When an unexpected bill hits you!
Last week, I shared about taking a look at your budget periodically and doing a budget reset. When I posted that post, I was all excited about catching up on my leftover summer bills and feeling really comfortable with October. Then I received a very high water bill on Tuesday and started stressing out about it wondering if the utility company had made a mistake, how I would pay it, etc.. At other times, we have had unexpected bills from doctors or maybe an unplanned outing or vacation. What do you do when something like that threatens to break your budget?
Medical bills
First off, for anyone who doesn’t know, when you have a baby and a hospital bill or a surgery of any sort, you are not required to pay your bill in full when you receive it or before going into the hospital. Have them bill you so that you can check whether the information and billing is correct and tell them that you can make payments. I remember going in the hospital to have my son and filling out paper work and the lady telling me I owed “blank” amount. I responded that I would be making payments and to send the bill (I did have to pay my Obgyn practice before going in though, in payments). Many people do not know this and experience a lot of stress because of that. You usually can tell them how much you can afford to pay a month. These payments should be interest free.
Unexpected utility bill or car repair
For a utility bill, I would most likely dip into my emergency/savings fund to pay the difference between what my bill usually is and what it was if it is a once in a very long blue moon experience. This is only in case of a radically large bill that I just couldn’t pay and stay in budget that month. I usually expected my electricity bill to be quite high in summer because of the AC and high for our gas in winter because of the heat system so I plan my budget accordingly. As far as a large car repair such as new tires or brakes, we usually use our Firestone or Goodyear credit card and take advantage of the 6 months no interest and pay it off before the final payment is due.
Impulse purchases
If you cannot pay off your credit card(s) fully at the end of each month, try leaving them at home, taking the one click information off of Amazon and other places you shop so that you will not make a impulsive purchase. I think that my monthly credit card bill could be so much lower if I did not have that information on Amazon! The effort it would require me to go find the card and enter the info would allow me to think twice about my purchase. There are months were I do not carry my credit card in my purse and the bill is definitely lower those months! My goal for the next 6 months is to drastically reduce the number of purchases I make using my credit card. If you are already in credit card debt, consolidating your bills will lower your payments and interest payments.
Vacations or outings
What if your friend invites you to go out to dinner or for drinks and you know that is not much wiggle room in your budget? Or you decide that your family needs a break and want to take a weekend out of town?
First off I would calculate how much I have in my budget for the occasion. If it is a small vacation, do I have any money in my vacation savings account? If not, I would plan a day outing somewhere and find a way to do it for free or almost free: maybe a state park to visit (it is only $5/car to get in) and have a picnic, find a free museum to see, sightsee or find murals around your town. Do not spend money you do not have. We all do this at times but while it might be fun at the time, it will make your life stressful in the long run and is not worth it! As I make mistakes, I am learning and getting better at not repeating the same mistakes. But like everyone, I am not perfect which is why we have some lean months to make up for those mistakes!
If you have a little money to go out with your friend but not enough for a full meal, you could suggest going out for a drink or just desserts, find a place and a coupon for b1g1 meal and be creative to stay within budget. I often have my kids order just water if their drinks is not included in their meal because drinks for the children and me can potentially add 10 dollars to our bill. It may not sound like much but each 10 dollars adds up!
I hope this post help you think about different aspects of your budget. This information is not groundbreaking or new but it may remind us of habits we should break and help us create new habits. Maybe it is to create an emergency fund and add a little money in there each month for unexpected bills or remember to not carry or credit card around to minimize our impulse purchases.
Next week, I will share how we celebrate Christmas without breaking the bank!
A bientôt!
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18 Comments
Jennifer
These are great tips!
Jennifer
Effortlessly Sophisticated
mimifce
Thanks, Jennifer! I just need to do a better job myself at following them!
Mother of 3
I definitely find keeping my credit card at home when I’m trying to curb my spending helps tremendously on keeping me mindful of what I’m buying and what I went into the store for.
mimifce
Yes! And I need to do that right now, lol!
Ellibelle
These are some great tips! I’m glad to read that hospitals don’t require full payments at once. Those bills always end up being so high with deductables and out of pocket percentages.
Ellibelle’s Corner
mimifce
Yes, I have shared that info with friends and family!
Erin | Chasing Sweet and Simple
These are great tips! I am excited for your Christmas post without breaking the bank!
mimifce
Nothing groundbreaking but hope it will be of interest!
Mica
These are good tips! I find it sad that medical bills are such a big struggle though – while everything else applies to us, we don’t have very high medical bills. Our local GP bulk bills, which means the government pays for our visits. Even when my son had his hospital stay a few years ago and we were in hospital for 2 weeks we didn’t have to pay for a thing. We take that for granted sometimes!
Hope that you have a great weekend ahead of you 🙂
mimifce
That is interesting about the hospital bills! You don’t even want to think about bills for cancer treatment or anything major here!
Donna
There are some very good suggestions here, especially removing the auto feature on Amazon.
mimifce
Thanks! That instant gratification is so tempting! I may even take the app off my phone!
jodie filogomo
Great idea Mireille!! I didn’t know that about the hospital.
BTW, just today I noticed that I haven’t been getting your emails for awhile.I didn’t think about it at first thinking you were taking some time off. But then I saw your post on IG. Can you check my email for your email subscriber list? [email protected]. I don’t have spam in that account so it couldn’t have gone there?
XOXO
Jodie
mimifce
Thanks, Jodie! Let me check into that this weekend! I wonder why!
Deform
Great tips mam. Really very helpful. Thank you
mimifce
You are quite welcome!
Bojan
These are great tips. It made me pause and think that we need a reset on our spending budgets and right now is kind of the perfect time because it’ll get us in a good habit again before Christmas shopping. I especially like you impulse shopping tips!
bosbodaciousblog.blogspot.ca
mimifce
I just need to consistently follow my own advice!