All bills set to rise

jonbeeza

jonbeeza

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I did do a search before I posted this, but nothing came up titled "all bill prices going up".

The news keeps going on about all bills will be going up sharply. Gas and electricity bills will be going up drastically. Rent will be going up, probably to recoup what landlords lost as tenants were finding it hard to pay the rent. They reckon food bills will be going up also, in fact everything will be going up.

Looking where to cut our outgoing, to help pay for the increase in money we will need to find. I will have to cut out my camera buying habits, and possibly the TV packages that we have.
Only other place to cut costs are the weekly food shop, the treats may have to go. :oops: :$
 
I devote one day a month to going through all bills and savings and if I can save £10 going out or get £10 more in I do it.

I've been saying for a long time that living standards in the UK and wider west must and will fall as we are and have been living beyond our means on borrowed money for a long time. Unless the way the country is run and governed changes and there's no real sign of that, IMO. Not that the current price rises prove my point in themselves as we can see the justification for each but I think the general point and trend is perhaps true as wealth shifts away from the UK and the west to other places, if we don't change our ways and there's no sign we will.
 
i certainly think bills will be going up but in a discrete way =taxes
the HMRC need to recoup giggabillions so i think loads of things will get stung by tax once we recover more
fuel, food, travel tax all things
 
jonbeeza said:
I did do a search before I posted this, but nothing came up titled "all bill prices going up".

The news keeps going on about all bills will be going up sharply. Gas and electricity bills will be going up drastically. Rent will be going up, probably to recoup what landlords lost as tenants were finding it hard to pay the rent. They reckon food bills will be going up also, in fact everything will be going up.

Looking where to cut our outgoing, to help pay for the increase in money we will need to find. I will have to cut out my camera buying habits, and possibly the TV packages that we have.
Only other place to cut costs are the weekly food shop, the treats may have to go. :oops: :$
Click to expand...
In the last few years we have steadily saved money by trimming our Sky contract, Broadband, mobile contracts, energy bills and water rates (switched to metered water supply). I have replaced all our light fittings with either CFL or LED including external security lighting. We reduced the thermostat settings & timing of our central heating & lagged some pipes that were left unlagged when the boiler was changed a few years back.

Prior to the pandemic we had started shopping in Aldi for some foodstuffs instead of buying all our groceries in Sainsburys, as we now only shop for food online via click & collect we are back to only using Sainsburys but I am hoping that might change later this year.

We are lucky, we have been able to save during the pandemic as our income has been unaffected (pensioners both) as our recreational spending & transport costs have been seriously curtailed.
 
We have been frugle on most things for the last few years as we are gearing up for early retirement but we now also shop at iceland for home delivery and have discovered serios savings !
 
We live within our means, but can't be bothered wasting time and effort to save a few pennies here and there.
Can't take it with you and i'm not getting cold or eating cheap crap just to have a few more quid in the bank.
Not quite sure what people are saving for other than to gloat over their building society books.
We were poor when I was a kid and what money we have now is there to be enjoyed.
Always said I didn't want to work past 55 and beat it by two months, seen too many people die without enjoying retirement.
 
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tijuana taxi said:
We live within our means, but can't be bothered wasting time and effort to save a few pennies here and there.
Can't take it with you and i'm not getting cold or eating cheap crap just to have a few more quid in the bank.
Not quite sure what people are saving for other than to gloat over their building society books.
We were poor when I was a kid and what money we have now is there to be enjoyed.
Click to expand...

I/we don't go short of anything and I see it as much as a challenge as anything else. If any shopping or swapping about brings in or saves only a pittance a month I look at the savings or gains over the course of a year and if it mounts up to paying for home or car insurance, a tank of petrol or even just pays the cost of a take away... I do it :D

At times I do still spend like a drunken sailor, but such is life :D
 
broc said:
In the last few years we have steadily saved money by trimming our Sky contract, Broadband, mobile contracts, energy bills and water rates (switched to metered water supply). I have replaced all our light fittings with either CFL or LED including external security lighting. We reduced the thermostat settings & timing of our central heating & lagged some pipes that were left unlagged when the boiler was changed a few years back.

Prior to the pandemic we had started shopping in Aldi for some foodstuffs instead of buying all our groceries in Sainsburys, as we now only shop for food online via click & collect we are back to only using Sainsburys but I am hoping that might change later this year.

We are lucky, we have been able to save during the pandemic as our income has been unaffected (pensioners both) as our recreational spending & transport costs have been seriously curtailed.
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I don't use Sainsburys, I also use Aldi and possibly Asda for a few items.
 
I can remember about 20 years ago while on the taxis I had a customer partially disabled that not only needed help to get from the car to his 2ND floor flat but once there refused to pay the fare about £18 I think , so I called the police he was also getting aggressive over it .. once there they told hime to pay .. and asked him if he had a bank card so they could get the money out .. the answer was no he only had a BS book .. the book was produced and then passed to the WPC standing behind me , she opened it and went f*****g hell , and showed me .the old geezer had about 150 grand in his account . they then threatened him with arrest and he produced a wad of £20 notes and paid up .. cant take it with you :rolleyes::rolleyes:
 
tijuana taxi said:
We live within our means, but can't be bothered wasting time and effort to save a few pennies here and there.
Can't take it with you and i'm not getting cold or eating cheap crap just to have a few more quid in the bank.
Not quite sure what people are saving for other than to gloat over their building society books.
We were poor when I was a kid and what money we have now is there to be enjoyed.
Always said I didn't want to work past 55 and beat it by two months, seen too many people die without enjoying retirement.
Click to expand...

But we are not talking pennies, a shop done right could save a tenner or so.
Some people don't have a spare tenner at the end of the week, there are some people really struggling out there.
 
How about all the people not working, some people really are struggling. I don't waste money, I try and spend sensibly. Only when a camera comes along, and I just have to have it. :)

We did get a bill the other day, it also said "there will be price increases shortly".
 
jonbeeza said:
But we are not talking pennies, a shop done right could save a tenner or so.
Some people don't have a spare tenner at the end of the week, there are some people really struggling out there.
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s*** load do have it to spare, but are just tight arses and yes I know people like that.
Why go all sanctimonious about it, you like saving that's fine, but not everyone feels that way.
What is a shop done right anyway?
 
tijuana taxi said:
s*** load do have it to spare, but are just tight arses and yes I know people like that.
Why go all sanctimonious about it, you like saving that's fine, but not everyone feels that way.
What is a shop done right anyway?
Click to expand...

I suppose it depends on who is doing the shopping, and what available money there is to spend. Simple things like not buying too much and end up throwing it away, and not always going for a premium brand. :)
 
It's true that prices of many things are starting to increase, and also that taxes of various sorts will go up in April (but "stealth" taxes so they can claim to have stuck to promises!)
We saved about £40/m on the Sky and Virgin packages recently. I change gas/elec supplier every year or two so that bill almost never goes up. My water bill has actually come down now as they've installed smart water meters here that seem to be even more efficient than the previous meters; another £10/m. Food has not come down much lately because we've been snacking a lot more whilst stuck in the house. TBH I save money on food by buying fresh and in required quantities, unpackaged, from farm shops which are very rarely busy even now. Better quality too.
 
Lindsay56 said:
It's true that prices of many things are starting to increase, and also that taxes of various sorts will go up in April (but "stealth" taxes so they can claim to have stuck to promises!)
We saved about £40/m on the Sky and Virgin packages recently. I change gas/elec supplier every year or two so that bill almost never goes up. My water bill has actually come down now as they've installed smart water meters here that seem to be even more efficient than the previous meters; another £10/m. Food has not come down much lately because we've been snacking a lot more whilst stuck in the house. TBH I save money on food by buying fresh and in required quantities, unpackaged, from farm shops which are very rarely busy even now. Better quality too.
Click to expand...

I have noticed the price of things creeping up, it is mainly things that people buy without thinking. Supermarkets tend to do that with Petrol/ Diesel, have a massive sign with a low price, and recoup it on something in store.
 
tijuana taxi said:
We live within our means, but can't be bothered wasting time and effort to save a few pennies here and there.
Can't take it with you and i'm not getting cold or eating cheap crap just to have a few more quid in the bank.
Not quite sure what people are saving for other than to gloat over their building society books.
We were poor when I was a kid and what money we have now is there to be enjoyed.
Always said I didn't want to work past 55 and beat it by two months, seen too many people die without enjoying retirement.
Click to expand...

same here mate its 55 for me as well, my wife will be 53 when we call it quits.
 
jonbeeza said:
I have noticed the price of things creeping up, it is mainly things that people buy without thinking. Supermarkets tend to do that with Petrol/ Diesel, have a massive sign with a low price, and recoup it on something in store.
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The other cunning trick played by the food industry is reducing the pack sizes and/or contents whilst maintaining the 'price' so that the consumer doesn't spot the increase.
 
We have deliberately crashed the economy in an attempt to save lives.

Whether you think that was the right action or not and regardless of how successful it was, we have to raise that money via taxes.

They are going to go up a lot. Anybody who says otherwise is a politician.
 
I took voluntary redundancy 18 years ago when I was 54. We did a complete overhaul of our finances then and stopped all sorts of discretionary spending, no treats, newspapers, magazines, subscriptions of any kind etc. although we did still have a 2 week holiday abroad each year plus 1 week in the UK.
As our finances improved we have added a few back but we still do not buy biscuits, cakes, chocolate, stupidly priced clothes, latest gadgets etc. etc. and we were managing 2 holidays abroad and 2 in the UK each year before Covid.
One thing we have retained from the frugal years is that we do not buy on impulse. All shopping is done with a list and if we see something that we think we might like we leave it a couple of days, normally the urge disappears.
Wine is classed as essential though!
 
tijuana taxi said:
s*** load do have it to spare, but are just tight arses and yes I know people like that.
Why go all sanctimonious about it, you like saving that's fine, but not everyone feels that way.
What is a shop done right anyway?
Click to expand...

Sometimes it's not about being tight as such. Maybe sometimes it's about how you're were brought up and previous life experiences.

I was brought up in a family where we had enough but certainly at times every penny mattered. Ditto when I started working. I walked to work and back to save bus fair and took a packed lunch to avoid buying one and those things saved a lot over a year and that went on for years. Actually I left home and went to work with empty pockets so I couldn't spend anything. Some people just carry that on into better times. Some seriously wealthy people I used to know were amongst the most penny pinching some of the time. They had a fantastic house and very expensive cars but they penny pinched and drove me mad over the smallest things.

It's not always as easy as saying they're tight arsed as such :D
 
broc said:
I retired at 50, got bored within a year and went back to work doing something different before retiring again at 62.
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haha, fair play matey, we have bought a house on crete so i hope to be very bored there :)
actually i have so many hobbies and interests currently suffering due to work !
 
My old ma went up the road to go shopping, got run over and that was game over
Makes you realise just how fragile it all is and how quick things can change
No way if we can afford it are we going without life's luxuries, ain't no dress rehearsal.
 
jonbeeza said:
Looking where to cut our outgoing, to help pay for the increase in money we will need to find. I will have to cut out my camera buying habits, and possibly the TV packages that we have.
Only other place to cut costs are the weekly food shop, the treats may have to go. :oops: :$
Click to expand...

I noticed my internet provider was quoting less now than when I signed up so I called them and got them to match it, £15 a month back in my pocket.
 
woof woof said:
Sometimes it's not about being tight as such. Maybe sometimes it's about how you're were brought up and previous life experiences.

I was brought up in a family where we had enough but certainly at times every penny mattered. Ditto when I started working. I walked to work and back to save bus fair and took a packed lunch to avoid buying one and those things saved a lot over a year and that went on for years. Actually I left home and went to work with empty pockets so I couldn't spend anything. Some people just carry that on into better times. Some seriously wealthy people I used to know were amongst the most penny pinching some of the time. They had a fantastic house and very expensive cars but they penny pinched and drove me mad over the smallest things.

It's not always as easy as saying they're tight arsed as such :D
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Yup, it is all about being sensible with money. I know others will say you can't take it with you, or I am not being a tight a**e or I am not living like poor person etc.
We are careful with our money and shop wisely, so when that things comes along that we want, we can usually treat ourselves to it. New camera or another thingamajig for the missus. :)
 
tijuana taxi said:
My old ma went up the road to go shopping, got run over and that was game over
Makes you realise just how fragile it all is and how quick things can change
No way if we can afford it are we going without life's luxuries, ain't no dress rehearsal.
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True you just never know. But knowing my luck, if I spent up everything thinking my little savings will outlast me, I would probably end up getting to 100, and end up skint. :)
 
jonbeeza said:
True you just never know. But knowing my luck, if I spent up everything thinking my little savings will outlast me, I would probably end up getting to 100, and end up skint. :)
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It's a balancing act, you don't want to live in poverty so you try to save for a rainy day, but you don't want your children to pay inheritance tax so you feel you should spend some of your savings.

Where life gets even more complicated is if you end up being asset 'rich' but cash 'poor' as many home owners in London and the South East are finding with house price rises.
 
Some help for you :exit:


 
Gas and electricity bills are the ones supposedly going to soar in prices, not sure it will be much good changing providers, as all suppliers are putting up prices. We certainly won't scrimp on our heating, as we feel the cold.
 
jonbeeza said:
Gas and electricity bills are the ones supposedly going to soar in prices, not sure it will be much good changing providers, as all suppliers are putting up prices. We certainly won't scrimp on our heating, as we feel the cold.
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I shop around and will switch supplier if there's a better deal on offer, we usually sign up for fixed price tariffs in July/August. We are using Shell Energy at present.
 
I used to have a disgusting habit of smoking a pipe, my baccy was £10 for 50 grams, then it went up to £14.25 then a month later it went up to £16. That is when I stopped buying it. It was a terrible habit anyway. :)
 
jonbeeza said:
I used to have a disgusting habit of smoking a pipe, my baccy was £10 for 50 grams, then it went up to £14.25 then a month later it went up to £16. That is when I stopped buying it. It was a terrible habit anyway. :)
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Well done you.... My father was a cigarette smoker until one budget (50-60 years ago) when the Chancellor slapped an increase in duty, he was so annoyed he stopped smoking from that day onwards.
 
broc said:
Well done you.... My father was a cigarette smoker until one budget (50-60 years ago) when the Chancellor slapped an increase in duty, he was so annoyed he stopped smoking from that day onwards.
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I had a bit of a wobble on Xmas, somebody bought me Cigars. I reluctantly smoked them. :)
 
More people will be in poverty in that case, it sucks trust me. I was brought up quite poor even though both my parents were honest hard working people.
 
fujilover said:
More people will be in poverty in that case, it sucks trust me. I was brought up quite poor even though both my parents were honest hard working people.
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I do hope things get better, but can't see how with price rises and job losses. :(
 
Mr Bump said:
i certainly think bills will be going up but in a discrete way =taxes
the HMRC need to recoup giggabillions so i think loads of things will get stung by tax once we recover more
fuel, food, travel tax all things
Click to expand...
That's an interesting viewpoint.
The reality is that loans only need to be repaid on a personal or a microeconomics basis, not when macroeconomics are involved. The macro interest rates are so low that the capital never needs to be repaid, and anyway the effective amount can be greatly reduced just by printing money, which creates inflation and which therefore reduces the value of the debts - this is what governments have always done, inflation is never unwelcome as far as governments are concerned. That's how Zimbabwe and Greece have remained (almost) solvent.

And anyway, if taxes are increased too much people simply evade them and the actual receipts don't increase - the black economy and VAT fraud are obvious examples, and of course businesses just re-locate and pay lower taxes in other countries. That's already happening on a massive scale, although a large part of that is due to Brexit, because exporters need to be within the EU to avoid their EU customers having to pay extra VAT, which of course kills their sales.
 
Garry Edwards said:
That's an interesting viewpoint.
The reality is that loans only need to be repaid on a personal or a microeconomics basis, not when macroeconomics are involved. The macro interest rates are so low that the capital never needs to be repaid, and anyway the effective amount can be greatly reduced just by printing money, which creates inflation and which therefore reduces the value of the debts - this is what governments have always done, inflation is never unwelcome as far as governments are concerned. That's how Zimbabwe and Greece have remained (almost) solvent.

And anyway, if taxes are increased too much people simply evade them and the actual receipts don't increase - the black economy and VAT fraud are obvious examples, and of course businesses just re-locate and pay lower taxes in other countries. That's already happening on a massive scale, although a large part of that is due to Brexit, because exporters need to be within the EU to avoid their EU customers having to pay extra VAT, which of course kills their sales.
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Here's a list of current European corporate tax rates for interest https://tradingeconomics.com/country-list/corporate-tax-rate?continent=europe
 
jonbeeza said:
I suppose it depends on who is doing the shopping, and what available money there is to spend. Simple things like not buying too much and end up throwing it away, and not always going for a premium brand. :)
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The amount of food we (me and her) throw away is a disgrace. By far our biggest waste. If you count wine as essential. ;)
 
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