MILLIONS of Irish people are set to see major money changes come in during the month of February as costs continue to rise.
February is expected to see the price of everyday needs hit new highs, as well as weekend treats increasing in costs.
While the cost to put your bins out, insurance hikes and pint prices are on the rise, there are also a number of cuts hitting next month.
Here are six major money changes heading to thousands of accounts as major updates are made.
PINT PRICES
The price of a pint is set to rise by as much as 30 cent, in a blow to both pubs and punters alike.
Guinness owners Diageo told publicans of the increase to products, the fourth in the last two years.
Guinness, Harp, Smithwicks and Hop House 13 will all see prices rise as the price of those draught kegs by 6c per pint on February 3.
Guinness 0.0 will meanwhile be raised by 9c per pint.
Due to VAT, duty and pub margins added, punters could see prices rise by up to 30c in their local.
According to Drinks Industry Ireland, Dublin prices could now hit new highs of over €7 for a pint of the black stuff.
BIN PRICES
Some 300,000 homes in Dublin are set to see a major increase in the cost of putting their bins out.
Panda Recycling will be raising the price of bin collection above inflation rates.
Those in north Co Dublin have been told that Panda will hike up their half-yearly service charge, the general waste per-lift charge, and the recycling per-lift charge.
The new prices come into effect next Saturday.
From February 1, the half yearly service charge will go from €67.50 to €70.
The price of waste per lift will go from €11.75 to €13.50, while the recycling per lift will increase from €1 to €1.25
The overall charge for customers will now be roughly an extra €20 per year, according to Panda.
There are fears other parts of the country will follow as Wicklow, Meath, Cork, Galway, and Wexford could soon see the same.
VHI PRICE HIKE
VHI has also announced a major price hike as its yearly healthcare plans cost is set to rise by seven per cent.
The firm said the price rise “is necessary to meet the healthcare needs of members as claims volumes have risen by more than 20 per cent in 2023 and inflation has had a significant impact on the cost of delivering healthcare”.
VHI hiked its premiums twice in the past year – by 4.8 per cent in March and then again by seven per cent in October – after reducing prices by three per cent in 2022.
However, customers will still have time to shop around for new rates as this rise won’t come in until March 1.
ELECTRICITY CREDIT
It was announced as part of Budget 2025 that every household in Ireland would be receiving two lump sums towards their electricity.
This payment is automatically applied to your energy bill in the form of two €250 amounts.
The first payment was made in the last few weeks of 2024.
The next lump sum amount will be paid out to Irish customers before the end of February.
ECB INTEREST RATES CUT
The ECB cut interest rates for the fourth time this year.
The lending rate that the ECB charges banks will now fall by 0.25 percentage points, which will directly benefit an estimated 130,000 tracker mortgage customers across Ireland.
Each reduction in the ECB’s refinancing rate reduces repayments by €13 a month for every €100,000 owed on a tracker.
And the move will pile pressure on mortgage lenders here to reduce new fixed and variable rates.
On top of this, lower ECB rates should make mortgages for new buyers cheaper.
Average new mortgage rates in Ireland are currently 4.03 per cent, which is the sixth highest in the euro zone according to the Central Bank.
The latest cut is the fourth reduction we have seen this year since the ECB increased rates 10 times up to September last year.
BANKING CHANGES
A number of banking changes were made in late January, with customers starting to see the changes throughout February.
On January 23, AIB slashed their saving and deposit rates.
They have reduced the rate on two of their fixed-term deposit accounts by 0.25 per cent.
AIB have also reduced the minimum amount required to open one of its fixed-term accounts to €5,000, down from €15,000.
And last week PTSB began offering 2 per cent cashback on monthly mortgage repayments to their existing mortgage customers.
The move could see customers receive €30 back a month on a monthly mortgage repayment of €1,500.
And it will be available until 2030.
