Has cost of living affected you?

Jon

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Ive quickly realised that looking on outlet stores etc and buying quality etc which lasts longer is a good way of saving money - brought some dr Martens outlet for less than half price and hopefully will last a few years.
The wife always says - buy cheap, buy twice!
 
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Frugalgal

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Today I read that Government may do away with free prescriptions for over 60's????........:mad:....wow....that is going to make all the Tory pensioners very happy.....not........
 

Frugalgal

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The wife always says - buy cheap, buy twice!
Well, I think there are some things you can buy cheap, and some things that are worth paying more for. There are definitely some products out there that are being sold at silly prices, which people cannot tell the difference when buying cheaper versions. I use Google shopping app to check out the cheapest prices I can buy something, so I am buying the quality product, but looking to buy the at the cheapest price.
 
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homie

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The wife always says - buy cheap, buy twice!

Sometimes. To some extent. But not always. I bought a bike last year for £500 There were bikes in the shop with carbon everything and shiny bits a zillion gears and go faster stripes which cost up to £3000. Is a £3k bike going to make me 6 times faster than a £500 bike? No. Is it 6 times less likely to be hit by a HGV? Also no. WIll it last 6 times longer or be 6 times more reliable? Probably not. Would I be scared to chain it up outside B&M? Hell yes.

I usually find well researched and well bought cheap is better than expensive so called quality. With the disclaimer that within the cheap category there will also be a lot of shit to wade though and dismiss first.

We did a mince pie challenge thing at work last Christmas where everyone brought in mince pies from different stores and we judged them blind. I can't for the life of me remember the winner but 2nd place went to Aldi mince pies which I think were 65p at the time when most of the others were over a pound.
 

j4v3d

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Today I read that Government may do away with free prescriptions for over 60's????........:mad:....wow....that is going to make all the Tory pensioners very happy.....not........

I wouldn't put it past this government.
 

Queen Jess

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Today I read that Government may do away with free prescriptions for over 60's????........:mad:....wow....that is going to make all the Tory pensioners very happy.....not........
That’s not quite right. It is proposing to raise the free prescription age to 66 so you’ll lose out if you are between 60 and 65.

It feels like the treasury are trying to find money down the back of every sofa at the moment, but of course it’s always the poorest people and workers that lose out. The rich just get richer.
 

Queen Jess

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My energy fix ended three days ago, so I now join the mad prices..

I’ve been trying to cut back on food bits and pieces by making small changes, but the amount I’m saving makes no difference on a total basis as inflation is wiping out what I do. Also looks like I’m going to be made redundant this year (again) - hence trying to cut back a bit. Fun times!

At least I can cut back a bit. It’s concerning for those who have no further cloth to cut. The UK economy must take a nosedive because people just don’t have the cash to splash around anymore.
 
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Jon

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My energy fix ended three days ago, so I now join the mad prices..

I’ve been trying to cut back on food bits and pieces by making small changes, but the amount I’m saving makes no difference on a total basis as inflation is wiping out what I do. Also looks like I’m going to be made redundant this year (again) - hence trying to cut back a bit. Fun times!

At least I can cut back a bit. It’s concerning for those who have no further cloth to cut. The UK economy must take a nosedive because people just don’t have the cash to splash around anymore.
What are you looking at doing then in regards to your energy? I suppose we are coming into spring now so heating costs should start going down a bit which might help you?
 

Sherliarty

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Got my water bill and that has gone up by £100 for the year, it's my "comparison year" so will be interesting to see whether a meter is going to be better or worse when I get the figures at the end of the year. I have yet to get my new utility bills so am bracing myself for those. I think food-wise, it's definitely more expensive but I'm trying to remember that there are plenty of people in worse positions so I need to count my blessings.
 
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Queen Jess

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What are you looking at doing then in regards to your energy? I suppose we are coming into spring now so heating costs should start going down a bit which might help you?
Not much I can do really. I have a very energy efficient house and a heat pump. I can only make it better by getting solar panels (which are expensive upfront).

I also have a small baby, so turning down the thermostat is not an option. Hoping as it’s warmer outside I won’t be using as much electric.
 

JaimeL

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Lost some money on Crypto if you have seen how much the Bitcoin dropped, I also had some investments in ADA (Cardano) and it dropped to, I really hope it will grow up, but this month from the financial perspective is shit, I also Had to spend some money for woodside park locksmith service as I moved in a new flat, I heard this locksmith service might be the best one on the market, to be honest I really love their work, but still have to solve some financial issues and to gather some money for a reserve.
 
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Sherliarty

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It's all very depressing. I always do a shop for the food bank before I go in to help, just £20 worth of stuff and it's looking less and less each week.

And I saw Michael Gove's interview this morning about the cost of living crisis, what was that about? There are rumours he was high. It certainly was very weird and doesn't fill me with confidence that they actually have any solutions.
 

Jon

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Yeah we drop food at the morrisons food bank when we can. At our local dump / refuse site (council rubbish tip / whatever you want to call it they have a section now where you can donate dog or cat food which we've done a few times as well.

The whole situation is super depressing and you have to balance all this alongside being able to cover your own ever increasing costs!
 
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Lemonade23

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The Gove interview was something else wasn't it, stupid voices and ridicule. No wonder they often seem to keep him away from the cameras.
 

Sherliarty

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The Gove interview was something else wasn't it, stupid voices and ridicule. No wonder they often seem to keep him away from the cameras.
I think he is having a post-divorce midlife crisis and possibly a breakdown. I would find it funny but I also think there is something very wrong and he might need help (even though he doesn't seem to give a shit about others).
 
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Jute

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I make an effort to drop 6 tins of both cat and dog food at Tesco's every week. I cannot bear the idea of someone having to give up a pet because they cannot afford to feed it - it might be their only companion/friend at a difficult time.

One of the btl contributors on the Guardian website volunteers at a foodbank and he related a story about an elderly gent who said he didn't care what he had to eat, as long as there was something he could have for his dog. I nearly cried reading it. Still, Gove appears to have sufficient funds to shove stuff up his nose - git...
 

Frugalgal

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The future is going to be rough and we need all our ingenuity to ride this storm and not go under. Regards Crypto, people need to heed the advice that this is a high risk investment and people should not go into it to expect necessarily to get rich quick. Stock markets and Crypto go through cycles and if you cannot afford to ride the waves then my advice is to stay away. I only invest in high risk investments what I can afford to lose.

I advise people to look at all the ways to save money which is out there on the internet, and people to use their common sense when it comes to managing your money. There is good advice here, as there is on websites like Martin Lewis's MoneySavingExpert, and just look up tips on YouTube.
 

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