Question Expenses Twice

I took my car into the dealer for maintenance this morning, and it reminded me of an important cost-savings tactic I use: question expenses twice. By this I mean when you are getting ready to undertake a fairly major expense (such as a medical procedure, car repair, or home improvement), be sure you ask for a quote or even a written estimate, before you agree to purchase the goods or service. Then, when you receive your bill, double-check that it matches and question any discrepancies.

I didn’t always do this and often found myself frustrated when I received a bill that I thought was too high. At that point I could ask questions, but didn’t have much leverage. Eventually, I learned to question most expenses before they happened. This is sometimes a little uncomfortable, such as when I was scheduling oral surgery to remove my wisdom teeth. Uncomfortable or not, I asked what the expected cost would be. When I take my car into the dealer for any maintenance, I always ask them to break down the expected costs so I can make a good decision. I’ve learned to ask specific questions, like if there will be additional charges added (shop charges, disposal fees, etc.). This helps two ways: often, when they see that I am cautious with cost, they will offer a discount on some area of cost. I think it is actually a subtle form of negotiation. The second way it helps of course is that when I receive the bill, if there are any unpleasant surprises, I can go back to our original (hopefully written) list of costs. The last time I took my car in for scheduled maintenance, the bill came to $75 more than what I was quoted. I went back to the service advisor and asked (politely), and he promptly adjusted my bill, acknowledging that an error had been made. I am convinced that if I hadn’t asked before the service was performed, the bill would have been left with the extra $75. This morning I asked about the cost of the maintenance service I was considering, and the advisor knocked about $20 off the cost just because I asked.

Sometimes there are legitimate reasons why a cost my overrun the estimate, and that is OK as long as I understand what happened. When I had my wisdom teeth removed, the procedure became somewhat more complicated, with more surgery and less simple extraction and the bill ended up being about $200 higher than I was quoted. I didn’t question that bill because I understood what I was being charged for and why the cost had run higher.

FrugalBabe wrote recently about an unexpected medical bill she received for her husband’s surgery. It was unexpected because she had thoroughly researched what would be covered and how much, if any, her portion of the bill would be. In the end, she called and questioned the bill and it was resolved quickly, with no cost to her. I couldn’t help but think how this situation could have turned out differently if she hadn’t reviewed and researched the costs before her husband had the surgery.

The bottom line is this: sometimes by just questioning the cost of something, the other party will offer you a better price. And even if they don’t, when the bill does arrive and seems high to you, you’ll have much better leverage to fight the additional costs if you received a quote prior to having the work done.

Other Articles you might enjoy:

• Book Review: How to Live Well Without Owning a Car
• Book Review: How to Survive Without a Salary
• When What you Really Want Costs More: Is the Price Ratio Worth It?
• Defining Moments Part 2 - Stop the Impulse Buying

Tags: money management, saving, shopping, spending, thrift