“Poverty premiums” are extra costs which accrue to people on a low incomes precisely because they are on those low incomes. It’s a term that refers to things like not having enough cash to take advantage of money-saving technology or to buy in bulk to avoid extra costs.
Our media release is here: Vegemite Index and Cloaks of Invisibility: poverty premiums show why it costs more to be poor
read the report

The 2024 Anti-Poverty Week Statement provides examples of how each of these premiums apply. For some of the examples, the sums of money may not be huge, but the percentages are significant and, if extrapolated across a range of costs for low income households, the impact of poverty premiums can be significant.
download info sheet

You can help spread the word by downloading and printing the poster above to display how things can be more expensive the less money you have. It turns out that you have to have money to save money.
sign the petition

The best way to solve poverty is pretty straightforward – raise the rate. ACOSS has released a briefing note – Poverty in Australia: Facts and Solutions that explains why increasing income support is so important. You can help by signing the petition.
why it costs more to be poor
cloaks of invisibility

You can miss out on concessions despite being as poor or poorer than those who are eligible.
For instance, a discount ambulance cover is available to someone with a Pensioner Concession Card, but not to those on lower Centrelink incomes or earning less than the pension.
vegemite
index

Vegemite illustrates the dilemma of someone experiencing poverty only having enough for the smaller quantity which means forgoing the bigger jar which has a cheaper unit cost.
For example, a 150g jar costs $4 at $2.67/100g, which is 59% extra per unit than the big jar, which, at $9.40 is $1.68/100g.
punishing payments

Fees and fines that don’t take income into account are devastating if you are on a low income or not much of a deterrent for those on high incomes.
A general littering fine of $210 is a crippling 53% of a weekly JobSeeker Payment, but just 5% of the weekly wage of someone on $200K.
low-income lockouts

Not being able to afford or, as a renter, not being free to install money-saving measures such as insulation and draught-proofing locks you into paying more for essentials.
The Climateworks Centre at Monash University estimates that thermal efficiency upgrades of a poorly performing house could save up to $2,200 per year on energy bills.
petty penalties

Sometimes you can cop fees and charges for not having enough to pay a bill on time.
Banks charge a dishonour fee (approx $15) if there are not enough funds in an account to cover a payment, while utilities can charge late payment fees if you don’t have the cash the day the bill is due.