If you have put in extra hours at work and don’t feel like your payslip adds up then don’t just let it go!
There are ways to check that you are being paid properly,and that your tax and national insurance contributions are being paid correctly, in order to prevent difficult – and expensive – situations further down the line.
Incorrect tax payments or national insurance are the responsibility of your employer if you are in employment, but it will be you living with a diminished pension, not them, so don’t waste the opportunity to check things now.Conversely, if you are self-employed then paying your correct tax contributions and national insurance payments are essential to avoid paying a fine (for incorrect tax payments) and loss of pension (for inadequate national insurance payments).
It’s understandable that most people (other than accountants!) find matters related to their finances difficult to understand and intimidating to try and learn more about.But the more you know about your finances and the more you learn about the way financial institutions work, the more likely you are to make smarter decisions about your money.
The first thing you can do is utilise a salary calculator.A salary calculator, such as those available to use online, will help you check if you are paying the right amount in tax.If you have overpaid then the evidence provided by the tax calculator will be helpful in your trying to get your money back.
Talking to your bank about additional pensions and savings plans,and talking to other banks about their options,will help to build on your knowledge about what the right thing for you to do is.Read financial blogs online,study the weekend newspapers,and generally try to familiarise the way the financial world works–it will all work in your favour.Thanks to the online tax calculator,you have the opportunity to regain control of financial matters in your life because money matters.