It’s a question that perhaps too few people ask. Sarah Zwaenepoel is a budget coach and she told VRT people should check their bank account regularly, but not too regularly. Otherwise it will become an obsession.
In recent months, with the cost-of-living crisis, Sarah has noticed that more and more people she knows are failing to check their accounts out of fear this will show they are now in the red but says Sarah “ignoring your bank account is never a good idea. The best thing is to tackle a problem when it arises”.
Research published in the London Independent newspaper reveals more and more people are displaying avoidance behaviour. They are no longer checking their accounts because they are worried, they have ended up in debt.
Budget coach Sarah says she too has noticed this phenomenon that is particularly prevalent among women. An explanation isn’t hard to find. It’s still often the woman who is in charge of day-to-day expenses in a household, she says.
Ignoring your bank account isn’t a good idea and the best approach is swift action when a problem arises. Sarah urges people to draw up a planning at least once a year, to see what they are spending, what they are earning. In that way it is easier to decide how matters can be improved: “It’s also a good idea regularly to check that you are not being defrauded by somebody, who is secretly removing funds from your accounts”.
But excessive checking has its dangers too. “It mustn’t become an obsession” says Sarah. “People who check their bank account each and every day often don’t have a healthy relationship with money. What’s important is to see how much is coming in and what your expenditure is. Money shouldn’t be allowed to make you unhappy!”