Fintech PR
Insurance Expert at ReduceMyExcess reveal Brits over-paying for holiday car hire by more than £450
- British consumers on average spend £450 more than they need to on car hire, whilst getting less for their money
- On average, car hire company’s excess insurance cost nearly eight times more than stand-alone cover and protects the customer from far fewer eventualities
- Extras sold at the hire desk, including child seats and satnavs push up daily hire prices even further.
LONDON, Sept. 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — A study by car hire insurance providers, ReduceMyExcess has revealed that whilst Brits enjoyed the sun abroad this summer, many will have been overcharged for their car hire, whilst not being given the level of protection they might think.
In fact, British holidaymakers will have spent as much as £450 more than they need to with car hire companies by giving in to pressure at the hire desk.
Many holidaymakers don’t realise they can avoid this with a little pre-planning and by using independent insurance providers, especially when it comes to protecting their excess for as little as £24.
For a 7-day single European trip, the most common upgrades and average additional charges* pushed by hire companies are:
- Excess waiver – £186
- Glass, undercarriage & tyres – £17
- Child booster seat – £87
- Personal possessions – £16
- Satnav – £74
- Roadside Assistance – £55
- Pay on the day – £18
Total = £453
However, it need not be the case and consumers can save this by prepping in advance.
Jon Rebuck, co-founder of ReduceMyExcess explains:
There are a number of ways car hire companies get more money out of customers at the hire desk.
However, savvy consumers can win back by following these tips.
1. Refuse the excess waiver. In the event of any accidental damage to the hire car, you’ll be liable to pay a sizable excess which is often taking directly from your credit card. Hire companies charge a daily fee to waive the excess you are liable for in the event of damage to the vehicle. However this waiver is on average nearly eight times more expensive than the cost of a standalone car hire excess insurance policy, which will reimburse your excess fully in the event you’re charged for accidental damage.
2. Damage to tyres, windows, lights and undercarriage often go unnoticed by the customer at the point of collection, so are easily charged for at the point of return even if they’ve not been caused by you. If you’ve taken out a standalone car hire excess insurance policy, then you may also be able to refuse the hire company’s tyres, glass and undercarriage protection which typically costs another £17 per week on top of the hire company’s excess waiver fee, and often is not available separately. Many standalone excess insurance policies include this cover as standard, and at no extra cost.
3. Take car seats with you. Most airlines won’t charge you for taking car seats on the plane. Car hire companies abroad charge on average £87 per week, per booster or child seat, which are a legal requirement for many children abroad. To make their daily rental prices look better, hire companies might sign post stressed and tired families to airport shops where car seats can be purchased at above-market prices and make look hiring a car seat better value. Simply by taking your own child’s car seat can save you more money.
4. Many hire companies charge extra to insure your personal effects, another extra you might not need. It’s important to understand that personal cover often comes with an excess of its own and low level of cover. This means after the cost of the bolt-on (£16) and the excess (often hundreds of pounds), it might not be worth making a claim. Sometimes personal belongings cover is lumped in with personal injury cover, so be sure to understand exactly what the hire company are trying to sell you and compare to standalone excess insurance policies which typically cover personal possessions for no extra charge.
5. Use a smartphone navigation app rather than hire a sat nav. Most hire cars will have a USB socket for phone charging, and most smartphones will have a default maps/navigation app, as well as a number of free and paid options via the App Store / Google Play. Satnavs can cost as much as £74 to hire for a week and offer no advantages over a smartphone. Take advantage of bringing with you a mobile phone holder as well that fits to wither the windscreen or air vents.
6. Often, additional roadside assistance cover is also unnecessary. Typically, the upgraded roadside assistance offered by the hire company is only to cover you for “breakdowns” that are your fault (lost keys, misfuelling or locking the keys within the vehicle) and in cases where a breakdown occurs that isn’t your fault, you may already only be liable to pay a towing fee back to the hire centre where the car will be swapped for another. In both cases, many standalone excess policies will cover lost keys, misfuelling and recovery costs – so there’s no need to pay additional fees (£55 per week on average) to the hire company to cover these.
7. Pay online in advance. If you choose to pay on collection, on average the higher company will charge an additional £18 for a week’s booking, although some hire companies charge as much as £26. Booking and paying for your hire vehicle online and in advance also means you can avoid being subjected to the “hard sell” when at the hire desk for the extra’s you don’t need. Don’t forget to purchase a car hire excess insurance policy in advance too and check all policy documents carefully so you understand exactly what your cover extends to.
*Prices are average taken for a 7-trip collecting from and returning to Madrid Airport between 2nd September and 9th September 2024. Prices taken across 6 leading providers of car hire, rounded to the nearest £1 (GBP).
Company info
ReduceMyExcess provide car hire excess insurance policies, saving holiday makers money on costly excess waivers from car hire companies. ReduceMyExcess is a trading name of Eversure Limited
https://www.reducemyexcess.co.uk/
Contact info
Ian Holmes – [email protected]
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Fintech PR
UN International Procurement Seminar Held in Asia for the First Time: A Collaborative Initiative Between the UN and Ningbo
NINGBO, China, Nov. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — On November 13, the 2024 United Nations International Procurement Seminar (IPS) commenced in Ningbo, marking the first time this authoritative, high-profile and professional conference has been held in Asia. The event brought together 50 senior procurement officials and representatives from 16 UN agencies, alongside over 200 supplier representatives from both domestic and international markets.
The selection of Ningbo as the venue prompts the question of why the UN chose Asia, and specifically China, for this significant event. A representative from the UN Development Programme (UNDP) office in China encapsulated the sentiment with the phrase “mutual engagement.”
In recent years, the total value of UN procurement has steadily climbed, reaching as high as $29.6 billion. Traditionally, the IPS has been held primarily in Europe three times a year. As the UN seeks to innovate its procurement methods and achieve sustainable development goals, it has increasingly turned its attention to China.
“China has a diverse industrial landscape, offering high-quality products and services at competitive prices. By increasing its procurement of Chinese goods, the UN can enhance the efficiency of its funding use, allowing more developing countries to benefit from UN development aid projects. This aligns with our mutual interests,” noted an official from the Ministry of Commerce’s Department of International Trade and Economic Relations.
Ningbo has consistently emphasized the importance of UN procurement, organizing various initiatives for local enterprises to engage in UN procurement activities in recent years. In September last year, the city hosted the China (Ningbo) UN Procurement Promotion Conference, helping nearly 110 companies successfully register on the official United Nations Global Marketplace (UNGM) website.
Following this event, the UNDP office in China expressed gratitude, recognizing Ningbo’s thriving manufacturing and foreign trade service sectors as having substantial potential to provide innovative solutions for UN procurement. “Ningbo serves as both a catalyst and a bridge, linking China with the world and the UN,” stated Neris M. Baez, Director of the UN Secretariat Procurement Division.
The UN procurement system offers several advantages, including duty exemptions, low exchange rate risks, market stability, and avoidance of trade barriers. These factors can assist in opening markets in countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative, generating potential benefits and spillover effects.
“China possesses a comprehensive and robust industrial and supply chain and is a globally influential logistics hub. However, we currently lack the necessary channels to connect with international high standards. The key to expanding institutional openness lies in mastering international high-standard trade regulations,” emphasized a representative from the Ningbo Committee of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade.
If this seminar enables participants to become familiar with international high-standard trade regulations, it could establish a robust support system for engaging in UN procurement. This would create new opportunities in the international public procurement sector, empowering enterprises to secure more international orders through the UNGM website. From this perspective, the seminar represents an important “icebreaking journey.”
Contact: Sun Jiali
Tel.: 0086-18069269225
E-mail: [email protected]
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Fintech PR
Blockchain for Good Alliance Hosts Web3 Oscar, Celebrating Innovators Advancing UN’s Sustainable Development Goals
DUBAI, UAE, Nov. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The highly anticipated Web3 Oscar, a prestigious event hosted by the Blockchain for Good Alliance (BGA), celebrating blockchain projects driving real-world impact aligned with the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Industry leaders gathered in Bangkok to honour innovators shaping a sustainable future.
The event was part of BGA’s November lineup, featuring two major initiatives for global change through blockchain: the Sustainable Innovation Summit and the Web3 Oscar Awards.
Sustainable Innovation Summit: A Hackathon for Social Impact
Held from September 9 to November 11, 2024, the Sustainable Innovation Summit hosted a hackathon with a $100,000 prize pool, inviting participants worldwide to create blockchain solutions addressing key issues such as poverty, clean water access, and gender equality. The summit concluded with a Demo Day at the Grand Hyatt Erawan in Bangkok, where finalists showcased their projects to blockchain pioneers, investors, and industry leaders, with opportunities for incubation support and equity-free funding.
Rising Stars
In a cinematic presentation style, 10 shortlisted projects from across the globe, participating in the Sustainable Innovation Summit’s 17 SDGs Challenge, took the stage. Each team presented their blockchain solutions to address sustainability challenges, telling the story of a “hero” confronting a global crisis (one of the 17 SDGs), with blockchain as the “tool” they wield for change.
Winners for the 17 SDGs Challenge:
- 1st Place: Grand Social Impact Award 🥇 EthicHub
- 2nd Place: Outstanding Social Innovation Award 🥈 Plastic Odyssey
- 3rd Place: Emerging Impact Award 🥉 ResearchHub
Rising Star Awards (top 10 projects, in no specific order):
- Wavy Health
- LAKE (LAK3)
- KulaDAO
- erable°
- arkreen
- UCO Network
- Edu3Labs
Web3 Oscar Awards: Honouring Leaders in Blockchain for Social Good
Coinciding with the hackathon’s Demo Day on November 11, the BGA Web3 Oscar Award recognizes individual contributions to blockchain for social good across three categories, with up to 7 total winners.
Each category highlights individual efforts aligning with BGA’s mission.
The Collaboration Bridge Award honours individuals who have played a vital role in guiding the strategic direction of the Blockchain for Good Alliance (BGA). This year’s recipients are:
- Harn, CEO of Trigger Asset Management
- Mariana de la Roche Wills from INATBA (International Association for Trusted Blockchain Applications) and de la Roche W. Consulting
The Public Welfare Contribution Award celebrates individuals who have harnessed #BlockchainForGood. This award was presented to:
- BreeAnne Yek, Consultant at The Verdant Room
- Milica Dimitrijevic from Positiveblockchain.io
These individuals have demonstrated remarkable dedication, guidance, and pioneering work, significantly advancing the mission of the Blockchain for Good Alliance (BGA) in promoting sustainable development through blockchain technology.
In her closing remarks, Helen Liu, Co-founder and COO of Bybit and founder of BGA, explained how blockchain can bring people together to make a real difference worldwide. Her vision for leveraging blockchain to create worldwide impact was both inspiring and forward-thinking.
About Blockchain for Good Alliance (BGA)
The Blockchain for Good Alliance (BGA) is a long term collaborative non-profit initiative with key partners with the main aim to contribute to societal good by using blockchain technology to solve real world problems. By convening leaders, innovators, and organisations from across the blockchain community, BGA seeks to drive innovation, collaboration, and action towards a more sustainable and equitable world.
For more information
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.blockchainforgood.xyz
Twitter: www.twitter.com/chainforgood
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Fintech PR
Volante Technologies launches real-time payments intelligence solution for financial institutions
Volante Payments Intelligence gives all stakeholders a deep, accurate assessment of business performance, driving increased operational efficiency, time-to-market, internal innovation, and business growth
NEW YORK, Nov. 14, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Volante Technologies, the global leader in Payments as a Service (PaaS), today announced the launch of Volante Payments Intelligence, a powerful new solution that offers financial institutions unparalleled visibility and operational control over their payments business. A modular component of the Volante Payments Platform, the solution enables banks to better understand their payments operations, simplifying decision-making while improving business performance.
Volante Payments Intelligence addresses the increasing volume and complexity of the payments landscape, driven by the proliferation of real-time payments, the adoption of ISO 20022, and the digitization of payment flows. The new offering harnesses historical and real-time payments data, delivering actionable intelligence that helps banks strategically plan, optimize operational efficiency, and accurately track performance.
As noted in the 2024 Corporate Banking IT Pressures & Priorities report from Celent, 60% of banks plan to increase migration of business-critical applications to the cloud by the end of 2025. Payments modernization now ranks as a top priority for corporate banks globally, signifying the need for solutions that provide intelligence across stakeholder viewpoints, streamline modernization efforts, and simplify operations.
“In a world where the volume and complexity of payments is increasing, operational resilience and efficiency are more important than ever. Managing through this requires banks to have instant insight into payment flows, operational performance, and the ability to quickly address issues,” said Gareth Lodge, Principal Analyst at Celent.
Volante Payments Intelligence reduces the time banks spend on manual reporting and allows them to prioritize operational efforts more effectively, staying ahead of regulatory demands. With enhanced observability, users can achieve more precise performance tracking, improving their ability to mitigate risks and adapt to market changes.
As financial institutions navigate an increasingly regulated environment, Volante Payments Intelligence offers critical tools to support resilience and compliance. The solution’s integration into existing systems and ease of deployment in private or hybrid cloud environments or as part of Volante’s PaaS offering ensures that institutions can start seeing results immediately.
“We developed Volante Payments Intelligence as a transformative solution, crafted in close collaboration with a diverse range of our customers to address a critical gap no other platform could fill: Delivering actionable, measurable, and personalized business intelligence in real-time,” said Deepak Gupta, EVP, Product, Engineering & Services, Volante Technologies.
“Payments Intelligence doesn’t just bridge the shortcomings of existing intelligence solutions; it redefines what business intelligence can achieve, empowering Volante customers, from small enterprises to global institutions, to unlock new heights in their operational efficiency and strategic growth. This continues Volante’s track record of, and our valued commitment to, driving time-to-market speed, innovation, and business growth for our customers,” concluded Gupta.
Volante plans to continue its innovation drive within Payments Intelligence through the addition of advanced dashboards to provide operators, managers, and executives with a more complete view of their payments business. By adding exception management, payment controls, and new AI-driven capabilities, financial institutions will be able to monitor and identify market dynamics more effectively.
For a deeper dive or to schedule a demo, visit volantetech.com/payments-intelligence.
On behalf of Volante Technologies:
Americas
Julian Byrne
anthonyBarnum
Public Relations
Tel. +1 (512) 665-9258
[email protected]
EMEA
Assyria Graves
Hard Numbers
Tel: +447507870214
[email protected]
[email protected]
About Volante Technologies
Volante Technologies is the trusted cloud payments modernization partner to financial businesses worldwide, giving them the freedom to evolve and innovate at record speed. Real-time native, API enabled, and ISO 20022 fluent, Volante’s Payments as a Service and underlying low-code platform process millions of mission-critical transactions and trillions in value daily. Volante’s customers include four of the top five global corporate banks, seven of the top ten U.S. banks, and two of the world’s largest card networks. Learn more at www.volantetech.com and linkedin.com/company/volante-technologies.
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View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/volante-technologies-launches-real-time-payments-intelligence-solution-for-financial-institutions-302303540.html
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