MONEY used to be simple.

The less you had, the simpler it was. Not any more.

Now even those of us on modest incomes, with little or no savings, need to be financially savvy. A generation ago, you could manage everyday life without a bank account. Now it is virtually impossible. Life is much more complicated than it was and there are far more ways to get it horribly wrong.

Do you understand about insurance, interest rates, ISAs, mobile phone deals or bank charges?

Not knowing how money works is like going to a strange country without a map, or trying to cook a fivecourse meal without a recipe, or sew a dress without a pattern. It might work, but it’s always easier if you know what you’re doing.

These days, we can’t afford not to.

If you don’t want to be ripped off, then a little homework will work wonders. Knowing about money can save us a fortune as well as keeping us clear of massive debt and bankruptcy.

It is such a vital life skill that, increasingly, children are being taught basic finance in schools, which is great – but not much help for those of us who have already left school.

There is plenty of help and advice out there – especially online – but if you don’t have easy access to a computer, a new book might prove worth its weight in gold.

The Which? Money Saving Handbook goes skipping through most of the major money obstacles of life. It explains them simply and clearly and tells you what you need to know and the pitfalls to avoid.

Most of us are more likely to get divorced than move banks. After months of high charges and mismanaged accounts, it took a very offhand bank clerk who slapped my cheque book down on the counter while talking to a colleague, to finally drive me to flounce out and open an account elsewhere. If only she’d been rude sooner, I could have saved myself a small fortune and a lot of bother.

It’s actually very easy to swap banks and here is the step-by-step guide to doing it. If you want to switch credit cards, phone deals, gas or electricity suppliers, here are the questions you need to ask.

For online virgins who have never banked, bought or compared products online, this book will tell you how to go about it and the pros and cons of different systems. It also tells you what to do when something goes wrong when you’ve bought online.

It also tells you the cost of different phone numbers, whether it’s worth getting married, scams that are only just legal and many that are absolutely not legal at all, about borrowing and haggling, cheap trains, cheap flights, second-hand cars, credit cards and credit reference, pension credits and booze cruises.

Even if you’re quite confident on financial matters, it could prove useful.

And if you haven’t a clue, it could save you from serious bother.

■ The Which? Money Saving Handbook by Tony Levene (£10.99)