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Filling up the car is about to get cheaper, but Aussies will be hit with higher insurance, electricity and mortgage costs this month. (Source: AAP) <\/p>\n Filling up the car is about to get cheaper, but Aussies will be hit with higher insurance, electricity and mortgage costs this month. (Source: AAP) <\/p>\n
Aussies will be hit with a raft of price hikes and money changes from today. Increases to health insurance premiums<\/a>, energy bills and mortgage repayments<\/a> will all come into effect this month.<\/p>\n On the positive side, the government has halved the fuel excise on petrol and diesel<\/a> today for the next three months. This means Aussies will start seeing some relief at the petrol pump, but it likely won\u2019t be immediate.<\/p>\n Here’s what you need to know about the money changes and how they could impact you.<\/p>\n RELATED<\/p>\n Health insurance premiums<\/a> will increase for 15 million Aussies from today.<\/p>\n The government approved a 4.41 per cent average increase<\/a>, which marks the biggest hike in nearly a decade. It will add roughly $80 to $160 a year to policies, depending on your level of cover.<\/p>\n The exact amount will depend on your insurer and policy. Bupa has an average increase of 4.8 per cent, while Medibank\u2019s average increase is 5.1 per cent.<\/p>\n Health Minister Mark Butler said the increase reflected the rising costs of providing medical and hospitality services, which rose by 5 per cent last financial year.<\/p>\n The fuel excise will be halved<\/a> from today until June 30, reducing the cost of fuel by 26.3 cents per litre.<\/p>\n This will reduce the cost of a 65-litre tank of fuel by nearly $19. The cost of a 50-litre tank will be reduced by about $14.<\/p>\n But Aussies might not see a drop in prices at the bowser<\/a> immediately. That\u2019s because petrol stations will need to sell the fuel they purchased at the higher price first.<\/p>\n Treasurer Jim Chalmers said it could take \u201csomewhere between maybe one and two weeks\u201d for the full benefit to flow through.<\/p>\n Many households will receive their first quarterly energy bill<\/a> without a rebate this month, after the government\u2019s energy rebate came to an end on December 31.<\/p>\n The subsidy was introduced in July 2023 and was extended through 2025. If it hadn\u2019t been in place, electricity prices would have increased by more than the 8.2 per cent they did over that period.<\/p>\n Treasurer Jim Chalmers confirmed in December the $75 per quarter rebate would not be extended<\/a> this year, saying it was \u201cnever going to be a permanent feature of the budget\u201d.<\/p>\n Borrowers will face higher repayments this month, after the Reserve Bank hiked the cash rate<\/a> for the second time this year to 4.1 per cent.<\/p>\n Commonwealth Bank, NAB and ANZ passed on the hike in full on Friday, while Westpac followed with its rate rise on Tuesday.<\/p>\n For someone with a $600,000 mortgage and 25 years remaining, the hike will increase repayments by $91 a month.<\/p>\n Across the two back-to-back hikes, the total increase will be $181 a month.<\/p>\n Westpac is now predicting a further three interest rate hikes<\/a> in May, June and August, while the remaining Big Four banks expect another hike in May.<\/p>\n Get the latest Yahoo Finance news – follow us on Facebook<\/a>, LinkedIn<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n