Internet comping
If you prefer online comping, the following sites list links to hundreds - maybe even thousands - of new competitions. Each has their own particular strengths; try them all and see which suits you best. Some of them have online forums where you can discuss new comps and exchange answers. There are many other comping portal sites available but these are the ones I use regularly.
www.loquax.co.uk Probably the best known of them all! The site has a useful competition tracker which can help you to remember which comps you have already entered.
www.theprizefinder.com Lists the new comps each day and those closing that day in an easy to use list format which makes it quick to scroll through for those that interest you.
www.ukwins.co.uk has a daily newsletter to update you on the latest comps, and often gives answers to some of the trickier questions.
Marina's Competition Site gives answers to magazine puzzle comps - Take a Break, That's Life, Chat, Real People and Full House.
www.guide2win.co.uk has a very easy to use checklist system so that you can see at a glance which comps you have entered - invaluable for those "One entry per person" comps.
All compers love a freebie, and a great place to find links to the best is www.borntoloaf.co.uk which also has its own monthly cometition, which you can enter daily, with a great selection of prizes.
A great site for comps, with many new ones to enter each month, as well as loads of articles and advice on many other subjects from hobbies to holidays, and money to make-up, is Sixtyplusurfers http://www.sixtyplusurfers.co.uk/
THE WINNIN POST CLUB is now taking members for 2008-9. Members receive Winn Sommor’s annual booklet of around 25 comps in the summer plus prize quizzes in autumn and spring. With a limit of 250 members, your chances of a win are excellent, and the puzzles and quizzes are great fun.
To join the club, send a cheque for £10.99, made out to WINN SOMMOR, to Winn Sommor, The Winnin Post Club, Dept JW(G), Erica Handling House, Tattershall, Lincoln, Lincolnshire LN4 4NR. Please write the date of posting in the top right hand corner of your envelope.
Help with the answers
A search engine is often the best way to find the answer to a comping question and there is a detailed explanation of how to get the best from one on the "Search Engines" page.
Sometimes, however, you need help with puzzles, word games or crosswords. Here are a few sites that you may find useful
www.oneacross.com will help solve crossword clues - even cryptic ones! Type in the clue and the letters and spaces you have and let it do the rest.
www.a2zwordfinder.com will help with many types of word puzzle, even the dreaded "How many words can you make from this phrase" ones.
Andy's anagram solver http://www.ssynth.co.uk/~gay/anagram.html will help with longer anagrams.
A huge collection of dictionaries, from rhyming to acronyms, can be accessed all at once here http://dictionary.langenberg.com/
Who to contact when something goes wrong
Maybe you see a promotion that looks as if it breaks the law in some way. Or perhaps you win a comp but don't receive the prize, or find that the prize is not as it was described.
Your first step should be a polite letter or email to the promoter, followed two to three weeks later by a more strongly worded one. If they do not respond or fail to resolve the problem, these are the places to get in touch with to help you put things right.
Your local Trading Standards Office (find them in the phone book) may be able to help if a prize is not as described.
The Advertising Standards Authority www.asa.org.uk has an online complaints form which you can use if you think a promotion is unfair or that you have been unfairly treated. Visit the site and select "How to complain" from the left hand menu.
The Institute of Sales Promotions will also follow up your complaints and problems. Their website is at www.isp.org.uk and you can email them at complaints@isp.org.uk