Household Income and Expenditure Survey FAQs
What does the Household Income and Expenditure Survey involve?
You will be asked to
- complete a questionnaire covering your household’s income, regular expenditure (such as bills, direct debits, and subscriptions), and any large purchases made over the previous five years; and
- keep a diary recording every purchase your household makes in a two-week period.
The time taken to keep the diary can be greatly reduced simply by providing copies of your receipts and invoices (where available) for those two weeks.
You will not be asked to provide sensitive information like bank details, dates of birth, and so on.
Is the survey compulsory?
No, the Household Income and Expenditure Survey is entirely voluntary.
I’ve received a letter inviting me to participate in the Household Income and Expenditure Survey. How can I check that it’s genuine?
You are welcome to call Statistics Isle of Man on 685742 or email us at HIES.Statistics@gov.im and we will confirm if we sent you the letter.
Why do you want this information?
The Household Income and Expenditure Survey is one of the most important surveys we run. In addition to being used in determining how much revenue the Island receives in VAT, it is used to:
- make sure that our inflation statistics are representative of the spending habits of families on the Isle of Man;
- investigate economic inequality on the Isle of Man; and
- measure the extent of poverty on the Isle of Man.
These activities are not possible without the results of the Household Income and Expenditure Survey, which is why it’s so important that we get a cross-section of the Island to participate.
I’ve been invited to participate in the survey this month. What Happens next?
If you want to participate, please contact Statistics Isle of Man to let us know. As we are limited in the number of participants we can accept in a given month, we will randomly select a group from all those who have volunteered to be contacted with further details of how to complete the survey.
If there is sufficient interest, those not selected in this way may be asked if they would like to participate the following month.
I can’t complete the questionnaire online. How else can I participate?
You can complete the questionnaire over the phone or in-person with a member of Statistics Isle of Man. You can also request a paper form.
I would like to complete the questionnaire online, but don’t have the means to do so.
Most public libraries on the Isle of Man have computers available for the public to use. The Get Online Centre at the Sea Terminal also offers free support and training sessions for those looking to learn how to use the Internet.
The centre is open Monday to Friday from 10 am to 4 pm.
What will you do with my personal details?
Your personal details will not be shared outside of Statistics Isle of Man and will only be used to contact you for the purposes of the Household Income and Expenditure Survey; e.g. for quality assurance purposes.
We will only retain your personal details for the duration of the survey and will delete them as soon as it is complete.
What will happen to my household’s data?
Your household’s data will be treated with the strictest confidence. It will not be shared outside of Statistics Isle of Man, not even with other Government departments, and it will only be used in the preparation of aggregate statistics.
