Category: Energy costs

8 Top Things to Do to Save on Motoring Costs

creative commons (Cco)

Even in these times of rising petrol prices,and often through slowness to act or not recognising an issue, many of us do not regularly review the recurring and the hidden costs in our household spending that could be substantially reduced. A significant part of that expenditure is on motoring which, according to the Bureau of Labor statistics show that in the US nearly 50% of household bills are for housing (33%)and transportation(17%) .

According to recent  figures from the Office of National Statistics in the UK 65-to-74-year-old households spent nearly a fifth (18%) of total spending on recreation and culture, making this the top expenditure category for this age group.A significant portion of this spend is on motoring costs.  Continue reading “8 Top Things to Do to Save on Motoring Costs”

UK Gas and Electricity Price Increases: Which is Best Fixed or Variable Rates?

Now that British Gas has announced that it will be increasing energy price with effect from 16th November by an eye watering 6% on average, what are we to do? Just take it as inevitable? Not according to Martin Lewis, the Money Saving Expert.He is emphatic that something can still be done to protect ourselves from this enormous price hike.Appearing on the consumer ‘slot ‘on the ITV programme ‘This Morning’, he was advocating viewers agree with their provider to a fixed rate,locking-into a current price that will apply beyond the current spate of energy company price increases.The time to do this though,was now.Soon it will be too late as the current offers by some providers will be soon withdrawn from the market.The deals are not as good as they were a few weeks ago, but some savings are there to be made by acting now.

He also had a word for people who had a supply metered – this will always be the most expensive way to pay for energy.He also recommended looking at a number of providers’ tariffs on independent comparison websites, but he said it might not be wise simply to go to a single energy supplier for advice on the best rate to pay.

It seems that in the UK, consumers are faced with annual increase in prices for many years to come,of a similar size to those being currently announced. To read more of what Martin Lewis said…

5 easy ways to save on your annual motoring costs

Here’s something we can all do today.Here and now.Cut down on our motor fuel costs by driving more efficiently. The Energy Saving Trust has calculated that the average driver in the UK today can be better-off by adopting some easy changes in driving technique and care of the car.

We all have some aspect of our driving that we can improve, even after many years of holding a driving licence. The following are five easy ways we can save a significant amount of money, possibly as much as 270 pounds sterling per annum.There is no expense involved, just a little attention to what we do. Here goes, in no articular order of importance:

  1. Drive more smoothly – Avoid sudden acceleration and heavy braking ( unless in an emergency). Given the conditions on the road and the density of the traffic, the keeping of the proper distance between you and the car in front can be maintained by easing-off the accelerator in good time, rather than frequent braking abruptly keep your distance.
  2. Slow down – getting to your destination sooner does not always save you money.
  3. Switch-it off –  When it is appropriate and safe to do so switch-off your engine instead of allowing your engine to idle while stationary.With the weather becoming colder, it is unnecessary to warm-up your car before you set off on your journey. Modern cars don’t need to be warmed-up from cold.
  4. Switch to a higher gear as soon as you can – when it is safe and appropriate moved into a higher gear as soon as possible
  5. Close your car windows – the aerodynamics of a car are greatly changed if the windows (s) are open causing in inefficient ‘drag’ particularly at speeds of 60 mph or more.Also if using air conditioning, itself a high user of energy,it will be inefficient for the heat or coolth is allowed to merely ‘fly’ out of the windows.

Other things to watch are : keep weight down as much as possible by not carrying unnecessary items; make sure your tyres are regularly checked and pressures kept at the right level; and only use a car rack when one is needed.

For further information, you can go to The Energy Saving Trust website ,giving you more details of the above,and also other ways of saving energy,including in the home.

 

 

So what’s being done about soaring home energy costs in the UK?

A key part of our well being is to be able to afford the necessities of life, including energy to heat our homes. This is to state the obvious but as we begin again to look forward to the ever shortening days of sunlight and colder weather a key question is non the less : what is being done to curb the ever rising cost of gas and electricity in the UK? – up twice as much on average over five years ago, according to TV news coverage this morning.

According to an exclusive report on the moneysavingexpert.com website: “Politicians, consumer groups, the regulator and suppliers will attend a crunch energy summit to tackle soaring gas and electricity costs on Monday afternoon. Prime Minister David Cameron (pictured, right) and Energy Secretary Chris Huhne, who are both attending, write exclusively for MoneySavingExpert.com below outlining their plans…”

Well let’s hope that some positive action comes out of thes discussions. One of the key points seems to be to make it easier for the consumer to compare the tariffs of the top energy suppliers. By making their bills easier to understand and a clear comparison to be made, these companies will enable each and every one of us to more easily ‘shop around’ for the most appropriate deals.