Does Your Car Insurance Cover You For Driving Abroad?

By law, British motor insurers must cover your car for the minimum cover required by the law in other European countries, or the minimum cover required by the law in other European countries, or the minimum cover required by UK law, whichever is greater.

These are some of the most common limits and conditions found on UK policies regarding driving your own car abroad. There are special conditions that may apply however, and you'd do best to check with your individual insurer to find out about limits or conditions on your policy. In most cases, this means that no matter where you are driving your car, you'll have at least Third Party coverage.

No cover for damage to your own vehicle

While you may have cover for collision damages when driving at home, many insurers will only cover damage to other vehicles if you are driving abroad. You can extend your policy to cover damages to your car from fire, theft and collision while abroad by talking with your insurance company or broker.

No breakdown cover abroad

Even if you extend your car insurance to cover you while driving your car overseas, you won't be covered if your car should breakdown on the side of the road. Your insurer may be able to provide international breakdown cover, though you may get a better price on breakdown cover if you buy it in conjunction with your holiday insurance or even through your home insurer.

Advance notification required

Some car insurance companies require you to notify them in advance if you will be taking your car abroad with you. If you fail to give them notice and are involved in an accident, you may be left with only third party cover. Check your policy to find out how much advance notice your insurer requires in order to extend your policy to cover you when driving your car abroad.

Time limits on motor insurance abroad

Some higher end motor insurance policies allow you full coverage overseas for up to a stated length of time - generally 30 to 90 days - at no extra charge. They still require advance notice to extend your coverage, but as long as your overseas visits are less than the stated amount of time, you won't be charged an extra premium. Be sure to check for any limitations on your policy while overseas. In most cases, only repairs will be covered. You'll have to make other arrangements for transportation, car hire and other accommodations.

** Tips for Taking Your Car Abroad **

1. Check to find out how much cover your current motor insurance provides if you are traveling abroad.

2. Arrange for a Green Card through your insurer. The Green Card is an easy way to provide proof of insurance cover in most European countries.

3. Get separate breakdown cover. Most motor insurance policies do not provide any breakdown cover in foreign countries. If you carry separate breakdown cover at home, however, check that policy. Some may cover you for short trips abroad at no additional cost.

It 's a handy way to jot down details of an accident while they are still fresh in your mind. Most will provide one free of charge. Ask your insurer for a European accident statement form and keep it with you. 4.

Always lock the doors, and keep motor insurance and vehicle ownership papers on your person rather than in your car. Because foreign cars are an attractive target for thieves, take precautions to make it difficult to steal your car. 5.

Credit Card Processing Options For Home-based Business Owners

Well, now you can thanks to e-commerce and the internet. Are you the owner of a home based business that wants to be able to accept credit cards payments from clients or customers, without all the high fees that typically go along with it?

Special Options for Home-Based Businesses

With proper research you will be able to find that many merchant account providers also now have special packages for the specialized industry of home-based businesses. No one knows your business like you do. Therefore, you should carefully research any and all possibilities before making a decision on what way is the best to accept credit card payments for services rendered. Though there are pros and cons to be weighed and considered, the option of being able to accept credit cards from clients and customers is a huge convenience for you both.

For home based business owners, it has been a difficult and lengthy process in the past to receive payments from clients or customers; but by having a merchant account, you can now accept payments through a banking institute, independent sales organization, or by a third party such as PayPal. Home-based businesses must be approved in order to establish a true merchant account through a banking institute or independent sales organization. An underwriting process is necessary, and it will also involve using your personal credit rating, and this will be reviewed and evaluated. Many merchant account providers offer high approval rates, and special account options for home-based businesses.

Receiving Funds From Credit Card Payments

When the process is completed the home-based business owners can automatically deposit funds received from credit card payments directly into their account. There are fees that are charged by an Independent sales organization or banking institute, and while they are not as low as the third party provider they are often worth the ability of accepting credit cards. With higher sales volumes, the fees charged by Independent Sales organizations or banking institutes will be less compared to the third party providers-so you have yet another incentive for increasing your business!

Third Party Providers

When using a third party provider, the funds will get deposited into the merchant account, and then you can transfer it to your account. The entire process may take up to several days. Additionally, using a third party provider means you run the risk of never receiving the funds from your transactions, as they are often fraudulent businesses.

Merchant Accounts Through Banks

There are both positives and negatives associated with a merchant account through a banking institute, as well. Some advantages include the fact that banks are considered to be secured and dependable, and fees associated with setting up your merchant account are considerably lower for the long-standing business owner and owners with good credit. Many banking institutions do not like to open merchant accounts for a business seeking to accept credit cards over the internet. You will have to go and speaking informatively about your business and your goals and why it would be profitable for you to be able to accept payments on line. Banking institutions are more likely to close a merchant account if there are any charge backs.

Independent Sales Organizations

These types of organizations will charge higher fees and you do need to watch them carefully to make sure that you do not pay for the same fees over and over again, but they can be a good option for people and businesses that are otherwise unable to accept credit cards. Independent Sales Organizations accept businesses that wish to collect online payments and they do accept high risk businesses. Independent Sales Organizations go through a bank for the merchant account. Business owners wishing to open a merchant account with less than perfect credit typically use Independent Sales Organizations.

Be sure to ask questions up front about any fees that may be associated with obtaining a merchant account. Most of the merchant accounts have done away with all the application, set up, monthly and annual fees. Many merchant accounts that are now available for the home-based business owners have a high approval rate, and most are approved within twenty-four hours.

What is Credit Counseling?

They are not one in the same. For many consumers, simply having a third party to talk to about their financial issues is a great help, but do keep in mind that there is a difference between credit counseling and credit repair programs. Credit counseling can be very helpful for some consumers who find themselves in debt trouble.

In many cases, they offer free educational materials and workshops to help you establish a budget that meets your needs and circumstances. These types of credit counseling agencies will work with you to help you better understand where you are financially and offer some guidance as to what can be done to improve your situation. Many of these offer free or very low-cost credit counseling services.

A good place to start is with local non-profit agencies. If you live in a metropolitan area your chances of finding a reliable and knowledgeable credit counselor are better than if you live in a metropolitan area your chances of finding a reliable and knowledgeable credit counselor are better than if you live in a metropolitan area your chances of finding a reliable and knowledgeable credit counselor are better than if you live in a metropolitan area your chances of finding a reliable and knowledgeable credit counselor are better than if you live in a rural area. Depending on where you live, finding credit counseling is fairly easy.

With this type of counseling, you can begin to take hold of financial situation, learn effective ways to budget your money and reduce spending, and you can also get a clear understanding of how to keep your debt, present and future, within control.

In addition to the above, credit counseling agencies may also be able to help you draft letters to your lenders. Many agencies have pre-drafted letters that they can share with you.

As mentioned above, there are some important and distinct differences between credit counseling and debt repayment plans that are offered by commercial companies. This is especially true in regards to the long-term effects of your credit.

When you take advantage of credit counseling, there is no signed agreement or legal commitment, none of your accounts are affected by the agency itself, and you maintain overall control of how your debts are paid and when they are paid. Credit counseling does not affect your credit rating and does not show up on your credit report. However, because there is no legal or signed commitment, the credit counseling agency leaves the payment of your debts to you, which may leave you exactly where you started if you are not taking some form of constructive action.

With a debt repayment plan, your credit standing may be affected by the plan itself. Some, or all, of your creditors may report that your account is in a debt repayment plan, that some of your payments have been missed, or that there are concessions or other types of financial write-offs that have been made to reduce your current debt to a payable amount. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, this information can stay on your credit report for up to seven years.

These might include agreeing to take on no more debt while the plan is in effect. You may be required to accept certain conditions as well. Your deposits are used to pay your creditors according to a payment schedule the counselor develops with you.

In many cases, the debt repayment plans require you to deposit money each month with the credit counseling agency.

For this reason, it is important that you do your research before you sign up with anyone. There are a few companies that charge quite a bit in fees. You will find through your research that some credit counseling agencies charge little or nothing for managing your plan while others will charge a monthly fee.