Michelle Bowes

From time to time at Dawes we receive a phone call from a broker with the following enquiry:
“My client would like to add his 22 year old daughter as an additional driver on the policy for his Maserati Quattroporte. He taught her to drive himself and assures me she’s an excellent driver with a clean record.”

If you’re on a budget this Christmas, these 12 budget-friendly Christmas meal and entertaining ideas will put a smile on everyone's dial without burning a hole in your pocket. Because remember: The true spirit of Christmas is about friends and family getting together and celebrating, not about how much you spend.

Underscored by our quest for continuous improvement and innovation, PPS Mutual has made a number of changes to our medical and financial underwriting requirements in order to optimise our Member experience.

A million dollars is a figure that’s often cited as the amount you need to retire. But while $1 million doesn’t go as far as it used to – it only goes slightly above the median house price in Sydney1 – for many people it still sounds like an impossibly large amount of money to save.

Financial wellness describes how we evaluate our finances and cope with any related stress. It can be a significant factor that affects our overall psychological wellbeing.
AMP’s recent financial wellness research found three financial habits that people who are financially secure have in common:
They save money regularly
They pay off their credit card debt
They avoid using layby and buy now, pay later (BNPL) services.

You may be aware that we’re in the midst of a hard insurance market, with premiums across most types of insurance increasing and for some businesses, finding adequate insurance cover has become more difficult.
But for those outside the insurance industry, the way insurance pricing works can be something of a mystery.
If your business circumstances haven’t changed and you’ve not made a claim, it can be a shock to discover you could have to pay significantly more for insurance at renewal.

The Federal Government’s Superannuation Early Release Scheme allows people financially affected by COVID-19 (coronavirus) to access up to $20,000 of their super has provided some Australians with a short-term financial lifeline.
But, as is sometimes the case, short-term gain can cause long-term pain, and withdrawing money from your retirement savings now could have a negative impact on your finances down the track.

It is with great interest that we have been watching the outcome of a market study undertaken by the UK’s financial regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), into the so-called ‘loyalty penalty’ applied by some home and motor insurers when it comes to renewal pricing.

Circumstances change, and change can be unpredictable. These lessons have certainly been driven home in 2020. The idea insurance cover can automatically rollover at renewal is not always correct.

Interest-free credit cards have landed in Australia, with NAB and Commonwealth Bank each launching their own version. We take a closer look at how they work and whether they’re really as cheap as they sound.

Along with accidental damage, weather-related damage accounts for the most significant proportion of claims among ARGIS farm insurance policyholders.

The delayed 2020-2021 Federal Budget was handed down by the Treasurer earlier this week, with tax cuts, support for new jobs, and housing and welfare boosts among the proposals. We outline the key measures below to help you understand how the proposed changes could affect your personal budget.

The rise and rise of content marketing is leading to increasing numbers of journalists looking to get in on this new world of work. The good news is that if you can write well, you can write content. But there are some key differences between journalism that your content clients will expect you to know.