Squeezed Middle Round-Up – Getting from A to B via £
For weeks now energy prices and ‘fuel poverty’ have dominated the squeezed middle agenda and last week I mentioned that many campaigns have launched, which attempt to combat the ‘Big Six’. However, this week it has been reported that many people are living in transport poverty, as families are struggling to cope with the costs of public transport and /or running a vehicle.
Today’s Metro reported that four in five families are currently living in transport poverty, according to figures released from the RAC foundation. These families spend more than ten per cent of their disposable income on public and private transport with the majority of the money being invested into a car. It’s certainly understandable that people are struggling with transport, as it is one of the major monthly expenses for any family. Even though the cost of buying a car has decreased in recent years, the cost of running one has soared due to the fluctuating cost of oil. This is a similar problem with energy prices.
One of the possible reasons that car ownership is so expensive was highlighted in the Daily Express, which noted that consumers often automatically accept motor insurance renewal quotes without shopping around. It’s always best to do your homework before any purchase, least of all one as expensive as car insurance. As we always say here at Incahoot, the more work you put into research and planning, the more money you’ll have in the bank!
That’s it for this week’s round-up, if you have any questions, or just want to voice an opinion, head over to our Facebook or Twitter.
Honest John
Squeezed Middle Round-Up – Big Six Rebellion
I am determined to get through one of my squeezed middle round-ups without mentioning energy prices, but it remains firmly at the top of middle England’s agenda again this week. Refreshingly however, the majority of news has surrounded numerous consumer campaigns, all designed to combat the ‘Big Six’.
The energy firms dominated the headlines after EDF sparked a new wave of anger when it announced huge increases in profits. CEO Vincent de Rivas assured EDF’s customers that it will strive to rebuild trust in the company, following a survey naming EDF as the second-worst company for customer service. It would seem EDF has got quite a long way to go then! The increase in profits has been attributed to wholesale discounts which were not passed down to its customers.
This has led to a number of campaigns, including ‘End the Big Six Energy Fix’ and ‘Friends of the Earth’s Final Demand’, which both call for a public enquiry into the Big Six. The Which? Big Switch campaign also claims to have signed up over 100,000 members in less than a week. These are all very positive indications that consumers have had enough of paying too much and are grouping together to take on the big guns. This is great to see! After all, you know how much we like a bit of community clout here at Incahoot!
Don’t forget if you think you’re currently paying too much for your gas and electric you can use our free concierge service, send us your bills and we’ll find out whether you can save money simply by switching!
Honest John
Squeezed Middle Round-Up – On the Brink
It’s been a tough week for the squeezed middle as the issue of energy prices continues to rear its ugly head and fresh polls reveal the true extent of poverty in Britain’s families.
A story in The Sun on Monday revealed how the big six energy providers are still misleading customers. Both British Gas and E.ON failed to offer the lowest deals over the phone, and numerous companies still persist with energy salesmen in shopping centres and supermarkets promising misleading savings claims. This kind of thing really makes me furious and is a perfect example of the unpleasant corporate culture which still pervades our main suppliers. How is the average consumer supposed to hunt out the best deal when they are constantly being fed misleading information?
In addition to this, Netmums released a shocking poll today that showed nearly 70 per cent of families are on the brink of poverty, with some parents missing meals to feed their children. This is simply outrageous! We really want to help these families out, which is why we strongly encourage you to send us your bills to see if we can save you some money, simply by switching!
Here at Incahoot we’ve also been working very hard to take savings to the high street by negotiating some great deals for our new service Incahoot PLUS. Incahoot PLUS gives you access to over 1,600 discounts across major high street brands by taking advantage of savings which are normally only accessed through employee benefits packages available to large corporations. It really could save you significant sums each year and with families struggling, as they currently are, we are more determined than ever to take action and save people money.
Honest John
Squeezed Middle Blog Post – Planning Ahead
Last week I focused on some of the more cheery titbits from the squeezed middle news agenda, so it only stands to reason that this week’s post should be a return to austere reality. Not so! While it is never peaches and cream for those of us in the middle I shall do my best to sandwich the negative between some of this week’s more positive developments.
So the good news: Ofcom is ordering BT to reduce the amount it charges rivals to rent its phone lines, pushing for an initial reduction of 19% in April, with a further cut next year. The hope is that suppliers will pass this saving down to its customers. Any saving is good news for the squeezed middle!
There has, however been some bad news for the high street this week. The British Retail Consortium released data which showed that like-for-like sales fell 0.3% in January citing a ‘return to reality’ after splashing cash over the Christmas period. It would seem there is conflicting data towards consumer confidence at the moment: one week it’s up and the next it’s down.
One thing is certain though, we are certainly getting savvier. I was pleased to hear statistics this week that found seven out of ten families now plan their food shopping carefully. In 2008 47% took a list of what they plan to buy and this has now risen to 67%. Great news! Research and planning is the cornerstone of any stringent money plan and it’s great to see that people are spending more time managing their finances.
So sales are down but it sounds like the cause is a savvier nation. This is good news and something to be proud of, keep checking those prices and pushing for the better deal!
Honest John
Squeezed Middle Round-Up – Trading Steak for Sausages
It is an unfortunate fact that almost by definition the news stories I report to you in my squeezed middle posts are generally a bit gloomy! This week however, I thought I would take a look at the lighter side of the pinched midriff, starting with … sausages.
That’s right, sausages. It was reported that Cranswick, a large British producer of foods and pet products, said that austerity Britain has swapped beef for pork, causing sales of the white meat to jump. According to The Daily Telegraph, sales in the final three months of 2011 were up 10% on the previous year, marginally stronger than the increase in the overall British pork market, which increased by 9%. Interesting statistics I think you’ll agree!
On a slightly more serious note, GfK NOP has suggested that consumer confidence improved modestly in January to its highest level since June last year. This follows improvements in expectations for the economy and in people’s personal finances.
It’s certainly good to see a little bit of positivity continuing from the festive period and new year. While it is true that disposable incomes are still falling for the vast majority of the middle, there is certainly a growing feeling that 2012 is the year consumers can turn it around (even if that means swapping steak for sausages). Let’s hope this sentiment continues into what looks to be a very cold February!
Honest John
Squeezed Middle Round-Up – The Squeeze Won’t Ease
If we had some respite from the doom and gloom last week with the (negligible) cuts in energy prices then it’s back to reality with a bump this week! Figures from the Resolution Foundation’s Squeezed Britain study show that energy prices have been raised an eye watering 110% since 2000 with the average household spending 15% of their income just on energy.
Following the report some have predicted that ‘the squeeze won’t ease’ until at least 2020. Looks like flying cars might be out of the picture then! In all seriousness, there were some shocking statistics from the report. The report showed that families on low or average incomes are likely to face a 22 year wait to raise the deposit needed for their first home. When you consider in 2001, just over ten years ago, the average wait was around 8 years it’s easy to see why some are writing off the possibility of ever leaving rented accommodation.
This is a real tragedy and will shift consumers’ habits. When it comes to money, if people are faced with such an insurmountable amount, most will simply give up in favour of short term spending rather than long term planning. Exactly the kind of financial mentality that helped us into the current climate in the first place!
Tough times ahead then, but remember, proper budget planning can take a seemingly impossible situation and make it manageable. Don’t forget if you want to take advantage of our free concierge service you can head over here and we might just save you some money on your bills, simply by switching providers!
Honest John
Squeezed Middle Round-Up – Squeezed Energy Prices
Phew! It’s finally Friday and once again it’s been a busy week for the energy sector following the price cuts announced last week. That’s why today I thought I would take a closer look at what has happened, what it means and what we can expect.
It is good news that prices across the big six have been cut with wholesale prices decreasing, and this news has certainly been received well by consumers. However! There can be no denying that ultimately these are token gestures – hence why the companies have only either cut its gas or electricity. I’m sad to say that the reality is that year on year energy prices will continue to rise.
When it comes to complex tariffs the energy companies are caught between a rock and a hard place – first campaigners say that tariffs are too complicated, but simplifying them makes tariffs uncompetitive. Ultimately less choice means higher prices.
Campaigners are also saying that we should reduce energy prices when wholesale prices fall, but if this was the case we’d be altering prices all the time – and once again that would increase confusion. People would never know what the best prices were and would have to be constantly shopping around to get the best deals. This would be a nightmare for consumers and very time consuming!
We need Ofgem to take responsibility for regulating prices in the industry and ensure that consumers are getting the fairest deal. In the meantime, we all need to make sure we look after number one, and do what we can to save the pennies and keep our household bills low!
Honest John
Squeezed Middle Round-Up – Energy Price Cuts on the Horizon
It’s been a busy week indeed for the squeezed middle and it’s only Wednesday! Let’s kick off with some good news; British Gas and EDF have both announced price cuts this week.
While this is definitely a ray of light for struggling consumers, it’s important for people to remember that energy prices are still rising on the whole and will inevitably continue to do so, as the cost of oil and gas is increasing.
Ed Miliband, who coined the phrase ‘squeezed middle’, made an impassioned speech yesterday outlining the steps Britain needs to take to rebalance its economy and “deliver fairness” in these tough economic times. Among these were promises that he would change the law to force energy companies to automatically place over 75’s on the cheapest available tariff, as well as pledging to “take on” the train companies to ensure a cap on rises, which would apply to every regulated train fair.
The measures he suggested certainly sound great in principle. We hope that the hard line taken by the opposition spurs on the Government to make changes to the way that energy is bought and sold.
However, we can’t rely purely on the Government to ensure that changes are made. As consumers we need to take the bull by the horns and remember that an increase in prices doesn’t necessarily mean we need to pay more. After all, we all know that food prices have risen in the past year but that doesn’t stop us from shopping around for the best deals. Watch this space for our tips on small changes we can all make to ensure energy costs stay manageable.
Honest John
New Year Squeezed Middle Round-Up
Hello everyone and a very Happy New Year! Hopefully your Christmas was relaxing and not too expensive. I’m sure you’ve all made your resolutions and it looks as though this will be the year of frugal finances as everyone tightens their belts to navigate the difficult financial climate. Let’s kick off then with this week’s round-up of stories affecting the squeezed middle.
The main story that piqued my interest this week was a study by charity Shelter, who found that a huge 1 million Brits are paying their mortgage with payday loans and a further 7 million are using some form of high interest credit. This is simply madness if you ask me! Substituting one debt for another with higher rates is one of the fastest ways to land yourself in deep financial trouble. Payday loans are already starting to get a bad rep across the media and I predict this will continue to be a hot topic for 2012.
The ‘Warm Home Discount’ has also been under scrutiny this week. This government initiative aims to provide a £120 rebate on energy bills to hard-up families during the winter period. The majority of the 800,000 recipients however are pensioners and charity Save the Children have said that just 3% of families struggling to afford heating bills have received the payment. They are calling for the rest of the big six providers to follow British Gas, who have promised rebates to qualifying customers. I whole heartedly agree! Though we certainly must keep our pensioners warm this is a discount that should definitely be expanded to more of those struggling in the squeezed middle.
Increasingly it’s couples with young children who are the hardest hit, according to a report from Institute for Fiscal Studies. It found that changes in the tax and benefit system will cost a typical family over £1200 over the next five years. This is exactly why we want to champion the squeezed middle, it’s the hard working families of Britain who are really under pressure and although cuts have to be made it’s about time we gave those in the middle a break!
Honest John
Squeezed Middle Round-Up – Savvy Shoppers Search out Super Savings
It’s that time of week again; time for our look at the news stories affecting all of you out there in the squeezed middle!
As Christmas fast approaches (only four more days!) a report revealed that half of all you savvy shoppers will spend ten hours doing your homework to find the best deals this Christmas. The study also found that a fifth would spend a lengthy two working days researching both the high street and online before making Christmas purchases. This is great news! We absolutely love to hear about people going the extra mile to save some cash especially over the festive period.
A warning went out this week to families planning on watching movies online over the holidays. If you’re expecting to stream the latest films to escape repeats on telly be careful. Many families are set to unknowingly exceed their broadband limits and could end up paying hundreds of pounds in excess charges. Make sure to check your package and keep an eye on how much you’re downloading!
There’s been some good news for retailers this week, as Sunday was the busiest shopping day of the year with an estimated 11 million people out and about spending over £1 billion, at the astonishing rate of £1.5 million a minute, blimey! Overall though, despite aggressive price cuts across the board it seems like most retailers have been disappointed with holiday takings.
So in summary this week, keep doing your homework before purchasing any last minute presents and be careful of hidden charges on your utilities over the holidays. All that’s left to do now is wish you all a very Merry Christmas from all of us at Incahoot!
Honest John
