Bills, eggs and counting costs

The BBC Scotland news website asked three readers to keep a diary of their living costs across a week.

The panel recorded their spending over last week and let us know their thoughts on how costs are affecting their lives.

Daniel Donaldson, 28, is a graduate waiting to start full-time work who lives in Edinburgh. Anne Thomson, 41, lives with her partner and children on South Uist and works as a money adviser. Stuart Chandler, 46, is unemployed and lives with his two sons in Clydebank.

COST OF LIVING DIARY - DANIEL DONALDSON

Introduction: Daniel Donaldson
"Money is really tight now"

SATURDAY 19 JULY

Going to Glasgow so I to get the train:

Local bus return fare - £2.50
Cheap day return - £9.80
Sandwich and juice - £2.99

Put in a phone call to utility supplier to ask: "Where are my bills?"

A new lodger arrives from the foreign language school.

SUNDAY 20 JULY

The 'Big Shop' time - off to the local supermarket.

Got in the food for the next week/two weeks - £60.59

Milk has gone up by 19p (that's about an 18% rise). I'm now buying the bigger bottle. My usual brand of bread is up by 10p (that's about a 12% rise). I'm switching to own brands. It now appears that a small clementine costs 20p (I don't think I'll be buying these anymore). A bag of grapes is now at £4.99, but was reduced to £2.49 as no-one seems to be buying them (that would work out at about 15p per grape I think). Eggs are too expensive now. I'm switching to the battery ones, I usually go for free range, but can't seem to afford this anymore. Poor chickens!

There appears to have materialised a 20p increase in my cereal. Even the own band is up too! I am now buying more and more from the supermarket's own brand. Including lasagne, mince meat, orange juice, tomatoes, tuna, rice and pizza. I'll get creative with cooking. Most own brands have a slightly different taste but it's still food and cheaper than those advertised on TV.

I was accosted by someone from a major UK energy supplier. They tried to convince me that they were the cheapest on the market for gas and electricity. I know better than to listen to someone's patter, they are all the same to me these days. She explained to me how I could get £50 if I switched today. I would not see the money for more than a year, by which time prices would have gone up again.

I don't have a car. I worked out that it was cheaper to get a cab than use the delivery service.

Taxi home from supermarket - £4.00
Lunch with a friend - £9.09

MONDAY 21 JULY

Bus into Town - £2.50
Thank you card - £2.99
Book of 1st Class stamps - £2.16
Bottle of Cola - £1.10
Chocolate bar £0.55

TUESDAY 22 JULY

Bus into Town - £2.50
Postcard - £0.60p
Unauthorised bank overdraft - £28
Friends over for dinner, it's cheaper than going out - £11.88

WEDNESDAY 23 JULY

My mum comes over to help fix the garden:

Bark and mulch - £30 - this goes on the Credit Card
Plants - £7.99

Groceries - £5.41

THURSDAY 24 JULY

Bus into town - £2.50
Recorded delivery postage - £1.59

FRIDAY 25 JULY

Bus - £2.50
Bus - £1.10
Store card repayment in full - £105.57

Utility bills arrive:

Gas - period 5 February to 21 July 2008 - £214.84 (I owe them £94.44 as I had been paying by Direct debit). The Direct Debit will be increasing to £42 per month from 1 September.

Electricity - period 29 October to 21 July 2008 - £139 (They owe me £1 as I had been paying by Direct Debit, small mercies eh!)

Virgin Media - £30 per month

Mobile phone - £32 per month

Final thoughts: Daniel Donaldson
"It's like I'm running on vapour"

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COST OF LIVING DIARY - ANNE THOMSON

Introduction: Anne Thomson
"Island living can be difficult"

SATURDAY 19 JULY

We didn't buy eggs as we're looking after our neighbour's chickens this week, but would normally pay about £3 for a dozen.

The electricity tokens - £20 - last more than a week in the summer, but in the winter we use twice as much.

Our food and household shop came to:

1L pure orange juice - £2.07
1L cloudy apple juice - £1.25
Co-op wee apple juice x3 - £1.16
Milk 2L semi - £1.52
Milk 2L semi - £1.52
Milk 4pint whole - £1.56
Milk 4pint whole - £1.56
Yogurt - £1.75
6 brown rolls - £1.47
Brown loaf - £1.42
Brown loaf - £1.42
Flatbread - £1.55
Nan bread - £1.79
Baked beans 4 pack - £2.31
Tin evap milk - £0.59
Co-op chocolate biscuits - £0.84
Co-op chocolate biscuits - £0.84
Cookies - £1.15
Crisps - £1.77
Sugar 1kg - £0.89
Tea direct 80 bags - £2.32
Heinz organic ketchup - £2.25
Choco snaps cereal - £1.75
Cornflakes - £1.75
Weetbix cereal - £1.77
Scottish cheddar - £2.05
Parmesan wedge - £2.12
Mini edam - £1.59
Co-op wholewheat spaghetti - £0.89
Co-op sliced turkey - £2.39
Co-op sliced ham - £1.99
Sausage rolls - £1.69
500g mince - £2.99
Chicken thighs 6 - £2.39
Chicken breasts 2 - £2.99
Whole Chicken - £4.02
Pork - £3.80
Bacon - £2.79
Jar white lasagne sauce - £1.55
Jar peanut butter - £1.49
Gravy granules - £1.49
Stock cubes - £1.25
Co-op complete dog food - £3.29
Kitchen towels - £1.99
Cream cleaner - £1.05
Marigold gloves - £1.35
Mushrooms - £0.89
Vine tomatoes - £1.59
Cherry tomatoes - £1.99
Half cucumber - £0.33
Onions - £0.43
Red peppers - £1.27
Mandarins - £0.64
Bananas - £2.72
Celery - £0.89
Grapes - £1.06
Apples - £1.95

TOTAL - £97.75

Electricity tokens £20

Diesel 146.8p/L £30

SUNDAY 20 JULY

We went swimming with the two boys, the youngest gets in free.

We have a book of 10 swim tickets, it is £21.60 for 10 adult swims and £10.80 for 10 child swims. Pete's monthly gym/swim ticket costs £25. Without the books of tickets, normally swimming costs:

1 adult swim - £2.70
1 child swim - £1.35

TOTAL - £4.05

MONDAY 21 JULY

A few bits of shopping and bus fares:

6 brown rolls - £1.47
Passata 500g - £0.65
Yogurt - £0.46
Tropical fish food - £2.08
Frozen veg - £2.62
Milk 2L semi - £1.52

TOTAL - £8.80

Bus fares to work - £2.00

TUESDAY 22 JULY

Pete's teenage daughter arrives from Inverness by plane for holidays.

The Air Discount Scheme covers islanders and their children - giving up to 40% off.

When the scheme started a few years ago, the standard fare was about £100 single Benbecula to Inverness, so you could book flights for about £60 and we used it several times a year. Currently the discounted fare is £95 each way - almost back to the original non-discount rate, and not surprisingly, we rarely use the service now.

On a Tuesday we usually get coal - 50kg can last us almost a week in the summer, but we use at least twice that in wintertime.

Flight - Inverness to Benbecula - £95
50kg bag coal - £14.10
Bus fares to work - £2.00

TOTAL - £126.10

WEDNESDAY 23 JULY

We went swimming again with the three kids this time i.e. used up one adult and two child tickets.

Paid for son's canoeing class.

On groceries we spent:

Meringues - £1.45
Cream - £0.99
Blackberries - £1.99
Raspberries - £1.99
Frozen veg - £1.39
Yogurts - £2.98
Yogurt - £1.75
Chocoalte biscuits - £0.84
Cookies - £1.15
Fish fingers - £1.99
Fish - £3.99
Milk 2L semi - £1.52
Milk 2L semi - £1.52
Milk 4 pint whole - £1.56
Hard butter - £1.39
Soft butter - £2.15
Cream cheese - £1.59
Brown loaf - £1.42
6 sesame rolls - £1.51
6 brown rolls - £1.47
Organic brown rice 500g - £1.39
Crisps - £1.77
Frozen pastry - £2.35
1L pure orange juice - £2.07
1L cloudy apple juice - £1.25
Cucumber - £0.60
Celery - £0.87
Bananas - £1.66
Cherries - £1.99
Coleslaw - £1.09
Jam - £1.99
Chocolate - £1.49
Onion bhajis + samosas - £2.54
Shower gel - £1.63
Washing powder - £2.29
Toilet roll 4 pack - £1.99

TOTAL - £61.93

Canoeing - £11.00

Petrol for cutting grass 128.9p/L - £7.44

THURSDAY 24 JULY

We topped up our mobile - £15 which will last us about a month.

FRIDAY 25 JULY

It was a local holiday, so a day off work. We went for a walk and took the family out for lunch at the museum café, good food, very reasonable.

Lunch for five - £16.60
Newspapers + comics - £4.50
Top up for daughters phone - £5.00

TOTAL - £26.10

WEEKLY SPEND

For the week - I make it that our spending came to:

Food + household - £168
Leisure (eating out , swimming etc) - £35
Fuel - car - £30
Heating and electric - £35
Bus fares - £6
Papers + comics - £5

OVERALL TOTAL - £279

Final thoughts: Anne Thomson
"Winter costs are now a worry"

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COST OF LIVING DIARY - STUART CHANDLER

Introduction: Stuart Chandler
"Everyone is affected by rises"

SATURDAY 19 JULY

I spent nothing on food, drink, groceries, other household goods, going out, or fuel today.

I would normally buy a take away meal so this was a saving of £25.00.

SUNDAY 20 JULY

I spent nothing.

MONDAY 21 JULY

Food, drink, groceries and other household goods - £4.86 (Co-op)

TUESDAY 22 JULY

Groceries - £47.71 (Asda, Lidl, Aldi)

Fuel - £30.50 … just under half a tank!!!!

WEDNESDAY 23 JULY

My round in the local - £9.59 … thank god I don't have too many friends.

THURSDAY 24 JULY

Groceries - £9.55 (Co-op)

FRIDAY 25 JULY

Groceries - £1.25 (Lidl)

Final thoughts: Stuart Chandler
"The price of fuel is pivotal"

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