Monday, November 23, 2009

Compare Credit Card Interest Rates to Interest Rates Paid on Insurance Policies

Credit card interest rates remain stable on high, have you noticed? If you have been lucky enough to get a legitimate zero credit card interest rate for the next 12 months then count yourself among the more fortunate among us because the rest of us are still paying at least 8% and higher.

How come financial institutions can keep the interest rate we pay on credit cards at a steady high rate of interest while managing to pay us such a pittance on our savings money? Perhaps this is another reason why we have all been duped into living on our credit cards rather than striving to put more savings into the bank. None of us feel that it's worth saving our 'real' money because it's considered not good enough to pay us a decent rate of interest on.

Here in Australia, once our money's in the bank they pay a pittance interest to us on it but loan it out to others at an astronomical rate of interest. I'm quite sure that the big four Australian banks weren't Robinson Crusoe in this practice but that still doesn't make it right, does it? Just because "everyone's doing it" or "that's the way it's always been done" still doesn't make it right. Immoral is immoral no matter which continent one is on. But the part that really, really bugs me, is that "WE the people" let them do this to us.

Our Governments, both Federal, State and Territory, colluded with them on the grounds that they needed to do this to remain stable and our elected officials believed them! There has been no statutory powers  put in place with any real incentives or 'big sticks' to monitor the big conglomerates here in Australia and make them behave with respect to our general population. So consequently we have all had to pay exorbitant interest rate charges and then our bank fees and charges again on top of that. Then they charge us all over again for keeping our account in their banks.

I mean, it's so sad and bad it's almost funny. Ludicrous is the word that springs to mind.

Now if you are a holder of a term life insurance policy do you know what rate of interest they are paying you annually on that? If not, go and check it out now.

Are you really surprised? More likely you may never even thought too much about it in the past because you've never needed to. But now that "Crunch time" has arrived with a THUD, perhaps it's time to draw up the drawbridge and batten down the hatches.  If you are like me, as I suspect you probably are, then it's time to investigate cashing in that structured settlement policy if the cost to do so is not also going to be too exorbitant (but you can shop around for the best rates) and start negotiations with your financial institution to pay them out and then cut up their credit card. 

Once you become fully aware of the interest rate difference between what you are paying out each year to a credit card company or other financial institution, to what an insurance company is paying you on a term life insurance policy, then perhaps its time to say "Enough and no more!"

If you are more concerned with who or how you are going to be buried, then perhaps you could purchase your burial plot or cremation through your local Undertaker now? Many Funeral homes are now offering these facilities because people want to know where and how their bodies are going to be laid to rest or otherwise disposed off when they die. And doing this isn't going to shorten your life any because you can purchase years ahead. This solves your Funeral problem so you may as well enjoy your life insurance while you still have life and not give it away in interest payments to credit card institutions.


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