Don't get screwed on your mobile phone deal

Around 30 million people in the UK have contract phones, and I would estimate that 20 million of those have had a gripe with their contract at some point.

I am a passionate money saver, and have spent hours pouring over the brochures and websites of mobile phone retailers and I love finding great deals. There are some fantastic mobile phone offers out there if you go to independent retailers rather than directly to the networks, but you have to be aware of how these companies operate and you have to be prepared to follow their instructions to the letter. They will in most cases offer a discount on line rental which is only paid when you make a claim for it at certain specified months of your contract, usually long enough after you've signed it for you to have forgotten all about it.

The inspiration for this post however was the experience I had with one particular bunch of crooks called The Mobile Outlet, who go beyond the acceptable bounds of customer deception and offer insane deals in the full knowledge that they'll trip you up and not have to pay a penny of it. I have been stretched almost to breaking point but I'm still just about clinging onto what is rightfully mine.

If you're about to take out a mobile phone contract, give this article a read, hopefully you won't have the same trouble I've had!

Make sure you know what you're getting into.

Don't get brainwashed by incredible mobile phone deals. You don't get something for nothing. The reason a mobile phone shop will offer you such a great deal is because they expect not to have to honour all of them. In most cases this is not unreasonable. If you want an easy ride, go to O2 or Vodafone, if you want a good deal, expect to have to work for it.

Go with a reputable company

This should really be the title of the whole lens, highlighted in bold and underlined a hundred times. A reputable company like Dial-a-Phone or Phones4U will not use underhand tactics to defeat your redemption claims. I was initially attracted by Mobile Outlet's deals on O2 mobile phones but I won't make the same mistake again. Beware of The Mobile Outlet, e2save, onestopphoneshone, DialToSave, Mobile Rainbow, CoolNewMobile, Phones2U, and any others that you don't recognise!

Read everything very carefully

That means all the information that's available on the website, including the online terms and conditions. Take a print out of these and compare them with the written ones you receive with your order. In my case, I agreed to the online terms and conditions by checking the box before making the order, unaware that they contained specifications that weren't included in my written ones.

Keep everything

Even if it doesn't seem important, it's better to hold onto it. The Mobile Outlet require you to send it the original dispatch note with your first redemption claim, and void your whole claim if it's not included. Obviously this is the first thing that people chuck away.

Understand the redemption process

Make sure you know what you have to do, including what you have to send in (orignal bills for example), where you have to send it to, and when you have to do it. Put the dates in your diary, in your phone, on your calendar, and tattoo them on your forehead if you have to! Check whether or not you have to send in all the bills up to the redemption date, or just the latest bill.

Don't leave it to the last minute

For two reasons, firstly to leave no doubt as to when the claim arrived - it would be perfectly possible for a letter to arrive then spend a few days sitting around their office before finding the right person. Secondly, because there'll be time to submit a new claim if any problems arise.

Take copies and send by recorded delivery.

You don't want to be left in a situation where its your word against theirs. Make a copy of everything you send before you send it, and take it to the post office and get it sent by recorded delivery. Then there can be no doubt!

Call them to make sure they've got it

Just to be sure - you can also ask them to confirm that everything is in order!

Challenge them if they argue with you

If you've followed the process correctly you have a right to claim the discount they offered. Don't be afraid to threaten to take them to the small claims court if they are being unreasonable. I did, when I challenged the need for an original dispatch note that had not been mentioned in my written terms and conditions, and they backed down.

Make sure they actually pay you!

Its great that they've emailed you to say your claim has been approved, but that's not the same as money in the bank. Having not received anything six weeks after I'd been promised my money I phoned up The Mobile Outlet to find out what was going on, they said, "We've run out of cheques".

Ok, that might all seem a bit long-winded, but we can be talking about serious money here, up to £300 or so off your mobile phone bill. If you're sensible, and organised its not difficult to claim all the money you're entitled to. I myself will never buy again from The Mobile Outlet, or any of the other cowboy mobile stores out there, but I've recently taken out an O2 mobile deal with Dial-a-Phone and have experienced no such problems.

About the Author

Ian Ball is an employee of dialaphone, the mobile phone shop and specialist in O2 mobile phones. Click here for the latest 02 deals.

White Buffalo Custom Tattoos and Body Piercing

White Buffalo Custom Tattoos and Body Piercing. Professional service without the attitude. Instead of copying and reproducing Tattoo Flash that has been done a million times. We believe every person has the right to their own unique Artwork. Bring your ideas and imagination and let us create the Design you'll be proud to wear for a lifetime. Martin Bravek, born in Vienna Austria. Tattooing for about 11 years. I received my first Tattoo at "Great Southern Tattoo" in Baltimore and that was it. I was determined to learn the ancient Art form. Finally Johnny and Biggy from "European Body Art in Vienna" let me in on the secrets that are important to be not just a Tattooist but an Tattoo Artist. Since then I tattooed in Davie Florida, at Tattoo Blues, Hard Luck Tattoo, Ft. Lauderdale. And finally opened White Buffalo Custom tattooing 4 years ago. This gave me the opportunity to concentrate on Custom Requests rather than tattooing in a beach shop doing numerous little butterflies and flash pieces of the wall, which never satisfied me at all. To the people that I opened my heart to and gave them all my knowledge just to get stabbed in the back. "F**k you". However the biggest Thanks to Christian Mader (RIP) from "Maders Finest Tattoos", (Austria) Rob Welt at "The Liquid Dragon", (North Carolina), "Traveling Kelly", (all over the USA) and last but not least my Wife Iris for putting up with me all these years. http://white-buffalo.us

About the Author

Born in Vienna Austria, Tattoo Shop Owner and Artist

Dragon Drawings-Tattoo Galleries-Fairy Tattoos- I Want to go to a Party

I feel jealous of the dragon
I hold my dragon drawings
I want to breathe his power
I want to yell sometimes
I think maybe I will take me out of this box
build me back
start to find that spark.

I want to go to parties
dress up like a jester
wear a mask of feathers
butterfly tattoos
tribal tattoos
let the fire flow
let my dance fight for me.

I am tired
of being tired
I am slow to see it
too late
too bad
and the tinges of sadness
golden cages I cannot open
never or ever.

I wish I was a dragon
I wish I was that strong
I wish that I could yell my stories
make them real
fold up all the trees
as beautiful as they are
they block my view
I want to see a bigger story.

I want to go to parties
scream out songs
wear nothing at all
maybe just a ruby on my cheek.
I want to go to a tattoo gallery
count their fairy tattoos
on other people maybe me
I want to fly free
and not care about anything at all.
I want to drink till I cannot stand
cut the ribbon in the hallway.

I keep secrets
so do you so do not act so proud
who do you think you are?

I think the train is coming
I hear it rushing toward me.
I will stand in front of it
till that last moment
then calmly step away
just like before.
I do not need your directions.

I missed out
it comes down to that
I want to go to parties.
I want a tattoo
maybe a fairy
maybe a star
maybe a tribal tattoo
I want to go to a tattoo gallery.

Of course there are good days
filled with natures gifts.
I did not and do not miss that.
Quit telling me.
I am tired of hearing explanations
I am tired of know it all people
I am tired of me being one
I want to go to a party.
I want to be wild.

I feel jealous of the dragon
and so do you.
I do not care that you won't admit it.
I don't believe you.

Just down the hallway
there you are
just as I thought
counting the days
and all your pennies.

About the Author

ABOUT Kathy Ostman-Magnusen
I paint and sculpt female fantasy art and map faery tale adventures. I dream of beautiful women on canvas and art of exotic women. Giclee canvas art work, greeting cards and posters are available for sale on my website. Sign up for my mailing list for FREE ART GIFTS!:

http://www.kathysart.com

Check out my new Squidoo too! http://www.squidoo.com/kathysart/

Jesus Says There is no Hell in the Holy Bible

Anna Nicole Smith was a Christian woman. Anna Nicole Smith always wore a cross around her neck. Anna Nicole Smith had a tattoo of Jesus Christ and a cross emblazoned on her lower right leg.

This past Sunday morning, March 25, 2007 Pope Benedict XVI gave a sermon at the St. Felicity and Martyred Sons Church in northern Rome, Italy. St. Felicity was a rich widow with seven sons who lived in the second century AD in Rome, Italy. Like Tiger Woods St. Felicity devoted herself to charitable work. St. Felicity and her 7 sons refused to renounce Christianity and so she was forced to watch as her sons were murdered one by one. Finally she was beheaded by Publius the Prefect of Rome on the orders of the Roman Emperor Marcus Antoninus Pius. Had she just agreed to worship Minerva the Roman Goddess of wisdom, intelligence and learning she could have kept her head. Tiger Woods is renowned for keeping his head while those around him falter.

Buddhism has taught Tiger Woods how to concentrate and to focus despite facing indescribable pressure. The Buddhist Master Dogen said, "To study the Buddha Way is to study the self. To study the self is to forget the self. To forget the self is to be enlightened by the ten thousand things." To be enlightened by the ten thousand things is to recognize the unity of the self and the ten thousand things. Ten Thousand Things is a Buddhist expression representing the dynamic interconnection and simultaneous unity and diversity of everything in the universe. On the PGA tour only Tiger Woods has the priceless ability under intense pressure to forget himself, the fans, the title, the money and the pressure. Only Tiger Woods can transport himself at will into the calm, tranquil zone. Unlike Anna Nicole Smith he doesn't need 9 different tranquilizers to stay composed. He also doesn't have Howard K. Stern carrying his bag. Coincidentally Catholicism has 10,000 Saints, including St. Felicity.

John Lennon proclaimed that he was bigger than Jesus Christ. John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote about the ten thousand things in "I Am the Walrus". John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote, 'I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together. See how they run like pigs from a gun see how they fly." According to Craig Stadler the walrus was Paul because on the cover of "Magical Mystery Tour" Paul McCartney is dressed as a walrus. According to Pope Benedict this past Sunday in Rome "Hell exists and is eternal even if nobody talks about it much anymore" according to reports by the Catholic News Service and the London Times.

After her beloved son Daniel Smith died in her hospital bed beside her on Sept. 10, 2007 in the Bahamas Anna Nicole Smith called her astrologer in Los Angeles to contact Daniel Smith in the afterlife. Anna Nicole Smith became convinced that Daniel Smith had become trapped in purgatory and that she had to go there to save him. This is why she was knocking back chloral hydrate in her final days like it was Pepsi. She had told everyone that she wanted to die, and she was saved from drowning at her Horizons home by Big Mo. Purgatory is where Christians go after death to suffer for several years to atone for their sins and try not to get thrown into the eternal fire of Hell. Anna Nicole Smith martyred herself to rescue Daniel Smith into Heaven. This year Masters Sunday falls on Sunday, April 8, 2007, Easter Sunday. Surely the pregnant Elin Nordegren Woods is not being given Methadone by Tiger Woods. It's bad for the baby.

This past Sunday in Rome Pope Benedict XVI said, "The Christian faith is not imposed on anyone, it is a gift, an offer to mankind." Apparently no one told Pope Benedict about the horrors of the 300 year Inquisition, or the Christian Crusade into the Middle East announced publicly by Brother Bush 3 years ago. Pope Benedict XVI also said, "Limbo, purgatory, supposed since medieval times to be a "halfway house" between heaven and hell is only a theological hypothesis and not a definitive truth of the Christian faith." In other words while the entire world has been mesmerized by the Anna Nicole Smith train wreck the absolute authority on the Christian faith announced that Purgatory itself is baloney. Deborah Opri on behalf of baby Dannielynn Smith is now filing a wrongful death action against the Vatican. Previously the only person in history to win a lawsuit against the Holy Father was the grandfather of Paris Hilton, Barron Hilton. Barron Hilton's little half sister is the mother of Zsa Zsa Gabor.

So Pope Benedict XVI comes out last Sunday just before Easter and announces that Hell is a fact, a place where non Christians go. Did you ever wonder where your pagan ancestors went after death for 5 million years before the birth of Jesus 2,000 years ago?

While he was blowing away Purgatory last Sunday why didn't Pope Benedict XVI come right out and tell you what every single Bible Scholar on earth knows. You are not going to believe this. This is the biggest news story of all time and no one will ever hear it. Five million newspapers, magazines, television stations and weblogs and this story which you are about to hear is not considered newsworthy. If the mainstream media ever picked this up it would be the end of Christianity and Holy Christian Wars forever, but they never will because they, their advertisers and their subscribers are Christian. This is the dirty little secret of Christianity which if it ever got out would end the religion forever. Listen to this:

The New Testament was first written in Greek decades after Jesus died. Jesus Christ in the Holy Bible never mentioned the word "Hell" because Hell hadn't been invented yet. Jesus spoke of Gehenna and Sheol. Every time that Jesus says Gehenna or Sheol the modern Bible writers insert their own word "Hell". In the New Revised Standard Version Holy Christian Bible every time that Jesus says "Hell" there is an asterisk beside the word "Hell*". If you look in the footnote for the original Greek word it always says either Gehenna or Sheol. Gehenna was a spot just south of Jerusalem where the Jewish and non Jewish people sacrificed their first born sons on fire altars for a thousand years to the God Baal. Jesus often spoke of Sheol. Sheol was the place underground where both the good and evil spirits went together after death, according to Jesus Christ in the New Testament followed by 2 billion Christians and 1 billion Muslims. This is not newsworthy but the fact that Doctor Joshua Perper condidered Anna Nicole Smith's anus to be unremarkable in his autopsy report is a world wide front page headline. Let Nancy Grace unleash the lawyers on this one paragraph for the next three months.

About the Author

Karen Fish is a writer currently living in Los Angeles California. The Temple of Love http://www.thetempleoflove.com

Butterflie Designs and Decorative Colour and shapes

Butterflies are one of the most colorful and beautiful creatures on Earth today, giving everybody young and old plenty of viewing satisfaction. You can find lots of variety's of butterfly species around gardens, woods, and flowers, generally in areas of warm weather as that is the perfect contrition. Since everybody loves butterflies so much, it is not uncommon to find such designs in many aspects of life. They are a symbol of total freedom and also beauty. More and more woman are getting tattoos these days or over the past decade than ever before. One of the most popular designs is that of a butterfly. You would be surprised how popular this is Women like it because it is a very tasteful tattoo that looks good in any location. The larger the tattoo size, the more detailed and colorfully the butterfly can be. All tattoo experts artist can make a butterfly design with multiple colors shapes and sizes that are vivid and blend well together.

A tattoo artists can help you design the perfect butterfly to suit your just about any one choice desire. Butterflies make a great choice for home decor also.

You can find everything in a butterfly pattern bedding, curtains, wallpaper to decorate your home or bathroom including a shower curtain, pictures to hang on the wall, rugs for the floor,bathroabs, toothbrush holders, soap dishes,toys, and more.

You will be able to select from a variety of colors as well as butterfly species.or just design something your self. Butterfly designs are also a great way to decorate a nursery or a room for a young girl.all young girls love butterfly's You can get butterfly decals that can be applied to the wall or use stencils to color your own. Many places carry butterfly design wall border as well. Outside, butterfly status and wind chimes add flare and style to any type of decor very easily with these things. Since butterflies come with a warm feeling as well as offer some gorgeous color, thats what i like it is no wonder people use them for a variety of decorating ideas and fun both inside and outside of their home. Butterfly designs also are very popular for art and for tattoos because they symbolize freedom. not just for the buitifull colours and shapes If you are interested in various butterfly designs that are available, the Internet is a great place to start.to search out what your favorite is.

You can get wonderful decorating ideas as well as search for a particular one you are interested in. Home improvement stores and craft shops are also great places to look for butterfly designs and in book good shops http://www.mickrush.com/Butterflies/index.php

About the Author

Enjoy working on the net