Bye Bye Plastic

KirstyO

I've decided, from next payday (24th) I am no longer allowing myself to use my debit card.

I'm going to SO or DD all my bills, DMP, savings etc then withdraw the weeks cash and leave the card at home. It's just too tempting. I assume loads of people do this, but does anyone have any hints and tips. It'll be the first time I've gone cold turkey on plastic, and it scares me a little.

My only concern is that my cheapest petrol station is pay at pump only...should I allow myself this one plastic transaction when necessary? Or is it worth cutting back on fuel, and having to pay a bit extra in cash to truly lose the card?

Learning2Budget

Have you seen the envelope thread? I am trying this for the first time this month.x

KirstyO

yeh i thought about sealed envelopes, but my temptation then is to open them early...if i only draw out cash for one week at a time and leave the card, then i have no choice. I could potentially leave the envelopes with my boyf but that scares me as much as having them in my own house. I trust him but I know he's out of work at the moment and sometimes desperation can make people do foolish things. Unless I didn't tell him what was in there....and put all the smaller envelopes into one big one and sealed it?

maginot

It completely depends whether you honestly believe you wouldn't use it for other things.
If you honestly wouldn't use it, then it makes sense to save some money on fuel.

LittleMissGiggles123

Could you get one of those prepaid cards? You could put all your spending money for the month on it, or even just your petrol money at the beginning of the month & use that to pay at the pay at pump.

pepperpot22_2

I do this and (for me anyway) it makes money management so much easier. Handing over cash makes me much more careful with my spending as psychologically it's much more difficult to hand over cash for a frivolous spend! I also find it quicker paying it shops than messing about with a debit card.

I find I have to be realistic about the weekly cash withdrawal amount. Not so little that I'm going to have to scrimp and save too much but so much more than I need that I'll risk wasting it.

Although I don't use a debit card most of the time, I'll still use it occasionally - paying at machines where there's no cash option or for a large purchase I've budgeted for rather than walking around with wads of cash. Also for online purchases (but I'm very careful with these now!)

I would just subtract the petrol cost from your weekly withdrawal 'allowance' and pay by card unless you truly can't trust yourself to keep your card in your purse.

I'm not a big fan of pre-paid cards as I think there's normally a fee and although you can't overspend, it's still not as easy to keep track of as cash.

carslet

i have another account, so the account that salary goes into i pay all by DD and SO and put MY allowence cash into this other account. and have a debit card for this, no overdraft on it, when it is gone it is gone. maybe that is what you want to try

Chrisblue1962

I, too, am in a similiar position to the OP. My solution:...

1. Basic bank account No.1 - All Bills by DD & SO.

2. Basic bank account No. 2 - My personal allowance / out-of -pocket expenses. Once it's gone it's gone!!!!

3. Pre-paid Credit Card - I load this with my month's petrol money, having worked out how much I use per day x no. of working days for the month ahead.

This way, my Bills and Travel costs are 100% separate from Variable spending.

Works for me

marleyboy

I am terrible with money, in cash it burns a hole in my pocket. After taking nearly a Year to clear my overdraft (£1000), I opted to only spend what I had in my bank account.

I have on the rare occasion slipped over into the red, but only minimally and promptly refunded back into the black. Knowing how much is in my account allows me to assess how much I can spend and on what after outgoing bills.

I stick with my debit card, albeit I do have a Visa, I have NEVER used the card, chances are it has already been voided due to no use.

If you know your budget limit, stick to it and never be tempted to pay for goods with money you just don't have, its a good way of self disciplining yourself.