NLIC.org

Anthony Said:

Are their any negatives to the UK full license automatic (OTHER than the obvious restriction to automatic)?

We Answered:

Everyone does always say you should learn to drive a manual even if you want to drive an automatic car when you pass your test but I think the only real advantage is the option to drive a manual if you ever want/need to at some point in the future. You sound pretty sure that you only want to drive automatics so you might as well go for it and take test in an automatic.

Edward Said:

Car Insurance: What are premiums, legal fees and voluntary excess?

We Answered:

Premiums: What you pay for the insurance.

Legal fees: Insurance companies will pay your legal fees if you are sued over an accident. Some policies may offer extra cover for other legal fees, such as defending a traffic citation by the police.

Voluntary Excess: Amount of damages you pay out-of-pocket. For example, if you have £500 Voluntary Excess and are involved in an accident, you pay the first £500 and the insurance company picks up the tab at that point. The higher your VE, the lower your premiums.

Road tax always expires on the last day of the month. You can renew any time during the month. If you do it by mail or on line, you'd best do it TODAY or you may not have it by Friday when you MUST display the new disc. You can renew at any Post Office and they'll issue the new disc on the spot. The new disc will expire one year from the expiry of the old one, or 31.07.2009 in your case if you get a 12 month disc.

Earl Said:

should we here in the uk abolish road tax / insurance?

We Answered:

Road Tax and Insurance should be scrapped and the cost put onto the price of fuel. Doing it this way not only means everyone is paying but also ensures those people with gas guzzlers are paying more for the privilege.

Natalie Said:

My UK Tax Code is 480t - Why?

We Answered:

Your tax free allowance this year is 6035.
The code 480 gives you 48099 tax free allowances and therefore £1226 of your allowances have been allocated to some other untaxed income. This could well be the £72 travel insurance and privtae health care. Your employer should have given you a copy of form P11d which details benefits in kind - if not, you need to ask for a copy and this may well solve the mystery. If your benefits dont come to 1226, then you need to ask the tax office to amend your code.
You are not getting penalised on a benefit - all benefits in kind are taxable.
Incidently, its ridiculous for HMRC to say they dont know why your code is what it is because they issued it!

Maurice Said:

UK Residents: National Insurance - how does it work?

We Answered:

Since you're talking about "copay" I assume you're thinking in terms of health insurance. This is not what National Insurance was originally created for in 1910 - it was to pay for the old age pension, which long pre-dates the creation of the National Health Service in 1948.

N.I. contributions build up your entitlement to various state benefits including the State Pension and the Health Service, and is paid by all employees and self-employed people between age 16 and state retirement age (currently 65 for men and 60 for women, but the womens' age is being raised to 65 by 2020), subject to various earnings limits. N.I. contributions are taken through the income tax system, so most people never see the money before it's taken anyway.

For the tax year ending 5th April 2010, contribution rates are:

For employees: for earnings between £110 per week and £844 per week, 11% of this amount as "Class 1" contributions, plus 1% of earnings in excess of £844 per week. If the employee is a member of a contracted-out pension scheme run by the employer, then they pay 1.6% less. The employer also pays 12.8% of salary above £110 per week (less 3.7% if they run a salary-related contracted out pension scheme, or less 1.4% if they run a money-purchase pension scheme).

For self-employed people: A flat rate "Class 2" contribution of £2.40 per week, plus "Class 4" contributions as a percentage of taxable profits - 8% of profits between £5715 and £43,875 per year and 1% on profits over £43,875. If earnings in the current tax year are expected to be less than £5075, then they are entitled to a Small Earnings Exemption so they don't pay Class 2 contributions.

Once this is paid, then you don't pay anything to visit a doctor, or for hospital visits/stays. Depending on where you live, you may have to pay a prescription charge for prescribed medicines (outside hospitals), but prescription charges are a matter for the devolved governments who decide on how to spend their budgets (think different state governments in the US) - in England the prescription charge is £7.10 per item, but various classes of people are exempt from paying prescription charges: Children under 16, pregnant women, people over 60, young people in full-time education, people in receipt of certain benefits such as Income Support or Jobseekers' Allowance and people suffering from specific conditions, such as certain types of physical disability, diabetes, or epilepsy, for which they hold a valid exemption certificate. People who need regular prescriptions can get a Prescription Prepayment Certificate for £27.85 for 3 months or £102.50 for a year (so this would be the most they'd pay). Prescription charges were abolished in Wales in 2007, and will be abolished in Scotland in 2011; Northern Ireland is thinking about it.

Dental treatment is not free under the NHS, but courses of treatment are charged at one of three rates - £16.50 (e.g. for a regular checkup), £45.60 (e.g. for fillings), or £198 (crowns, etc).

Optical treatment is mixed - sight tests are free for large categories of people (not including me - I pay around £36 a time). I pay around £30 a month for daily disposable contact lenses.

Christopher Said:

How does national insurance in the UK work?

We Answered:

I don't know but would like to know the answer too. If I don't put and answer I lose the question, please someone from the UK answer?