Bermuda Parent Bermuda Parent Winter 2013 | Page 5

Holiday Spending T here are lots of ways you can save over the holiday season from cutting back on the presents, decorations, food and entertainment to celebrating at home more. The question is, do you really want to? What would the holidays be like if you didn’t indulge both your wallet and your waistline? The key thing is that if you are going to spend – you need to spend the right way. That means bringing out every tool you have at your disposal from doing your holiday shopping on discount days at local retailers to redeeming points on your credit card to assist in making those holiday purchases. You have likely used your HSBC Credit Card to make many purchases throughout the year. Why not use your accumulated points now to assist in purchasing your holiday gifts? You can redeem your points for gift certificates to local and overseas retail stores, travel, dining or to make a donation to a local charity. You can even use all those reward points to pay yourself with cash back. If you choose to use your credit card for purchases be sure to have a plan in place. The smart thing is to make sure any purchases you make on your credit card are paid for before you receive your credit card statement. That way you get the benefit of buying now: paying later, as well as building your reward points. With online banking you don’t even need to wait for your statement to be delivered, you can go online to check your balance owed and transfer money over to your credit card before your payment due date. However, you have to be self-disciplined enough to transfer the money to your credit card before the due date otherwise you’ll have undone all of your good work. Understandably some people just avoid the temptation of credit cards all together. But that doesn’t mean they can’t take advantage of another kind of reward. HSBC is holding a weekly draw for a $500 travel voucher between now and 1 January every time you use your HSBC Visa Debit Card for local purchases. The grand prize is a $5,000 travel voucher.* What’s more, it isn’t just for the big spenders out there as there is no minimum purchase criteria to be entered into the prize draws. It’s simply the more times you use your debit card, the more times you get entered into the prize draw. So even if you are cutting back this holiday season and don’t think you’ll be in a position to rack up credit card reward points you can still get rewarded for using your HSBC Visa Debit Card instead of cash or cheques. At the end of the day it’s about managing your money responsibly over the holiday season. Lets be honest, most of us will overspend, we will be eating leftovers and returning gifts in January. But by using your HSBC Visa Debit Card for your holiday and everyday purchases between now and 1 January, you could be planning a trip of a lifetime. Now that is the gift that will keep giving, well after the holiday season is over. *Terms and Conditions apply. Issued by HSBC Bank Bermuda Limited which is licensed to conduct Banking and Investment Business by the Bermuda Monetary Authority. 4221 GOOD THRU MR J LIVINGSON 001 011111 011 01/08 1 For more information visit us online HSBC Visa Debit Card Draw www.hsbc.bm/getaway HSBC Credit Card Rewards Programme www.hsbc.bm/rewards