Returning from holidays: Italian families faced with expensive petrol, bills and school expenses

Between high prices on petrol, increases in bills, the rush for new school supplies and food spending, for Italian families the return from holidays promises to be a complex exercise in accounting balance. A stringent economic framework that undermines the climate of confidence of consumers, who are already forced to tighten their belts and reduce their daily expenses.

The greatest increase comes from the cost of fuel, according to Codacons, an increase of around 430 million euros is expected only due to higher costs for supplies compared to the counter-exodus of 2025. The inconveniences of the road network thus add to a return home marked by the weight of transport costs, which immediately impact the end-of-summer budgets.

At the same time, families face the bitter return to school, with estimates from the association indicating up to 1,300 euros per student for books and school supplies, highlighting increases of between +2% and +4% on stationery and +1.8% on textbooks. Trendy or designer items contribute to the surge in spending, with technological products and fashion accessories reaching record figures.

Even if the Italian Booksellers Union of Confesercenti scales back the alarms. President Antonio Terzi clarifies: "Arguing that there is a sting and calling into question designer backpacks with prices of up to 1000 euros is like saying that ice creams are a luxury good because there are those who buy them with gold flakes."

The fact is that obligatory expenses, those that families cannot do without and cannot reduce too much, such as housing, bills, healthcare, transport and insurance, absorb almost half of overall family consumption: around 42% with an increase of just under 5 percentage points compared to 1995 when they were at 37%, explains Confcommercio.

And then there's the impact on trust. According to Federconsumatori, the apparent improvement in confidence recorded by Istat in August is destined to disappear quickly. With chain increases in petrol, school, energy and food prices, families are forced to remodulate their habits: data from the Federconsumatori Observatory already reveal "a drop in the consumption of meat and fish equal to -16.9%; the hunt for offers, or products close to expiry, a habit adopted by 52.5% of citizens; the increase in spending at discount stores of +12.2%".