October 2024 | Grey Power Rotorua

C Bavister

Secretary

October Ramblings

End of Year Celebration

Put a big ring on the calendar for Saturday, 30th November, 1pm for our End of Year Celebration at the Commercial Travellers Club, 29 Moncur Drive, Rotorua. The committee decided to help the members with the cost of the lunch by contributing towards each ticket. This allowed us to keep the cost at $40 per person which is the same as last year. You can get a ticket via our website or by calling into the office. We need to know the numbers by 22nd November.

Forum Report: Superannuation & Supplementary Assistance

Over forty members and friends gathered to hear a presentation on Superannuation, Pensions & Supplementary Assistance. It was presented by a Senior Case Manager. We were given an overview of the criteria for Superannuation with a brief explanation on tax codes and other incomes.

Information was also given on supplementary assistance available from the Ministry of Social Development, which includes, accommodation allowance and assistance with medical expenses and pharmacy fees. Brief information for those of us who have overseas pensions or travel overseas was touched on, as well as changes in income if residential care becomes an option.

There are about 70 options of support available depending on your circumstances. How can you figure out if you qualify for any? Go to the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) website and do an online check for a start. Depending on the result, you may need to make an appointment to see someone at MSD.

The question time during and after the presentation was taken full advantage of and supplied a lot of takeaway information. We all enjoyed the light refreshments at the end.

Powering your Car & Pet Insurance

Exclusive Offer for Grey Power Electricity Customers

Grey Power Electricity (GPE) has teamed up with Cove to bring to their customers an affordable car and pet insurance. This partnership brings GPE customers an affordable insurance and comprehensive coverage for peace of mind.

Customer can now save up to 10% on car and 20% on pet insurance; plus a complimentary first month worth up to $100 thanks to the GPE partnership with Cove (terms apply).

To sign up for Car or Pet insurance, visit Cove's website and complete the sign-up process. Your discount will automatically be applied on the payment page. Please have your Grey Power Electricity Account Number handy.

Note: The committee recommends to compare this offer with ones from other insurance companies before committing to it.

NZ Police

QR Code

Grey Power Rotorua

Website

Scam Warning: Be Vigilant with Mail

Christmas is just around the corner and many will receive packages, some expected and some unexpected.

Police are aware of a recent overseas rise in scams which involve an unexpected package being sent to addresses with a gift and a QR code (see left for a sample) inside. Police believe this scamming method could find its way to New Zealand and we are urging people to be vigilant.

The gift will have the recipients address, but not include the sender's information or be from a known retailer. When the recipient opens the package to see what it is and possibly who sent it, there is a QR code to scan to find out who sent the gift.

The QR code allows the offenders to then access any and all data on your phone or device you used to scan the code, including financial information such as your bank account login details, and personal data.

Police are urging anyone who receives one of these gifts not to scan the QR code, the gift can either be kept or discarded, but do not scan the QR code.
Please report information to Police online at www.police.govt.nz... or call Police on 105.

InvestNow (edited)

Snippets of Importance

Is the Tax correct on your Investment?

InvestNow recently surveyed their customers and were surprised to see that 38% of respondents don’t know what taxes apply to their investments.

The survey, which was ran last month, showed a startling lack of awareness or consideration of how tax impacted the performance of their investments.

Only 30% of respondents said they knew the types of taxes that applied to some of their investments but not all, and 8% didn’t know for any of their investments.

“We suspected many investors might be overlooking the impact of tax on their investments, but we didn’t think the numbers would be as high as this,” says InvestNow General Manager Mike Heath.

“Tax is the third leg of the stool, with the others being performance and fees, that materially influences how much your investment grows over time and we believe it’s essential that Kiwis understand this.

We all understand the power of compound interest, which apparently Albert Einstein referred to as the eighth wonder of the world. The more tax you pay, the smaller the value of your investment, diminishing the opportunity for the compounding magic to happen.”

“There will be many investors out there paying thousands, if not more, in unnecessary taxes. In many cases, simply switching their investments into a more tax-efficient vehicle such as a Portfolio Investment Entity (PIE) managed fund could see investors significantly better off,” said Heath.

“Fees and tax” is one of the 10 Investment Principles. For InvestNow, it’s crucial that investors take the time to understand how they could be taxed as part of researching their investments.

Visit the Inland Revenue website to confirm that you are using the right resident withholding tax (RWT) rate and confirm the rate with your investment providers, i.e. bank.

Calendar

Office Opening: Tuesday - Thursday, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.