Category	Date	Subject
Car Warranty	11/07	Warranty Cover Price Doubles at Franchised Dealers
Car Warranty	11/07	Over 1 Million Cars Will Break Down Just Outside of Warranty
Debt & Motgages	11/07	The Credit Crunch
Car Warranty	11/07	North South Divide as Garage Charges Top £183 an Hour
Energy	11/07	Avoid the Winter Bill Chill
Energy	10/07	Top 10 Tips for Saving Money on Energy
Prepaid Cards	10/07	ABC’s of Prepaid Cards
Energy	10/07	Barriers to Switching Energy Supplier
Credit	10/07	Consumer Credit Crunch
Energy	10/07	Consumer Prices are Standing Still – Why?
Energy	10/07	Lock in Savings Before the Winter.
Energy	10/07	Why do I Have a Paper Bill? 10 Reasons why you Shouldn’t.

Articles supplied by Xelecta plc, Warranty Direct Ltd and Brightside Plc

ABCs of Prepaid Cards

Accessibility, Belonging and Control

What is the worst part about using your credit card? Debt, that’s what. In the UK these little bits of plastic have increased our personal debt by over £1 billion since 2005!

Do we use these cards because we’re a culture of credit or a culture of convenience? Well, it’s both. Credit cards are far more convenient than carrying cash and are necessities for hiring cars, online shopping and travel to name just a few. And when we want something, we want it now. We don’t save for life’s little luxuries any more, we buy them on credit. But all this credit makes it far too easy to let our spending get out of control. And although it happens to many of us, we wouldn’t give up the convenience of our cards.

But what about those of us who can’t get a credit card? If you’ve had financial problems in the past, it is very difficult to get creditors to trust you again. Without a credit card, you become very limited in what you can do.

Prepaid cards: a closer look

After wide-spread acceptance in the U.S., prepaid cards are quickly building a following here in the UK.

The concept of a prepaid card is similar to that of a credit card. You see something you want or need, you swipe the card and it’s yours. However, there is one key difference: prepaid cards are much like prepaid gift cards or SIM cards. You can put money on them (top them up) at your convenience but you can only spend what you have. No credit involved. No debt involved. Your spending depends on your cash.

These cards can be used everywhere: shopping online, paying your bills, on the high street or to top up your mobile.

Benefits:

The ABC benefits of prepaid cards are as follows:

1. Acceptance – everyone can get a prepaid card. Since there are no credit checks or boundaries; everyone who applies for will get a prepaid card.
2. Belongingness – if you have ever been denied a card or are currently without one, you will certainly feel the sense of exclusion. You can’t hire a car, get a mobile contract or even rent a movie. Prepaid cards will restore your membership to the economy of trust with retailers.
3. Control – Aside from your personal shopping discrepancies, prepaid cards are a great way to control and monitor the spending of your children and/or employees.

Aside from the three main benefits, you can also use your prepaid card while travelling. Safety is also paramount with prepaid cards. Should your card get stolen, you will get your money back.

Cost to you:

All prepaid card providers have terms and fees. The bright side is that as prepaid cards become more popular, competition among providers should level out these fees.

What fees should you be aware of?

• Renewing – similar to your credit card, your prepaid card will have an expiry date. Make sure you know what your renewal fee (if any) will be.
• Cancellation – most providers will charge you if you cancel your card.
• Cash Point – Make sure you know whether or not your provider will charge you a withdrawal fee for using your prepaid card at a cash point.
• Top-Up – find out how much it will cost you to top-up your card. It may be a flat fee or even a percentage of what you load onto your prepaid card.
• Help – some providers will charge you if you need help with your card; make sure you know what any helpline fees are
• Application – most providers will charge a set-up or application fee. Before you commit to one card, compare the set-up fees.
• New Card – prepaid credit cards will be a hot item; both legally and illegally. Should your card get stolen, you may want to know how much it will cost to replace your card.

Prepaid cards are perfect for some people; but not others. A prepaid card will not be a good choice for you if you find that it actually costs you more in fees that the amount of money you keep on your card. However, with a little research you should be able to find the repaid card that’s right for you.

Emoney.co.uk have teamed up with PPT to offer you a prepaid card click here for details

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