Reveal the Hidden Costs in Your Cable Or Satellite TV Bill

Whether you have cable or satellite television, chances are you feel you are spending too much. With contracts and language so complicated, it's easy to miss monthly fees that these service providers "automatically" activate with your account. However, you won't miss these charges if you look closely at your bill. In fact, you could end up with substantial yearly savings.

Trial Period
When you sign up for a new television package, you are often given a free trial of movie channels. Time passes quickly and those free trials turn to actual subscriptions. Keep an eye out for this on your bill if you don't want to keep the channels. They do not expire on their own. You must contact the service provider to shut off the service. And don't let them charge you a fee if you want to shut them off - the channels were given to you for free. This can save you between $15-$20 per month.

A sneakier practice is to attach a free trial service contract when you sign up for a television provider. These contracts are often free for a certain time then can add anywhere from $6 to $10 more per month onto your bill if you don't cancel them. These service contracts vary greatly, but are primarily used to reduce your labor costs if you have to have a technician visit your home. This is great for the initial trial period when you first have a service and may need more help, but after that, there is rarely a time when a technician needs to service your television setup.

Add Ons
Television providers offer a myriad amount of add ons from multiple receiver boxes, High Definition (HD) channels, Digital Video Recorders (DVRs), local channels etc... and everything has a monthly cost. A dollar here and a dollar there and soon, your bill is skyrocketing.

Every service provider is going to charge you extra for multiple receiver boxes, however, some receiver boxes are able to control more than one television. Think about the minimum number of boxes you need to keep your costs lower.

HD channels are fairly common on all television providers now and usually requires an extra charge. However, sometimes, you are given additional HD channels that you are charged for, but aren't interested in. For example, if you are not a sports lover, you don't need the extra HD sports channels.

Review your bill monthly, make sure you are being charged correctly for all the services you have and want. Get rid of those that you don't have or want. Remember, you have to call your television provider if you want to drop a service. It's a good idea to call anyway if you don't know what a certain charge is on your bill. A dollar savings here and a dollar savings there can make a big difference by the end of the year.