October Newsletter 2022

Product of the Month is...Home Insurance. When was the last time you checked your savings account? Lastly, a totally roar-some house for sale!

Product of the Month

Home Insurance

Home Insurance. We compare the market so you don’t have to saving you time and money. We use many of the UK’s leading insurance companies and have arranged special deals you won’t find anywhere else on the internet.

We offer a personal service so you will always be able to talk to us should you require help or assistance in anyway. Our aim is to give you the most appropriate policy at the best possible price.

We want to take the hassle out of buying household insurance.

Generous No Claims Discount
Buildings Insurance
Contents Insurance
Installments available
All Risk Items
Legal Expenses available with identity theft protection
24 hour claim lines
You may be interested in our home worker insurance policy

Nearly half of people ‘have not switched savings accounts in past five years’

Women are less likely to have switched their savings account than men, according to Hargreaves Lansdown.

Nearly half (49%) of people say they have not switched their savings account in the past five years, a survey has found.

Just over a third (35%) have never switched, according to the research from Hargreaves Lansdown.

Women are less likely to have switched than men, with 40% of women surveyed saying they have never switched, compared with 30% of men.

The most common reasons for not switching were perceptions that rates are too low to bother with, people trusting their existing bank and savers believing it would be too much hassle to switch, the survey of 2,000 people in September found.

Interest rate rises in recent months have led to some providers improving their savings rates.

Sarah Coles, senior personal finance analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown said: “It was easier to see why people didn’t think it was worth the effort of switching in previous years, when rates were so low, but rises in recent months have pushed up the most competitive rates to 2.75%.

“So if you’re earning next to nothing in a miserable high street savings account paying 0.4%, you could make almost seven times the interest by switching to the most competitive easy access rate on the market, or more than 11 times the interest by tying your money up for a year (4.55%).

“And this is only the half of it, because the longer you leave money languishing in an account, the lower the rate tends to drop. It’s one reason why we have £267.8 billion sitting in accounts paying no interest at all.”

Smaller and newer banks may offer more competitive rates and so “we need to consider how much interest we’re losing by choosing not to trust a bank on the grounds it doesn’t feel as familiar”, Ms Coles added.

More than a third (36%) of people are planning to switch in the next 12 months, the survey found.

Jurassic Park themed home goes on sale in Washington for $1.2 million with five life size dinosaurs

Totally roarsome! Jurassic Park superfan in Washington state prepares to sell movie-themed home he built over two years and rented out on Airbnb - complete with five life size animatronic dinosaurs and a hot tub

God creates dinosaurs. God destroys dinosaurs. God creates man. Man builds a house based on Jurassic Park.

The owners of an AirBnB based on the 1993 movie are now selling their creation for $1.3 million.

Todd Perkins finished building the three-bedroom, two-bathroom in a remote part of Washington State in Skamania County in mid-2021 but has already decided to put the unique property on the market.

Todd, together with his wife Jessica, built their prehistoric home over a period of two years before opening it up to guests on AirBnb.

Those brave enough to spend the night among the fearsome creatures can pay just over $500-a-night to stay over.

The home comes complete with its very own animatronic dinosaurs, including a lifelike and terrifying Tyrannosaurus rex that acts as a kind of guard to the entire compound.

All those visiting must pass through 'Jurassic Retreat' gates that resemble those from the Jurassic Park film.

Once on the other side, the landscape is almost jungle-like to resemble Isla Nublar, the fictional remote island where the movie was set.

A number of other creatures also reside close by including a Velociraptor that overlooks the home's hot tub.

Other resident lodgers are also included in the sale price, such as a Triceratops and Brontosaurus.

There is even a Jeep on the grounds, reminiscent of the vehicles used in the film

A number of other creatures also reside close by including a Velociraptor that overlooks the home's hot tub

Current owner Todd Perkins built the home after his love for dinosaurs started when he was five-years-old and wanted to bring the creatures back to life

Inside, there are a number of dinosaur-inspired touches including artwork on the walls

There are some neatly frames pieces of artwork that hints at the DNA of dinosaurs nearby

The Jurassic Park theme appears to be subtle throughout the home and not too overdone

Todd, who described himself as a business owner and entrepreneur, said that he loved dinosaurs growing up and that was the inspiration behind the design of his quirky home

Inside, there are a number of dinosaur-inspired touches from artwork on the walls as well as some dino footprints.

Todd, who described himself as a business owner and entrepreneur, said that he loved dinosaurs growing up and that was the inspiration behind the design of his quirky home.

'Everything was dinosaurs from the age of five, throughout my childhood,' he told TriCity News.

Perkins helped design the dinosaurs' colouring and their postures with a manufacturer in China.

Each room in the house pays homage to characters from Jurassic Park, like Jeff Goldblum's Dr. Ian Malcolm.

One of the bedrooms is themed after palaeontologist Dr. Alan Grant, a main character in the first film played by Sam Neill.

Guests at the home will find the occasional dinosaur skull lying around

The kitchen of the home appears relatively normal apart from a 'Danger Do Not Enter' sign

All the kitchen cabinets need to be kept shut to prevent any hungry dinos from getting inside

AirBnb guests can currently stay for just over $500-a-night

Over a period of two years, Todd, with the help of wife, Jessica, built the retreat

The home has a particularly clean look and there is not too much film memorabilia

'We have a 75' TV where you can watch those movies and then look out the window and actually see dinosaurs while you're watching the movie in real life,' said Todd

The inspired decorations include a magnifying glass, his iconic hat and palaeontology tools like picks and axes.

'Those little details for me is what kind of ties it all together,' Todd said, although he notes the home was simply a tribute to the science fiction film and did not contain any exact replicas.

'We have a 75' TV where you can watch those movies and then look out the window and actually see dinosaurs while you're watching the movie in real life,' said Todd to KGW.

Todd and his wife don't live in prehistoric times permanently but in another home 200 miles east in Pasco with their 11-year-old son and 14-year-old daughter.

He explained to DailyMail.com his reasons for selling-up: 'I really enjoy the creative process of different projects/businesses. Having an idea and making it a reality is very exciting. I have a couple of new ideas bouncing around my head right now that I may want to pursue.

'The Jurassic Retreat is an amazing place and was super fun creating. I'm happy that our family and hundreds of other families have been able to experience the property this year as well. Hopefully the new owners will continue to operate the place as a short term rental property for years to come.'

The home is set in the middle of nowhere so there are plenty of games to enjoy while staying

One of the children's rooms has been decorated with some dinosaur footprints on the wall

The home has three bedrooms and two bathrooms