Managing bills

BUDGETING ESSENTIALS

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Introduction 1. What bills do you have? 2. Paying your bills 3. Reducing your bills

This lesson covers how to budget for and pay bills. 

We'll explore different ways of paying bills and look at how you may be able to save money. 

KEY LEARNINGS

  • Working out what bills you have
  • Deciding how to pay your bills
  • Using comparison sites to help reduce your bills

Read time:

5 mins

Chapter 1 - What bills do you have?

Chapter 1

What bills do you have?

Read time:

1 min

Tom's budget

Tom has put together his monthly budget. Since his cancer diagnosis, he's been on sick leave from work and is on a reduced income. His wife works part-time so she can take care of him and the children throughout his treatment.

Let's look at Tom's budget. Here are his household bills:

Gas

£98

Mortgage

£650

TV & broadband

£110

Test your knowledge

Answer this question by selecting one answer from the three options provided.

 

Potentially, Tom could try to reduce all of these bills, but he would have to do it in different ways.

For his gas bill, he might use a comparison website, which you'll look at later. 

For his mortgage, he would need to check what rate he's currently on and if he is eligible to change it. 

For his TV and broadband, he might speak directly to the provider to get a better deal from them.

Yes, that's one bill he can try to reduce!

Potentially, Tom could try to reduce all of these bills, but he would have to do it in different ways.

For his gas bill, he might use a comparison website, which you'll look at later. 

For his mortgage, he would need to check what rate he's currently on and if he is eligible to change it. 

For his TV and broadband, he might speak directly to the provider to get a better deal from them.

Introduction - Managing bills
Chapter 2 - Paying your bills

Chapter 2

Paying your bills

Read time:

2 mins

Top tips for paying your bills

Before his diagnosis, Tom used to leave the money management to his wife. She's overwhelmed right now, and he wants to help take some of the pressure off her by sorting out the bills. 

He's never paid bills before, so here are some tips to help:

Organise your bills

Get a folder and keep your bills in it. If your bills are digital, put them in a file on your computer. Keep track of when they need to be paid. You can also use your banking app to make it easier to view your money.

Choose how you want to pay

Direct debit is usually the cheapest and easiest way to pay bills, but there are other options to pay bills, including using online and phone banking, by post, paying at a Post Office or having a pre-payment meter installed.

Check your bills regularly

This means you'll spot any mistakes and will notice if your bills rise or fall. Pick a day each month and use a calendar or an app to make sure you don't forget.

Use your banking app

You can also use your banking app to make it easier to view your money, keep on track with payments, and manage your details. 

 

Tom made a file on his computer, organising his bills so they were all in one place and easier to manage. 

He set up direct debits to pay most of the bills, which ended up saving him money each month. 

Tom also managed to find a new gas supplier and reduce how much he was paying. He started this by looking at price comparison sites. We’ll look at these in the next chapter. 

Chapter 1 - What bills do you have?
Chapter 3 - Reducing your bills

Chapter 3

Reducing your bills

Read time:

2 mins

How can I reduce my bills?

There are many different ways to cut down on your spending. For your regular bills, we're going to look at how price comparison sites work. These can help you switch or negotiate, to get a better deals.

 

What are price comparison sites?

Price comparison websites let you get quotes from a variety of different companies at the same time. If you want to reduce your bills, they may be worth looking at.

You may find another company will give you the same product or service for cheaper than what you're paying right now. You can then decide whether to switch to that company, or use this information to negotiate with your current provider.

There are a few points to remember before you decide to use one:

  • Each website will have different companies on it, so it's worth checking a few before deciding about where to switch to.

    Make sure the product meets your needs. Research before you accept - think about what this means both long- and short-term.

     

  • The first provider may just be the one that has paid most to be at the top of the list.

    Comparison sites make money when you buy a product via their service. They get paid by advertising that appears on their pages and they may earn more from certain companies.

     

  • Changing your energy supplier is easier than ever and can save you money on those bills. If you pay for your own gas and/or electricity, you can switch supplier. It doesn't matter if you rent or own your own home.

    Price comparison sites can take you straight to a company's website to complete the switch, if you want to go ahead. Don't forget, you can call your current provider directly and negotiate a better deal with them.

    The process shouldn't take more than six weeks and you shouldn't be cut off during a switch. The only change you'll notice is a new supplier sending you your bills (if you switch supplier) and lower rates.

    Unlike gas and electricity, you can't switch your water supplier. But you might save money by switching to a water meter.

     

  • You can make great savings by switching to a cheaper phone, TV or broadband deal.

    If you have one provider for all three, you might want to check with them if they have any deals you could take advantage of. Alternatively, you might be able to negotiate the price down by switching your package with them directly.

    You can cut mobile phone costs by making sure you're on the right deal (not paying for calls, text or data you don't use, and not going over your allowances).

    Comparison sites can help you see through misleading sales and discounts by tracking prices over the years and showing you which site is really giving you the best deal. It's a good idea to use websites accredited by Ofcom.

     

 

Be kind to your mind

If trying to lower your bills feels overwhelming, try tackling one at a time – you don’t need to do them all at once. But do make sure to keep up to date with payments in the meantime so the situation doesn’t get worse. 

Taking control of your bills now will help you in the long term.

Managing bills: completed!

In this lesson, you saw how to manage and reduce household bills, using price comparison sites and negotiation. 

Chapter 2 - Paying your bills

Exit lesson and mark as complete

 

Lloyds Bank Academy is committed to providing information in a way that is accessible and useful for our users. This information, however, is not in any way intended to amount to authority or advice on which reliance should be placed. You should seek professional advice as appropriate and required. Any sites, products or services named in this module are just examples of what's available. Lloyds Bank does not endorse the services they provide. The information in this module was last updated on 4th November 2024.

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