MILLIONS of families are waking up to a barrage of price hikes that begin today.
Increases to heating bills, council tax, groceries, mobile, broadband, water and other costs are expected to leave the average household £1,000 worse off per year, according to think tank Resolution Foundation.
The Sun’s postbags and email inboxes have been full of messages from hard-working families who don’t know how they are going to afford the increases — and they are scared.
But our Squeeze Team is here to help.
Readers such as Carrie and David Green are bracing themselves for an increase of £2,667 in their bills this year – but our team has managed to save them £1,709.
The couple, aged 48 and 46, who live with their 16-year-old daughter Georgia in Barnsley, are already careful with money. Carrie is a public health support worker, while David works in a factory and Georgia has a part-time job at McDonald’s which she fits around her college hours.
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Carrie said: “It’s scary. I can’t believe all these costs are going up at the same time. You see the price of things like fuel climbing week on week and you wonder when it’s going to stop.
“Our energy bill is almost doubling, and I don’t know how some will be able to cope. We are already careful.
“We watch TV with the lights off and only put the heating on if we’re really feeling the cold. There are going to be some very difficult times ahead for everyone and we need to know where we can save extra money without taking the fun out of our lives altogether.”
The family have a combined income of £45,000 and are expecting their energy bill to almost double from £70 to £135 a month.
Their fixed-rate mortgage deal is due to expire next month, which means their payments will jump from £580 to £627 a month unless they switch. They both need cars for work and have found that it now costs £75 to fill up a tank, £15 more than a few months ago.
Their council tax is increasing from £102 to £108 a month and the total bill for their broadband and all three of their mobile contracts is set to rise by around £6 a month.
With inflation on groceries at 5.2 per cent, the cost of their weekly supermarket shop is set to rise from £225 a week to £237, which is £1,026 a month.
But they should receive £150 back this month to help with bills through the government’s Council Tax rebate.
Sun Savers expert Leah Milner said: “I’ve found a total of £1,709 in savings for the Green family. First they should look at their impending mortgage increase.
“Although their current deal doesn’t end until May, rates are on the rise and if they wait they could find that they miss out on cheaper products still around now.
“Most lenders will allow you to secure a new rate between three and six months before your current deal ends, ready for the switch date. Carrie and David should speak to a market broker for advice, but given that their loan is only £50,000 on a property worth around £130,000, they should be able to get their monthly payments down a touch based on current rates.
“NatWest is offering a five-year fixed at 2.01 per cent with a £999 fee, which works out at £576 a month over their current eight-year mortgage term assuming that they meet the lender’s criteria. That’s a saving of £612 a year compared to what they would end up paying when their current deal finishes.”
The Greens are already careful about how much energy they use and have a smart meter to keep track. But they could make savings by timing their showers to four minutes, cutting out one load of laundry per week, washing clothes at 30C and cooking with microwave and hob where possible instead of the oven.
This could save them £147. The couple said meal-planning is difficult because of David’s shift work, but batch-cooking and freezing dinners should get around that and could save them £720.
Carrie and David already use supermarket petrol stations to keep costs down, but they should make sure their car boots are empty to lighten their cars and that they drive smoothly without accelerating or braking sharply in order to shave up to £50 off their annual fuel bills.
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Carrie is already signed up to money-saving website Topcashback.co.uk, but often forgets to use it. On average she could save £300 a year.
Making use of this and other money-saving sites could help the family to afford the odd treat without having to dip into their savings.
Families are facing the biggest cost of living squeeze since the 1970s.
Even after using every money-saving trick in the book, many people are going to find that their income simply doesn’t stretch far enough to cover essential bills and put food on the table.
Now is the time to find out what help you might be entitled to claim. Speak to your council to find out if you qualify for any cash or vouchers through the Household Support Fund which the Chancellor is doubling to £1billionn this month.
Visit Turn2us.org.uk and use its calculators to check if there are any other grants or benefits you could claim. Speak to your energy supplier if you are struggling, as some have their own hardship funds.
Use MoneySavingExpert’s tax calculator to check how changes will affect you so you can plan ahead.
