Kalixa Pay - helping you to manage your finances at home or away!

There is no getting away from the fact that many of us are struggling to manage our finances in this economic climate. Times are hard with prices in supermarkets going up every week.  The price of petrol and our household fuel bills are at an all time high.  Our hard earned cash has never been so stretched.  With a few changes we can however regain control of our bank balance and get our budgets back on track.

The Kalixa Pay prepaid MasterCard® is a pay as you go card which can help you stick to a monthly spending budget safely and easily.  You simply transfer the money you wish to spend for the week or month onto the card, and use it instead of your usual debit card.  It is a simple, secure and effective payment option  for online or in store purchases, helping you keep track of what you are spending.  It is a great solution for families trying to manage their finances in the New Year.

The benefits of using Kalixa Pay to help you budget are:

• You receive a free email or SMS alert every time you use your card (for purchases over £5) detailing what you have spent and your updated account balance ensuring you always keep on track of your spending.
• The account includes an online portal (eWallet) so you can keep an eye on where your money is going how much is left to spend. 
• The card has no overdraft facility so you can rest assured that you cannot exceed the amount pre-paid onto the card. This means you will not be stung by expensive unexpected overdraft charges.
• Your Kalixa Pay account is not linked to your main bank account, so even if the worst was to happen and your card is cloned or stolen, you will not lose your entire bank balance.
• Sticking to your budget will definitely help to improve your finances!  With the Kalixa Pay card, when the money's gone, it's gone, so you won't be tempted to overspend.

The Kalixa Pay prepaid MasterCard® also gives you a simple solution to spending when abroad. With zero foreign exchange fees and the most competitive rates on the market, it allows you to top up with one currency and spend in any other giving you total flexibility and convenience.  Perfect for both business or pleasure trips and a great way for families to manage their money when holidaying abroad.

This simple payment solution is perfect if you need multiple currencies or frequently travel to different locations. Kalixa Pay enables you to pay securely in any currency, both online and at over 36 million locations worldwide, eliminating the hassle of carrying and exchanging cash. Simply top up your card and you are ready to go. If you do need cash on your travels you can also use your Kalixa Pay card to withdraw your money at over 1.2 million ATM’s worldwide. (International ATM Fee - £2.25)

Once your trip is over, if there is money left on your card you do not have to worry about the exchange rates  or charges involved in converting your money back to Pounds Sterling. You can just continue using your card once you are back home - no fees, no hassle. 

The free SMS alerts detail exactly what you are spending allowing you to make your holiday spends go further and keep track of how much you are using to buy souvenirs, ice-creams, sun cream or meals out! Especially useful if you are one of the 10% of holidaymakers who admit to recklessly spending all their holiday money within 48 hours of arriving at their destination!

I really like the idea of the Kalixa Pay cards for older children, allowing them to go out shopping independently with a budget they can't exceed.  You can give them a clothes budget or the money for a day out already pre-paid onto the card.  This way, they won't be carrying large sums of cash and you, as a parent, can keep tabs on what they are spending.  It gives youngsters the opportunity to learn about budgeting and gives them independence, while you keep hold of the purse strings.  It is also a simple way to help a child who is away at university, by topping the card up weekly for grocery shopping or other expenses.  Again it allows them to learn how to manage money in the real world, without the danger of going over budget.  

The Kalixa Pay prepaid MasterCard, including the eWallet service, is available for a one-off payment of £6.95.

For more information and to register for your Kalixa Pay MasterCard visit www.kalixa.com/Pay.

This post is a PR collaboration.

New Year, new budget: move away from old habits and start saving money!

They come around every January, those brief moments of virtue and determination known as New Year’s Resolutions. They don't always pan out, but we use them to give ourselves ideas of what we need to achieve in the New Year. If your resolutions were to spend less money in 2014, here are a few ways you can make that happen.
 

Set Goals and Be Specific
At the beginning of the year, many people decide on a money-saving goal. That goal needs to be specific, however. Look at your monthly bills and decide how much you want to set aside each month, whether it's to add to your savings, pay off your debts, or spend on something special. Once you've set your goal, it's time to start thinking about the strategies you can employ to achieve them.

Establish Money Management Time
One of the reasons that many people fail to achieve their money-saving goals is that they don't allow themselves the time they need to think about their finances. For many people, saving is something that only happens in times of crisis. One way to get around this problem is to establish a certain amount of time each week as time to look at financial information. Save receipts, bills and other financial documents to look over during this time. You'll keep on top of your financial situation more easily this way and be able to make the right decisions to reach your goals.

Eliminate One-use Purchases
One type of expense that's easy to eliminate is the one-use purchase. These items, which don't contribute any lasting value to your household, can be cut out with a little planning. Carry an insulated flask of coffee to work instead of buying from coffee shops, or fill a bottle with tap water instead of buying expensive bottled water. Try substituting washable microfiber towels for paper kitchen roll. In general, anything you buy in a single-use package is going to be much more expensive over the long term than a more durable solution.

Cut Your Energy Costs
With gas and electricity prices rising all the time, getting your energy use under control is a good way to save money. It's also good for the environment, so you'll feel even better about yourself when you achieve it. One easy way to cut down on the amount of money you waste on energy is to replace outdated incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent or LED bulbs. It might seem like you're saving money by buying old-fashioned bulbs, but it's a false economy: not only are they much more expensive to run, they don't last nearly as long as their more modern counterparts.

Plan Your Food Shopping
Supermarkets and other retailers rely on impulse purchases and great-seeming offers to get customers into the shop and spending money. We see the “buy one, get one free” label on a shelf and reach for the package, forgetting that we don't even want one of whatever it is we're buying, let alone two. Making a weekly meal plan and sticking to it will help you come out of the shop with only what you need. This isn't a small savings, either: some sources estimate that the average household wastes £500 a year on uneaten food.

Making the decision to save money is easy, but building the habits that support it can take a little work. The first few months of your new financial plan will require constant watchfulness to make sure that you don't fall back into old, inefficient ways of spending. However, like any good habit, once you get into the groove of planning ahead, keeping a watchful eye on your finances and buying only what you need, you'll wonder what you ever found difficult about it.

*This post is a PR Collaboration*