Why should you consider Income Protection?

Many people will feel that taking out an Income Protection policy is superfluous, particularly if they already have critical illness cover. However there are key differences between these types of insurance – principally in the length of time that they last. Should someone suffer long-term illness – for example, paralysis that left him or her unable to do their job – this would not be covered by a critical illness policy. Furthermore, Accident Sickness Unemployment cover would offer financial protection for the initial period that they were in hospital, but would not continue beyond that point. Income Protection Insurance will provide you with financial security for as long as you require it. There are a number of other medical conditions that are not covered by Critical Illness policies – such as mental health issues – that also make considering an Income Protection policy worthwhile.

How does it work?

Income Protection works in a similar way to most other forms of insurance, with premiums being paid on a monthly basis, but there are factors that will help to determine exactly how steep a person’s premium will be. The first of these is age – with older people paying larger premiums as they are considered at higher risk of illness. Another contributory factor is that of a person’s health at the time of taking out the policy, as obviously someone with a history of illness may either be refused a policy or asked to pay a higher premium. Then there are the issues of the job and hobbies a person has, as the level of illness or injury risk these carry will also have an effect on how high their premiums are. Finally there is the matter of the waiting period: Income Protection carries a delay before paying out to claimants, but the claimant can choose the length of the waiting period. The longer waiting period they opt for, the lower the premium will be.

1. January Tax Deadline

If you are self employed, or have income coming in from more that one source then you need to complete a tax return online by the 31st of January. It is important to note that even if you don’t owe any tax – but need to complete a tax return you will be fined £100 for not completing it in time. The deadline for completing by paper was back in October so you need to complete it online at the HMRC website.

2. End of Stamp Duty Holiday for First Time Home Buyers

If you are buying your first house you have until late March if you want to avoid paying Stamp Duty Tax.

So if you are looking to make a saving then you need to start looking now. However one of the biggest problems first time buyers face is not finding something in time, it is having a large enough deposit to secure a competitively priced mortgage.

The government has announced that they will be launching a government sponsored 95% mortgage on new build properties. The date is not finalised as yet, but suggested to be 2012.

3. Protecting Your Lifetime Allowance

From 2012 the maximum you can save into a pension will fall from £1.8m to £1.5m, however if you are retiring or near retirement you can protect this benefit by applying to the HMRC by the end of 2012. This change will also affect people on a final salary pension too of £75k or more.

If you don’t apply for this ‘protection’ you will find pension savings above £1.5m are taxed at 55%.

The sting in the tail is that even thought you will be avoiding additional taxes you will lose out on contributions from your employer which could be worth more than the tax decution, like a substantial pay rise.

4. Contracting out of Second State Pension

2012 is the last year that UK residents will be able to contract out of SP2 (previously known as SERPS). If you wish to opt out you will get a refund of part of your national insurance contributions to invest directly in a personal pension rather than receiving an earnings-related state top up instead.

If you want to contract out you need to complete a CA1542 form. If you already have a personal pension you can ask your provider to send the form to you.

Living life is expensive, that much is true, whether saving for education, weddings, mortgage deposits, pensions or something else financial planning is always a good idea and will help you in the long term. There are also occasions in life that cannot be planned for and having a nice nest egg tucked away will fill you with confidence should something unexpected happen. If you want to build a financial plan but do not want to have to fuss around building spreadsheets and working out percentages then consider MoneyVista as the perfect website for you!

You can work out your financial plan on MoneyVista.com and it is incredibly straightforward and easy to do so. This will allow you to see very simply what your financial situation currently looks like and how any decisions that you make may affect this in the future. You will also be able to see the amount of interest that you can expect to accrue on any money as well as budgeting your money in the best possible way, correctly! On MoneyVista.com you will not be subjected to unnecessary advertising nor have someone trying to sell you numerous financial products that will either not benefit you or that you do not want. The initial setup will take a few minutes, more if you have lots of financial investments, savings accounts etc, but you can choose whether to input all of your information in one go or to return back at your convenience and spend another few minutes updating your details. You will need to provide details of your properties, investments, savings, pensions, waves and any other personal finances either incoming or outgoing.

This will then allow a detailed financial plan to be built that will show at a glance what your financial situation looks like, what you have going out and what kind of return you can expect on your savings. Tax and national insurance will also be taken in to account when building your finances up so that you can expect an accurate picture at all times. It is very simple to make changes on MoneyVista.com and see in just a few seconds how these changes will benefit you now and in the future.

You will never be asked to provide passwords or account details so you can rest easy knowing that your investments and savings are as secure as ever. As the website is updated often it is very simple to feel confident that your financial plan is up to date and accurate. Any chances in tax and national insurance are swiftly dealt with also, regardless of when they happen, and whatever financial purpose you want to use MoneyVista.com for you will find the website simple and easy to use and you can even see accurate details of percentage returns on savings, properties and much more, however, if for some reason you disagree with the figures or you know of something that will be different then it is very simple to edit these percentages yourself to give a more accurate overview.

A 30 day free trial is available, with no obligation, that allows you to access all of the features that this website has to offer. You do not have to provide any billing or payment information at all and can just decide at the end of the trial whether you would like to sign up. Should you sign up you will find that the price of subscriptions is very reasonable with options available for less than £7 per month dependant on the frequency of payment. There are forums, budget planners, details on how to work tax codes and tax loopholes to the best of your ability and much more. MoneyVista.com is a real one stop shop for financial planning and is so simple to use. The website is accurate, informative and best of all you can try it today for free! Sponsored Post

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Ditch the gym
This is something that will strike fear into the hearts of some and joy into the hearts of others – the gym. Thousands of people join a gym in the New Year only to go twice before misplacing their membership card and deciding to try again next year. Before you join, assess whether you’ll go as much as you think – if you’re uncertain it’ll be worth it, you might want to reconsider. This is a concept that can be applied to other things, too, including impulse purchase.

Shop for deals
Shopping for deals doesn’t just have to apply to books and DVDs. Shopping around for the best savings accounts and other financial products is another good way of getting your money to work harder. For instance, one of the benefits of credit cards is that there is a wide range of choice available, so you can choose between different deals to make sure you get a card that’s most appropriate for you and your financial needs.

Redefine luxury
Finally, saving money doesn’t mean you have to do without the finer things in life, but it does mean you might have to reconsider what you mean by ‘luxury’. As an example, many people pick up a coffee on their way to work. If that costs £2.50 a day, they’re spending £12.50 every working week (about £50) a month on something they could get at home or the office. When you consider that you could save up to £600 a year by ditching the daily cappuccino, it starts to get easier to see where your savings could come from.

For many of us the internet is now our first place to begin when we’re booking our holiday – it’s easy to compare prices, and find exactly what you’re looking for after all. Many websites offer loads of extras to make it easier to book everything together, but you do need to pay attention to what you’re agreeing to or you could find yourself out of pocket.

Although auto-ticking is frowned on by EU regulations, in practice it’s still done by many companies including some of the big ones like Opodo.co.uk and Lastminute.com. What happens is that they auto select extras such as travel insurance for you so that the product and it’s cost is automatically added to your bill.

Now the problem is that the insurance that these companies are offering you may either be more expensive than what you can get elsewhere, or it may not cover you properly. For example if it only offers you £200 of personal possessions cover, and your belongings are stolen meaning you lose camera, mobile phone, clothes, jewellery etc. you are likely to be very much out of pocket – let’s face it many mobile phones cost £200 or more today let alone anything else that’s taken! Alternatively it could be that the insurance doesn’t offer enough medical cover – most offer around £10million so if you’re only being offered £4million then if something bad happened you could be in a real mess!

Under EU law companies aren’t allowed to pre-select extras like this, but they get away with it because the UK government hasn’t put the relevant legislation on the statute books yet although it’s expected to do so very soon. In the meantime these companies know that they can get away with what they’re doing penalty free.

Once you’ve made sure nothing extra has been ticked that you don’t want, do make sure that you have adequate insurance. You may already have cover through your bank account or another annual multi-trip cover, but if not, then shop around and make sure you get a decent package for your money. If you travel abroad 3 or more times a year then annual cover can offer excellent savings, but make sure if you have annual cover that your destination is included as some exclude certain countries.

Make sure your policy covers medical expenses to around £10million, baggage and personal possessions cover to around £1,500 and also things such as personal liability, end-supplier failure, terrorism cover, and travel disruption cover so you don’t find yourself caught out as many people have when snow or volcanic ash has grounded planes in the past.

Flog Your Stuff

Recycling Companies – We’ve all got stuff lying around gathering dust. Old electrical equipment – mobile phones, iPod’s, cameras, Dyson vacuum cleaners, fridges etc – can make you money rather than take up space. The process is simple: enter the model of your gadget and the site will tell you what it’s worth. If you agree, they’ll send you an envelope. Return it (recorded delivery) and then you’ll receive a cheque, or a bank transfer. A high-end mobile phone can make you around £150.

You could, of course, sell it yourself at a Car Boot Sale or on eBay. Dedicated sellers can make significantly more selling on eBay than selling to a recycling company. Look for eBay’s free-listing days to avoid fees and group items such as baby clothes in bulk to make the most of your goods.

Rent Out Your…

Spare room – if you’re making less than £4,250 you won’t need to pay tax. If you didn’t want a full-time lodger and you live in a big city, you might think about renting the room to travellers – look at Crashpadder for how to list. Larger theatres hosting touring companies will let you advertise your room to actors looking for digs while on tour.

House as a film location – you don’t need to live in a Scottish castle to qualify. All houses, great and small, are sought after by production companies looking for locations in which to realise their stories. Payments average £800 for a photography shoot and £1500 for a film shoot.

Car – which might sound like a disaster waiting to happen, but companies like Whipcar have gone out of their way to develop eBay style platforms, complete with user ratings, that allow owners to rent their car to drivers in their local area.

Participate in Paid Medical Trials

Drug companies like GSK trials are constantly seeking healthy individuals to take part in mandatory clinical trials before drugs are brought to market. Participants are paid up to £2000 and can participate in up to four trials a year – that’s up to £8000 for very little effort.

Get Tax and Insurance Savvy

Checking your tax code regularly is important to ensure you’re not over-paying tax. Cancelling mobile phone insurance, as well as changing your tariff to reflect what you use could save you hundreds of pounds a year. If you’ve had a loan, store card, or credit card in the last six years and taken out Payment Protection Insurance (PPI), you may be entitled to get that money back.

There’s money to be made in the most unexpected places in Britain. They don’t call it “Treasure Island” for nothing.

While some are just gimmicks, others are genuine attempts at throwing in different incentives to make the property more desirable. Sellers want the attention created by offering other items, aside from the house, as part of the deal.

Aside from all of the extras, the buyer wants to be able to live with the numbers provided to them by a mortgage repayment calculator. The price really is the most important feature of any home.

Incentives for buyers do have their place. They can attract attention and create a type of buzz about the property.

Most of the time people look to include items that add to the appeal of the home and the property. For example, a home on or near the water might come with a boat or even a plethora of fishing gear.

A home in a smaller community may come with a golf cart for the buyer to use while getting around the town. It offers to make the home more convenient.

The incentive complements the house. People are always interested in getting something for “free” when they make a purchase.

However, the inclusion of a boat, fishing equipment or even a golf cart isn’t enough to sway a person into purchasing a home. Those items can be purchased by themselves and most aren’t necessary for someone living in the home.

Some incentives are set to make the purchase more appealing in general. A seller may include a vehicle or two with the house.

They may include the current furniture (or even new furniture) as part of the deal. This means that when the buyer purchases the home it is ready to go. They can move in and begin living in the residence without any delay.

The most effective incentives are usually monetary. Most buyers just don’t want “extras”. They want something that will either reduce the amount of money it will cost to move in or they want to reduce the money they will need to spend in the first year.

A seller may offer to pay the fees associated with a homeowner’s association or condo community. This reduces the amount of out of pocket money that the buyers will need to pay. This monetary incentive could be appealing, especially for a person right on the edge of being able to afford the property. Taking a look at the mortgage repayment calculator, they notice that the monthly payment could be more affordable.

Other sellers offer a gift card to a local hardware store or even a furniture store in town. This monetary incentive means that the buyer moves in with money to spend in order to make their new house their home. Again, this reduces the amount of money that a person would need to spend upon moving in.

In spite of all of these options, it seems that price is the most important factor in purchasing a home. Aside from the cars, boats, furniture and gift cards, people want to purchase a home that they can afford. When the cost is reduced a home seems more appealing and more affordable.

If you are looking to sell your house, before you consider finding just the right gimmick or incentive, make sure that your home is priced correctly. Look at the homes and area around you before putting your home on the market.

When the house is priced the right way, there is even a chance that multiple buyers will be interested. People pay more attention to the mortgage repayment calculator than they do anything else.

Many online stores now accept Paypal as one of their payment methods, and Paypal bill themselves as one of the safest, speediest and securest ways of paying for anything online – but is it really?

Paypal works by acting as a middleman between your banking details and the retailer. This means that you never have to share your bank details with a retailer who accepts Paypal, instead, Paypal take the money from you, and then pass it to the retailer without sharing your financial information with them.

Now this all sounds brilliant, but what about being protected when you make a purchase? Can anything go wrong?
When you pay for something that costs over £100 with a credit card, you’re given protection under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. This means, if the retailer goes under, or if they don’t deliver, or even if the items you’ve bought just aren’t fit for the purpose, you can complain not just to the company you bought them from, but also to your credit card provider who legally has to help provide you with compensation. You also have a very long time under this act to make your claim – up to 6 years in fact!

If however, you pay via Paypal – even if you use your credit card – because the card company isn’t part of the transaction with the company you are buying the item from, you will not be protected in the same way. Instead you’ll need to make the claim with Paypal and as they’re not a credit card company they’re not liable under the same section of the Consumer Credit Act, and instead they can decide if your dispute is valid or not.

Now Paypal do offer some protection under their ‘buyer protection’ scheme – they say they’ll help you if you didn’t receive the item, or if it’s significantly not as described. But you have to meet their rules of payment such as having paid in one lump sum not by deposit followed by multiple payments, and all the money must have been via Paypal. Also you have to open the dispute within 45 days of the date you sent the payment and follow their dispute resolution process.

On a more positive note, if the item costs less than £100 you wouldn’t be covered by your credit card, and you can still claim with Paypal.

Another potential problem with Paypal is that it can remove money from your bank account if it believes it is valid to do so – so, if you’ve been the victim of a scam where you’ve sold something online, and the buyer then claims via Paypal that you didn’t send them the goods, Paypal can actually take the money back from you and refund the buyer WITHOUT even checking your side of the story. This can of course result in debt issues for some people who may have already spent the money they made from selling an item.

There are other scams around too that you need to watch out for – the sort where you get sent an e-mail pretending to be from Paypal but asking you to fill in a form or give them your financial details for example – these are called phishing scams and are where some third party is trying to get your details so they can access your Paypal account in order to drain your bank account.

What you need to do is evaluate your current energy use; how much is used and why? By measuring your energy-efficiency you can lower costs, improve productivity, increase the bottom line, get a better return on investment, strengthen your competitive position and show that you care about your carbon footprint. Five top tips to achieving that are:

Lighting – The vast majority of businesses are finding that it is simple to lower lighting bills if energy-efficient equipment is installed in their office. What happens is that fluorescent and compact fluorescent lamps, reflects, lighting controls and task lighting. By using compact fluorescent bulbs then you get a better return in energy because the incandescent lamps that most people use produce heat as well as light which wastes even more electricity.

Research energy providers – It is unlikely that the supplier you have right now suits your needs down to the ground. As much as a quarter of your energy bill can come as a result of not picking the right company to support your small business. Use the internets to compare gas and electricity prices for business.

Be vigilant to unneeded electronics – From small businesses all the way up to worldwide organizations, there are computers left on around the clock for no real reason. From a business perspective this can be a travesty. Unless it is imperative, keep your computers shut off when there’s nobody in the office. Be sure to send it around the office, and make it company policy.

Air conditioning and heating systems – This is pretty simple energy advice that people are told to look at for their home, it can make an even bigger difference within the workplace. Make sure that your filters are cleaned frequently and not blocked while banning space heaters in the office throughout the cooler months.

Building – Chances are your building will have possible improvements with low-cost energy efficiency. This can have a double effect on your business because while saving you money, it can improve the experience for customers and staff. There are plenty of insulation things that can be added to a building and keep the heat in, including weather-stripping and draft-stoppers.

Keeping the overheads down is crucial for a small business to survive and grow year-on-year, and one thing that people can save more than they ever thought on is energy conservation. Consider these five things and the winter period will come and go without ever threatening your small business.

With the help of uShip you will be able to find a transporter who is able to ship any item to your door at the fraction of the cost of the larger players. If you need something shipped, then definitely make uShip your first port of call!