Credit Cards

Housing-credit woes spur calls for more federal regulation (AP)

AP - A heavier federal hand is reaching into American life as politicians in both parties demand an overhaul of government financial regulation and more protection for homeowners in the face of mortgage woes and a weakening economy.

Who says little discounts here and there don't eventually add up to much as you do your best to get the most affordable auto insurance rates that won't leave you compromised? They do help a lot and I'll show you a few things that will help you save money here and there on your policy. Here we go...

1. Being part of associations, especially the big ones, will get you discounts on your auto insurance. Insurers give these associations group discounts in the hope that they will in that one move attract many of their members to buy an auto insurance policy with them. Bearing this in mind, you'll do well to see if there are good discounts with any association you're part of.

2. The difference in the cost of insuring comparably priced cars could be very huge. Therefore, have this in your mind when you go to buy your next car. Avoid any car that has a high theft rate and/or a bad crash rating. Furthermore, it will also cost you more if a car costs a lot to fix or repair. With a little diligence you can avoid buying a car that will cost you thousands in extra premiums over a few years.

3. A car with a high safety rating will attract cheaper rates than one with a poor rating all other things being equal. Opt for cars that have features that increase safety. Such features attract a good discount. Your agent can give you a list of features that will get you a discount with your insurance provider.

4. Doing thorough research is crucial if you want to get the best rates for your profile. The internet is there to help you do extensive and fast research. Request for as many auto insurance quotes as you can. The task of filling the forms is truly simple and requires very little time. Just see yourself realizing savings of several hundred dollars and you'll realize how smart the whole sacrifice is.

Here are my favorite pages for auto insurance quotes...

Auto Insurance Quotes

InsureMe Auto Insurance Quotes

Publishers can get unique versions of my articles by following any of the links above. Click on "To Use My Articles" when you get to my site.

Chimezirim Odimba writes on insurance.

posted by fdwvsmr66464 @ 8:21 PM 0 comments

Quake shakes up iReporters

If you are new to merchant accounts and the whole ecommerce scene, you are probably confused. I know I was when I started. You start hearing terms like merchant accounts, payment gateways, discount rates, miscellaneous fees, etc. Once I saw the whole puzzle, however, I started to make sense of the pieces. Let's take a very broad look together.

There are three main pieces to an ecommerce site: the website and shopping cart, a payment gateway, and a merchant account. The website and shopping cart allows people to shop and place things in their virtual cart. It gives them the information they need to make a purchase. That's the easy part to understand. The hard part comes when we start thinking about the things we don't see. This is especially true when it comes to the payment gateway and merchant account.

The payment gateway can be thought of as a broker and a bouncer. They broker the deal between the customer, who is purchasing on your web site, and the merchant account. The payment gateway makes sure the transaction goes as planned. It makes sure all the necessary information is being obtained. If it isn't, then the payment gateway puts its bouncer clothes on and sends you packing. The payment gateway handles the transaction.

The merchant account can be thought of as the banker. They are the one who interfaces with the credit card being presented and the billing that needs to happen. They make sure that the buy gets billed and you get paid. I like the banker. Now, because the merchant account makes this transaction happen, they will want to be compensated for their service. The payment gateway is no different.

This is where the waters start to muddy even more. The fees that these services charge can be different from place to place. This can make comparison shopping very difficult. The various fees include: installation fees, discount rates, fixed transaction fees, miscellaneous fees, etc. It's enough to make your head spin. And getting all the pieces to work together can be a real pain. Sometimes getting an all-in-one service is the best way to go. But that all depends on what your requirement are. Now that you know the big picture, I think the pieces will be easier to understand.

Paul McGillivary has been a technologist for 15 years. In that time, Paul has experienced thousands of technology problems, challenges, and products. He brings this experience to bear in the articles that he presents.

Paul is also the owner of Loud Sign Internet Services. Loud Sign provides domain name register capabilities for individuals and businesses. If you need a domain for your website, LoudSign can help you cheaply and quickly hone in on a good domain name.

posted by fdwvsmr66464 @ 10:41 AM 0 comments