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The present global financial crisis will impact on every South African in some way or another. That’s why it is imperative now, more than ever before, to take the right decisions timeously to ensure that the effect of the crisis on you as an individual is kept to an absolute minimum.

The operative word is the ‘right’ decision, says Arnold van der Linde, Executive Chairman of the IntegriSure Insurance Group of Companies. He says many South Africans panic and take emotional decisions, eventually resulting in potentially disasterous consequences.

The economic panic comes shortly before the festive season, when one is normally more inclined to spend a little extra. This year, however, the emphasis is on saving.

Van der Linde expects South Africans to do their Christmas shopping much more selectively this year, and that there will be more ‘bargain hunters’.

Everyone will need to spend as little money as possible, without running the risk of exposing oneself to possible crises beyond one’s control.

The biggest mistake people make when times are tough, is to reduce their insurance. This way they ‘save’ a fair amount of money, but if something goes wrong, they could be ruined financially.

Some people decide to change their vehicle insurance from comprehensive to third party only. This is a recipe for disaster, because only one third of all vehicles on South Africa’s roads have comprehensive insurance.

“A few scenarios could ruin an uninsured person financially,” Van der Linde says:

• If you are uninsured and involved in a collision with another vehicle, you will be personally liable for the full damage to your and the other person’s vehicle. If, for instance, the other person’s vehicle is a very expensive model, it could even result in your having to sell your house in order to pay for the repair or replacement of both vehicles.
• It could also happen that your vehicle is written off by an uninsured person. If you are uninsured too, you will have to claim from the other person. This could result in a lengthy and expensive civil court case. If the other party has no assets, you will lose everything in any case.

Just think of the possible consequences if your house burns down while you are uninsured!

We’re all aware of the importance of saving money. But you have to save intelligently and not save yourself “into poverty”.

You can, for instance, save on your monthly insurance premium by installing a linked alarm system in your home or a tracking device in your car, or by requesting a bigger excess payment in case of a loss, or you could insure your vehicle, household contents and buildings all under one roof and negotiate an even bigger discount.

Van der Linde also recommends that you ensure that the information given to your insurance company is one hundred percent correct and updated. Information such as newly implemented safety measures could reduce your premium.

IntegriSure offers a FREE booklet with numerous hints on saving money on electricity, water, shopping and DIY. It can be obtained from IntegriSure by simply dialling 0860 055 055.

“With the free publication, Hints on Saving, we are pleased to make a modest contribution to the improvement of people’s living conditions in times of financial difficulty,” Van der Linde says.