hanging my head in shame

inkedelephant

Heya, yeh I used to spend the same amount on food (admitidly i often do) but normally, now I spend £10-15 a week on food. I dont know how I cut it down so much. I guess its through planning meals... breakfast - cornflakes, tea &toast, Lunch, sandwiches, dinner - various different things. But I have to plan meals, which means eating out needs to be planned. I dont by my veg from the supermarket anymore, i buy it from internation foods store where they sell it at better quality but cheaper and I fidn that in places like Iceland they do things like cereal, milk and bread alot cheaper than other places. But I will only use cash when I buy food otherwise I will buy crap and I;ve found I eat alot healthier and eat a wider range of foods.
Sorry to waffle on sooo much about this, but food is the one thing that I've really cut down on and I reckon you could bring that down, just needs planning.

Jesthar

worried_jim wrote: »

what do you eat?

Oh, loads of things!

I have a slow cooker, so I use that to batch cook things like bolognaise sauce, stews, that kind of thing, then freeze them in portion sized tupperware boxes. Home made ready meals, they are - I can be eating within 20 minutes of being in, and as a bonus I know exactly what went into them. Even better, you can use really cheap cuts of meat in the stews, as the long cooking time really tenderises them. If I get the meat/mince on offer, a typical batch will cost between £5 - £7 and make about 6 - 8 portions - you bulk them out with things like onion, celery, carrot, mushrooms etc.

I also buy cheap joints (brisket of beef, lamb shoulder bone in) of about a kilo in weight and roast cook them whole in my slow cooker too; the meat from those lasts me six or seven meals (you can carve it all up and freeze portions; they reheat well in the microwave same as the stews/bolognaise). Get in some supermarket potatoes and a few veggies, and that's meat, potatoes and two veg whenever you fancy for a while! And, ooooh, the stock from the roasting makes such YUMMY gravy! Or stock for the stews, of course.

Chicken thighs are another favourite; more meat than drumsticks so one will do for a meal - another meat and two veg option. Or plenty of other uses for the meat, too - stir frys etc. (not really my style!) I try and stock up when they're on special offer, wrap them individually and freeze them. Occasionally I buy steak/lamb portions/pork chops/fish portions when they're on special offer as a treat, freeze them in the same way.

Soup is a good standby - I always have a few cans to hand. Also individual microwave pizzas, bought when on special offer of course, just for emergencies and the occasional treat. I usually find I only eat one of them every couple of months. Baking potatoes are a good meal, and I always have a block of cheese in the fridge to go with them, as well as cheese on toast (lunch size meal, not main meal ) and macaroni cheese. And I buy kilo bags of supermarked own brand spaghetti and Value brand basmati rice, which go with loads of things.

I do have a quite a few 'indulgances' I could cut back on even further, but choose not to. I have cereal for breakfast (shredded wheat - only non-additive thing I can find!), and I buy organic milk and Warburtons bread because I like them. I also have a Saturday morning treat of a cooked breakfast, whcih costs me about £3.50 a month in bacon alone thanks to the price rises and my refusal to buy Danish bacon - gotta be British! I don't like 'fake butter' spreads or margarine, proper butter only, and I buy decent ham for my lunch sandwiches, plus I always have a couple of pieces of fruit with lunch too. Plus I do my shopping in Morrisons, as it's by far the easiest place for me to get to, and I don't meal plan either, so there are plenty of places/ways I could save a few more pounds if I wanted to.

That's not the whole story, of course, but I hope it gives you some idea of what you can do on a reduced budget. Incidentally, I don't shop this way because I have to, my finances are good, but hey - why waste money?

Hope that helps,

~Jes

Miss_Piggy_2

Hi Jim

Lots of helpful people on here giving you advice already so not much I can add.

Just wanted to say, do NOT be ashamed. There are a lot of people in the same situation (and a lot worse) and, as Martin says, theres no debt problem that a solution can not be found for.

I'm sure Payplan will be very helpful. If you can cut back your outgoings of a month then that would free up a lot towards repayments to creditors. Your grocery bill is very high. As Jesthar says, cook from scratch. It saves a lot of money and doesn't take a lot of time. One day a month is all it takes to batch freeze. I don't do this as have small freezer unfortunately but often make two days meals in one (or even three if I'm frugal;) )

Hope the call from Payplan go's well. Let us know how you get on

Miss P
xx

worried_jim

Thanks everyone ! I have booked the day off work and am sitting by the phone with pen and cup of tea in hand (would prefer coffee and have run out, but have 100's of tea bags so will use them!). Whatever calls I get today I will take from all creditors, haven't worked out what I will tell them but I am determined to at least take the call and have a conversation with them. will post regular updates throughout the day. I feel strangely relaxed, must have been the good nights sleep i've just had- I owe that to all of you.

Miss_Piggy_2

worried_jim wrote: »

Thanks everyone ! I have booked the day off work and am sitting by the phone with pen and cup of tea in hand (would prefer coffee and have run out, but have 100's of tea bags so will use them!). Whatever calls I get today I will take from all creditors, haven't worked out what I will tell them but I am determined to at least take the call and have a conversation with them. will post regular updates throughout the day. I feel strangely relaxed, must have been the good nights sleep i've just had- I owe that to all of you.

Glad to hear you are feeling calmer. In my experience, once I told creditors I was speaking to the CCCS they were quite happy.
Good luck
Miss P
xx

determinedtodothis

Hello Jim!

Me too! but i've really knuckled down and surprised myself.. I think first thing you should do is find out at least if you have a figure you know what your dealing with, i used to estimate but it was just me avoiding the issue - then i would call CCCS or do their online assessment and they suggest your best route - i was very low only 3 months ago with £30k debt but today i have paid off nearly 10% and i'm sleeping a lot better!

Chin up i know it feels like there is no way out but once you get over the shock of what you owe and the fear of telling the creditors you can't pay them what they want and offer less everything gets a lot easier i promise x

moxie_2

Payplan are great, they have helped me out enormously (see my signature). Good luck!

GeorgeUK

Jim

If you haven't already done so, you could look at your credit file online (free at experian if you cancel within 30 days). This should show you all the accounts you have had in the last 6 years and their status. It might help you to see who your creditors are if you haven't got all the paperwork together.

Some of the debts may have been passed on to debt collection agencies (DCA's) but don't let them bully you into trying to pay more than you can afford and tell them that you are waiting to contact one of the debt charities. DCA's are known for being rude and abrupt on here so don't let that phase you - if you get calls like that, tell them all communication should be in writing only and refuse to answer any security questions if they call back.

The important part of what you are doing is to let the creditors know that you have had a reduction in wages and are therefore struggling, but are now seeking professional help so that you can deal with your debts. Right now you just need to make them aware that you are not avoiding your debts and do intend to make payments. Do not agree any figures over the phone and tell them that you will be writing to arrange a payment plan after you have spoken to CCCS/Payplan/CAB.

There are templates and lots of other info available on the board if you need to stop harassing phone calls or you are informed of something that you want to doublecheck.

Once you get a little more settled with what you are going to be doing, then we can talk about reclaiming charges etc

Keep us informed and we'll try to guide you through what's happening today. Don't get too worked up over what some of the callers may say - alot of it they would never be able to put in writing.

worried_jim

thanks everyone !

polaroid

just wanted to say. WJ. hope your morning is going ok.
It really might be worth speaking to the abbey, they might surprise you, as some of the OP's have said if you are bang up to date with them, there should be no reason why wouldnt change you to interest only or give you a short payment holiday. my credit is completely Fxxxxxd now but i managed to change my mrtgage with birmngham midshires.

i know the phones calls are awful, but this week i have sat down and spoke to them all as they have rang. to be honest once you explain your situation they are a lot more sympathetic. they just get more arxxy the more you ignore them.

sending hugs x