In bad debt again I feel so ashamed...

anniee1981

Well I am in a bit of a mess, I can't believe I am in this situation again I am disgusted with myself why do I do it, well we have debt (mostly my fault) of around £35,000 OMG that looks just awful I am so depressed with it I hate myself for it. Well here is my statement of affairs:

Monthly Income Amount

Net Monthly Salary £ 987.31 (28hrs full would be £1220.00)
Partner's Monthly Salary £ 1140.27
Benefits £ 105.24
TOTAL MONTHLY INCOME £ 2232.82
________________________________________

Outgoings

Appliance Rental £19.09
Buildings/Contents Insurance £23.37
Car Insurance £38.69
CIS Savings £47.40 (due to end April 07)
Children’s Savings £10.00
Council Tax £106.00
Credit Cards £65.13
Electricity £50.00 (Just changed to NPower)
Gas £30.00 (Just changed to NPower)
Groceries £160.00
ISA £20.00
Life Insurance £33.20
Loans £713.16
Lloyds TSB Account Charge £15.00
Lloyds TSB Overdraft Interest £4.00
Mobile Phone £40.00
Mortgage £475.92 (Interest Only :mad: )
Mortgage Insurance £39.91
Overdraft Insurance £3.95
Petrol £58.00
Pets Insurance/Vets Bills £9.67
Slimbridge Wildlife Membership £3.75
Telephone/Internet/TV £50.00
TV License £11.41
Union £10.22
Water Rates £33.88

TOTAL MONTHLY OUTGOINGS £2071.75

Money Left £161.07 :eek:

I know some of you have nearly nothing left but if we didn't have the loans then we would have £870.00 left which would be fantastic. We have three loans, last year we were in worse debt as I was on maternity leave and just couldn't afford anything so borrowed on credit cards etc it came to a point where I cried every night etc and then I approached my parents and they leant us £20,000 and we paid of loans and credit cards and am so dissapointed and disgusted that I got myself into another pickle again, I lie to my husband and my parents I feel sick to the stomach I am sure if I belted down I could make it better but where do I start.

You must think I am terrible I do not want an IVA or bankruptcy I just don't know what to do.:embarasse :huh: _pale_

A x

thefoolonthehill

there is no point beating yourself up about this as that wont change a thing. you need to post a full soa stating all loans aprs etc.

you also need to tell oh that things have got out of hand. next contact cccs or payplan and talk to them.

Its good that your parents could bail you out last time but i would not ask them again. I would speak to them and tell them you are in a mess finacially. they may get angry but at the end of the day they are your parents and will always stand by you no matter what.

chocaholic110

No doubt pretty soon, someone clever than I will be along to offer advice on how to make your outgoings smaller.

But I just wanted to say that there is no need to be ashamed as we are mostly all the same boat to some degree or another and at least you have taken the first step by realising that you have a problem.

:grouphug:

bride2be2006

Hi there Annie,

I am new to the site too and everyone on this section has been lovely!

I am in the same boat as you with regard to repeat offending! I keep sorting myself out and then seem to get deeper in debt again, it is very upsetting I know but you really should try not to worry, you do need to let OH in on the whole picture, I hadnt told my OH untill a few weeks ago about one loan I have and I felt sick as a dog, when I did tell him (only fair as we were due to marry in a few weeks ) he was fine about it, just concerned that I hadnt felt able to tell him. I feel much better now and I am trying my best to get to grips with everything and work out a way to start clearing some of the money. (hopefully with help and acvice on here!)

KatrinaC_2

anniee1981 wrote:

Monthly Income Amount

Net Monthly Salary £ 987.31 (28hrs full would be £1220.00)
Partner's Monthly Salary £ 1140.27
Benefits £ 105.24
TOTAL MONTHLY INCOME £ 2232.82
________________________________________

Outgoings

Appliance Rental £19.09 What is this the rental for? Would it not be more economical to either get rid of, purchase outright or see if you can get it second hand?
Buildings/Contents Insurance £23.37
Car Insurance £38.69Check that all of your insurances are the most in-expensive you can get. If you do switch, make sure you go through a cash-back site too.
CIS Savings £47.40 (due to end April 07)What is this for? Is there anyway you can cash this in earlier?
Children’s Savings £10.00You cannot afford this. I know that everyone wants to be able to put something aside for their kids, but you cannot afford to do this right now. Put this cash and some of the savings towards paying of the debts and then pay it back at a later date.
Council Tax £106.00
Credit Cards £65.13
Electricity £50.00 (Just changed to NPower)
Gas £30.00 (Just changed to NPower)
Groceries £160.00
ISA £20.00Again, you cannot afford to be saving when you are in this much debt! you are earning pennies on your savings whilst paying pounds on your debts. Can you use some of this to pay off your debts and then pay it back later?
Life Insurance £33.20See comments next to the other insurances
Loans £713.16
Lloyds TSB Account Charge £15.00Do you use the features which come with this account fee? If not, cancel it now and save yourself the money
Lloyds TSB Overdraft Interest £4.00
Mobile Phone £40.00Get a cheap PAYG, or at least lower the tarriff to the minimum you can persuade the operator to.
Mortgage £475.92 (Interest Only :mad: )
Mortgage Insurance £39.91
Overdraft Insurance £3.95 Is this necessary?
Petrol £58.00Can you reduce this by walking, getting the bus, cycling etc?
Pets Insurance/Vets Bills £9.67
Slimbridge Wildlife Membership £3.75Cancel this
Telephone/Internet/TV £50.00What does this cover? If it is Sky, try to reduce your packages or better still cancel altogether. If it is broadband, make sure you are getting the best deal possible
TV License £11.41
Union £10.22Is this compulsory? Is it necesary?
Water Rates £33.88

TOTAL MONTHLY OUTGOINGS £2071.75

Money Left £161.07 :eek:

You should be able to save at least £100 per month if you cut back, more if you use your savings to clear some of the debts.

anniee1981 wrote:

I know some of you have nearly nothing left but if we didn't have the loans then we would have £870.00 left which would be fantastic. We have three loans, last year we were in worse debt as I was on maternity leave and just couldn't afford anything so borrowed on credit cards etc it came to a point where I cried every night etc and then I approached my parents and they leant us £20,000 and we paid of loans and credit cards and am so dissapointed and disgusted that I got myself into another pickle again, I lie to my husband and my parents I feel sick to the stomach I am sure if I belted down I could make it better but where do I start.

You must think I am terrible I do not want an IVA or bankruptcy I just don't know what to do.:embarasse :huh: _pale_

A x

I don't think you are terrible, nor do I think that you are necessarily best off getting an IVA and definitely not best off going bankrupt.

I do wonder how you got into all of this debt though - your parents have given you £20,000 and you are still in £34,000 of debt despite having a surplus every month. Have you kept a spending diary to determine where your cash goes every month? That might be a fantastic idea as there seem to be some things missing from your SOA such as clothing, haircuts, school uniforms and dinners and trips...

Kat

anniee1981

Thank you for replys and your advice it really helps .

Monthly Income Amount

Net Monthly Salary £ 987.31 (28hrs full would be £1220.00)
Partner's Monthly Salary £ 1140.27
Benefits £ 105.24
TOTAL MONTHLY INCOME £ 2232.82
________________________________________

Outgoings

Appliance Rental £19.09 What is this the rental for? Would it not be more economical to either get rid of, purchase outright or see if you can get it second hand? - Will cancel and buy second hand that saves £229.08 per year

Buildings/Contents Insurance £23.37

Car Insurance £38.69 Check that all of your insurances are the most in-expensive you can get. If you do switch, make sure you go through a cash-back site too. That is the best quote we could get, Direct Line are extremely good have used them for 5 years and last year is was £45.00 per month so it has come down.

CIS Savings £47.40 (due to end April 07)What is this for? Is there anyway you can cash this in earlier? This is an endowment savings which has been going for nearly 10 years we should get between £6000-10,000 next March so if we cash in now will lose alot. Will use some to pay off debt.

Children’s Savings £10.00You cannot afford this. I know that everyone wants to be able to put something aside for their kids, but you cannot afford to do this right now. Put this cash and some of the savings towards paying of the debts and then pay it back at a later date. Will freeze this, our daughter is 18 months old so she will get money for birthdays and christmas so will put that in.

Council Tax £106.00

Credit Cards £65.13

Electricity £50.00 (Just changed to NPower)

Gas £30.00 (Just changed to NPower)

Groceries £160.00

ISA £20.00Again, you cannot afford to be saving when you are in this much debt! you are earning pennies on your savings whilst paying pounds on your debts. Can you use some of this to pay off your debts and then pay it back later? Cancelled Now

Life Insurance £33.20 See comments next to the other insurances Need these husband has dangerous job

Loans £713.16

Lloyds TSB Account Charge £15.00 Do you use the features which come with this account fee? If not, cancel it now and save yourself the money. We use the motor breakdown and travel and mobile insurance which would cost much more if seperate

Lloyds TSB Overdraft Interest £4.00

Mobile Phone £40.00Get a cheap PAYG, or at least lower the tarriff to the minimum you can persuade the operator to. Have got PAYG thats how much we use will reduce drastically sending uncessary texts etc

Mortgage £475.92 (Interest Only )

Mortgage Insurance £39.91

Overdraft Insurance £3.95 Is this necessary? Covers our £1100.00 overdraft so if we were sick we would get money.

Petrol £58.00 Can you reduce this by walking, getting the bus, cycling etc? The bus costs more it would cost £20 a week for a bus card so cheaper to drive

Pets Insurance/Vets Bills £9.67

Slimbridge Wildlife Membership £3.75 Cancel this It is nearly up and it was a one year membership can't cancel but will not renew

Telephone/Internet/TV £50.00 What does this cover? If it is Sky, try to reduce your packages or better still cancel altogether. If it is broadband, make sure you are getting the best deal possible. We have telewest the standard package is £30.00 plus £10 for an extra box which we have to keep for the next 9 months the rest is just telephone calls so quite cheap really.

TV License £11.41

Union £10.22 Is this compulsory? Is it necesary? Yes my husband works in the warehouse industry and has used them a lot over the past year and helped with Legal matters

Water Rates £33.88

TOTAL MONTHLY OUTGOINGS £2071.75

Money Left £161.07 + £50.00 extra after cutting back on unecessary bills.

With regards to my parents lending us money we haven't made another £20,000 ontop that is included in the £34,000 debt so have made another £15,00 ontop.

I have spoken with my husband and feel much better for it and from now on we are going to get cash out each week as I use my Debit card here there and everywhere which is where the money goes. We use Quicken now so that will help a lot and will also keep a diary and know we can beat this.

Thanks again for the help.

A x

BWZN93

anniee1981 wrote:

Lloyds TSB Overdraft Interest £4.00

Overdraft Insurance £3.95 Is this necessary? Covers our £1100.00 overdraft so if we were sick we would get money.


A x

There is only 5p difference between what is written here, and is effectively almost doubling the interest you are paying. If you were to become sick etc, then what exactly are the terms of the insurance? Does it pay the full amount of overdraft off no quibble? Or does it just pay the interest? If so, then it doesnt really seem worth the additional expense!

Jo x

Ali-OK

[QUOTE=anniee1981
Lloyds TSB Account Charge £15.00 Do you use the features which come with this account fee? If not, cancel it now and save yourself the money. We use the motor breakdown and travel and mobile insurance which would cost much more if seperate

Lloyds TSB Overdraft Interest £4.00

Thanks again for the help.

A x[/QUOTE]

Hi Anniee

Break down the costs of the account charges (£180 per year) vs. the benefits.

I had this same current account and looked at it like this...

Breakdown cost - how much would cover cost you elsewhere and via Quidco for what you need?

Mobile - this is probably covered on your house contents insurance so you don't need it twice

Travel Insurance - I paid £14 for 2 weeks for 1 adult, 1 child or multi-trip annual cover for up to 2 adults and 2 kids (free) was £34 per year. Again, via Quidco for cashback and comprehensive.

So, to me £34 plus say £70 for breakdown max = £104 per year...a saving of £76 p/a.

Now, whilst that could be seen as "only" £6.33 a month, it is still a saving. Do this with a few things and you'll be looking at £££s per year being saved to throw at your debt.

On the converse side, the OD interest rate for Platinum accounts is cheaper than say the Classic Plus (which has £0 free OD and higher % interest rate) - so if you've got a large OD you maybe wise to stay put for the time being until you can get rid of the OD or get it onto a 0% credit card (You'd need something like Egg Green that allows you to BT direct to your bank).

I know the Classic Plus card is pretty grotty to look at compared to the Platinum, but these days I know I'm the savvy one when the person infront of me uses their Platinum card, cos I can get all those benefits much cheaper without a fee for the privelege!

Moral of my story...shop around, look at the detail and make every single penny count, because they really do add up. Do this with every single outgoing and you'll surprise yourself where you can chop costs. Challenge the reasons not to change something - be brave, be bold, be determined.

Good luck!

southernscouser

Hi anniee and welcome aboard! :beer:

My advice would be to start a spending diary. Every day jot down exactly how much you have spent and on what! After a month you might be shocked how much money you waste. I know I was! :eek:

It's also great in terms of budgetting. You get a proper feel for exactly how much everything costs.

What have you got outstanding on each loan and credit card, what term is left on the loan and what APR are you paying?

Also do you have any PPI on any of the borrowing?

Verbatim

In terms of the appliance insurance and buying second hand you may get one free through freecycle.

anniee1981

Thank you so much for all your suggestions so far I have done the following:

Life and Critical Illness Mortgage Cover was: £39.91 now £28.37

Pet Insurance was £22.97 now £21.77 (I know it’s not much but that’s the best we could get)

ISA: Cancelled saves £20.00

Childrens Savings £10.00 (frozen)

Telewest TV/Telephone/Broadband was £58.00 now £48.00

Appliance Higher £19.09 cancelled buying 2nd hand washer/dryer £40.00 saves £229.08 per/annum

So that’s a saving £52.74 maybe a bit more with some other things, we will buckle right down with household expenditure, we are going to reduce our overdraft by £20.00 each till its £0.00 it might take a while but worth it. Husband Savings policy will mature next march so will pay off credit card so that saves around £30.00 and will pay off other credit card as soon as poss. So every little helps but for now after bills we have around £400 spare so not too bad better than nothing, other people cope so I know we can too.

I spoke to my best friend yesterday and I asked if you would be willing to look after my daughter for one afternoon a week which will up wages to £1074.00 for 31.5 hours so that’s an extra £86.00 which would help, I haven't left my daughter with anyone other than our parents but she loves other children and seems happy with my best mate so might try it.

Anyway I am babbling on so best be off thanks again for your help. :T

A x