Top Moneysaving Tips - April Update!

I had the pleasure of talking to the Caversham 41 group this week - a great bunch of individuals who obviously enjoyed each others company - on the vexed subject of 'Moneysaving'.

I  ran through a few of the biggest areas of savings we were seeing when reviewing customers expenses, and thought it might be worth just jotting these down, as a few appeared to come as a bolt out the blue to some of those present!

Gas and Electricity - constant review is essential - even if you checked you were on the right tariff six months ago things may well have changed since. If your utilities deal has been 'rolled over' and you are still with the same company you are pretty much certain of making a saving - as you will if you are on a standard tariff - run a check through our gas and electricity comparison service - switching online takes minutes, and if the recommended company is set with a review status give us a call - we can easily help there as well!

If all this seems like too much hassle register for our EnergyMonitor service and we will do the checking for you!

Insurance - always compare - insurance prices are rocketing for renewals, but deals for 'new customers' are very attractive - visit our insurance pages whenever a renewal is up for grabs or better still register for our renewals reminder programme and we drop you a line a few weeks before the date to make sure you are fully prepared for it dropping on your doormat.

Insurance - Do you pay your premium monthly - our belief is that the monthly payment option is fast becoming a revenue generator for insurance companies - some are charging over 30% APR! If you are paying monthly check the details carefully! Read our latest article on the subject.

Mobile phones - do you have a monthly contract - do you know if its competitive? Following our advice one of our customers has just signed up for her new contract - 5 hours of free calls, internet access, 1500 free texts - all for £5 a month - her mobile provider had wanted £35!! And do you know what a competitive deal looks like? Check them out on our mobile phone comparison service - the deal above is around £1 a month at present with a free basic phone thrown in!

Tied products - whether its mobile phone or PC insurance being packaged in at your phone shop or superstore, or your car hire insurance being sold at the car rental desk you will probably being paying at least twice what you need to. I am well aware that the big brands frequently demand commission of 50% when 'cross selling' in such products - and guess who is footing that bill!

We have developed the first UK Car Hire and Car Hire Excess Insurance comparison service - which gives you total clarity on your options, and will speedily show if you are about to pay too much, and our gadget insurance service was one of the reasons we won 'Best Niche Insurance Aggregator' earlier this year.

Savings: Did you buy a new ISA last spring ? If so there is a good bet that the interest rate fell off a cliff recently when it reached its first anniversary. As well as checking out your current options when you do find a new deal set a reminder using our PromptMe service which will make sure you get a text or email before the rate drops again in a years time.

Life Insurance: If you have Life assurance, and haven't reviewed it recently give us a call and ask us to! It takes a few minutes, and we normally find that there are big savings, or much better cover on offer. With longer life expectancy rates have fallen considerably. If you are male do it now - with new EU regulations coming into force next your life assurance will have to assume you will live longer than is likely - forcing up premiums, so calling us now on 0800 520 0699 is highly recommended.

They were the top topics I covered, and they generated a good deal of debate, concern and action - we are happy to review any customers personal situation so if you would like to talk though your options please feel free to call (if calling from a mobile 01183 218197 is likely to be most cost effective).

Pay for your insurance monthly? Watch out for the rising costs..

Over the past year car insurance premiums have rocketed - the AA have just reported that the average is now approaching £900, and for drivers under 23 its almost £2500!

Whilst we have in the main been able to cancel out any significant premium increases by helping customers shop around using our car insurance comparison service we have also been struck by the rising cost of paying premiums monthly rather than annually. Some insurers are now charging an APR of well over 30% for the privilege, and for a young driver that could mean an interest bill alone of £350+!

If you are faced with this do read our article on the the rising costs of monthly car insurance premiums, where we have come up with innovative ways of beating the insurance companies.