8 Tips for Home Insurance

No one likes paying for home insurance, but it's a necessary evil for most of us. This doesn't mean you have to pay through the nose for it though - try these 8 easy tips for cheaper home insurance from National Access Long Distance and see how much you could reduce your premiums by.

- Shop Around

By comparing prices from several insurance companies, you'll probably be able to reduce your premiums by a substantial amount. This may seem obvious, but research has shown that a surprisingly large proportion of people either just renew their current policy, or get only one or two quotes. Many insurance web sites will automatically compare dozens of policies for you, making this one of the easiest ways to reduce your insurance bill.

- Buy online

If you buy your policy online you can often get a discount of up to 20% on normal prices, because there are less administration costs involved and the savings can be passed on to you.

- Combine your buildings and contents policies

Many insurers will give you a discount if you take out both types of home insurance with them, and this usually works out cheaper than getting the two kinds of policies from different companies.

- Pay upfront

Although most insurers let you pay your premium in monthly instalments, many will charge interest for this. If you can afford to pay a full year's premium in advance, then this will work out cheaper in the long run.

- Don't claim for small amounts

Making many small claims can increase your insurance costs, as your insurer may see you as a greater risk and increase your premiums. You will also lose any no claims discount your policy has. Of course, you're entitled to claim for anything your policy covers, but ask yourself if making a small claim is really worth the hassle and possible future costs.

- Voluntary excess

This is related to the last point. Insurance policies feature something known as 'excess', which basically means that the policy won't pay out on claims below a certain value. On some policies, if you choose to raise your excess to a higher level, then your premiums will be lower.

- Increase your home security

Beefing up your home security with better door locks, window locks, outdoor lighting, and alarm systems can all result in lower premiums. Ask your insurer what you could do to get extra discounts.

- Reduce your cover

Many policies feature benefits that you might not need, such as cover for personal possessions while travelling, or 'free' legal advice. Look through your policy and see what parts of it you really need - by cutting your cover down to size you may be able to reduce your premium.

Contact National Access Long Distance to save money on your long distance bill today!

Your Dependable Landline

            Sixty-four percent of American households keep their landlines because of trust. We trust our landlines to be reliable, secure and safe.

            Based on electrical principals and often time piggy-backed with electrical delivery systems that reach every home and business, landlines are infinitely more reliable than their mobile counterparts. Even better, landlines continue to work even if the power goes out because they are hardwired into the grid. This is again the opposite of their cellphone counterparts. Hard wiring also ensures a clearer, crisper signal.

            All over the news lately, we find government agencies, mass-collecting cellphone data. The NSA may not be interested in the business you conduct, but there is no protection from government intrusion because cellphone conversations are radio signals and are not considered by most states or the federal government as private and secure. Is this what you want?  Do you feel comfortable for your conversations to be listened in on without your knowledge or permission? The question may be asked, what can I do to stop this or can the government really do this legally and get away with it? To keep eavesdropping at minimum, keep your landline.

            Landlines also add a layer of safety to our lives. In case of emergency, landlines interact more effectively with 911 operations than cellphones. Locations of an accident or medical emergency are more precise with landlines, saving time and lives.

            We trust our landlines to be reliable and secure and to keep us safe. This is why the landline will continue to be a lasting part of American society. If you want to trust what millions have trusted since 1877, and save money on your long distance bill, contact National Access Long Distance.

Family Safety Tips

National Access Long Distance presents Family Safety Tips!

Have a Plan

• Make sure your family has a plan for every type of emergency.
• Create mapped out scenarios and routes for each room of the house.
• Pick a meeting area for once the house is evacuated.
• Provide each family member with their own plan.

Build a Kit

• Create different kits for all different emergencies.  
• Research which emergencies are most common in your region and what would be needed for these.
• For hints and tips, visit www.redcross.org.

Suggestions to Include:

• Water
• Food
• Flashlight
• Candle
• Batteries
• First Aid Kit
• Tool Kit
• Hygiene Items
• Cell Phone and Chargers
• Radio
• Contact Information for Family Members
• Blankets, Pillows
• Map
• Cash

Stay Informed

• Make sure you are aware of weather during different seasons.
• Create a community or neighborhood weather watch so everyone is aware of emergencies.
• Download an app that alerts you of an emergency in your area.

Invest in a Landline

• Corded landlines work without power.
• When cell phone towers are jammed during emergencies, landlines are still able to make and take phone calls.
• Landlines give exact locations to the 911 dispatcher to increase accuracy and response time.

The Insurance Line

            No one chooses to be a victim of a natural disaster or other emergency situation. We can, however, plan to minimize our exposure. We try to prepare with backup plans and emergency safety kits.  We purchase insurance for our house, belongings and cars.  Houses are built with rooms for different natural disasters.  But we can’t prepare for everything.

A part of the preparation that can be forgotten is ensuring our landlines remain intact. The landline provides an insurance line.  When people are cutting off their landline service and purchasing insurance on every electronic device, they are forgetting that the landline is an insurance protection plan for their lives.

            Landlines are generally more effective than cellphones in emergencies. They are familiar to older household members and their use can be taught to younger children with ease. Landlines do not go down when the power goes out. Not all cellphone providers have E911 that directs your calls to a local response center; your call for help may be sent to a regional center for routing, costing precious moments.

            In May, 2013, the central region of Oklahoma experienced severe thunderstorms, flooding, and several devastating tornadoes. Large swaths of land were ruined by nature’s raw power. Directly affected cellphone towers were incapacitated and the sudden influx of calls for help jammed the remaining ones.  That and local emergency responders and the civilian leadership scrambled to find landlines to coordinate their efforts. Human lives hung in the balance.

            This is but one set of incidents of many. Citizens in the large cities and smaller remote areas of the country are already well aware of the importance of maintain a landline in case of an emergency. Despite increasing acceptance of wireless as the primary telephone, many people not living immediately in the very large metropolitan area maintain a landline as their lifeline.

            If disaster struck, would you be prepared?

            Keep your landline as your insurance plan and contact National Access Long Distance to save money on your long distance services.  

The Address of Your Emergency

No one is ever in a great position to deal with the dreaded and horrid inconveniences of an emergency. These sudden unforeseen crises (usually involving danger) require immediate action. During a time of emergency you would not want to trust to an unreliable source of help.  Cell phone or VOIP services are unreliable and not the phone you want to be using when there is any sort of emergency.

When an emergency occurs, you are full of panic, possibly unable to answer the questions the dispatcher is asking.  The question regarding your location comes up, do you know where you are?  What house are you at?  If it’s your own, you can probably provide it with little thought.  However, what if you are at your sibling’s or your child is the one on the phone because you are hurt.  A landline provides the address to the dispatcher, no need for the questions, they send help.

If you call 911 with a cell phone they find your location by using the cell towers and GPS services.  This can be inaccurate and timely, during a time when every second counts. If you live in an apartment complex, this impairs the accuracy even more with location of an area and not which floor.  While the emergency button on your cell phone is great, it only speeds up the process so much.

The emergency 911 services were created to save our lives and get us help; this process was made around the landline.  Cell phones came along much later and they are still refining this process.  Don’t let your emergency be part of the learning process; keep your loved ones safe with a landline.

Now when you are out on the road, the only option you have is the cell phone and in that situation it is a great to have that technology to assist you. But from the house or the office, why entrust your life or welfare to the parameters of technology for the sake of a so-called convenience?

Landlines are also easier to operate in the event of an emergency, especially for kids and senior citizens. Sure cost can be the biggest issue, but really can you put a price on your well-being? Besides, there are ways to help decrease current landline costs. To save money on the long distance portion of your landline phone, contact National Access Long Distance.

Who Is Listening in on your Cell Phone?

Most people seem to believe that the public broadcasting of an illegally intercepted cell phone conversation would be illegal.  However, the US Supreme Court has found that the First Amendment allows an illegally intercepted cell phone conversation to be shared with others when the conversation involves matters of significant public interest.  While your conversation may not be of significant public interest, it reminds us that people may be listening and taking our private information at any time. 

The Wall Street Journal has recently published allegations of the FBI being capable of remotely activating Android microphones.  While this can only be done under court orders, the capability is there and we should be aware.

All U.S. cell phone carriers are required, under Federal Communications Commission orders, to make it possible for police to locate cell phones calling 911.  This is because people with cell phones generally always carry their phone with them.  Something we forget is that the FCC regulations give the thriving market for selling personal information the exact locations at all times of more than 140 million people.  Knowing someone's location at all times adds a significant new twist to tracking information about people. 

"There are some things you don't mind other people knowing, but your location isn't one of them," said Gary Laden, a privacy program director for BBB Online, a Better Business Bureau subsidiary.

Services providers (like AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, and T-Mobile) collect data, but are not forthcoming in detailing exactly what they collect, the reasons they collect it, and their data retention policies.

Did you know that cellular phones use radio frequencies, which can be easily intercepted?  Eavesdroppers use simple devices to intercept the analog radio waves that carry wireless calls.  They can then listen to your private conversations, steal your credit card information and can even find out when you'll be on vacation to plan their evil deeds.

What is one of the greatest advantages of retaining a landline phone number?  The answer is: the security of your personal conversations. So, if you want to keep your cell phone private, choose to keep your landline.  Also, if you want to keep the cost of your landline down contact National Access Long Distance and save money on your long distance services.

Family Communication Needs

An important feature offered by landlines is the security of communication available to your family 24/7.  The power can be out or the cell phone misplaced, and you can still rely on the permanent landline. 

Every family can benefit from the availability, convenience and functions a landline phone offers the household.  It’s a fact that elderly residents mostly prefer owning a landline phone over a cell phone for the convenience.  Have you ever considered that they might be on to something? 

With the added threats in society, the landline provides an added safety factor to your household.  With a landline you can keep track of your children’s phone usage, who they are calling and how long they are talking.  You can make sure you also have a phone in case your cell phone is lost or stolen throughout the day.  A weight is lifted off your shoulders when you call your house phone and hear your child’s voice on the other line confirming that they are at home. 

Our family’s communications needs are important and their security is even more crucial to your peace of mind.  Maintaining a landline phone for your home will give you a great communication experience.  Don’t worry about a dropped call, poor signal strength or concern yourself with the battery life.  The landline phone is a time-tested piece of equipment that has proven itself over and over again.  Make sure your family recognizes its need for a safer house with the landline. 

Contact National Access Long Distance to save money on your long distance services.  

Your Family Wants Their Home Phone Back!

Could there be anything more important than the safety and security of our families.  Many would say nothing is more important and a landline is a way of providing protection.  With a landline home phone, the household is provided with not only stability, but a reliable way to contact people. 

Landlines are capable of working in times of crisis, like when the power goes out, or a natural disaster.  The home phone can work without power and does not rely on cell phone towers or radio waves.  When cell phone towers jam, trust your landline to get the call done.

Your family’s safety may not seem to depend on the landline, but when your family is at home, the landline is the more reliable option.  A cell phone is great for the road, for your teenager to contact you when over at a friend’s house.  However, what about when you want to check and make sure they are safe at home?  The responsibility of a cell phone for your children may be a larger one than you anticipated.  If they forget the cell phone at school and take the bus home, how are you able to know they have safely arrived?

In the occurrence of an emergency where the caller is unable to communicate, the 9-1-1 operator is still capable of sending emergency response service providers to the emergency location.  When dialing 9-1-1 from a landline, the system automatically reports the phone number and the address to a 9-1-1 dispatcher and the information is relayed to the emergency response team to ensure the quickest response time.  This is an important subject to take into consideration when making a decision that could affect ones family and household.  Many who live in condos or apartments face the added problem of the 9-1-1 response teams only locating the building, they cannot tell the exact number of the apartment or condo.

Some argue, cellular phones are cheaper and a more effective way to reach out, however what happens if there is an emergency where the caller must stay silent.  The landline allows the caller to be located without any assistance or speaking. However, if calling with a cell phone the emergency operator requires an address for fast response time.  At best, the 9-1-1 operator may receive a call back number and possible coordinates.

The average cost of having and maintaining a land line home phone, is around $25 a month for most families, what a small cost for the added protection.

Protect yourself and your loved ones with a landline.  Contact National Access Long Distance for affordable long distance services.

Everybody's Parachute!

Keeping your landline makes sure every family member or visitor is safely grounded.   With a landline you have a "go to resource” when a natural disaster or emergency occurs.  

Landlines have secure power, are easy to locate and usually aren't silent. Consider this:

• Landlines are never incapable of making a call due to cell tower volumes which can be compromised during power outages or civic emergencies.  
• You know exactly where your phone is every time you really need it. Imagine if someone was breaking into your house and you couldn't find your cell phone?
• Have you ever tried looking for your cell phone when it's changed to silent mode? Unless you remember exactly where you left it, you could be searching for hours. But not with a landline; it won’t slip under the couch pillow when on silent.

With a family phone, signal strength is never an issue. For some people, reception can be poor even in their own home. Sometimes you don't find this out until you switch carriers and then you are stuck with a spotty service or static on the line. But have you ever heard of that happening with a landline.

Many people in your home need to depend on a landline. Be it a visitor without a cell phone, a child or grandma, your landline has you covered - just like a parachute.