How do you budget for your car?

Summer69

Hey,

I would be interested to hear how other people budget for your cars. Do you pay your insurance in monthly instalments or annually, and if annually do you put it on a credit card etc?

I put aside money each month into my car savings fund. This pays for tax, MOT and service ( I have a service plan with Vauxhall of £15.99 a month which covers all my MOTs and Services plus basic parts.) and I usually have enough left over to pay for any other work required, accessories (just bought new car mats) etc.

When I do my monthly budget I allow enough for a full tank of petrol ( I use under a full tank for commuting, general driving for food shopping etc.) and one car wash.

How about you?

Gloomendoom

We don't. We just pay the bills when they come in.

Ultrasonic

Summer69 wrote: »

Do you pay your insurance in monthly instalments or annually, and if annually do you put it on a credit card etc?

Annually, since this is almost always cheaper. (If it cost the same I would pay monthly.) Whether I pay on a credit card or not depends if the insurance company charges a fee to use a credit card (some do), and either way it would be a card I pay off the balance on by the end of the month. If I had a 0% interest card it would make sense to put it on that.

As for budgeting/saving, I'm lucky enough to be able to to save a fair amount every month, but I don't earmark savings for particular things. I'm generally saving to buy a house, but if my car needed repairs the money would come from the same place.

Ultrasonic

Oh, and if you're trying to save money stop paying for a car wash and do it yourself . I'm far too tight to pay for a carwash...

paulsad

Monthly for insurance, panic when the MOT's due, ditto when the tax is due - usually goes on credit card
We have 2 here as we both work a good distance away in opposite directions and hours, was thinking of a motorbike for me but costs aren't that much different plus the bike would be more likely to get nicked/damaged whilst parked at my workplace not to mention I'd probably end up under an artic!

forgotmyname

If it costs more to pay for something monthly or in installments then it makes better sense to pay it in one go.

I started off by not getting a loan for a car. Only buying something i had the cash for. Then paying the tax and insurance in one go. That can save you a few £ a year.

I have a bill account all my direct debits go from and i put extra in to cover my ebay spends and yearly bills like the MOT servicing etc.

I remember that this is the bills and not for buying expensive items. I need to save extra for those.

Nodding_Donkey

I use the headless chicken approach.

Mind you I do all my own repairs and servicing which takes a lot of the sting out.

Summer69

Ultrasonic wrote: »

Oh, and if you're trying to save money stop paying for a car wash and do it yourself . I'm far too tight to pay for a carwash...

Lol I do try to but normal job plus overtime plus second job = not much time. Also my parking space is under a large tree so it needs cleaning often, esp in the summer. I used to take it to the car wash weekly so I am getting better lol

WantToBeSE

I just put money aside every month and pay the bills as and when they come in.

Ultrasonic

Summer69 wrote: »

Lol I do try to but normal job plus overtime plus second job = not much time. Also my parking space is under a large tree so it needs cleaning often, esp in the summer. I used to take it to the car wash weekly so I am getting better lol

To be fair my car is lucky if it gets washed once every three months!

thehappybutterfly

We put away £75 a month for insurance, road tax, breakdown cover and maintenance costs plus an additional £150 is spent each month on petrol. I hate unexpected bills!