How I Saved £252.72 on my Virgin Media Broadband Bill

Nick Saving Money 4 Comments

I just saved £21.06 a month (equivalent to £252.72 a year) on my Virgin Media Broadband bill, all by making a quick phone call. Here’s the full story…

I have a broadband-only contract with Virgin Media (I use the internet-based Vonage for my home phone service and am happy with Freeview for the TV). I have had this for several years, and the price has kept nudging upward. When it went over £50 a month I realised I really had to see if I could get a better deal, or else switch to another provider. I was reluctant to do the latter, though, as I have cable broadband from Virgin and switching suppliers would have involved getting a landline phone reconnected. And anyway, I’ve had good service from Virgin and my broadband connection is fast and stable.

So not without some trepidation I phoned up Virgin’s customer relations department (the number is 150 from a Virgin Media phone or mobile or 0345 454 1111 from any other phone). I told them I was unhappy with how much I was paying and was thinking of switching. Their operative didn’t seem the least surprised. He explained that I was on ‘an old contract we don’t offer any more’. And he immediately offered me a new, cheaper contract, with a faster connection and a £3 a month ‘loyalty bonus’ (until October 2018).

So I am now paying £29.25 a month for my high-speed broadband service. I guess I could have saved a little more by switching to someone like Plusnet, but I didn’t want the hassle, and anyway the connection would have been slower.

I did think at the time that it would have been nice if Virgin Media had alerted me themselves to the fact that I was on an obsolete contract. It’s hard to avoid the conclusion that they were happy enough to go on taking my money so long as I was happy enough to go on paying it. But then again, it’s my fault as well for not reviewing how much I was paying sooner. As a money blogger I really should have known better!

Top Tips for Cutting Your Broadband Costs

Here then are my tips for reducing your broadband bill if you find yourself in a similar position to the one I was in…

• Don’t be afraid to phone up your ISP and see if you can get a better deal. The companies are well used to this and will often be happy to offer you a better rate rather than lose your custom entirely.
• Remember that broadband has become a commodity a bit like energy or mobile phone services. All the main ISPs have special offers and discounts running all the time. If you reach the end of an offer and are put on their ‘standard tariff’, call them up and ask if they have any better deals going. They almost certainly will, the only downside being that you may be tied in to using their service for another 12 or 18 months.
• But if you can’t get the deal you want, it’s easy enough to switch. In most cases you just sign up with a new supplier and they will make all the arrangements for you, including contacting your old ISP and arranging a changeover date. I recently helped a couple of friends switch from BT to Plusnet. It all went smoothly and they cut their monthly bill by more than half as well as getting £50 cashback. They are even still using their old BT modem/router, although I have tried hard to persuade them to switch to the more modern one provided by Plusnet!
• Be aware that in some cases it can actually work out cheaper to have a broadband and telephone service from one supplier than broadband alone. My own circumstances are a bit unusual. I do like the Vonage (VoIP) service, as it includes various free features that other suppliers charge extra for. But if I was starting over again now I could undoubtedly save money overall by buying my phone and broadband services from the same company.
• Make a point of reviewing your broadband costs at regular intervals and also any time your bill goes up or you reach the end of an offer. Don’t rely on the internet for this. There really is no substitute for phoning up your supplier’s sales or customer services department and negotiating politely but firmly.
• And finally, if you decide to switch, bear in mind you may be able to save even more money by joining your new provider via a cashback site such as Quidco or Top Cashback. You can read my recent blog post about cashback sites here.

Good luck, and if you have any comments, tips or questions about Virgin Media or switching broadband suppliers, please do post them below!

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Save Big Money On Rail Travel Every Year With Railcards

Nick Saving Money 4 Comments

At the age of 61 I just got my first Senior Railcard.

I must admit I hadn’t realised I was even eligible for a Senior Railcard – I assumed you had to be over 65 for this and/or receiving a pension. That’s definitely not the case, though. As long as you are 60 or above, that’s all that’s necessary.

I already saved most of the cost of my card within a month visiting a friend who was in hospital in Birmingham (now safely home, I’m glad to say). So in this post I thought I’d say a bit about Senior Railcards and railcards more generally. If you ever travel by train, they can generate big savings for you over the course of a year.

Senior Railcard

The Senior Railcard (which I now have) costs £30 a year, or you can save yourself £20 by paying £70 for three years.

Once you have your card, you can save a third on most types of ticket, including standard and off-peak, single and return. One thing you can’t do, though, is use them to get a discount on season tickets. You are also barred from using them between two stations in London and the South-East during morning peak time. A full list showing when you can and can’t use your Senior Railcard can be found here.

If you really feel like travelling in style, you can also use your railcard to get a third off a first class ticket. That would almost certainly cover the cost of the card in one trip!

For travelling from Lichfield City (my nearest station) to University (the station for Birmingham University and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital), using my railcard cut the cost of a day return from about £9 to £6. Obviously, for longer journeys the savings would be even greater.

To use the card, you have to present it at the ticket office when buying your ticket. It is also available as an option on automatic ticket machines and when buying a ticket from websites (where this is possible). One important thing to remember is that you must have your Senior Railcard with you when travelling, as a ticket inspector may want to see it.

You can buy a Senior Railcard at any staffed railway station, or on the Senior Railcard website. I did the latter, and my card duly arrived by post two days later. Note that in order to buy a Senior Railcard online, you will need to enter your driving licence or passport number to prove your eligibility.

One other thing to note is that Senior Railcard holders are eligible for certain additional benefits as well, such as discounts on Warner Leisure Hotels and Haven Holidays. More information about this can be found here.

Other Railcards

If you aren’t over 60, there are still other railcards you may be eligible for. They are listed in the table below. In most cases holders of these cards get 1/3 off the normal fare. There may be some restrictions, e.g. you may not be allowed to use them in the morning rush hour (in London and the South-East especially).

Railcards

For more information about any of these cards and links to apply (for those cards where online application is available), visit this page of the National Rail website.

If you have any comments or queries about this post, as ever, please do post them below.

See you on the train!

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How I Scored a £1200 Mattress for just 10 Minutes’ Work as an Amazon Vine Reviewer!

Nick Saving Money 4 Comments

I’ve been an Amazon Vine reviewer for around five years now. In some ways it’s been the most profitable sideline I’ve ever had.

For those who don’t know, Amazon Vine is a programme run by Amazon where they send products free of charge to selected individuals (known as ‘Vine Voices’) in exchange for reviewing them. You don’t get paid for these reviews, but you can of course keep the item concerned.

You might imagine that the main thing Vine reviewers get is books. It’s true that there are plenty of these on offer, but of course Amazon sell loads of other things as well. In the time I’ve been a Vine Voice I’ve reviewed all the following:

• lawn mower
• saucepan set
• vacuum cleaners (two of these)
• clothes airer
• hair-dryer
• back-massager
• suitcase
• cordless iron
• cat treats
• microphone
• bathroom bin
• and many more!

The most valuable item I have ever had as a Vine Voice was a £1200 luxury mattress. Considering that I only had to pen a couple of hundred words about it, that probably counts as my best-paid writing job ever. As you might expect for that price, it is very comfortable! I’ve put a link to the Amazon sales page below:

And here’s the review I wrote about it, in case you can’t find this:

The first thing to say is that this is a VERY heavy mattress. I had to pay two men to manoeuvre it up the stairs and into the bedroom, and was afraid that the younger one in particular would do himself an injury.

Thankfully you don’t have to turn this mattress over, just from end to end, which I might just about manage without having to call for reinforcements…

Another practical point to bear in mind is that this mattress is deeper than most, so on a normal divan base you will be quite high up. If you worry about falling out of bed, therefore, this may not be the mattress for you.

With all that said, the mattress is very comfortable to sleep on. It is described as Medium/Soft, which worried me a little, as I tend to prefer my mattresses on the firm side. It turned out not to be a problem, though. The material moulds itself to the shape of your body, giving even support from head to toe. I have been sleeping very well on it, and waking up without any bed-induced aches or pains.

Overall, as you might expect for the price, it is a very good, comfortable mattress, which I would have given five stars apart from the practical and logistical issues mentioned above.

I see the price has come down quite a lot since I reviewed it. But still not a bad return for the few minutes the above took to write, wouldn’t you agree?

The Downside

Does Amazon Vine membership have any drawbacks? Well, not really, but it has its limitations. For starters, you can’t just pick anything to review. As a Vine Voice you get access to a dedicated web page where a range of products is set out and you can pick any you like to review. As you might expect, there are limited stocks of review products, and popular ones tend to be snapped up quickly. So you have to get in the habit of checking regularly to see what is available, and move quickly when you see something you like.

The other slight drawback is that you aren’t supposed to sell the products you receive. That means you can’t just review a product, then put it up for sale on eBay. Or at least, if you do this and Amazon find out, your tenure as a Vine Voice will be swiftly terminated. For the record, I have never done this myself, although I do sometimes give the products away to friends.

How Do You Become a Vine Voice?

Ah, that’s the $64,000 question, isn’t it? I never actually applied to Amazon – I had reviewed a few products in the past – not a vast number – and received an email out of the blue inviting me to join.

And that’s the thing. You can’t just submit an application. It’s invitation only, so you have to wait for the call to come. New reviewers are constantly being recruited, though, so you can boost your chances by regularly submitting reviews of Amazon products. Obviously you won’t receive any payment for this, but it’s all good practice and effectively represents your letter of application.

At the risk of stating the obvious, you need to create high-quality reviews that gain good feedback and ‘helpful’ votes from customers. Your reviews should be honest, mention both positives and negatives, and answer the sorts of question a potential buyer might ask before buying the item concerned. If you do this regularly, there is every chance you will be invited to join Amazon Vine at some point in the future.

The Vipon Alternative

Alternatively (or as well) there are sites that will allow you to get Amazon products at a discount or sometimes free. It’s fair to say that the vendors hope you will review their products, but since a recent change in Amazon’s terms and conditions they are no longer allowed to make this a requirement.

One of the main such sites is Vipon, previously known as Amzreviews. Once you’ve been accepted for this (and most people are) you can browse their marketplace for products to request. Your application must be accepted by the vendor and sometimes you get turned down for unknown reasons. But usually within a day or two you will be approved and receive a voucher letting you order the product concerned at a discount from Amazon. Note that the site is US-based but they accept people from anywhere in the world. Once you are logged in, you can set the site to show products on Amazon UK only.

Clearly this isn’t as good as getting free stuff with Amazon Vine, but it does have the advantage that you get a wider choice. I’ve had great discounts on household products from Vipon/Amzreviews, though you shouldn’t expect to see expensive items such as laptops and televisions offered here.

As I noted above, there is no obligation to review the products you receive on Vipon, though it is at least a courtesy to the vendor to do so. In addition, all such reviews may help you achieve your ultimate ambition of becoming a Vine Voice.

If you have any questions about Amazon Vine reviewing and/or becoming a Vine Voice, please do post them below and I will do my best to answer them.

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