New start, again!

sammy115

I had my lightbulb moment in Dec. Added up my debts (came to around 30K). DH had been out of work for around nine months at this point, and we had continued to spend as if we still had two wages coming in. Did a budget, cancelled PPI, looked at snowballing credit cards (so applied for HSBC card 0%) rang sky to reduce package, moved energy suppliers and telephone providers, and became a DVD rental tart. Just need to get paid at end of January to start my plan going.

UPDATE - was due to go back to work on 1st February after being off work on maternity leave for three months. I hear on the grapevine that we will be paid by cheque at end of Jan, due to company having financial problems. When i ring the MD to ask if i can have mine so it will clear (and this is the shortened version) I basically end up with no pay and being made redundant. When he realises that he couldn't actually do what he had just done, his idea to get out of the s**t was to do nothing. So i got no redundancy, no notice, no pay, no P45 nothing.

Which meant that I got nothing from the government. I am still quite bitter about this. My DH was already getting nothing based on my earnings but when we went to the job centre they couldn't do anything for us because my boss refused to answer their questions.

All we have had to live on in the last few weeks is £129 child tax credit.

Thanks to someone on this website I checked my home insurance and had legal cover. The upshot of this I have a lovely solicitor who has taken my case on and it isn't costing me a penny. My case was filed into the Employment Tribunal on Thursday last week, so hopefully one day I will get my revenge.

This obviously blew my budgeting and debt reduction plans totally out of the water. In fact I have had been charged so much over the last few weeks along with getting turned down for the HSBC card (as they were informed that I was no longer in employment), my debt has gone up and I no longer have a credit rating to speak of. I have to say the phone calls we have been getting have added to the stress no end, and at one point I hit a very low ebb.

Cancelling my PPI gave me a refund of £79!!!!! They insisted I had not been misold the policy and I would have been prepared for a fight had I not been so busy looking for another job and fighting employment injustice. I forgot to cancel my DVD introductory offer and I am now being chased for the £17.99 that i owe to lovefilm.

Changing energy and phone suppliers worked in my favour as the old company can't cut me off and we haven't yet worked up a bill with the new companies. Sky cocked up the reduction in my package and when i complained they gave me three months at half price.

NEW START!

Good news is that both DH and I have jobs! We get our first pay packets at the end of this month. We have some serious catching up to do and what i know i will be tempted to do after months of having no money at all is blow it all on crap. We have got used to the hard life and i need to carry it on.

I need to start again and reasses my budget and my debts. I have a carrier bag of unopened letters (I know burying my head in the sand is no good but I feel a bit more able to cope now) so i will open those tonight and come back tomorrow with more details of debt and incomings and outgoings.

I know from reading other posts that you guys are fantastic support and have loads of tips and tricks so any help you can give me would be much appreciated.

I am sorry this has been so long! If anyone has got this far!

:beer:

lynzpower

Hey Sammy,

Welcome to DFW! You sound just the sort of person we love to have round her, full of fight...

Look forward to hearing from you later!
Lynz
xx

Emmzi

Sammy,

hang in there - sounds like you are over the worst of it. Looking forward to SOA to see what people can help with.

tyllwyd

It sounds like you have had a rough time! Good luck in the employment tribunal - it sounds like you have a pretty good case for getting at least something out of them. And congrats on your new job!

JAMIEDODGER

welcome! congratulations on getting a new job!!!

Ali-OK

What a dreadful time you've been through, and with a new baby too. ((Hugs)) to you.

Brill news on the jobs front - well done to you both and as you say, now you'll have money coming in, come back with all those ins and outs and the good people on here will help you out.

Good luck on the employment tribunal too.

dizzielog

Well done Sammy! Congratulations to you both on your new jobs - there IS a light at the end of the tunnel.
Please DON'T be tempted to blow those desperately needed wages on rubbish. When you get the urge to spend, come and have a chat with your new MSE buddies instead!
Please post your SOA so we can all help you xx

oops_a_daisy

Hi Sammy and welcome to DFW - boy have you been through the mill - :grouphug:. The exact same thing happened to me when I was on mat leave - the company I worked for went into receivership and didnt warn me so I was out by 1 months wage. In rented accomodation with a baby all mon my own. I managed to make a claim via the company that was doing the receivership and got paid through them......I think I was the only one that got it too. Im sorry that I dont have much info but my daughter is now 12 so it was a while ago. I was also told at the time that I could have requested my income support to be back dated but I was rejected for that....anyway I got it through the receivers eventually.
Good luck money saving - if you need any advice you know where to come

Kevicho

Well done on the new job

Its people like your ex boss who are ruining this country, and i hope he gets whats coming to him, for his appaling actions

Good luck!

Lewby

Welcome back Sammy! So glad you have found your way back to DFW!

It seems that for some people the lightbulb is fllowed by events that set them back .... none more than you. Well done for getting your claim logged with the Employment Tribunal ... I hope it works out well for you.

Lewby xx

LookingAhead

Oh my God what a dreadful way to have been treated at the old company!
Anyway congratulations that you are now both working and good luck for the future.