Money Moral Dilemma: Should I share cashback on a shared bill with my housemates?

onlymeat_27

If you have done all the work and have the necessary proof to show them, then yes I would say you are entitled to keep the cashback. If the others cannot be bothered to put themselves out then why not, BUT, you are probably going to get a lot of stick. I'd say stand up to them if you are prepared for long silences!!

Pollycat

thorsoak wrote: »

Why would you not share with them? Were I your co-tenant, and I found out later that you had kept a cash-back to yourself, to "reward" your business acumen, then I would be looking for another flat-sharer.

This ^^^^.


Shame on you for even thinking about not sharing.

onwards&upwards

I wouldn’t feel any obligation, don’t even tell them about it.

For one thing, by the time the cash back actually clears and gets paid to you (if it ever does), you might not even be in that house anymore! It can take ages or get rejected for no reason quite frequently.

For another, having the bills in your name is a huge responsibility and risk. Loads of students before you have found it’s caused them problems in the past. You’ve used your own initiative and savviness to get yourself a perk and a bit of compo for being the one who is taking on the hassle and the risk. If it’s a 12 month tenancy that’s only £10 a month for your trouble, and it’s not like it’s their money, you aren’t taking it from them.

Next year, have one bill in each person’s name so you’re all on the hook!

DigForVictory

Why miss a chance to teach them about the joys of cash back sites & deals?

They may not know - be the nicer person & teach & share...
They may pass on this knowledge to their families & friends - start a virtuous cycle!

Cimscate

I assume the deal you got still benefits everyone without the cashback? If so then I'd keep it, if not share it.

KateRd

Of course you should - don’t even ask - if it was a £120 bill you’d certainly share that!

VikEw

Share it of course- even 'bank it' up in a kitty and have a night out at the end of the year- but it is not yours, it is everyone who pays the bill.

gaving7095

Wow this has actually somewhat divided opinions, for once :-)
As others have said, I would keep it as it could be handy if somebody fails to pay their share of any of the shared bills (which I'd be surprised if you've NOT taken responsibility for all of).
Also sorting out shared bills can be a real hassle, if it was me I could see myself feeling that I'd earned it. If a shared bill in your name goes unpaid for any reason the unpleasant debt-collection or credit rating ramifications will likely fall immediately upon just you.
I can honestly say as well that if I was one of the contributors I'd say "keep it" - provided you hadn't earned it by deliberately putting us all onto an expensive or bad deal.
I wouldn't pay for a party or night out with it because that, in my view, becomes the same as spending somebody else's money with a view to making yourself feel better.
My main consideration would probably be how high the chances are of one of the contributors finding out about it afterwards and the hell that would likely bring.

VT82

The broadband provider would have been able to offer a cheaper rate without the cashback. That's probably how the offer with the cashback came up when the OP (yeah yeah, I know!) looked through the best buy tables in the first place - because the 'equivalent monthly cost factoring in the cashback' came out cheapest.


The OP wouldn't have done anything clever to get the cashback. If the provider can offer a big cashback for a given monthly cost, the monthly cost without getting cashback must be a bad rate that only a fool would pay.


For that reason, I think the cashback is part of the cost, albeit a rebate on the cost, and morally belongs to everyone who pays the bill.

NaughtiusMaximus

neilmorgan wrote: »

This is a frequent problem for anyone trying to manage bills for a group of people. I totally agree about keeping it as a deposit but if any of the others find out before the end of contract they might still get upset. If you tell them they won't be too worried about paying the bill & rely on the "deposit"

Short of hacking your TCB/Quidco account how would they find out?

Agree with waiting until the end of the year, thinking back to my house sharing days there are some housemates I would have happily given an equal share too, others I wouldn't give a penny too.