11 MAJOR MONEY CHANGES COMING BEFORE CHRISTMAS - FROM INTEREST RATES TO AMAZON PRIME

Too soon to mention Christmas? It’ll be here in three months time – and getting your finances in order now can help a lot.

Money has been a real struggle for many this year, with high energy costs, eye-wateringly high inflation and food prices rocketing – let alone coping with rents and mortgages.

So with several major money changes coming between now and Christmas, as the cost of living crisis continues, keeping abreast of them can make a huge difference when managing a budget.

Let’s take a look at the money changes expected between September and December.

Major money changes before Christmas

Second cost of living payment

A raft of new Cost of Living Payments are due over the course of 2023/24, with the first having been rolled out earlier this year.

The second payment, of £300, wll be made between October 31 and November 19.

There’s no need to apply – you may qualify if you’re on any of the following benefits on certain dates – and the benefit should be paid directly in to your bank account:

• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Income Support
• Pension Credit
• Universal Credit
• Child Tax Credit
• Working Tax Credit

People who are only claiming tax credits and are eligible will receive their £300 Cost of Living Payment from HMRC between November 10 and 19.

Inflation figures

The Office for National Statistics will release the next inflation rate on September 20 – and shows how much a selection of goods and services that make up a ‘basket’compare to their prices from 12 months ago.

Although the figures are a look back at the prevous month, they have an impact on interest rates – and the September figure also affects next Spring’s benefit uprating.

There will be further announcements on October 18, November 15 and December 20.

Interest rates

Anyone with a mortgage will know how devastating a hike in interest rates can be.

The next announcement on the Bank of England base rate will be on September 21 – and it affects everything from loan interest to mortgage repayments.

At the beginning of August, The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) voted to increase the base interest rate to 5.25% – its highest level since 2008.

While that’s good news for savers, it’s tough for those with debts.

This will be followed by further announcements on November 2 and December 14.

Energy price cap

The energy price cap – which has a direct effect on how much everyone pays for their energy – dropped from £3,280 to £2,074 on July 1 and will drop again from October 1.

The new price cap will run from October 1 to December 31 and be £1,923 for a direct debit customer.

This also stands at £1,949 for those on prepayment meters, £2,052 for standard credit tariffs, and £1,298 for Economy 7 (electricity-only Direct Debit).

So you’ll pay less for the same amount of energy.

It’s important to take a meter reading around October 1 so you are charged for what you use.

Warm Home Discount

The government’s Warm Home Discount Scheme will reopen in October.

It is a one-off discount on electricity bills – last year it was worth £150.

In England and Wales, you qualify if you either:

• Get the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit
• Gre on a low income and have high energy costs

In Scotland you qualify if you either:

• Get the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit
• Are on a low income and meet your energy supplier’s criteria for the scheme

Cold weather payment

The Cold Weather Payment scheme reopens in England and Wales on November 1 and those eligible will get £25 for each 7 day period of very cold weather between 1 November and 31 March.

You are likely eligible if you get one of the following:

• Pension Credit
• Income Support
• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Universal Credit
• Support for Mortgage Interest

Scotland offers a Winter Heating Payment of £50 which should be made automatically to those on eligible benefits.

Stamp price rise

If you’re sending Christmas cards, the advice is to stock up on stamps now as the cost is to soar from October 2.

It comes just months after the introduction of a barcode rendered everbody’s old, non-barcoded stamps, unusable.

The price of a first-class stamp will be rising by 14% for a standard letter – the second increase this year following the price hike in April from 95p to £1.10.

This will push the cost up from £1.10 to £1.25.

DWP Christmas Bonus

The Christmas Bonus is a one-off tax-free £10 payment made before Christmas, to people on certain benefits in the qualifying week. This is normally the first full week of December.

It’s paid automatically.

Disney Plus price hike

Disney Plus has traditionally only had one plan – at £7.99 a month.

From November 1, everyone will be put on the Premium ad-free offering, which costs £10.99 a month (£109.90 for the year) unless you choose something else.

You can choose to stay on the Standard ad-free package still costs £7.99 a month (£79.90) but it will remove options such as 4K streaming and the ability to stream on four devices at once.

There will also be a Standard package with ads – which will cost £4.99 a month (there is no annual payment option). This allows HD streaming over two devices at the same time but no downloads or 4K UHD quality.

Amazon Prime same day deliveries

From September 18, Amazon Prime members will have to pay £1.99 for same day deliveries worth less than £20.

You can avoid it by selecting next day delivery or ordering more than £20 worth of goods at once.

Bus fare cap ends

In May, the £2 cap on bus fares (not including London, Greater Manchester, Merseyside or West Yorkshire, as they are already capped) was extended by the government to help in the cost of living crisis.

From October 31, this will increase to £2.50 and this new cap will last until November 2024.

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