How to find a bargain in the January sales

If you’re braving the January sales, either online or off, read this to make sure you get the best deals…

The Christmas shopping frenzy is over for another year but the chaos of the January sales is in full swing. If you’re planning on hitting the high street then here are some tips for protecting your pocket.

Start early

They shouldn’t call them January sales anymore; they start much earlier than that. Many online retailers begin the sales as soon as their Christmas Day delivery deadline has been reached, so you can start browsing bargains as early as Christmas Eve.

If there’s a specific item you want then buy it early. If you wait until the new year, you might find you’ve missed the chance. Having said that, don’t feel rushed into a purchase, you need to be sure it’s right for you.

Ignore the discount, look at the price

Sales discounts really warp my perception of a good deal. If there’s 80% knocked off, I find it quite hard to evaluate the actual value – I just see the potential saving.

I don’t think I’m alone. If this sounds like you then make a real effort to look at whether you can afford the price, rather than getting carried away by the discount.

Don’t forget to compare

Even if you’re getting a decent discount, don’t assume that’s the best saving you can make. It’s still worth comparing prices online to see if you can get a better deal.

Price comparison websites like Kelkoo, PriceRunner and Shopping.com can save you time as well as money.

After all, money off is good, but even more money off is great.

Write a list

Aimlessly browsing the sales can mean you spend money on things you don’t really need. Before my penny pinching days, I was particularly dreadful at this. I have tops I’ve never worn but bought because they were such good value.

Before you start shopping, make a list of things you actually want or need. That way you won’t get suckered into purchases you don’t really want.

Consider haggling ‘IRL’

There are plenty of benefits to shopping online but it does mean you can’t haggle. Even if you can’t face asking for a discount the rest of the year, many retailers are more flexible during their sales.

So, consider putting down your mouse and visiting the high street In Real Life. You might save even more.

Plan for next Christmas

One in 20 shoppers begin their Christmas shopping 12 months ahead of the big day, meaning they buy some of their presents in the January sales.

While this might not work for kids’ presents – children quite often want the latest trend – it can be a great way to buy cheaper gifts.

Don’t leave yourself short

If your budget is tight then don’t be tempted to bash the plastic too hard in the sales. We’re a funny species; the fear of missing a great deal can make people very irrational.

Think seriously about what you can afford to spend and don’t go over. It might sound obvious, but set yourself a realistic spending limit in advance.

Your rights

If you buy something in a sale, you still have the same rights as if you’d bought it before the sale began. If it faulty, unsatisfactory or doesn’t fit the description given when you ordered it, then you can ask for a refund, replacement or repair.

However, some retailers may not allow customers to return purchases because they’ve changed their minds. Their returns policy is up to them and may be stricter for sales items.

The only time your rights are reduced is if you buy something that’s known to be faulty. For example, a top might be marked down because it’s missing a button. If you’re told about this when you buy it then you can’t return it on those grounds – although you could still ask for a refund if something else went wrong with your purchase.

When you need to return a faulty item, take it to the retailer and not the manufacturer. As the seller, it has a duty to resolve your issue, so don’t be fobbed off.

If you’re shopping online, you have even more rights. You get a seven day ‘cooling off’ time, meaning you can return or cancel your order without giving a reason. Unfortunately, that’s not the case if the item has been custom-made.

What are your tips for shopping in the January sales? What’s the best bargain you’ve ever found? Share your advice and experiences in the comments below.

So the App Store is teeming with good apps. True.But how do the good apps escape from the ocean of bad apps to get onto your iPhone/iPad for free? My name is Sean from FreeApps and I've come up with a solution for this first world problem. I get in touch with developers every day asking them to feature their paid app as FREE for 24 hours(and I only pick the best). If you think your iPhone/iPad should stop paying for apps, subscribe here: Cheers for reading, Sean
P.S. Here's how it works: every day I send out a short kind of newsletter to let you know about the daily free app with the link to download it in the App Store - there are regularly free iPad apps too, as well as price drops. With FreeApps, I can propose a range of apps that are of course available and relevant to the UK market (getting a bit fed up with all these American utility apps we can't actually use). I'm also around to answer any of your queries by email. Last but not least: once you download the app, it's yours to keep as free, forever. Get free apps

Samba Management

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WILL Brazil become a new source of inspiration for Western business schools?

For the past fifteen years, they have mainly looked east. New business schools grew up in such fast-growing countries as China and Singapore, leading to a stream of student and faculty exchanges between Western and Eastern campuses.

But a growing number of business schools are now looking south, with Brazil attracting most interest. The University of Virginia's Darden School of Business recently introduced a Brazilian residency as part of its Global Executive MBA (GEMBA). Students will go to São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro where they will spend two weeks attending classes, visiting local firms and learning about the region's business environment. And Canada's Beedie School of Business at Simon Fraser University has joined forces with São Paulo's FIA Business School, Mexico City's ITAM and Nashville's Vanderbilt University to develop what officials call an "Executive MBA programme for the Americas".

The flurry of activity may not come as a surprise. Last year Brazil overtook Britain to become the world's sixth-biggest economy, according to the Centre for Economics and Business Research. Yet despite the country's recent success and its wealth of natural resources, the story of the Brazilian economy in the second half of the twentieth century was one of underachievement. The longstanding joke is that Brazil is a country of the future—and always will be. Beyond political instability, observers point to decades of corporate mismanagement and a lack of strategies to maintain growth.

But the country is the destination of choice for multinationals looking for a foothold in Latin America. It also boasts a sophisticated technology sector, enough oil, crops and breweries to be self-sufficient. And it has been chosen to host the world's two biggest sporting events in the next four years: the World Cup and the Olympic games. Add to that a growing middle class, and the economy should have a promising future.

Will foreign business schools be able to influence the country's executives, given Brazil's historic tendency to be inward-looking and resistant to outside ideas? For it to keep growing, managers need to change their mindset, says Peter Rodriguez, senior associate dean at the Darden School of Business. And this is happening, he explains, as Brazil's economy is moving away from family-based firms towards more professionally managed companies. Increasingly, it is no longer lineage, social connections and good fortune that will get you ahead.

( www.fasano.co.uk - UK independent financial experts )

Local firms are also keen to use business education to learn from recent failures in rich countries, notes Cesar Beltran, IESE Business School's Brazil director. "In this time of rapid growth they don't want to lose sight of the long-term picture for the sake of short term gain," he says. Mr Beltra also argues that more and more Brazilian companies want their managers to think globally.

Marina Heck, of the OneMBA program at Brazil's FGV Business School, sees this as part of a wider trend of companies investing more in their management talent. In Brazil the war for talent is still raging. As a result, almost 90% of the students enrolled in the OneMBA programme are funded by their companies (in America and Europe the share is about a third). And whereas in rich countries the number of those who want to get an MBA has fallen in the past two years, applications to the OneMBA programme at FGV have doubled over the same period.

For students coming from outside the country, Brazil offers lessons that stand apart from those that can be learned in other BRIC nations, such as India and China. Darden GEMBA students, for example, get the opportunity to study Rio's Carnival—and understand how such a major international event can rise out of the poverty-stricken favelas.

Though the world's biggest popular gathering may look like a spontaneous street party, it is also the result of months of intense practice, meticulous choreography and people management on a massive scale. Such "Samba management", a combination of the fun and formal, may be a model for the world.

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Inflation all wrapped up

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Recent weeks have provided confirmation of the interest rate status quo from the Bank of England along with the release of the latest inflation figures from the Office for National Statistics. Combined, this still leaves us with more questions than answers in terms of what to do with our savings and investments.

To help, we have put together a range of options depending on your views as to what might happen in the future and your appetite for risk. Most importantly we also examine the pros and cons of each course of action.

Inflationary latest

The latest inflation figures showed a reduction in the Retail Price Index from 5.2% to 4.8% and the Consumer Price Index dropped from 4.8% to 4.2%. Short term reductions are generally expected and if we are to believe the Bank of England, this could drop below its 2% target by the end of the year, although they do not have the greatest record when it comes to inflationary forecasts and there is growing uncertainty within the committee itself around this central projection.

Perhaps more worrying still is that there is little discussion let alone agreement on what will happen should we dare to look beyond this year, which is clearly a very important consideration for those looking to put their money away for more than 12 months.

Short term options

Scottish Widows Bank’s Direct Transfer Account will provide you with instant access and an interest rate of 2.8%, which includes a 0.89% bonus paid for the first 12 months. As you would expect from an instant access account, the interest rate falls far short of inflation and the bonus falls away after the first year, however this could be an option for those who do not have a firm view on where inflation will go and so would prefer to wait and see what happens.

For those who are prepared to tie their money up for one year then you can achieve a slightly higher rate with FirstSave’s 1 Year Fixed Rate bond paying 3.45% but should inflation take a sudden turn for the worse, you will face penalties for early withdrawal.

Medium Term options

Scottish Widows Bank has recently launched a 3 Year Fixed Term Deposit Account paying 4% per year, with annual, quarterly or monthly payment options. Again, this rate falls short of the current headline rate of inflation but may be an option for those who consider inflation will fall in the short term and will not rise again in the medium term. To match the interest rate paid net of tax, inflation would have to fall to at least 3.2% otherwise you will be losing money in real terms.

Alternatives rising

In recent years the fixed rate bond has for many become the default for their savings. However, the last couple of years have seen persistent pressure on fixed rates with continued low interest rates and when compared to inflation, have given rise to a serious consideration of alternatives.

Most of these alternatives have a fixed term of at least five years but Investec’s 3 Year Deposit Plan is a medium term option. The plan pays out a fixed return of 19% after three years if the final level of the FTSE 100 Index is higher than the starting level. The final level is subject to averaging and in the event that it is lower you will only receive back your capital which is protected by Investec. However, the reward if the plan pays out is equivalent to nearly 6% per year compound - almost 2% higher than the 3 year fixed term deposit offered by Scottish Widows - and will beat the current level of inflation by quite a margin, even after tax.

Longer term options

For those looking to save or invest for the longer term (5 years+), there is a much wider range of options available. A benchmark for comparison purposes is a market leading 5 year fixed rate such as the 5 Year Fixed Term Deposit Account provided by Scottish Widows Bank, currently paying 4.6%. If you are a non-taxpayer, this rate is currently higher than the prevailing rate of inflation but for all other savers, inflation would have to drop to just under 3.7% for you to be keeping pace. Therefore, this could be an option for those who consider inflation will come down further in the short term and stay low for the longer term.

Matching inflation

There have been a handful of plans which combine capital protection with the ability to receive back any increase in inflation, which is usually measured here by the Retail Price Index (RPI). One example is Legal & General’s Inflation Protected Deposit Bond which will return any increase in RPI over the five year term and so could be an option for those who consider inflation will fall in the short term but could well rise again in the future and want to cover this possibility whatever happens (i.e. there is no cap on returns). The plan also includes a minimum return of 16% should inflation fall and remain low.

Inflation Beating

If you are looking to beat inflation, especially after taking into account tax and any charges, there are a number of options to choose from. We will take a look at both income and growth options for those who either want to protect their capital or who are prepared to put their capital at risk in order to achieve higher returns which also offer the potential to beat inflation.

Income

If you are looking for a high level of income without putting your capital at risk, Meteor’s Income Deposit Plan will pay an annual income of 7.5% for each year the FTSE 100 Index remains between 4,250 and 7,250 - yesterday’s closing level was 5,782. Capital protection is provided by the Royal Bank of Scotland and although the income is not guaranteed, the plan offers the potential to beat inflation depending on your views on what will happen to the FTSE in the coming years.

For those prepared to accept risk to their capital, Investec’s Bonus Income Plan is currently offering a fixed income of 7% per year with a potential bonus of 0.5% for each year the FTSE finishes higher than the starting level of the plan. Capital is at risk if the FTSE drops by more than 50% during the term of the plan (which based on yesterday’s closing price equates to 2,891) but even without the bonus, this level of income is inflation beating and a strong overall income investment.

Growth

For those wanting capital protection, Legal & General’s Growth Deposit Bond offers a return linked to any increase of the FTSE 100 over the 6 year term, capped at 50%, with a minimum return of 8% if the FTSE is lower or falls. Capital protection is provided by the Royal Bank of Scotland and although there is no guarantee that the FTSE will grow higher than inflation over the investment term, the plan offers the potential for high returns.

Finally, for those who are prepared to accept risk to their capital there is a range of Kick-Out plans available, which offer the opportunity to mature early each year if the FTSE 100 finishes higher than its value at the start of the plan. Investec’s Enhanced Kick-Out Plan offers the current market leading rate of 13.5% per year and can mature early after years 1, 2, 3 or 4 with a final year return equivalent to 120% of any rise in the FTSE with no upper limit. Capital is at risk should the FTSE fall by more than 50% at any time throughout the 5 year investment term, which needs to be balanced against the potential for high returns which are well above current inflation levels.

No news, feature article or comment should be seen as a personal recommendation to invest. Prior to making any decision to invest, you should ensure that you are familiar with the risks associated with a particular investment. If you are at all unsure of the suitability of a particular investment, both in respect of its objectives and its risk profile, you should seek independent financial advice.

Some structured investment plans are not capital protected and there may be the risk of losing some or all of your initial investment. There is also a risk that the company backing the plan or any company associated with the plan may be unable to repay your initial investment and any returns stated, in which case you may not be entitled to compensation from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). In addition, you may not get back the full amount invested if the plan is not held for the full term. The past performance of the FTSE 100 Index is not a guide to its future performance.

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• RBS Bonds
• Halifax Bonds
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Watch Out for refund catch

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Don’t let a ‘refund’ leave you out of pocket
Watch out for the increasing trend of shops to charge ‘restocking fees’ which could leave you out of pocket.

Fasano UK, Independent Financial Experts


Shopping: pleasure or pain? Whether it's a relaxing diversion, an adrenalin inducing buzz or a chore to be endured, you have to keep your wits about you.

You may have relaxed into the knowledge that if you make a mistake while shopping, it doesn't matter. Most outlets let you return goods for any reason for a full refund.

But what if you're penalised for changing your mind? Restocking fees are sneaking in to traders' terms leaving all but the canniest devourers of small print with an unwelcome surprise. You might find you get only 80 — 90% of the value of the goods back with the rest retained for 'restocking'.

Bad decisions

Although we may believe we can always get our money back when we shop on the high street, the first thing to be clear of is that the law doesn't extend to changing our minds.

If something doesn't fit, you discover a better deal elsewhere or you have any other reason for returning a working item, legally a retailer is under no obligation to reimburse you if you bought it in-store. (Different rules apply online - see Buy on the internet, below.)

Despite this, the law will always step in to protect you if an item is not up to scratch, regardless of where you buy it. Your protection under the Sale of Goods Act 1979 is extensive when it comes to goods which don't meet their description, are not fit for their purpose (including any specific purpose agreed with the seller) or are faulty.

The small print

When a shop allows you to return an unwanted item that's not defective, it's actually extending your legal rights, so it's entitled to introduce additional terms about credit notes, time limits and restocking fees etc.

Crucially, the retailer's policy on returning goods should be clearly displayed so you're fully aware of any unfavourable terms before committing yourself. The terms must be accessible and accurate or there may be an argument you've been misled.

The question "do you offer refunds?" needs to be tweaked to "do you offer full refunds?" and don't accept a waffly answer ("sort of" being the kind of response you want to avoid). To be safe, check the written terms as well as asking.

Expect a variety of conditions. For example, if you change your mind about an item from Comet that you bought in-store, you can get your money back if you're content to just gaze at the box. But as soon as you open the item, you're throwing away 10% of the cost if you don't like what you find.

Meanwhile, if you buy certain tiles from Topps Tiles - which they class as 'special order' tiles - you will incur a restocking charge of 20% of the price.

However, despite these charges being perfectly legal in-store, they should not apply if you buy these items online and return them in perfect condition within seven days.

Why?

Buying on the internet

When you buy at a distance, (e.g. over the phone or on the internet), the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000 give you a 'cooling off' period during which you can legally change your mind and get a full refund.

You don't have long to cancel though — normally from the minute you make the order until seven working days after you receive the goods.

Cancel within this period, and as long as:

    the goods aren't personalised or perishable,
    it's not a newspaper or magazine
    it's not a CD, DVD or computer software where the security seal has been broken
    you didn't buy it from an online auction like eBay
    the service didn't start immediately (eg paid access to a website)

...then you will be entitled to a refund - no matter what the terms and conditions of the individual retailer state.

However, you've still got to be on the ball. Although an online business is not entitled to charge you a restocking fee, you may find yourself out of pocket for the cost of sending the item back. Unless at item is faulty, not what you ordered or a substitute item, a business doesn't have to pay for return delivery.

One way to get around this is to return the item to a local branch of the retailer. But be prepared to do battle with the store manager, who may not have heard of the Distance Selling Regulations. Print out this article - or this page of the Direct.gov.uk website - and take it with you!


More small print

Yes it's dull and life may be too short but make friends with small print and it might just save you money. If the online supplier wants you to be responsible for the cost of return delivery, they have to let you know in information supplied before you buy from them.

If a restocking fee is going to bite you, shop around. Plenty of shops have very generous returns policies.

Name and shame restocking fee retailers!

Here at lovemoney.com, we think charging 10% to 20% of the price of an item returned in perfect condition is completely outrageous. But what do you think? Is it reasonable for businesses to charge this fee if they genuinely do incur restocking costs?

And if you've recently come across any retailers which have started charging a restocking fee, we want to hear about it! Please name and shame them using the comments box below.

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How to sell unwanted presents

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How to sell your stuff

Christmas comes but once a year, and when it comes it frequently brings with it a load of tat that you wouldn't be seen dead with. Here's how to off-load it.

Whether they're well-meant gifts from friends and family that miss the mark or hastily grabbed goods foisted on you as part of an office secret Santa or by an irritating in-law, almost everyone gets something they don't want for Christmas.

In fact, even the perfect gift can still result in spare goods in the house, if an old games console or other item is replaced by the shiny new version.

Selling the undesirable or redundant items means you can use the cash to get what you wanted all along - or make a dent in the Christmas debt - so where do you go to get the most cash?

Here are the sites I use and what I think of them.

eBay

This is the daddy of the online auction sites, achieving that pinnacle of internet success: becoming a verb: "I eBayed it." This is a great place to sell as the auction system encourages buyers to compete which can drive up your price.

For example, I received a popular promotional toy with my car insurance recently and put it on eBay. To my surprise (and delight) it turned out to be a collector's item and I got £50, less my fees. Simples.

But, while eBay is simple to use and popular, it can be an expensive way to your stuff. You pay insertion fees which are based on your starting price (free for a starting price of up to 99p, up to £1.30 if it's more than £100); final value fees of 10% (up to a maximum of £40); and there are extra fees if you want to use special features like international visibility.

If you don't expect a bit of a bidding war, it can be better to go elsewhere.

Preloved

It's free to place a basic advert on Preloved, so it's a popular site. Most of the items for sale are, as the name suggests, second hand. So you're advertising at customers that are happy to buy something that's already been used.

Another perk is that it shows members local adverts, so it's easier to arrange delivery.

But this is where I failed to sell my wedding dress and I think that's because I haven't paid. Sellers who pay for premium membership (£25 for 12 months), are given priority, receiving twice as many views as free customers. That can make it hard to sell in the more popular categories.

Amazon

This is one of the most popular sites on the internet, meaning you have the chance to sell to millions of shoppers. It's not just an outlet for professional retailers, casual sellers can use it too.

While Amazon is no longer a website for simply selling books, it is one of the first places many people turn for literature. That makes it a great place to sell off old university books, unwanted Christmas bestsellers, that kind of thing.

But you can also sell DVDs, computer games, musical instruments, baby equipment — pretty much anything as long as it's already listed on the site. If it isn't, you have to provide its EAN, UPC, or ISBN code, so you can't sell anything you've made yourself.

When a customer buys it, you have to deliver the item before receiving payment from the website. You also have to despatch it within a set number of days.

Fees are quite high for individual sellers, at 86p to list an item plus a closing fee of 17.25% of the sale price.

musicMagpie

If you want to sell off old CDs, DVDs or computer games then musicMagpie has made it as easy as possible.

Rather than selling to a human and facing the hassle of haggling and arranging collection or delivery, you key in the barcodes from each of your CDs (or you can scan them if you have a smartphone and the right app).

Then the site tells you what it's prepared to pay and, if you're happy, you post your stuff off for free. The website tells me that one customer recently sold his collection of 3,000 CDs for £2,000.

Most CDs sell for less than £1, so this isn't necessarily the place to sell rare copies. But you don't have to agree to the website's prices, so it's definitely worth checking out.

It's definitely a hassle-free way to clear some shelf space, but you do risk selling your stuff for less than it's worth. It's also worth noting that the site can pay you less than it promised if it decides your discs are in less-than-perfect condition — and the Ts&Cs mean you can't do anything about it.

CeX

Like many avid gamers, my husband will buy the latest first-person shooter and play it solidly for three days. Then, when he's finished the plot and beaten/been beaten by his online friends, he'll trade it in for the next game.

He can go into town and swap it at a retailer but he won't know what price he's offered until he gets there.
So instead, he exchanges them on the CeX website, which gives you either cash or credit for your old games and consoles. It's fairly transparent — each item has a "buy for", "sell for" and "exchange" price beneath it, so you can see if you're losing out by selling it this way.

Obviously CeX, and websites like it, need to make money, so you will earn less than you could probably make selling your item independently. But it does let you see the mark-up and make an informed choice about whether to sell elsewhere.

Carboot

Don't discount an old-fashioned car-boot sale, especially if you've had a major clear-out and want to sell a lot of varied stuff in one go.

My sister paid for a holiday by selling unwanted possessions at different car-boot sales. In fact, she was so enthusiastic that she sold some possessions she still wanted by people after they were accidentally left in her home; for several months nothing was safe.

She found that clothes sold very quickly, while people were a bit more hesitant about buying second-hand electrical goods like hairdryers.

Her top tip is to have a clear price in mind for each item but be prepared to drop it rather than cart loads of stuff home. She was also surprised at the number of thieves operating at these sales, so make sure you watch your table closely.

Safe selling

Lots of penny pinchers will be buying and selling through second-hand websites, to get the best deals out there. The trouble with arranging sales online is that you are more at risk of being targeted by fraudsters.
Take great care when making or receiving payments, and never hand over an item until you have the money. Some crooks can reverse payments after they've appeared in your bank account, so ask to be paid in cash wherever possible.



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Super Complaint: Consumers beat banks' currency fees

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Five of the UK's biggest banks and other credit card companies have agreed to scrap some of the fees travellers are hit with when buying foreign currency.

The firms have also pledged to display other charges more clearly in their monthly and annual statements.

The move follows pressure from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), which has been investigating a super complaint from watchdog Consumer Focus.

The fair deal campaigners said it believed consumers spend around £1bn a year on exchanging money.

It added that charges for using debit or credit cards overseas were unnecessarily complex and confusing, adding that phrases such as "0% commission" and "competitive exchange rates", were misleading.

The watchdog pointed out that it costs banks and credit card providers an average of 9p and 37p respectively to process debit and credit card payments.

But charges for buying currency with a card are typically 1.5% to 2% of the amount converted, meaning a holidaymaker trying to convert £500 into euros could be charged up to £30 to do it.

Five companies, including Lloyds, Barclays (LSE: BARC.L - news) and RBS (LSE: RBS.L - news) , have agreed to scrap the charges.

OFT chief executive John Fingleton said they are "very pleased" that the travel money industry has welcomed the changes.

"Companies should be earning profits by competing to provide the best value products and services, not through charges that are hard for customers to identify or interpret," he said.

He said the new changes should reduce confusion about the charges that apply when buying travel money in the UK or using cards overseas.

"(We) hope they will allow holidaymakers to be far better informed when making choices about how they spend abroad," he said. "This should drive greater competition in the UK travel money market."

Chief Executive of Consumer Focus, Mike O'Connor, told Sky News the move to scrap debit card charges was a "great victory" for the organisation.

He said: "We spend about £27bn when we travel abroad. Now it will cost you less, so the pressure is on...the banks: do it in time for summer."

Mr O'Connor also called for the banks' review on 0% commission to be completed swiftly.

He said: "0% commission. That is a con. They already build a commission on exchange rates."

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10 secret ways to slash the cost of your car cover

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Is the premium for insuring your car spiralling out of control?

Here are some little-known ways to help you keep it down

Fasano UK, Independent Legal & Financial Experts

Motorists have been hit hard in the pocket over the last 12 months in a lot of ways, but two particular cost hikes stand out: Record prices for petrol and diesel and record premiums for car insurance. According to the AA, last year saw the biggest jump in average insurance prices ever, up 33.2% to £843. For 17-22 year olds the hike was even worse: up a whopping 58% to £2,251.Even shopping around might not cut your bill - but don't despair, there are other options. In a business that relies so much on computers to calculate risk, there will inevitably be quirks you can exploit. We reveal here 10 ways to cut insurance: you've probably never considered them, but they could save you a bundle.

1. Put someone else on the insurance - no matter what age

One of the easiest ways to reduce your insurance is to stick someone else on the policy, but it doesn't necessarily have to be someone older or more experienced.

Graeme Lambert, a 29-year-old journalist from Dunstable, was astonished to discover that by adding his 26-year-old girlfriend to the insurance for his Vauxhall VX220 sports car, his quote from Admiral went down £200. "I was amazed," he says. "Not only is she younger, but she's held her licence for fewer years than I have."

The reason is that his girlfriend's licence is endorsement-free, unlike Graeme's, and insurers rate her profession (teaching) a safer bet than journalism. The moral is: Ditch your preconceptions and check to see what difference it could make.

2. Buy or convert a camper van

An insurance hike of over £1,000 pushed 32-year-old Nick Rees from South Shields, Tyneside into buying his dream vehicle. "The insurance quotes for my Citroen Saxo went up from £350 to £1,500, with a £3,000 excess after two thefts," he says.

"I tried all the small cars I could think of and my cheapest quote was £1,200. I worked out it was cheaper to insure a camper van."

Nick had always lusted after a rare off-road people-carrier called a Mitsubishi Delica. He found that if he turned it into a camper van, it would cost him £500 for fully comprehensive insurance via a conversion policy with Adrian Flux. Another £100 bought the equipment to convert it. Now he's looking forward to the summer.

3. Buy a classic: they are not as old as you think

Anyone who's owned a classic car will quickly list the benefits, and somewhere up top is cheap insurance. 

Specialist brokers are generous because they know the cars are cherished, and driven carefully and infrequently.

But it's little known that insurers' definitions of what constitutes a classic vary wildly and can include some modern cars.

For example, on specialist broker Footman James's 'acceptable list', any Jaguar is considered a classic after five years; a BMW after 10 years; and certain Land Rovers after 15. For bread-and-butter brands it's usually 20 years, but anything sporty will always qualify.

Maximum annual mileage is around 5,000 and the cars generally need to be garaged, but the savings are big - a 1985 Porsche 944 garaged in south London was quoted at £224 with Footman James, compared with £809 with the cheapest standard insurer (Admiral).

4. Park on the street

Of all the insurance loopholes, this is perhaps the strangest: it could be cheaper to park on the street than in a driveway or garage. Martin Scampion, from Rustington, West Sussex, says: "I noticed the policy said the car was parked on the road, so I rang to say it was parked on the drive. It upped the premium by £37."

It all comes down to claims history: if one area has more claims involving garaged cars, street-parked motors will be cheaper. Insurers say one reason is that key thefts are more likely if the burglar knows which car belongs to which house.

5. Ignore the comparison sites

Not all insurance companies list on comparison websites, but they still need something to lure you in - and that means discounts.

New Aviva customers, for example, get 12 weeks' free insurance if they have at least four years' no-claims bonus. Meanwhile, First Direct will knock 10% off your renewal quote if it's greater than £200. But always make sure you check the provider's quote against the competition.

6. Don't call about a prang

For minor accidents it's often cheaper to fork out for the work yourself. The moment you identify yourself as risky, even if it wasn't your fault, both the premiums and the excess shoot up.

Just telling the insurer, even if you don't claim, will alert it to the accident.

Alfa Numeric, writing on motoring forum Pistonheads, recalls: "My car was hit by a van that sped off. I rang my insurer to see what my excess was, but then paid for the repair myself. Come renewal time, my policy had gone up by over £100."

If you don't want to involve your insurer, you don't have to inform it, either at the time or when you renew your policy. "There's no legal obligation," says Malcolm Tarling, a spokesperson for the Association of British Insurers.

7. Don't be shy: haggle

Buying a car is one of the few situations still left in the UK in which haggling is acceptable - and so is insuring it. Even in the age of the comparison website, the insurer will still bump up the cost of its second year's cover - partly to offset the discount it gave you for joining and partly to take advantage of customer inertia.

So if you like the insurer but not the price, don't hesitate to quote the cheapest online offer.

Sales people on the phone will usually have a standard discount they can give without authorisation and another one they have to clear with their supervisor, so if you're not happy with the price, stay on the phone until you are, and always be prepared to cut and run: it strengthens your hand.

8. Ditch monthly payments

This is a luxury to avoid - in fact, some insurers don't give a monthly option, which means you could lose out on the cheapest deals.

The extra cost of splitting payments into 12 can add hundreds to your bill, plus your insurer then farms the business out to a finance company, which will take a healthy cut in the form of increased APR on the interest rates.

Insisting on monthly payments when insuring the old Porsche (from the earlier example) would remove the cheapest quote of £729 from Admiral, pushing Endsleigh to the top of the list at £1,069. Add interest to the monthly payments and the total would then be £1,210, a hike of £481.

9. Be precise about your job

It makes a difference. Call yourself a restaurateur when you're actually a café owner and you'll pay £800 instead of £707. Likewise, a nurse would pay £800, a medical officer £745, and a student nurse £887.

Insurance companies keep a detailed record of past accident history for all professions and if the quote is high, it's a case of being penalised for the carelessness of your colleagues.

You can check what your exact job title should be by using the 'job picker' tool on moneysavingexpert.com. This lists all the various titles for specific jobs and the difference in average quotes.

10. Choose fully comp over third party, fire and theft

Another mystery of the insurance industry is why fully comprehensive insurance (which covers damage to your car) is often cheaper than third-party insurance (which just pays out to the person you hit).

One reason is that fewer underwriters offer it, as it's popular with younger drivers who are a bigger risk.

But another reason is that insurers don't like surprises. In the event of a crash, drivers with third-party cover don't bother informing their insurer. There's no point - they just hand over the details to the other party and let their insurers sort it out.

But costs can quickly mount, ranging from personal injury claims to temporary car replacement, and the first the third-party insurer hears of them is when it's presented with the huge bill.

Admiral Mulitcar

KwikFit Car Insurance

The Co-operative Car Insurance

Uswitch Car Insurance

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Six secrets about your credit card

Fasano, Legal & Financial Experts

We reveal six lesser-known facts every credit card user needs to know.

Finvest.co.uk

When they're trying to attract new business, credit card companies are keen to advertise market-leading balance transfer offers and other attention-grabbing perks. However, they're less willing to volunteer certain other pieces of information.

So if you already have a credit card or you're considering applying for one, make sure you're familiar with the following six facts.

1. People in debt have rights

If you find yourself in credit card debt and feel your lender is behaving unreasonably, you're not powerless.

According to the Lending Code that governs banks and building societies, lenders "will not subject customers to harassment or undue pressure when discussing their problems".

They have just been told they are no longer allowed to use Facebook, Twitter or other social networks to contact you, for example, as making public what should be private is causing "stress and embarrassment".

And credit card companies must also ensure attempts to recover debt either by the company or "another party" are "carried out within the appropriate legal jurisdiction".

As a case in point, Devon businessman Keith Harrison had £20,000 of credit debt written off earlier this year when a judge ruled he had been "tortured" by hundreds of calls from his lender MBNA and a debt collection firm Link Financial.

Bear in mind, Harrison's case is rare and if you're experiencing debt problems, it's probably wise to contact the company to explain your situation.

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2. The cash withdrawal catch

If you're clued up with your finances, you probably know better than to withdraw cash on your credit card. In most cases, you'll pay an extremely high interest rate, which is often between 25% and 30%. ( Consider applying for a Cashplus - Find out more here )

Furthermore, many card providers charge interest on your cash withdrawals from the moment the money leaves your account. This system is unlike the vast majority of credit card transactions on which you won't pay any interest if you clear your balance in full when your next bill arrives.

What's worse, there are a series of transactions that count as a cash withdrawal — and so attract the same fees and charges — which you might not expect.

So even if you clear your debt when you receive your next statement, you could still be hit by hefty interest payments on certain transactions or cash withdrawals.

3. You can reject rate hikes

Have you ever received a letter from your credit card company informing you the interest rate on your credit card is set to increase?

If so, you've been the victim of a practice known as "rate jacking" and, unfortunately, it's perfectly legal. Provided they give you 30 days' notice, a credit card company is entitled to increase the interest rate you pay on your credit card.

However, you don't have to sit passively back and accept the higher rate. Under current rules, borrowers have 60 days to object to the increase. By choosing this option, they will be able to repay the debt at their current interest level "within a reasonable period".

4. Interest-free offers can be revoked

If you've managed to secure a market-leading 0% credit card deal, you'll need to be diligent if you want to hold onto it.

A number of lenders will withdraw an interest-free offer if you fail to make a minimum repayment or exceed your agreed credit limit. Should this happen, you would revert to the representative APR.

A similar scenario may also apply if you take out a credit card to earn rewards or cashback. If you fail to pay your bill on time in one month, you may lose any rewards you've earned during that period.

5. Almost half won't get the advertised deal

Under the terms of the Consumer Credit Directive, a lender is only required to offer its representative APR to 51% of accepted borrowers.

Almost inevitably, companies give their most competitive deals to customers with the cleanest credit scores. As a consequence, you could end up applying for a card expecting a particular interest rate — only to be offered a much less favourable deal.

6. Assertiveness could pay off

If your credit card company offers a more competitive representative APR than the one you're currently receiving, try asking to move onto the lower rate. What's more, you could say you'll take your business elsewhere if necessary.

Unsurprisingly, this tactic has a greater chance of success if you always make your payments on time and are likely to be accepted for a more competitive card elsewhere.

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