The once-free extras that you now have to pay for

Families are being squeezed on all sides by surging mortgage, energy and food costs. Free products and services have rarely been so valuable in keeping household budgets under control – yet they are disappearing quickly.

One 24-year- old reader from London said she was shocked when she and her family were denied free tap water at a local restaurant this summer.

“We were out for dinner and the waiters told us they had no tap water,” she said. “So we had to pay £4 instead – but it came out in jugs and was clearly from the taps.”

Martyn James, a consumer rights campaigner, said such “microcharges” had proliferated since the pandemic. “But people are starting to watch their pennies more closely,” he said.

“These extra charges are starting to add up and we all need to be mindful about what we are paying for.”

EXTRA TRAVEL CHARGES Once, people going on holiday together would not have to worry about sitting together on the plane – the booking system would simply group them all together.

But airlines now cash in by charging their customers extra to reserve seats. For holidaymakers who fly with easyJet, a standard seat reservation will cost from £0.99 to £8.99. Ryanair charges anywhere from £3 to £15.

EasyJet said its algorithm tried to seat families together if they chose not to reserve specific seats. It added: “Families are allocated seats together more than 99pc of the time.”

Picking up and dropping off travellers at airports now also costs more.

In spring last year Gatwick airport announced that there would be a £5 charge to enter the drop- off zone at either of its terminals. After 10 minutes you pay an extra £1 per minute, up to 20 minutes.

Jonathan Pollard of Gatwick Airport said: “We know that a drop- off charge is not going to be popular with everyone, but we have just lost £465m and more than 40pc of our staff, so this new revenue stream will help us to protect the remaining jobs.”

Heathrow airport followed suit in November last year and now charges £5 any time a vehicle enters the terminal drop-off areas. Failure to pay results in an £80 fee, which is reduced to £40 if it is paid within 14 days.

A Heathrow spokesman said it was to reduce traffic. He added: “A free dropoff option is available at long-stay car parks, where passengers can take a free bus transfer to the terminal.”

Manchester airport introduced dropoff charges in 2018; they are £5 for five minutes and £6 for 10 minutes directly outside the terminal. Anyone who stays longer than 10 minutes is charged £25.

A spokesman said: “We are one of the few airports in Britain still to offer a free drop-off option, with a five-minute bus transfer from the free drop-off area to the terminal entrance. This approach has significantly reduced congestion.”

DATING PROFILES

“When online dating started, most of it was free,” said Mr James. “But now people are expected to pay for services that involve no extra costs for these companies – such as looking at more profiles or the ability to send direct messages to other users.”

Popular dating app Tinder has a tiered subscription service. Tinder Platinum, which gives users unlimited likes and allows them to message others without “matching” first, costs £5.97 a month if users opt for a yearlong package, according to Datingroo, a price comparison website.

Rival app Bumble offers a similar premium membership, Bumble Boost, which costs £11.99 a month if users opt for a six-month package.

A Tinder spokesman said: “For our members who want to match with new people more efficiently, we offer three tiers of subscription.”

CAR ADD- ONS

Cars have become a new hotspot for extra subscription fees. Last month BMW introduced a new add- on service that lets drivers activate heating in their front seats and steering wheel if they did not buy the feature when they bought the vehicle. It began to charge customers £15 a month to switch on the heated seats in their car, or pay £350 for unlimited access.

BMW said it gave customers the opportunity to add selected features that they had not ordered when the vehicle was built. A spokesman added: “This is particularly useful for secondary owners, as they now have the opportunity to add features that the original owner did not choose.”

BMW is not the only manufacturer to introduce subscription fees. Jaguar charges for its “InControl” navigation feature, which is free for the first three years and then costs £ 89 for a one-year renewal or £ 129 for a three-year renewal.

Tesla also charges its drivers for full access to its “connectivity” features. Its standard package enables the navigation system in the car, but its premium package adds access to live traffic visualisation, satellite-view maps and media streaming, among other features.

This comes free on new orders of the Model S and X bought in or after July 2018, but then costs £9.99 a month.