How can you stop Being frugal....

vintagegirl

....come across as being tight.
My friends and Dh are generous but I find I'm constantly watching every single penny.
I make a new soa every day and am very frugal with petrol especially. A lot of my friends just assume because I have a car and they don't that I will drive
I dont think they realise the cost and i wouldn't ask for petrol money but I'm always the one that drives an takes everyone home

sistafromanothermista

I know what you mean. Any improptu trip anywhere makes me break out in a sweat as i now only fill up once a week so i have to make it last. The non drivers i don't think realise that!!

headoutthesand

Petrol gets to me too.

My oh has a company car which he pays £90 pm for straight out his wages. This covers petrol too. I hate driving to his (17m each way) cos it costs me 'actual' money lol.

whiteguineapig

me too, i am trying to stick to £10 diesel every 10 days or so, it makes you think about where you'r going

devon67

I have found a new assertiveness in my frugal living and luckily for me, many of my friends are in the same position anyway so they are just as cautious. However, if you find that you are always the nominated driver, why not suggest that whoever is driving in future has a contribution from everyone in the car?
I do find it easy to say 'sorry - cant afford that this week' but do appreciate that other people may not.
Its not being tight - its about looking after you.
With petrol and car running costs as they are I have my car up for sale now - really cannot justify spending that much money each month on a what I now consider a 'luxury item'.
Good luck anyway.

BFM

a friend who doesn't appreciate you driving them around enough to make a reasonable contribution to the cost isn't really a friend at all.

you need to (wo)man up and get them to throw in a few quid each each time - I didn't have a car when we lived in the city but was always offering to split the costs when I was getting ferried about by my mates. still worked out heaps cheaper than owning and running a car.

ReadingTim

If your friends expect a lift (rather than being offered) then they're not very good friends. That said, if you're driving anyway, and they're not massively out of your way, you might come across as a bit mean not to offer a lift once in a while. Get them to buy you a drink or something if you don't feel confortable with asking for petrol money.

Perhaps the solution is to call their bluff every now and again, and not drive yourself - say you want to have a drink, or can't afford the petrol - make them appreciate a lift when it's offered, or not give into their demands or assumptions!

Best of luck!

flippin36

Just tell them you are stoney broke and cannot afford to put petrol in the tank or......stop off at the petrol station and tell them you've forgotten your wallet and see if they cough up with some petrol money! :beer:

staffie1

If you pass a petrol station while you're driving them, make a point of mentioning the shocking price of petrol nowadays. Hopefully they can take a hint..? Or you could wait to fill up while they're with you. If they are genuine friends that should make them feel guilty enough to offer a couple of quid towards the petrol. If they're not genuine friends, don't drive them.

sistafromanothermista

flippin36 wrote: »

Just tell them you are stoney broke and cannot afford to put petrol in the tank or......stop off at the petrol station and tell them you've forgotten your wallet and see if they cough up with some petrol money! :beer:

:rotfl: love it. That's exactly what i'd do