Prepaid cards are becoming popular in the UK with just about everyone. This is probably because of how useful they are in a number of different circumstances or to different age groups. They:

• Allow teenagers to make online purchases
• Save you money while travelling abroad
• Make managing finances and budgeting easier
• Cut down the risk of identity fraud
• Reduce the risk of loss, compared to carrying cash
• Allow for online re-loading and account management, including statements
• Can be used in place of a bank account – you can have your wages loaded directly on to the card and set up Direct Debits (on some cards)
• Have no risk of debt
• Don’t require a credit check or bank account.

Like anything, they do have cons as well, such as the small cost of getting and using a card, and the spending limits that are imposed to prevent money laundering. However, there are ways to keep costs to a minimum and it’s easy enough to increase your spending limit.

However, given the long list of advantages, there’s no doubt that prepaid cards could be useful to the elderly too.

What is a prepaid card?

Unlike a credit or debit card, there are no credit facilities on a prepaid card as you can only spend the money that you have pre-loaded onto it – similar to a pay as you go mobile phone. The cards are currently available from three providers in the UK; MasterCard, Visa and Maestro. Because prepaid cards are accepted wherever these providers’ cards are accepted, they can be used in millions of locations around the world, wherever you see the logo for the card you have.

How much do prepaid cards cost?

Prepaid cards can be ordered online, in stores, post offices, and by post. Although some everyday prepaid cards have a monthly or annual fee, the majority just have an initial set up cost, which is usually around £5 (you will usually find that those without a setup cost have a monthly fee and those without a monthly fee have a setup cost). Free prepaid cards are sometimes available.

There are some charges for transactions and ATM cash withdrawals but these a relatively low and are a small price to pay for convenience.

If you are planning on using the prepaid card on holiday, you might want to consider getting a travel prepaid card as well as an everyday card because the travel card will be a LOT cheaper to use abroad (and will be cheaper than using most debit and credit cards abroad).

How can a prepaid card help the elderly?

As you can see from the bullet points above, prepaid cards come with many advantages. Specifically thinking of the elderly, prepaid cards can help as a tool for managing finances (especially when on a tight budget), they will aid you in keeping your money safe as you no longer need to carry cash, allow you to pay bills and buy shopping online rather than having to leave the house, and help you to prevent identity fraud.

1. Budgeting

Pensioners often find themselves turning to credit to sustain their lifestyle because during retirement they are usually living on a much smaller, fixed income. It can be very easy to run up debt, but it is important that you don’t because it will become harder and harder to repay the outstanding balance. This, along with many other factors, makes budgeting an essential part of everyday life for a pensioner.

With a prepaid card, you can load the amount of money you have to spend on certain items at the start of the week, or when you receive your pension allowance. Once it has gone, you cannot spend any more, helping prevent the elderly from getting into debt. Cash flow can also be managed in separate parts. For example, if you receive your income once a month, you can pre-load a weekly amount on to the card so that you have not spent everything by the second week.

2. Keeping money safe

It’s likely that, since the demise of the cheque guarantee card and the reduced number of outlets accepting the cheque as a form of payment, pensioners are more frequently turning to carrying cash. Carrying large sums of cash is a huge security risk; particularly if you are seen as more vulnerable and have a set routine (it would be easy for a thief to know when you had visited the bank, for example).

Instead of carrying cash, load the money onto a prepaid card and use it to make your purchases. With money being so tight, this will help to reduce your financial losses if you are targeted by criminals because they would not be able to use the card without a PIN or without your address details (you can cancel the card as soon as you know it is missing and get your money back, minus a very small card replacement fee).

Additionally, prepaid cards are often seen as safer forms of payment that credit or debit cards because they are not linked to any personal information. Your bank accounts and private data is not attached to prepaid cards, reducing the risk of identity theft should the card be lost or stolen.

3. Carers

If you care for an elderly person or relative, you (or they) might not feel comfortable using their credit or debit card, or carrying their cash (in case you lose it and have to replace it yourself). You can avoid this scenario with prepaid cards because the person you care for can load the card with the amount of money required to do the shopping and you can run the errands and pay bills, without any of the usual risks. It is also possible to pre-load the card and view statements online so the cardholder wouldn’t even have to leave the house and could still keep track of their spending.

4. Independence

Unfortunately as we get older we often lose a lot of our independence, particularly when it comes to our finances. A prepaid card can provide the cardholder with a sense of control, and can offer the reassurance that they are managing their own finances because they don’t have to divulge any personal banking information or provide access to their accounts. Keeping money safe is often a priority for the elderly, so regaining control of their own finances is often a relief.

If you think you, or someone you know, could benefit from a prepaid card, make sure you do a comparison first to get the best card for your needs and circumstances. You might also want to check out our blog on how to pick a prepaid card before you start to compare.

[More]

This is a guest post by GetMeIn.com - a part of Ticketmaster, the world’s largest ticketing company. It provides a safe and guaranteed way for people to buy and sell concert tickets and sports tickets to their favourite gigs. It guarantees all purchases, including last minute ones, with its 150% ‘Fan Guard’ policy. We asked them to write this blog to give you the information you need to avoid buying fake events tickets and losing money, especially in light of the upcoming London 2012 Olympic Games. The views are GetMeIn.com’s and may not wholly reflect the views of compareandsave.com.

With everybody feeling the pinch at the moment it’s tempting to try and cut corners with your social life. Adverts for cheap tickets and passes to sold-out events seem to litter the web, but who do you trust? In this scenario the maxim ‘If it seems too good to be true it usually is’ couldn’t be more applicable.  Tread carefully and follow these top tips to avoid the scams:

1.    Look for last minute tickets

Like travel agents, ticket vendors often drop their prices to shift more seats as an event draws near. Try contacting box offices directly or browsing sites like GetMeIn.com, which have Last Minute Ticket sections, where you can bag heavily discounted concert tickets .

2.    Check for tell-tale signs

Genuine websites will have some features that are not present on less reputable sites. Your browser will show you which sites are verified by displaying a padlock symbol either in the bottom toolbar or in the address bar at the top of the page. Also look out for how transparent the company selling the tickets is. If they have a working telephone number and an address on the site, then this is likely to be a safe place to buy from.

3.    Stick with what you know

Ticketmaster.co.uk, SeeTickets.co.uk and Aloud.com are well-established ticket sites. If you come across one you haven’t heard of, it’s worth asking around to see if anybody you know can recommend it.

4.    Don’t use Ebay or Gumtree

When you buy from one of these sites you could be buying from anyone, anywhere. If you want your ticket to arrive on time and avoid paying top dollar, steer well clear.

5.    Do some snooping

If a site looks dodgy you can do some detective work and investigate it. The Companies House website is a fantastic government resource which allows consumers to check out a retailer’s credentials before parting with hard-earned cash.

6.    For Olympic tickets, tread with caution

The two main Olympic ticket buying opportunities took place earlier in the year. There are still a few chances to get your hands on tickets to some events but you will need to be extremely careful. In terms of official sales there will be another chance to snap up tickets in December 2011. The organising committee has also announced that unwanted tickets can be resold to friends and family as ID on entry will not be required.  You may also be able to buy tickets from travel agents as part of package holidays to London.

7.    Football tickets come at a price

It’s virtually impossible to find cheap tickets to Premiere League match. The team’s official sites have the monopoly on this and it is illegal to attempt to sell them anywhere other than on authorised websites. If you follow your team religiously a season ticket could work out cheaper in the long run.

8.    For bargains be sociable

Group shopping sites like Groupon and Living Social sometimes offer discount tickets as part of their range. Check back daily to avoid missing out.

9.    Take an interest

Venues themselves sometimes offer discounts, particularly if you’re under 25 so keeping up with events can pay off.  The Royal Shakespeare Company offers a limited number of £5 tickets to young people. The National Theatre offers a similar scheme where under 25s can purchase £10 tickets to certain shows if they sign up to a mailing list.

10.    Go to the movies

If you’re dying to see a show but can’t get tickets anywhere you might still get to see it – in the cinema! The Royal ballet, Royal Opera House and National Theatre often show selected events live in cinemas nationwide. The best bit is that tickets are a fraction of the price for seeing the show in the flesh.

[More]

The world is changing and developing around us at a lightening pace – only a few years back we had to sign to make payments via credit or debit card; then Chip & PIN came along, and now you’re telling me we just have to wave our cards or mobile phones in front of a reader to make purchases? It sounds crazy but this technology has been designed to make payment transactions faster and more convenient for consumers.

Contactless technology has really progressed in the last 12 months. The first card on offer was from Barclaycard (it first launched one in 2007 that could also be used as an Oyster card, which also relies on Contactless Technology) – you probably remember the advert of Stephen Mangan on the flume around London which hit our screens last year. However, there is now a wide variety available on the market from different card issuers, including American Express, JP Morgan Chase, and HSBC.

The market has grown significantly – in the last three months of 2010 alone, more than 3 million credit cards with contactless technology were issued. The total number of contactless credit and debit cards by the end of 2010 was 12.9 million, with 52,700 contactless terminals present throughout the country. These figures are only expected to increase with analysts suggesting that 1 in 5 Britons will have a contactless credit or debit card by the end of 2012.

As of February 2010, the maximum payment for contactless credit cards is £15 in the UK. This limit is there as a security measure because when making a transaction with your card as you don’t have to enter a PIN or sign anything. This has likely resulted in the perception of a security issue, leaving many consumers concerned about the safety of using contactless technology.

Here we are going to look into the common issues that the British public have surrounding contactless technology and credit card fraud.

Lost and stolen cards

Many people are concerned that if someone else managed to get their hands on their contactless credit or debit card that they could simply empty their account by making multiple transactions of up to £15. While this is technically (and physically) possible, you can prevent loss by contacting your card provider as soon as possible after realising you have lost your card or it has been stolen – many providers even have 24 hour emergency lines in place to ensure that you can inform them of the loss/theft of your card as soon as possible.

As soon as you have notified the card provider they can cancel the card just as they would with any credit or debit card.

Jemma Smith of the UK Payments Administration, a service offering expertise in the UK payments industry, points out that “as with any fraudulent card transaction – if a fraudster were to use your contactless card – unlike cash you would not find yourself out of pocket.”

Credit card security

As there is no obvious security associated with contactless credit cards there is a lot of concern around credit card fraud. However, Smith informs us that “the security of contactless on UK cards is built on the same secure technology as chip and PIN – which uses the tried and tested global EMV protocol.”

We have heard so much about the increase of credit card fraud in the media over the last year or two so it is reasonable that people might think that contactless technology is the perfect way to commit fraud. However, the numbers seem to speak for themselves as Jemma Smith tells us that “contactless cards in the UK are still in relatively small numbers and fraud to date has been negligible”.

Smith also said: “As the technology becomes increasingly available, and should fraud become an issue, existing industry processes are in place to address any issues.”

New ways to steal

Surely the introduction of contactless technology has brought about new ways for fraudsters and criminals to swindle people out of their money? The most obvious way surely being for someone to get their hands on a contactless reader and simply walk around with it, deducting £15 from everyone’s cards in their wallets or pockets.

Once again Jemma Smith, of the UK Payments Administration, explains to us why this is not something that consumers should be worried about:

“There are a number of reasons why it’s very unlikely a fraudster would attempt to use a contactless reader to capture card details. Firstly, there is the hurdle of the risk management systems within the chip that minimise the usability of any data obtained by reading the card, but secondly even if the fraudster was successful in capturing card data they would still need a genuine business banking relationship, to process the contactless transaction (of £15 or less).

“This would obviously create a clear audit trail straight back to them, making it a high risk strategy for a small return. On top of this there is the practical challenge of getting a terminal reader close enough to the cardholder’s card – the reader equipment needed to work beyond a 10 cm range would be very large and hard to conceal.”

[More]

As with all things in life, the way in which we travel and holiday is evolving with the times. As new technologies develop and the economic climate changes, we leave behind past holiday traditions and move on to a new way of holidaying:

1. How often do you rush to buy a postcard and send it on the first day of the trip? My guess is rarely, we simply drop friends and family an email instead – that is if they don’t already know every detail from your Facebook or Twitter updates.
2. How often do you go to the travel agent before your trip to order your travellers’ cheques? If you’re like the millions of other Britons, you have probably made the switch to holiday money cards or travel prepaid debit cards.
3. How often do you buy an annual travel insurance policy to cover the family for the year? More and more people are opting for single trip insurance instead because the chances of a second holiday in the one year are very slim.

When you are travelling or taking a quick break, it is important that you accustom yourself with modern processes and stay safe. Some of these traditions could be missed, particularly by the older generation, however many are widely accepted as being much more convenient and safer.

Holiday Money Prepaid Cards

Most travel prepaid debit cards do come with some fees attached to them, i.e. they are free to top up by debit card but will charge a percentage fee to top up using a credit card, but the majority are free to get and use to purchase items abroad.

The Escape Travel Card is one of the cheapest travel prepaid cards because you can do most things for free on it; it is free to get if you load £100 on to it (you pay £9.99 initially but this is credited back to your card once you’ve loaded £100 onto it within the first 90 days), gives free ATM withdrawals abroad, has no monthly fees and can be topped up at any Phones4u store for free.

However, more often than not, the slight disadvantage of paying some fees is far outweighed by the benefits they bring.

Holiday money cards allow you to upload cash on to the card, meaning that you do not need a credit check and you can’t get carried away with your spending. In addition, it can be quite risky carrying large amounts of cash with you while you are on holiday as it can easily be lost or stolen.

Most prepaid travel cards are able to offer you an emergency replacement card and cash should the worst happen. This can give you the assurance you need to relax and enjoy your holiday.

Travel insurance policies

Sometimes travel insurance can seem like more hassle than it is worth, but no one can deny that it’s saved a lot of people a lot of money over the years, as well as provided priceless peace of mind for many travellers. If you have never had an accident, had belongings stolen, or had to claim for any other reason you might think it could be worth risking going without travel insurance.

However, many have found that it’s not a risk worth taking, (an example that immediately springs to mind is the bride that fell off the balcony on her honeymoon but didn’t have travel insurance and had to raise money to get brought back to the UK via air ambulance) but of course it all depends on your individual needs and circumstances.

So, if one of the reasons you don’t currently buy travel insurance is that you don’t want to spend a lot of money on it; why not look at insurance for a single trip which is actually cheaper than you might think (if you are going on more than one trip this year, you could consider annual travel insurance as there’s some savings to be made by buying a year-long policy). Before you go on holiday always compare travel insurance deals and find yourself the policy to suit your needs at the price you can afford.

Words cannot express how important travel insurance can be when you are on holiday. Although it cannot prevent accidents from occurring, it can help you when you are in difficult situations. Research has shown that there has been a 23% increase in the number of single trip policies on the market in just three years. This makes shopping around for the right policy all the more important, so always compare travel insurance deals first.

Fraud Prevention Abroad

UK holidaymakers are usually robbed of millions of pounds every single year, so it is essential that you consider fraud prevention abroad. Travel prepaid debit cards are the perfect way to keep yourself safe from fraud and ID theft. Carrying a holiday money card saves you having to take credit cards and debit cards which are linked to your bank account. Also, if your prepaid card is ever stolen, you can only lose the amount on the card at the time it was stolen (at the very worst).

However, if you report your card stolen as soon as possible, your issuer will cancel it immediately which could mean that you will get some or all of your money back on a new card (minus a small replacement fee) especially if you have kept your PIN secure. This will of course depend on how long the thief has had alone with your card and how advanced their methods are.

[More]

Basic bank accounts are great tools for those starting to establish financial independence and manage their money better. This type of account lets you deposit money and pay your bills either by standing order or direct debit. Using a basic current account, you can have your wages, tax credits, and any other benefits paid directly into your account. You can also take money out at cash machines with an ATM card.

Also with a basic bank account, you can take money out at the Post Office, and pay your bills by direct debit – a great way to ensure that you don’t forget to pay your bills on time. With some banks, your basic current account will come with a debit card that you can use for shopping. But, you won’t get overdraft protection or a cheque book, so you do have to keep an eye on your bank balance (this is easy enough to do with online banking and via the ATM).

You really have to shop around for the best bank accounts these days, with interest rates as low as they are. You can easily compare bank accounts online and even open new accounts online in many cases. A basic bank account can be a good first step toward managing your money better. It’s a way to keep your money safe, earn a little interest, and avoid the temptations and dangers that come with carrying cash.

[More]

Author Bio : This is a Guest Post by Marc Brown, a Senior Financial Writer associated with Oak View Law Group. He provides extensive suggestion on various topics; such as credit card debt settlement, personal loans & insurance.

Card Not Present (CNP) fraud is steadily increasing in the UK. This kind of fraud includes internet, phone and mail order fraud.

The losses owing to online bank fraud amounted to £23.4m in the first six months of last year. Financial institutions are putting in a lot of effort to combat the fraudsters.

The UK banking industry endeavors to implement a chip authorisation technology to prevent losses. However, a survey by the UK Payments Administration reveals that a large number of people in the UK are not aware of the basic security precautions that are to be taken to prevent CNP fraud. This can lead to serious monetary losses.

So remember, the following points while using credit cards online:

1. You should be extremely cautious while using your credit card online. Disclose your credit card number only to sites which you trust completely. It might be sensible to check the trustworthiness of sites with website reputation rating tools like Mywot. Note that one major sign of a fraud website is excessive advertisements and pop ups.

2. Spyware and fraud emails are another serious threat. Spyware includes keyloggers which can record what you type, including credit card numbers and passwords. So, when you enter your credit card number to buy something, even from an authentic site, it will be captured. Next, the spyware will transfer this information to some unethical person who will get access to your credit card number. Therefore, you should always use dependable antivirus software to detect and remove spyware on a regular basis.

3. To counter credit card fraud, some credit card companies have come up with an innovative idea. They would provide you a credit card number which can be used only once for an online transaction. Even if the scammers get your credit card number by any chance, it won’t be of any use. This is because the card number would automatically expire after the transaction.

4. Check for a secure connection before the transaction starts. Look out for ‘https’ in the address bar of your browser. The https means you are entering your details via a safe connection whereas just ‘http’ would mean an ordinary connection. It is possible for a third party to get access to the data in case of a http connection. Therefore, shop from sites which offer ‘https’ connection in order to avoid hacking.

5. Keep the last three digit CVV number (printed at the back of your card) a secret. The CVV number protects you from fraud during online shopping. No one can shop with your credit card even if they have the card number provided they do not know the CVV number. While using your card in shops or restaurants, you should insist that the card should be swiped in front of you. This way, no one would be able to take down the CVV number.

6. Check your account balance regularly. Even if there is a minor discrepancy, you should immediately enquire about it and find out what happened. Any suspicious activity, however negligible it might appear to be, should be reported to the bank authorities and to the police immediately.

Credit cards are a very convenient thing and we simply cannot do away with them. All we can do is use plastic with caution. So remember the above points and be wise while enjoying the benefits of credit cards.

[More]

If you are worried that simply shredding sensitive documents, such as cheques from your bank accounts, isn’t enough to deter identity theft, there are several extra steps you can take to help ensure that nobody gets their hands on your important personal information.

You can take a simple hole punch and punch out the most sensitive information before shredding documents, to make reconstructing them that much harder.

Some people take shredded documents and incorporate them into pet bedding if they have small animals like hamsters. People with backyard chickens have been known to mix shredded papers in with the chickens’ bedding and then compost it when its time to clean out the coop. These steps increase the “ick” factor enough to discourage almost all identity thieves, who will look for easier targets.

Special cross-cut shredders make documents much harder to reconstruct, and if you have a fireplace or wood stove, you can burn them. If you live where you can have a bonfire, that is another option; just make sure you follow your local burn ordinances and put fire safety first.

Finally, your bank or community may schedule document destruction days where you can haul your documents to be commercially destroyed, usually for free.

Shredding or otherwise destroying sensitive documents is very important for all your current accounts. Identity theft is a real problem, and like other types of thieves, identity thieves will hit the easy targets first, so don’t make it easy for them: destroy sensitive documents that you no longer need.

[More]

A news story (Credit card PIN security ’should be improved’) we published yesterday on the site has prompted me to write this piece on PIN protection.

Christine Grahame, a Scottish National Party MSP, had her card taken from her bag after a visit to Asda in October 2009. The thief, who Ms Grahame believes spied on her while she was entering her PIN, then proceeded to steal hundreds of pounds from her account.

As a result, Ms Grahame has tabled a motion in the Scottish Parliament prompting retailers to investigate if their existing security procedures are adequate.

However, based on her comments and description of the situation, I believe she could have prevented this theft herself.

I’ll show you each of Ms Grahame’s comments in turn and add our comments and tips to each:

1. “Some supermarkets have a proper guard around the machine so people can’t see, but others have hardly any guard.”

According to a spokesman for the Scottish Retail Consortium most card reader PIN machines are indeed protected by shields but even if you use one that doesn’t you can still hide your PIN.

Our tip: DO NOT just rely on the shields over PIN machines. Personally, I find them more of a hindrance than a help and always use my hand, my purse or anything else that’s handy to cover my PIN-entering hand and the keypad.

2. “I didn’t see any notices warning people to be careful.”

Do consumers really need another sign next to the tills telling them to “be careful”? At the end of the day, there are people in this world that want to steal money from other people and if you don’t take precautions yourself, you may well end up a victim; how much would a sign do?

Our tip: Never be complacent with your personal information – thieves want it and they’ll go to great lengths to get it. This has been and always will be the case so you can never be too careful.

3. “When people are taking money out of cash machines, they usually do cover up their PIN number, but if you’re at a checkout with lots of bags you don’t always think about it. I would like to see supermarkets being a bit more proactive.”

It’s attitudes like this that make consumers prime targets for thieves – all shops could possibly do more to be proactive, but I’m sure most consumers could too.

Our tip: Whenever and wherever you enter your PIN, your full attention should be given to keeping it safe. You may enter debit or credit card details while buying something during your lunch at work but there aren’t going to be signs reminding you to keep your PIN and other details safe everywhere you go. Therefore, it’s best to get yourself into a habit of protecting your details.

4. Ms Grahame said shoppers should be on their guard during the pre-Christmas rush.

She said: “There is pressure on you to hurry up and get through and people tend just to put their pin in quickly while they’re packing their bags.”

Ms Grahame is right about one thing – you do need to increase your guard when it is busy or crowded. The extra time it takes to be more cautious will be a lot less than the time it would take to sort out the mess a fraud attack can cause.

Our tip: If you feel pressure, ignore it. You can’t be forced to hurry these things and the stress you feel by people hurrying you will be a lot less than that felt if someone steals your details and commits fraud using your card and name. Take your time and ALWAYS cover your PIN.

[More]