Hikes – passport, fuel and stamps cost more
SENDING a letter, keeping warm, applying for a passport and going to the dentist... every one of those things is now more expensive.
Price hikes have been announced on everything from stamps to TV licences now we’re into April.
Here’s a rundown of all the increases you need to know about.
●●STAMPS
The Royal Mail has increased the cost of a first class stamp from 65p to 67p. For large letters, the cost has risen by 3p to £1.01. Second class stamps have gone up from 56p to 58p. The cost of sending a small parcel has gone up 5p to £3.40.
●●PASSPORTS
Passport applications have risen to £3 online and £12.50 by post, which means an online charge of £75.50 for adults and £49 for children. Postal applications are now £85 for adults and £58.50 for children.
●●TV LICENCES
The cost of renewing your TV licence has gone up by £3.50 – from £147 to £150.50.
●●DENTAL CHARGES
Dental charges for check-ups have gone up by a £1 from £20.60 to £21.60. Band two and three treatments have gone up by 5 per cent. Band two is £59.10 from £56.30 and band three is £256.50 from £244.30.
●●PRESCRIPTIONS
Prescriptions have gone up by 20p, from £8.60 to £8.80.
●●FLIGHTS
Air passenger duty on long haul flights of more than 2,000 miles has gone up by 4pc.
●●WATER
Bills have been inflated by £9 to an average of £405 per household per year.
●●FUEL
E.ON has removed its dual fuel tariff and paperless discount, with a 2.6 per cent increase and an average annual bill hike of £30 on average.
●●MOBILES
Phone networks O2 and Three have increased their bills by 4 per cent.EE had the biggest bill hike of 4.1 per cent and Vodafone has increased bills by 3.6 per cent. ●●BROADBAND
Sky customers’ line rental cost has gone up by 9.1 per cent, from £17.40 per month to £18.99.
And the Post Office has increased the price of its essential broadband package from £25 a month to £27.
However there is one good bit of news - for students...
The student loans repayment threshold has increased for the better, rising to £25,000 from £21,000 for students who started in or after 2012.