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How to ...insure your mobile gadgets
The loss of a valuable portable gadget, such as a cellphone or laptop, is not only a big inconvenience. If you aren't insured, it can also leave a huge dent in your pocket.
[Full Story...]
How to ... buy travel insurance
Medical treatment when you travel outside South Africa can be extremely expensive and sometimes it can be difficult to access.
[Full Story...]
Alexander Forbes does 'the right thing'
Retirement fund administrator Alexander Forbes has made a "substantial" offer to resolve a R950-million claim against it for its role in the allegedly fraudulent stripping of surpluses of retirement funds in the 1990s, reducing the retirement benefits of thousands of members and pensioners.
[Full Story...]
Alexander Forbes's about-turn will go far in repairing its damaged reputation
Finally Alexander Forbes has come to its senses and, for the first time, has genuinely attempted to put its sordid past behind it. It is a puzzle why it has taken it so long to do what Edward Kieswetter, its new chief executive, says is "the right thing to do" .
[Full Story...]
Ombud can now handle credit complaints
In an effort to streamline the handling of consumers' complaints about creditors, Manie van Schalkwyk, the credit information ombud, has extended his jurisdiction to hear such complaints.
[Full Story...]
Two investment schemes fined for contravening law
The Financial Services Board (FSB) has for the first time used its recently established Enforcement Committee to punish two collective investment schemes (CISs) - one managing unit trust funds and the other managing exchange traded funds (ETFs).
[Full Story...]
Recession hits use of financial products
Savings and the use of financial services products have taken a hit as a consequence of the recession, but even without the recession, the use of financial products by the wider population in South Africa is far from optimum.
[Full Story...]
It's all too easy for someone to be you
Recently, I checked into the new Holiday Inn in Rivonia Road in Johannesburg. The accommodation had been booked through a travel agent, with confirmation that all extras were to be added to the bill and submitted to the travel agent. I had a copy of the booking form, as did the hotel.
[Full Story...]
Unit trust fund turns out to be huge Ponzi scheme
A Ponzi scheme of massive proportions, which is likely to see investors lose hundreds of millions of rands, has been revealed in the second report by the curators of Corporate Money Managers (CMM), which imploded earlier this year. CMM controlled a fixed-interest varied specialist unit trust fund, the CMM Cash Management Fund (CMF), which masqueraded as a money market investment.
[Full Story...]
FSB homes in on collective schemes
Collective investments, which are generally well regulated in South Africa, mostly offer you, the investor, a safe and easy way to invest in the equity, bond, property and money markets. But recent financial disasters have forced the Financial Services Board (FSB) to tighten its control over certain aspects of the collective investment industry.
[Full Story...]
Financial services industry must clean up its act, Gordhan warns
Presenting his first medium-term budget policy statement in Parliament this week, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said the financial services industry will have to behave differently in future.
[Full Story...]
NCR resolves most complaints within 90 days
The National Credit Regulator (NCR) received 1 646 complaints from the public, mostly about interest rates or debt counselling, between April last year and March this year, according to the regulator's latest annual report, tabled in Parliament last week.
[Full Story...]
Don't be held to ransom by unauthorised tow-truck drivers
Insurance claims after motor accidents are often held up because vehicle owners are held to ransom by "ruthless" tow-truck drivers.
[Full Story...]
Getting the debt counselling process to work
Debt counselling is designed to put you back on your feet financially without your having to declare bankruptcy. However, the process has not always been as effective as it should be and, despite some obstacles being cleared away in a recent judgment, some remain. We look at these issues, as well as how the debt counselling process works and what it costs.
[Full Story...]
All that glitters ...
Every now and then, Fine Print hits pay dirt – a contract packed full of conditions crying out to be brought to the public’s attention. Invest-gold’s Golden Miles Plan is one such rich vein of information to be mined. The good news for consumers is that even before this column was completed, the contract had been overtaken by two others that are not nearly as onerous.
[Full Story...]
Editor wins top award for the 10th time
Personal Finance editor Bruce Cameron was this week named the winner of the personal finance category of the Sanlam Excellence in Financial Journalism awards for an unequalled 10th time.
[Full Story...]
Award-winning staff
Personal Finance writers scooped yet more accolades at the Citadel Words on Money awards this week. Editor Bruce Cameron won the prestigious chairman's award for investigative journalism. He was also a finalist in the consumer education, analysis and opinion, and alternative investment categories. Assistant editor Laura du Preez won the analysis and opinion category, and was a finalist in the consumer education and best feature categories. Senior writer Neesa Moodley-Isaacs was a finalist in the...
[Full Story...]
FSB acts against Edwafin
Take great care before investing in Pietermaritzburg-based company Edwafin Holdings.
[Full Story...]
More of you read our good advice
You're reading Personal Finance today along with 824 000 other "everyday people" who are looking for good advice.
[Full Story...]
Beware! Fraud is a threat when you bank online
It's up to you to ensure you transact safely on the internet, because your bank doesn't consider itself liable for your losses if you are a victim of online fraud.
[Full Story...]
What price vehicle security?
With South Africa’s high rate of vehicle theft and hijacking, many motorists regard a tracking device as essential. But does signing up with a tracking company give you the kind of protection you hope it does? Could you find yourself liable for unforeseen costs or even third-party claims? We look at the wording of vehicle tracking contracts.
[Full Story...]
Before you ring off
Three days before changes to the regulations that govern cellphone contracts and handset subsidies were due to kick in on August 17, 2008, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) delayed their implementation.
[Full Story...]
Not the same old things
Say "Paris" and "antiques", and the Louvre comes to mind. It is the most visited museum in the world. But if you want to go beyond the readily available super-arena of preciousness, here is an ode to the "other" antique Paris.
[Full Story...]
Calculators on the house
Use these free online tools to find out whether you qualify for a home loan and what your monthly repayments will really cost you.
[Full Story...]
Comparative disadvantage
South African websites that enable you to compare products offered by the financial services industry have a long way to go to match overseas offerings.
[Full Story...]
Levelling the paying fields
The Consumer Protection Bill won’t utterly transform the landscape for buyers and sellers in South Africa, but there will be some interesting changes to our daily lives if all the Bill’s provisions make it into law. The broadest and most far-reaching of the provisions have been dealt with in the newspaper version of Personal Finance and elsewhere, but there are a few gems tucked away.
[Full Story...]
Hot property
Think Modernist masterpiece, and flat-pack prefabs aren’t what immediately spring to mind. But when it comes to investing in art, it pays to think outside the box.
[Full Story...]
10 things you should know about ‘fixed’ charges
Many of the fees, costs and commissions that are supposedly set in stone are not. If you take a closer look, you’ll often find they are the maximum amounts, and can be negotiated down or avoided altogether. Here are 10 ways you can fight the rule book.
[Full Story...]
Effectively, I was wrong
Last quarter I wrote about the dangers of the "fine print" you never see when you are defrauded. So it is opportune this time to discuss info that stares you, as a consumer and as a journalist, in the face and that you misinterpret. (Do you see an apology or two coming on?)
[Full Story...]
Rands and sense of greening your house – Part II
This is the second part of the article 'Rands and sense of greening your house'
[Full Story...]
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