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Today the NHS Smoking Helpline is publishing a “smoker’s annual bill”, which estimates that an average smoker will spend about £670 a year on smoking related expenses and penalties - on top of the cost of cigarettes. This puts the total annual cost of smoking at £2,500 – enough to pay for a round the world trip, a designer wardrobe or top football club season tickets for you and your mates.
Keeping Clean
Personal hygiene costs for lotions, potions and medications that treat and disguise the effects of smoking, account for around £200. Although many of these items will also be used by non-smokers, the quantity and price of the products used by smokers is greater, as chesty coughs, cracked lips, stained teeth and dry skin are all common side effects of smoking.
Smoking also has a cost impact on our surrounding environment – burns, stains and odours all need to be treated, and the annual bill for this is conservatively calculated to average over £200
Financial Products
As well as increased daily shopping and cleaning costs, smokers also have to bear the brunt of their habit when it comes to household and personal finance costs. For example, ventilating smoky rooms by opening windows and doors can add an extra 10% to your energy bill.
There are notable premium increases for smokers in health and life insurance. Most insurers would classify a non-smoker as someone who has not used tobacco products within the last 12 months, and reflect this in their risk-based rates.
According to ASDA Financial Services, smokers’ life insurance premiums will on average be a third higher than those calculated for non-smokers.
A similar healthy non-smoker can expect to pay £6 per month less for their comprehensive medical insurance.[iii]
NHS Smoking Helpline advisor Indrani Paul said “As well as costing you your health, smoking makes a huge dent in your finances - in many more ways than you might at first realise. It seems that, on top of the cost of cigarettes, smokers pay out more than an extra third of the cost on related expenses. The conservative total figure we have come up with represents well over 10% of the average national salary, which is a huge amount to spend on smoking, and also a big incentive to quit. Putting this money into a savings scheme could help you through retirement or see your children through their university years and beyond”
Personal Hygiene/Health Costs = £199.95
Cleaning, repairing and replacing costs = £212.68
Other costs = Total £263.33
Grand Total of Smoking related expenses in one year = £676.29
Cost of smoking 20 cigarettes a day = £1825.00
Total annual expenditure on cigarettes = £2501.29
Support available for you
For anyone considering stopping there is plenty of help and support available. Call the NHS Smoking Helpline on 0800 169 0 169, for a free and friendly service that offers practical advice about giving up smoking. Callers receive a free information pack with details on how to stop smoking and the different treatments available. You can also receive details of your free local NHS Stop Smoking Service. You can call us on 020 8795 6669 or check out 'My Nearest' section on this website to find out where stop smoking advisors in your area are.
(All quantities are estimated and will vary for each individual smoker. These represent costs on top of those of a non-smoker)
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