The plans we quietly stop reviewing

You may have a few subscription payments going out of your bank account that you haven’t properly thought about in months. Maybe you’re paying for extra cloud storage for files you probably could have cleared out, or an app that you used to use but haven’t looked at in a while. It’s not that you’ve decided to keep these things, it’s just that you haven’t yet got around to cancelling them.

It’s an example of financial drift, where things we set up in different times continue to follow us through our lives, even as our circumstances and needs change. Sometimes it’s bigger-ticket things like insurance policies that were taken out and not reviewed, but it can be as simple as a couple of dollars a month you spend subscribing to a podcast you no longer listen to.

It started with good intentions

Financial drift is a very common, very human thing. It’s not a failure or a sign you’re bad at money, but just what happens when life gets busy. The great thing about automating your money life is that it can carry on without you having to be hands-on all the time. But this is the other side of that, where sometimes things continue when they probably could have been reviewed. They’ve slipped down the list somewhere in the middle of juggling work, managing family commitments and trying to sneak in some time for yourself.

The repayment you set up when things were different

A personal loan you took out a couple of years ago when interest rates were different. A vehicle loan you agreed to before you had a pay rise. Maybe just repayments that you agreed to when money was a little tighter than it is now.

It’s often the case that we set up loan repayments and then don’t check in on them again for a while. Sometimes, circumstances can change, or there may be new options available that are worth considering, but we don’t always get time to check whether our loans are keeping up with those changes. Again, it’s not necessarily a problem but if you haven’t had a chance to look at whether your loans and other financial commitments are still serving you as best they could, now could be a good time to do it. 

There is a difference between a financial arrangement that’s really working for you, and one that’s just still going because it hasn’t been changed. It might not take much to check which camp yours falls into.

Insurance: Right for then, right for now?

The same goes for insurance. If you’ve taken out life cover, or other sorts of personal insurance, or you have insurance for your house, contents and vehicle, it can often be a good idea to review the policies regularly. Are you still covering the right things, and do you have the protection you need?

This is particularly the case when you hit key life milestones, like moving house, paying off debt, having kids or having them leave home. If you have income protection policies that you took out while you were working a different sort of job, or a contents insurance policy set up for when you were living in a different house, you may benefit from updating them.

Reviewing insurance from time to time helps you make the most of it and to check that it’s still appropriate for your circumstances. Another key aspect of regularly reviewing insurance is that it helps you to know when you could expect to be able to make a claim. It can be disappointing to claim and find you’re not covered – and equally it would be a shame to miss out on a claim that you might have been able to make, because you didn’t realise.

Subscriptions that hang around longer than the reason you signed up

It can be easy to forget about subscriptions, particularly the ones that don’t bill you as regularly. Research has shown New Zealanders spend millions of dollars a year on subscription services. They can be a great way to ensure you get everything from your pet food to your toothbrush turning up when you want it, as well as having access to the content you want on TV and online. But if you haven’t had a look at what you’re paying for lately, it might be worth doing.

What a quick look can turn up

You don’t have to spend a lot of time on a check-up. As little as 20 minutes could be enough to check through your bank statements and identify regular payments. From there, you can give some thought to whether they’re still serving you, whether they need adjusting, or whether a change could give you something that’s a better fit.

As with lots of things in life, the little things we do regularly can make a big difference over the long term. Now might be a good chance to make sure yours are all adding up in a way that works for you, now and into the future.

If anything in here felt familiar, it might be worth a conversation. We're here to help you take a look - no pressure, just a starting point.

Disclaimer: Please note that the content provided in this article is intended as an overview and as general information only. While care is taken to ensure accuracy and reliability, the information provided is subject to continuous change and may not reflect current developments or address your situation. Before making any decisions based on the information provided in this article, please use your discretion and seek independent guidance.