British consumers 'to spend 53 billion during the holidays' - Published:17/11/07
wwwmoneynewscouk > General finance > British consumers 'to use £53 billion during the holidays'It is anticipated that consumers in the UK will use a total of £53 billion over the course of the Christmas period, according to Apacs, the UK's payments associationFigures from the association predict that this day's spending will be 42 per cent higher on that of December 2006, when consumers spent £508 billionas well, 643 per cent of this year's expenditure is expected to be made using praise and debit cards, Apacs claimsSandra Quinn, director of infrastructure at Apacs, said: "Whether trade the turkey or stocking fillers, we're most likely to be using our debit certificate to pay for them this Christmas, ongoing the ongoing trend of pulling out the debit card in preference to our credit cards, money or cheques"The one exception is online where we are much more likely to use our credit cards - which makes sense because of the additional consumer protection they provide"Meanwhile, for those who are already thinking about Christmas 2008, the Post Office has lately announced it will introduce a new.
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Earn 7% If You're Over 50 - Published:30/10/07
One thing that's bound to get my notice is the launch of an account paying a market most important rate After all, we work hard for our money, so the least we can do is put it in an account so it can do the same for usSo, unsurprisingly, the new coalition & Leicester (A&L) Premier 50 current account piqued my interest It's offering a headline rate of 7%AER set until 30109) to anyone aged over fifty, on balances up to £2,500 What's more, it also offers a 0% EAR overdraft facility for the first 12 months And if you're thinking that this sounds attractive similar to its Premier Direct account (paying 65%AER), it is and it isn'tOn the plus side, different the Premier Direct account you don't need to pay in a set journal income (the PD account requires at least £500 to be paid in each month) The prime minister 50 also offers a figure of benefits, including worldwide travel insurance (up until age 79) and health benefits, counting access to up to two private out-patient consultations and up to £750 towards out-patient diagnostic difficult per year as well as access to 24/7 Health at give helplineInterestingly, account holders can also use the Post Office, in addition to A&L branches, the telephone and internet to carry out transactions on their accounts, which could save a trip or two for many into townSounds pretty good doesn't it So what's the no-win situation Well, as you've probably guessed this doesn't all approach for gratis; indeed the Premier 50 account, unlike the Premier Direct is a supposed packaged account, meaning that it's not free - you'll need to disburse £10 per month to take one outWell, usual readers will know my usual opinion of packaged accounts -- why disburse for banking when you can still get it for free Although banks will argue that their benefits package far outweighs the cost, many people put on't use all of the extras, or with a bit of effort could find that they can get similar cover for far less than £120 per yearHowever, while this can be the case for young, comparatively healthy adults, things can change radically once we start to get older -- and insurers know this Indeed, most older travellers (in exacting those with pre-existing circumstances can find the cost of travel insurance rises significantly with age, and can surely be far more luxurious than £120 per yearAnother issue that I've found with packaged accounts offering yearly travel insurance policies is that they often only insure combined account holders if they're travelling together -- should you need to take a trip alone you'd find you'd have to take out alternative wrap I gave Alliance & Leicester a quick call to inquire about this and found that it isn't the case here: combined account holders are still covered if travelling unconnectedly In addition, the insurance will cover a figure of pre-existing conditions, but you'd require to have this determined on an individual basisIndeed, I grudgingly have to confess that, for a packaged account this isn't a awful one Joint account holders in particular could get pretty good worth -- especially as each holder would be entitled to the two private out-patient checkup consultations What's more, if you know someone with an coalition & Leicester bank explanation already, by making use of the "Recommend a Friend" endorsement you could both get a free £40If you're over fifty and keen to button current account, I would therefore say to obviously check out the free financial records first If you're receiving an income of more than £500 a month and are in pretty high-quality health, the A&L Premier Direct account offers a great rate with no journal chargeHowever, it could be well worth also checking out the A&L Premier 50 account It's hard to create a sweeping generalisation as we all have dissimilar needs (and health issues) but if you're a eager traveller (and have found travel cover policies expensive in the past), would use the health benefits, and tend to keep a high equilibrium in your current explanation, it could be a good explanation for youGive them a call, tell them your situation and get them to do the hard labor and check how useful it could be for you - and most importantly work out whether you would be economy money by paying the £120 per year (if necessary, call for some cover quotes to see now how much an annual policy would cost) Indeed, as this is the only current account meant specifically at the over-fifties, we may just find it's the first of many to approach© Copyright 1998-2007, The Motley Fool Limited All rights reserved This material is for personal use onlyput of Reg: England & Wales corporation Reg No: 3736872 VAT Reg No: 735 7818 01 Registered Office: 30 Great Pulteney road,.
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True cost of a wedding revealed to credit card holders - Published:20/09/07
CREDIT CARDS near to the ground RATE CREDIT CARDSSTUDENT CREDIT CARDS0% APR CREDIT CARDSCREDIT CARDS ONLINEBALANCE TRANSFERSA new financing study has exposed how much people typically shell out on presence a wedding, credit card customers may be interested to be acquainted withAccording to figures from financing website CreditExpert, the average being typically spends £130 joining in the amusing on a stag do or hen party, while stumping up an addition £70 to disburse for a marriage gift and £64 on clothes for the big dayMeanwhile, the research project has also hinted that many wedding visitors may be turning towards their credit cards to fund the daylight hours outIn news that may surprise many credit card holders, approximately six per cent of populace have confessed they dropped into debt as a result of leaving to a wedding"Weddings are a time to rejoice but it's clear that people are increasing their financial stress and spending cash they don't have simply in order to be there," he saidlately, credit card holders were put on alert after the Post Office unveiled particulars of a new dealAmong the features of the financial armed forces provider's credit card, it offers zero per cent borrowing tax on balance transfersQuarter of holidays financed by credit cards and loans, claims financing study - Fri, 01 Jun 2007Credit Cards | Business Credit Cards | equilibrium Transfers |.
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True Cost Of A Wedding Revealed To Credit Card Holders >>
