Deal of the Week

Eircom is facing some intense competition at the moment but in one area it continues to have a monopoly – landline connections. So it's good to see the company isn't taking advantage of that by upping prices, but instead is trying to win new customers by offering free line connections for people who sign up to Eircom at home, a potential saving of up to €121.93. The offer is open to residential accounts only and is available until the end of August.

Tip of the Week

If, like many people in the current economic climate, you have opted for a cheaper package holiday this year, it is worth bearing in mind you will have to take out insurance but you don't have to take the cover being offered by your travel agent. This can be much more expensive than insurance available if you shop around online at websites like Getcover.ie (currently offering a 10% summer discount) and Justcover.ie, even if your travel agent charges a fee for checking that your own insurance provides the necessary cover.

Bad Value of the Week

Vodafone recently wrote to customers telling them they had been signed up for Vodafone Connect Abroad Daily, the service which Vodafone says offers "great value" internet and email access abroad. The cost is a flat €14.58 per day's use in Europe and €30.38 in the rest of the world for up to 50 megabytes of download in 24 hours. That's enough to look at roughly 1,000 emails or 400 web pages daily. Unless you're Bill Gates, you're hardly going to need to read 1,000 emails in a single day so why pay such an high charge when the world is awash with cheap internet cafes?

Health Insurance

Male, aged 30, €35,000 annual benefit:

Non-smoker & 13-week deferred period: Irish Life €52.65pm*

Smoker & 13-week deferred period: Irish Life €64.81*

Non-smoker & 26-week deferred period: Friends First €32.16*

Smoker & 26-week deferred period: Friends First €36.60*

Female, aged 30, €35kpa benefit:

non-smoker & 13 week deferred period: Friends First €78.56pm*

smoker & 13 week deferred period: Irish Life €101.30 *

non-smoker & 26 week deferred period: Friends First €46.96 *

smoker & 26 week deferred period: Friends First: €53.63 *

* before tax relief.