Living abroad tips and hints for money savers

fatnan

Hi again,
Droopsnout, in answer to your question, the Scenic is still going strong, being used by my daughter. We now have a Citroen Berlingo, which we bought for 9,000 euros when it was 2 years old. It´s not posh, but it´s a great work horse, which is what we need now.

wearside_2

I have bought a Ford Focus here in Florida as the cost of renting a car for long periods, plus all the insurances makes it more cost effective after another winter or so! Having said that companies will not insure drivers without Florida Driving Licences and it took me ages to find one that did. Even so that one (Progressive), charged me $1150 for six months. I have not sorted out the premium with them for when it is standing on my driveway in the summertime. They said that my premium would be loaded until I built up a no claims bonus. Having said that, when I 'played around' online with the quote it was $40 more when I said I had a US Licence, so I gave up!!

It may be time to start thinking of renting out both the house and car during the period when we are back in the UK. Even a lowish rent would make the exercise more cost effective.

lesandflynny

Hello again everybody,

I wrote a really good and detailed reply and then my son switched off my link by mistake Drrrrr.

Anyway I wanted to thank 7dayw.end for the advice on nice areas.

I wanted to answer the question about language. We all speak some Spanish and can communicate slowly. However we are all in lessons just now. The children have been taught Spanish at their school for 2 years and me and hubby are at college on beginers + course (what a giggle). We wwill not be fluent when we arrive but we are committed to learning as much as we can. The children are young and will go to a Spanish school, they will be happy and make friends....this is the nature of children. They already have some Spanish friends and it is fascinating watching them communicate, there are many things in a childs world which are universal so communication is often in sign, actions, play etc. I have every confidence they will thrive and achieve their full potential in the Spainish system just as they would in the english. Perhaps even more having more time and attention from their parents. This is one of our main reasons for moving away from our hectic schedual! Optimism, enthusiasm, sound planning and guts will see us through... We will pull together when times are tough just as we would anywhere. No it won't be all plain sailing but I prefer to talk about the positives, the power of our minds is amazing,

I too have been researching cars. You can buy LHD cars from specialist dealers in the UK but to be honest I find ebay Spain far cheaper, of course you need to research and view first. You can locate cars within so many kilometers of where you live on ebay enabling you to view before bidding. Also, there are ex pats on ebay uk selling LHD too. I have not bought yet so cannot give feedback on my experience but I have bought other things of ebay spain with no problems.

Other moneysaving tips for Spain - use liverpool victoria credit card to pay for things, pay off full amount at the end of the month using an online english account, perhaps the one your IB or pension is paid into and they charge no uplift and you get a better exchange rate. Obviously this is no good where you need cash. The nationwide is also another card that does this worldwide. You do need to apply from a uk address though.

Use carjet.com for carhire. Always the cheapest and most reliable since I have been visiting. My friend did have one bad experience though but this has been outweighed by the rest of our experiences.

Cajamar bank are now offering accounts with no annual charges what so ever. They are a good bank and are accessible inland and online. They do, or did, commission free exchange for account holders and often offer a good rate. Not as good as the credit card but we all need cash! I kind of begruge paying 60 or 70 euros a year when I am used to free banking.

Hey, does anybody know if you can get incapacity benefit if you live in Spain as long as you are not in receipt of pension or other income? Do you not need an english address?

Nice to chat, keep the advice coming.

droopsnout

Lesandflynny, you should contact the DWP in Newcastle to establish rights to benefits abroad. Your local office can also give you a booklet on this sort of thing.

I admire your optimism, and hope things work out for you and the children.

droopsnout

fatnan wrote:

Hi again,
Droopsnout, in answer to your question, the Scenic is still going strong, being used by my daughter. We now have a Citroen Berlingo, which we bought for 9,000 euros when it was 2 years old. It´s not posh, but it´s a great work horse, which is what we need now.

Sounds a good buy. It's a practical vehicle, as you say. We'll be looking for a replacement car 12 months from now. Always interested in everyday user opinions - as opposed to those on Top Gear, cos those guys are on another planet, IMHO.

Mrs_pbradley936

Wearside hire a car from Alamo. Get an economy agreement with US Airtours before you go and then if you want you can upgrade. If you do not have one already get a US credit card (you will have to lodge about $5000 with the bank because you will not have a Social security number) BUT treat it as having money on deposit - which it is and they only touch it if you fall behind with your payments. After three years they give your money back plus interest and let you run the card as a credit card. Last year we had a Pacifica for $15 a day.

seven-day-weekend

lesandflynny wrote:

Hello again everybody,

.

Hey, does anybody know if you can get incapacity benefit if you live in Spain as long as you are not in receipt of pension or other income? Do you not need an english address?

Nice to chat, keep the advice coming.

My husband receives IB in Spain (he was receiving it in the UK before we came), and he also gets his teacher's pension. He is registered at our Spanish address and the IB is dealt with by The Pension Service at Tyneview Park, Newcastle and the phone number is 0191 218 7647. This is the office that deals with non-UK residents.

He was also sent a form E121 which, once registered with the Spanish Seguridad Social, entitles him to free healthcare in Spain for as long as he is on the benefit.

Hope this helps.

wearside_2

pbradley936 wrote:

Wearside hire a car from Alamo. Get an economy agreement with US Airtours before you go and then if you want you can upgrade. If you do not have one already get a US credit card (you will have to lodge about $5000 with the bank because you will not have a Social security number) BUT treat it as having money on deposit - which it is and they only touch it if you fall behind with your payments. After three years they give your money back plus interest and let you run the card as a credit card. Last year we had a Pacifica for $15 a day.

Pbradley, I obviously spoke to the wrong people at Alamo when I queried about long term rentals. I was told maximum of 28 days then return the car/rebook and leave with the same car if no faults. This worked out at £30 per day including CDW insurance. Obviously this figure is unrealistic which is why we have now bought a car of our own which will pay for itself in time.

I cannot get a US credit card because of the lack of SSN. I will however speak to our bank (Suntrust) on Monday and see what they say about the situation!

Mrs_pbradley936

We have Suntrust as well, you have to go in and see a customer advisor. With the car if you present a US credit card most of the insurance is covered. OR you can decline the CDW you need not be afraid of doing that if you are a safe driver. All it means is that if you do damage the car and no one else is involved you pay for it. You are still insured for personal injury and third party claims and of course if some hits you their insurance pays. Another thing which drops the insurance is to have just one of you on the policy. I just looked at our paper work and we have paid US Airtours £460 for an economy car with Alamo for 87 days. We will upgrade when we get there depending on what they have. You do have to take the car back every so often because after so long it legally becomes a lease and not a rental agreement. AND you must never arrive during a holiday period or forget a good deal with the car. You should arrive mid week well before or well after Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year, Martin Luther King Day in fact any time they can extend the weekend.

Mrs_pbradley936

One more thing the reason we upgrade when in the USA is because we have been going there for 20 odd years and at one time they did not have economy cars. Everything they had was far from economy so we got a mid range car for an economy price. Now they do have smaller cars but if you get there and they have a whole car park full (because it is not a holiday weekend) they invite you to take your pick!