A Consuming Experience: finances

Showing posts with label finances. Show all posts

Saturday, 28 May 2011

Travel more cheaply on London public transport - online tool

Update: this blog post has been mentioned on the BBC site, thanks @TomSEdwards!

This online tool calculates the cheapest Transport for London ticket or Travel card for travel in Zones 1 and 2 by bus, Tube or DLR (Docklands Light Railway).

I created it based on data from the graph by University College researcher Neal Lathia (@neal_lathia). Neal Lathia's blog post summarises the 2011 research paper from which the data was derived, by N. Lathia, L. Capra on Mining Mobility Data to Minimise Travellers' Spending on Public Transport (links to abstract and paper are on his publications page).

I heard about this research via BBC News (Tom Edwards): consumers don't always buy the most cost-effective ticket or travelcard for their travel needs (surprise surprise) so hopefully my tool, based on that valuable research, will help some passengers.

Of course, as and when prices changes, the interactive decision tree might not be accurate anymore, but here's hoping that the researchers will keep updating their graph - if they produce a new graph when TfL change their fare prices, I'll update the tool too.

I produced the cheapest London public transport ticket or Travelcard calculator using the Interactive Decision Tree tool by Warren and Josh.

Thanks also to 24 Ways for their info on how to use Google App Engine to host the files and scripts (but note that there's an error on that page: the index.html file should be in the top level of the assets folder as shown in their diagram, not the top level of the app folder as they state).

Try the tool.

Friday, 30 April 2010

Calling 0845, 0800 phone numbers - tell Ofcom they should be inclusive / free!

UK comms regulator Ofcom are reviewing (full document) the rules on non-geographic calls services delivered to consumers using telephone numbers beginning with 03, 070, 08, 09 and 118 "to consider whether and if so how regulation might need to be adapted or reduced, in the interests of consumers. We want any reform to enhance (or at least preserve) the features consumers value, and encourage new services for the benefit of consumers."

As UK readers will know, if a UK user calls a non-geographic number from their mobile phone, e.g. 0845 or even supposedly freefone 0800 phone numbers, they'll get charged for it - and it doesn't come out of your free monthly call time allowance either. This consumer rip-off bugs me so much it was on my Christmas 2008 wishlist, and I've also blogged about an iPhone / Android app that helps you find non-geographical alternative numbers using the brilliant SayNoTo0870 site.

Ofcom now seek views from all interested parties, including consumers, about the main issues relating to non-geographic numbers, before developing detailed options and proposals. The responses will help them identify the issues and frame their thinking and approach to addressing so they "urge all respondents to be as full and frank as possible in responding to this call for inputs."

They've given a surprisingly short time-scale - people only have less than a month to get their views in to Ofcom. There's a contradiction in their webpage says the deadline for when the consultation closes is 30 May 2010, but the full paper says it's 28 May - so I'd get your views in by 28 May for luck.

So do get your blow in to Ofcom to influence their review - and tell Ofcom what you think, fully and frankly!

Wednesday, 28 October 2009

Students: save money - tips

This post isn't on technology, but has some tips which I think may help people going (back) to "school", so I'm posting them here.

These tips apply to all students, but are particularly aimed at people going back to study full time as a mature student, who may not know about all these tips - you want a career change, you've lost your job and decide to retrain, whatever the reason, as a fulltime student there are some key things you can do to save money given that you'll be on a tight budget with fees to pay and living expenses etc (the main focus is on the UK especially London):

Look out for general student discounts like (currently) Microsoft's student discounts on Windows and Office products (e.g. Windows 7 at £30 for UK students with valid ac.uk email addresses - but it's only until 11:59pm GMT on January 3rd, 2010 so grab a copy ASAP if you need it - see eligibility conditions). And similarly US students can get Windows 7 cheaply too.
Apply for a council tax discount or exemption - if you live alone or only with other full time students, you could be exempt altogether; but if you live with others e.g. non-student flatmates or partner, you can still get a discount - check out your council's website for details and (often) a downloadable form. Find your local authority.
(London) Apply for an 18+ student Oystercard. This gets you a very helpful 30% discount off a 7-day or longer travelcard for travel on the Tube, buses etc.

Extra tip: the card generally lasts until mid October of the next year. Apply ASAP because the discount starts as soon as you get the card. Some colleges are helpful and will validate you with London Underground online from the beginning of September even before you've arrived at college in person; some make you go through lots of painful red tape before they add you to their system, even as late as October.
If you get the card at the beginning of September, consider buying a travelcard for 2 weeks, then an annual one in mid-October to last you the rest of your year of eligibility. Prices usually go up around the beginning of the calendar year, so buying 1 year then 2 weeks the following year will be more expensive than 2 weeks + 1 year. Not much more, but everything counts.

Get an NUS Extra card. You have to order it online, then collect it in person from your local student union (they'll email you when it's ready, takes a couple of weeks on average). It costs £10 but entitles you to discounts at participating retailers.

A key one is Amazon, for (at the date of writing) a 5% discounts on books and certain other products up to a pretty decent cumulative total spend (but not on electronics unfortunately, though Apple, Philips, Comet offer a discount on those, and there's e.g. a 3 Mobile Broadband student offer).
A discount on Staples or Ryman stationery supplies may come in handy too. And Superdrug, Body Shop, Pizza Hut, Moss Bros, Warehouse, Topshop, Miss Selfridge, JJB Sport, Joe Browns, Firetrap, cinema tickets at Odeon, Ticketmaster gig tickets etc - see the NUS Extra page for details of all discounts.

(Added) Check with your college whether there are any special offers, e.g. many offer their students free or cheap anti-virus software to install on their own computers; cheap computer consumables; etc. You may have to hunt round your college website's student pages as they're not always obvious.

Friday, 10 July 2009

Google's tips: avoid money / financial scams

This Google blog post on how to steer clear of money scams seems very sensible, and is certainly timely.

There are too many spam emails and other fraudulent schemes trying to do people out of their cash over the internet, but too many people do get tricked by online or web "offers" and the like.

See also my write up and a fascinating video of a talk by Cambridge academic Dr Richard Clayton about how some of these criminals ply their trade: evil ways to make money on the internet (phishing, pharmaceuticals, cheap electronic gadgets, "high yield" investments / pyramid schemes, and, yes, fodder for Google Adsense ads).

Sunday, 13 July 2008

Reduce mobile phone bills when roaming: tips

"How to avoid the holiday mobile bill blues: Tips for using your mobile abroad" is a consumer guide published on 27 June 2008 by UK comms regulator Ofcom, with sensible tips on using your mobile if you're travelling outside the UK - and in particular on how to reduce your phone bills while you're roaming.

Ofcom's top 10 tips

Enable your mobile phone: Check with your mobile provider that your phone has been enabled to use abroad. Operators are obliged to provide this information to customers.
Check your handset: Check with your mobile provider that your handset will work in the country you are travelling to.
Check the prices before you leave: Contact your mobile provider to check your tariff before you travel to help avoid unexpectedly high bills.
Ensure you are getting the best deal: Check international packages offered by operators before you travel to ensure you are getting the best deal.
The pan European tariff only applies to voice calls: Remember that the pan European tariff (Eurotariff) which has helped to reduce the cost of calls, only applies to voice calls, not to texting and data downloads. It is available from all operators, across most European countries but is not available in Switzerland, Turkey or Croatia.
Check your bundles: Don’t assume that the price of calls made abroad are included in your bundled package.
Don’t forget voicemail: Remember that calling your voicemail from abroad can cost the same as making a call to the UK – check with your provider if in doubt. Unlike at home, you may be charged every time someone leaves a message on your voicemail . I f you want to avoid these charges, you can switch off your voicemail before you leave the UK.
Using mobile internet abroad: Be aware that when connecting to the internet via a mobile handset, dongle or data card (a portable modem which provides internet access via the 3G network) whilst abroad could cost significantly more than when using them at home.
The local SIM option: If you are out of the country for a long period time, it could be cheaper to buy a local SIM card that can be used in your handset or a local dongle.
Alert your operator immediately if your phone is lost or stolen: If your phone is lost or stolen when you are abroad remember that you could be liable for the cost of the calls made in that country. Make a note of the contact details of your operator before you travel to ensure that you can get in touch with them as soon as possible to report the loss.

There's a PDF version with the above tips and, in addition, contact numbers for UK network operators if your phone is lost or stolen while you're overseas.

Ofcom also provide info on what are your consumer rights against the mobile phone operators.

They've even produced a YouTube video!: