How can you tell if you’re paying far too much for your bills? Well, taking a look at what others pay is one way. Read this Ismybillfair review to see how the site works and if it can help you save money.
Do you ever wonder if you pay too much for your bills? The problem is, chat with your friends and they will tell you a whole range of prices they pay. You might be paying £30 per month for broadband when your best friend could be paying £40. You think you have a bargain, only to find out that they have a quicker service with TV channels thrown in. The issue is, it becomes very difficult to compare like-for-like.
This is where ismybillfair steps in.
What is ismybillfair?
This site allows you to see how much, on average, other people pay for their household bills across the UK. And if you’re paying too much, you may be given a list of cheaper alternatives. The site is completely free to use.
ismybillfair is owned by Nineteen21 Limited, a British company based in London that was incorporated in 2017.
Taken from their website:
We’re all about fairness. We created ismybillfair to help people like you pay a fairer price for household bills without having to change provider (although we can help with that too if you want)
Some brands charge people different prices for the same service. We don’t think that’s fair. We believe customers should pay similar prices for similar services and we’re the only website in the UK able to make that happen.
Which bills are covered?
Currently, you can find out if you’re getting a good deal on
- Energy
- Car insurance
- Broadband
- Pay TV
- Mobile
How does ismybillfair work?
It’s a very simple process. Head over to the ismybillfair website and choose which bill you want to compare. You don’t need to create an account to do so.
Click on the bill you’re most interested in and you’ll be asked to provide some extra details. How much you need to provide does depend on the bill you’re checking. For example, energy companies charge different prices depending on location, so you must share your address.
This isn’t necessary with mobiles and if you’re checking out SIM-only deals, you will just need to input the number of free minutes, texts and data you receive. You will then have to put in how much you pay each month so ismybillfair can tell you how you compare to others.
It’s always preferable if you have a bill handy so that you can make sure that you have all the correct details.
You’ll then be provided with a snazzy graphic like the following.
As you can see, for my SIM-only contract, I pay £8.75 per month. On average, other Vodafone customers pay £16 per month, with the highest paying £20.
So, that’s great news for me and means that I don’t have to search for a new contract.
But, if after seeing the results you think you’re paying too much, ismybillfair gives you two options.
- If your current provider is a company that ismybillfair works with, they will contact them about the possibility of offering you a better deal. This can be online or over the phone.
- Or, if a new deal isn’t possible or you would prefer to switch, you can opt to change suppliers. If this is a change in energy companies, you will be directed to Octopus Energy. For other bills, you are sent to the comparison site Confused.com.
Also worth reading
How does ismybillfair make money?
So, how does the company make money if the site is free to use? Well, if you opt to switch providers to Octopus or one through the Confused website, ismybillfair will be paid a commission.
If you sign a new deal with your current provider, then ismybillfair may also receive a small commission from this.
Does ismybillfair save you money?
If you don’t keep a close eye on your bills, then there’s a good chance that you are already paying too much.
Using a comparison service like this will give you a good indicator of whether you’re paying a fair amount for your services. And if there are better deals out there, it is quite simple to follow the links and make a switch.
The downsides
So, is it all just positive? Not quite.
The site’s comparisons are limited to the data that’s provided by us, the customer and there’s nothing to verify whether it’s accurate or not. As far as I’m aware, nothing is stopping me from inputting that I pay just £1 per month for my SIM-only contract. If enough people do this, it could skew the figures and make everybody think they are paying too much.
And you could miss out on a decent switching bonus. Octopus Energy will credit your account £50 if you switch your energy provider by using a special referral link. Using a 3rd party site often means you lose out on the bonus but will still end up on the same tariff.
What other people say
When writing my reviews, I always like to take a look at what others think. On Trustpilot, ismybillfair scores an impressive 4.4 out of 5, with most users reporting that they were happy with the service. Some of the negative reviews point to users never hearing anything back after entering their details.
My ismybillfair review conclusion
This is certainly a site worth checking out. I’m not 100% convinced about how accurate the figures provided are, but it’s certainly a useful indicator. It’s also nice that they will either negotiate a better deal for you or point you toward finding a new provider.
But… there’s no reason you couldn’t search for better deals by yourself. In fact, I recommend you do so, even if you already pay less than your friends.
If you’re interested in saving money on energy but you think ismybillfair is too much hassle, take a look at Look After My Bills, which can do the whole process automatically for you.