Photosales
niJobfinder
niCarfinder
Home Delivery
Propertynews
Tele campaign to help consumers battle rising costs
Monday, 15 September 2008
More pictures
Tough times have a way of drawing people together. More often these days we find ourselves swapping stories about price hikes with strangers in supermarket aisles, or sharing a grumble at the cost of a cup of coffee.
Virtually everyone is seeing more money go out the window. The costs of everyday essentials — food, heat, fuel — are climbing at shocking rates. Bills have never been nice, yet now for more families they are becoming a serious burden.
But we're all in this together, and it's time we shared more than dismay at the latest price rise.
That's why the Belfast Telegraph is launching Pricewatch – our new campaign to make sure you don't get ripped off just because you're trying to live your life.
From today, Pricewatch will be in your corner for the fight against inflation.
We'll be keeping a sharp eye on how much shops are charging for the essential items you buy every week.
We'll also be offering tips for cutting costs and making savings where you can.
We'll hunt down the bargains and best buys. And where retailers are sticking the arm in, we won't be afraid to say so.
When it comes to fighting back against the credit crunch, the Belfast Telegraph will be leading the charge.
All this week and beyond we'll be comparing prices and weighing up value for money among some of our best known retailers.
Today we're reporting the exclusive results of a major report by Millward Brown Ulster, formerly Ulster Marketing Surveys, that compares key prices between Northern Ireland's main supermarkets and convenience stores.
We found price variations from shop to shop — including gaps of 157% in what some shops charge for similar items.
We'll also be looking at petrol prices and the cost of living in Northern Ireland, as opposed to just the cost of living. We continue to pay more for many goods and services than any other part of the UK — where we find that's the case, we'll say so and we'll ask those charging the higher prices to tell us why.
We all know how the economy has taken a turn for the worse over the past year. Annual food bills have soared by as much as £1,400. Electricity and gas prices took extra jumps just last week. Home heating oil has rocketed up by almost 80%. Petrol and diesel prices are curbing our journeys and turning the daily commute into another whack on the wallet.
According to the General Consumer Council, two-thirds of consumers are struggling to pay their household bills.
People are making tougher choices. For many of us, buying what you want now comes a distant second to buying what you need.
Single mother Maureen Wishart, from Belfast, tells us today about buying “just the bare minimum” when it comes to food and clothes, because the cost of her weekly shop has already climbed at least a third.
And pensioner Francis Hughes said he's switching supermarkets and looking at ways to cut electricity and heating oil bills in order to make his fixed income go further.
We want to hear your story, too. Our reporters need your tips for cutting costs. We need your eyes and ears to help us find the best bargains and the rip-off retailers.
Email your tips to pricewatch@belfasttelegraph.co.uk.
We're battling for you. Together we can weather the hard times.
- Text Size
oil users have little to complain about bulk gas suppliers are charging 53p per litre that`s £500 for 900 litres something should be done about that it`s a scandal
Posted by keith | 07.11.08, 18:56 GMT
Well, Ken of Limavady, one way to save money is to drink tap water, which seemed to be perfectly satisfactory before 2000. Then there seemed to be some belief promoted, no doubt by those who sell water, that it must be drunk from bottles. Even worse, water is imported here - to one of Europe's wetter areas.
One to bear in mind - EVIAN is NAIVE spelt backwards. It's got to be intentional.
Posted by maggie | 17.09.08, 15:10 GMT
@Mark re house prices:
Is it better to have a small debt with high interest rates or a huge debt with low interest rates?
Interest rates will vary over the term of a 25 year mortgage. If you have a huge debt taken out at low rates then at some point the rates will rise to a point where you can no longer pay. However, if you have a small debt on high rates then the worst that will happen is that the rates will fall and you will be able to pay off the debt earlier.
House prices have further to fall in Northern Ireland. Property is still overvalued.
Posted by Simon | 16.09.08, 14:55 GMT
What can be done about the price of school meals? My kids are now paying £1 for 5 chicken nuggets - last term it was 60p! Even worst is the fact that if they buy a bottle of water they must drink all of it in the dining hall or else throw it away - what a waste!
Ken, Limavady
Posted by Ken | 16.09.08, 12:26 GMT
it's good to see one of the biggest newspaper in our area standing up to help fight the rises.
Quick word about the comment on house prices andsaving 100's on a mortgage... have you applied recently? Interest rate are 2-3% higher than 5 years ago so although the houses are cheaper the mortgage is either still the same or higher in some cases, especially for first time buyer like myself.
Posted by Mark | 16.09.08, 00:00 GMT
Just felt the need to give some people an idea of whats goin on :-)
My husbands on a wage around 20k...we have 3 kids and I dont work outside the home.
I`m not well enough to work but claim incapacity benefit - ni credits only ...so not on benefit as such...except for the usual Child Tax Credit
We have been forced to sell our house...and lost a business,.as well as our self belief and at one time - some basic human rights...but thats another story. Due to this economic climate (when has it ever been good?) and a Northern Ireland property developer (who we firmly believe wiped our eye...but we`re still not finished with him - which includes legal fees may I add) we have been left totally `high and dry`...
There`ll never be a government that supports working class people who want to succeed - the ad on the radio tries to encourage you to go self employed but it doesnt warn ya of the drawbacks ..think about it :-)
Posted by Vee | 15.09.08, 23:10 GMT
I totally agree with Dave's viewpoint. The huge and unsustainable hike in houseprices was encouraged and promoted by the media including your paper. Because so much of the montly income is spent on high mortgage repayments many people con not absorb other increases. It was a boom fuelled by debt. A huge crash is needed until house prices return to 3x salary then people will have much more disposable income and the economy will start to grow again.
Posted by Sarah | 15.09.08, 22:14 GMT
What a joke. In the land of the tele, price rises in food and fuel are bad, yet rising house prices (the biggest purchase anyone will ever make) are celebrated at every turn.
Posted by shipbuilder | 15.09.08, 17:42 GMT
Oil down another 5 dollars a barrel today (15/09/08) which should equate to 2 pence at the pump how long before we see prices fall at the pump.
NIE / Phoenix where’s your high cost of buying oil now? <
Posted by Raymond | 15.09.08, 16:57 GMT
It is fascinating to see the Belfast Telegraph's dual personality. The graphic above shows how food, gas, electricity and diesel have all risen in price, and the report (naturally) accepts that this is bad. All these things are pretty essential, just like a roof over your head. So, when house prices were rising why did you treat them differently? I think you owe it to your readers to give an HONEST answer to this simple question.
Posted by Dave | 15.09.08, 16:55 GMT
I've commented several times to the BT (including a letter to the editor) about the fact that commodity prices rises are just the other side of the coin to house price rises
House prices rose because banks threw money at the market, not because there was a shortage of houses. Now the big institutional investors are speculating in food and energy instead.
The BT would be on stronger moral ground if had combated the insane rise in the cost of housing
Posted by Simon | 15.09.08, 16:10 GMT
Yes indeed, the spirit that got us through two World Wars and food rationing is to be seen at every turn now...I've heard of people swapping their iPods for sacks of potatoes and their beloved plasma TVs for a lorry load of home heating oil, thankfully the smuggling of cheaper diesel from the south allows us to continue driving our modest BMWs
Posted by Quid Pro Quo | 15.09.08, 15:36 GMT
As well as addressing the rising cost of food etc.,m may I suggest that something be done about the monopoly on gas and electricity?
Phoenix and NIE have had a nice comfortable grip on our wallets for far too long. Open up the market to other energy suppliers and watch those prices fall under pressure from some good healthy competition!
Posted by Centaur | 15.09.08, 14:22 GMT
Thank God for the tele. As we know, the poor, beleaguered citizens of Norn Iron are among the world's poorest. Many families can only afford to run two cars and some people can't afford to have the heating on in July. It's terrible so it is. We're just trying to live our spoiled, priveleged lives so we are.
Posted by Yip, Derry | 15.09.08, 13:19 GMT
A complete load of nonsense.
Yes, it's bad that we are paying increased prices for commodities, and we would like it to come down. However, why are falling house prices such a bad thing. Realistic house prices can cut £100's of pounds of monthly mortgage repayments - yet this is seen as a bad thing...!?!?
Lower house prices can have more of an effect than most of the other named issues added together.
Is this a guilty conscience by the BT as a result of their endless articles ignoring the obvious in regards to the property market and encouraging people to purchase properties at probably the most unstable time in decades?
Posted by Aye right... | 15.09.08, 13:14 GMT
It is great that the Belfast Telegraph is doing something about this. Can I suggest you make a petition for lower oil prices, which you can present to OPEC? This will surely have them quaking in their boots.
Posted by Peter | 15.09.08, 12:02 GMT
How come household and living cost increases are seen as a bad thing now and something to be campaigned and railed against by this paper? This newspaper is in my opinion inconsistent in its approach towards the common citizen and the general consumer.
For instance not once did I see the same financial concern when our property market was rising between 30 and 50% year on year in the last two years - condemming many buyers to a lifetime of debt, potential repossession and financial ruin.
And even now I still see reports saying there has never been a better time to buy (a house). When is this paper going to start to campaign for lower house prices huh?
Posted by paul65 | 15.09.08, 10:27 GMT
Hilarious! Maybe if the Belfast Telegraph didn't ramp up the housing market with estate-agent PR and stopped telling us: "The market is fine - buy buy buy" many people would be much better off today! Even now there are articles being printed telling people everything is ok - what planet are you on? It is disgusting. I don't want to read another article based on comments from some estate agent telling people to buy property! Stop it. That is my money-saving tip.
Posted by James Dougan | 15.09.08, 08:56 GMT