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Should Emergency Funds be Used for Infrequent, but Likely, Expenses?
For me, the emergency fund is meant to cover unexpected, but necessary expenses that I didn't budget for.  The emergency fund allows me to pay for these things without going into debt. Let's say that my car breaks down, and I don't have any money in my budget for fixing it.  I really need to get my car fixed, so I spend the money from my emergency fund. However, cars break down periodically.  If I was doing a better job with my budget, I would allocate some money each month into a "car repair/maintenance" category. (In fact, I actually do this.)  With my budgeting software, I can look at how much I've spent on car repairs over the last year, and budget a monthly amount for car repair expenses.  Even if I do this, I might end up short if I am unlucky.  Emergency fund to the rescue! If I'm budgeting correctly, I don't pay any regular bills out of this fund, as those are expected expenses.  Car insurance, life insurance, and property tax are all bills that come on a regular basis, and I set aside money for each of these each month so that when the bill comes, I have the money ready to go. The recommended size of an emergency fund is usually listed as "3 to 6 months of expenses."  However, that is just a rough guideline.  As you get better with your budget, you might find that you have a lower probability of needing it, and you can let your emergency fund fall to the lower end of the guideline range.  The size of my own emergency fund is on the lower end of this scale. And if I have a true crisis (i.e. extended unemployment, severe family medical event), I can "rob" one of my other savings funds, such as my car replacement fund, vacation fund, etc. Don't be afraid to spend your emergency fund money if you need it.  If you have an unexpected, necessary expense that you have not budgeted for, use the emergency fund money.  However, your goal should be to get to the point where you never have to use it, because you have adequately accounted for all of the expenses that you can reasonably expect to have in the future.