Britains streets of Debt - Friday

bikerqueen

Am I supposed to feel sorry for someone who has spent money she doesnt have on a 28inch wide screen TV and an expensive stereo?

ShockingPink

That programme is so depressing! I couldn't believe that "Pay as you view" idea!

Creditcardkid

£250 on a TV stand from "Pay as you view" :eek:

With her debts at £9000 that is shocking :eek:

Dead_Eye_Jones

yeah these progs are all the same, some people just cant accept that they cant have everything they want. I think the media is alot to blame, we get this message forced upon using sophisticated psycological manipulation techniques that we must have this product, we must drive this car, we must live in a house like this and if we dont we are unpopular failures. Its tragic to see the people around you become so obsessed with themselves and what they have or feel they should have.

By all means treat yourself to a luxury item, but why not earn the right to it first. The satisfaction of saving up and enjoying something you worked hard for is a totally different feeling to the one of purchasing something instantly to fulfill a percieved hole only to have to pay for it slowly over a defined period of time ensuring you have less to spend in the futue.

I think people are growing up spoilt and dont understand that not everyone can have enerything. We need to relearn how to be grateful for what we have. The key to happiness is wanting what we have, not having what we want.

This problem aint gonna go away quickly, the next generation seems worse. Its crazy to see the kids at school, often from the less well off homes, coming in with £100 trainers, video phones, game consoles, etc. What are their parents teaching them? How will they cope when they are finally forced to face the real cost of materialism?

THIRZAH

The woman with the TV seemed incapable of working out how much she was paying for the electrical items she'd bought.

I don't know what the solution is- some kind of course on managing finances in schools perhaps?

Ember999

I saw things from a different perspective when I watched the programme, and let me make it clear I am affluent, never lived on benefits and hope to goodness I never have to!

I see a young woman having to live on an amount that isn't enough to pay all the standard utility bills, rent, council tax etc. and still feed & clothe both herself and her children. What anyone on here says about benefits, no one on benefits has an easy life. The government steals a fortune from me and my husband in taxes and national insurance - my husband pays more than she earns in a week, every week just in tax alone! which is supposed to pay for these people and yet they get less than they need to pay the bills the government force on us ie: council tax....I mean...have you seen what they charge us?????? I alone in this rip-off country pay almost £200 a month in just flippin' council tax!

When you look at the amount she had coming in £175.00 a week - take off what she has to pay, what the **** is there left to live on???? eat with??? buy clothes and yes, buy essentials like a basic TV?????

In my opinion, everyone has a right to a TV and a stereo...these are basic items to make life barely tolerable. If she cannot find enough money left over at the end of the week to buy a TV then she has no choice but to go to the wonderful rip-off store she went to in order to get a TV so she isn't so fed-up with life that she tops herself! You try living without money, no TV, no stereo etc. What would be the point in getting up in a morning? I can't think of anything that would get me out of bed in that situation. The companies who charge 40% interest to buy what is, at the end of the day a 'cheap' TV are to blame and should be banned! They should be forced to charge reasonable fees in order to sell items to poor people. Not everyone on benefits is on benefits through choice. You may be in that situation one day.

The boyfriend was in an accident, hit & run....suffered sight problems and back problems...I think he could get a job actually. If I was her, he'd get a job or be out! Harsh....but I wouldn't live on benefits if that is what you get and that is the life you end up with.

She did right to go bankrupt and did right to ensure the rip-off companies that sold her the over-priced stuff ended up losing out. Good on her.

I felt sorry for her and still do.

Ember xx

themaccas

I was so pleased that woman was granted bankruptcy too, there is no way she could have paid back the debts from the parocites that lent her money to but the stuff she had which I agree with Ember were just basic items. The 'payg' TV was just further degradation and at last, now, they will get no further money from her. I hope she never goes back to those companies and gets some support from her OH who, though had obvious disabilities never said a word in support of her and needs to Get A Job.

sandieb

The young woman featured did seem to have good selling skills when it came to the car boot sale .... hopefully she can put them to good effect in future ...I wonder whether there will be any follow up programme?

sportbeth

themaccas wrote:

I was so pleased that woman was granted bankruptcy too, there is no way she could have paid back the debts from the parocites that lent her money to but the stuff she had which I agree with Ember were just basic items. The 'payg' TV was just further degradation and at last, now, they will get no further money from her. I hope she never goes back to those companies and gets some support from her OH who, though had obvious disabilities never said a word in support of her and needs to Get A Job.

I totally agree with all the above. And in this country you really cannot live on benefits. I don't see how £52.50 a week can pay gas and elec and feed you even slightly.

I also think that companies that make their trade exploiting these people should be banned from trading. IT's people like them who are taking the tax that I pay to help people on benefits and putting it straight into their own pockets. Shouldn't be allowed.

Jessiepig

I did feel sorry for her You can buy a cheap telly for £50 in Asda and she was paying out so much on it. The poorer you are the more you seem to have to pay out i.e its dearer to pay gas and electric by meter and so on.
i am fortunate to have never been on benifits

milliejon

There are other threads discussing this. Perhaps these could be merged:

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=207791
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=209034.

I too live on a council estate much like the one on the programme this morning, and I know of plenty of people who manage on benefits. They don't live in palaces or have the best clothes or gadgets but they get by.

I think the trouble comes when people cheat the system and manage to get the best when they're on benefits, then it's a bit like 'Beat the Jones's'.

When I lived at home we lived on benefits so I know what it's like to try to get by. But there would be no way my mum would have had the best TV and stereo. We had enough to keep us entertained. It was hard, but necessary.

I am, in no way, being judgmental. God knows, I can't with my debt. But the lady in the programme admitted that it's not worth her getting a job because she would earn less than the benefits bring into the household.

There is something fundamentally wrong with a system like this.