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New home and car insurance rules came into force this week on the 1st January which aim to put an end to the ‘loyalty penalty’, where existing customers are expected to pay more than new customers.
According to the Financial Conduct Authority the new car and home insurance pricing measures, known as the General Insurance Pricing Practices, could save consumers £4 billion over 10 years.
‘Price walking’ or the ‘loyalty penalty’ is a practice where insurance prices are bumped up each year when existing customers renew and don’t make changes to their policy. However, customers who switch to a new provider are able to benefit from cheaper deals at the expense of loyal customers.
Image credit: David Merewether
If you’ve ever opted to renew your insurance, rather than scour the comparison websites for the best home insurance deal you have likely felt the sting of this penalty. According to the FCA home insurance customers, (with combined buildings and contents cover), who stick with their provider for over five years pay £287 – an increase of over 40%, compared with an average of £165 a year.
The financial regulatory body says that the new rules mean that a customer who’s been with the same insurer for over five years could expect to see an ‘average’ annual saving of £34 on contents cover, £41 for buildings cover, and £62 on a combined buildings and contents policy.
The new rules mean that insurers must offer the same prices to new and existing customers. Instead of luring customers in with cheaper deals, and slapping them with expensive renewal prices. The renewal prices will match what is being offered to new customers.
Another issue the new rules will address is the ease of cancelling home insurance. Insurance companies are now required to make cancelling insurance auto-renewal easier.
For example, companies can no longer insist that you cancel via the phone, they need to make other options, such as cancelling online available.
Image credit: David Parmiter
‘Our interventions will make the insurance market fairer and make it work better. Insurers can no longer penalise consumers who stay with them. You can still shop around and negotiate a better deal, but you won’t have to switch just to avoid being charged a loyalty premium,’ says Sheldon Mills, Executive Director, Consumers and Competition at the FCA.
‘We are keeping a close eye on how insurers respond to our new rules, to ensure that the benefits of a better insurance market are delivered to consumers.’
So how much will home insurance cost with the new measures? The new rules mean renewal prices will become cheaper as they fall in line with what new customers are offered. However, new customer deals could go up to make up for the loss of the price walking auto-renewals.
The post This is how much the new home and car insurance rules could save you when renewing appeared first on Ideal Home.
We’re always amazed at how quickly Christmas comes and goes – one minute our homes are kitted out with full-on sparkle and the next we’re packing up those baubles ready to be stored away for another year.
Whether you’re dragging your heels over boxing up the last of the decs or are more than ready to have a good declutter, our interiors can often feel a little lacklustre after the festive season – which is why we’ve put together some simple ways to brighten your homes winter decor after the Christmas decorations disappear.
Follow these tips and you can keep the spirit of Christmas decor alive, without it being obvious that you’re struggling to let go – and what better way to chase those January blues away
Image credit: Future PLC/ Douglas Gibb
Nature is always a mood lightener, and taking your real (or faux) Christmas tree out is a sad moment. So keep the natural theme going indoors by letting trees and potted plants take centre stage all year round.
Head to your local garden centre and look for some small indoor trees (you can even decorate them with fairly lights if you so wish). Indoor plants dotted around the room helps to welcome a touch of the outdoors in.
Image credit: Bloom & Wild
Your berry and fir centrepiece might have been packed away on twelfth night, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still enjoy a beautiful table. Think fresh flowers and berries in assorted jars and vases. To dress the table in style and welcome a light, natural feel to give your home a sense of optimism and brightness for the year ahead.
These could be as simple as flowers picked from your own garden. You don’t have to even spend a penny, to make a decorative impact.
Image credit: Fiona Walker
Twinkling lights are one of the best things about Christmas decorations, adding a touch of the magic to any room and keeping the lighting low and flattering. But while it might be time to put away your multicoloured lights, warm white is perfect all year round to embrace fabulous post-Christmas fairy light ideas.
Look for cute shaped options, like the geo spheres above, or quirky bulbs in fun motifs festoon lights, and drape over a branch, mirrors, pictures and along window sills. Or put a couple of reels of fairy lights into a glass vase and enjoy the light it throws.
Image credit: Dobbies
Thought the best wreaths were just for Christmas? Think again! A simple winter foliage design, without all the Christmas trimmings, can help bring interest to your wall or door and adds a lovely scent too, especially if you add some herbs into the mix.
Herbs are particularly lovely as they’ll give a delicious scent to the room too – or welcome guests to your home when placed on the front door. So think about rosemary, mint, thyme and bay leaves, and mix up your favourite scents.
Not a fan of greenery? Why not take inspiration from this year’s trend for dried flowers and add pampas, dried honesty or bunny tails?
Image credit: Handcrafted Gin
There are plenty of different themes to use for garlands around the house now you’ve put your Santa hat and stocking designs away. Take inspiration from travel by making your own map-themed garlands or go for bright floral colours to keep your spirits up for the rest of the winter.
We’re feeling inspired and uplifted by this paper garland featuring Monstera and banana leaves and Birds of Paradise tropical flowers.Just the thing to brighten up any grey winters day.
If you’re good with needlework, try crochet garlands using the basic granny square pattern, or knit some multi-coloured flags with odd ends of yarn. The possibilities are endless.
Buy now: Tropical Garland, £21, Handcrafted Gin
Image credit: Future PLC/ Olly Gordon
Once the garlands and pine cones have been taken away, shelves and staircase can look bare, so why not add some paper decorations in your chosen colour way? Because why not, why do we only reserve the right to decorate such spaces at Christmas time?! Go for it we say.
If you’re missing the Christmas sparkle, choose ones in glittering metallics like these honeycomb designs, or go for a bright colour to help liven up your decor. You could also look for oversized versions and hang a cluster from the ceiling for instant impact.
Image credit: Future PLC/ Polly Eltes
Just because you don’t have the whole family descending on you for every mealtime, doesn’t mean you have to ditch the beautifully-dressed table. Sitting down to a lovely place setting on a January evening is a lovely treat, so keep the special feel to mealtimes that you’ve cultivated over the festive period.
Leave a baseplate and monochrome napkin out so you can mix and match coloured plates and cutlery, cute straws and other accessories. Make every meal feel a little bit more special with minimal effort.
Image credit: Floral Street
We all know it’s Christmas when you smell the fir, cinnamon and orange, but changing up the scent you have in your home can also help ring in the new year once the festive period is over. Not only that, but candles are a great accessory for adding small hits of colour to your shelves and surfaces.
Choose one with a wintery fragrance – the candle shown here combines Guaiac wood, vanilla beans, and Texas Cedarwood for a deliciously refined scent.
Image credit: Next; Snuggle fleece marl checked duvet cover and pillowcase set, from £32
The stocking may have been removed and your Christmas bedroom decorating ideas put to bed (no pun intended!), but there’s nothing to say that winter bedding can’t have a bit of pizazz to it. This check marl set is made from a snuggle fleece fabric to keep you extra cosy on chilly nights.
It’s always a sad moment when the last of the Christmas decorations are taped back up into their cardboard box and shoved in the loft. The little baubles wave at you goodnight as they go into hibernation, and the wilted Christmas foliage makes its way to the garden waste bin. But fear not, there are plenty of ways to perk up your after Christmas winter decor.
‘Once the festivities of Christmas are over, there are many ways you can keep the celebrations going into the New Year without being too Christmassy,’ says Lorraine Aaron, founder of Curious Egg.
‘A great way is to swap out your Christmas decor to pieces centered around New Years Eve. Decorations such as stars, honeycomb or origami paper party balls and bunting help to keep the party mood going, whilst dried flower arrangements and plants with fairy lights are a great alternative to Christmas trees and wreaths.’
A great way to brighten up the house after Christmas is to use fairy lights. ‘You could hang them around doorways or across a wall, or even position them around furniture to add a warming glow,’ says Lorraine. ‘They also look great wrapped around plants as an alternative to a Christmas tree.’
‘You can even fill glass bottles with battery-powered fairy lights or candles to create little features on your dining or coffee table, or even in the corner of a room on the floor,’ she continues.
‘I like to create a wintry wreath or bundle to hang on my door with a lovely satin ribbon in dark green or dusky pink-brown,’ says Lorraine. ‘I love to go on winter walks and collect seed heads of plants and grasses, or leaf skeletons that look so sculptural and beautiful at this time of year. Sometimes they are perfect as they are, or occasionally, I’ll add a little gold or silver leaf and a frost mist of white paint.’
‘In January, once the Christmas and New Year’s festive seasons are fully over, there are many things you can do to decorate and help bring in the beginning of a new year and a fresh start,’ says Lorraine. ‘Why not hang a dried flower wreath on the front door or even inside the house? Placing a mix of dried and fresh arrangements around the house will help create a fresh feel too, whilst candles and fairy lights work all year round.’
What do you do to make your house feel more joyful post-Christmas?
Additional words by Laurie Davidson.
The post 9 Ways to cheer up winter decor after Christmas decorations come down appeared first on Ideal Home.
