One in three Australians cracking down on 'useless' subscriptions

The subscription economy has spread across almost everything from streaming TV and movies to home-cooked meals and even toilet paper and underwear.

One in three Australians say they are now cracking down on useless subscriptions, saving hundreds of dollars in the process.

Products that were previously bought once are now being bundled into ongoing payments – a trap, according to budgeting experts.

“It’s absolutely a trap,” Joel Gibson, author of Easy Money, said.

“Businesses love subscription models because once they’ve got your bank account details, they know they’ve got their hand in your back pocket and many of us will just keep on paying whether we use the service or not.”

Man people, like Joshua Vanderleest, are now fighting back. 

He’s dumping as many subscriptions as possible and “definitely noticing a difference”.

He said that cancelling most subscriptions was easy if you knew what you were doing.

“Some are fairly straightforward, but you have to know that you’re subscribed to them to cancel them,” he said.

And there’s money to be saved.

NAB data shows Aussies who cut back on subscriptions tend to save $56 per month, upwards of $670 per year.

“It used to be really hard to keep track of all of the things you’ve signed up for,” NAB’s everyday banking experience executive Kylie Young said.

“Technology has certainly made that easier. All banks will now have some form of spending insights feature.

“We know ourselves, that 1.5 million NAB customers have used that feature in the last year. That’s up 62 per cent.”

Many businesses are moving toward subscriptions.

In some cars, if you don’t pay a monthly fee your seat warmers won’t work, and the same situation even extends to some security cameras. 

It’s set to continue, so consumers are being told they need to be careful.

“The subscription economy is not going anywhere,” Gibson said.

“It makes money while the business owner sleeps, so we have to get used to it. 

“It’s unfortunately now on us to make sure we’re getting value from our subscriptions.”