Latest news with #AndrewLee
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
10 ways young UK drivers can avoid high car insurance costs
Young people usually pay more in car insurance – sometimes a lot more – as they are statistically more likely to be involved in an accident and policies are based on overall risk. Those aged between 17 and 24 pay £828 on average, close to double the £476 typically paid by 25-to 49-year-olds, according to data from the comparison site However, comparing quotes can still save you hundreds of pounds. Comparison sites – others include MoneySuperMarket, and Compare the Market – let you easily see prices across dozens of insurers. Experts say getting quotes about three to four weeks before your policy is due to start often results in cheaper deals. Adding a parent, or any other experienced motorist as a named driver – as long as they drive the car occasionally – can help lower your premium. Insurers see this as spreading the risk as the vehicle is not just driven by someone with little experience. Look for someone with a clean licence and many years of no claims. Whatever you do, don't pretend someone else is the main driver – that is known as 'fronting', and is illegal. Generally, the smaller and less powerful the car, the cheaper it will be to insure. Go for something in a low insurance group (cars are put into one of 50 groups), typically the less expensive models with small engines and where the cost of parts and repairs are generally lower. The cheapest for 17- to 25-year-olds include Volkswagen's up! (averaging £576 a year), the Suzuki Alto (£597) and the Fiat 500 (£604), according to 'This shows it is smaller cars – specifically modest one-litre engine hatchbacks – which are taking the top spots as the cheapest cars to insure for young drivers,' says Tom Banks at Buying secondhand will keep costs down. Just make sure it is in good condition and has a full service history. 'Avoid making modifications, too, as these could lead to a hike in the price,' says Andrew Lee at the insurer Marmalade, which specialises in young drivers. A black box, or telematics, is a great way to reduce costs over time. A small device (or an app on your phone) tracks how safely you drive. If you stick to speed limits, avoid harsh braking and do not drive late at night, you could earn a lower insurance quote or repayments, adds Banks. 'If the data shows consistent safe driving, insurers might reward policyholders with benefits like lower premiums, cashback or a voucher, either during your policy term, or when it's time to renew,' he adds. According to the median price for a 19-year-old driver with a telematics policy is £864 a year. This compares with £1,096 without telematics. At age 23, the difference is only £21: £636 with telematics; £657 without. If you don't make a claim, you will earn a no-claims discount, which can further reduce costs. However, there are some potential disadvantages to a black box. It will record poor habits and so could result in higher premiums. 'If you don't drive carefully, or within pre-arranged limits of your policy, you could end up paying more,' Banks says. If you are already insured, do not just accept your renewal quote. Use comparison sites to see what others are charging for the same, or similar, cover, then go back to your current insurer and see whether it will match, or beat, those prices. Monthly payments may be easier for some younger people to handle, but they often involve paying interest on the premiums – sometimes as much as 30% APR. If you can afford to pay in one go, it is nearly always cheaper. If an annual payment is not possible, it is worth looking into alternatives such as a 0% interest credit card (provided you can pay it off before interest kicks in). Or set aside money each month. Where, and how, you park matters. Insurers like driveways more than street parking, so prices tend to fall if you have access to one. If your building has designated private parking, whether gated or residents only, that is also usually rated as safer than street parking. If you have a fob-controlled or gated car park, even better. Mention it when getting quotes. And adding a steering wheel lock, immobiliser or dashcam can help. The more secure your car, the less of a risk it poses – and the more likely something will be shaved off your premium. What you put as your job title can affect how much you pay – sometimes by hundreds of pounds. That's because data based on years of claims is used. Some professions are flagged as higher risk, either because of how often people in those jobs claim, or the way they are perceived to use their cars. Many forms include a dropdown menu for job titles, and choosing a different, but still legitimately accurate, title – such as 'writer' instead of 'journalist' – could lower your premium. Make sure it is truthful. False information could invalidate your policy. MoneySuperMarket has a 'car insurance job picker' to help you identify the role that best describes what you do, and find the average premium for each job. Your excess is what you pay towards a claim before your insurer chips in. It is usually split into two parts: a compulsory excess, which is set by your insurer and non-negotiable; and a voluntary excess, the extra you choose to pay on top. 'The most common excess chosen by our customers is £250,' says Rhydian Jones, a car insurance expert at 'But opting for a higher – or sometimes even lower – excess can help reduce the overall cost of your cover. Experiment with your excess amount when comparing quotes to see if you could save.' The higher the voluntary excess, the lower your premium tends to be. 'Make sure you can afford to pay the excess amount you have stated,' says Lee, otherwise you could be left in a tricky situation. The discount increases with each year you drive claim-free. After just one year, you could get a 20% to 30% discount. After five years, some insurers will knock 60% or more off your premium. Your no-claims discount is tied to you, not the car – so if you change your vehicle or insurer, you can usually transfer it. Even if you have an accident, it will not always wipe out your discount – especially if you are not at fault and the other driver's insurer pays. It is worth asking your insurer to confirm how much your premium would go up by if you made a claim.
CNET
16-05-2025
- Business
- CNET
If You're Comparing AI Email Tools, Here's One Worth Your Time
My most recent self-reflection is that if something can be gamified, I am much more likely to interact with it. Deadlines, invoices, educational tools and, now, my email inbox. I've recently been looking for a way to streamline my inbox interface in a way that feels personal and customizable, yet efficient. So after receiving an invite to a tech event from a friend signed "Sent with Shortwave," I couldn't help but click the button — read: impulsivity — and found myself on the modern email client's website, an all-black setup built to transform Gmail into a faster, more focused productivity tool. "Can it transform me, too?" I chuckled to myself. What is Shortwave, and how does it use AI? Shortwave at its core aims to turn all forms of communications — personal inbox and for your team — into a fast, organized and AI-powered workspace. Founded in 2020 by Andrew Lee, Jonny Dimond, Jacob Wenger and founding designer Ali Berlin Johnson, all ex-Google employees, The company launched its AI features in 2022, which include features like AI summaries and smart replies, and the ability to plan your day for you. To access Shortwave, you can download its free version, and paid plans start at $7/month for a personal account ($14/month for business). For any paid account, Superwave's also contains features that feel eerily similar to Slack: think read receipts, mentions and collaboration across threads, without toggling away from your inbox. How to use Shortwave for productivity The setup for Shortwave is thankfully pretty simple -- but keep in mind that it's only compatible with Gmail accounts. Head to Shortwave's website and click Get Started to log in with your Google or Google Workspace account. You can also download the software to your desktop, iPhone or Android device, or add it as a Google Chrome extension. You'll then need to grant permissions for Shortwave to access your email account. There's four main areas of Shortwave: Inbox, Pins, Thread View and Command Bar. They act like they read: Inbox is grouped and categorized with AI across different focuses; Pins are at the top for quick access; Thread View creates a chat-style view that feels like messaging; and the Command Bar allows you to access settings, your calendar, activity feed and contacts. Shortwave / Screenshot by CNET To use its AI features, click on the sparkle-looking button in the upper left hand of the screen. AI can help you organize your inbox, find urgent emails and plan your day. As you can see in the image to the right, any emails can be filtered through Shortwave, including morning coffee orders. You can also open a long email thread and the sparkle icon will generate a summary of the conversation. It uses AI to conduct smart compose and reply, too. For organization, Shortwave will automatically group similar emails and give you the option to mute a bundle (like promotions or social). You can always unbundle a grouping for a chronological view. If teammates are on a paid plan, you can invite them to the platform to share threads, leave internal comments on emails or assign messages (like tasks) with due dates. Lastly, customize your setup by toggling to the profile icon and access Settings. You can adjust bundles, notifications, keyboard shortcuts and a dark/light theme. Once you're set up, head back to the homepage and access Learn. I was both overwhelmed and amazed by how much information lives here, including an abundance of guides, plus more on Shortwave's back story and specific method and approach. Should you use Shortwave? Shortwave / Screenshot by CNET The short and sweet answer is if you aren't a Gmail or Google Workspace user, Shortwave literally cannot work for you. If you're looking for a solution to your current Google inbox, this is my take: With competitors like Superhuman, Spark Mail, and Missive, I see Shortwave as what I call "throughline AI": an AI platform built by people who come from a specific industry — in this case Google — and create something to specifically affect an audience tied to their background. I liken it to the same business model as seen across industries. (On our radar, Sudowrite, Flora and Feno come to mind.) Simply, Shortwave's founders are the builders and the target audience — and, arguably, more connected to the product itself since they're all ex-Google workers. They've experienced the problem, and its complexities firsthand on an in-depth level, and are trying to solve it at scale. Pricewise, Shortwave holds up with its free personal version, and its $14/month subscription for business adds a custom AI prompt feature, which makes it a strong competitor compared to other platforms that boast similar capability. I personally believe any company offering a free version of its product sees individual choice as a necessary step to product conversion — which earns my respect when speaking to which platform I'd swap my current setup with. Now, if you're seeking more of an AI-powered "smart assistant," I would steer you away from Shortwave, since it was primarily created for productivity. It focuses more on a Slack- or chat-style setup, which makes it great for teams or AI enthusiasts who rely on it for faster sorting and summarizing for productivity and collaboration. Shortwave isn't the most traditional-looking inbox layout, nor is it the most privacy-forward. (It only caters to Gmail encryption and cloud-based email access.) But I believe it does exactly what it was built to do: act as an AI-powered email client for Gmail users in a sleek, minimalist format. While it can be odd to consider that a future may exist where the person you're communicating with is actually artificial intelligence, I can't deny that having support to simplify your reply is a nice gesture — as long as you don't take the lack of personalization, personally. In short: Use Shortwave if you have Gmail or Google Workspace and want a simplistic, chat-like interface with organization and productive grouping, this option may work for you.
Business Times
28-04-2025
- Business
- Business Times
If OCBC wants to keep Chulia Street properties, it should partner a property group to redevelop them
IN this column on Mar 31, I advocated that OCBC should sell its Chulia and Church Street properties so that the assets can be redeveloped to create a new prime office project in the heart of the Central Business District. Divesting these buildings will also help create shareholder value. My suggestion that OCBC should consider selling the trio of buildings it owns at 63, 65 Chulia Street and 18 Church Street has been rejected. At its annual general meeting (AGM) on Apr 17, chairman Andrew Lee said OCBC has no plans to sell its CBD properties including OCBC Centre, which holds heritage value for the lender. Still, if OCBC wants to retain the said properties, I maintain that it should redevelop the trio of buildings soon in a prudent manner. The lender can work with a financially strong property group, which has strong project execution capabilities in integrated development. Located at 65 Chulia Street, OCBC Centre was completed in 1976. OCBC Centre East and OCBC Centre South occupy 63 Chulia Street and 18 Church Street respectively. OCBC Centre sits on freehold land, while the two neighbouring buildings sit on leasehold land with about 42 years remaining. The lender's head office and various operations are housed in the OCBC Centre cluster of buildings. At the Apr 17 AGM, chairman Lee highlighted OCBC Centre's historical significance, noting that it sits on the same site where the bank was founded in 1932. He said 'that site, that building, has a lot of history, has a lot of emotion for us, as the oldest continuing bank in Singapore.' A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU Tuesday, 12 pm Property Insights Get an exclusive analysis of real estate and property news in Singapore and beyond. Sign Up Sign Up In April 2024, OCBC announced that it was exploring the redevelopment of the Chulia and Church Street properties. However, the lender said in February that redevelopment plans will be put on hold. At the AGM, Lee noted that construction costs are currently elevated and that redevelopment plans possibly amount to S$4 billion to S$5 billion. He questioned if this was the right time to undertake such a massive project, which will strain the bank's balance sheet. In context, I had argued that Singapore loses out if the OCBC Centre cluster of buildings is not redeveloped. Redevelopment might yield a new landmark Grade A office-led integrated development with leading retail and hospitality components that enhances a historic part of Singapore's CBD. Occupying a combined area of over 120,000 square feet (sq ft) of land near the Singapore River, the redevelopment project's total gross floor area may top 1.8 million sq ft if it has a plot ratio of 15 times. I suggested that if OCBC did not want to redevelop the said buildings, it could sell the buildings instead. Sure, OCBC is accountable to shareholders and may rightly avoid doing national service by redeveloping the said trio of buildings should it be unconvinced of the financial merit to doing so. However, is OCBC shortchanging its shareholders by not letting a third party acquire the Chulia and Church Street properties with an eye to carrying out redevelopment? After all, selling the properties might help the bank crystallise the benefit from uplift in land value due to intensification in use of the assets as not all of the increase in land value is eaten up by paying land betterment charge. Undertaking redevelopment with a partner Importantly, a creative way should be found to redevelop the OCBC Centre cluster of buildings without straining OCBC's balance sheet while allowing the bank to continue operating out of Chulia Street and have ownership interest in the said properties. OCBC can partner a credible property player to develop the trio of properties. The said partner can take equity interest in the property development project and the completed development. Upon completing, say, a development with office, retail and hospitality components, OCBC and the real estate partner can jointly own the office and retail components, while the partner solely owns the hospitality component. Working with the right property partner can significantly mitigate the project execution and financial risks of redeveloping the Chulia and Church Street buildings. Possibly, OCBC has not as yet found a partner on terms that it is happy with. Still, leveraging its talent, OCBC should be able to secure a suitable partner and structure a good deal that best protects its interest, especially as core Singapore property assets command a premium in an increasingly uncertain world. Moreover, with careful planning, disruption to staff in the buildings affected by redevelopment can be minimised. And the bank's other properties such as the Bank of Singapore and Great Eastern buildings in the CBD and a new building coming up in the Punggol Digital District could help house staff affected by redevelopment works. Building a new landmark Designed by the late acclaimed American architect I M Pei, OCBC Centre exemplifies brutalist architecture. Brutalist buildings have a minimalist construction style, showcasing the bare building materials and structural elements over decorative design. Given OCBC Centre's architectural importance and sustainability considerations, redeveloping the Chulia and Church Street properties can possibly include conserving OCBC Centre. Look for example at how the mixed-use development project Golden Mile Singapore along Beach Road incorporates refreshing the conserved Golden Mile Complex. Many leading businesses today see merit in having great work spaces, which helps a business' branding. Crucially, having premier work spaces gives a business an edge in drawing talent. Also, great work spaces provide a conducive environment for staff to collaborate and co-create. Think of a redeveloped OCBC Centre cluster of buildings with conserved elements, a great design, large floor plates, different components that are seamlessly connected, strong green credentials, biophilic elements and recreational spaces that provide a best-in-class working environment. Sure, the bank's board and management have to deal with a challenging economic environment and fierce competition. Furthermore, Lee said at the AGM: 'We are a bank, not a property developer, so if we have sufficient space, we do not need to redevelop more property than we need.' Nevertheless, optimising value from valuable prime real estate matters. By getting structuring right and working with a competent partner, redevelopment can potentially be carried out without over-straining OCBC's balance sheet and with risks well managed. Ultimately, not redeveloping the OCBC Centre cluster of buildings wastes an opportunity to help rejuvenate a historic part of the CBD as well as a chance for OCBC to create value from the properties and provide its staff exciting new work spaces. (The writer holds shares in OCBC)
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Nine graduates get Cumbrian tech jobs at Fibrus
Nine employees have joined Fibrus as part of the telecoms provider's latest intake to its graduate programme. The telecoms provider was selected to deliver the £108 million broadband improvement contract for Cumbria in 2022, part of Project Gigabit, the UK Government's initiative to provide fast and reliable internet across the UK. At the end of March, Fibrus announced an extension to this contract, providing an additional 21,000 premises in Cumbria with access to full fibre broadband. Andrew Lee, 35, from Kendal, joined the Hyperfast GB team, the wholesale network division of Fibrus, in July as a stakeholder engagement graduate after completing a criminology degree at Lancaster University. The nine graduates who have joined the company through the one-year graduate programme have successfully completed both the 'Business Essentials Programme' and the 'Mentoring Programme.' These graduates have been integrated into various teams, including Stakeholder Engagement, GIS Technology, Workforce Management, and Project Management. Mr Lee said: "I'm part of a team that speaks to politicians, members of the public, schools and businesses to explain the benefits of full fibre broadband. "We attend parish council meetings, agricultural shows, and various engagement events. "The most common question is, 'When am I going to get Full Fibre?' "There's no such thing as a standard day, it's quite varied. "I enjoy a job with challenges and find it really engaging. "I've been given responsibility for engagement with schools and will soon start going to talk to sixth formers. "I share information about how we deliver fibre to the premises (FTTP) technologies and the benefits that this brings. "I also discuss Fibrus opportunities and careers available in the telecoms space." Prior to university, Mr Lee had been working in a customer contact centre in Windermere. He said: "I had the opportunity to do an access course in policing and forensics at Kendal College, which allowed me to go to university as a mature student. "I was fascinated by criminology but knew it wouldn't necessarily lead to a career. "I was looking at graduate job opportunities and came across Fibrus. "I really liked the vision of Fibrus, that every home should be able to access Full Fibre broadband. "Everyone should have access, it's a basic service which makes a real difference to communities. "The positive and open culture at Fibrus has given me the opportunity to try out different approaches and see what is most engaging for the young people I am speaking to, which is why it is a dynamic and fun role for me." Fibrus is offering work experience placements to students aged 16 to 18 from schools and colleges in the area this spring. Students will be invited to the Newton Rigg training site in Penrith, where activities will include business administration, marketing, stakeholder engagement, health and safety, apprenticeship insight and technical insights. To find out more about careers with Fibrus, visit, To submit an application, contact their careers team at careers@
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Boarding school to become retirement apartments
Plans to convert a 16th Century castle and former boarding school into retirement apartments have been approved. Gilling Castle, a Grade I-listed building between Thirsk and Malton, was used as a preparatory school for Ampleforth College until it closed in 2018. The development will create 21 apartments in the main building, with 14 further homes in the grounds. Members of North Yorkshire Council's planning committee said the proposals "ticked a lot of boxes" and would bring a heritage asset back into use. Councillor Bob Packham said that it was a "well-thought-out scheme". He added: "It really does enhance the existing building, which needs retaining." According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the new residential flats will be staffed 24 hours a day Another member of the committee, Andrew Lee, said: "For me, it ticks a lot of boxes. "You're taking a building which is empty, it closed in 2018, and you're repurposing it for housing, which is something that is necessary. "You're bringing back into use a heritage asset, which is a positive." The property was built by Sir William Fairfax, High Sheriff of Yorkshire, in 1571 on top of the medieval walls of a fortified house. The plans had the support of Historic England, which said it was "very supportive of the new use in principle as it is eminently compatible with the heritage significance of the site". The castle lies within the Howardian Hills National Landscape and an objection was submitted by the manager of the scheme to the new-build apartments in the grounds, with the Gardens Trust also objecting to this aspect of the scheme. Sport England submitted an objection due to the loss of playing pitches. Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here. Former public school could become retirement flats North Yorkshire Council
