Living longer, loving life

IT WAS Otto von Bismarck who decided we should retire at 65. The Iron Chancellor was terrified by the growing popularity of the German Socialist Party and to win the support of the working classes, he decided to give a social welfare payment to those of a certain age and beyond. But while Bismarck wanted to appease the masses, his coffers were empty following a decade of war so he set the qualifying age at 65 knowing full well that very few poor Germans would get to see 60 never mind 65.

And so the retirement age has been set in stone in most of the developed world for more than a century. But while the age has not changed (yet), the life expectancy of pensioners has changed dramatically and anyone who retires in Ireland today can reasonably expect to live for decades after they leave the workforce.

Stories stereotyping older people as frail, vulnerable and impoverished are legion but that is not the full picture by a long shot. While it would be foolish not to acknowledge that many people are indeed struggling, there are also many others who are set to retire in the weeks and months ahead and who are the envy of their children, as they will exit the rat race with no mortgage, free of debt and full of plans.

But unless a person has won the Lotto or is retiring on a particularly envious pension, they will have to work at making their money last. Luckily there are a whole lot of ways to do just that.

DISCOUNT HEAVEN

Anyone over the age of 55 who lives in the Dublin City Council area should get themselves a “passport for leisure” immediately. This discount card is aimed at helping people live “a richer, more active and exciting life,” according to the council. It was launched as part of “Embracing Ageing”, the Lord Mayor’s initiative for older people and at €10, represents excellent value for money.

The passport includes vouchers and discounts worth hundreds of euros, including free access to the council's sport, leisure and recreation facilities as well as cheaper meals in participating restaurants, cinemas, golf clubs and a host of other activities. More details are available from passportforleisure.ie.

There are other discounts. Woodies DIY store offers a 10 per cent discount to older people who shop there on Thursdays. Last month Superquinn trialed a 10 per cent off day for older people, while pubs all over the country offer cheaper pints for pensioners and hairdressers do special deals. The key is to ask. Always ask and never feel remotely embarassed about doing so.

The Irish Film Institute in Dublin’s Temple Bar has Wild Strawberries, a bi-monthly film club for the over 55s which offers heavily discounted cinema tickets to art house and less mainstream films on certain mornings with the admission price including tea or coffee. The cinema told Pricewatch that the scheme is very popular with up to 250 showing up to each screening.

And here's a timely offer (sorry). Seiko has an offer for the colleagues of all those retiring in the weeks ahead. The company will give the VAT back on the most traditional of retirement presents. The web site timemark.iehas the entire Seiko range, with next day delivery nationwide. At the point of payment, you just enter the promotional code "retire" and the VAT will automatically be refunded, then you choose the local, most convenient jeweller for the recipient, who will carry out any bracelet or other adjustments or changes required.

ACTIVELY LOOKING

Active Retirement Associations (ARAs) which have mushroomed in Ireland over the past 20 years are a phenomena and with more than 23,000 members they have some considerable clout when it comes to negotiating discounts for members on everything from holidays to legs of lamb.

There are 535 associations around the country with members aged from the 50s, up to 100. Maureen Kavanagh is the chief executive and she points out how much older people can and do contribute to the societies in which they live both financially, socially and culturally, something she says is beginning to be recognised by more businesses around the country.

“At a national level, one of our roles is to ensure that there are good discounts made available,” she says adding that hoteliers and restaurants are particularly clued- in. “Short breaks tend to be an area where big savings can be made because older people can travel mid-week and off peak so there can be very good discounts,” Kavanagh says.

Many ARAs plan holiday breaks around the country for their members each year and set up savings clubs to allow members pay it off slowly so that even those on the too meager State pension can afford them.

“Older people have time on their hands and if the price is right they are happy to spend money,” she says. At a local level, ARA’s get members group discounts on home heating oil and they approach retailers and promise a certain level of business if discounts are offered to members. “We have butchers who will give our members a 10 per cent discount on certain days of the week and other local shops who do the same. It is very important to us that the money is spent in the local community.”

HEALTH MATTERS

Three companies who are not lining up to give their customers discounts for being older are health insurance providers. One of the most depressing things about the crisis that has engulfed the private health insurance market in recent years is how shamefully older people have been treated and how frequently they have been asked to bear the brunt of the price hikes. As if being asked to pay more wasn’t bad enough, they also have to put up with being accused of being a “burden” on the State’s largest provider of private health insurance, the VHI.

The reality is, however, that many of these so called “burdens” have been loyal members for generations and have paid for themselves and their children for more than 40 years.

In January 2011 the cost of the Plan B Options policy, now known as HealthPlus Extra, stood at €986 for an adult. The VHI announced a 45 per cent increase that month which took the cost to €1,429. It rolled out a further two per cent increase in November which saw the price rise to €1,461 and the latest increase in the policy will see it climb to €1,644, 65 per cent higher than it was at the beginning of last year.

While many older people are reluctant to switch providers for fear of losing cover at a time they might need it most, they can modify their cover and move from provider to provider without fear.

Big savings can be made. There are corporate deals which are cheaper than private plans and offer the same if not better cover for less. A simple phone call to a provider should shed some light on that. There are also tweaks which can be made without going down the corporate route. The VHI’s Forward Plan Level 2 costs €2,055 for an adult. That same level of cover, with a €2,000 excess for orthopaedic care and an in-patient excess for day cases and overnights in private hospitals of €75 a night, is available with Aviva for €974. A couple taking out such a policy will save over €2,100 – or the cost of the orthopaedic shortfall – in just 12 months.

Another alternative to high-priced insurance policies is the Hospital Saturday Fund (HSF).

Although this cash-back scheme, run by a charity, is most effective for those with dependents under 21, there are individual policies starting at

€14 a month which offer a safety net to people should they become ill.

The HSF gives cash payments to policyholders to offset day-to-day “outpatient” expenses including GP fees, prescription costs, consultant and dental fees, and physiotherapy visits, as well as grants for hospital stays, births and worldwide accident cover.

At the lowest level someone can get €8 back for a GP visit and €25 for a night in hospital.

A subscription of €56 a month gives someone €100 for each night spent in a hospital and €25 back on each GP visit.

TRAVELLER’S FRIEND

Yes, people who live permanently in the State and are over 66 get the free travel pass – and so they should – but that is not the only way to economise on travelling.

Pricewatch would imagine that one of the best things about retirement is that in addition to marking the end of paid work, it marks the end of the daily commute, the snarling traffic and the hideous cost of keeping a car on the road.

So, now that that has been knocked on the head, can we suggest that those who have retired adopt a completely different, healthier and cheaper way of getting around by getting on their bikes. A good bike costs anywhere between €150 and €500. Throw in the cost of lights (€25), helmet (€35), good quality rain gear (€100) and lock (€50), and you can get a decent mode of transport for around €500. If you use your car to drive just 16km each day, then swapping it for your bike will save around €400 in petrol in a year. The savings on tyres, servicing and repairs will be around €300 a year.

And as if that wasn’t enough – and really it should be – a nice gentle cycle away from the maddening rush hour crowds is pleasant, easy on the joints yet still burns about 400 calories an hour.

You want more? It dramatically increases aerobic fitness, reduces the risk of heart disease and strokes, lowers blood pressure, reduces stress, lowers cholesterol and boosts energy.

You need even more to convince you? Surely not? Oh, alright then. Research from Denmark has shown that its cycling citizens live seven years longer than its non-cycling ones.

FINDING ENERGY

There are few things more depressing than the thought of people sitting in cold dark houses which they can not afford to heat properly but that is the reality for a lot of older people. By being proactive and switching utility provider you can reduce your bills by more than 10 per cent or over €200 a year. Airtricity’s bundled gas and electricity deals are the cheapest, once you agree to e-billing and paying by direct debit and sign up to a two-year contract. Do all three and you can save up to €240 a year. Remember all discounts expire after a period of time so, for example, if you switched to Bord Gáis Energy two years ago, you will have lost the discounts by now so make another switch.

CALL CENTRED

Why pay for calls when you can Skype for nothing? Download the software at skype.comand get free calls to other computers (or indeed smartphones that have a wireless connection). Calls to regular numbers anywhere in the world cost a fraction of the normal cost – calls to Australia cost less than two cent a minute.

Carry out a mobile phone audit to make sure you’re on the best package for your usage. Phone users who have no idea how many “free” minutes or “free” text messages they are getting could be spending €150 more than they need to each year. Don’t be loyal to your phone provider, landline or mobile. The sector is increasingly competitive so take advantage of introductory offers rival providers dangle in front of you to encourage you to switch. There are savings to be made on landline calls.

The website cheapcalls.ieallows people to make long-distance calls for much less than the regular providers do from landlines. It is very simple to use.

On the site are a series of Irish-based numbers with prefixes such as 1890 and 0818 and 1530. You dial the number listed opposite the country you want to call, a voice prompts you to dial the number of the person you want to speak to in that country and you get connected.

Instead of paying the regular charges associated with calling countries overseas, you pay the cost of calling the Irish number you dialled first.

So if you want to speak to someone in Canada, you dial an access number which is prefixed 1890 and when you get through, you are paying Irish local rates. Ditto if you dial an Australian landline. If you dial an Australian mobile, the access code is prefixed with a 1520 number so you pay 15 cent a minute.

The company uses internet telephony to make the connections so it is like having Skype without having to have access to a computer.

SPEND A LITTLE

A health check could be the best investment you will ever make particularly if you’ve got a retirement lump sum to play with. Obviously a trip to your GP is one way of doing that, but unless your GP is very advanced, the range of tests they can carry out on the spot are limited. The Blackrock, Hermitage and Charlemount and Galway clinics all offer health screenings, as does the Mater Private in Dublin and the Bons Secour in Cork

If you don’t have one, you should buy yourself a smart phone. Your old phone might be grand go more high tech and you will be able to surf the web, take amazing photographs and high-definition video, access email, make calls for free using free apps which are easily downloaded, play games and challenge yourself by learning a new skill.

There is no point saving money if you’re not going to spend it on stuff you enjoy doing – such as holidays. Flying has never been cheaper, and retired people have the option to travel out of season which can save a packet on holidays. Hardly a day goes by without airlines launching a new seat sale. If you do take the DIY route, only pay by credit card, as it offers you a degree of financial protection, and make sure you take out a good travel insurance policy.

There are also scores of websitesoffering to put you in touch with owners of houses and apartments. Here are three: villarenters.com, holidayhomesdirect.ieand vrbo.com. The latter is particularly good for citybreaks – apartment living in any European city is more fun and much cheaper than a hotel.

Get ready to go

THE HOLIDAY WORLDlast month included a new focus on the over-55s and it's not hard to see why. A survey published ahead of the show found that one in four over 55s planned on taking three holidays this year while 40 per cent said they would be taking two.

Rathgar Travel in Dublin has been targeting the market with good-value deals for just over three years and business is going well says owner James Malone.

Its website seniortrips.iehas some very enticing deals at present. An all-inclusive 14-night package including all flights, transfers and wine costs €619 in March and April with the price rising slightly in May. Seven nights full board including wine in the Hotel Torreblanca in Fuengirola meanwhile has a price of just €410 per person.

Senior Trips also offers holidays in Malta and Portugal with half board holidays in the former costing as little as €445 for a week over the next couple of months.

“If holidays are not affordable and don’t represent good value for money then people will not go, that is the bottom line,” says Malone. “Older people like the all inclusives because they can see at a glance what they will be spending. Most people don’t want to be somewhere that caters exclusively for retirees but they also want somewhere that caters for their needs, so it is about striking a balance, he says.