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Is cutting up your credit card a sensible move?

Despite a worsening financial crisis, we are a nation that still loves to buy now and pay later. So is cutting up your credit card the correct response to these difficult times, asks John Cradden THE suggestion that you should cut up your credit card is usually reserved for those of us who have accumulated […]
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Car sharing clubs

By John Cradden Thursday September 09 2010 The costs and hassles of owning a car or two certainly add up. As well as the expense of buying them in the first place, you have to regularly stump up for fuel, insurance, motor tax, servicing and repairs, NCTs, cleaning, and parking fees. Cork city resident Laura […]
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Outwit the ATM thieves

Thursday September 09 2010 JUST when you thought you could let your guard down a little, some sneaky thieves are still looking over your shoulder. Following the rollout of the ‘chip and pin’ card system from 2007 and the installation of anti-skimming technology in most ATMs around the country, the problem of ATM and card […]
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How are your bank deposits protected?

As the Government extends its bank guarantee scheme until the end of the year, confusion persists over which deposits are protected and in which institutions, writes John Cradden Thursday September 02 2010 YOU may not have noticed, but the Government’s much-criticised bank guarantee scheme was extended recently. The scheme, which was launched in September 2008 […]
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A nation of happy campers

With the communal tent-fest that is the Electric Picnic just a week away, John Cradden offers a fool-proof guide to slumming it in The Great Outdoors It’s already that time of the year when tens of thousands of revellers are preparing to descend on the Laois countryside for Electric Picnic next weekend. But before all […]
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Is importing a used car from the UK still worth it?

Experts believe that it is still cheaper to import a second-hand car from the UK or the North, even taking VRT into account, but be careful you don’t pay over the odds, writes John Cradden IF you are one of the many thousands of motorists who sourced a used car from the UK in search […]
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Supermarket psychology

Supermarkets use clever psychology strategies to entice customers to spend more time on the floor, buy extra goods, and move quickly to checkouts at closing rime, writes John Cradden. Thursday August 26 2010 HAVE you ever found yourself muttering under your breath that you have to traipse almost all the way through your local supermarket […]
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Journey to the centre of the earth

Stephen MacNamara (far right) upon reaching ‘Game Over’ during hs last trip to the bottom of Krubera-Voronja Before their descent into the ‘underground Everest’, the deepest spot on the planet accessible to humans, JOHN CRADDEN talks to four Irish cavers for whom the only way is down WHILE THE rest of us are soaking up […]
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Make cash from your hidden assets

From renting out a parking space to making your garden available for use as a film set, many householders may be overlooking simple ways to earn a little bit extra, says John Cradden Thursday July 29 2010 IN the continuing search for ways to make a few extra bob, many householders may not realise that […]
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Save money at music festivals

FOR many music fans, this weekend marks the start of the Irish outdoor music festival season as the Oxegen 2010 extravaganza kicks off at Punchestown Racecourse in Co Kildare. These festivals can be great fun, but they can also be a lot like going on a full-blown holiday in terms of the preparation required. If […]
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