Dashcams

The insurance industry is taking dashcams seriously, with viseo footage now being accepted as evidence in claims. Some firms offer discounts on conver to dashcam users.

Good Housekeeping testing recommended the following in 2016.

• Overall winner RAC 05 Super HD Car Cam (£149.99). Clear, sharp footage day and night. # Lane diversion warnings alert the driver if they wander from their lane. # With a 2.7 inch display, positioning the camera is easy. # Screen can be switched off for safety.
• Runner up Transcend DrivePro 220 (£123 at Halfords). Easy to set up, with a 2.4 inch screen. # Alert system lets you know if you are too close to the car in front or veer out of your lane. # Built in Wifi means you can connect it to view on a smartphone via an app. # Image adequate but not as sharp as winner. 
• Screenless RoadHawk HD-2 (£249.95). Clear sharp footage day and night. # Straightforward to use. # Lack of screen makes is fiddly to position correctly.

Feature in Good Housekeeping, July 2016

Eco Tips in Garage, Workshop, Shed and Garden

Garages, workshops, sheds and gardens are areas we may not usually think about when trying to go eco - but there are still things we can do.

• Turn off any power tools on charge.
• Recycle left over paint.
• Keep plant pots from garden centre purchases to re-use when growing your own plants.
• Cardboard middles from toilet rolls are useful mini-plant pots for seedlings.

Various sources.

Labelling Luggage

Thieves have been known to hang around airports to check on which houses will be unoccupied, so take precautions.

• On the outbound leg of a journey, put your hotel or accommodation details on the luggage label, or write your mobile number on the inside of your case.
• On the return leg, an airline will have your a record of your home address.

Source: Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA)

Proposed Student Funding Wales 2018-2019

Following the review led by Prof. Sir Ian Diamond, it is proposed to change the funding of university students in Wales in the academic year 2018-1019.

The tuition fee grant of £5,100 will be scrapped and course fees will be paid back with a loan which students will repay once they have graduated and started earning more than £21,000.

All students will get £1,000 a year plus a means-tested grant of up to £8,113 a year to help with living costs.

• Family income less than £18,370 would qualify for the maximum grant.
• Family income over £59,200 now (not the £80,000 proposed by the Diamond review) will only be eligible for the basic £1,000. These students will need to apply for loans to support their living costs.
• Full-time, part-time and post-graduate study would be considered equally and would have access to similar support

It is estimated that:

• Around a third of students would be entitled to the full grant.
• A student from a family on average income could receive around £7,000 a year.
• Less than a third will get the minimum of £1,000. 

Prof Diamond, vice-chancellor of the University of Aberdeen, said it would mean students from Wales would face a "significantly lower average level of debt on leaving university than those from England."


Source: BBC News website, 22 Nov. 2016 [Read in full.]

Fermented Foods

Foods that contain live microbes that can augment the bacteria in your gut may be why Japanese and Koreans live longer than we do.

Fermented foods include naturally produced cheeses, full-fat plain yoghurt. Also tofu, sauerkraut, kefir, kimchi and tempeh; make sure they are produced naturally rather than pickled in vinegar.

Various sources