IF you’re struggling to make your cash stretch to cover soaring bills, a money expert explains how to give your finances a makeover.
Families are being bombarded by soaring bills from food to fuel to energy, pushing budgets to the max.
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Millions of households saw their energy bills DOUBLE at the start of the month when the price cap – which limits the amount that suppliers can charge customers for their energy – went up.
Food bills are also on the rise, with fridge staples rocketing in price by up to 37.2%, while drivers are being hit by rocketing fuel bills at the pumps.
It means it’s harder than ever for families to make their money stretch to cover rising costs.
But AJ Bell personal finance expert Laura Suter gives five ways to give your finances a spring clean so you can balance your budget.
Ms Suter has decades of experience in personal finance, and here’s her advice on getting through the cost of living crunch.
Cancel subscriptions
It’s easy to get roped into signing up for a free trial only to forget all about it – until you get hit with the bill at the end of the month.
Make sure you comb through your bank statements to see whether you’re paying for something you don’t need or use.
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It’s also a good opportunity to see whether you can cut down any non-essential subscriptions and save yourself money each month, Ms Suter said.
“Do you need all those streaming services, or could you ditch your gym membership and work out at home?
“Be warned, companies often make it very tricky to cancel, forcing you to call up and wait on hold.
“But persevere and think how much that phone call will save you over the next year.”
Haggle your bills
You might feel a bit awkward haggling to get yourself a better deal – but it can help you save up to hundreds of pounds a year.
Ms Suter said bartering to get your bills lowered won’t work on some costs such as council tax or for your electricity bills.
But it could work for your broadband, mobile, TV bills and more, she said.
This is because a lot of these providers have teams whose job it is to persuade you to stay by offering a sweeter deal.
“You just need to make sure you’re not still in contract, and be aware that often signing up to a new deal means signing a new contract – so you’ll be locked in again for a year or two,” Ms Suter said.
Keep with your old phone
It can be tempting to sign up for a shiny new phone upgrade when you’re nearing the end of your contract.
But you can save yourself a lot of money by keeping with your old phone and moving to a SIM-only deal.
That’s because you’ll have paid off your old headset and all you’ll need to do is pay for your data, calls and texts allowance, Ms Suter explained.
“Someone getting the latest iPhone 13 will pay £30 upfront and £47.75 a month on a new contract with O2, costing them just over £600 in the first year.
“Whereas a SIM-only deal with O2 with the same amount of data is only £22 a month, saving almost £340 over the year.”
Get FREE money
If you’re struggling to get by, you might be entitled to free money from the government.
“Benefits are a clear example, where lots of people who are in work think they wouldn’t be entitled to more help,” Ms Suter said.
You can use a benefits checker tool to work out what you are entitled to.
Entitledto’s free calculator works out whether you qualify for various benefits, tax credits and Universal Credit.
You have to sign up or register to use it, but if you don’t want to do this, consumer group MoneySavingExpert.com and charity StepChange both have benefits tools powered by Entitledto’s data that let you save your results without logging in.
It’s not just benefits you could be missing out on.
“Families also often forget to claim the free money they’re entitled to, from child benefit to tax-free childcare, where the Government gives up to £2,000 per child per year towards childcare costs,” Ms Suter said.
“Those with older children often think they aren’t eligible, but tax-free childcare runs until your child is 11 and can be used for holiday clubs or after-school clubs too.”
Tackle your debt
With a cost of living crisis squeezing budgets, more families are struggling to keep out of the red.
Around 12 million people could owe more money than they have in savings, according to recent research.
And with interest rates rising, lots of people might see the interest they pay back on their debts increase too.
That’s why it’s important to get to grips with what you owe and start paying it off, Ms Suter said.
If you have an overdraft, credit card or personal loan it’s worth looking at whether you can switch it to a lower interest rate.
That’s because more of the money you use to pay towards your debt each month will go towards clearing the actual debt, instead of it being eaten up by interest repayments.
“With a credit card you might be able to get a 0% balance transfer deal, which means you can move your debt to a new credit card where you pay no interest for a certain amount of time – currently the longest deal is more than two-and-a-half years,” Ms Suter said.
“Just make sure you have a plan to switch the debt once the deal is up, and watch out for transfer fees, which can add up.”
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