Resolve to boost your savings in 2006

Four in five people expect their family finances this year to be as good or better than they were in 2005, according to a survey for the Nationwide.

However, research from Friends Provident indicates that almost one-third of the adult population think they will probably break their new year resolutions before the end of this month.

As far as I’m concerned, the health of my finances in 2006 depends at least partly on how successful I am at keeping to my main resolution this year, which is to give up smoking after more than 13 years.

Over that time, my cigarette consumption has risen steadily to about 20 a day, meaning that I spend more than £36 a week – or close to £2,000 a year – on a habit that makes me smell disgusting, clogs my arteries and restricts my ability to breathe.

Once you take income tax and national insurance contributions into account, that’s about £3,000 of my hard-earned wages literally going up in smoke.

When you look at it like that, it seems a no-brainer. Unfortunately, however, I have failed to give up before despite knowing all of the above.

That’s why this year, as an extra incentive, I have decided to open a savings account into which I plan to pay all the money I might otherwise have spent on smoking.

Hopefully, watching the money in there grow over the months will help to sustain my enthusiasm for the giving up process. And even if I do fail in that, I’ll still have more savings as a result.

If you are also keen to boost your savings in 2006, a sensible first step is to take a few minutes to check you are getting the best deal on your current account, savings, credit card and utilities.

You can do this by checking on a price comparison website such as uSwitch, Moneysupermarket or Moneyfacts.

It may seem a bit of a dull job, but switching from poor value deals could save you thousands of pounds a year – especially as gas and electricity providers look set to hit consumers with yet more price hikes this year.

And if, like me, you’re trying to quit smoking, it should at least help to take your mind off the cravings for a bit.

Comments

[eddie reader]

I found the financial knowledge base at www.good2use.com (take the knowledge bases link) really useful. It helps you paln all manner of savings and investments.

[A.S.Williams]

i have had a nationwide tracker isa for five years now.it has made 8.38% over that period. pretty damn poor i'd say