How Much Could You Save?

My house insurance renewal was due this week. Over the weekend, I took the time to check a couple of online sites and within a matter of minutes had found a quote that would save me 20% on the amount of the renewal. It then took me a couple of minutes to cancel my existing policy and sign-up for my new policy. Not a bad return for about 10 minutes of effort.

The same thing happens when my car insurance comes in. I always take the time to check with a couple of online brokers to see if they can improve on the renewal quote. Over the years – I know the two key brokers that are likely to have the best quote although it’s always worth trying one or two others just to check.

How often do you just pay monthly or automatically pay the renewal. Well, it’s always worth taking the time to shop around for a better deal. Insurance companies in particular will always offer discounts to new customers or for taking out a quote online, usually 5-10% and often a lot more. When you’re already an existing customer – this discount is removed and invariably they will put the price up anyway. How many companies offer a discount for being a loyal customer or not having a claim so that your renewal ends up being less each? Yes, I thought not.

So this week – have a look at your existing insurance policies – when are they due? Make a note in your schedule to check a couple of brokers for quotes and see just how much you can save when they’re next due. If you think you’re paying too much already, switch now.

What other quick saves could you make to your finances – especially in the lead up to Christmas?

Get over 50 more money saving tips in my e-book.

Put A Little Laughter In Your Life

I was listening to one of my favourite comedy shows on the radio as I drove up to my Tai Chi lesson this evening. It had me smiling and laughing out loud. I don’t know how it translates to other countries and cultures – you sort of need to know some of the politics to understand some of the wit but if you’d like to take a listen – you can find it on the BBC Radio 4 website and listen again.

We all know how good it can be to have a good laugh and, as the saying goes, “Laughter is the best medicine”. It’s known to relieve stress by reducing stress hormones and releasing feel-good endorphins into the body. It improves circulation, breathing, health and the immune system.

How much do you laugh on a day to day basis or even once a week? Human beings love to laugh, and the average adult laughs 17 times a day. Mmm – not sure where they got that statistic – I’m not sure I laugh that much every day – perhaps because I spend much of my time on my own. I do get a giggle every now and then when someone sends me one of those amusing emails but I’m not about to suggest that we start sending those on to everyone we know. I’m not sure the stress of dealing with the added volume of email could be counterbalanced by the de-stressing effect of the laughter.

What’s funny to one person won’t even raise an eyebrow for someone else, never mind a laugh. Some stand-up comedians can cringingly awful. As I mentioned, comedy doesn’t necessarily translate across cultures and countries. Some comedy programmes just totally bemuse me. Then there are others – two comedians in particular (Billy Connolly and Robin Williams) – who will have me crying with laughter.

What amuses you – and has you creased up with laughter – TV, Radio, comedians, books …?

Get yourself some laughter this week – either watch a good comedy on TV, hire a DVD or go and watch a live comedy show.

Pick Up The Phone

These days most people use various forms of technology to carry out their business and to communicate. From email to Skype to texting.

It may seem quick and easy but it’s important that you think about what's most appropriate. Don’t assume an email will arrive in the other person's Inbox immediately. Sometimes there can be a good hour or two delay, depending on the ISP, route taken, time of day, email settings ... etc. Servers crash, connections go down. While the majority of emails will get through safely, they can go astray and never reach their destination or get filtered out by over enthusiastic spam filters, blocked by an ISP or just lost in the volume of emails that people receive every day. Also remember that the person may not be around to respond at the speed or in the time that you're expecting.

If you’re sending an important email, you can use the 'request read receipt' option but that doesn't always guarantee delivery and can be automatically triggered without the email actually having been read. If it's that important - follow it up with a phone call.

Skype is great for keeping in touch and having informal chats but if it’s important, it’s always better to talk over the phone or in person.

We get so used to using email. This week, why not pick up the phone instead. Actually speak to the person and see what difference it makes.