Brits: Are we frugal or just tight?

VfM4meplse

How far do you go to save money? The 'tight tactics' employed by money-saving Britain according to Yahoo - admittedly nothing compared to what I've seen on some threads on this board! I score a pitiful 13/29

How far do you go to save money? The 'tight tactics' employed by money-saving Britain:

1. Saving coupons / using vouchers

2. Making your own lunches to take to work

3. Only boiling enough water for cups of tea and coffee you're making

4. Parking on a road further away from the shops so you don't have to pay

5. Refusing to leave a tip

6. Only heating rooms you use

7. Using internet/phone apps to find cheapest place to buy items

8. Shaking the end of a petrol pump so you don't leave any in the hose

9. Saving used wrapping paper to re-wrap presents

10. Driving slower to preserve petrol

11. Keeping/reusing old cartons/ jam jars etc. / cereal boxes

12. Used a calculator (or phone) on my calculator in a restaurant to work out the bill

13. Scrabbling on the floor for a dropped penny coin

14. Sharing bath water/ having a shower rather than a bath

15. Not contributing to a colleague's birthday present

16. Filling up the car with half a tank of petrol as it's economical

17. Save dish/ bath water to use on the garden

18. Making birthday cards/ presents

19. Sneaking your own bottle of wine into the theatre / pub

20. Posting parcels/ Christmas/ Birthday cards through work

21. Re-using teabags

22. Returned clothes I have worn

23. Demanding 5p or 10p change from the person you sent to buy your lunch

24. Keeping cling-film to use again

25. Buying the last round in a large group safe in the knowledge you won't have to get a second one in.

26. Asking for petrol money on a journey you would be doing anyway

27. Leaving the pub before it's your turn to buy a round

28. Saying ' I don't want to break into a twenty' so someone else says I'll get these'

29. Rounding up people's change in your favour

kboss2010

How far do you go to save money? The 'tight tactics' employed by money-saving Britain:

1. Saving coupons / using vouchers - Americans do this far more than us, Extreme Couponing, anyone?

2. Making your own lunches to take to work - a lot of places don't provide a canteen and it's usually unhealthy food

3. Only boiling enough water for cups of tea and coffee you're making - saving energy/curbing greenhouse gas emissions

4. Parking on a road further away from the shops so you don't have to pay - avoiding rip-off council/NCP car parks AND getting in your 10000 steps a day for good health!

5. Refusing to leave a tip - a tip is for excellent service and not compulsory

6. Only heating rooms you use - again, environmentally friendly!

7. Using internet/phone apps to find cheapest place to buy items - why throw away money unnecessarily?

8. Shaking the end of a petrol pump so you don't leave any in the hose - I've never done this for that reason, it's more to stop me splashing drops on the floor/myself when removing the nozzle!

9. Saving used wrapping paper to re-wrap presents - recycling!

10. Driving slower to preserve petrol - does this actually work?

11. Keeping/reusing old cartons/ jam jars etc. / cereal boxes - recycling and energy-saving!

12. Used a calculator (or phone) on my calculator in a restaurant to work out the bill - ?? I don't get how this is tight? Surely just means you aren't good at mental arithmetic?

13. Scrabbling on the floor for a dropped penny coin - again, the Bank of England spends a lot of money every year producing new coins to make up for the lost/stored coins , why add to this wastage?

14. Sharing bath water/ having a shower rather than a bath - I wouldn't do it, but maybe would with kids for the first. Showers are just quicker to me, I maybe have 3 baths a year because it takes ages to fill!

15. Not contributing to a colleague's birthday present - depends on if you speak to them or they're just another random in the office you said hi to once.

16. Filling up the car with half a tank of petrol as it's economical - again, environmentally friendly!

17. Save dish/ bath water to use on the garden - clean water is getting scarcer globally, no point wasting clean water on plants!

18. Making birthday cards/ presents - this is just fun and often saves little cash in my experience

19. Sneaking your own bottle of wine into the theatre / pub - students would hardly drink if they didn't do this lol!

20. Posting parcels/ Christmas/ Birthday cards through work - I wouldn't do it, it's stealing!

21. Re-using teabags - again, probably wouldn't but good for composting!

22. Returned clothes I have worn - I wouldn't.

23. Demanding 5p or 10p change from the person you sent to buy your lunch - again, I'd be a bit annoyed if I didn't get my change but meh I wouldn't ask.

24. Keeping cling-film to use again - how does one un scrunch it enough to do this?

25. Buying the last round in a large group safe in the knowledge you won't have to get a second one in - depends on how skint I am/ how far away pay day is!

26. Asking for petrol money on a journey you would be doing anyway - no, unless you're car sharing for work every day.

27. Leaving the pub before it's your turn to buy a round - I just wouldn't accept drinks in a round I'd buy my own if I was skint!

28. Saying ' I don't want to break into a twenty' so someone else says I'll get these' - no.

29. Rounding up people's change in your favour - that's stealing.

savingqueen

I am proud to say I have done 18 of these or at least tried them eg. I have re-used teabags but didn't like it so stopped! The ones I haven't done are the ones that are more tight than frugal like skipping a round of drinks on purpose or taking petrol money when it wasn't warranted. Also never re-used clingfilm, washed tinfoil yes but how do you re-use clingfilm?

sq:)

Lagoon

I do a grand total of three of these.


2. Making your own lunches to take to work

4. Parking on a road further away from the shops so you don't have to pay

8. Shaking the end of a petrol pump so you don't leave any in the hose

Yet, the first one is for health reasons rather than financial, and the third one is for safety, so that I'm not dripping petrol everywhere.

So, really, one of those.

I'm definitely not MSE.

Idiophreak

6/29 - I positively splash the cash!

I use vouchers.
I wouldn't mind walking if I could save money on parking.
I always shop around online to get the best prices.
I always shake the end of the fuel pump - although mainly so I'm not covered in fuel.
I sometimes drive slowly home to save a couple of quid in fuel.
I've probably been guilty of buying the last round on occasion to save a few quid if things are tight...but it probably evens out over time, anyway...

Goldiegirl

I've done six of them.

Some of the ones on the list are a bit obsessive IMO

VfM4meplse

PasturesNew wrote: »

Not tight - not having money in the first place doesn't make people tight.

1. Saving coupons / using vouchers. Never bother/it's a marketing ploy to get me to buy stuff that's more expensive than the cheaper brands I currently buy.
2. Making your own lunches to take to work Always done that as could never afford to buy shop food for lunch.
3. Only boiling enough water for cups of tea and coffee you're making. Why'd you boil more? It takes longer too.
4. Parking on a road further away from the shops so you don't have to pay. Naturally - always do this. Can't afford to park AND windowshop/perchance to spend £2-3 in the shops.
5. Refusing to leave a tip. Never leave a tip. I don't get "service" when I eat out. I get the menu, the food, the bill.
6. Only heating rooms you use. Not even those sometimes. Why'd anybody heat rooms they aren't using/in? I don't even heat the bathroom as I'm not in there much/long.
7. Using internet/phone apps to find cheapest place to buy items. No posh phone, no apps. But I do use the Internet to find the cheapest places to buy things.
8. Shaking the end of a petrol pump so you don't leave any in the hose. Yep. Apart from anything else it stops it dripping down the car or on your shoes/blouse.
9. Saving used wrapping paper to re-wrap presents. I rarely give presents, be grateful I [a] bothered it's in an Asda bag.
10. Driving slower to preserve petrol. Yes, why throw it away?
11. Keeping/reusing old cartons/ jam jars etc. / cereal boxes. Yes - you never know when it'll come in handy.
12. Used a calculator (or phone) on my calculator in a restaurant to work out the bill. That's not tight - I do it in my head but that's to stop GREEDY BUGG4HS leeching and expecting ME to pay half THEIR king prawn, wine and desserts cost when I've had a simple main meal.
13. Scrabbling on the floor for a dropped penny coin. If it's easy, no scrabbling... unless it's £1. I'll knock you over for £1.
14. Sharing bath water/ having a shower rather than a bath. Not wealthy enough to live in a place large enough to have a bath. And, nobody to share with.
15. Not contributing to a colleague's birthday present. Not relevant; no colleagues. Never worked where there was a whip round for a birthday present.
16. Filling up the car with half a tank of petrol as it's economical. Sometimes.
17. Save dish/ bath water to use on the garden. Rarely had a garden - wouldn't do that as it'd spill/drip everywhere and the soap's not good.
18. Making birthday cards/ presents. No. I am not a gift-giver as a rule.
19. Sneaking your own bottle of wine into the theatre / pub Never been to a threatre. Never done it in a pub.
20. Posting parcels/ Christmas/ Birthday cards through work. No, that'd be thieft.
21. Re-using teabags. No, don't drink tea.
22. Returned clothes I have worn. No.
23. Demanding 5p or 10p change from the person you sent to buy your lunch. No
24. Keeping cling-film to use again. No, don't use clingfilm. I do keep/reuse foil as many times as I can when it's lined the baking tray.
25. Buying the last round in a large group safe in the knowledge you won't have to get a second one in. No - I try to avoid rounds as they favour men, people who aren't driving and alcoholics. I pay for my own drinks, costing me £3/evening.
26. Asking for petrol money on a journey you would be doing anyway. Not relevant, never give lifts, don't know anybody. But, I'd not ask for money.
27. Leaving the pub before it's your turn to buy a round. No, again, I avoid rounds for the reasons given above.
28. Saying ' I don't want to break into a twenty' so someone else says I'll get these' Not relevant.
29. Rounding up people's change in your favour. No

Kudos to you PN. Your comment about #12 hit home, not so long ago I was stung by this from "friends" that ordered the most expensive items on the menu, had 3 generous courses when I had a starter-sized salad and a coffee and then expected me to pay for equal shares of the meal. Apart from the cost I'm a staunch veggie and resented having to pay up for hunks of charred flesh. A stupid stunt and not worth risking a friendship over.

I will confess I always take my own goodies (translates into chocolate and satsumas ) into the theatre. Wouldn't do it in a pub though.

BitterAndTwisted

Some of the things on that list are just plain meanness, which has nothing to do with being frugal, skint or not wanting to waste what little money we do have.

A calculator at the restaurant table? Being excluded from further invitations is a real moneysaver!

MrsRogers

I do 12 of them :j

Idiophreak

kboss2010 wrote: »

10. Driving slower to preserve petrol - does this actually work?

Depends how fast you drive in the first place

PasturesNew wrote: »

I try to avoid rounds as they favour men, people who aren't driving and alcoholics.

How do they favour men?

I've always found quite the opposite...men drink pints (£3.50). Women drink cocktails (£7). Or wine (£5). Or spritzers (£4.50).

I'll go out with the lads for drinks, I can't afford to go out with the ladies!

want_to_save

How far do you go to save money? The 'tight tactics' employed by money-saving Britain: - these are the ones we utilise

1. Saving coupons / using vouchers - Yep

2. Making your own lunches to take to work - always i have crohns and i need to know whats in my lunch and where its come from

3. Only boiling enough water for cups of tea and coffee you're making - yep but thats greener as opposed to anything else

7. Using internet/phone apps to find cheapest place to buy items

14. Sharing bath water/ having a shower rather than a bath - always done this tho

15. Not contributing to a colleague's birthday present - unless its a big birthday and they are a friend then i do this

21. Re-using teabags - only cos i have really weak tea so its a waste if i dont reuse them once