Tips and tricks to save money amid a cost-of-living crisis
As Australia's cost of living crisis drags on, it's affecting most of us in one way or another.
For Australians on low incomes and welfare recipients, it's really hitting them hard.
According to Foodbank Australia's 2023 Hunger Report, it's estimated that up to 3.7 million households in Australia struggled with serious food shortages last year.
Prices have risen for everything, with housing shortages and interest rates pushing up costs for people who rent and those with mortgages.
On 720 ABC Radio Perth's Dollar Day program, we asked experts and local listeners for their suggestions on how to cut back on expenses during the cost of living squeeze, covering topics such as fuel, insurance and mobile phones, as well as groceries and healthcare.
Fair dinkum, this is what we heard:
Dollar Day: Public transport
If you don't need a car, you can save a fortune. Here's how some of our listeners manage without one
Gather a ride, especially if you haven't used it in a while. You might be amazed! It can be a bit slow, but also soothing.
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It saves you 20 percent. You just set it up with your bank account details and I've got mine set up so when it gets to $3 or below, it automatically reloads, and you can set the amount if you want – $10 or $20. And you're never ever without a ticket. It's fantastic.
Dollar Day: Fuel
I often see people yakking away on their phone in a car park with the motor still running and 30 minutes later they're still there.
G'day mate, I reckon I've got three top tips for lookin' after your motor.
Now, if someone told you, "I'll give you a tank and a half of fuel for free," you'd certainly jump at it. The number of people driving around with these roof tents on top of their cars, mainly four-wheel-drives, shows how impressive it is that those things can make your fuel go up by 25 per cent. It's quite surprising.
And make sure you follow the manufacturer's recommended settings, you can save yourself 5 - 10% on your fuel consumption because the more tyre on the road, the more drag there is, and it goes slower as a result.
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Dollar Day: Car ownership
How much you use your car (and whether it's even in your possession) can make a big difference to your budget, as many listeners have found out.
The motorbike uses only TWO litres per 100km, and it's got the added bonus of free parking almost anywhere, which is usually right at the entrance to most places.
You can also save wear and tear on your vehicle."
About 6kms each way. Takes an hour. Fresh air, exercise and it's free.
It only cost me 25 grand to buy it, now it costs me around three bucks a day to get to work and back. And its upkeep costs are nearly zilch. So it's absolutely excellent.
There was also my fitness and wellbeing which was in excellent condition.
Dollar Day: Mobile phones
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"For someone who's after 20 gigs of data or something similar, you can likely get a plan for around $30 a month or a bit less depending on what you're after, your budget, and which mobile network you stick with," she said.
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For most people, 20 gigs should be enough to last the month, as long as you're not, you know, downloading movies or streaming heaps away from your home Wi-Fi connection.
Most phone plans are priced based on the amount of data you use. The more data you use, the higher your bill will be. So, it's best to choose a plan that suits your usual data consumption to find the best value.
So you don't have to worry about your child being stuck and unable to get in touch with you.
If you've already got a mobile phone and you just need a SIM card or an e-SIM, you can sign up for a SIM-only plan, which means you won't be paying off a phone as well.
"Most of the time, if you're after a ripper of a deal and you're not after a new phone, then a SIM-only plan is the way to go," she said.
If your phone is working properly, if you don't feel like upgrading it, you can keep using the one you've got for as long as you want.
When it comes to getting a SIM plan, there's a range of resellers that offer SIMs that use the main networks – Telstra, Optus or Vodafone.
All of those smaller providers operate a lot cheaper than the big three because they're not shelling out for real shops. You can get some really top-notch deals.
Dollar Day: Subscriptions
Associate Professor Katharine Kemp, a consumer law expert at the University of New South Wales, has been looking into the problems with free trials and auto-renewing subscriptions.
Dr Kemp said.
A lot of us have had the unpleasant surprise of being hit with costs on our credit cards when we forgot or didn't realise that a free deal would turn into a recurring payment.
You can disagree with them and you could have valid reasons to dispute them.
You really need to have a good think about whether or not you want to renew, otherwise you might as well cancel it if you're not keen on keeping it.
I check my bank account regularly, so I'd notice if anything unexpected came up, given I'm on a tight budget as a 77-year-old pensioner.
I always do that.
To keep tabs on your subscriptions.
Dollar Day: Car insurance
Pop a reminder on your phone that your insurance is up for renewal in a month. That way, you can take a seat, review your choices, make a list of different insurance providers, do some research, have a chat with mates, or check online, but give yourself heaps of time to weigh up the various options that'll be available to you.
suggests:
And most people will think, 'Oh, I want a certain price for my vehicle if it's written off.' But if it does get written off and you're compared to what others are selling for, that tends to be roughly the same price, but the insurers will charge you more. So this is a pretty straightforward one.
Consider whether you need extras on your policy, like getting a hire car if you're involved in an accident, waiving the windscreen excess or letting drivers under 30 years old drive your car. All those things will increase your insurance premiums.
If you don't use your vehicle much, you can also have a yarn with your insurance company about limited kilometres coverage.
This will lower the cost of insurance.
Dollar Day: Health insurance
G'day, in a financial squeeze, how do you work out what's a must-have for you when it comes to private health insurance?
The first thing to keep in mind is that every Aussie has health cover.
"It's called Medicare, and it's an excellent system," Uta Mihm, a health insurance expert with consumer advocacy group Choice said.
Because ambulance treatment was not only publicly funded for people who lived in Queensland or Tasmania.
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while waiving waiting periods for customers switching from other providers.
"Fair dinkum, often in those promotions, waiting periods for extras, which might have a six-month waiting period, are often knocked on the head," Ms Mihm said.
It's always worth the time to have a good look at that.
If you switch to the same level of hospital cover, all the procedures you were covered for previously will still be covered.
Dollar Day: Saving
We all know we need to stash some cash away for a rainy day, but when the cost-of-living is getting tighter, how do we still save some money?
Financial Adviser Mark Rattigan has these tips:
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We can't afford to have consistently inadequate funds in our budget for extended periods of time.
Have a squiz at what you've been chucking your dosh at, see what's the priority and what you're happy to splurge on, and make sure that's in your budget. Then, have a good look through what's in there and see if there's any unnecessary expenses you can cut back on – or things you can go without for a bit.
Our whole wallet's money goes into it, which we call our cash hub.
So we set aside money into separate accounts for different purposes. Usually, we'll have a weekly account for household expenses or individual accounts for each person in a couple, where we put money for everyday shopping, like groceries and things we buy on a weekly basis.
If you go a bit over on your shopping, you've got a bit less money left over for things like going out to the cinema and so on.
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We can have a presents or a Christmas fund. You can have a holiday fund, and the idea is to save for the important things a little bit each week.
Dollar Day: Financial advice
If you need financial advice, how do you know who to trust? Sarah Abood, chief executive of the Financial Advice Association, has these tips.
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While a 'financial advisor' and a 'financial planner' are terms with regulatory significance, you can't call yourself either of those titles unless you hold the required qualifications and accreditation to provide expert financial guidance.
To become a finance advisor in Australia, you need to do a university degree in financial planning. You also need to pass a national exam and get registered with a licensed Australian financial services provider.
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Are you happy with the way you're being charged? Make sure you're comfortable with it before you proceed.
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