How do you perceive it? Greed as in stuffing your face silly with food, or financial greed from the Utility Companies, Banks or private enterprise?
Bus fares rise because fewer people are using the service. Perhaps fewer people are using the service because they can no longer afford the fare. Eventually services are cut, buses no longer cover the same areas or instead of three buses a day, you get three buses a week. Who can work around that?
Most supermarkets do a home delivery service now, and if you spend more than a set amount, delivery is free, so why go shopping on the bus?
Councils introduced an additional charge for the collection of garden waste some years ago, yet the truck still had to go down the same road to empty one such bin when all other households did not partake in the scheme. Some people are starting to grow their own vegetables again and having a compost heap in their gardens. Incidentally, this charge has doubled in some areas, possibly through reduced demand.
British Gas announced a hike in their electricity prices of some 12½% this year.
Is it no wonder that customers are planning to move their accounts? In some instances though, existing customers may have to pay a penalty fee of up to £80 per supply (so for dual fuel that’s a whopping £160) to leave, which is putting many off and of course what British Gas is relying on. Read the small print dear friends.
We understand that British Gas is the supplier to our new property. Already I am checking out alternatives and can reduce the B.G. estimated usage for a 2-3 bedroom property by over £250 a year. I am a little out of touch with prices, but the example states 3100 kwh of electricity (we were only using 1800 kwh in the cottage which was a much bigger property and thus similar usage will naturally increase our savings) but for gas I have no current comparison and can only go by our costs back in 2007 which was about £400 a year.
I can get a fixed price deal for eighteen months paying much less than the gas company’s, so we will not be taking over the account when we move in.
Like supermarket price increases, people are voting with their feet to find alternatives, and leaving accounts, areas or suppliers in their droves.
If you give good service, people usually don’t mind paying a little extra, but charge extortion with nothing in return, and suddenly you are left with very little in the way of clientele and potential new customers will give you a wide berth thanks to comparison web sites and word of mouth. Customer loyalty is fast becoming a thing of the past due to rising prices, inflation, and no wage increases to compensate.
Greed should have an additional definition today :
Financial Suicide to those wishing to make a quick buck without thinking of the knock on effect.
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pensitivity101 
Hi Di – Having spent most of my working life in various areas of Purchasing, and 30 years (prior to retiring) in local government, I have seen the “other side of the coin”. Irresponsible spending and poorly thought out processes are certainly common (as they are in private businesses), but many of your observations could perhaps be explained.
Many government services are subsidized by other levels of government and, if that “higher level” has to cut back, then the lower level either cuts back also; or transfers funds from other services; or charges more for said services, or simply increases taxes appropriately. All seen as unfair by the service user/tax payer, but all very understandable. You have an accounting background so you understand the principle behind “what comes in vs what goes out” and how an imbalance is handled.
Any change in the petroleum sector (Price oil = price of petrol = cost of transporting goods) will impact everybody. Increases are often “buried” for a while but, eventually, things must play “catch up”. “Catch up” may well be higher than the current inflation rate due to the earlier “burying”!
You note increased prices and inflation, but no wage increases. We are currently in a battle here because our Government wants to increase minimum wage to $15.00/hr (barely subsistence level)., but there is a business outcry because they will be forced to increase their pricing to compensate.
It is so easy to complain about the various negative impacts of price increases and, in fairness, greed and incompetence are often factors, however, to come up with detailed solutions is not so easy. Just thinking! 🙂
I agree with you in the most part. My observations are somewhat simplistic, and of course it makes no sense at all to run a bus service in a place where there are no people or few people to use it. The thing that gets to me most is that prices rise, but wages don’t to the same degree. We have the minimum wage over here too, and our gvmnt is taking people on low wages out of the tax bracket, but for those already earning less than a taxable income, it doesn’t help them. Greed raises its head in many guises. But for companies already making billions in profits, it does seem a little unjust to increase their prices to such a degree. It’s one of the reasons we prefer oil for our heating as we buy it for the tank at whatever the rate is (fluctuates with oil prices which gas does not to the consumer) and have no ‘service’ fee for the supply. It’s all swings and roundabouts (I say that so often in my posts!) and most of us just try to get the best deal possible for our bucks. Big business is for people with much more expertise than me, and I respect that. But in today’s financial climate, increases with nothing in return seem to be the norm. Like you, just thinking. Thanks as always for your view.
🙂
Actually, I have to respond to your bus service comment! It could be argued that people in less densely populated areas are entitled to a public transport service, just like the towns and cities. In fact it could be argued that their need is greater because of their geographical location. Why should a rural area be basically forced to buy a car to reach basic supplies, medical treatment etc. etc. An obvious response is that it was their choice to live out of town…..but then, perhaps there was a bus service then? No easy answers… just more questions!
We heard of a bus service changed from once a day to once a week in the locality of one of the boating marinas. It had suited those living there as there was no accessibility for vehicles, so the change posed all sorts of problems. Three boat owners got together and hired a taxi once a fortnight to do their shopping, splitting the cost.
Can’t beat initiative, and even better when it brings people together! 🙂
That’s one thing about the boating community that we loved. Everyone had the one thing in common……. they owned a boat.
🙂