How to Look After the Pennies…

Nick Saving Money 8 Comments

I was having a sort-out in the kitchen and came across a jar of small change. There were a few pounds’ worth, so I thought I’d change this into something more useful. It turned out to be a bit more complicated that I expected. So I thought I’d set out the options here and reveal what I did in the end, and what I plan to do with my small change from now on.

Banks

In the small town where I live there is now only one bank left (Barclays) and this is not a bank I have an account with. I went in there anyway to ask if they would accept change from me. I was told that if I didn’t have an account with them they wouldn’t be able to assist me.

So far, so disappointing. In these days of multiple bank closures, it’s a shame the banks can’t co-operate a bit more to help their local communities, but there we are.

So I had to travel a bit further to find a branch of HSBC, one of two banks I have accounts with. They kindly provided me with a supply of clear plastic coin bags. They are a standard design as far as I know and bear the following message:

£1 in 2p or 1p

£5 in 10p or 5p

£10 in 50p or 20p

£20 in £1 or £2 coin

NO MIXED COIN

I must admit I misunderstood this initially. I thought it meant you could have a £1 bag of mixed 1p and 2p coins, a £5 bag of 5p and 10p coins, and so on.

The nice lady at HSBC in Lichfield told me this wasn’t the case. The bag has to be all of the same denomination – so a £1 bag of 1p coins, a £5 bag of 10p coins, etc.

I do still think the instructions are a bit ambiguous, even if it does say NO MIXED COIN. Anyway, she kindly still accepted the bags I gave her and changed them for a note and some pound coins.

• I’ve heard it said that some banks have change machines that let you pay in coins and count them automatically, but I’ve yet to see this myself. If you have seen any with your own eyes, I’d be grateful if you could tell me where!

Coinstar Machines

This is the commercial alternative for dealing with your small change.

These machines are generally installed in supermarkets, including Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury. You just pour in your change and the machine automatically counts it and prints out a credit note to use in the store. You can either put this towards the cost of your shopping or redeem it for cash at the store’s customer services desk.

Of course, this service isn’t free. According to the Coinstar website, they charge a 9.9% processing fee for cash transactions “but fees may vary by location”. The fee is deducted from the amount you put in at the time of your transaction. You can also opt to donate your money to charity, in which case there is a lower 7% charge.

You can find the location of your nearest Coinstar machine by entering your postcode in the box at the top right of the Coinstar site. This doesn’t appear to be updated very often, though. It is still saying there is a machine in my local Morrisons, despite the fact that this was removed over a year ago (and didn’t work for some time before that).

Coinstar machines offer a quick and easy solution if there is one near you, but with the 10% charge (or thereabouts) you do pay a premium for the convenience.

My Advice

My advice then is to go to your bank and ask for a supply of clear plastic coin bags and fill them with coins of one denomination only. You can then either pay them into your account or change them for something more convenient.

As a result of my experiences, in my kitchen I now have a set of jars for coins of each type (pictured above) and periodically sort my small change into them. In due course I will count them and take them to the bank in coin bags (which I keep handy in the kitchen drawer).

You can, incidentally, also buy coin-sorting moneyboxes from Amazon (see below), but aside from the novelty value I’m not sure how useful or reliable these would prove!

As ever, if you have any comments or questions about this post, please leave them below. And finally, for some additional ideas on saving money and making money with apps, check out this great post by my fellow money blogger Grainne on her Wannabe Debt Free blog.

How to Save Money on Everyday Purchases by Haggling

Nick Saving Money 2 Comments

In Britain we are notoriously poor at haggling. Yet if you always pay the advertised price, you are leaving thousands of pounds on the table. That is money that could potentially be used for many better purposes 🙂

Haggling (or bargaining if you like) is definitely not something to be reserved for souks and bazaars. It can work very well on the high street too.

Money-saving expert Martin Lewis recently conducted a survey on his Moneysaving Expert website and found that hagglers enjoyed over 60% success rates in some big-name stores. His top ten list with success rates for hagglers is as follows:

1. Carphone Warehouse – 77%
2. TK Maxx – 74%
3. John Lewis – 72%
4. Homebase – 68%
5. Tesco – 62%
6. B&Q – 60%
7. Currys/PC World – 59%
8. Debenhams – 55%
9. Clarks – 47%
10. Marks & Spencer – 39%

Those surprisingly high figures show that it is well worth trying for a discount. If you can get over your natural reticence, you may surprise yourself with the deals you are offered. In any event, it costs nothing to try!

Here are some top tips to get you started.

Tips for Haggling

• Research your proposed purchase carefully beforehand. Find out as much as you can, including how much similar items are selling for at other stores and online. You can use shopping engines such as Kelkoo to compare prices on a wide range of consumer goods.
• Have a maximum target price for your purchase and approach the haggle with this in mind. Be prepared to walk away if you don’t get the price you want. You can always try elsewhere.
• Go at a quiet time rather than when a store is heaving with customers. A salesperson will be less inclined to spend time negotiating with you if they can see that there are lots of other willing buyers in the shop. Mid-morning on a weekday can be good.
• Choose the right person to haggle with. The best is a supervisor or assistant manager, as they will have more discretion. The “big boss” may not be as good, though. He or she will be pressed for time and may not be so bothered about a single sale.
• Take your time and try to build rapport. Don’t even talk about price for the first five minutes. Ask the salesperson a few questions to show you are genuinely interested in buying, and explain why you need the product in question. Tell them your name, and ask for theirs.
• Never be aggressive when haggling. This will simply put the salesperson’s back up and make getting a deal less likely. A successful haggle is a bit like a seduction. It’s best done with a twinkle in the eye!
• Look for flaws on items that may make them difficult to sell – a small dent on the side of a fridge, for example, or a mark (somewhere inconspicuous) on clothing. Even if you’re not a seasoned haggler, this is an easy opportunity to get money off.
• Keep an eye out for items with prices ending with a 1, 7 or 8 (e.g. £72.08). These prices are generally applied to end-of-range products the store wants to get rid of, to make room for new stock. You should be able to get an extra discount on them without any problem.
• Stock phrases can be useful if you’re nervous about haggling. “What’s the best price you can do on this?” is one popular option. “I like this but it’s over my budget. Can you do it for £80?” (or whatever is your target price) is another.
• Haggling can work particularly well in independent stores. In such cases you will often be dealing with the owner, who clearly has more leeway than a sales assistant. If you give the impression you may become a regular customer, he/she is much more likely to cut you a deal.
• But if you can’t get a discount, at least see if they will throw in something for free. If you’re buying a laptop, for example, ask if they will give you a wireless keyboard as well. It’s worth spending a little time beforehand looking round the store to see if there is a particular extra you would like.

Haggling Online

Although above I have referred mainly to haggling in stores, there are also opportunities to haggle on the internet.

One of the best is by using the “live chat” facility offered by many online stores. Don’t go straight in with a request for a discount, but ask a few questions first. You’re unlikely to get a massive saving this way, but you might be offered 10% off or a free bonus.

Another ploy worth trying when shopping online is the “abandoned shopping cart” trick. Put the product you want in your basket and proceed as far as the checkout, then simply close the page. The retailer will see what has happened and rather than lose the sale may get back to you with an offer or discount code.

Good luck with your haggling. Do leave a comment if you have any other tips to share or examples of successful haggles you have concluded yourself.

How to Cut Your Energy Bills

Nick Saving Money 6 Comments

For older people in particular, energy bills can be one of their biggest expenses. So today I thought I’d set out some ways you can save money on them. Following these tips could save you hundreds of pounds on your annual fuel bills, perhaps even more.

Switch Energy Supplier

This would normally be my top tip for saving money on energy. Due to soaring wholesale prices, however, deals are currently thin on the ground.

Nonetheless, it’s still a good idea to spend a few minutes checking whether you could save money by switching to a different supplier. The quick and easy way of doing this is via a price comparison website. There are a number of these available, but my personal favourite is Energy Helpline [affiliate link].

Just visit this site and enter a few details, including your current supplier and tariff and how much you spend on gas and electricity in the course of a year (it doesn’t have to be exact). The site will then show you the best deals currently open to you and how much you might be able to save by switching to them. In most cases you can also start the switching process by clicking on the relevant link. Before you do, though, it’s worth checking on cashback sites like Quidco and Top Cashback, as some energy companies pay cashback via these sites to people switching their supply to them.

Switching energy suppliers is generally quick and easy, and can save you hundreds of pounds a year at a stroke. Even in these challenging times, it should still be high on your list of potential money-saving measures.

• If you are one of the 1.1 million households who use oil for heating, you can save money by shopping around for suppliers too. Check out the oil price comparison service BoilerJuice. Type in your postcode and how many litres of heating oil you’re looking to buy, and BoilerJuice will show you quotes from suppliers covering your area.

Get Financial Help

If you’re in certain priority groups, you may be able to get cash payments to help offset your energy bills.

Winter Fuel Payment is a one-off annual payment of £100 to £300 made to everyone over a certain age. To qualify this winter, you must have been born on or before 26 September 1955. If that applies to you, this money should be paid automatically, but you can phone the Winter Fuel Payment Centre on 0800 731 0160 if you haven’t received the payment before and need to claim. More information can be found on this page of the government website.

In addition, those on certain welfare benefits (including Pension Credit, Income Support and Universal Credit) may be eligible for Cold Weather Payments. This is £25 for any period of seven consecutive days when temperatures fall below zero. More information can be found on this page of the government website.

Finally, you may be eligible for £140 off your electricity bill under the Warm Home Discount Scheme. This is run by some (not all) of the energy companies. If you get the Guaranteed Credit element of Pension Credit you will qualify automatically. But if you’re on a low income and meet the energy supplier’s other criteria, you may also qualify. See my in-depth article about the Warm Home Discount and contact your supplier directly for more information. The large energy companies such as EDF and British Gas all operate this scheme, but some of the smaller ones don’t.

More Top Tips

Here are some more ways you may be able to save money on your energy bills.

• Have your boiler serviced regularly, to ensure it is operating at peak efficiency.
• If you have an old boiler that keeps breaking down, the time may have come to replace it. The Energy Saving Trust say that you could save up to up to 40 percent on your gas bill by installing a new ‘A’ rated condensing boiler with a programmer, room thermostat and thermostatic radiator controls.
• Upgrading your insulation can also cut bills by reducing the amount of heat going to waste. Depending on your circumstances, you may be able to get a free boiler and/or insulation under the government’s ECO (Energy Company Obligation) scheme. You can apply for this via your energy company. Even if you’re not on a low income, you may be able to get a discount on home insulation, so it’s worth checking to see what’s available.
• If your radiators aren’t heating up properly at the top, you may need to bleed them to release air in the pipes. Depending on the radiator, you may need a special key to do this or a flat-bladed screwdriver.
• Turn down your thermostat by one degree ­- this can reduce your heating bill by as much as 10%.
• Replace old light-bulbs with new energy-saving bulbs. The latest LED bulbs are just as bright as old incandescent bulbs and use a tenth of the energy. They last longer too.
• Exclude draughts with heavy curtains and draught excluders by doors.
• Turn off heaters in rooms you aren’t using and close the doors.
• Don’t leave electrical appliances on standby.
• Wash clothes at 30 degrees and try to avoid using tumble driers. Hang washing outside to dry whenever possible.
• Get a smart meter installed. The energy companies are fitting these free at the moment. They are great for seeing when and where you are spending money on energy and identifying ways you could save money as a result.
• If your funds are limited and you have or develop a disability you may be able to get a Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) from your local authority to pay for adaptations such as stairlifts.

By taking these steps you should be able to cut your energy bills significantly over the course of a year.

If you have any comments or questions about this post, as always, please do leave them below.

• This is a fully updated version of my original post.
  
  
  

Mobile Phones: Should You Get a Monthly Contract or a SIM Only Deal? (Infographic)

Nick Saving Money 7 Comments

Today I am sharing an infographic about mobile phone contracts kindly provided by Handset Expert.

The graphic contains a variety of interesting information, but it focuses especially on the attractions of buying a phone with a separate SIM-only contract rather than a monthly contract that includes both.

Have a read of the infographic, and I’ll share a few thoughts of my own at the bottom.

I will lay my cards on the table and reveal that I have a SIM-only contract myself. This has always been my preference, but there are pros and cons both ways, so I’ll go through them briefly here.

On the plus side, as the infographic says, having a separate SIM-only contract is likely to work out cheaper overall. In addition, you can change phone any time just by swapping your SIM card to a new handset. And you can switch to a different network provider if you like without having to face the hassle of paying off your contract and “unlocking” your phone.

There are, though, some possible drawbacks as well. For one, you won’t be able to access technical support for your phone so easily if you buy it outright rather than on a monthly contract. In addition, you are likely to have to pay the full cost of your handset up front rather than by monthly instalments. And upgrading will involve buying a new handset rather than simply negotiating a new deal with your monthly contract provider.

Overall, though, my advice for most people would be to choose a separate SIM-only deal. This is likely to offer better value, not to mention greater flexibility. But if you prefer the simplicity of a monthly contract that covers both device and phone service and don’t mind paying a bit extra for this, you might prefer to stick with that. The same applies if you can’t afford the up-front cost of paying for the handset you want – though bear in mind that if you opt for a single monthly contact for this reason you are still likely to end up paying more money overall.

• So that’s my opinion, but what do YOU think? Do you have a separate SIM-only contract or single monthly contract for your device and phone service? I’d love to hear your views!

How to Save Money on Days Out With Your Grandchildren

Nick Saving Money 0 Comments

Today I’m delighted to bring you a guest post from my UK money blogging colleague Fiona Hawkes.

Fiona’s post covers a subject I am sure many readers of this blog will be able to relate to – how to have a great day out with the grandchildren without spending a fortune.

Over to Fiona, then…

There are currently around 14 million grandparents in the UK and more and more of them are taking on the role of childminder for their grandchildren, as growing costs mean that more families need both parents to work to make ends meet.

One in three over-fifties in the UK are grandparents and they help families cut the costs of more formal childcare arrangements – especially during the long six-week summer holidays.

But some grandparents may find that the continual extra mouths to feed and days of entertaining the little darlings are having an impact on their own finances. While the older generation of course love their children and grandchildren and want to help out however they can, it shouldn’t come at the expense of their own financial health.

While this generation of grandparents may be the ones who know how to be thrifty and make do and mend, they may not be quite so savvy when it comes to saving money online, for example.

I realise most grandparents may already have plenty of thrifty ideas for days out – picnics in the park, feeding the ducks, museums, etc – so in this post I am going to discuss ways to save money on the more expensive days out, e.g. to theme parks and attractions.

While they may not be the sort of thing you want to (or could afford to!) do every day, I do think children and adults alike look forward to days out doing something fun and different, such as country farms, zoos and trips to the cinema.

Saving on Trips To Adventure Parks, Zoos and Farms

Down here in Somerset there are several local attractions that we usually try and make a visit to during the summer holidays. These include Crealy Adventure Park, Woodlands, Longleat Safari Park and Bristol Zoo. I know there are similar parks dotted all over the country and there are bound to be similar ones near you. Wherever you are based, though, there is bound to be one thing in common – entry is not cheap.

Here are my tips for saving on adventurous days out with your grandchildren.

• Book online. Most places offer discounts of between 10% and 20% if you pre-book tickets up to 48 hours in advance.
• Check out sites like Groupon and Living Social for discounted tickets and cheaper entry special events. Bristol Zoo, for example, has special evening events throughout the year.
• Some places offer a ‘return in the next 7 days for free’ – plan in advance to ensure you are able to take up this offer and get two days out for the price of one.
• Most pubs, shopping centres, etc, have leaflets offering discount vouchers – look out for these and pick a few up when you see them.
• Use OAP discounts and Family tickets wherever you can.
• Annual membership could save hundreds if you live close to a popular attraction and plan to go there often. If you’ve already bought tickets for that day they will often be deducted from the cost of an annual pass.
• Look out for free open days – I recently attended one that offered free tractor rides and animal petting at a local farm.

Saving on Trips to The Cinema

Trips to the cinema can soon start adding up – tickets alone can be as much as £10 each (I’m looking at you, Odeon!) and that’s before adding in drinks, sweets and popcorn!

• If you’ve used Compare the Market in the last year and opted in then you should be entitled to 2 for 1 cinema tickets at participating cinemas on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. You can download the app, apply the code when booking online or print it out to show at the cinema. If you haven’t used Compare the Market before buy inexpensive travel insurance once and get 2 for 1 tickets for a year. Valid for two people. Don’t forget to check this is cheaper than a family ticket. Plus, this offer can be used when you don’t have the grandchildren too!
• During the school holidays and most Saturdays and Sundays many cinemas have cheap kids’ movies being screened. These films tend to be older ones that have been around a while but tickets are much cheaper and usually the same price for adults and children. Showings are usually in the morning, around 10am, and will be called something like ‘Kids AM’ or ‘Kids Club’.
• Take you own (well hidden) drinks and snacks. Wilko’s is our favorite for pick ‘n’ mix and Poundland is great for 2 for £1 bottles of fizzy drink and £1 bags of chocolates.

Saving on Eating out in the Holidays

Eating out in the holidays with grandchildren can be tricky. Places like McDonald’s offer a quick fix but aren’t really what can be considered a ‘nice’ dining experience. Go to somewhere ‘family friendly’ like Harvester and the cost soon starts to creep up. Try these tips for saving on eating out with grandchildren.

• Loads of places offer ‘Kids eat free’ or ‘Kids eat for £1’ during the holidays. Find a list online and plan your days around where it’s cheap (but nice!) to eat.
• Tastecard offers 2 for 1 meals at lots of chain restaurants including Prezzo, Zizzi and Ask as well as many local eateries too. If you can’t save on the kids’ meals at least you can save on the grown ups! Tastecard is around £30 for a year but we usually make that back after two meals out. [Note from Nick: You can get the similar Gourmet Society discount card for just £3.99 if you get an NUS Extra card, as described in this recent post.]
• Wherever you plan to eat, always check for vouchers online before you go or download a vouchers app such as vouchercloud.
• With older children and teens who have a big appetite, something like Pizza Hut’s Pizza buffet is a great choice as they can eat as much as they like for one set price. It can also be great for fussy eaters as if they don’t like something they can choose something different without it costing any more money.

I hope you find these tips helpful in planning some cheaper days out with your grandchildren!

Byline: Fiona Hawkes (pictured, right) is a personal finance blogger who loves saving money almost as much as she loves spending it. She saves hard to be able to live better, afford a few small luxuries and see a bit more of the world. Fiona blogs at www.savvyinsomerset.com. You can also follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Many thanks to Fiona for an enjoyable and thought-provoking article. Do you have any additional tips to share for having a great day out with the grandchildren (or children) without it breaking the bank? If so, please do post them below!