A frugal life is an easy life!

Direct line have more than DOUBLED the price of my car insurance.

Not one single advisor, underwriter or administration staff can give me a valid reason for doing it.
Was £29 per month, it will now be increased to £60 per calendar month - for the exact same vehicle!

All they will tell me is, "Yes it is correct" and that, "Every other insurance company is putting up their prices!"

Oh and when you see their lovely funny adverts on your television, offering "52 days FREE car insurance for NEW policy holders" - think on... they are telling you lies!

My renewal notice is more than double what I paid last year, I paid less when I started driving with them 14 years ago, but even at £60 per calendar month, it is still£30 a year CHEAPER than what they would charge me, if I was a new customer, this includes the "52 days free car insurance"

I would think long and hard before you give your custom to this company.
If they CUT PRICES and treated their customers fairly, instead of paying stephen fry and paul merton large fees for doing voice overs, then they would be ok.

As it stands, in all my time with them, (more than a decade) the price of my insurance has NEVER been reduced!

Companies are pre-empting the budget and taking the tax breaks that the government are giving us all.
The government needs to step in sort this mess out, any help that people get from the powers that be, is given to them in lower taxation but more than taken away by businesses with no interest whatsoever in their customers, who instead, are lining their own pockets.

Yesterday, the new government's budget gave our household an extra £245.
The week before, Direct line insurance more than DOUBLED my insurance payments each month.
The result leaves me being given £245 by the government and Direct line taking away an extra £360 each year - making my family WORSE OFF by £115

The injustice here, is plain to see:

• I am being charged because there have been more claims due to a snowy winter - in no other business is an individual allowed to be charged for another's actions, so why are insurance companies allowed to get away with it?
• I am refused an explanation for the more than doubling of the costs to me - a token, "We have had a lot of claims over the winter" is the best they can offer
• They are advertising "52 days free car insurance" - why then is the cost to a new customer still more than £20 more than an existing customer?
• The government have lowered our taxes, to benefit the people - not lowered them so each and everyone of us could pay a higher price for our insurance!

Factor in, that water companies are selling off reservoirs and not building new ones whilst the number of new homes being built is growing and I would expect their prices to rise as well.
It may sound old fashioned, but it is time the powers that be got a grip on companies like these and started protecting the public.
If they don't, then without feeling any benefits, the people lose and in time the government will be voted out of office!

Back in April 2010, when the government of the day announced their budget, they froze a rise in petrol duty.
All the speculation in the media, was that petrol duty would be increased.
One day prior to the budget, in my area all the garages put up the price of petrol by 1p, then on the day after the budget, they increased their petrol prices by 2p per litre.
The reason given at three petrol stations I filled up at in the week following the budget, was "VAT has been increased in the budget" or "Every petrol station is increasing their prices as we have higher taxes!" - all complete lies!

In the new government's budget today, PETROL, ALCOHOL and CIGARETTES have had their duty FROZEN!
This means there is no increase in the tax we pay on them and as such, the prices of them should remain the same.

I will be watching the prices in my area, will you be watching yours?

Less product for more or the same price, increases costs on everyone. It is a great way to hide inflationary or above inflation price rises, from the average person.

I will add to this post as I come across goods that show companies are taking the British people for fools, by charging a higher price or the same, for less product!

Monster munch - Now more than 40p a bag, for just 9 crisps in a packet!
Fairy washing up liquid - Used to be 1 litre bottles for a pound, (on offer in supermarkets) - then it dropped to 750ml three months back, today it is just 650ml per bottle for a pound as a "special offer" in asda - product size is close to halving, which represents a 35% increase in price (Inflation is at 3.5% per month?)

If you are expecting or have just had a baby, I cannot emphasise more, the benefits of having in your cupboards, a packet of baby rice.
It is bland, it's seemingly of not much use, but baby rice in our house, is a godsend.

Take for example the throwing away of four rusks, mashed up in a dish with milk and heated, only to find it's either too lumpy or too runny.
Add more rusk and it soaks up next to none of the existing mix - too lumpy, add more milk still the lumps remain.
Here's where the baby rice comes in handy, add a small amount of baby rice and hey presto, an even texture that will soak up a too runny rusk and give baby a good meal.

Add baby rice sparingly as it thickens up any sloppy dinner well.
Feed as a meal on its own or add baby rice to any meal to fill it out.
It will also save on washing, too runny a meal and you have to change baby's top or bibs.