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Read all about how to get cheaper car and life insurance from our blog section. |
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October 17th, 2011
Having home insurance is always a good idea for peace of mind these days. Whether you live in a low crime area or a high crime area, it is always worth exploring home insurance policies to ensure that you can replace your belongings should they get stolen whilst you are out. However, most insurance companies actually limit their involvement at protecting your property. The rest is up to you. As long as you have answered those companies’ questions honestly then they will support you from afar. Not so one lesser known home insurer. Instead, this particular company has offered pointers for preventing break ins so that you do not have to claim on your home insurance and they are certainly worth taking notice of whether you are with that insurer or not.
First of all, the insurer makes the point that it is best to use a timer or leave lights on when you are away from home to make sure that it looks like someone is there. If burglars think that someone is home then they are far less likely to try and break in. In addition, it is advised that you should explore the idea of locking doors as soon as it gets dark as well as drawing curtains and keeping valuables out of sight. Finally, be sure to use your burglar alarm and invest in good quality locks. Of course, the questions you answer when taking out home insurance should tell you that!
There is no doubt that burglaries and other related crimes do go up when the clocks go back and the whole country gets a lot darker a lot earlier. It seems to be the opportunity that some criminals look for to make their money. Do not let them. Take all measures to protect yourself and you may never have to make a claim on account of the actions of others!
Posted in Home Insurance | Comments Off
October 14th, 2011
Have you looked into getting a multi car insurance policy to protect the cars that are owned by the people in your household? Insuring two or more cars under one policy can be incredibly cost effective, giving you automatic discounts for insuring more than one car with the same provider as well as combining any no claims bonuses and other discounts that you may qualify for. Sound good to you? It should do because you could save a lot of money without sacrificing features or cover levels, especially if you have a young driver in your household who has been quoted thousands for standalone insurance. However, there are certain things you need to check with multi car insurance as well.
The first thing you need to check before you take out a multi car insurance policy is whether or not your no claims bonuses are combined in more than the quote. Essentially, some providers actively protect individual no claims bonuses with a view to ensuring that those in the household who do not have an accident are not punished should they move out and get individual cover. It also allows young drivers to build up their own no claims bonuses. However, some do not protect individual no claims so anyone covered under your policy may effectively mess it up for everyone else.
Comparing multi car insurance will help you to separate those that do protect no claims from those that do not quickly and easily without having to make a mistake prior to getting the cover you want. Unfortunately, years of no claims bonuses are impossible to get back and losing them through no fault of your own is definitely unfair. Make sure that you are protected from the start and have the right cover for you, that works for you and offers excellent protection.
Posted in Multi Car Insurance | Comments Off
October 11th, 2011
We all know how unpredictable the weather has been in recent years in all areas of the UK. With storms apparently occurring at all times of the year, flooding being reported irregularly up and down the country and adverse weather conditions being quite prevalent everywhere but in Manchester at the end of last year, it is no wonder that many people are considering how to batten down the hatches this year. How can you protect your home without needing to claim on your home insurance? Well, that largely depends on where you live apparently.
A recent survey found that home insurance claims had actually risen by a huge 68% in relation to storms, with lightening, snow, flooding and falling trees all hitting the top of the list of claims for insurers all over the UK but there are location specific rises that are worth noting. For example, if you live in Yorkshire then you are 143% more likely to have made a claim in relation to a flood than those in any other county, although storm claims from those in Central Scotland are 117% more probable. Finally, Londoners are 47% more likely to have made a claim as a direct result of a falling tree.
Obviously the regularity and occurrence of such claims may not impact upon you directly but it is worth finding out about these statistics because they will not only potential put home insurance quotes up for your area but you may find that some policies offer insufficient protection for certain incidents. If your home is more likely to be impacted by flooding rather than falling trees then you should make sure that the cover in place is for the former rather than the latter. You can do this through the APH comparison engine. Just fill in your wants and needs and you can see exactly what is available for you.
Posted in Home Insurance | Comments Off
October 8th, 2011
A leading car insurance comparison site has helped to prove just how ridiculous quotes for car insurance are these days by offering quotes of £50,000 and £26,000 respectively for a 20 year old woman and man whose age is not known. Both come from Bradford and have cars that should be relatively cheap to insure. Despite stating that all quotes of above £12,000 are filtered out, this comparison engine actually helped to highlight the problem with car insurance at the present time. It is just too expensive, with some quotes bordering on farcical, for most people to fit it comfortably into their already stretched household budgets.
Of course, it really is no coincidence that both quotes were given for Bradford drivers because the crime rate is quite high in the city, as is the claim rate. As a result of the postcode, residents are more likely to have to pay through the nose for their car insurance than people that live elsewhere. Unfortunately, even if you are a safe driver, have never made a claim and are an example of exactly how to conduct yourself on the road you may still have to pay a fortune to get your car fully insured and legal on the road.
So what can you do? Well, the woman who reported the £50,000 quote also reported that the vast majority of her quotes were between £7,000 and £8,000. Her age is a major factor but the best step she took was indeed comparing car insurance cover. It may be expensive but at least she was able to access polices that she may have not known existed otherwise. Comparing quotes is good for your budget and your peace of mind. It only takes a few minutes but may well alert you to an ideal policy for you so it is certainly worth a little effort.
Posted in Car Insurance | Comments Off
October 5th, 2011
Life insurance is one of those financial products that people make excuses not to get until they feel that they absolutely have to, whether because they are facing life changing circumstances (such as having children) or because they will not be offered a mortgage unless they have some sort of insurance in place to cover the loan should the homeowner, or at least one of them, die before it would be paid off. However, the industry is facing lower numbers than ever before. For the seventh successive quarter, the numbers of people taking out life insurance has gone down. This really is bad news for a lot of people because of the benefits a good policy has to offer.
Many people see life insurance and indeed taking out a policy as really morbid but it is in fact far from it. It is simply a protection mechanism that is designed to give you peace of mind and provide your family with a safety net should you ever need one. If no policy is in place then it can be really difficult for your loved ones to recover financially. Life insurance gives them time and space to recover in that way as well as emotionally.
There are plenty of benefits to having life insurance and, with very few costing more than a few pounds a month over a period of time of your choosing, very few reasons not to have it in place. If you think that life insurance may be for you then why not check out some of the policies available. Fill in the form here at APH for the comparison engine. Submit it and you will son get results from top providers on your desktop. Check out what life insurance could do for you and then you will be better equipped to decide whether it is for you or not.
Posted in Life Insurance | Comments Off
October 2nd, 2011
You may have heard on the news that there are proposals in place to potentially elevate the speed limits on motorways from 70mph to 80mph. This is hotly debated at the moment. There are many groups celebrating the news and embracing it as entering a brand new, and long overdue, era of driving. On the other hand, there are plenty also stating that it will increase the numbers of accidents on the roads for numerous reasons, not least that stopping distances will increase and it will not deter those who speed on a regular basis. So who is right and how will it affect your car insurance premiums?
Well, there is no way of telling whether it will affect car insurance premiums via increased levels of accidents. With the enhanced safety levels of the cars on the roads today, many people believe that a rise of the speed limit would not increase death rates but would instead bring the roads in line with the modern era. However, if it does increase accidents then you can bet that it would increase car insurance premiums too, as a blanket effect rather than in terms of individual premium rates too. The logic would probably be that most motorists use a motorway at some stage or another and so would really be subject to the changes.
Of course, this is all speculation and so there will be no impact upon car insurance premiums at this point in time, at least for this reason. However, no matter what the changes are, you always have the right to switch providers. If you choose, you could actually compare car insurance quotes from some of the top providers out there at APH. Our comparison engine allows you to compare policies as well as premiums so take full advantage and get yourself the best deal possible today.
Posted in Car Insurance | 80 Comments »
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 »
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 »
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 »
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 »
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