Queen of bargains
You can save a fortune on your bills with these handy tips
Having a mobile phone can be extremely expensive if you’re not careful. Here are some simple ways to slash what you spend…
Time it right
Typically with a mobile phone contract, the cost of your handset is spread over the term (often two years) through your monthly payments. But once the contract ends, the payments won’t reduce automatically, even though your phone is paid off, so you need to take action.
You can either upgrade and sign a new contract or, if you’re happy with your handset, you can opt for a Sim-only deal, which tends to be much cheaper and more flexible and include pay-as-you-go options.
Negotiate
If you do want to upgrade your phone, decide what sort of handset you want, then do your research. Prices can vary considerably. Take
into account the length of the contract, plus any fee for the handset, then start haggling to try to get the best deal. And while it’s tempting to keep a back-up phone as a spare, it’s worth considering trading it in to get money off your upgrade deal, or selling it to a specialist company such as Envirofone (envirofone.com).
Try to buy second-hand
One way to slash the cost of switching your phone is by buying a refurbished model. These are handsets sent back by customers for being faulty or sold on by their previous owner. The phones will have been checked and repaired if necessary, and most come with warranties, but do check the length and T&CS of the warranties before buying.
You often get good deals around the time the latest sought-after models are released, when people are offloading their older phones.