Yesterday the Governor of the Bank of England warned us all to brace ourselves for a recession and tighten our belts. So I thought it might be a good idea to start a money saving tips thread.
- Energy prices have been rising fast, make sure you getting a good deal from your supplier. There are loads of comparison sites e.g. uswitch.com
- Install energy saving light bulbs in your house - these have come right down in price (I know this is a case of spend to save)
- Have a shower instead of a bath.
- I know it is not winter, but try turning down your thermostat. If you feel cold put on another layer.
- Drive at 60mph on the motorway the most efficient speed for most vehicles.
- Check your statements of accounts, especially if you make lots of small transactions, I have found a few errors in the past and got refund from my bank.
- When your insurance come up for renewal, find out what is in your insurance package. This year, I just realised that my car insurance even though I have not claimed EVER remain the same or even going up, I found out that my insurance company (More than) keep adding little services that I did not ask for or need and adding to my premium, I make them remove it all and saved about £40.
- Sign-up for loyaly cards. Boots is the best one they give you 3 points per pound spent. However, don't get obsessive about it and make ad purchases.
- Sign-up for a cash back or loyalty point credit card. Make sure you pay it off every month though.
- Fill your tank to the brim every time you go to the petrol station. Petrol is rising at 1p per day at the moment.Sign-up for loyaly cards. Boots is the best one they give you 3 points per pound spent. However, don't get obsessive about it and make ad purchases.
- Still on Petrol, convert your car to LPG, its half the price of petrol
- Walk or cycle short distance that you really do not need to drive to.
- Buy loose fruit and veg in the supermarket rather than the packaged stuff. This is often cheaper.
- Try using supermarket own brands they are often much cheaper and made by the same people. The only exception is Heins Baked beans - I am yet to find an alternative.
- Watch out for smart/false "sales" apparently, supermarkets sometime inflate price of a product, its then reduced to its normal retail price with the "sales" label on it
- If you use oil for heating, join a fuel coop
- You can save money with rechargeable batteries, but you have to invest to save. They are much better than they used to be.
- Spent the day in Legoland and spent a fortune on drinks and snacks. Try to prepare packed lunches and bring drinks when you go out for the day. Not only cheaper, but they usually tastier.
- Have showers instead of baths as they use less hot water
- Don't leave electrical devices on standby - turn them off
- Don't buy bottled water - ever. It is bad for the environment and costs a fortune. Don't be afraid to ask for a jug of tap water in restaurants.
- When using the trains, book well ahead, you can book for about 3 months ahead
- Consider using e-Ticket, there is additional charge for sending ticket to your home address.
- Get some decent quality cloths for the kitchen and never buy kitchen roll or jay cloths again.
- If you are shopping online, do a Google for "cashback sites". They will give you some money back.
- When travelling, return tickets are not always the cheapest, two singles can sometimes be cheaper than return tickets.
- Avoid booking through Trainlines.co.uk, they charge £1 booking fee and £2.50 credit card fee.
- Always ask about all the extra charges when comparing prices, airlines and car hire companies are the worst offenders.
- Avoid national and local rate numbers e.g. 0845/0844/0870 they are excuded from call mobile allowances. This is a great site for finding the standard number SAYNOTO0870.COM - Non-Geographical Alternative Telephone Numbers many companies will also provide a number for overseas access which you can use.
- When traveling, consider sharing a car, some councill promote car share for example this one at Herefordshire County
- If its not important that you have dealers service history for you car, consider servicing it yourself.* Choose to fly on either a Tuesday or Wednesday, those at the two days demand for lights are lowest hence the fare tend to be low.
- Avoid flying during schools holidays or mid-term holidays.
- Buy holiday package, even if you do not need the whole content of the package. Sometime buying say a package with flight, car rental, hotel etc sometime works out cheaper than say, buying the flight only.
- Have rolled oats for breakfast. They are very cheap and have a whole range of health benefits. They are high in fibre, reduce cholesterol etc etc. And I am not talking about products like Ready Brek or Oats so Simple - just plain rolled oats.
- You can create your own muesli, my wife has been doing this for a few years now. Its cheaper, its healthier, you made it yourself each morning so there is not preservative and other undesirable things. Making it is just a matter of slicing the fruits you like, add some wheat, a bit of Yoghurt, stir it and breakfast is ready.
- Use you old clothes to make rags. My mother used to do this but nobody does this now
- Use a multipurpose cleaning product - the marketing people would like you to buy a new product for every task. I worked as a cleaner for a while and we had a cleaning product that we used for absolutely everything.
- Like BBQ's. We have large Family bbq's & do a "bring & burn". We cook all the "usual suspects", burgers, bangers etc; but ask Family/Guests to bring what they like to eat. Most also like it cooked "their way", so others get to cook as well. Much more mingling, much more fun.
- Buy a chimney lighter, no need for fire lighters and works really quickly
- This is so simple, yet incredibly effective.
How often have you gone into a supermarket to get some milk and come out with a trolleyload of stuff? Hard to resist temptation sometimes, isn't it?
Maybe you'd have bought some of those items anyway another time. Then again, maybe you'd simply have got along without them.
The answer?
Buy more milk than you usually buy. Even if you end up throwing some of it away, chances are you've saved yourself a few quid.
Works for me! - I do it slightly differently I have my milk delivered. It is a bit more expensive but it reduces those trips to the shops and makes me feel like I am supporting the local economy rather than Tescos - the milk comes from the farm down the road.
- Walk more and/or get yourself a bicycle.
- Say 'go easy' to yourself every time you squeeze the toothpaste tube, washing up liquid or shampoo. There's a famous story about a toothpaste manufacturer increasing sales by 15% simply by enlarging the hole.
- There is a comedy sketch I saw about innovation in the toothbrush market and tongue cleaning - I couldn't believe it when I actually saw a toothbrush with a reverse side that could be used for tongue cleaning. The money saving tip is not to buy useless rubbish that the marketing people are trying to make you think you need.
- In the evening I use candles or a small lamp instead of having the main light on. This means I am saving electricity and candles are very cheap to buy-they also smell lovely and create a lovely atmosphere!
- Have a rummage around car boot sales as often as possible- it is amazing what you can find and for less than what you might normally pay from a shop. If you are having a clearout why not sell at the car boot- make money and recycle what you no longer want.
- I heard this on the radio, well that's my excuse. Get a cheap dynamo led torch for the bathroom, so you don't need to turn the light on.
- Invest in a decent size , good economy rating freezer then do bulk cooking sessions , you will never have to buy microwave meals again.
- On the same note , find your local abbatoir or farm that sells wholesale meat. It's often cheaper and nicer AND you're saving food miles.
- Left overs...90% of stuff can be made into soup, If you cook too many potatoes don't throw them away, fry them or make fish cakes.
- Get crafty with the sewing machine and fabric paints, this means you don't have to buy new clothes. Just re-do your old ones into something fabulous.
- Don't buy your Christmas presents in a rush just before Christmas. You end up spending more money than you intend to and if you spread it across the year you can take your time and buy something that's smaller {cheaper} but better thought out!
Last edited: