In the current environment many people are finding themselves in financial hardship or struggling to pay their bills. The change in the weather, and many of us being at home more often, means that our normal home costs for heating and electricity may skyrocket and we can expect big surprises coming up for our next utilities bill. Kids studying at home or home becoming your office place can put a lot of strain on the family as well as running utilities all day long during peak hours and continue into the evening.
You may still owe money for a previous bill and worried about the increased usage of your next bill. You may have now gone onto a job seeker payment and found yourself with a health care card. The South Australian Government offers some of the most generous help and concessions on electricity, water and cost of living assistance. Being on Job Seeker or Job Keeper means that you may qualify for many concessions that are there to assist South Australians in managing their cost of living pressures.
Your utilities provider can help you if you are in hardship by organising a hardship payment plan or rather than receiving one large bill each quarter can calculate your usage and spread the payments. This can help you to manage as you go. The Federal and SA government has been actively pursuing the utilities providers for fair response for people in hardship and has concessions for those most vulnerable.
If you have trouble communicating with your utilities company or in finding a manageable solution for your situation you should speak to a financial counsellor. A financial counsellor is free, independent and there to support and assist you in managing the cost of living. They can be your advocate in dealing with debt companies or utility providers and will be able to provide you with the options available to you to support you through this period and getting you back on track for the future.
See Concessions on the Affordable SA app and website to see if you quantify for any SA Government assistance or ring the concessionsSA hotline on 1800 307 758. You can find more information about utilities help on the link below. You can also learn more abut utilities and find ways to help you reduce your utilities costs at ConnectED. These services are still operating during the COVID19 crisis online or by phone.
If you find yourself working from home for work remember to keep track of the hours and utilities usage as these may be useful for any tax benefits available for some of these costs.
Watch the video from Karyn from Moneycare, your personal financial counsellor, to find out more about Utilities help and financial counselling available in SA. To find a Moneycare Financial Counsellor ring 1800 722 363 or the Affordable SA Helpline on 1800 025 539
by Graeme