Guilty pleasures - drinking

Everyone has guilty pleasures, often so named because of the disproportionate effect they can have on your finances. There's nothing wrong with any of these guilty pleasures in moderation, but with small changes to your habits you can make huge changes to your bank balance.

For today's guilty pleasure we'll be looking at drinking.


Down the hatch
Regardless of whether you think it's a good thing or a bad thing, there's no denying that drinking is an expensive habit. Alcohol is becoming increasingly expensive, particularly following the minimum price per unit imposed in the UK markets.

The most effective way of saving money would be to stop drinking entirely, but realistically most people enjoy a drink. For the most part, this article will look at keeping things in moderation.

If you feel that alcohol is becoming a problem for you, or you are concerned about the drinking of a family member or friend, you can call Drinkline -the national alcohol helpline. It is a free and confidential service that is available 24 hours a day at 0800 917 8282. Additionally or alternatively, consider visiting Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and DrinkAware.co.uk.

Pennysitter is all about saving money: there are plenty of other websites, as mentioned above, that deal with other aspects of drinking. You don't have to stop to save money: in fact, even the smallest change to your habit can have a massive impact on your long-term savings. The following example illustrates the effect that drinking just one fewer pint a week can have on your income.

• Example:
• 1 fewer pint per week (average: 2.50 each)= 52 fewer pints per year. 
• 52 fewer pints = big savings (average: 130 per year).

For a more accurate estimate of how much you are spending on pints, take a note of the price at your local pub or the typical supermarket price. 

It's always worth keeping a diary of how much alcohol you drink. Even if you don't wish to stop or cut down, it is still useful to have this awareness, and nobody has to see it.


Bargaining
You can still save money by seeing alcohol as a form of currency in negotiations with yourself.By making yourself choose between two things you want, you are still going to save money in one way or another.

No matter what you're doing to cut your daily spend, bear in mind that every pound saved means £365 a year that you can keep as financial security or for treating yourself at the end of the year.


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N.B. If you're trying to stop drinking or cut down, make sure you're doing so safely. Any reduction in the amount of alcohol you are drinking must be gradual, otherwise you could suffer severe side effects from withdrawal. To find out how to cut down safely and to find links to other support organizations, visit NHS Alcohol Support.