Petrol, the cost of it is highly unlikely to go down anytime soon and for many of us it's a huge weekly expense that is necessary to go about our daily lives; getting to work, to school, buying groceries, seeing family... the list goes on. The good news is there are some ways we can reduce how much petrol we consume, and how much we pay.

• Walk more. For those trips down the road to the dairy or friends round the corner, walk instead of take the car.
• Combine errands. Save up all your errands and do them all at once, you'll likely save not only petrol but time as well.
• Car pool. Try car pooling with work colleagues, people going in the same direction as you, other school run parents etc.
• Get the cheapest price you can. You can let your fingers do the walking with apps like Gaspy to see the prices of petrol at stations near you or keep an eye on the AA Petrol Watch.
• Take advantage of rewards. Take advantage of any and all programmes that get you fuel discounts eg AA Smartfuel, Flybuys
• Lighten the load. Don't carry around unnecessary weight in your car, empty out your boot of golf clubs, strollers or gym bags that might be lying around.
• Drive at quieter times. Your journey will take you less time plus you'll have a smoother journey without lots of stopping and starting which reduces your petrol usage.
• Check your tyre pressure. Cars with correct tyre pressure drive more efficiently
• Accelerate smoothly. If you can accelerate smoothly and stay at a constant speed you'll use less petrol.

The information contained in this article is of a general nature and should not be taken as advice. It reflects the opinions of the writer only and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of NZHL (New Zealand Home Loans).