Spending more than I earn and don’t know what to do!

Tarambor wrote: »

Bin the pet insurance, the whole thing is a massive con in the main because the excess they make you pay is pretty much designed to cover all but the worst bills you'll ever get. Everyone I know with pet insurance has never been able to make a claim even though their pets have been to the vets because the bill has been less than the excess.

This is nonsense. I've just been paid out £600 on a plan that cost me £5 a month for 13 months.

On the grocery shopping - when we were in the position of one of us not earning of working part time for a while we focused on that person taking responsiblility for cooking and eating as economically as possible. If your partner is currently not working unless they are disabled to a point where they are unable to manage the cooking etc then there is little excuse for ending up wasting food.

First stop - do a full audit of your cupboards, fridge & freezer so you know what you have. make two lists - the first is for everything that you have, the second, all the things that would benefit from being used up soonest. Then write the following week's meal plans based solely around items that you already have, and focusing on the stuff that needs using. So if there are onions and carrots in the veg basket, and you've got dried red lentils for example, one day could be carrot & lentil soup. Just add to the shopping list the fresh items that you need - milk, bread, fruit & veg. Take a regular look at Aldi & Lidl's Super 6 and Pick of The Week deals to see what fruit and veg is the best value - also the main supermarkets have regular special offers on fruit and veg. Use those for a "springboard" to a meal plan - and start to view meat as an additional flavour on the plate rather than being the thing the whole meal is built around. Cooked right you can stretch a small amount of meat a very long way.

So essentially:
Work out what you have
Prioritise the stuff than needs using
Plan your week's meals
Write and STICK TO a list.

Trying to shop just once a week bearing in mind you have the car can be helpful if a lot of extra spending arises from "top up shops". Don't get hung up on loyalty to a particular store either - we regularly shop between several depending on who gives us the best deals.

Two things that have sprung to mind reading through this again.

Most standard car insurance policies that I've ever encountered exclude "driving for hire or reward" so be cautious and check the detail with any sort of car sharing site.

And - pet insurance - with a younger dog or cat you can shop about for better prices easily - but with an older animal, or once any conditions have been found, you may find you have to stick with one firm to get the cover needed. Remember to check what the policy says in relation to the total amount paid for any condition too - some roll this over from previous years, others don't.

anna_1977 wrote: »

As others have said - stick with pet insurance. Not only for your pet BUT for the third party insurance if your dog caused an accident or anything and you had no insurance you could be royally screwed

Good luck, you seem to be motivated and focused

Anna this is precisely was I was returning to this thread to note! Third party insurance cover for a dog is vital - this doesn't apply to cats as they're deemed to be "free spirits" so an owner is not held responsible for their behaviour.

It's worth knowing that the Dogs Trust do a standalone public liability policy which works out cheaper than a full insurance for those that don't want to fully insure.

If your wife isn't working are you using some of her tax allowance? She can contact HMRC and transfer about £1k of her tax allowance to you giving you £200 more take home pay. My figures might not be up to date but even if she starts work part time in the new year she is unlikely to use all of her tax allowance. Although this isn't a fortune I assume you can get it back dated for the tax year so would be a useful sum.