The Post Office says that a failure to purchase insurance has put at risk losing belongings worth a total of £12 billion.

This situation exists despite the fact that the average suitcase contains valuables worth £1,133 and a recent statistic proves that over 10% of people have experienced baggage delays in the last three years.

So the Post Office is bemused why over 20% of travellers do not take out any insurance for their holidays. So Post Office Travel Insurance has teamed up with LA stylist Neil Rodgers to give tips to those 30 million people who are worried their bags won’t arrive at their destination when they do.

The Post Office don’t elaborate why an LA stylist is an expert on baggage loss, or travel tips, but Mr Rodgers recommends ‘emergency’ items to be kept in your hand luggage should include three pairs of underwear and toothpaste. This ensures you have the essentials if luggage is delayed, or lost.

This doesn’t quite tally with a money-saving expert who recently recommended that the best way to beat the budget airlines at their own game was to forget check-in luggage and literally ‘wear’ everything you needed for a holiday. Quite what the cabin crew would make of a person wearing all their underwear, trousers and tops, plus coats, plus pockets bulging with their cosmetics, remains to be seen, but it does raise issues about passenger safety. Not only might that person suffer in a stuffy cabin, but in an emergency, trying to evacuate an aircraft packed full of Michelin-men sized passengers, doesn’t bear thinking about.

But Mr Rodgers is not shy when it comes to the matter of travel insurance, thankfully for the Post Office, who trill that:
“He says that making sure consumers have proper travel insurance is essential as many travel insurance policies will compensate for goods that go astray. He reminds that it may be necessary to purchase extra travel insurance cover if packing something particularly expensive and that most travel insurance providers will not replace old items for new.”

So there you are then. Thank goodness the travelling public have an LA stylist who’s only too happy to share his travel insurance tips.

And head of Post Office Travel Insurance, Rachael Croft, adds he advices as well:
“…if found on a holiday with nothing to wear, keep all the receipts of items bought. Post Office Travel Insurance will pay out up to £250 if your belongings are lost for more than 12 hours on the outward journey. The Post Office also provides travel insurance cover to the value of £1,500, for holiday belongings.”

So take note, heed the words of LA stylist Neil Rodgers and pack those three pairs of underpants in your hand luggage.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

Research from the Post Office reveals that UK holiday makers are particularly savvy when it comes to getting the most for their holiday money. It also suggests that Bulgaria it a top choice for cost-conscious tourists and that despite using the stronger euro, Spain is still a popular destination

The findings, which are part of the Post Office’s Holiday Cost Barometer, show that almost half of UK tourists are looking for ways to reduce their holiday costs and get more for their travel money. And the measures they take include eating out less, buying fewer drinks, visiting fewer attractions and doing less sightseeing.

What’s more, the performance of the pound against other world currencies is likely to have a big impact upon future holiday planning. The euro remains volatile on a daily basis, which means that non-eurozone countries are attracting attention because the pound goes further. The Post Office cite the example of Bulgaria, where an average bottle of lager costs only 98 pence and a meal out can be still bought for a reasonable amount of money.

One country holding up well within the eurozone is Spain, which was highlighted by the Post Office as still being able to offer the tourist value for money. Spain came second in the annual foreign currency holiday costs survey. The Post Office research showed that a basket of ten essential holiday items, including sun cream, drinks and meals out, set tourists back just £53.51 of their travel money.

But many of the other countries within the eurozone, including France, Italy and Portugal, were suffering because of the fluctuating euro which not only had impacted upon holidays for the season just passed, but were also effecting future holiday planning for the next season.

A Post Office spokesperson Said:
“Our research revealed that some UK tourists are thinking more carefully about buying foreign currency in advance when rates are better – but the amount lost by leaving it late still adds up to a tremendous waste of hard-earned money. Families who want to stick to a budget should consider putting their cash on a prepaid card, so that they can track their expenditure.”

Guest Article by Neil Camp

The Post Office has launched new international bank to bank foreign exchange rate money transfers offering 0% commission, competitive rates, no hidden fees and the ability to fix foreign exchange rates for up to a year.

The new Post Office Overseas Property Money Transfer foreign exchange service enables customers to make international bank to bank money transfers. It offers competitive foreign currency exchange rates, with 0% commission and no hidden charges. The service reimburses customers for any charges that the destination bank may impose and anyone needing to transfer money to an overseas bank account can benefit from the online service.

Sarah Munro, Post Office head of money transfers, said: “Until now, many users of international bank to bank money transfer services have found it to be an expensive business, with limited options for small transfers in foreign currency. They have often been unable to capitalise on the great foreign exchange rates offered by foreign currency specialists because they weren’t buying in bulk. And they were also at the mercy of volatile foreign currency markets, making it harder to get the most from their money.

“The Post Office Overseas Property Money Transfer service offers customers the ability to fix at a competitive foreign exchange rate, giving them peace of mind for up to a year, which is a real advantage in current markets. We calculate that with 0% commission and our competitive foreign exchange rates we will be saving customers a serious amount of money if they’ve just sold their house or are paying a deposit on a new property.”

The Post Office is already a major player in the foreign currency exchange sector, boasting a service online, or through its branches. Called Travel Money, it claims to be the best foreign exchange provider, offering 0% commission, over 70 foreign currencies, home delivery or collect in branch, and, free home delivery on orders over £500.

And for two years, the Post Office has been voted the best foreign exchange company at the British Travel Awards (BTA).

The Post Office is also a provider of the Travel Money Card (TMC) which is one of the easiest and safest ways of taking your money abroad. There’s no purchase fee and it can be used in millions of shops and restaurants worldwide.

Buy a euro, US Dollar, or Sterling TMC, and benefit, say the Post Office, from:

• convenience – unlike travellers cheques you don’t need ID to make a purchase or withdraw money;
• flexibility – withdraw cash 24/7 from millions of ATM machines worldwide;
• security – completely separate from your bank account, helping to protect your identity;
• control – load the card from £50 – £2,500 and top up by phone, or in a branch;
• immediate help – if your card is lost or stolen your money is protected; a replacement card4 can be requested 24/7.

Guest Article by Neil Camp