Consumer Corner: It’s not too late for a financial refresh — here's where to start

Here's what should be on your to-do list for a 2023 financial refresh

Our finances are well and truly in focus this year. A cost of living crisis will do that and certainly force us to take a good hard look at our spending. 

January is always a busy month and now that our first pay cheque of the year has landed it is time to regroup on finances. Up until now many people will be suffering from Christmas overspend so early January is a great time for some financial wellness.

Here are some things to focus on for 2023 to ensure you have a successful year financially.

Let’s start with budgeting. Budgeting may be boring but it can be very beneficial. Kevin Johnson, CEO of the Credit Union Development Association (CUDA) advises people to jot down all their expenses for a month and then set aside time to go through what you have spent, highlighting items of expenditure that you could cut down on or avoid entirely.

“Separate the expenses on your list into compulsory vs discretionary spending. Over time, you will see where improvements can be made such as taking the bus to work rather than driving or, batch-cooking meals.

“An extra tip when budgeting is the idea of the 50-30-20 rule in which you separate your expenses into three categories. 50% for needs, 30% for wants and 20% for savings.”

Next up, it's tax. Tax doesn’t have to be a negative thing all the time. We pay a lot of taxes each year but don’t forget we can claim a lot of tax back too.

Marian Ryan, Consumer Tax Manager, Taxback.com said it is a common misconception that you can only claim tax refunds for the previous tax year but this is not the case.

“You can claim back any of the taxes mentioned for the past four years back to 2019 so, don’t miss out,” she said.

So what can you claim? You can claim money back on doctor’s visits you’ve had or prescriptions you’ve collected, no matter what the cost. You can claim 20% of what you paid and you can also claim relief for non-routine dental care such as crowns or root canal to name but a few. People working from home can claim the e-worker relief refund to cut the costs of electricity, heat, and broadband by 30%.

“This refund is apportioned based on the number of days worked from home over the past year and is individually assessed so, if you have two people working from home, both people can claim this refund themselves,” said Ms Ryan.

You can also claim income tax relief on nursing home expenses covered by you and not by the HSE. If you have been married or divorced, these significant changes to your situation also entitle you to a tax refund. And if you are a widowed person there are credits you are eligible for too.

In Budget 2023, the renters tax credit was introduced which means that anyone paying rent in a private property last year is eligible for a refund of €500 per person or €1000 if you are a married couple. 

Another refund many people are entitled to is the flat rate expense which is tax relief based on your occupation. With over 180 different occupations entitled to this refund, it is definitely worth checking out.

“An added bonus to this tax refund is that you don’t need to claim it year on year. Once you register for this relief, Revenue will pay it to you until such time when your job title change,” said Ms Ryan.

Next on your to-do list for a 2023 financial refresh is looking at switching.

When the cost of living crisis first hit the headlines, people were advised to immediately look at making savings by switching energy providers. 

However, many people will have got deals for 12 months and that contract could well be approaching expiry. It is very important to look now to see if you need to switch it up again.

According to Bonkers.ie, in 2021 there were over 35 price hike announcements from all the energy suppliers in Ireland. And the trend continued into last year with Bord Gáis Energy, Electric Ireland, SSE Airtricity and Flogas among some of the suppliers to announce a series of massive price hikes over the past few months.

Darragh Cassidy of Bonker.is said that on average, this means households are looking at paying around €2,000 a year more for their gas and electricity than they were a year or so ago.

“If you’re concerned about rising energy prices then the only way to lessen them is to switch supplier. Despite the rising prices, there is still competition among energy suppliers in Ireland for new customers right now and some are offering big discounts for an entire year to those who switch,” he said.

For example, the average switcher could save around €400 a year just by changing supplier which would help offset some of the recent price hikes, according to Bonkers.ie.