With Easter just around the corner, spring can be an expensive time, especially if you have children who’ll be expecting gifts or fun family activities. Avoid feeling the pinch – allow your finances to bloom again with a much-needed spring clean of your direct debits.
Here are a few easy ways you can save on the money that comes out of your account each month.
Review Your Direct Debits
With direct debits being automatic, it’s easy to forget how much is leaving our account each month, and where it is going.
The easiest way to declutter your spending is to go through all of your direct debits and check that you actually use them all!
We are all guilty of it, but we’ll thank ourselves later when we have that extra disposable income each month.
Common payments you could save hundreds on annually include:
- Unused gym memberships
- Unused subscription TV channels or streaming services
- Unread magazine subscriptions
- Unused packaged bank accounts
- Insurance for items you no longer have
Many regular payments are quarterly, biannual or yearly, so check back over 12 months to ensure you cover everything. There are plenty of free apps that can help you monitor your outgoings, as well as track and cancel wasteful subscriptions, such as Emma, Plum, and Snoop.
Money Saving Expert has a full guide on direct debit audits here.
Keep An Eye Out For Incentives
To encourage people to switch to them, many banks will offer incentives. This can include rewards, cashback, or even free monthly subscriptions, which could help you save on direct debits. Here are some current examples:
- Santander Edge Account – Cashback on bills and 7% interest on savings.
- Chase Bank – 1% cashback on spending.
- Club Lloyds Account – Free Disney+ subscription (with ads).
- Halifax Rewards Account – Offers a reward of either £5 a month paid directly into your account, a free cinema ticket, or 3 digital magazines.
Fees (usually £3 a month) and eligibility criteria apply.
Set Up Variable Monthly Direct Debits
One of the biggest direct debit expenses is energy bills, especially with the recent energy price cap changes.
The most common type of direct debit used for these payments is a fixed direct debit, where costs are spread out over the year. This is calculated as an estimate of how much energy you’ll use, as opposed to how much you actually use.
But, there is a way to just pay for the energy you use. If you have a working smart meter or give meter readings to your energy provider each month, you can set up a variable direct debit so that what you pay will depend on the exact amount you’ve used each month.
However, it’s important to note that your energy bills will be much higher in the winter if you make this switch. If it’s manageable for you, budgeting for your priority bills a few weeks before your payment is due to go out can help you avoid feeling the pinch.
Set Up A Credit Card Direct Debit
In the UK last year, credit card debt averaged at £2,471 per household and £1,308 per adult.
That’s why, if you can afford to, it’s always a good idea to set up a direct debit to clear a portion of your credit card debt each month (or at least make the minimum repayment).
To do this, the credit card must be active, so you have to use it each month. If you don’t use it very often, you could set up a small direct debit on it (such as your monthly Netflix subscription) to ensure the card remains active and you are working towards gradually paying off your credit card debt.
If you’re struggling to tackle credit card debt, please visit our website for support and information.
Get Free* Confidential Debt Advice Without a Phone Call
Spring is a time for new beginnings. Reset your finances this year by doing a spring clean of your direct debits and seeing where you could save.
If you’re struggling with debt, please don’t hesitate to contact our friendly and experienced debt advisers who can provide you with confidential debt advice, and help you decide on the best options for debt relief, depending on your individual situation.
We can also provide debt advice without a phone call via our Online Debt Advice (ODA) tool, which is available to use any time, day or night. Designed to help you weigh up the debt solutions available to you, our tool gives you the best recommendations for your standalone circumstances on-screen, instantly. This won’t affect your credit score.
*Our advice is free, but if you sign up for a debt solution, a fee will apply for some solutions.
