Have you ever received a utility bill, opened it and gone “what the???” Don’t worry, most of us have. Costs of utilities are on the increase, and we don’t want you to pay more than you have to. So…listed below are a variety of tips to help you reduce your services and utility bills.
- Tip 1: Ask for a “actual” water reading: Often water companies do “estimates” rather than an “actual” reading. If you live in a large house, it is worth checking this as you may be paying for more water than you are actually using.
- Tip 2:Don’t settle for your current utility provider: Gone are the days when there was only one utility provider which was government run. These days there are a choice of privatised suppliers who are all competing for your business. Take advantage of this and shop around.
- Tip 3: Pay as you go mobile phones: If you are an infrequent uses of your mobile phone, and past your contract period so you don’t have to pay any extra fees, then consider changing to a pre paid package.
- Tip 4: Combine your phone, Internet and mobile phone packages: Phone and Internet Companies reward you for using more than one service. If you combine your services you will save around 10 percent on two of your packages.
- Tip 5: Do you really need all those cable channels?Reduce your cable package to remove some of your less watched channels and you will save yourself around $20 a month. No you don’t really need THAT channel!
- Tip 6: Combine your car and home insurance: Insurance companies provide discounts of between 5 and 10 percent when you combine your car, home and contents insurance. Capitalise on this and you will save between $100 and $200 a year.
- Tip 7: Use Skype for your calls: Skype is cheap, and you can talk to friends or family all over the world. Encourage your friends to use Skype as well. We have known people who have done this and save around $30 a month on calls. We save about $20 a month.
- Tip 8: Get rid of the cell phone services you don’t use:Mobile phones are a great convenience, and have revolutionized communication. However, all of the added services can add up. Go through your phone bill and ascertain which services you don’t use, or don’t really need (eg news information or mobile browsing etc). Ring your phone company and get these taken off your bill. Do this and you could save $10 a month.
So there you have it. Eight ways to reduce your utility costs