It's now been more than a year since the ban on public smoking came in, and if you were one of the people who gave up when the ban took effect, there is a major money-saving opportunity for you. Smokers pay a huge amount more than non-smokers for things such as life insurance, private medical insurance and income-protection policies - effectively any policy that has to pay out if you die within a set time.

The important thing is that under the terms of many policies, a non-smoker is someone who has not smoked at all in the past 12 months. So, if you did quit after the ban, then now is the time to see if you can get a cheaper deal. However, if anyone is still having the odd few puffs and is tempted to lie, be very careful - as when you claim, if there is any evidence that you have been smoking, the entire policy could be void and you could be accused of fraud.