Side Topic: Caution in the time of swine flu

You must be overwhelmed with the amount of information that you receive from this swine flu outbreak. And why not? The Internet world is abuzz with blogs, online boards, twits, RSS, and feeds about this outbreak.

Some are informative like those from CNN, WHO, CDC. Others are amusing with blogs comparing the outbreak to Stephen King’s “The Stand” novel while others are just plain ridiculous, mouthing off conspiracy theories and doomsday scenarios.

I say, hold your horses. To guide and provide you with the facts, do refer to credible sources only. Please stop getting your information from websites that are not credible. For an initial list of credible sources, here are some websites that you can refer to for the latest update on the swine flu outbreak:

* CNN (Cable News Network)
* WHO (World Health Organization)
* WHO News on Twitter
* CDC (Centers for Disease and Prevention)
* Philippine Daily Inquirer
* GMA News
* DOH (Department of Health)
* ABS-CBN News

A 50% waive in my BPI annual fee

After two months of emailing BPI (see first post), it has finally given me a 50-percent waive of the annual fee of my BPI World Perks. This is quite significant as this means P1,250 savings on my part. Yes, the annual fee of BPI World Perks is P2,500, which is why I was hell-bent on getting the waive.

Here’s the email I received from BPI E-mail Banking Team.

Greetings from BPI Express Online!

We apologize for the delay in our reply. We have your request re-evaluated and we are pleased to inform you that 50% of the annual membership fee was already reversed. You may confirm this by checking on your next statement of account.

If you need further assistance or have other concerns, you may send us an e-mail at expressonline@bpi.com.ph.

Thank you for choosing to bank with us online!

The BPI E-mailbanking Team

Thank you for all who commented and gave their support and tips on how to waive the annual fee. May this experience be helpful to everyone who’s wanting to get a waive for their credit card annual fee.

As a final note, I know that many think that credit card holders are not entitled to any waive of annual fee and that the waive is merely a favor given by credit card companies. I do respect your views but I also believe that credit card holders have the right to demand for a waive. After all, credit card companies charge an average of 3.5% interest every month and the waive is but a small amount from their coffers.

Pinay and Money advocates taking charge of our personal finance and this includes saving money where it can. If this means, demanding the credit card company for a waive, then by all means, do so.

Side Topic: Prevent getting swine flu (or any flu)

By now, you have heard that the swine flu has affected Mexico, US and Canada while some countries like New Zealand and Russia have cases that are yet to be verified. To avoid getting the swine flu or any flu for that matter, it pays to go back to the teachings that we have learned from our parents and grandparents. Simply put, practice good hygiene.

Here are the tips of doctors on how to prevent getting swine flu (or any kind of flu or disease).

1. Wash your hands often with anti-bacterial soap and water. Some doctors say that you should sing “Happy Birthday” when washing your hands. The song indicates how long you should wash your hands. When the song ends, the hand washing ends, too.

2. Cover your mouth when sneezing or coughing. As a courtesy, make sure that you cover your mouth when sneezing or coughing to avoid infecting others. Always have tissue paper (or hanky) ready and make sure you dispose of it properly. If you don’t have tissue or hanky, use the crook of your arm to cover your mouth.

3. Always bring your alcohol or alcohol-based hand sanitizer. If you happen to use your palms when covering your sneezing or coughing, make sure you disinfect your hands right away. Anything you touch may lead to infecting other people.

4. If you want to wear a mask, buy the N95 kind. All doctors agree that this is the best kind of mask to protect you against airborne diseases like swine/bird flu.

5. Protect your body. Regularly drink your vitamins (multivitamins and ascorbic acid) and always eat nutritious foods.

6. Stay at home. If you’re sick, stay at home. Enough said.

As the old cliché goes, an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.

Lower SMS cost = savings?

In an Inquirer story (click full article here), Senator Bong Revilla Jr. has expressed his support for the proposal to reduce the cost of short messaging system or text from P1.00 to 50 cents. Revilla says that this measure is one way of helping the public especially during these tough times.

He also alleges that from the P1.00 cost, only 20 centavos are shouldered by telecommunication companies (like Globe, SMART and Sun) and the cost reduction wouldn’t affect their profits.

If this proposal passes into law, are the consumers really the winners? After all, the three telcos have been giving away unlimited texting to its subscribers. But others would say that any cost reduction would spell savings.

What do you think?

GE Money Bank Time Deposit

Yesterday, while having lunch at Robinson’s Forum at Pioneer St., I saw the expanded office of GE Money Bank. After eating, I proceeded to the bank and inquired of the time deposit products of GE Money Bank.

Chona Agulto, a very nice lady who works at the bank, entertained me and informed me that for a minimum deposit of P50,000, I can get 4.5% interest rate. This is if I keep it for 180 days. GE Money Bank is also holding a raffle promo for those who will place a minimum of P50,000 in time deposit (180 days).

If you’re looking for a bank with a pretty high interest rate, you may want to try GE Money Bank. I know I am as I will go back tomorrow. Here are the rates Ms Chona gave me:

180 days and one-year time deposit
Interest: 4.5% pa
Minimum placement: P50,000

Two-year time deposit
Interest: 4.75% pa
Minimum placement: P50,000

For inquiries, you can also call GE Money Bank Head Office at (02) 777-85000 or GE Money Bank Pioneer Branch at (02) 687-9107.

Money lessons from the Boyet Fajardo case

By now, you have heard all sides of the Boyet Fajardo case. People involved have made their comments (and apologies), support groups have launched their causes, media had a blast in their ratings, and the Internet world is filled with related blogs.

Now that the controversy has died down, are there money lessons that we can learn from this?

1. Sign your credit card.
This is where the controversy began when the Duty Free cashier saw that Boyet Fajardo’s credit card is not signed. It’s common sense, really. When you receive your credit card, sign it IMMEDIATELY. This is to protect you from unscrupulous people who may want to use your identity and purchase a lot of items that you will be paying for.

2. Bring IDs.
This is also basic. I don’t know about you but my parents have always taught me to bring identification cards in my wallet. In case of an accident that I’m not able to speak, people can easily identify me and track my family. When traveling abroad, an ID (especially a passport) is very important to ensure that I don’t get picked up by the police for suspicion of being an illegal alien.

An ID is also very handy if you need to present your credit card. Because of the increasing incidence of identity theft, more and more malls in the country are requiring credit card holders to present at least one ID before you charge anything to your card.

3. Be courteous.
Okay, this is not a money lesson, but this is also a basic value. Wherever you are in the world, whoever you’re talking to, please be courteous. Your fame, high education, wealth or background are insignificant if you don’t know how to respect people.

BPI still refuses to waive my annual fee

Last April 2, I posted that BPI turned down my request to waive the annual fee of my BPI WorldPerks credit card (see related story). Thanks to comments left by Pinay and Money readers, especially Joey, I emailed BPI again to request for the waive of the annual fee.

Within a few hours, I received an email from BPI. Notice that it is exactly the same letter that I received when I first requested for the waive.

Greetings from BPI Express Online!

We received your e-mail regarding your request for the reversal of your membership fee. We regret to inform you that we are unable to grant your request for Annual Fee waiver. Please use your BPI Card more to qualify for Annual Fee waiver next year and enjoy more perks such as free Goldilocks signature dish for a minimum single receipt of P1,000 from any establishment or cash advance transaction using the BPI Express Credit Card.

If you need further assistance or have other concerns, you may send us an e-mail at expressonline@bpi.com.ph.

Thank you for choosing to bank with us online!

Sincerely,
The BPI E-mailbanking Team

I replied, stating that I know for a fact that there have been instances that BPI waived the annual fee even if the credit card holder didn’t meet the required monthly purchases. And again, after just a couple of hours, I received another email from BPI:

Greetings from BPI Express Online!

Kindly be advised that upon receipt of your email, we have re-evaluated your account to check if we can approve your request. However, we regret that we are unable to grant the waiver of the annual membership fee on the basis of reasons that are confidential and we are not at a liberty to disclose.

If you need further assistance or have other concerns, you may send us an e-mail at expressonline@bpi.com.ph.

Thank you for choosing to bank with us online!

These are the keywords: However, we regret that we are unable to grant the waiver of the annual membership fee on the basis of reasons that are confidential and we are not at a liberty to disclose.

Could the reason be so grave that BPI refuses to disclose it to me? How could a reason be confidential? And is this what we call quality customer service? It’s like refusing to sell an item to a buyer and telling her, “Sorry I can’t sell this to you because it’s confidential.” What the?!

I wonder if this is a generic reply that BPI E-mail Banking Team gives everytime it rejects the requests of credit card holders. Because I have proven (thanks to Pinay and Money readers) that the charged purchases is not BPI’s basis to waive the annual fee, is BPI resorting to this kind of reasoning (confidential daw!) so that the credit card holder won’t insist anymore.

I’m very disappointed. As a loyal BPI customer since I was a little girl, I have always liked how BPI treats its customers. I have always believed that I will be given the same treatment as everybody else. But then again, maybe I am wrong.