There’s no better time than RIGHT NOW to try and get some money off your bills. A spring clean of your bills can help keep some of your money in your pocket, rather than shelling out quite as much.
Call Your Providers
In true Martin Lewis style, if you don’t ask, you don’t get. If you’re unhappy with the amount you’re paying, give the company a call and ask if there is anything they can do. The vast majority of companies will be able to knock a few quid off your monthly bill or be able to offer your something better for a similar price. Don’t be rude to the person on the other end of the phone, they are just doing their job. However, if you don’t like what you are being offered, don’t be afraid to tell them you are cancelling. Voting with your feet is the best way to show that you are not happy and it can be quite liberating too.
Energy
As part of our spring clean of bills, I changed our energy company from GB Energy. Not only because they went bust and got taken over by Co-Op and my initial low payments ended, but also because the new company I found, So Energy, had lower daily charges and unit prices. This should save us a few quid every month.
Broadband & Calls
I was slightly trigger-happy with my switch from BT to Plusnet and had to cancel. Unfortunately, I never received a letter regarding the price increase BT was putting into place. This meant I only managed to contact them and try to switch outside of the fee-free switch period – though I could have kicked off on the phone and said I never received the letter, it wasn’t worth it. My contract with them is up in 6 or 7 weeks, so I’ll try and switch again then. I found a great offer from Plusnet which included better internet, UK landline & mobile unlimited calls and line rental. All for £10 less than I’m currently paying BT for basic internet, anytime landline calls and line rental.
When I rang BT to cancel to switch over, they offered me the fastest fibre internet in the UK, anytime calls and line rental for a slightly discounted price of £39.98. This is less than I’m currently paying for basic broadband and calls. I’m going to have a think about it. As I’d rather get the £80 cashback for switching to Plusnet, along with the cheaper monthly price. However, it’s interesting that companies can just pluck discounts out the air. If you don’t ask, you don’t get! That’s possibly the tagline of spring clean of bills.
It All Adds Up
Take a look at what you’re paying monthly. For TV, phone, broadband, gas and electric, utilities, breakdown cover, mobile contracts and other things. Even if you only saved a couple of quid on each of these products you’d be over £100 better off every year!
You may have read my experience with Sky in the past and the reason I left them. I think we need to ‘play the game’ and use introductory new customer low prices to our benefit. It is slightly time-consuming, but once a year, a spring clean of bills is ideal.
