Watching the Pennies

So where to start?In days gone by we superintendents in the construction industry were told to watch the repetitive operations, those that took place dozens or even hundreds of times in a shift. Saving twenty seconds a hundred times a day saved half an hour a day, three and a half hours in a week, 180 hours in a working year  - nearly five man-weeks.

Our finances don’t fire up a hundred times a day but they do so every week, every month and every quarter. If we’re to save serious money then it those payments we have to target, and the best place to start is with our bank statements.

Then, bank statements to the fore, we have to review why we’re spending what we’re spending. Each financial decision was probably sensible at the time, but times have changed. Each must be reviewed in the light of our new circumstances.

This is my own review – yours will be different – but my efforts provides interesting pointers.

Sports Club

I joined my sports club for the facilities, not the social life. At the time I played the occasional game of squash, swam now and then, and used the gym several times a week. When my wife was away I occasionally ate there.

Reviewing my recent usage I discovered that I now only used the gym so I left and joined a fitness club.

Savings £30 per month: £360 per year.

Cable TV

When I was working I was often away for long periods and my young family had diverse tastes when it came to viewing.

A review of current use showed that the sports channels gave us access to no more than two tournaments in a year that we followed seriously and we reduced our package down from all-in version to the basic plus ‘knowledge’.

Savings £30 per month: £360 per year.

Internet Access

Again, as a result of my travels, and having a techno-phobic wife, we had an expensive setup designed to pose no technical problems for her, alone as she often was in the house.

Now I’m around – no technical genius but able to find where she lost her files and where they’ve hidden the address book.

She was also worried that loosing the email address that she had had for many years would be a problem, but the new one was just as simple and we used the old system to send a change-of-address to everyone she knew - half the known world.

Up to now no problem. The physical changes were simple, the new supplier sent us a little box full of gubbins plus a DVD which spelled out how to make the changes.

Again saving £30 per month: £360 per year.

Telephone

I don’t want to repeat myself, but another £360 per year.

Insurance

This one is worthy of some serious consideration. We were luck enough to be able to pay off our mortgage when I retired and the Home and Contents policy, tied to that mortgage, carried on. It cost £1,300 per year!

A search on the internet showed we could get the same cover of about £300 per year, but as we have some special requirements we went through a broker and got cover of £375 per year from the same company that had been charging the £1,300

Our car insurance comes up for renewal in May and I’m guessing on another £150 per year there.

The whole exercise has taken us way, way out of our comfort zone, ending relationships that in some cases had gone on for decades but just look at it:-

• Sports Club £360 pa
• Cable TV  £360pa
• Internet access £360pa
• Telephone £360pa
• Household Insurance £900pa
• Car Insurance £150pa

In all £2490 every year or whatever that is in your currency out of taxed income equal to a rise in pre-tax income of something like £3500 – wow!

Perhaps our family finances were less well organised than most, but I ask you, if you could get an income rise of half that amount would you not jump through a few hoops to get it?

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