Travel insurance for holidays at home – worth considering?
by: Keith McGregor

Most cheap travel insurance bought in the UK is aimed at people resident in the UK and indeed, will require customers to indicate that they have lived in the UK for a period of six months. It is also a fact that most people buy travel insurance for trips and holidays abroad but insurers do offer policies for travel just within the UK. It is not uncommon to find that Ireland will be included in this definition. The big advantage of UK only cover is that the premiums can be ridiculously low - well below £5 for a 3 day break is very common place. But is it worth taking out in the first place? The answer really depends on the type of holiday planned, the length of stay and whether you want to accept the risk of not being covered if something does go wrong. It is also worth remembering that UK travel insurance cover is generally included if you take out the more expensive Europe of Worldwide cover, though do check the small print rather than assuming that this is always the case. A Europe or Worldwide annual multi-trip travel insurance policy will be more expensive as an initial payment up front but will cover you for an unlimited number of trips abroad, and in the UK, throughout the year, provided the length of stay of each trip does not exceed the policy limit, normally around 31 days away per trip.

So is a UK travel insurance policy worth considering? Probably yes if only one or two short breaks a year are planned and it will be very inexpensive to purchase for the cover provided. This can be very useful should you subsequently cancel a trip, say for illness, as your holiday costs will be reimbursed subject to any excesses to pay. Your personal effects will probably be covered too which is an important point to consider as theft and loss is not just confined to holidays on the ‘Costas’ – these things happen at home too. What you will almost certainly not be covered for will be for medical emergencies and expenses as insurers argue that the NHS is available for such instances and will point out that travel insurance is not a substitute for private medical insurance. The lack of medical cover in UK only travel insurance policies is the main reason why insurers can offer these policies for the very low prices on offer.

On balance, travel insurance for UK holidays and short breaks is probably a good buy for those holidaymakers who tend to stay at home for their breaks away and there is an increasing number of people who are doing this. One final word of warning though is do check the small print as many, if not most, insurers do require you to have proof of booked accommodation for a minimum stay of normally 2 nights away for the policy to be in force so the Sunday ‘trip out’ is definitely outside this definition!

Mortgage Protection Insurance Cover Is Not Suitable For All Individuals, So Make Sure It Is Right For You
by: Simon Burgess

Mortgage protection insurance cover can work in the way it is supposed to, but only if it is suitable for your circumstances. The only way you can be absolutely sure that the policy suits your situation is if you take care to read the terms and conditions. Some individuals cannot read the terms and conditions simply because they are not offered them and so do not know they exist. This is due to poor selling techniques being used at the time of selling, either because high street lenders want to push the cover alongside the loan or those selling cover have no training in selling.

One sure way of getting access to all the information needed to make an informed decision is to get quotes from independent providers. Ethical providers will ensure that the information needed is available to those wishing to purchase cover. The exclusions in a policy vary depending on the provider, but there are some that are often seen in policies. Being of retirement age, suffering a pre-existing medical condition, being self-employed or working only on a part-time basis could mean mortgage cover is not suitable.

While exclusions do exist, even these depend on certain circumstances. For instance, as long as you have not suffered from the illness within the last two years you would be able to claim. The same goes for those individuals who are self-employed and through involuntary unemployment find they have to stop trading. These are just two reasons why going over the terms and conditions with a fine toothcomb is essential.

Those individuals who could benefit from a policy would have peace of mind and the security of an income each month. Being unfit for work due to an accident or illness or becoming unemployed through being made redundant are all covered by mortgage payment cover. Providers offer a policy that will protect your monthly mortgage repayments and allow you to continue meeting them for a premium each month. The premiums will be based on your age when applying and the amount of your monthly mortgage repayments. The tax-free income gained from the premium would begin between 30 to 90 days of being unable to work and would continue for 12 to 24 months, depending on the terms of the policy.

In the past mortgage insurance, along with the family of payment protection policies, has been seen as being poor value for money. The premiums charged for the luxury of having protection can be extremely high. Shopping around will reveal the difference between quotes: it can be as much as 40% when you compare the high street lenders with the best specialist providers. This difference also exists when it comes to getting the information needed to compare protection. Some give very little information, while specialists will give you all the details needed.

Faith has been lost in mortgage protection insurance cover along with loan and income protection. News that the latest firm to receive a fine from the Financial Services Authority was a mortgage firm has done little to restore faith. Anyone considering taking the protection that a policy can offer should realise that it is those who have mis-sold cover who are at fault and not the actual policies themselves.

How To Protect Your Business And Reduce Insurance Costs
by: Steve Strong

No matter how large your organization security needs to be taken very seriously, a good quality security system can not only prevent an unauthorized act but can also help to reduce insurance payments and protect the workforce. Even if you run a small business it is possible to install and monitor security cameras at a very reasonable price. Many small businesses are now turning to the wireless camera networks for monitoring the inside and outside of the premises. Since new Wireless technology has evolved over the years and has become more accessible and cheaper for everyone. It is now possible to have a state of the art complete monitoring system in place and running within 10 minutes.

What do you need to have a good installation that will protect you? The first and most important part will be the actual cameras, you can get small cameras that will send crystal clear footage to the camera receiver, if you do not want to buy an external viewing monitor then it is possible to display everything on a standard television. Installation could not be more simple, mounting the cameras is a very simple process and can involve as little as two screws, plug it into the standard mains output and the job is near done. All that then remains is to plug the video receiver into the television output and the system is installed. This eliminates any unwanted cabling and the expense involved in running it, the cameras are so good that they can even transmit through doors, floors, ceilings and walls. The cameras can be very small as well which can be useful if you need to monitor staff or if you are monitoring open access areas. The camera systems can even be more sophisticated and offer the ability to have motion detection and infra red should this be needed.

There are so many benefits to having security cameras for small business installed of which some are the theft prevention aspects, insurance benefits, peace or mind and the simplicity of installation. Any small business can benefit from an installation from Restaurants, small shops, professional offices and small warehouses. In terms of the business impact of having security cameras installed this can range from avoiding law suites, ensuring customer and employee safety, preventing theft, evaluating the staffs performance and monitoring the building while you are away. There are so many uses and cases for having a system installed that it could potentially be saving you money and time in the long run. As sated earlier in the article with the simplicity of the monitoring systems and the ease of use virtually every small business should be able to budget for a good quality low cost security system to install in their premises. Whether you choose to install a wireless one or a wired solution, cheap or expensive, the options will be able to provide you with the added security that is need when running a small business and help to prevent loss and safe money.