Home working has now become extremely common as we already know. It has certainly been a shock but has also raised the costs of running your home. Given this, we thought we would put together an article with some suggestions on how you can make some savings. We will also talk about any tax savings you may be entitled to.
Home working isn’t new to us
Both myself and Kate have been doing this for a number of years now. Initially, it did take some getting use to, but over time we think we have become somewhat pros at it.
If you are a business owner or self-employed you might already know what are legitimate expenses. But it certainly doesn’t hurt to refresh your mind on this. Even if it allows you to claim one more expense you have made a cost-saving there. The government website does have some useful information on there but it may be beneficial to speak directly to your accountant.
Home working as an employee
If you are an employee and you have suddenly found yourself home working you could receive a small tax break. Now, this isn’t going to be megabucks and only amounts to £62.40 annually but pennies make pounds.
If your employer has an agreement in place with the government they can pay you an extra tax-free amount.
If your employer hasn’t considered the home working tax saving you can sign up yourself. You can do this directly on the government website.
The tax break is £6 per week, previously it was £4 per week and you do not need to keep receipts. There is however an alternative if you have greater expenses because of work, but you will need to keep all receipts and prove your expenses. If you are unsure what you are eligible for head on over to the government website using the link in the paragraph above.
Don’t overcompensate because you are home working
It is all too easy to think you are saving money home working. You don’t have the transport costs, you aren’t spending money at the coffee shop of heading out to lunch with colleagues and friends. But remember just because you are making these savings, your expenses will also increase. Some industry experts are predicting that this winter home working could increase your usual energy bills by double.
The point we are making here is don’t be too quick to spend your lunch hours surfing the net. Seeing all those shiny sparkly products will increase temptation and could result in some impulse buys. Also, remember clicking those cookies pop-ups can potentially have ads popping up on your browser constantly.
Another tip is to unsubscribe to all (or most) of those product marketing emails. This is especially so in the run-up to Christmas.
Consider looking at your utilities because of home working
It’s no secret that looking at your utilities regularly could save you money. But now is certainly the time to take another look. But it’s important you are savvy about it. Don’t just look at the initial incentive they are offering you. Look at the overall cost per unit to see if this can bring down your bills.
We haven’t carried out intensive research into which suppliers are best. But the likes of Bulb (who we presently use) are green suppliers and worked out the cheapest for us. But that doesn’t mean they will be for you. Do your own research or ask an expert like Martin Lewis from Money Saving Expert. If you do decide to go with Bulb then feel free to use our referral link.
Mobile phone
Whilst we have been home working a lot longer than most even we have achieved a saving here.
Whilst I always knew I relied mainly on WIFI I hadn’t realised how much I wasn’t relying on my mobile data. Personally, both myself and Kate never use public WIFI systems. We always rely on our own private WIFI at home or our mobile data. We need to practice what we preach after all. But due to a lack of client meetings in person we no longer needed as much data.
Based on the above we telephoned our mobile provider who thankfully agreed to reduce our data allowance. This is despite being mid-contract given our previous loyalty to the company. So it’s worth checking whether you are out of contract or whether it can be amended to give you a saving.
If you are wondering why we don’t use public WIFI it’s because we take data security extremely seriously. Not just because we want to protect our clients but also because you have a legal requirement as a business owner to give regard to data security. If you are unsure of your obligations or want to brush up on the same Kate talks about GDPR in our article – GDPR Will your business remain compliant in 2021. But as always please do reach out to us if you are unsure of anything. We can talk you through your obligations and help you gain a better understanding.
Phone calls
Whether you are an employee or employer you have probably had to telephone big companies. We have noticed recently there is an increase of premium-rate numbers and numbers like HMRC not being included within our minutes.
Here’s a game-changer for you or it certainly was for us! There is a website which searches for an alternative, local numbers for you. We telephoned one well-known HR company and spent 30 minutes on the phone. We were charged £13 with them but when we called using the alternative number it was included within our minutes and thus no additional charge. You can find the link to saynoto0870 here but please note we are in no way affiliated with them and cannot guarantee results.
Subscriptions
It’s important to review your subscriptions regularly. We have found that working from home more often has resulted in unnecessary expense. Have you left that gym membership going but aren’t using it? Perhaps the meal preparation box no longer seems as important.
Have you reviewed your software packages recently? Lots of people are guilty of leaving them running but not fully using them. Alternatively, there could be other options on the market that work harder for you. This is another area we have covered before in our blogs. So do take a read if you want to review what is on the market.
In conclusion, we feel that there are some cost savings here. The list isn’t, of course, exhaustive but we hope it helps you save a little.