The cost-of-living crisis is putting many households under pressure approaching the expensive winter months when bills like heating and electricity normally cost much more due to higher consumption.
With five of the electricity and gas companies increasing prices this month, the rising cost of a trolley of groceries coming into focus, and all of health insurance providers hiking up their rates twice already this year, it’s no wonder consumers are feeling the pinch in terms of their disposable income. Other bills like TV and broadband are also on the up too as are many services or entertainment.
Best-selling author John Lowe from moneydoctors.ie has some tips to save you cash this autumn.
Examine bills and compare
“The one thing I would say is never trust a bill. When you get a bill, always check it and always compare it. Don’t just accept it. There are websites like bonkers.ie or ccpc.ie they have comparisons and they are always well worth looking at to see what’s available and if you can get a better deal. Nine times out of 10, you can,” he advises.
In terms of health insurance, John recommends that consumers go to hia.ie, the Health Insurance Authority, where there is a comparison site for all of the providers and plans or go to a specialist in this area to get the best price.
Take action
Rather than being apathetic and doing absolutely nothing about your bills, the financial advisor and author is urging householders to take action to make savings. Check, compare and then change where you find value, says John.
“For instance, some readers will have credit card debt and what they probably don’t know is that if you have a half decent record or no blips on your credit history, then you can transfer the entire balance that you have to the best credit card provider which, believe or believe it not, is An Post Money.
“What they do is they give you 12 months for your transfer balance at 0%, so say you had a bill of €1,200, very few people can pay €1,200 in one month. With this, you can pay it over 12 months – €100 a month and there is no interest and at the end of 12 months, it’s clear. Other providers like Bank of Ireland or AIB, only give a six-month transfer. Twelve months is very generous and if you have a balance you can’t get rid of in a month, it’s just going to hang over you like the sword of Damocles [and cost you interest].”
Examine your life cover
“Look at your statements and there may be things in there that you do not need. You might be oversupplied with life cover, for example. A lot of people, for instance, take out a life policy which may be separate because they had young kids at the time.
“They took it out for 30 years and the child is now 30 or 35 and you have this policy that you don’t need. Really, if you are trying to cover your children for anything happening to the parents, you do it until completion of third-level, about 22 or 23. So if you have policies beyond that, you don’t need it. Don’t over-insure yourself.
Best-selling writer John Lowe from moneydoctors.ie.
Shop around
Shopping around, haggling and following up is really important in terms of bills, particularly, insurance, if you want to save money.
“What people don’t know is that we at moneydoctors.ie represent all of the insurance companies, so when we send you out a quotation it is very easy for you to see which is the cheapest one on that list because all of them are there.
“There are a couple of other insurance companies on that same quotation list that want your business so badly, they will not only match the best offer on the page, but they’ll give you another 10% discount.
“That’s something a lot of people don’t know about and that’s why it’s really important to follow up on those things. It’s all about getting value and 2025 should be your year of getting value,” he urges.
Check the list and plan
“Santa had a list and he checked it twice, so why don’t you do that for your own groceries,” says John. “It’s worth checking the pantry and fridge to see what you have already have. Write only what you need on your list and when you go to that shop, don’t deviate from it. Stick to it.”
The most important document to be filled out every year, according to John, is a budget planner spreadsheet, which tells you how much it costs to run your life on a monthly basis.
“Without this, you will not know how much of a surplus you have. If you were putting away the €140 child benefit from the time your child was born till it finishes on the 19th birthday that would accumulate at no interest to €30,200.
You are still shy of around €12,000 to send that child to third-level, so it’s all about planning.
“So start the year with a budget planner (moneydoctors.ie) and fill it out.
You’re either left with a surplus or a deficit.
“If you’re left with a deficit, then you have three choices – earn more, cut costs or prioritise – that’s why over the last five years 300,000 people stopped paying their health insurance – they simply couldn’t afford it,” he says.
See moneydoctors.ie .
The cost-of-living crisis is putting many households under pressure approaching the expensive winter months when bills like heating and electricity normally cost much more due to higher consumption.
With five of the electricity and gas companies increasing prices this month, the rising cost of a trolley of groceries coming into focus, and all of health insurance providers hiking up their rates twice already this year, it’s no wonder consumers are feeling the pinch in terms of their disposable income. Other bills like TV and broadband are also on the up too as are many services or entertainment.
Best-selling author John Lowe from moneydoctors.ie has some tips to save you cash this autumn.
Examine bills and compare
“The one thing I would say is never trust a bill. When you get a bill, always check it and always compare it. Don’t just accept it. There are websites like bonkers.ie or ccpc.ie they have comparisons and they are always well worth looking at to see what’s available and if you can get a better deal. Nine times out of 10, you can,” he advises.
In terms of health insurance, John recommends that consumers go to hia.ie, the Health Insurance Authority, where there is a comparison site for all of the providers and plans or go to a specialist in this area to get the best price.
Take action
Rather than being apathetic and doing absolutely nothing about your bills, the financial advisor and author is urging householders to take action to make savings. Check, compare and then change where you find value, says John.
“For instance, some readers will have credit card debt and what they probably don’t know is that if you have a half decent record or no blips on your credit history, then you can transfer the entire balance that you have to the best credit card provider which, believe or believe it not, is An Post Money.
“What they do is they give you 12 months for your transfer balance at 0%, so say you had a bill of €1,200, very few people can pay €1,200 in one month. With this, you can pay it over 12 months – €100 a month and there is no interest and at the end of 12 months, it’s clear. Other providers like Bank of Ireland or AIB, only give a six-month transfer. Twelve months is very generous and if you have a balance you can’t get rid of in a month, it’s just going to hang over you like the sword of Damocles [and cost you interest].”
Examine your life cover
“Look at your statements and there may be things in there that you do not need. You might be oversupplied with life cover, for example. A lot of people, for instance, take out a life policy which may be separate because they had young kids at the time.
“They took it out for 30 years and the child is now 30 or 35 and you have this policy that you don’t need. Really, if you are trying to cover your children for anything happening to the parents, you do it until completion of third-level, about 22 or 23. So if you have policies beyond that, you don’t need it. Don’t over-insure yourself.
Best-selling writer John Lowe from moneydoctors.ie.
Shop around
Shopping around, haggling and following up is really important in terms of bills, particularly, insurance, if you want to save money.
“What people don’t know is that we at moneydoctors.ie represent all of the insurance companies, so when we send you out a quotation it is very easy for you to see which is the cheapest one on that list because all of them are there.
“There are a couple of other insurance companies on that same quotation list that want your business so badly, they will not only match the best offer on the page, but they’ll give you another 10% discount.
“That’s something a lot of people don’t know about and that’s why it’s really important to follow up on those things. It’s all about getting value and 2025 should be your year of getting value,” he urges.
Check the list and plan
“Santa had a list and he checked it twice, so why don’t you do that for your own groceries,” says John. “It’s worth checking the pantry and fridge to see what you have already have. Write only what you need on your list and when you go to that shop, don’t deviate from it. Stick to it.”
The most important document to be filled out every year, according to John, is a budget planner spreadsheet, which tells you how much it costs to run your life on a monthly basis.
“Without this, you will not know how much of a surplus you have. If you were putting away the €140 child benefit from the time your child was born till it finishes on the 19th birthday that would accumulate at no interest to €30,200.
You are still shy of around €12,000 to send that child to third-level, so it’s all about planning.
“So start the year with a budget planner (moneydoctors.ie) and fill it out.
You’re either left with a surplus or a deficit.
“If you’re left with a deficit, then you have three choices – earn more, cut costs or prioritise – that’s why over the last five years 300,000 people stopped paying their health insurance – they simply couldn’t afford it,” he says.
See moneydoctors.ie .
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