I woke up £344 worse off - welcome to Awful April
1 April 2025, 14:01
LBC’s Will Guyatt says Awful April is real.
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Yeah - I know I’m LBC’s tech guy, but I’m one of many scratching their heads and wondering how the hell Awful April is able to happen - even though I understand how it happens.
I hadn’t even considered the concept of Awful April until I found myself waiting to join Ian Payne on-air just after 6am on Tuesday, 1st April. He was talking about the fact EVERYTHING was set to go up in price. Before I’d even got on-air, I had calculated on the back of a water bill that I’d be at least £300 worse off on monthly bills, while simply attempting to stand still.
With a few more pre-breakfast calculations, I settled at £344 - and rather than see improvement for any of those services, my broadband is slowing and we’re about to lose one of our two monthly bin collections.
When it comes to my individual numbers, there’s a chunky council tax jump and the cost of electricity will sting too - because we run two electric cars, all in the name of saving the planet.
Then there’s an increase for mobile phones, home broadband, car tax for electric cars that were previously exempt, and even the TV license is going up. I’m intentionally ignoring the increase for my subscription TV package, as that’s a luxury I will likely do without in the future.
There’s a special place in hell this April for Thames Water who just increased my annual bill by 26% and declined to mention chronic mismanagement as a reason for this rise in their recent letter. As the first house on our street billed by them, I’d much rather take the 5% increase Wessex Water gave my neighbours.
So - why should you care about me? You shouldn’t - my early appearances with Ian Payne will keep me covered, and I could burn an arcade machine on the fire if times were tough, but I fear for those I know who already live below or close to the poverty line, where even an “average” Awful April increase of £50 a month could be crippling.
You simply can’t get a better offer or deal on many of these bills, and your phone and broadband are certainly not luxuries in 2025.
Many will grin and bear these increases, but will feel the impact on their lives, with more of their hard earned money eaten up by simply existing. These are people who spend their cash wisely and certainly don’t have streaming services or regular nights out. The flat screen tv on their wall is far from a sign of largesse or excess in 2025 either.
How will this end?
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Will Guyatt is Technology Correspondent for LBC.
LBC Opinion provides a platform for diverse opinions on current affairs and matters of public interest.
The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official LBC position.
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