economy and businesses

It is still summer, but many people are already thinking about their energy contract. Energy coach Rob Noordanus from Dongen notices this. We ask him what is sensible: conclude a contract now for a year or longer or wait and see?

The energy coach finds it quite difficult to give advice. After all, not everyone is the same:

If your house is gasless, the gas price does not play a role. Even if your shed is full of wood for heating in the winter, it is less important. One can also afford a little more risk than another.

“The gas stocks are well filled. We have become less dependent on Russia. All positive developments for the gas price. But in a harsh winter, those gas stocks are empty again,” he warns.

Annual contract?

“If you want to do something about your energy contract now, you probably want to know where you stand in the winter. Taking out a permanent contract for a year now is not such a bad idea at all. a choice that will get you through the winter. You then opt for certainty if prices rise again in the winter.”

Even longer?

The energy coach does not recommend a permanent contract that runs longer. “The gas price is now rising again, but it remains difficult to predict how the gas market will develop further. It all seems to remain a bit panicky, but for how long? No one knows. My crystal ball is just as good as anyone else’s.”

Dynamic contract?

Have you already opted for a dynamic contract with prices that change per day? And are you worried about high rates due to a harsh winter and the end of the price cap at the end of this year? Then, according to the energy coach, you can look at a permanent contract for six months in a few weeks. “Even then you know where you stand in the winter,” he explains. “If you find security less important and you can afford a gamble, you could keep your dynamic contract.”

Andre tips

According to the energy coach, saving is and will always be the best way to keep the energy bill manageable. Earlier he already gave a number of tips that are still very useful. Consider using a timer that forces you to take a shorter shower and don’t air your bedroom for hours on end, but close your window a bit earlier in the winter.

READ ALSO: 10 tips to immediately save on your gas and electricity costs

2023-08-17 09:00:47
#energy #contract #Energy #coach #tips #winter

Everyone feels the increased prices at the checkout at the supermarket, but fortunately many people from Brabant live close to the Belgian border. A random check at two Jumbo supermarkets shows that groceries from our southern neighbors are much cheaper. The difference is particularly large with the house brands. That is striking, because they come from the same factory and also from the same distribution center in Veghel.

We bought fourteen private label products and fourteen comparable A-brand products from Jumbo in Pelt in Belgium and Budel in Brabant. The differences are remarkable, especially with Jumbo’s own brand. Not a single product bought by Omroep Brabant is cheaper in the Netherlands.

Outliers
If you buy a small glass jar with 89 grams of salt in the Dutch supermarket, you have to pay 2.99 euros. Exactly the same jar costs only 89 cents at our southern neighbors. A difference of more than 2 euros.

The shopping bag full of private label items at a Dutch and Belgian Jumbo (photo: Omroep Brabant).

You can see the same difference with a pack of cheese slices of 400 grams. In Budel we had to pay 5.79 euros and in Pelt only 3.67 euros. With Diet Coke, the difference is 54 percent. You pay 89 cents for a 1.5 liter bottle in Budel and only 58 cents in Pelt.

Hazelnootpasta
Although the price differences for the A-brands are less than for the house brands, it also pays to cross the border for this. White beans are more than a euro cheaper in Belgium. There you can buy a pot for only 1.99. The same pot from Hak costs 3.12 euros in Budel.

The shopping bag full of A-brand items at a Dutch and Belgian Jumbo (photo: Omroep Brabant).

With the hazelnut spread it is completely cash. For a large pot of Nutella of 825 grams you have to pay 6.52 euros in the Netherlands, but if you drive a few kilometers to Pelt, you pay only 4.09 euros for the same pot. That is a difference of 2.43 euros and you can buy half a pot extra for that in Belgium.

‘Jammer’
Consumers in Budel are shocked by the enormous price differences just across the border. “I think that’s a shame, that shouldn’t be possible,” says a woman we address for the Jumbo. “Even with such a small bag you already have a difference of 8 euros. So if you do the weekly shopping, it is definitely worth it.”

Another woman indicates that she has been shopping in Belgium for many years. “I definitely notice the difference. You walk out there for 50 euros with a full shopping cart. For that money you have half a car in the Netherlands,” she says with a laugh. She also thinks that the large price differences with the private label should not be allowed.

“I’ll also have a look in Pelt then,” says a Budelse just before she picks up her shopping cart. “Belgium is normally more expensive and here in the border region there have always been price differences between the two countries. You also have to learn to live with that a bit.”

READ ALSO: This is why groceries at the Jumbo in Belgium are so much cheaper

2023-08-08 16:55:59
#Groceries #Belgium #cheaper #big #difference #private #labels

You order something online and expect a package, but it is not delivered, too late or to a completely different place. This is not only recognizable and annoying for consumers, but also for the shops that send the ordered items. They suffer image and financial damage due to poor delivery. Florence Kok of Maxi Fashion in Den Bosch knows all about it. “I get all kinds of complaints about me, but I can’t do anything about it.”

The Bossche clothing store sends more than 150 packages every week, but at least five of them disappear. According to owner Florence, they are no longer found. “It’s really a drama.”

“I pay extra so that I know where those packages are.”

At the end of May things went completely wrong when the holiday money was transferred. “The postal companies could not handle all the orders and ten packages never arrived,” says Florence. “Too bad, because I pay extra for a track-and-trace code for the proof of shipment so that I know where they are.”

The missing clothing packages cause a considerable amount of damage to Florence. “Only PostNL says that I should have been insured differently, but I think that’s the other way around because I have that proof of shipment.” She will now only be reimbursed for the shipping costs and 3.84 euros per kilo lost for a dress costing 150 euros.

“I got a bucket of shit over me.”

The frustrated customers who did not receive any clothing reported to Florence. “They left bad reviews online and even called in the consumer association. I got a bucket of shit on me during my vacation.” She is fed up with that, but she also understands it a little.

“My duped customers are sent from pillar to post by PostNL. They are told that the sender must investigate PostNL, but if I do, that turns out not to be possible and I just have to wait and see.” The shopkeeper finds it ridiculous how packages and customers are treated.

“We have lost several pallets of game consoles.”

They are also duped at Playourgames in Uden and Helmond. They sell game computers and games in a physical store. “We also depend on the parcel deliverers to get the items we sell. And that involves considerable amounts of money,” says regional manager Kim Habraken.

It happened again last month. “We have lost pallets with Playstations 5 on them for both stores. This has happened so often that doubts have arisen among the delivery services and suppliers.” Kim suspects that it concerns targeted theft, because the pallets are still missing.

She has been asked by all ‘lost’ packages to install GPS trackers, so that it becomes clear where things go wrong. “But we can pay for those trackers ourselves.” Kim also regularly receives reports that packages have been sent to a collection point because the store is said to be closed. “They couldn’t find it or didn’t have time, but that’s not right because we’re open on Friday afternoon.”

And Kim notices that articles are later or not in the physical store. “Customers are no longer that loyal, so if they miss out, you lose them immediately and that costs money.”

“Switching makes no sense.”

Florence Kok has considered switching parcel services. “But at UPS it’s just as much a mess, so there’s no point.” As far as she is concerned, PostNL really needs to take action. “The deliverers themselves work under great pressure, so more people are involved and make sure that customers and small entrepreneurs are not always the victims,” ​​is her advice.

READ ALSO:

Parcels over the fence or through the window: still many complaints

The Parcel Point is closed, so the delivery person will leave the parcels at your doorstep

Have you lost your package? Report it to Omroep Brabant

2023-08-01 11:13:05
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Wander in one of his converted vans (photo: Collin Beijk).The interior of a van converted into a camper (photo: Collin Beijk).Wander van den Bosch converts vans into a camper (photo: Collin Beijk)Next

1/3 Wander in one of his converted vans (photo: Collin Beijk).

The number of campers in Brabant has increased enormously since 2020, according to figures from the Central Bureau of Statistics. Wander van den Bosch has also noticed this. He started a company three years ago that converts delivery vans into affordable campers. “The corona pandemic has helped my company a lot.”

Wander has a large garage on the Vosdonk business park in Etten-Leur where he converts delivery vans. There are two Volkswagen Transporters. The green one has been finished for a long time and is now being finished. The black one has just arrived and the interior has just been removed and the roof has been cut out, which will later be replaced by the sleeping tent.

“I can do this too, but cheaper.”

Before starting his own business, Wander worked for a company that builds motorhomes. “But they became more and more expensive. I thought I could do this myself, but cheaper.” It turned out to be a gap in the market, because the corona crisis started when he had just started Wander Workx.

“People have rediscovered camping in those bizarre times. But not everyone has the money for a brand new camper,” Wander explains. Depending on the size and model, a new motorhome costs between 50,000 and 200,000 euros.

“We have converted every model by now.”

“With me you have to think of about 20,000 euros for the conversion. But then you have to deliver the van yourself,” says the camper builder. According to him, you can make that as expensive as you want. Much depends on the mileage, age and equipment. “We have now converted every model Transporter.”

In three years time there are now about twenty. “The first one was very exciting to see if it would sell, but people come to us from all over the country these days.” Wander mainly builds to order, but often also has a camper in stock.

“Everything you need is in there.”

The vans he converts are smaller than a full-fledged camper. “But everything you need, we build in.” According to Wander, people who go for a converted van do so for three reasons: “It is cheaper, you are more flexible because it is smaller and lighter and with us you can put together your camper completely to your own taste.”

A different color of paint, special upholstery, your favorite color of stitching, one or two double beds, swivel seats, a lot or little cupboard space and even solar panels on the folding roof are among the possibilities. “We even built in a thick audio installation recently. Thijs even managed to spoon in a subwoofer.”

“The market is a bit saturated.”

Although the number of campers in Brabant has increased enormously, the huge run seems to be decreasing somewhat. “I think the market is a bit saturated. People who want and can buy a camper have often bought one in recent years.” What also plays a role, according to the builder, is that holidaymakers can fly again without restrictions.

Yet Wander is still extremely busy. “I’m not complaining, because I was able to turn my hobby into my profession. And I can go on holiday at any time with one of my own campers, of course.”

The campers contain everything you need (photo: Collin Beijk).

READ ALSO:

More and more people from Brabant buy a camper: ‘Camping has really been rediscovered’

With this camper of almost 1 million euros you can (no longer) go on holiday

2023-07-14 17:30:41
#Wander #converts #vans #affordable #campers #Enormously #busy #years