Does The Unplanned Expense Catch You Off Financial Guard?
There was a commercial on television that showed a father on a bus with packages next to him. He talks about not being able to pay for car insurance due to unexpected events. It happens to be his daughter's birthday. Did he forget she was born and her birthday would come around every year? I know things can and do slip our minds, but it is baby girls' birthday. You cannot forget that! Both of these are very important things; so which one gets paid? Why not, both.
If you have a quarterly, semi-annual, or annual expense, do not wait until the bill is due to start planning the payment. You should plan for the expense throughout the year as companies do when they allocate funds. I would hope you have a budget in place, so that you can include the amount monthly whether for insurance or birthdays. Auto insurance is a great example of how you can execute this successfully. If your annual payment due is $1,000, you should allocate at least $85 a month to meet this financial obligation. Many people opt to pay for the bill monthly and incur a service fee of around $5.00. You know where I am going with this; paying $5.00 a month for 12 months is 60 extra dollars a year. For some, that is a tank of gas or a week's worth of groceries. You can opt for the automatic electronic transfer which may not incur a fee; however, you still need to budget for that expense. The payment will be deducted from your account on time without fail.
Whichever way you decide to pay, you need to plan for expenses expected or otherwise. So even if the bill is a surprise or unexpected, you can handle the payment. If you are paying monthly service fees, changing your method of payment can allow you to save within an already tight budget.
Happy Saving!