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14 Eylül 2010 Salı

About Jewelry.com

Jewelry.com is all about jewelry and where to buy it. Jewelry.com helps you find the perfect jewel at an unbeatable price by providing expert jewelry advice, insider shopping tips, unbiased jewelry reviews and a comprehensive jewelry education.
Only Jewelry.com members receive exclusive discounts and deals from the country's leading stores, along with doorbuster deals on selected jewels, sale alert e-mails and Jewelry.com's exclusive newsletter full of shopping tips, fashion updates and jewelry info. Jewelry.com membership is your pass to sparkling savings on over 30,000 stunning jewels and is absolutely free.
Whether you're looking for diamond rings, anniversary rings, gemstone and birthstone jewelry, watches or the latest jewelry style at the lowest price - jewelry.com is your sparkling online destination. From Pearls, Sapphires, Diamonds and Gold, to elegant earrings, brilliant bracelets or knock-out necklaces, we have the information you want. If it's amazing deals from your favorite retailer you're looking for Jewelry.com's Clearance Vault is the single largest jewelry outlet/clearance platform both on and off-line.
Jewelry.com provides a rare in-depth look at the entire jewelry shopping landscape. Our Top 60 Jewelers is the "Zagat" of the jewelry world, providing independent reviews of both national and regional fine jewelry stores in addition to our valued nine founding partners.
While we don't sell jewelry ourselves, Jewelry.com brings you years of experience and trust associated with its participating diamond partners: Fred Meyer Jewelers, Gordon's Jewelers, Helzberg Diamonds, JCPenney, Kay Jewelers, Littman Jewelers, Macy's, Nordstrom, REEDS, Sears, and Zales... see more about us.

Jewellery

Jewellery (pronounced /ˈdʒuːəlri/ or /ˈdʒuːələri/) or jewelry (see American and British English spelling differences) is a form of personal adornment, manifesting itself as necklaces, rings, brooches, earrings and bracelets. Jewellery may be made from any material, usually gemstones, precious metals or shells. Factors affecting the choice of materials include cultural differences and the availability of the materials. Jewellery may be appreciated because of its material properties, its patterns or for meaningful symbols. Jewellery differs from other items of personal adornment in that it has no other purpose than to look appealing. Items such as belts and handbags are considered to be accessories rather than jewellery.
The word jewellery is derived from the word jewel, which was Anglicised from the Old French "jouel" circa the 13th century.[1] Further tracing leads back to the Latin word "jocale", meaning plaything. Jewellery is one of the oldest forms of body adornment; recently-found 100,000-year-old beads made from Nassarius shells are thought to be the oldest known jewellery.[2]
Jewellery is sometimes regarded as a way of storing wealth and might also possess some minimal functionality, such as holding a garment together or keeping hair in place. It has from very early times been regarded as a form of personal adornment. The first pieces of jewellery were made from natural materials, such as bone, animal teeth, shell, wood and carved stone. Some jewellery throughout the ages may have specifically been as an indication of a social group. More exotic jewellery is often for wealthier people, with its rarity increasing its value. Due to its personal nature and its indication of social class, some cultures established traditions of burying the dead with their jewellery.
Jewellery has been made to adorn nearly every body part, from hairpins to toe rings and many more types of jewellery. While high-quality jewellery is made with gemstones and precious metals, such as silver or gold, there is also a growing demand for art jewellery where design and creativity is prized above material value. In addition, there is the less costly costume jewellery, made from lower value materials and mass-produced. Other variations include wire sculpture (wrap) jewellery, using anything from base metal wire with rock tumbled stone to precious metals and precious gemstones.

12 Eylül 2010 Pazar

INSURANCE, RE-INSURANCE and PRIVATE PENSIONS IN TURKEY

As of December 31, 2007, 52 companies operated in the insurance and pensions market in Turkey. 29 of them are non-life, 11 are life, 10 are life and pension companies, 1 is pension and 1 is re-insurance company.
The insurance and private pension market is regulated by the Directorate General of Insurance and supervised by Insurance Supervisory Board of the Undersecretariat of Treasury.
Although the insurability capacity has not reached the expected level in Turkey, in recent years, there have been important developments in the insurance sector parallel to the economic growth.
In 2007, the assets of the insurance sector have become YTL 23.4 billion, increasing by 25%; meanwhile the production of premium has reached to YTL 10.9 billion, increasing by 13%. The number of the insurance policies has exceeded 38 million, increasing by 14% compared to last year. These progresses suggest that the potential of the insurance sector is hopeful.
Moreover, the new Turkish Insurance Law, prepared in accordance with EU norms, came into effect in June 2007.
Private pension system 
Private pension system, which is a voluntary scheme, launched by Law No. 4632 in October 2001. After a two-year preparatory period, pension companies started operating as of 27th October 2003. The number of participants in the private pension funds reached 1.5 million and the amount of contributions surmounted USD 3.3 billion as of 31 December 2007.
  • A Brief Report on the Turkish Private Pension System can be reached here.
Pension Monitoring Centre 
As a requirement of the law no. 4632, the Undersecretariat of Treasury authorised the "Pension Monitoring Centre" ("Emeklilik Gözetim Merkezi" or in short EGM in Turkish) in order to ensure that the Individual Pension System operates in a safe and efficient manner, and protects rights and interests of participants. As a self-regulated e-governance application, EGM is established to produce accurate information on behalf of Turkish Treasury for daily electronic supervision of the companies operating in the system. The establishment was completed by the shareholders with $ 1.7 million paid-in capitals on July 10, 2003. One of the shareholders of the centre is Prime Ministry Undersecretariat of Treasury with a small share in capital, other shareholders are 11 pension companies which have licenses to operate in the pension branch with equal share in capital.
EGM, which is a core control mechanism, mainly assigned to perform the following tasks;
Daily electronic supervision and audit of pension company’s activities and e-reporting to the related government institution,
Consolidation of data based on the daily transactions of the pensions companies,
Providing information to public and participants,
Generating statistical and actuarial information,
Implementing the examination of Individual Pensions Brokers and following up the electronic registries,
Meeting the demand for common presentation, training activities, software and allied subjects,
Organizing data which is necessary for on time intervention to probable problems,
Analytically querying the Individual Pension System.
As of February 22, 2005, EGM (Pension Monitoring Center) has been registered as a governing member of the International Organisation of Pension Supervisors (IOPS), which is an international organisation, aims to serve as the standard-setting body on pension supervisory issues and regulating issues related to pension supervision through the development and promotion of the implementation of international principles, standards, and good practices in pension supervision, having regard to the variety of different private pension systems.
Health insurance 
28 insurance companies offer health insurance products as of December 31, 2004. Health insurance products are usually, yearly renewable. Private companies offer in patient and out patient health services in private hospitals. There are travel asistance products, contract lengths are less than one year. They offer health services during the tourists' journey in Turkey.
Property insurance 
In Turkey, there are two types of insurance policies for properties. These are the compulsory earthquake insurance and other non-compulsory property insurance.
Compulsory: DASK (The Turkish Catastrophic Insurance Pool-TCIP) has been established by the virtue of Decree Law no:587 in order to write compulsory Earthquake Insurance and to do the other tasks given by the Decree. Compulsory Earthquake Insurance is underwritten by TCIP. The insurance companies are authorised to sign insurance agreement with the name and account of TCIP. In Turkey, Compulsory Earthquake Insurance is mandatory for all houses except for the buildings which belong to public establishments and the buildings constructed on village settlement areas.
Non-compulsory: Other property insurance types can be freely bought from the market and they cover some risks including theft and fire. Foreigners are permitted to conclude property insurance contract in Turkey. There are no legal restrictions for foreigners to buy all insurance types. Additionally, real persons and legal entities are obliged to buy insurance policies from the insurance companies operating in Turkey. The Insurance companies must have a licence to operate in Turkey. Those companies are not treated differently in terms of capital requirement whether they are domestic or foreign. It is possible to establish an insurance company in Turkey with %100 foreign capital.
Traffic (motorists) insurance 
Motor vehicle owners have to buy a compulsory traffic insurance policy. A person must not use a motor vehicle on a road unless there is in force in relation to the use of the vehicle by that person such a policy of insurance or such a security in respect of third party risks as complies with the requirements of Road Traffic Act.
Insurance Agents, Brokers, Experts 
Insurance Agents: According to the Insurance Supervision Law, agents, who are real persons or legal entities, are allowed to sell insurance policies or to represent insurance companies in some activities.
Insurance Brokers: Insurance brokers, who are real persons or legal entities, operate in line with the Insurance Brokers Regulation issued by the Undersecretariat of Treasury. They are authorised by the Undersecretariat of Treasury. As of 23 May 2008, the number of insurance brokers was 67.
Insurance Experts: Insurance experts are the authorised independent legal or real persons who assess the damages and losses subject to insurance policies. In order to become an insurance expert, people undertake special exams and internship programs.
The premiums generated by the sector 
 
Premium generation by the insurance market in Turkey
Source: Undersecretariat of Treasury (as of December 31, 2007)
 
For further information please contact:
Directorate General of Insurance
Address:
T.C. Basbakanlik Hazine Müstesarligi Inönü Bulvari No:36 06510 Emek/ ANKARA TURKEY
Tel :
+90 (312) 204 60 00, +90 (312) 2128730, +90 (312) 2121205, +90 (312) 2128203, +90 (312) 2129069, +90 (312) 2128238, or +90 (312) 2129463
Fax:
+90 (312) 212 88 71
Web:

 
Association of the Insurance and Reinsurance Companies of Turkey
Address:
Büyükdere St. Büyükdere Plaza No:195 Floor:1-2 34394 Levent-ISTANBUL-TURKEY
Tel :
+90 (212) 324 19 50
Fax:
+90 (212) 325 61 08
E-mail:
Web:

Health Services in Turkey

Every Turkish working citizen as their employer pays a prima in behalf of them to the state (and wife, husband, children) is automatically secured for health services by the SSK (Social Insurance Association) which is owned by the State. Unfortunately the social security system of Turkey is not able to serve non-working or unofficially working citizens. With a new law that is accepted by the parliament by June 2000, unemployed citizens would be able to get health service if they match the criteria. Turkish citizens who are retired are also able to get health service of the state.
The employers, owners of enterprises do pay a different prim to the government (BAĞKUR) that gives them the right to get health service from state hospitals which are in a little better conditions then SSK hospitals in means of infrastructure and hygiene.
Apart from that, citizens which are able to afford the payments, insure their selves by private health insurance companies that gives the possibility to use the private hospitals. Among many possibilities there are two major sorts. 
1- "Yatarak" : Secures only the cases which ends with a lodging in a hospital. Operations, Emergency care, Big accidents etc. Generally % 100 of the expenses are secured.
2- "Ayakta ve Yatarak" : Secures all health expenses depending on the condition of the insurance which could be set by the customer. Generally the customer has a %20 percent of own risk with lights health care or controls where no hospital lodging take place. All cases where hospital lodging is need are paid in full.    
Private hospitals are open to everybody which could afford the expenses which are high in case compared with the average income of Turkish citizens.
Although the physically health service standard in government owned hospitals seems below average, in private hospitals this level reaches far above international standards in means of infrastructure and expertise. Overall in Turkey the level of expertise and education is quite high and trustful. 
On January 2002, the English health social security system authorities has contacted Turkish health authorities to be able to cure English patients in Turkey. This is just a recent development that proves the educate standards of Turkish hospitals and doctors. (Source Hurriyet Newspaper)

Health

Health is the general condition of a person in all aspects. It is also a level of functional and/or metabolic efficiency of an organism, often implicitly human.
The Caduceus
At the time of the creation of the World Health Organization (WHO), in 1948, health was defhey "a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity".[1][2]
Only a handful of publications have focused specifically on the definition of health and its evolution in the first 6 decades. Some of them highlight its lack of operational value and the problem created by use of the word "complete." Others declare the definition, which has not been modified since 1948, "simply a bad one." [1]
In 1986, the WHO, in the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, said that health is "a resource for everyday life, not the objective of living. Health is a positive concept emphasizing social and personal resources, as well as physical capacities." Classification systems such as the WHO Family of International Classifications (WHO-FIC), which is composed of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) and the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) also define health.
Overall health is achieved through a combination of physical, mental, and social well-being, which, together is commonly referred to as the Health Triangle.

Private Jet Charter – Simplicity, Flexibility, and Peace of Mind

Private Jet Charter – Simplicity, Flexibility, and Peace of Mind

At OneSky, we’ve created something special: a private jet alternative that offers the peace of mind and reliability of fractional ownership with the flexibility, simplicity and choice of private jet charter.
  • Access to over 2,500 approved private jets*
  • Freedom to select the exact jet make and model for each trip
  • No up-front capital outlay
  • Stringent and unyielding commitment to passenger safety
  • Best of class logistics expertise through our FedEx heritage

OneSky Jets – The Evolution of the Private Jet Company

OneSky Jets does not own or manage jets. Instead, we’ve built a unique model which unites the top private jet carriers into a cohesive network, empowering our clients and Members with access to the finest, most luxurious private jets. This access comes with peace of mind through our industry leading safety due-diligence program and added comfort through the knowledge that our state of the art command center is tracking every detail of every flight.

Private Jet Search Features Make Finding a Private Jet Easy

OneSky Jets' search and planning tools make the process of sourcing a premium private jet easy. Our online flight planner is the only tool where users can instantly search, price and compare private jet charter solutions 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Questions? Our friendly, knowledgeable Flight Advisors are available to answer any questions and assist in planning any flight.

Unyielding Air Charter Safety Standards

Each Certified Part 135 operator in OneSky Jets' network must meet required FAA standards and additional OneSky Jets safety standards. OneSky Jets is a Wyvern Authorized broker, helped to develop the Wyvern Pilot and Aircraft Safety Survey (PASS) program, and served as this product's launch customer.

OneSky Jets cross checks Wyvern results with those of the Aviation Research Group's TripCHEQ. OneSky Jets is the first and only private jet company subscribing to both ARG/US and Wyvern trip specific safety intelligence reports.

OneSky Jets' commitment to safety extends beyond the third party due-diligence it performs. OneSky Jets is a founding member of the Air Charter Safety Foundation and our CEO sits on this organization's board. The safety-focused culture at OneSky Jets teaches everyone in the Company to treat each and every flight as if their own family were on-board.

OneSky Jets welcomes requests for additional information about specific aircraft safety equipment and/or liability insurance for every aircraft we approved and listed on OneSky.com. For more about air safety, follow this link: air safety.

6 Eylül 2010 Pazartesi

Mortgage Refinancing

Refinancing is when you apply for a secured loan in order to pay off another different loan secured against the same assets, property etc. If this original loan had a fixed interest rate mortgage which has now declined considerably, then you would like to avail of a new loan at a more favorable interest rate.

When is Refinancing an Option

Typically home refinancing is done when you have a mortgage on your home and apply for a second loan to pay off the first one. While taking the decision to go for the home refinancing option, it is important to first determine whether the amount you save on interests balances the amount of fees payable during refinancing.

 

 

Home Refinancing Benefits

Imagine a scenario where you can have access to extra cash, while simultaneously lowering your monthly mortgage payment. This dream can become a reality through mortgage refinancing.
A house is the largest asset you may ever own. Likewise, your mortgage payment may be the largest expense you'll have in your monthly budget. Wouldn't it be great to use this asset to reduce your monthly payment and put extra cash in your pocket? When you refinance your mortgage, you can take advantage of the equity in your home and enable this to take place.

Lower Refinance Rate, Lower Payments

When you purchased your dream home, the financial environment dictated interest rates. While certain factors, like your credit rating and the amount of the down payment that you were able to afford, influenced your interest rate, the single most important factor was the prevailing rates at that moment. However, interest rates fluctuate. When the Federal Reserve enters a rate-cutting period, the prevailing rates may become significantly lower than when you originally purchased your home.
By refinancing your mortgage when interest rates are lower, you can exchange a higher interest rate for a lower one, which, in turn, will lower your monthly payment.

Shorten the Length of Your Mortgage when Refinancing

Another advantage of home refinancing is that you can shorten the term of your mortgage. Let's say, for example, that you originally had a 30-year mortgage and have been paying it for eight years. Thanks to mortgage refinancing, you can switch to a shorter term of either 10, 15 or 20 years. This can save you thousands of dollars of interest. Also, if the refinance rate is lower, but you maintain the same monthly payment, you will build up equity in your home more quickly, because more of your payment will be going towards principal.

Exchange an Adjustable Rate (ARM) for a Fixed Refinance Rate (FRM)

When interest rates are low, adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) are the housing market's darlings. However, as interest rates increase, that adjustable rate may not look as sweet. It's also possible that you opted for an ARM because your financial future was less secure, or you weren't sure how long you'd stay in your home. If, however, you've become financially stable and know that you'll be staying in your home for several years, it may be beneficial to swap that fluctuating adjustable rate for a fixed one. You'll have more security knowing that your monthly payment will remain steady, regardless of the current market environment.

Cash-out refinancing

One way to put more money in your pocket is to tap into the equity you've built in your home and do a "cash-out" refinancing. In this scenario, you can refinance for an amount higher than your current principal balance and take the extra funds as cash. This can provide money for remodeling your home, paying off high-interest rate bills, or sending your kids to college.

PMI (Private Mortgage Insurance)

If you were unable to make a down payment of 20 percent when you purchased your home, you may have been required to purchase Private Mortgage Insurance or PMI. If your house has appreciated since then, and you've steadily paid down your mortgage, your equity may now be more than 20 percent. If you refinance, you will no longer need PMI.
In many ways, your house is like a cash cow. If you have discipline and knowledge of the benefits of refinancing, you can tap into its milk for years to come.
To find the best refinance loan offers complete our short form. You will find lenders and brokers that offer home refinance loans in California, Florida and all other states.