Back-to-school blues

FINANCIAL SQUEEZE: PARENTS SKIP INSURANCE, MEDICAL AID PAYMENTS

Fees, uniforms and stationery put households under enormous strain.

Many parents are battling to afford backto-school expenses and resort to skipping paying medical aid and insurance premiums. This has become a stressful time for parents due to the high cost of living.

According to a survey 1Life Insurance conducted in December 2023 among 1 983 South Africans, 88% of parents will have to cut back on essential monthly expenses, such as food and transport, to cover back-to-school expenses.

The survey shows that over 36% of parents are most worried about school fees, which is no surprise considering the steep cost of quality education. The second-largest concern is school uniforms (31%) and a close third, the cost of stationery (29%).

“South Africans are under a lot of financial strain as it is. Add the cost of school essentials and many cannot cover the costs without making drastic lifestyle changes, taking loans, or digging into their savings,” said Brina Biggs, senior manager at 1Life Insurance.

Just over a quarter indicated they have to use their savings to make ends meet around this time of the year.

When parents were asked in the survey how they cover backto-school expenses, over 50% said they did not save for these expenses, while 20% said they would have to wait for their January salary to cover some of the costs.

This means that children start the school year without the uniforms and stationery they need, Briggs said.

Others either use their year-end bonus (18%), some buy items through the year (11%) to avoid having to buy in bulk at the start of the new year, while some ask family members for help (10%), take out a loan (9%), use the social grant they receive from government (8%) or use their credit card (7%). Briggs said considering that less than 2% of students have access to a scholarship, the reality is that all costs fall on parents and most of them are already in a tight financial space.

“In fact, the research shows that about 98% of parents are experiencing financial strain regarding back-toschool expenses.”

It is also important to remember that 50% of these households are headed by a single parent and 72% have two or more children.

“The compounded impact of back-to-school pressures is that many consumers are likely to sacrifice other essential debit order payments to ensure their children can start school with everything they need.

“This can have dire consequences for the family’s financial security in the long term,” Briggs said.

“It is essential that consumers start planning and saving for these expenses, ensuring that they can honour their important payments and do not have to start the year with debt.”

Essential for consumers to plan for expenses