the one that has long been around in the USA. Regardless of whether insurers accept money or not for referrals, claims will continue to roll in because the likelihood is that the providers will offer a payout to avoid paying court costs. There are many instances of false claims or exaggerated claims that have generated payouts. I had personal experience of it. Having been hit from behind, the man who drove into me claimed for whiplash and won (even though I was fine and I’m not sure how you can get it when driving into the back of someone). As such, you are still likely to be paying for it in the coming years. The only way to reduce your costs, as a result, is comparing car insurance. Why not do it now right here at APH?
Posted in Car Insurance | 114 Comments »
Friday, September 23rd, 2011
Have you ever given any thought as to how much you are worth to your family? Most people have no idea exactly what they save their family in terms of money, attention and care. Fathers alone are worth their weight in gold according to a recent study. It determined that they actually saved the household £21,000 over the course of a year in chores around the house, DIY jobs and childcare. That is not including their wage or salary but in addition to it so you can see how the money soon adds up. You would otherwise have to pay for childcare, a handyman, tradespeople and all sorts of other services that you currently have no need to pay for. So what would happen if the father in the household died or became critically ill? Well, a major struggle to make ends meet would occur unless you had life insurance in place.
According to the survey, just 64% of fathers in the UK today have life insurance, whether through work or a personal policy, and just 30% have critical illness cover so if they were diagnosed with cancer or another illness that is considered to be critical their salary would be lost with nothing to replace it. Can you imagine how your household would get by without that particular deficit? Many would get into debt today or struggle to pay all the bills. As such, every single father should consider getting life insurance and critical illness cover today. Not being able to provide for a family is bad enough but seeing them struggle when you are ill or knowing that you are leaving them in the lurch is worse.
A range of life insurance providers can be accessed via the comparison engine on APH so you can find cover to suit you and your wallet.
Posted in Life Insurance | 103 Comments »
Tuesday, September 20th, 2011
I regularly browse through financial magazines and newspaper money sections to keep up with the news making waves in the home insurance industry. As such, I’ve noticed a marked difference in the tone of some of the reviews as of late. There seems to be a trend of complaining about poor service from certain companies that offer home insurance, and most notably the time it takes to settle claims. In some cases loss adjusters have been called in when there was no need to do so, thus wasting a lot of time and ensuring that some claims take up to 12 months to pay. So how can you find out which home insurance companies offer the best service and don’t leave you in the lurch?
Well, reading some consumer reviews is the best place to start if you want to find a home insurance provider that suits you and provides the service you want. You should never assume that, just because a premium is more or less expensive, the service is correspondingly better or worse. Instead, you are better off seeing which offer the best service to all customers because you may well be surprised at the home insurance providers that have let their customers down of late.
Perhaps the best way to go about finding a home insurance provider to suit you is to get quotes from a comparison engine, like the one here at APH, and choose your three or five best policies based on what quote and policy offering you get. From there, do a little homework. It takes just a few minutes to check around to see what reputation the provider has and it is worth every single moment of your time. When you have finished the entire process, which should take no more than 15 to 20 minutes, your peace of mind will be worth it’s weight in gold.
Posted in Home Insurance | 5 Comments »
Saturday, September 17th, 2011
Who needs life insurance? This question seems to be one of the most asked in the insurance industry today because nobody seems to be completely sure as to whether they need it, whether financial institutions can ask them to get it or whether it is a redundant product that costs you money every month. There are numerous reasons for this problem’s existence but it mainly lies with the fact that many people just do not understand what life insurance is at its very foundation and how fundamentally useful it can be.
So do you need it? Well, yes if you own a house and have a mortgage to pay, yes if you have a family to support and yes if you have a reason to leave money behind if you should pass away for whatever reason. For example, if you have debts then the money from a life insurance policy can pay them off rather than have them pass to family members. If you have children or other dependents then leaving money behind can provide them with a secure start in life and make sure that your absence does not leave them financially worse off. If you are paying a mortgage then the same principle applies. However, your lender may actually insist that you get cover to protect their investment. They are well within their rights to do this but you can take it out with whoever you want to. As long as you have decent life insurance in place they cannot make you take it out with them.
So how can you find a life insurance policy to suit you? Well, the first thing to do is compare. Here at APH, you can compare policies in terms of their features and their premiums. Features are the most important element because you need to know the level of cover you have. Just fill in the details and you will be surprised how simple the rest is.
Posted in Life Insurance | 183 Comments »
Wednesday, September 14th, 2011
Uninsured drivers are a major problem today, with some areas reporting major problems with the numbers of people that do not have car insurance using the road on a regular basis. They would say that it is not a problem unless they get into an accident but that is not the point, and it definitely is not the only problem for those on the road that do comply with the law and pay for car insurance. There is a part of that premium that you have to pay in order to cover damage to your car if you are hit y an uninsured driver. However, there is some good news for the drivers in many areas of the UK. Uninsured driver numbers are going down. According to new statistics from the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB), there are 25% less uninsured drivers than there were five years ago, meaning that there are fewer on the road to hit you!
However, it should be noted that this survey was a UK wide one so some areas having more drivers without car insurance than others. This, of course, hampers the figures and makes it appear that there are far more uninsured drivers in many areas than there actually is. In fact, 17 of the top 20 postcodes for uninsured drivers are in the West Midlands and West Yorkshire. These regions have dragged the figures down in a big way so, unless you live in either of those areas, you may benefit from a slight lowering of premiums as a result.
There is no excuse for not having car insurance. Even though it is expensive in the majority of cases today, a basic policy on a small car is affordable and nobody should choose to drive a car they cannot afford to insure. Always compare car insurance and you will get the best deal for you with no need to break the law.
Posted in Car Insurance | 83 Comments »
Sunday, September 11th, 2011
Have you been on holiday this year? No? So are you going in the next few weeks? Really? That’s nice… The average conversation about your holiday plans goes a little something like this and is fine if you are talking to your family but there are some situations in which drawing away from the conversation may be a good idea if you want to keep your home insurance policy’s no claims bonus intact. Having said conversation on Facebook is definitely one of those situations. Social networking sites are the banes of home insurance companies existence and are placed alongside companies encouraging people to make personal injury claims in terms of annoyance.
Many people do not think that bragging about their two weeks in the Caribbean on Facebook will affect their home security. After all, which amongst your friends would burgle you? Well, actually, you’d be surprised about just how many opportunists there are out there but, unless your profile is completely private people can still see certain details. In addition, your friends accounts can also be hacked, and this is a favourite trick for burglars out there at the moment. They are often doing it so as to find out where empty houses can be found.
So what is the solution to the problem of social networking sites when you are on holiday? Well, it is simple really – do not under any circumstances tell the whole world that you are going on holiday on your Facebook page. Brag about it when you come back but keep it to yourself when you go away. You may also want to avoid logging in when you are away in case your location turns up on your page. There are new features that do that now. Just remain in control and you will find that your home insurance benefits from it!
Posted in Home Insurance | 20 Comments »
Thursday, September 8th, 2011
Are you one of the many people in the UK who was left holding a car insurance renewal quote with a hanging jaw and eyes as wide as saucers in the last year? If you are then you may not be surprised to find out that the average policy went up by 40% last year. Given the range of excuses that many car insurance companies offer now – crime has increased, weather causes more accidents, someone else who lives in the same road as you has made a claim etc – you may also feel like such increases are unfair. Well, so do many others out there and this is why the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) are now looking into policy premiums.
Of course, car insurance companies have explained that they are now losing money as a result of personal injury claims. This may be the truth given how much they have gone up and how many vultures are out there touting for business. However, the question is why should you pay for the greed of others, especially if you avoid claiming at all costs and are careful on the road all year round?
The OFT is not only going to investigate car insurance premiums but also the role that external factors are playing, such as comparison websites. Some have been accused of not helping the customer to get a better deal but actually helping insurers to raise their prices in conjunction with each other. This may actually explain the blanket increases. However, APH does not have a policy like this in place. Instead, our comparison engine is designed specifically to help you to shop around for the best deal, meaning premium level and policy combined. With this in mind, you can have peace of mind that we will be on your side no matter what.
Posted in Car Insurance | 8 Comments »
Monday, September 5th, 2011
If you have paid attention to the money sections of many of the newspapers out there in recent weeks then you will be aware that a postcode lottery exists in car insurance circles today. Of course, this term has been most frequently associated with medical care, facilities available and social issues like that, but it has come to the point where car insurance companies are actually using the same principle to calculate premiums offered to customers, new and existing alike. Geography is not new to the quote calculation process because high crime areas have been penalised for quite some time but where you live actually makes a huge difference to how much you have to pay for cover today to a far greater extent.
Don’t believe it? Well, I know of a real life example that proves it. A friend of mine recently moved 3 miles from one village to the next. Both villages are quiet with low crime rates, a lot off road parking availability and very few accidents in the surrounding area. She told her insurer, and stuck with the same car insurance provider because she was mid-way through the year and nowhere near renewal time, who then informed her that she’d save a bit of money as a result of her move – £15 PER MONTH to be precise. Yes, three miles makes that much of a difference. The premiums are lower because the crime rate is slightly lower, but it is amazing what such a short distance can cost you. Of course, you should not let this influence you because if you spot your dream home and can afford it, why should a bit of extra cash on your car insurance premiums make a difference? Just make sure that you can keep your car secure, be sure to take advantage of your no claims bonus and save money where you can, especially if you take the time to compare quotes.
Posted in Car Insurance | 5 Comments »
Friday, September 2nd, 2011
If you are looking to buy a home in the near future but currently rent or live with parents or friends then you may not have any idea what is involved, and more importantly what mortgage companies and banks can ask of you. All the jargon may send you mad but it is some of the demands that those lending you money to buy a home that will leave you scratching your head the most, such as the demand for life insurance. Life insurance is an integral part of the home buying process because it gives your lender peace of mind that they will not be left to cover a debt should something happen to you before your home is paid off. But if you need it in place, exactly what type of life insurance do you need?
The life insurance that is most commonly requested for mortgage applications is decreasing term assurance or cover. Although you have a fixed premium, the level of this life insurance product decreases every year, meaning that you get a lower payout every progressive year of the policy. This does have some advantages, such as having lower premiums, but the main one is that it will cover the level of debt on your mortgage so it will be paid for outright if anything should happen to you.
So there is one question remaining – can your bank or mortgage company insist on you taking out life insurance? The simple answer is yes it can. Their investment in your home is a lot of money so they can make sure that the risk is covered by stipulating that you have life insurance and indeed buildings home insurance in place should anything happen to you or the house itself. You do not have to take either insurance out with your mortgage company but you must still have it in place to cover yourself.
Posted in Life Insurance | 3 Comments »
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