Credit where its due - Student Finance

My younger daughter is hoping to head off to university this Autumn - but it was not her imminent departure, or concerns about 'empty nesting' that had me hating the thought of it (not to say that I won't miss her dreadfully) but the idea of facing Student Finance again.

Four years ago when her older sister launched herself into university life it was right at the start of Student Finance taking over the responsibility for calculating and paying her loans and grants.
Now admittedly my finances were not straightforward, having just left one job and being in the process of setting up www.moneymaxim.co.uk but did it really need to be so painful?

The lever arch file of assessments, applications, evidence, more assessments therefore sat beside me earlier this week as I finally decided to tackle Hannahs application. The memory of the frustration caused as it took 6 weeks to process every piece of paper, only to be asked for a minor amendment to be made to it and having to start the 6 week clock ticking again came flooding back.

But this year - what a change!

20 minutes on the pc and its submitted, approved and sorted. So its a 5 out of 5 for Student Finance from me - well done them!

So hopefully Hannah won't be relying on University hardship funds until Easter - and she will be able to get on with enjoying uni life as any 19 years old should.

In the meantime I will get on with sorting her accommodation, TV license, student insurance .. and all the other things Dads get delegated!

Reasons to be thankful we are in the UK - Changing Money

My daughter is currently on a gap year - travelling round Australia, New Zealand, Asia and Africa - and every so often I get one of those calls which remind me on the gaps in her education - and it me I am holding account for those not her school, university or other educational establishment!

Today at 7 a.m. the call came from Bangkok - as she was wandering her way up and down a line of foreign money changers and banks trying to work out whether a higher or lower rate was better for her, what 1-5, 10 - 20 and 50+ meant against the different rates and a range of other queries.

She needed US dollars - to pay for her visa into Cambodia - and if necessary the additional private administration fee charged by a number of the border officials to augment their income, and it struck me how alien day to day corruption is in our lives in the UK - and indeed how simply comparing exchange rates is!

Rather than having to work out that when buying overseas money as a consumer with a calculator, and running down a long line of banks and shops in the same way you compare odds from racecourse bookies we can simply compare travel money rates online with options of getting currency delivered to your door or collecting it in person.

My life may not me as exciting as hers is at the moment, but at least its simpler!

How not to attract overseas visitors!

Recently we have seen two prime examples of how to really confuse and naff off visitors to your country.

Firstly there was Florida - who took a decision which meant that any overseas visitors needed an international driving permit to drive there - and brought it into force on the 1st January 2013.

Without an IDP, a driver is therefore driving without a valid licence. If stopped, law enforcement has the options of:

• Arresting the driver and taking them to jail
• Or giving the driver a citation with a mandatory court appearance

However this ran into trouble  - partly as overseas visitors were totally unaware of the ruling and therefore arrive in the State without a permit - bring car hire stations to their knees - and partly as it broke the Geneva Convention on Road Traffic.  The State has now said that although the law remains on the statute books it will not be enforced. However this law still exists and bodies such as the AA strongly advises that you should obtain an IDP if you intend to drive in Florida before the possible repeal of the law in March.

Crazy huh! - More information at  Florida suspends enforcement of International Driving Permit rule

And then the Balearics joined in their New Eco-Tax on Car Hire in Balearics in what seems a crazy way to attract the type of visitors you want to your island. Car hirers, demographically, are wealthier than the average traveller - so you would think they are the last people Ibiza, Menorca and Majorca would want to drive away, but as the article by our correspondent +Andrew Daniel says that is what's currently on the cards!


One does wonder about politicians at times!

Signs that Summer is on the Way

The balmy sunny weather over the past twenty four hours out of the window in our offices in Wokingham has not the the only signs of Summer on its way!

And its no bad thing to be reminded that early planning for our summer holidays can not only mean a smoother build up for the season ahead but save a few pounds as well.

The last few weeks have seen a big uplift in car hire excess insurance quotes - numbers have already doubled since the start of the year - and will treble again between now and July, and car hire bookings for the Summer are well underway.

Booking these early makes a lot of sense. The car rental firms offer great deals to book now, and especially before Easter, as its in their interest to understand the likely demand over the Summer. They can then acquire the right numbers of cars to satisfy customers over the Summer. And many companies on the moneymaxim car hire comparison service offer free cancellation meaning you can rest assured that if you find a cheaper deal you can bail out and book elsewhere. For instance Auto Europe will make a full refund if you decide to cancel at least 48 hours before you are meant to collect the car.

Over the past week we have had the first visitors to our ice cream van insurance comparison service pages as ice cream men across the country start sprucing up their vans ready for the new season - no doubt hoping for a warm Easter break.

And quotes for soft top car insurance are becoming more regular through our car insurance service - indicating some are thinking about trading in the 4x4 for a summer car.

All in all a nice reminder that longer days and sunny times are on the horizon!

ABI Suggestions for Cheaper Car Insurance for Young Drivers - Bring it on

We deal with a lot of young drivers car insurance - and we love looking after our customers - which means when there is an initiative around designed to not only make car insurance cheaper for newly qulaified drivers, but also to make accidents less likely to happen we have to applaud it.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) want the following to be mandatory for new drivers:

• A one-year minimum learning period for young drivers.
• A limit to the number of young passengers a newly qualified driver is allowed to carry.
• Newly qualified drivers would face restrictions on driving in the dark
• A zero tolerance for blood alcohol levels in any driver who has recently passed a test.

Personally I would go one stage further and limit new drivers to cars in insurance groups 1-15.

These measures would make total sense. It really worries us when we talk to those barely 17 who are off on a weeks intensive driving course designed to get them on the road with very little experience. And worst of all when its young premier league footballer with his Audi TT.

Its common sense that at a time when young and impressionable drivers want to rush headlong into buying the fastest car going and then impress their mates that the law helps protect them (and other road users) from themselves - so good on you ABI - keep banging the drum!

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.