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Whether you're a spender or a saver, | 0:00:02 | 0:00:04 | |
we could all do with knowing how to make the most of our cash. | 0:00:04 | 0:00:08 | |
So we've found simple advice for you to do just that, and taken it | 0:00:09 | 0:00:13 | |
to towns and cities right across Britain. | 0:00:13 | 0:00:15 | |
Whatever help you need with your finances, we are Right On The Money. | 0:00:17 | 0:00:21 | |
Hello, and welcome to Right On The Money, | 0:00:23 | 0:00:25 | |
the series that's all about bolstering your bank account | 0:00:25 | 0:00:28 | |
without putting in too much effort. | 0:00:28 | 0:00:30 | |
Today, we are in Nottingham, home of Robin Hood | 0:00:30 | 0:00:32 | |
and his Merry Men who were dab hands at getting hold of money themselves. | 0:00:32 | 0:00:36 | |
But don't worry, we're not going to advise you to rob from the rich | 0:00:36 | 0:00:39 | |
to give to the poor. | 0:00:39 | 0:00:40 | |
But here's what you can expect on today's programme... | 0:00:40 | 0:00:42 | |
She can carry a tune, but are her finances hitting the wrong note? | 0:00:44 | 0:00:48 | |
We'll see if we can get this busy mum closer to buying her own home. | 0:00:48 | 0:00:52 | |
Because anything is possible when you believe it is. | 0:00:52 | 0:00:56 | |
And I believe that owning my own property is achievable. | 0:00:56 | 0:01:01 | |
And as we look at why loyalty doesn't pay, | 0:01:01 | 0:01:04 | |
the people of Nottingham | 0:01:04 | 0:01:06 | |
tell us exactly what they think about companies | 0:01:06 | 0:01:09 | |
who charge us too much. | 0:01:09 | 0:01:10 | |
We're supporting you, we're bringing money | 0:01:10 | 0:01:12 | |
into your business, stop treating us like idiots. | 0:01:12 | 0:01:15 | |
Now, Nottingham is also a city of invention. | 0:01:18 | 0:01:20 | |
Traffic lights, tarmac, HP sauce | 0:01:20 | 0:01:23 | |
and ibuprofen all came from here. | 0:01:23 | 0:01:25 | |
Now, every new idea could do with a bit of encouragement, | 0:01:25 | 0:01:28 | |
but coming up next is a mum who is a whizz at giving other | 0:01:28 | 0:01:32 | |
people motivation but could do with a bit of it herself | 0:01:32 | 0:01:35 | |
when it comes to securing her financial future. | 0:01:35 | 0:01:39 | |
This is Wonder Woman Yvonne, | 0:01:39 | 0:01:41 | |
a high-achieving entrepreneur, always on the go, | 0:01:41 | 0:01:44 | |
from the odd bit of hairdressing... | 0:01:44 | 0:01:47 | |
Your hair's really grown since the last time I saw you. | 0:01:47 | 0:01:50 | |
..to running a life coaching and motivational speaking business... | 0:01:50 | 0:01:54 | |
You've got a dream. Make it happen. It's up to you. | 0:01:54 | 0:01:58 | |
..and training a very successful gospel choir. | 0:01:58 | 0:02:02 | |
# That tonight's going to be a good night... # | 0:02:02 | 0:02:05 | |
Yvonne makes the most of every opportunity that comes her way, and | 0:02:05 | 0:02:09 | |
one reason why she's so driven is the tough life she had growing up. | 0:02:09 | 0:02:14 | |
I'm one of five siblings and my mother died when I was 11 years old. | 0:02:14 | 0:02:18 | |
When she died, everything fell apart. | 0:02:18 | 0:02:21 | |
And then I left home at 15. Then I lived | 0:02:21 | 0:02:24 | |
on the streets for a few days, so I've experienced homelessness. | 0:02:24 | 0:02:29 | |
Slowly, Yvonne got her life back on track and started a family. | 0:02:29 | 0:02:33 | |
She's determined to ensure her three kids don't miss out on the things | 0:02:33 | 0:02:37 | |
she didn't have, but while she's helped her sons buy their | 0:02:37 | 0:02:41 | |
first home, she's never got on the property ladder herself. | 0:02:41 | 0:02:45 | |
I'm a single parent. I'm a small-business owner. | 0:02:45 | 0:02:49 | |
How can I buy a house? | 0:02:49 | 0:02:51 | |
You know, I've had debt problems in the past as well, | 0:02:51 | 0:02:55 | |
so how can somebody like me | 0:02:55 | 0:02:57 | |
buy a house? And I just thought it wasn't something that I could do. | 0:02:57 | 0:03:02 | |
So, the moment has arrived for Yvonne | 0:03:02 | 0:03:04 | |
to get her own house in order. | 0:03:04 | 0:03:06 | |
And under the government's Right to Buy scheme, she'd love to | 0:03:06 | 0:03:09 | |
finally buy the council house she's rented for the past 15 years. | 0:03:09 | 0:03:13 | |
It's scary, don't get me wrong, | 0:03:15 | 0:03:17 | |
I've never done this before, but I'm ready to rock and roll. | 0:03:17 | 0:03:21 | |
Ready to give it my best. | 0:03:21 | 0:03:23 | |
Also ready to rock and roll | 0:03:23 | 0:03:24 | |
is personal finance expert Simon Read | 0:03:24 | 0:03:27 | |
who's on a mission to keep Yvonne's cash flow on the right track. | 0:03:27 | 0:03:31 | |
What do you need to do to be able to buy your own home? | 0:03:32 | 0:03:36 | |
Um, I think I need to really just be able to afford it. | 0:03:36 | 0:03:40 | |
THEY LAUGH | 0:03:40 | 0:03:43 | |
Yeah, and believe that I can. | 0:03:43 | 0:03:44 | |
Cos it was something that I didn't believe that I could ever do. | 0:03:44 | 0:03:48 | |
And you ended up homeless for a time as well? | 0:03:48 | 0:03:50 | |
-So having a home is really important to you. -Definitely. | 0:03:50 | 0:03:53 | |
Definitely, definitely, definitely. | 0:03:53 | 0:03:56 | |
You know, it's the thought of losing my home is the worst thought ever. | 0:03:56 | 0:04:03 | |
-I think I probably fear that more than death. -Well, Yvonne, | 0:04:03 | 0:04:08 | |
fortunately, this personal finance expert has a plan to | 0:04:08 | 0:04:11 | |
give your house deposit a good kick-start. | 0:04:11 | 0:04:14 | |
He's found a way you can make some easy money | 0:04:14 | 0:04:18 | |
literally on your own doorstep. | 0:04:18 | 0:04:20 | |
Yvonne's got not one, not two, | 0:04:21 | 0:04:24 | |
but three parking spaces she could potentially rent out. | 0:04:24 | 0:04:28 | |
And as she lives round the corner from Luton airport, | 0:04:28 | 0:04:31 | |
there should be no shortage of takers. | 0:04:31 | 0:04:33 | |
Ka-ching! | 0:04:33 | 0:04:34 | |
-Did you know you can make money out of car-parking spaces? -No, I didn't. | 0:04:36 | 0:04:40 | |
-LAUGHS: -Sounds odd, doesn't it? -Yes, it does. | 0:04:40 | 0:04:42 | |
You know, if you have a free car-parking space, you can | 0:04:42 | 0:04:45 | |
-effectively rent it out. -Really? -Yeah. | 0:04:45 | 0:04:47 | |
-Now, you're quite near to an airport. -I am. And a train station. | 0:04:47 | 0:04:50 | |
And a train station. We've talked to an online agency | 0:04:50 | 0:04:52 | |
which manages these things | 0:04:52 | 0:04:54 | |
and knows the prices and how much you could charge. | 0:04:54 | 0:04:57 | |
They reckon that you could get... | 0:04:57 | 0:04:59 | |
-Are you ready for this? -I'm grounding myself. | 0:04:59 | 0:05:02 | |
For these two car parking spaces, you could earn... | 0:05:02 | 0:05:05 | |
-£2,000 a year. -Really? | 0:05:05 | 0:05:07 | |
£2,000 a year for something you've already got, you don't | 0:05:07 | 0:05:10 | |
have to do anything else, you sign up with an agency, | 0:05:10 | 0:05:12 | |
-they sort it all out for you. -That would be brilliant. | 0:05:12 | 0:05:15 | |
And do you know, there's lots of ways where you can make extra | 0:05:15 | 0:05:17 | |
money actually by doing very little? | 0:05:17 | 0:05:19 | |
Yeah. I like this idea. I really like it. | 0:05:19 | 0:05:23 | |
So, Yvonne could be set to | 0:05:23 | 0:05:25 | |
rake in an extra £2,000 a year | 0:05:25 | 0:05:28 | |
by renting out two parking spaces. | 0:05:28 | 0:05:30 | |
Because the council currently owns the house, if she wants to do | 0:05:30 | 0:05:34 | |
it straight away, she'd have to check with them first. | 0:05:34 | 0:05:37 | |
But if she achieves her goal of buying the property, | 0:05:37 | 0:05:40 | |
that extra cash could soon be in her pocket. | 0:05:40 | 0:05:43 | |
Let's see if we can get her even closer to affording that deposit. | 0:05:45 | 0:05:50 | |
Juggling her busy workload takes a lot of effort and coordination, | 0:05:50 | 0:05:53 | |
and to do that, Yvonne likes to get out of her house | 0:05:53 | 0:05:56 | |
and plough through it all in the local cafe. | 0:05:56 | 0:05:59 | |
Why go to a cafe, Yvonne? | 0:06:01 | 0:06:02 | |
It's a nice, peaceful place so I can get a lot done. | 0:06:02 | 0:06:06 | |
So when you go to work in a cafe, even though | 0:06:06 | 0:06:08 | |
you're paying nothing to sit in the cafe, | 0:06:08 | 0:06:11 | |
-you're paying for your refreshments, for any food you buy... -Yes. | 0:06:11 | 0:06:15 | |
-So, that gets quite expensive, doesn't it? -It can do. | 0:06:15 | 0:06:18 | |
-If you are spending £20 a week in a cafe every week... -Yeah. | 0:06:18 | 0:06:22 | |
..that's £1,000 a year. | 0:06:22 | 0:06:24 | |
-Wow. -It's a lot of money, isn't it? | 0:06:24 | 0:06:26 | |
-It is. -A lot of money just for the convenience of sitting in a cafe. | 0:06:26 | 0:06:29 | |
-What I'm going to suggest to you is we find somewhere else... -OK. | 0:06:29 | 0:06:32 | |
..where you can get a nice location. | 0:06:32 | 0:06:35 | |
-There's other things going on, but you don't have to pay anything. -Ah. | 0:06:35 | 0:06:38 | |
OK. I'm up for that, that sounds good. | 0:06:38 | 0:06:41 | |
I didn't realise that it would be that big a spend. | 0:06:41 | 0:06:47 | |
Ah, but fear not. | 0:06:47 | 0:06:50 | |
Simon's got just the place to work without spending any money. | 0:06:50 | 0:06:54 | |
The local library. | 0:06:54 | 0:06:55 | |
And if you're worried that that might be a bit stuffy, well, | 0:06:55 | 0:06:58 | |
a chat with head librarian Alex | 0:06:58 | 0:07:01 | |
reveals just how much libraries have changed. | 0:07:01 | 0:07:04 | |
So, Alex, what can the library offer somebody like me | 0:07:04 | 0:07:08 | |
who need quiet-ish space and to do my normal daily work. | 0:07:08 | 0:07:14 | |
What we try to do is obviously make it a welcoming environment. | 0:07:14 | 0:07:17 | |
It's still free access for everybody, | 0:07:17 | 0:07:18 | |
so you aren't getting charged for anything. | 0:07:18 | 0:07:20 | |
My experience of libraries is like ,"Shh. Keep quiet." | 0:07:20 | 0:07:24 | |
We are trying to get rid of the shoosh code. | 0:07:24 | 0:07:26 | |
Obviously, we do know that some customers still want a quiet | 0:07:26 | 0:07:29 | |
area to study, to relax, and take time out, | 0:07:29 | 0:07:32 | |
so we do have a designated area for that, | 0:07:32 | 0:07:34 | |
but the majority of the library, | 0:07:34 | 0:07:35 | |
the first two floors are available to talk and things like that. | 0:07:35 | 0:07:38 | |
That's really, really good. It will be quite handy for somebody like me. | 0:07:38 | 0:07:42 | |
Hang on a second, with a motivational speaking business | 0:07:42 | 0:07:45 | |
and a gospel choir to orchestrate, | 0:07:45 | 0:07:47 | |
Yvonne's mobile phone hardly stops ringing. | 0:07:47 | 0:07:50 | |
Isn't that a no-no in a library? | 0:07:50 | 0:07:52 | |
What is the policy on phones ringing? | 0:07:52 | 0:07:54 | |
I'm quite happy for a phone to ring. | 0:07:54 | 0:07:56 | |
If you're in the quiet room or in a designated quiet study area, | 0:07:56 | 0:07:59 | |
we would ask you to take that call downstairs in the more social area. | 0:07:59 | 0:08:03 | |
You can even take your food and drink into these social areas. | 0:08:03 | 0:08:06 | |
So if Yvonne brought her own lunch, | 0:08:06 | 0:08:08 | |
she could slash her annual | 0:08:08 | 0:08:11 | |
spend by about £700. | 0:08:11 | 0:08:13 | |
On top of that, while she's here, | 0:08:13 | 0:08:15 | |
Yvonne spots another potential saving. | 0:08:15 | 0:08:18 | |
She regularly holds motivational seminars, so could the library's | 0:08:18 | 0:08:22 | |
conference rooms work out cheaper than the usual venue she rents? | 0:08:22 | 0:08:26 | |
How much is it for, say, two hours? | 0:08:26 | 0:08:29 | |
How much would it cost me to hire your facilities? | 0:08:29 | 0:08:32 | |
It's rented on an hourly basis, so a two-hour basis would be £25. | 0:08:32 | 0:08:36 | |
This is obviously cheaper the more hours you would have as well. | 0:08:36 | 0:08:39 | |
Wow. That's half of what Yvonne currently pays. | 0:08:39 | 0:08:43 | |
And as she's planning to expand her business, switching to the library | 0:08:43 | 0:08:47 | |
would save around £600 a year | 0:08:47 | 0:08:48 | |
if she held two seminars a month. | 0:08:48 | 0:08:51 | |
Simon catches up with Yvonne | 0:08:54 | 0:08:55 | |
in the library's theatre to find out what she thinks. | 0:08:55 | 0:08:59 | |
And it looks like the bright lights have gone to his head. | 0:08:59 | 0:09:02 | |
So here we are, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, | 0:09:02 | 0:09:06 | |
but most of all, Yvonne. | 0:09:06 | 0:09:08 | |
-You're still at the library... -Yeah. -..in this wonderful theatre space, | 0:09:08 | 0:09:12 | |
-what have you learned today? -You get free Wi-Fi. -Free Wi-Fi. | 0:09:12 | 0:09:16 | |
The rates are quite cheap as well in terms of | 0:09:16 | 0:09:19 | |
-if I wanted to have a conference. -Yes, there's conference rooms. | 0:09:19 | 0:09:21 | |
There's conference rooms. There's this beautiful theatre. | 0:09:21 | 0:09:24 | |
-There are areas that I can speak in. -Yeah. -I can answer my phone. -Yeah. | 0:09:24 | 0:09:29 | |
My phone can ring in the library. | 0:09:29 | 0:09:31 | |
So you can take business calls, | 0:09:31 | 0:09:33 | |
-deal with the pressing needs of the day. -Definitely. | 0:09:33 | 0:09:37 | |
Libraries across the country have had to adapt and change | 0:09:37 | 0:09:40 | |
in the past few years, | 0:09:40 | 0:09:42 | |
so it's worth checking out what the ones in your area have got to offer. | 0:09:42 | 0:09:46 | |
It's pretty much a very cool place AND, the most important thing, | 0:09:46 | 0:09:50 | |
it's for half the cost. | 0:09:50 | 0:09:52 | |
So you can save an awful lot of money by coming here rather | 0:09:52 | 0:09:55 | |
-than going to the cafes. -Yes. | 0:09:55 | 0:09:57 | |
-Definitely. -So, the question is, Yvonne, | 0:09:57 | 0:10:00 | |
-will you do it? -Yes, I will. | 0:10:00 | 0:10:04 | |
For Yvonne, using the local library as a workplace as well as a base | 0:10:04 | 0:10:08 | |
for her expanding business would give another £1,300 | 0:10:08 | 0:10:12 | |
towards her deposit. | 0:10:12 | 0:10:13 | |
And there are more savings to be made even closer to home. | 0:10:15 | 0:10:18 | |
Because Yvonne is so busy building up her business | 0:10:20 | 0:10:23 | |
and running her gospel choir, | 0:10:23 | 0:10:25 | |
it doesn't leave much time for cooking elaborate family meals. | 0:10:25 | 0:10:29 | |
As a result, she often goes for convenience, | 0:10:29 | 0:10:32 | |
spending nearly £2,000 a year on takeaways. | 0:10:32 | 0:10:36 | |
But Yvonne and her daughter, Thea... | 0:10:36 | 0:10:37 | |
-Hello, ladies. -Hi! | 0:10:37 | 0:10:40 | |
..are about to find out how easily | 0:10:40 | 0:10:42 | |
and cheaply anyone can knock up | 0:10:42 | 0:10:45 | |
a tasty and quick family meal at home. | 0:10:45 | 0:10:48 | |
Showing them the way is celebrity chef Aldo Zilli. | 0:10:48 | 0:10:51 | |
I'm here today to explain to you and show you some short cuts | 0:10:51 | 0:10:56 | |
-into making great food with very little money. -OK. | 0:10:56 | 0:11:01 | |
-Are you up for that? -I'm absolutely up for that. | 0:11:01 | 0:11:04 | |
As Yvonne rustles up a quick sauce, Aldo demonstrates | 0:11:04 | 0:11:07 | |
just how easy it is to make pasta from scratch in minutes. | 0:11:07 | 0:11:12 | |
I've got my eggs and my flour. | 0:11:13 | 0:11:17 | |
I've put olive oil in here | 0:11:17 | 0:11:19 | |
and a little bit of salt. | 0:11:19 | 0:11:20 | |
Seems a doddle so far. | 0:11:20 | 0:11:22 | |
And you keep your rolling pin in the freezer. | 0:11:24 | 0:11:26 | |
It's always good, so it doesn't stick anywhere. | 0:11:26 | 0:11:29 | |
Now, I'm no Cordon Bleu chef, | 0:11:29 | 0:11:31 | |
but that's definitely starting to look like pasta to me. | 0:11:31 | 0:11:34 | |
So there's the shape. Very rustically cut. | 0:11:36 | 0:11:39 | |
OK? Don't need to dry this at all. | 0:11:40 | 0:11:42 | |
As soon as you make it, you can cook it, basically. | 0:11:42 | 0:11:44 | |
How long does the pasta take to cook? | 0:11:44 | 0:11:46 | |
The pasta takes two minutes to cook. Once the water is boiling, OK? | 0:11:46 | 0:11:50 | |
you put the pasta in. | 0:11:50 | 0:11:51 | |
As soon as the water comes back to boil, | 0:11:51 | 0:11:54 | |
then your pasta's ready. | 0:11:54 | 0:11:56 | |
OK, so it's not long at all. | 0:11:56 | 0:11:58 | |
I'm going to pour all of this in there, | 0:11:59 | 0:12:02 | |
including a little bit of water and then you get your pan... | 0:12:02 | 0:12:05 | |
-Toss it, sorry. -THEY LAUGH | 0:12:07 | 0:12:09 | |
And in just ten minutes, it's ready. | 0:12:09 | 0:12:13 | |
Voila! | 0:12:13 | 0:12:14 | |
-Voila! -Voila! | 0:12:14 | 0:12:16 | |
Voila indeed! | 0:12:16 | 0:12:18 | |
Yvonne won't always have a celebrity chef on hand to help, | 0:12:18 | 0:12:22 | |
so the question is, | 0:12:22 | 0:12:23 | |
will she be convinced she can whip up tucker like this back at home? | 0:12:23 | 0:12:27 | |
So, Aldo, I'm stuffing my face here, | 0:12:27 | 0:12:30 | |
I'm enjoying this food so much. | 0:12:30 | 0:12:32 | |
But I want to know, you know, how much would this cost really, | 0:12:32 | 0:12:36 | |
you know, maybe to feed four people? | 0:12:36 | 0:12:38 | |
All of that would probably cost a pound a portion. | 0:12:38 | 0:12:41 | |
That's a bargain. | 0:12:41 | 0:12:43 | |
So, it seems those takeaways really could become a thing of the past. | 0:12:43 | 0:12:47 | |
The thing that's really blowing my mind is the fact it was like | 0:12:47 | 0:12:50 | |
so quick to make. | 0:12:50 | 0:12:52 | |
Now, we can run to the shop and buy pasta, | 0:12:52 | 0:12:55 | |
but it just seems a lot quicker to do it yourself, if you know how to. | 0:12:55 | 0:12:58 | |
Well, it's quicker than running to the shop, that's for sure. | 0:12:58 | 0:13:00 | |
If Yvonne halved her takeaway spending | 0:13:00 | 0:13:03 | |
from £150 to £75 a month, over a year, | 0:13:03 | 0:13:07 | |
that would be a saving of £900. | 0:13:07 | 0:13:09 | |
But Simon's only just warming up, and later in the programme, | 0:13:11 | 0:13:15 | |
he's going to tackle Yvonne's expensive champagne habit | 0:13:15 | 0:13:18 | |
with a test to tickle her taste buds. | 0:13:18 | 0:13:21 | |
Is it worth her forking out for the finer fizz? | 0:13:21 | 0:13:24 | |
-Are you sure, now? -No, I'm not sure. -HE LAUGHS | 0:13:24 | 0:13:27 | |
-So what I propose to do... -BOTH: -Is taste them all again! | 0:13:27 | 0:13:30 | |
THEY LAUGH | 0:13:30 | 0:13:33 | |
And we'll be chatting to Yvonne later in the programme. | 0:13:34 | 0:13:37 | |
But first off, Sarah Pennells is here along with Kelly Eroglu, | 0:13:37 | 0:13:39 | |
who, in a moment, well tell us how her family of four manages to | 0:13:39 | 0:13:43 | |
feast like kings but on a shoestring budget. | 0:13:43 | 0:13:46 | |
Now, Sarah, Yvonne, she certainly likes a treat or two, doesn't she? | 0:13:46 | 0:13:49 | |
Absolutely, and there's nothing wrong with treating yourself. | 0:13:49 | 0:13:52 | |
But is there a way of doing that on a budget, though? | 0:13:52 | 0:13:54 | |
Well, I think if you are treating yourself, you've got to work out | 0:13:54 | 0:13:57 | |
what your real priorities are. | 0:13:57 | 0:13:59 | |
What's the thing you really love and where can you compromise? | 0:13:59 | 0:14:01 | |
So it might mean getting different brands. | 0:14:01 | 0:14:04 | |
It might mean staying in more and cooking in your own kitchen | 0:14:04 | 0:14:06 | |
rather than going out for meals. Or it might just mean you spend | 0:14:06 | 0:14:09 | |
a bit more time being creative and doing hobbies | 0:14:09 | 0:14:11 | |
rather than maybe going to the cinema and things like that. | 0:14:11 | 0:14:14 | |
Yvonne, you know, she's got some real problems, | 0:14:14 | 0:14:16 | |
but she's saving for a house. | 0:14:16 | 0:14:19 | |
Does it help to actually have a goal in mind | 0:14:19 | 0:14:21 | |
when you're trying to save money? | 0:14:21 | 0:14:23 | |
I think it's a huge help to have a goal, whatever it is you're doing. | 0:14:23 | 0:14:26 | |
So, whether you are saving for a deposit for a house, | 0:14:26 | 0:14:29 | |
or trying to become debt-free, I think | 0:14:29 | 0:14:31 | |
it's really important to focus on what that means for you. | 0:14:31 | 0:14:34 | |
So, what will having a house mean for you? | 0:14:34 | 0:14:36 | |
How will it transform your life? | 0:14:36 | 0:14:38 | |
What will being debt-free mean to you? | 0:14:38 | 0:14:40 | |
The goal is the real motivator, | 0:14:40 | 0:14:42 | |
and that's the thing that will keep you on track. | 0:14:42 | 0:14:44 | |
Now, Kelly, you perform what I can only describe as a miracle, | 0:14:44 | 0:14:48 | |
because you manage to feed your family for the entire week for £20. | 0:14:48 | 0:14:53 | |
And you're going to really quite high-end supermarkets too. | 0:14:53 | 0:14:56 | |
Basically, it's all about time and being organised. | 0:14:56 | 0:14:59 | |
Going in to the supermarkets at the right time. | 0:14:59 | 0:15:01 | |
I tend to go to the reduced aisles. They have a specific reduced bench. | 0:15:01 | 0:15:05 | |
I'll always pick up the high-end meats, the steaks, the fish, | 0:15:05 | 0:15:09 | |
the salmon, so we always have a really good high quality meal. | 0:15:09 | 0:15:12 | |
If I didn't buy the reduced product, | 0:15:12 | 0:15:14 | |
it would cost me an absolute fortune | 0:15:14 | 0:15:15 | |
and I wouldn't be able to do it | 0:15:15 | 0:15:17 | |
because I don't have a luxury budget. | 0:15:17 | 0:15:19 | |
When is the best time to get all those bargains? | 0:15:19 | 0:15:21 | |
A really good rule of thumb is | 0:15:21 | 0:15:22 | |
if you go in and you speak to a friendly-looking member of staff, | 0:15:22 | 0:15:25 | |
they'll always tell you when the reduction times are. | 0:15:25 | 0:15:28 | |
Presumably, though, it's been reduced because it has a very | 0:15:28 | 0:15:30 | |
short shelf life, otherwise, why would they reduce it? | 0:15:30 | 0:15:32 | |
Basically, sell-by-date means when they are supposed to sell it by. | 0:15:32 | 0:15:35 | |
Use-by-date is the one you're supposed to watch. | 0:15:35 | 0:15:38 | |
If something doesn't smell right or doesn't look right, bin it. | 0:15:38 | 0:15:41 | |
-So what kind of savings are you making? -Oh, my gosh. | 0:15:41 | 0:15:43 | |
Over the last four or five years, | 0:15:43 | 0:15:45 | |
I'd worked out around about £18,000. | 0:15:45 | 0:15:47 | |
-Wow. -Which is a hell of a lot because | 0:15:47 | 0:15:49 | |
previously, for my two children and myself, | 0:15:49 | 0:15:51 | |
I would have spent something in the region of £90 or £120 | 0:15:51 | 0:15:54 | |
a week, and the majority of that was convenience foods. | 0:15:54 | 0:15:58 | |
Give us some Kelly's tips. | 0:15:58 | 0:15:59 | |
Ooh, well, I've got a really good website. | 0:15:59 | 0:16:02 | |
If you go on there, I've got all my reduction times | 0:16:02 | 0:16:04 | |
in the different supermarkets | 0:16:04 | 0:16:05 | |
and hints and tips and different things on there to help you | 0:16:05 | 0:16:08 | |
-on that journey to saving money. -Tell me now. I want to know now. | 0:16:08 | 0:16:10 | |
Oh, one of the main tips is to go in with an open mind. | 0:16:10 | 0:16:13 | |
So don't go in there thinking you want to make spaghetti bolognese | 0:16:13 | 0:16:15 | |
that night. Go in, see what they've got, and work with that. | 0:16:15 | 0:16:18 | |
Recently, I bought corn-fed organic chicken. It was £18. | 0:16:18 | 0:16:22 | |
Who would pay this? I just don't know. £2.20, I picked it up for. | 0:16:22 | 0:16:26 | |
Three meals out of that, so that was fantastic. | 0:16:26 | 0:16:28 | |
I paid £1.55 for two sea bass. | 0:16:28 | 0:16:31 | |
Had some left over rice from the weekend. | 0:16:31 | 0:16:33 | |
I jazzed it up a bit with a bit of chorizo, | 0:16:33 | 0:16:34 | |
some different herbs, some tomatoes, | 0:16:34 | 0:16:36 | |
popped it in, stuffed sea bass, less than a pound per person. | 0:16:36 | 0:16:39 | |
Are you taking all this in, Sarah? | 0:16:39 | 0:16:41 | |
Every single word. Really good tips. | 0:16:41 | 0:16:42 | |
Yeah? You're going to be following some of this, | 0:16:42 | 0:16:44 | |
-I think, aren't you? -Absolutely. | 0:16:44 | 0:16:46 | |
I mean, I do think, before you go anywhere near a supermarket, | 0:16:46 | 0:16:48 | |
you should check your own cupboards. That's my first tip. | 0:16:48 | 0:16:51 | |
Because, otherwise, you end up buying stuff you already have. | 0:16:51 | 0:16:53 | |
And if you've got things like vegetables that are looking | 0:16:53 | 0:16:56 | |
a little bit tired, a bit more mature than maybe | 0:16:56 | 0:16:58 | |
they should be, chuck them in a stew or a soup. | 0:16:58 | 0:17:00 | |
Put it in the freezer if you can't eat it now. | 0:17:00 | 0:17:02 | |
That way, your money will go further. | 0:17:02 | 0:17:04 | |
Thank you very much, ladies. | 0:17:04 | 0:17:05 | |
Now, my old mum used to say that loyalty always pays. | 0:17:05 | 0:17:09 | |
But, unfortunately, when it comes to big companies, | 0:17:09 | 0:17:11 | |
too often that isn't the case. In fact, the opposite can be true. | 0:17:11 | 0:17:15 | |
It's something that drives personal finance expert Richard Fenton mad. | 0:17:15 | 0:17:20 | |
So, here's his guide to stop you losing out. | 0:17:20 | 0:17:22 | |
So this really has to be one of my absolute biggest bugbears. | 0:17:25 | 0:17:29 | |
The way that too often, | 0:17:29 | 0:17:30 | |
big companies take your loyalty for granted. | 0:17:30 | 0:17:32 | |
And for my money, it's especially the case with insurance companies. | 0:17:32 | 0:17:36 | |
They make it sound like they're doing you a favour when they write | 0:17:36 | 0:17:39 | |
to you offering to automatically renew your policy for another year. | 0:17:39 | 0:17:43 | |
But they're not. | 0:17:43 | 0:17:44 | |
So that renewal letter comes through the door. | 0:17:47 | 0:17:49 | |
So helpful, I'd forgotten the home insurance was about to run out. | 0:17:49 | 0:17:52 | |
So what do I do? | 0:17:52 | 0:17:54 | |
The sensible thing to do would be to look and see | 0:17:54 | 0:17:56 | |
if the cost of the policy has gone up. | 0:17:56 | 0:17:58 | |
And in most cases, it probably has. | 0:17:58 | 0:18:00 | |
Not that this increase has always been made clear. | 0:18:02 | 0:18:04 | |
They'll typically tell you the new rate, but not the old one. | 0:18:04 | 0:18:08 | |
And they'll say, "Don't worry. You don't need to do a thing." | 0:18:08 | 0:18:11 | |
Of course, they don't want you to do a thing | 0:18:11 | 0:18:13 | |
because if you check what you paid last year, | 0:18:13 | 0:18:15 | |
you'd see that your car or home premiums have most likely rocketed, | 0:18:15 | 0:18:19 | |
sometimes by as much as a quarter. | 0:18:19 | 0:18:22 | |
These kinds of auto-renewals | 0:18:22 | 0:18:23 | |
cost the average householder almost £200 a year, | 0:18:23 | 0:18:27 | |
and the real sting in the tail is that the company you've | 0:18:27 | 0:18:30 | |
stuck with may well be charging you up to four times as much | 0:18:30 | 0:18:33 | |
as a new customer would pay for the same policy. | 0:18:33 | 0:18:36 | |
And it's all down to marketing. | 0:18:37 | 0:18:39 | |
New customers get a better deal to entice them over. So shop around. | 0:18:39 | 0:18:43 | |
And then YOU become the new customer | 0:18:43 | 0:18:45 | |
and you're the one that's being enticed. | 0:18:45 | 0:18:47 | |
Car insurance is the classic example. | 0:18:47 | 0:18:50 | |
6 million cars have their cover renewed automatically | 0:18:50 | 0:18:54 | |
every year without their owners checking a single other quote to see | 0:18:54 | 0:18:57 | |
if they can find a better deal. | 0:18:57 | 0:18:59 | |
And that means motorists could be losing out | 0:18:59 | 0:19:01 | |
by as much as £1.2 billion a year. | 0:19:01 | 0:19:05 | |
But if you haggle, it's a whole different story, my friends. | 0:19:06 | 0:19:11 | |
Only the other day, I had one chap come to me | 0:19:11 | 0:19:13 | |
and he'd managed to save himself £100 on his breakdown cover | 0:19:13 | 0:19:17 | |
just through one simple call and a little bit of haggling. | 0:19:17 | 0:19:21 | |
The good news is that challenging rising renewal quotes | 0:19:21 | 0:19:24 | |
is about to get a whole lot easier as insurers are being told | 0:19:24 | 0:19:27 | |
they should now show the previous year's price alongside the new one, | 0:19:27 | 0:19:32 | |
giving customers the choice to cancel. | 0:19:32 | 0:19:34 | |
But that's not enough for Kalpana Fitzpatrick. | 0:19:34 | 0:19:37 | |
She writes an online blog about saving money. | 0:19:37 | 0:19:40 | |
And she believes that companies should be much | 0:19:40 | 0:19:42 | |
clearer on what we are signing up to right from the off. | 0:19:42 | 0:19:46 | |
-So how widespread is this? -It's everywhere, basically. | 0:19:48 | 0:19:51 | |
It's your car insurance, if you're signing up for free trials, | 0:19:51 | 0:19:54 | |
it's gym membership. | 0:19:54 | 0:19:56 | |
Do you think companies are deliberately making it | 0:19:56 | 0:19:58 | |
difficult for people to realise what they're signing up to | 0:19:58 | 0:20:01 | |
and to ultimately get away from it in the end? | 0:20:01 | 0:20:04 | |
I think companies have a moral responsibility | 0:20:04 | 0:20:06 | |
to their consumers here. | 0:20:06 | 0:20:07 | |
If they are going to take a payment out, | 0:20:07 | 0:20:09 | |
they should give them some sort of notice. | 0:20:09 | 0:20:11 | |
But we have had cases where | 0:20:11 | 0:20:13 | |
this hasn't been happening, unfortunately. | 0:20:13 | 0:20:15 | |
And consumers are being caught out and it's putting them | 0:20:15 | 0:20:18 | |
out of pocket of hundreds of pounds here. | 0:20:18 | 0:20:20 | |
Especially when it's insurance policies. | 0:20:20 | 0:20:21 | |
So what advice would you give to consumers to avoid getting | 0:20:21 | 0:20:24 | |
trapped in these auto-renewals? | 0:20:24 | 0:20:26 | |
I think it is up to the consumer here to be proactive | 0:20:26 | 0:20:28 | |
and take responsibility. | 0:20:28 | 0:20:31 | |
Open up your e-mails, open up your mail and see what it's saying | 0:20:31 | 0:20:34 | |
because sometimes people don't realise that these | 0:20:34 | 0:20:36 | |
payments are coming out of their account. And as soon as you put your | 0:20:36 | 0:20:39 | |
bank details in, that's when you're in that danger zone, I'd say. | 0:20:39 | 0:20:42 | |
That's when the alarm bells start ringing. | 0:20:42 | 0:20:44 | |
Absolutely, absolutely, yes. | 0:20:44 | 0:20:45 | |
Once the money comes out, it's really hard to get it back. | 0:20:45 | 0:20:48 | |
So what have we all learnt? | 0:20:48 | 0:20:50 | |
Don't rely on companies to manage your finances for you. | 0:20:50 | 0:20:53 | |
Do your research. Check your e-mails. Haggle. | 0:20:53 | 0:20:58 | |
And take responsibility for your own renewals. | 0:20:58 | 0:21:00 | |
I'm with James Daley | 0:21:03 | 0:21:04 | |
who campaigns on behalf of the consumer for shorter | 0:21:04 | 0:21:07 | |
and fairer Ts and Cs. | 0:21:07 | 0:21:09 | |
James, there are stories in the paper, particularly the | 0:21:09 | 0:21:12 | |
older generation now who are letting these auto-renewals just | 0:21:12 | 0:21:15 | |
go on and on and on and they're actually wasting | 0:21:15 | 0:21:17 | |
hundreds of pounds a year. | 0:21:17 | 0:21:18 | |
Well, yes, and unsurprisingly, that's caught the attention of | 0:21:18 | 0:21:21 | |
the regulator who's starting to take the view | 0:21:21 | 0:21:23 | |
that it could be exploitation and | 0:21:23 | 0:21:25 | |
insurers are really under pressure to be a bit fairer with | 0:21:25 | 0:21:27 | |
customers, and at the very least, write to them | 0:21:27 | 0:21:29 | |
and get in touch with them if they've been with them for years | 0:21:29 | 0:21:32 | |
and say, "Hey, you've been with us five years, ten years, | 0:21:32 | 0:21:34 | |
"you could be paying way too much for your insurance." | 0:21:34 | 0:21:37 | |
And that's what you've got to be really careful of. | 0:21:37 | 0:21:39 | |
The only way to make sure you're getting a good deal is to | 0:21:39 | 0:21:41 | |
shop around every year, which is a pain, I know, but you have to do it. | 0:21:41 | 0:21:44 | |
Now, as far as the terms and conditions are concerned, | 0:21:44 | 0:21:47 | |
the stuff that we all hate, you've been looking at them | 0:21:47 | 0:21:49 | |
and there are some real humdingers out there, isn't there? | 0:21:49 | 0:21:52 | |
Oh, I mean, it's an absolute minefield. | 0:21:52 | 0:21:54 | |
Some of them are longer than George Orwell's Animal Farm, | 0:21:54 | 0:21:56 | |
longer than The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe. | 0:21:56 | 0:21:58 | |
We're talking 40,000 words for an insurance policy document and, | 0:21:58 | 0:22:02 | |
of course, they're not even a fraction | 0:22:02 | 0:22:04 | |
as interesting as those novels. | 0:22:04 | 0:22:05 | |
I've brought one long for you today, James, | 0:22:05 | 0:22:07 | |
this is just ten pages of 114-page contract from a UK bank. | 0:22:07 | 0:22:13 | |
Mind your feet. I'll tell you what, it's very lengthy, isn't it? | 0:22:16 | 0:22:20 | |
Well, I know that one. It's actually over 70,000 words long. | 0:22:20 | 0:22:23 | |
It's just unacceptable. There's no excuse for it. | 0:22:23 | 0:22:25 | |
What we want are shorter documents, written in a language that | 0:22:25 | 0:22:29 | |
everybody can understand, and we don't think that's too much to ask. | 0:22:29 | 0:22:32 | |
I totally agree. OK, James, give our viewers some hints and tips. | 0:22:32 | 0:22:36 | |
Well, if you're buying anything, but especially insurance or | 0:22:36 | 0:22:38 | |
banking products, make sure you read any summary documents that they | 0:22:38 | 0:22:42 | |
give you, but don't worry about these 40,000, 70,000-word Ts and Cs. | 0:22:42 | 0:22:46 | |
The legislation, the rules and regulations | 0:22:46 | 0:22:49 | |
make it really clear that anything onerous has to be | 0:22:49 | 0:22:52 | |
made really clear to you before you enter into that agreement with them. | 0:22:52 | 0:22:55 | |
So take some comfort from that, | 0:22:55 | 0:22:57 | |
don't get bogged down in reading all this legal and financial jargon, | 0:22:57 | 0:23:01 | |
but do keep your eyes open whenever you are buying anything | 0:23:01 | 0:23:03 | |
because there's often some sneaky things hiding in there to trick you. | 0:23:03 | 0:23:06 | |
I agree. James, I'm going to go and have a chat with some people | 0:23:06 | 0:23:09 | |
in Nottingham. In the meantime, I'm going to give you | 0:23:09 | 0:23:11 | |
a free cardiovascular workout. | 0:23:11 | 0:23:13 | |
-You couldn't roll that up for me, could you? -Right, thank you. | 0:23:13 | 0:23:15 | |
Cheers, buddy. Thanks a lot. | 0:23:15 | 0:23:18 | |
I want to find out, when it comes to contracts, | 0:23:18 | 0:23:20 | |
do the shoppers of Nottingham | 0:23:20 | 0:23:22 | |
actually know what they're signing up to? | 0:23:22 | 0:23:25 | |
When you signed up for your phone contracts, | 0:23:25 | 0:23:27 | |
-did either of you read the Ts and Cs? -No, I didn't, no. -No. | 0:23:27 | 0:23:31 | |
-Why not? -It's just long, innit? -Innit! It takes too long. -It is! | 0:23:31 | 0:23:35 | |
-Well, they are, innit? -Yeah. -Yeah. | 0:23:35 | 0:23:38 | |
Did you read the small print? | 0:23:38 | 0:23:39 | |
-No. -You didn't read the Ts and Cs at all? -Not at all, no. | 0:23:39 | 0:23:42 | |
-Tell me why not. -It's just too long, isn't it? | 0:23:42 | 0:23:44 | |
It takes time and you just want to sign it and get it done. | 0:23:44 | 0:23:47 | |
People rarely have time to go through the entire document. | 0:23:47 | 0:23:51 | |
I don't. | 0:23:51 | 0:23:52 | |
-I only go to it when I need to make a claim or anything like that. -Yeah. | 0:23:52 | 0:23:56 | |
What about auto-renewal? | 0:23:56 | 0:23:58 | |
Would you know what I'm talking about when I say that? | 0:23:58 | 0:24:00 | |
-That's what I do, actually. -You are on auto-renew? -Yeah. | 0:24:00 | 0:24:04 | |
Every year, I don't have to worry about it. They just take it out. | 0:24:04 | 0:24:06 | |
Do you know, Colin, | 0:24:06 | 0:24:08 | |
you really need to get one of our money makeover experts round to sort | 0:24:08 | 0:24:11 | |
you out because we could probably save you an absolute fortune. | 0:24:11 | 0:24:14 | |
Do you ever do auto-renew? | 0:24:14 | 0:24:16 | |
-No. -Why is that? | 0:24:17 | 0:24:19 | |
12 months seems like a nice period to review it | 0:24:19 | 0:24:21 | |
and look at it and see if I can save any money. | 0:24:21 | 0:24:22 | |
I'm hoping you're going to give me the right answer now. | 0:24:22 | 0:24:25 | |
When you pay for your policy, | 0:24:25 | 0:24:26 | |
do you pay for it in one lump sum or do you pay monthly? | 0:24:26 | 0:24:29 | |
-No, no, monthly. -Oh, no! That was the wrong answer, Colin. | 0:24:29 | 0:24:32 | |
HE LAUGHS Can I be rude and shake you? | 0:24:32 | 0:24:35 | |
You've got to start shopping around. | 0:24:35 | 0:24:37 | |
Do you do auto-renewal with your car insurance? | 0:24:37 | 0:24:41 | |
Um, no. But I have been with the same company for about five years. | 0:24:41 | 0:24:45 | |
And whenever they send me the renewal, | 0:24:45 | 0:24:47 | |
I ring them up and tell I'm going to cancel, cancel, cancel. | 0:24:47 | 0:24:51 | |
They tell me how important I am and then they lower the price. | 0:24:51 | 0:24:54 | |
It would be advisable for you to phone around, | 0:24:54 | 0:24:56 | |
even have a little bargain with the company, | 0:24:56 | 0:24:58 | |
see if you can get that down, | 0:24:58 | 0:24:59 | |
and if you can afford it, pay it in one lump some. | 0:24:59 | 0:25:02 | |
Don't start paying these silly interest charges that they | 0:25:02 | 0:25:04 | |
-put on top. -I didn't know that. | 0:25:04 | 0:25:05 | |
And if you had a message for all the financial institutions, | 0:25:05 | 0:25:08 | |
the banks, the gyms, everybody about these lengthy | 0:25:08 | 0:25:11 | |
Ts and Cs, what would it be? | 0:25:11 | 0:25:13 | |
We're supporting you, we're bringing | 0:25:13 | 0:25:14 | |
money into your business, stop treating us like idiots. | 0:25:14 | 0:25:17 | |
-Couldn't have said it better myself. -Thank you. -And there you have it. | 0:25:17 | 0:25:21 | |
Not one person I've met today likes long and wordy Ts and Cs. | 0:25:21 | 0:25:25 | |
So, come on, keep them simple. | 0:25:25 | 0:25:27 | |
Now, do you dream of taking early retirement? I know I certainly do. | 0:25:30 | 0:25:34 | |
Well, sadly for many, it seems that dream will never come true. | 0:25:34 | 0:25:38 | |
A recent report suggested that today's youngsters may have | 0:25:38 | 0:25:41 | |
to work into their 80s before they can afford to retire. | 0:25:41 | 0:25:45 | |
But it seems some of you are desperate to give up work | 0:25:45 | 0:25:48 | |
long before then. | 0:25:48 | 0:25:50 | |
-50. I think 50 is a good age to retire. -Yeah. | 0:25:53 | 0:25:57 | |
I don't know, you'd be bored, though. He would be bored. | 0:25:57 | 0:26:00 | |
He's saying 50 now, but he's a workaholic. He'd be bored. | 0:26:00 | 0:26:03 | |
I'm a single mum, | 0:26:03 | 0:26:05 | |
and have been for the last 13 years, | 0:26:05 | 0:26:06 | |
so obviously I've got to think about when I'm old and grey. | 0:26:06 | 0:26:10 | |
Hopefully, he might keep me, but I can't guarantee on him. | 0:26:10 | 0:26:14 | |
So I've had to start putting money away. | 0:26:14 | 0:26:17 | |
A pension? I couldn't tell you. I don't have a clue about a pension. | 0:26:17 | 0:26:21 | |
Because I'm actually totally anti-pensions. | 0:26:21 | 0:26:24 | |
I do try and plan for the future, | 0:26:24 | 0:26:26 | |
but I wouldn't say pensions is something on my mind just yet, no. | 0:26:26 | 0:26:30 | |
Myself? Set up a few more online businesses | 0:26:30 | 0:26:32 | |
and just carry on doing that. | 0:26:32 | 0:26:34 | |
I don't think the state pension is enough anyway, | 0:26:34 | 0:26:36 | |
so I think people do have to save up themselves, really. | 0:26:36 | 0:26:39 | |
Now, if you want to buy something special, you usually | 0:26:43 | 0:26:46 | |
either save up for it or maybe pay for it using a credit card or loan. | 0:26:46 | 0:26:49 | |
However, a growing number of people are asking others | 0:26:49 | 0:26:52 | |
to pay for the things that they want. | 0:26:52 | 0:26:55 | |
Joining me now are Olivia and Kasha who do just that. | 0:26:55 | 0:26:58 | |
Now, Olivia, you run a website that helps people organise | 0:26:58 | 0:27:02 | |
-something known as crowdfunding. -Yes. | 0:27:02 | 0:27:04 | |
Crowdfunding is quite a new term. | 0:27:04 | 0:27:06 | |
We've probably started to hear it in the last sort of two or three, | 0:27:06 | 0:27:09 | |
four years. But actually it's not new. | 0:27:09 | 0:27:11 | |
If you think about being in the church on a Sunday morning | 0:27:11 | 0:27:14 | |
when the vicar comes round and everybody puts a few | 0:27:14 | 0:27:17 | |
quid into a plate to fix the church roof, you are crowdfunding. | 0:27:17 | 0:27:21 | |
There are websites that allow you to crowd fund for a creative project. | 0:27:21 | 0:27:24 | |
If you're a band, and you want to release an album and you | 0:27:24 | 0:27:26 | |
can't get onto a label, you can ask the wider community to support you. | 0:27:26 | 0:27:30 | |
If you want to start a business, people can crowdfund that | 0:27:30 | 0:27:33 | |
and they may get some kind of return. | 0:27:33 | 0:27:34 | |
They may get a bit of equity in that business. | 0:27:34 | 0:27:37 | |
And we heard a student from Ghana who wanted to study in the UK | 0:27:37 | 0:27:41 | |
crowdfunding his tuition, his fees here in the UK. | 0:27:41 | 0:27:45 | |
So you do hear those stories. | 0:27:45 | 0:27:46 | |
And our website, Patchwork, is used for any occasion. | 0:27:46 | 0:27:50 | |
For weddings or birthdays, Christmas | 0:27:50 | 0:27:52 | |
to collectively buy a gift for somebody that they want | 0:27:52 | 0:27:55 | |
rather than surprising them with 25 things that they don't. | 0:27:55 | 0:27:58 | |
And, Kasha, what's your experience and how did you get involved? | 0:27:58 | 0:28:01 | |
For my son's third birthday, we wanted to take him | 0:28:01 | 0:28:05 | |
to the theatre to see The Lion King, so all the grandparents | 0:28:05 | 0:28:09 | |
and aunts and uncles and friends who wanted to contribute did. | 0:28:09 | 0:28:14 | |
He was at an age where friends still wanted to buy him | 0:28:14 | 0:28:17 | |
something even though he wasn't having a birthday party, | 0:28:17 | 0:28:20 | |
so it worked really well and we had a really wonderful day out. | 0:28:20 | 0:28:23 | |
I don't know if I'm a little bit old-fashioned, | 0:28:23 | 0:28:25 | |
but I'd feel a little bit embarrassed. Some people | 0:28:25 | 0:28:27 | |
might feel just uncomfortable about the whole situation, set up. | 0:28:27 | 0:28:31 | |
Yeah, I know and I wouldn't have been so presumptuous as to send | 0:28:31 | 0:28:35 | |
an invite to a wide group of friends, so I kept it | 0:28:35 | 0:28:39 | |
within a very select group of people, | 0:28:39 | 0:28:42 | |
so it worked for that purpose. | 0:28:42 | 0:28:44 | |
Just chatting to you both, it actually sounds like a really | 0:28:44 | 0:28:47 | |
practical and sensible way to go about doing things, doesn't it? | 0:28:47 | 0:28:51 | |
Yeah, well, I think we're living in quite tough times as well, | 0:28:51 | 0:28:55 | |
and the economy not being great, people are sort of struggling. | 0:28:55 | 0:28:58 | |
So it makes sense to spend the money that we do have collectively | 0:28:58 | 0:29:01 | |
funding things that people really want and need | 0:29:01 | 0:29:03 | |
and not buying each other a load of stuff that ends up in landfill | 0:29:03 | 0:29:06 | |
just because we feel compelled to do it because it's someone's | 0:29:06 | 0:29:09 | |
birthday or because it's Christmas or because it's their wedding. | 0:29:09 | 0:29:12 | |
-Interesting stuff. Thanks, ladies. -Thank you. | 0:29:12 | 0:29:15 | |
Now, earlier on, we met Yvonne who loves to spend on expensive | 0:29:15 | 0:29:18 | |
treats but needs to cut back if she wants to achieve her property dream. | 0:29:18 | 0:29:22 | |
Let's see if we've managed to help her out. | 0:29:22 | 0:29:25 | |
Over the past few years, | 0:29:27 | 0:29:28 | |
devoted mum Yvonne Sinclair has been busy with her hairdressing, | 0:29:28 | 0:29:32 | |
running motivational courses and leading a gospel choir. | 0:29:32 | 0:29:37 | |
Through sheer hard work, she's managed to put her sons on the | 0:29:37 | 0:29:40 | |
property ladder, but that's been at the expense of buying her own home. | 0:29:40 | 0:29:46 | |
I am a single parent, I'm a small-business owner, | 0:29:46 | 0:29:49 | |
how can I buy a house? | 0:29:49 | 0:29:52 | |
You know, I've had debt problems in the past as well, | 0:29:52 | 0:29:56 | |
so how can somebody like me buy a house? | 0:29:56 | 0:29:58 | |
And I just thought it wasn't something that I could do. | 0:29:58 | 0:30:02 | |
Personal finance expert Simon Read has already come up with some | 0:30:02 | 0:30:06 | |
great ways she can save up for a deposit. | 0:30:06 | 0:30:09 | |
For these two car-parking spaces, you could earn... | 0:30:10 | 0:30:12 | |
-£2,000 a year. -Really? | 0:30:12 | 0:30:15 | |
Now Simon's back | 0:30:15 | 0:30:17 | |
and he wants to reduce Yvonne's spending on luxury items to | 0:30:17 | 0:30:21 | |
really boost her chances of putting away enough money for a deposit. | 0:30:21 | 0:30:25 | |
Yvonne's cut back on what used to be an almost addictive | 0:30:25 | 0:30:29 | |
spending on shoes, but she's still got around 100 pairs hidden away, | 0:30:29 | 0:30:33 | |
and Simon thinks, on this one, she can turn | 0:30:33 | 0:30:36 | |
a negative into a positive. | 0:30:36 | 0:30:38 | |
So you've got all these shoes. | 0:30:38 | 0:30:40 | |
-You keep them well... -Yes. -..because you care about them. | 0:30:40 | 0:30:43 | |
-Is there an opportunity to sell some of them? -Yes. -Do you sell them? -No. | 0:30:43 | 0:30:48 | |
THEY LAUGH | 0:30:48 | 0:30:50 | |
I give them away. Yeah. I could sell them. | 0:30:50 | 0:30:52 | |
Could you think about that maybe? | 0:30:52 | 0:30:54 | |
You know, through an online auction site or something like that? | 0:30:54 | 0:30:57 | |
That is a really good idea, actually. | 0:30:57 | 0:30:59 | |
Rather than giving them away. | 0:30:59 | 0:31:00 | |
If you could sell 80 pairs of shoes, even if | 0:31:00 | 0:31:03 | |
you only got a tenner per pair, how much money is that? | 0:31:03 | 0:31:06 | |
-Can you do mental arithmetic? -No. | 0:31:06 | 0:31:09 | |
-That would be £800. -£800, yeah. -£800. | 0:31:09 | 0:31:11 | |
-Just from clearing out your wardrobe. -Hm. And clothes. | 0:31:11 | 0:31:15 | |
-I think it's something to think about. -It is. | 0:31:15 | 0:31:17 | |
-It's something to think about. -It is, it is, absolutely, actually. | 0:31:17 | 0:31:20 | |
Now I'm gutted that I just threw some out. | 0:31:20 | 0:31:22 | |
I literally just threw a bag of shoes out. | 0:31:22 | 0:31:25 | |
But there's one pair of boots | 0:31:25 | 0:31:26 | |
that Yvonne won't even dream of chucking away. | 0:31:26 | 0:31:28 | |
These shoes, boots, are very significant to me. | 0:31:30 | 0:31:35 | |
And I actually found these boots a couple of years ago | 0:31:35 | 0:31:38 | |
when I was sorting some of my old shoes out to get rid of them. | 0:31:38 | 0:31:41 | |
And I bought these shoes when I was 15 years old and I had left home. | 0:31:41 | 0:31:47 | |
Some may say I ran away from home, but I left home. | 0:31:47 | 0:31:49 | |
-This was really the start of your journey? -Yeah. | 0:31:49 | 0:31:52 | |
After becoming homeless as a teenager, | 0:31:52 | 0:31:55 | |
Yvonne vowed that one day she'd enjoy the finer things in life. | 0:31:55 | 0:31:59 | |
And now every week, she treats the family to | 0:32:00 | 0:32:03 | |
a bottle of bubbly as a motivation for working their socks off. | 0:32:03 | 0:32:07 | |
If it's been a good week, | 0:32:07 | 0:32:09 | |
she buys premium champagne at almost £35 a pop. | 0:32:09 | 0:32:13 | |
Otherwise, she buys prosecco. | 0:32:13 | 0:32:15 | |
But the big question is, can she tell the difference? | 0:32:15 | 0:32:18 | |
To find out, Simon sets up a taste test challenge, | 0:32:18 | 0:32:22 | |
joined by Yvonne's two sons, Nathan and Leon. | 0:32:22 | 0:32:25 | |
What we are going to ask you to do is try | 0:32:25 | 0:32:28 | |
and work out which is the cheap one, which is | 0:32:28 | 0:32:30 | |
the cheap £4 cava, which is the expensive £33 champagne. | 0:32:30 | 0:32:34 | |
We've also thrown into the mix a £13 prosecco | 0:32:34 | 0:32:36 | |
and a £12 champagne. | 0:32:36 | 0:32:38 | |
-So, Yvonne, I'd like you to go first. -OK. | 0:32:38 | 0:32:41 | |
If you guys don't mind leaving the room, | 0:32:41 | 0:32:43 | |
we'll call you back in when we're ready. | 0:32:43 | 0:32:44 | |
-And we'll have a bit of fun with this. -OK. | 0:32:44 | 0:32:47 | |
Yvonne gets tasting, | 0:32:47 | 0:32:48 | |
and it looks like she has a clear idea of which is the fanciest fizz. | 0:32:48 | 0:32:52 | |
-Then that way, that means that's that... -Yes. -That's that. | 0:32:53 | 0:32:57 | |
-And that's that. -Are you sure now? | 0:32:57 | 0:32:59 | |
-No, I'm not sure. -HE LAUGHS | 0:32:59 | 0:33:01 | |
-So what I propose to do... -BOTH: -Is taste them all again! | 0:33:01 | 0:33:04 | |
THEY LAUGH | 0:33:04 | 0:33:05 | |
After some more, hm, essential tasting, | 0:33:05 | 0:33:08 | |
-Yvonne sticks to her decision. -That's that... | 0:33:08 | 0:33:10 | |
But before the results are revealed... | 0:33:10 | 0:33:12 | |
-That is definitely champagne. -Ooh. | 0:33:12 | 0:33:14 | |
..her sons have a go. Why not, lads? | 0:33:14 | 0:33:17 | |
Eurgh. | 0:33:17 | 0:33:18 | |
I believe that that one actually tastes | 0:33:18 | 0:33:20 | |
like the most expensive champagne. | 0:33:20 | 0:33:22 | |
-Yes. -It brought back a bit of a memory from when I was 18. -Yes. | 0:33:22 | 0:33:25 | |
-When I had champagne and I didn't last the night. -Yes. | 0:33:25 | 0:33:28 | |
-It was because of that. -And that reminds you of that night? | 0:33:28 | 0:33:30 | |
Yes, it does. | 0:33:30 | 0:33:32 | |
But will the mood fall flat when Simon reveals which fizz is which? | 0:33:32 | 0:33:36 | |
And can any of them tell the difference between the best | 0:33:36 | 0:33:39 | |
and the bargain booze? | 0:33:39 | 0:33:41 | |
Nathan, you didn't get any right. | 0:33:41 | 0:33:43 | |
Didn't think so. | 0:33:43 | 0:33:44 | |
HE LAUGHS | 0:33:44 | 0:33:47 | |
I will tell you, Nathan, the wine which you said was rank | 0:33:47 | 0:33:51 | |
-and awful... -Yeah. -..was the £33 champagne. | 0:33:51 | 0:33:56 | |
The wine which you said, "Oh, this is champagne. | 0:33:56 | 0:34:00 | |
"I remember it from my 18th birthday party. | 0:34:00 | 0:34:02 | |
-"This brings back great memories..." -Did you say that, Nathan? | 0:34:02 | 0:34:06 | |
..was the £4 cava. | 0:34:06 | 0:34:08 | |
THEY LAUGH | 0:34:08 | 0:34:11 | |
-Leon. -Hello. -You got one right. | 0:34:11 | 0:34:15 | |
So I'd say to you as well, stick with the prosecco that you know. | 0:34:15 | 0:34:17 | |
I definitely will. | 0:34:17 | 0:34:18 | |
And now it's the turn of discerning mum Yvonne. | 0:34:18 | 0:34:21 | |
Now, Yvonne, which did you think was the most expensive champagne? | 0:34:21 | 0:34:26 | |
-It was the lighter-coloured one. -You thought it was the prosecco. | 0:34:26 | 0:34:30 | |
The prosecco was the one that you thought was your favourite. | 0:34:30 | 0:34:33 | |
So maybe there's a lesson there. | 0:34:33 | 0:34:35 | |
If you switch to this brand, rather than that one, | 0:34:35 | 0:34:37 | |
-you're saving £20 a bottle. -Well. | 0:34:37 | 0:34:39 | |
And by the sound of it, you can enjoy it just as much. Yeah. | 0:34:39 | 0:34:42 | |
Stick to the prosecco, Mum, | 0:34:42 | 0:34:43 | |
it's going to be better for everyone. | 0:34:43 | 0:34:45 | |
If you were to switch your habit from buying the expensive champagne | 0:34:45 | 0:34:48 | |
to the cheaper prosecco every week, | 0:34:48 | 0:34:51 | |
do you know how much you'd save in a year? | 0:34:51 | 0:34:52 | |
-How much would I save in a year? -About £1,000. -Really? | 0:34:52 | 0:34:55 | |
Yes, really, Yvonne. | 0:34:55 | 0:34:58 | |
By switching to prosecco, which you seem to actually prefer, | 0:34:58 | 0:35:01 | |
you'll still get the bubbles | 0:35:01 | 0:35:03 | |
but save £1,000 a year. | 0:35:03 | 0:35:05 | |
I'll drink to that! | 0:35:05 | 0:35:06 | |
-That's delicious. -No! | 0:35:06 | 0:35:09 | |
THEY LAUGH | 0:35:09 | 0:35:12 | |
But Simon wants to keep those savings rolling in. | 0:35:12 | 0:35:14 | |
So he hitches a ride with Yvonne in her car. | 0:35:14 | 0:35:17 | |
Because she clocks up lots of miles every year, Yvonne needs | 0:35:17 | 0:35:21 | |
a reliable motor, and up to now, she's been leasing her wheels. | 0:35:21 | 0:35:26 | |
But her contract is coming up for renewal and | 0:35:26 | 0:35:28 | |
if she wants to keep the car she's got, it will cost her £323 a month. | 0:35:28 | 0:35:34 | |
And I guess it's... You've got a nice car, that's the going price. | 0:35:35 | 0:35:38 | |
-I reckon we can save you money, though. -Do you? | 0:35:38 | 0:35:42 | |
I think we can go to a dealer, get you a deal, so it will be cheaper | 0:35:42 | 0:35:46 | |
in that, and a different car that you're going to fall in love with. | 0:35:46 | 0:35:50 | |
-But can Yvonne give up her beloved Beemer? -Hey, Paul. Nice to see you. | 0:35:50 | 0:35:54 | |
Hopefully, dealer Paul will be able to show her a new | 0:35:54 | 0:35:57 | |
set of wheels at a cheaper price. | 0:35:57 | 0:35:59 | |
I'm looking for something around the same price range as I'm paying now. | 0:35:59 | 0:36:04 | |
Something sturdy, a bit racy, | 0:36:04 | 0:36:07 | |
-something that will look nice as well. -Fantastic. | 0:36:07 | 0:36:11 | |
-You've got something in mind? -Definitely. | 0:36:11 | 0:36:12 | |
I'm going to leave you in Paul's hands, but remember, | 0:36:12 | 0:36:15 | |
don't just get dazzled by the car. | 0:36:15 | 0:36:16 | |
Think about the cost and the price and how much you're going to pay. | 0:36:16 | 0:36:19 | |
-OK, definitely. -And negotiate hard. -Oh, definitely. -Good luck. | 0:36:19 | 0:36:23 | |
-Come this way. -OK, thank you. | 0:36:23 | 0:36:25 | |
And it took all of 1.2 seconds for Yvonne to fall in love. | 0:36:25 | 0:36:30 | |
Yeah, I really like this. | 0:36:30 | 0:36:31 | |
I like the look and the fact that it is convertible. | 0:36:31 | 0:36:34 | |
And she hits the road for a test drive. | 0:36:34 | 0:36:36 | |
SHE LAUGHS | 0:36:38 | 0:36:40 | |
If Yvonne was to swap her current car for this new one, | 0:36:42 | 0:36:45 | |
she would save herself £58 a month, which means a | 0:36:45 | 0:36:49 | |
£2,784 saving over the four-year | 0:36:49 | 0:36:52 | |
lease term. You see? | 0:36:52 | 0:36:54 | |
It really pays off to shop around. | 0:36:54 | 0:36:57 | |
Well, I think you need to go away and think about these figures. | 0:36:57 | 0:37:00 | |
-To my mind, it sounds like a great deal but... -Yeah. | 0:37:00 | 0:37:03 | |
I mean, I'd always look through the figures | 0:37:03 | 0:37:05 | |
and read the fine print first. | 0:37:05 | 0:37:08 | |
But it does, um... | 0:37:08 | 0:37:09 | |
-On paper, it's a good deal, I think. -Yeah. | 0:37:10 | 0:37:13 | |
You'd be right to check because, | 0:37:13 | 0:37:15 | |
while leasing a car makes sense for Yvonne, it isn't always going | 0:37:15 | 0:37:18 | |
to work out the most cost-effective way of getting a car. | 0:37:18 | 0:37:21 | |
So check those terms and conditions before you commit. | 0:37:21 | 0:37:25 | |
Well, Simon's saved Yvonne loads of cash so far, and she's hoping | 0:37:25 | 0:37:30 | |
to put it towards a deposit so she can buy the council house she rents. | 0:37:30 | 0:37:34 | |
But Yvonne is self-employed | 0:37:34 | 0:37:36 | |
and she's afraid she might not be given a mortgage. | 0:37:36 | 0:37:39 | |
So as a parting gift, | 0:37:39 | 0:37:41 | |
Simon's invited along mortgage adviser David Hollingworth. | 0:37:41 | 0:37:45 | |
If I was to say about chances, what do you think, knowing everything you | 0:37:46 | 0:37:51 | |
know about me now, what do you think my chances are of buying a property? | 0:37:51 | 0:37:55 | |
Well, I think it's get that track record of your income, | 0:37:55 | 0:37:58 | |
that will give you the real pathway to success in buying this house. | 0:37:58 | 0:38:03 | |
That's great news. | 0:38:03 | 0:38:05 | |
David thinks that being self-employed won't stop Yvonne's | 0:38:05 | 0:38:08 | |
dreams of buying her house. | 0:38:08 | 0:38:10 | |
But there's a deposit to stump up first. | 0:38:10 | 0:38:13 | |
Let's see how much Yvonne could squirrel away | 0:38:13 | 0:38:15 | |
if she follows all of Simon's advice. | 0:38:15 | 0:38:18 | |
Renting out her car parking spaces, | 0:38:18 | 0:38:20 | |
swapping the local cafe | 0:38:20 | 0:38:21 | |
for the local library | 0:38:21 | 0:38:23 | |
and transferring her motivational speech business there, plus | 0:38:23 | 0:38:27 | |
swapping champagne for prosecco and | 0:38:27 | 0:38:29 | |
halving her takeaway spending | 0:38:29 | 0:38:31 | |
would free up a total of £5,200. | 0:38:31 | 0:38:35 | |
And if she signs up for a new car lease, | 0:38:35 | 0:38:37 | |
that would be an extra £2,784 over the next four years. | 0:38:37 | 0:38:43 | |
That should make the bank manager happy. | 0:38:43 | 0:38:45 | |
As well as our Yvonne, of course. | 0:38:45 | 0:38:48 | |
Simon has given me a lot of encouragement, | 0:38:48 | 0:38:51 | |
and I think for me, that's a key thing. | 0:38:51 | 0:38:53 | |
I'm a single parent, so being able to afford a mortgage on my own | 0:38:53 | 0:38:58 | |
is really, really important, and he's given me some good tips. | 0:38:58 | 0:39:01 | |
So I will be using them to increase my income | 0:39:01 | 0:39:03 | |
and also increase my savings as well. | 0:39:03 | 0:39:06 | |
And Yvonne is here along with Sarah Pennels. | 0:39:10 | 0:39:13 | |
Now, Yvonne, it's great to see you. | 0:39:13 | 0:39:15 | |
I know you're a lady that likes the finer things in life, so how are | 0:39:15 | 0:39:17 | |
you feeling now that Simon's been to look at your finances? | 0:39:17 | 0:39:21 | |
Yeah, I'm feeling great. | 0:39:21 | 0:39:22 | |
He gave me some really good tips, so I'm utilising those | 0:39:22 | 0:39:25 | |
and things are beginning to change already. | 0:39:25 | 0:39:28 | |
So, yeah, I'm really happy with that. | 0:39:28 | 0:39:29 | |
Sarah, cutting back on those little luxuries, things which, | 0:39:29 | 0:39:32 | |
you know, a lot of people have got into bad habits with, | 0:39:32 | 0:39:35 | |
can be quite a tough thing for some people to do, can't it? | 0:39:35 | 0:39:38 | |
I think the key word there is habit cos it doesn't matter | 0:39:38 | 0:39:41 | |
what it is that you consider as a luxury, | 0:39:41 | 0:39:43 | |
once you've got used to that, it is something that you just think, | 0:39:43 | 0:39:46 | |
"Well, this is what I do. | 0:39:46 | 0:39:47 | |
"Once a week, I'll maybe have a drink with friends," whatever it is. | 0:39:47 | 0:39:51 | |
And as you say, breaking any kind of habit can be difficult, | 0:39:51 | 0:39:54 | |
but if you've got a really good motivation to do it, | 0:39:54 | 0:39:57 | |
then that habit actually can be changed. | 0:39:57 | 0:39:59 | |
Yvonne, talk to me about that champagne tasting experience, | 0:39:59 | 0:40:02 | |
because I think a lot of people will be surprised by the results. | 0:40:02 | 0:40:05 | |
Oh, definitely. | 0:40:05 | 0:40:07 | |
The perception is that champagne is of higher quality, | 0:40:07 | 0:40:10 | |
tastes better, but actually when it came down to the tasting, | 0:40:10 | 0:40:14 | |
the prosecco won by leaps and bounds. | 0:40:14 | 0:40:17 | |
So for me, it's prosecco all the way now. | 0:40:17 | 0:40:20 | |
-So, yeah, I'll save myself a penny or two. -We like the sound of that. | 0:40:20 | 0:40:23 | |
-Still having as much fun and saving money at the same time. -Absolutely. | 0:40:23 | 0:40:27 | |
Yvonne, you are on the right path now. | 0:40:27 | 0:40:30 | |
Well, for me, the experience was, "You can do it." | 0:40:30 | 0:40:34 | |
And it's given me now a lot of inspiration cos | 0:40:34 | 0:40:37 | |
I didn't believe that I could because of my age | 0:40:37 | 0:40:40 | |
and because I'm self-employed, but Simon coming has given me | 0:40:40 | 0:40:43 | |
an assurance that it's possible. | 0:40:43 | 0:40:45 | |
I've always wanted to own my own property, | 0:40:45 | 0:40:48 | |
but I had limiting beliefs about myself. | 0:40:48 | 0:40:50 | |
But, you know, as I tell people about their goals and their dreams, | 0:40:50 | 0:40:53 | |
I thought, "Well, how can I be telling other people | 0:40:53 | 0:40:56 | |
"and not actually utilising what I'm telling them for myself?" | 0:40:56 | 0:40:59 | |
And I believe that I can own my home, so it's going to happen. | 0:40:59 | 0:41:03 | |
And what do your sons, your big boys, think of you | 0:41:03 | 0:41:07 | |
and how you've changed your life? | 0:41:07 | 0:41:10 | |
To see that Mum's doing it, for them, it's such an achievement. | 0:41:10 | 0:41:13 | |
They're just proud of me | 0:41:13 | 0:41:15 | |
and I'm really, really... I'm getting really emotional. | 0:41:15 | 0:41:17 | |
-Your welling up, aren't you? -Yeah, I am. | 0:41:17 | 0:41:20 | |
You know, I'm proud of them and they're proud of me, | 0:41:20 | 0:41:23 | |
and it's just how we are. We ride and die together. | 0:41:23 | 0:41:26 | |
You know, that's how we are as a family so... | 0:41:26 | 0:41:28 | |
That's just great. Well done, Yvonne. | 0:41:28 | 0:41:31 | |
Now, if like Yvonne, you'd like a little nudge in sorting | 0:41:31 | 0:41:34 | |
out your finances, then e-mail us at... | 0:41:34 | 0:41:36 | |
And we can't promise our experts | 0:41:39 | 0:41:41 | |
will be able to come and help everyone, | 0:41:41 | 0:41:42 | |
but on our website, we do have lots of tips and budgeting advice. | 0:41:42 | 0:41:46 | |
Our website has everything you need to sort out your spending. | 0:41:48 | 0:41:53 | |
We've teamed up with the Money Advice Service | 0:41:53 | 0:41:55 | |
to bring you easy-to-use money-saving tools | 0:41:55 | 0:41:58 | |
to plan your budget, | 0:41:58 | 0:41:59 | |
calculate the cost of your car or credit cards | 0:41:59 | 0:42:02 | |
and give your money a complete health check. | 0:42:02 | 0:42:05 | |
Download them at... | 0:42:05 | 0:42:06 | |
..where you can also take our interactive spending test. | 0:42:10 | 0:42:13 | |
And you'll find plenty more tips | 0:42:13 | 0:42:15 | |
and advice to keep your finances on track. | 0:42:15 | 0:42:17 | |
Well, Sarah's still with us | 0:42:21 | 0:42:22 | |
and we've got some questions for you from people we've met today. | 0:42:22 | 0:42:25 | |
Yeah, and first up, it's Eric | 0:42:25 | 0:42:27 | |
and he says he's been recently refused a car loan and wants | 0:42:27 | 0:42:30 | |
to know whether his partner's bad credit history could be to blame. | 0:42:30 | 0:42:33 | |
Well, first of all, all adults in the UK have a credit file. | 0:42:33 | 0:42:37 | |
Now, these credit files only get linked | 0:42:37 | 0:42:39 | |
if you have joint credit with somebody else. | 0:42:39 | 0:42:42 | |
So if Eric has got a joint mortgage or joint bank account | 0:42:42 | 0:42:46 | |
with his partner, then it will have an effect on his credit rating, | 0:42:46 | 0:42:49 | |
even if he applies for something like a car loan just in his name. | 0:42:49 | 0:42:52 | |
Many people think it only affects you | 0:42:52 | 0:42:54 | |
if you apply for credit with somebody who's got that bad rating. | 0:42:54 | 0:42:57 | |
So I think he should check his credit file, | 0:42:57 | 0:42:59 | |
see what's on there. If his partner has got a bad rating, then | 0:42:59 | 0:43:03 | |
that will affect him and it could affect him for some time to come. | 0:43:03 | 0:43:06 | |
-Could be expensive, couldn't it? -Certainly could. | 0:43:06 | 0:43:08 | |
Now, Janine says, "I've bought an expensive vacuum cleaner | 0:43:08 | 0:43:10 | |
"from a shop that's now gone out of business. | 0:43:10 | 0:43:13 | |
"It's stopped working. Can I get a refund?" | 0:43:13 | 0:43:16 | |
In this case, if the shop's actually gone bust and has completely | 0:43:16 | 0:43:19 | |
stopped trading, then they don't have any liability any more. | 0:43:19 | 0:43:22 | |
I would suggest, if it's still within the warranty period, | 0:43:22 | 0:43:25 | |
to go back to the manufacturer, and actually, even if | 0:43:25 | 0:43:27 | |
it's outside the warranty, because in a situation like this, | 0:43:27 | 0:43:30 | |
some manufacturers will go the extra mile. | 0:43:30 | 0:43:32 | |
OK, thank you. And Ada. She's going on holiday to Spain. | 0:43:32 | 0:43:36 | |
Take me with you, Ada! | 0:43:36 | 0:43:37 | |
And she wants to know how she can avoid racking up | 0:43:37 | 0:43:40 | |
big mobile phone bills. | 0:43:40 | 0:43:42 | |
Well, there is good news | 0:43:42 | 0:43:44 | |
if you're going on holiday anywhere in the European Union | 0:43:44 | 0:43:46 | |
because there are strict limits on how much the mobile phone | 0:43:46 | 0:43:49 | |
providers can charge. And those came down just a few months ago. | 0:43:49 | 0:43:52 | |
And also there's a cap of 50 euros, which is about £35, on the | 0:43:52 | 0:43:56 | |
maximum amount that you can be charged while you're on holiday. | 0:43:56 | 0:43:59 | |
Now, there is a bit of a catch | 0:43:59 | 0:44:00 | |
which is that you can opt out of this cap, | 0:44:00 | 0:44:03 | |
so make sure that you don't do that before you go away. | 0:44:03 | 0:44:06 | |
You can also buy extra data bundles which are often quite | 0:44:06 | 0:44:09 | |
good value if you know roughly how much you might | 0:44:09 | 0:44:11 | |
use your phone for either browsing or making calls while you're away. | 0:44:11 | 0:44:15 | |
I think, generally speaking, some good advice is | 0:44:15 | 0:44:18 | |
don't download films and anything that is really data hungry. | 0:44:18 | 0:44:21 | |
Just check your e-mails and keep it to a minimum. | 0:44:21 | 0:44:23 | |
That's right, if you're on holiday, | 0:44:23 | 0:44:25 | |
use your phone for making calls and texts. | 0:44:25 | 0:44:27 | |
If you want to go and see a film, go to the cinema. | 0:44:27 | 0:44:29 | |
Tonnes of great advice there, Sarah. | 0:44:29 | 0:44:30 | |
Well, that's about it from us in Nottingham, | 0:44:30 | 0:44:32 | |
so thanks to all our guests and to you at home. | 0:44:32 | 0:44:35 | |
And we'll be back with more money-saving advice next time. | 0:44:35 | 0:44:37 | |
-Bye-bye. -Cheerio. | 0:44:37 | 0:44:39 |