Tag Archives: house-insurance

Banks, Credit Cards, Financial, Financial Information, Financial Services, Financial Solutions, Insurance, Insurance Services, Loans, Money, Mortgage, Personal Finance

Confused.com Launches New Travel Insurance Service

Confused.com is launching a new price comparison service that allows travellers with pre-existing medical conditions to get a quick and easy travel insurance policy.

Most travel insurance policies tend to exclude pre-existing conditions; these are medical conditions that have been diagnosed at the time of purchasing a policy. It is important to note that this includes conditions diagnosed a number of years ago that you may continue to have check-ups on. If people travel with a known medical condition without informing their provider, and need to make a claim as a result of falling ill abroad, then any emergency treatment or hospital costs relating to that pre-existing condition would be excluded, leaving the policyholder to pick up the pieces.

Confused.com can find an insurance quote to cover pre-existing medical conditions and also offer cover for non-pre-existing conditions, so when people have an accident they can have the peace of mind that their insurance policy will safeguard them.

Confused.com has teamed up with travel insurance specialists to allow people to compare travel insurance policies that cover pre-existing medical conditions, meaning consumers no longer have to search hundreds of insurers only to find out they may not insure them.

Comparing travel insurance with Confused.com means people can search the market to find their best quotes available for travel insurance with pre-existing medical conditions.

Confused.com’s new service allows customers to select their particular condition, answer a selection of questions on their personal situation and will only show accurate prices by providers who will cover them; saving the customer time.

Those with pre-existing conditions are seen by insurance companies as customers who would pose a greater risk of claiming, resulting in them paying higher premiums and having fewer insurers to choose from. Therefore many people might find it tempting not to declare more minor conditions such as asthma etc., simply to save the hassle or because they are worried about the higher premium but if they then need to claim, the insurer can access their medical records and so will find out that they have a pre-existing medical condition and the policy may become void. This could then result in the policyholder having to pay out for expensive medical bills. This is particularly relevant in countries with higher costs for medical treatment such as the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, Spain, Cyprus, Turkey or Malta.

Having travel insurance is very important for people with pre-existing medical conditions and making sure they have the right policy that suits their individual needs is key.

Kate Rose, Head of Travel Insurance said: “At Confused.com we understand that not everyone has a perfect medical record and that shouldn’t prevent you from enjoying travel as much as anyone else. We advise that you shop around and compare with Confused.com to get a great deal on your travel insurance.”

Via EPR Network
More Financial press releases

Banks, Credit Cards, Financial, Financial Information, Financial Services, Financial Solutions, Insurance, Insurance Services, Loans, Money, Mortgage, Personal Finance

Confused.com Reveals A New Way Of Living For Young Singles

Confused.com has revealed that the continued property crisis, coupled with a rise in the number of singles in the UK, is resulting in the creation of alternative ‘family’ units and giving birth to the MOSH.

This type of MOSHing does not include head-banging to metal music; it’s all about embracing the ‘Multiple Occupant Shared Home’ and challenging the traditional household structure.

Confused.com has worked with futurologists at Future Poll, the research division of The Future Laboratory, on the new study into the friendship and finances of single people in the UK, which explores the growing trend for best mates to create alternative ‘family’ units.

The Confused.com research found that 57% of singles have a friend they trust enough to buy a house with.

Furthermore, 59% of singles would consider protecting their friendships with life insuranceif they bought a house together.

Single-person households are projected to increase by 163,000 per year – from 6.8m in 2006 to 10.9m in 2031 – and singleton households could outnumber any other kind of household by 2031, according to the Government Office for Science. This shift in behaviour among young people will mean MOSHing is tipped to become mainstream over the next decade. The Confused.com report predicts that MOSHing will become a lifestyle of choice for men and the younger generation of singles, and so it will be vital to protect these co-dependent lifestyles with some form of insurance.

Men are already MOSHing more than women. Twice as many single men (10%) have bought a house with a friend compared to just 5% of single women surveyed. Some 44% of men would be comfortable owning a property with a friend, compared with 38% of women. Young people are native MOSHers, according to the Confused.com research. More than six in 10 (64%) single 18–24-year-olds have friends they trust enough to buy a house with, compared with around half (47%) of those over 55.

Young MOSHers also have more friends they would trust enough to buy a house with: 18–24-year-old singles have 36%, while those over 55 have just 21%.

Social networking is accelerating friendship and young people are connecting to more people and sharing things in a way that would be impossible in their busy offline lives. Their constant connection to their friends online means that they increasingly want to make these online communities concrete.

Mike Hoban, Chief Marketing Officer at Confused.com explains how this will impact insurers: “Insurance companies are increasingly using social media to communicate with young audiences and the next stage is to recognise, and respond to, the real-life social networks which are structuring the new ‘urban families’ as friends set up home together, supporting one another both financially and emotionally. As our report demonstrates, friendships are increasingly important to independent single people in the UK and a financial industry that caters for single people and couples alike is one that is prepared for the future of personal finance.”

The report, entitled ‘Friendships, Finance and the Future: The Rise of Singledom in the UK’, can be downloaded here:
www.confused.com/life-insurance/articles/~/media/docs/friendships-finance-and-the-future.pdf.

Via EPR Network
More Financial press releases

Banks, Credit Cards, Financial, Financial Information, Financial Services, Financial Solutions, Insurance, Insurance Services, Loans, Money, Mortgage, Personal Finance

Confused.com Reveals Mothers’ Day Holiday Habits

Confused.com has revealed that many mums may get more than flower and chocolates this Mothers’ Day as more than half of Brits have taken their mum (or mother-in-law) on holiday with them.

The travel insurance provider and comparison site also revealed that the vast majority of Brits would do it again. However, almost one in ten sons admit this is because mum will pay for everything with another reason sons are keen to take mum on holiday being so that she can babysit the kids.

56% of people in the UK have either taken their mums or mother-in-laws or even both on holiday with them, with 85% of Brits who have done so saying they would either take one of both or their mothers/mother-in-laws on holiday again. In addition to this 53% of the people surveyed agreed that their mother (or mother-in-law) was great company on holiday with 50% agreeing that she deserves a treat.

45% of adults have never taken their mothers or mother-in-laws on holiday with them, but of those who have, only 14% would not repeat the experience. The top reason* for refusing take them on holiday again is ‘We like different things’ (33%), with ‘She’s so annoying’ being cited as the second most popular given reason (13.5%). Other reasons for not taking mum on holiday include 10%, who are embarrassed by her behaviour, 9% who think the she would cramp their style and 6% who suggest she flirts too much with the waiters on holiday.

More women than men have taken their mothers on holiday with them than men (women 39% versus men 24%), but some men have ulterior motives for doing so: 9% of adult men saying they take mum on holiday because she pays for everything, whereas only 4% of women admit money is their motivation or taking mum on hols. 11% of men compared to 6% of women take mum on holiday because of her babysitting services.

Londoners are most likely to take mum on holiday (38%), with Northern Ireland (17%) the least likely to do so, according to the survey by Confused.com.

Via EPR Network
More Financial press releases

Assets, Financial, Financial Information, Financial Management, Financial Services, Insurance, Insurance Services, Money

LV= Promotes Best Practice For National Customer Service Week

LV=, the mutual insurance, investment and retirement group, is running a series of training and activities to promote and reward excellence in customer service as part of National Customer Service Week.

LV= is dedicated to delivering the best possible customer service all year round and will be using National Customer Service Week as an extra opportunity to highlight the value that customer service plays within organisations.

In addition to highlighting and rewarding those staff who have demonstrated customer service excellence, the group will be running a series of initiatives during the week such as problem solving training and ‘back to the floor’ sessions for senior management.

Two staff award schemes have been set up to celebrate the week. The LOVE awards are for employees who demonstrate Living Our Values Everyday (LOVE) and the Unsung Heroes awards are for staff to nominate colleagues who have gone the extra mile to improve an internal process or system.

In the general insurance business, each site has initiatives promoting great customer service throughout the week including managers’ mystery shopping and awarding prizes for great examples of customer service, quizzes themed around customer service, dress down and dress up days, job swaps and awards for the friendliest members of the customer service team.

Initiatives being rolled out specifically in LV=’s Bournemouth office include a dress like a rock star day, a ‘Know your Claims’ team quiz and retention spot prizes.

LV= handles more than 18,000 customer calls a day and has won numerous awards for its customer service, including the 2010 Moneywise award for best customer service in car insurance. The LV= general insurance call centre also won call centre of the year* in the 2009 National Customer Service Awards and is short-listed again for the same award this year.

Via EPR Network
More Financial press releases

Financial, Financial Information, Financial Services, Insurance, Insurance Services, Money

LV= Reports Kids Come First As Parents Increase ‘Back To School’ Spending To £709 Million

LV=’s new Cost of a Child study has found that parents will spend £709 million* on ‘back to school’ basics including uniforms, stationery, sportswear and winter coats as parents prepare to kit their children out for the start of the new school year. This is equivalent to parents spending an average of £122 on their children. This rises to£139 for secondary school aged children, compared to £96 for infants. Parents living in London spend the most preparing for their kids to go back to school at £158 on average.

Despite many families continuing to feel the squeeze in the current economic climate, 46% of parents expect to spend a greater amount this year on ‘back to school’ items than last year. When asked to consider the financial pressures of kitting their kids out for school, 48% said they are feeling the strain of having to spend ‘excessive amounts’, rising to 64% among parents in the North East.

54% parents are considering using low cost suppliers for back to school items, such as supermarkets to buy basics like uniform and stationery, and 23% are considering second hand items, including hand-me-downs and goods from charity shops or eBay. This rises to 70% and 41% respectively for families in the South East.

Mark Jones, LV= head of protection, said: “It is surprising that many parents are responding to increased money pressure this year by spending more on back to school basics; clearly kids come first despite the downturn. And it’s even more surprising that many parents are spending more despite looking at ways to be frugal and economise, by purchasing from cheaper suppliers such as their local supermarket or eBay.”

The annual LV= Cost of a Child study shows that parents are now likely to have to shell out more than £201,000 on raising a child from birth to the age of 21**. This equates to £9,610 a year, £800 a month or £26 a day. Education (not including private school fees) remains the second biggest expenditure behind childcare, costing parents £52,881 over a child’s lifetime – an increase of 4% on last year.

Via EPR Network
More Financial press releases

Financial, Financial Information, Financial Services, Insurance, Insurance Services, Money

LV Reports Holidaymakers Ignoring Vital Vaccinations

LV= has reported that holidaymakers are putting themselves at risk of serious illness by not having recommended travel vaccinations, as GPs report a rise in the cost of jabs.

According to travel insurer LV=, more than a quarter (26%) of holidaymakers travelling in the past 12 months went without the recommended vaccinations for illnesses such as Hepatitis A, Typhoid and Diphtheria.

The LV= report found that most of the holidaymakers who didn’t have jabs (19%) simply didn’t bother to seek medical advice and so were unaware of the health risks they could potentially face and one in fifteen (7%) actually ignored medical advice to be vaccinated.

The research found that cost is contributing to holidaymakers’ reticence to have the appropriate vaccinations, with more than one in ten (12%) who didn’t have vaccinations doing so for financial reasons. As part of the LV= report, GP practices were also questioned about their vaccination prices and close to half (43%) reported a rise in the cost of vaccinations over the past five years. The cost of Malaria tablets has increased most steeply, increasing by more than 11%.

Via EPR Network
More Financial press releases