10 things you should never pay for

In one of the most popular articles of 2010, Rachel Wait reveals why not everything has to cost money! Here, she shows you 10 things you should never open your wallet for!

I don’t know about you, but money’s feeling a little tight at the moment. As a result, I am constantly trying to think of ways to save myself a few pennies.

However, sometimes the best way to save money is to simply not pay at all! And no, I’m not referring to stealing. I simply mean that sometimes we pay for things we really don’t need to pay for. And here, I’m going to reveal 10 of those things!

Debt advice

If you’re struggling to manage your finances and you’re not sure who to turn to, don’t get tempted to pay for debt advice. Some banks have the audacity to charge you for debt advice, and sometimes fees can be as high as £100!

Don’t get sucked in by this. There are plenty of places out there where you can seek brilliant debt advice absolutely free! Some may even be able to speak to the companies you owe money to on your behalf and negotiate more manageable repayment plans so you can get your finances under control again.

Good debt charities to contact include Citizens Advice, National Debtline, the Consumer Credit Counselling Service, Payplan and Advice UK. You can read more about all of these in Where to get free debt services. 

Borrowing

Borrowing money can work out to be pretty expensive. But it doesn’t have to be. Instead of paying a ridiculously high rate of interest on your credit card, transfer that debt onto a 0% balance transfer credit card and you won’t have to pay any interest on that debt for over a year!

The Barclaycard Platinum 15 month BT Visa, for example, offers 15 months interest-free on all balance transfers. Just remember to pay off your bill in full before that 15-month period comes to an end.

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Similarly, if you need some extra cash for spending, use a 0% on new purchases credit card, such as the Tesco Bank Clubcard Credit Card MasterCard or the Sainsbury’s Finance MasterCard for Nectar Card Holders, and you’ll be able to enjoy 12 months interest-free on all purchases! Why pay to borrow when you don’t have to?

Current accounts

Many current accounts now come with ‘perks’ such as travel insurance or breakdown cover or mobile phone insurance. But of course, you have to pay extra for these – usually somewhere in the region of £5 to £25 per month.

Personally, I think these packaged current accounts are a waste of money. After all, the insurance you receive with the account won’t necessarily be the cheapest – you may find you get a better deal simply by shopping around yourself.

What's more, there are some really great free current accounts on the market right now. The Santander Preferred In-Credit Rate Account, for example, offers an interest rate of 5%, and will give you £100 in cash for opening the account! Just bear in mind you will need to pay in £1,000 each month and transfer at least two standing orders or direct debits over from another current account.

A driving test administration fee

Recently, the AA has warned learner drivers about online booking services that add surcharges of up to 65% to arrange a driving test.

Many learner drivers have been caught out by booking their test through third-party commercial websites and in the process, have been charged over £50 for a theory test for which the Driving Standards Agency test charges £31. This difference in price has been attributed to an administration fee.

What’s more, some websites are charging fees of up to £30 to book a practical test on top of the standard fees of £62 for a weekday test or £75 for a weekend or evening test.

But there is absolutely no need to pay these so-called administration fees. You can book directly with the DSA website where you’ll only be charged the standard test fee.

Financial news

The Times and The Sunday Times have now started charging if you want to read these newspapers online. To get access, you’ll have to pay £1 a day or £2 a week. But why pay this when you can get financial news from lovemoney.com absolutely free?

As well as being able to read a whole host of articles at lovemoney.com, you can get practical, step-by-step financial plans on a range of issues within our guides section: take charge of your daily expenditure with our exclusive online banking service: and find free independent help through our mortgage search service.

Phone calls

Make the most of free calls at off-peak times. If your current landline phone provider isn’t offering you free off-peak calls, switch to one that is. You may also want to consider using Skype for free web-to-web calls during peak hours.

Water in restaurants

Paying for water in restaurants is one thing that really gets my goat. If I fancy a glass or two of water with my meal, I don’t want to pay for a fancy-looking bottle of spring water when iced tap water is perfectly adequate - and free.

So don’t feel embarrassed about asking for iced tap water and if you’re only served a glass and you want a jug, ask for one!

ID fraud insurance

Personally, I think ID fraud insurance is a rip-off. For an annual premium of around £60 to £80, all you’re likely to get in return is insurance which covers the cost of restoring your identity, as well as free credit reports and cover for your important documents such as your passport and driving licence, including a record of your details.

I don’t see the point of paying for all of this when you can access your credit report yourself for free with Experian. What’s more, you can make a note of the details of important documents yourself quite easily. And if you do lose your passport or driving licence, the cost of replacing them comes to £77.50 and £20 respectively. Is it really worth forking out up to £80 a year for this?

It’s also worth bearing in mind that the insurance won’t protect against any financial loss you might suffer as a result of ID fraud. You can read more about this in Avoid this expensive rip-off. You can also find out how to reduce the risk of ID fraud by reading Ten ways to avoid becoming a victim of ID fraud.

> Get your free credit report now

ATM withdrawals

Watch out for sneaky ATMs that charge you a fee of around £1-£2 for withdrawing money – an absolute rip-off, given the majority of ATMs won’t charge you a penny (unless you’re using your credit card which is a big no-no anyway).

So even if it means walking an extra five minutes down the road, it’s worth saving money for!

Music

Why pay to listen to music when you don’t have to? With Spotify you will have unrestricted streaming for 20 hours every month and access to over eight million tracks and albums! Just bear in mind you will have to put up with the odd advert in between songs. If you want to avoid this, you’ll need to pay for a premium membership for £9.99.

So there are my 10 top things you should never pay for! If you have any thoughts of your own, please post them in the comment boxes below.

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