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Time to stop pretending it will be ok!

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Comments

  • julie2710
    julie2710 Posts: 1,381 Forumite
    Well I've been a busy bee tonight. Listed 79 CDs and 1 DVD! Happy New Year everyone :j
    MBNA [STRIKE]£2,029[/STRIKE] £1,145 Virgin [STRIKE]£8,712[/STRIKE] £7,957 Sainsbury [STRIKE]£6,870[/STRIKE] £5,575 M&S [STRIKE]£10,016[/STRIKE] £9,690 Barclaycard [STRIKE]£11,951[/STRIKE] £11,628 CTC [STRIKE]£7,629[/STRIKE] £6,789 Mortgage £[STRIKE]182,828[/STRIKE] £171,670
    LBM Dec12 excl mort 47,207/42,784 Dec13
    Excl mortg and CTC 39,578/35,995 Dec13
    Incl mortg 230,035/214,454 Dec13

    Extra payment a week:this week £0 / YTD£1,457.55
  • Kathy535
    Kathy535 Posts: 464 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 100 Posts Combo Breaker I've been Money Tipped!
    edited 1 January 2013 at 2:12PM
    fatbelly wrote: »
    I presume the Council Tax also has the 25% single adult discount.

    On the CTC overpayment, my understanding is:



    This is from the turn2us site and their adviser tool is here:

    http://advicefinder.turn2us.org.uk/

    That's certainly the case for benefits like Income Support and JSA paid by DWP, but I think tax credits are slightly different, they can claim some or all of an overpayment back even if it's their error (willing to be corrected on this, my knowledge is from a long time ago). This leaflet might help, but definitely worth getting in touch with them and disputing if you are having to pay back the entire amount.

    http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/leaflets/cop26.pdf

    Also, there was this article in the Guardian which talked about the amount of fraud and error in the tax credit system and there was this paragraph:

    "Payments are based on estimates of income for the coming year, and after 2008 HMRC did not attempt to reclaim overpayments of less than £25,000. That is set to be reduced to £5,000 under the coalition, alongside moves to require proof of payments from those claiming for childcare or that children aged between 16 and 19 are in full-time education."

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/dec/31/iain-duncan-smith-tax-credits
  • julie2710
    julie2710 Posts: 1,381 Forumite
    Good morning diary! Back here for an update to make sure I'm staying on track.

    As far as spending goes the only money I've spent over the last two days was stamps, for work post so will be reclaimed through expenses and a coffee with a colleague that likewise will be claimed back.

    I've been using food from the cupboards and freezer. I'm ashamed to say I think that some of it may have been there for some time and rather the use what was there I've been buying more and using that! Food bill should be lower this month for sure.

    I've joined the extra payment a week challenge and so far paid off the money my parents gave me for Christmas and just checked my bank account and the £10.47 for Topcashback has gone in today so to avoid it getting swallowed up I've paid that off my MBNA card today. Little steps but its below the £2k mark now.

    I'm also doing some extra work on Saturday so will get paid and use that too.

    A few of the eBay items have watchers as well so fingers crossed for Sunday.
    MBNA [STRIKE]£2,029[/STRIKE] £1,145 Virgin [STRIKE]£8,712[/STRIKE] £7,957 Sainsbury [STRIKE]£6,870[/STRIKE] £5,575 M&S [STRIKE]£10,016[/STRIKE] £9,690 Barclaycard [STRIKE]£11,951[/STRIKE] £11,628 CTC [STRIKE]£7,629[/STRIKE] £6,789 Mortgage £[STRIKE]182,828[/STRIKE] £171,670
    LBM Dec12 excl mort 47,207/42,784 Dec13
    Excl mortg and CTC 39,578/35,995 Dec13
    Incl mortg 230,035/214,454 Dec13

    Extra payment a week:this week £0 / YTD£1,457.55
  • julie2710
    julie2710 Posts: 1,381 Forumite
    edited 3 January 2013 at 9:22PM
    Well that's a sobering thought if ever there was!

    Just done the snowball calculator, just for my debts rather than including my mortgage.

    59 months to debt free which I think was better than I thought it would be based on minimum repayments now! The shocking thing was the £15,454 in interest :eek: I have to find extra money to clear these early and stave off some of that!

    I've been feeling really fed up today. Started positively making a little extra payment then I end up having to call the gas engineer out as boiler is leaking :-( I know I should have money set aside but I don't. I need things to change it just feels like I take one step forward and two back.:(

    Oh and I spoke to the CTC people who said although they appreciate I consider it was their fault that I was overpaid it was my responsibility to check my award and let them know in 30 days if there was an error, therefore it's my fault and yes I do have to repay it!!!!
    MBNA [STRIKE]£2,029[/STRIKE] £1,145 Virgin [STRIKE]£8,712[/STRIKE] £7,957 Sainsbury [STRIKE]£6,870[/STRIKE] £5,575 M&S [STRIKE]£10,016[/STRIKE] £9,690 Barclaycard [STRIKE]£11,951[/STRIKE] £11,628 CTC [STRIKE]£7,629[/STRIKE] £6,789 Mortgage £[STRIKE]182,828[/STRIKE] £171,670
    LBM Dec12 excl mort 47,207/42,784 Dec13
    Excl mortg and CTC 39,578/35,995 Dec13
    Incl mortg 230,035/214,454 Dec13

    Extra payment a week:this week £0 / YTD£1,457.55
  • eyeopener2
    eyeopener2 Posts: 1,783 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker Debt-free and Proud!
    Rather than speak to someone, get writing a complaint letter. Get the actual reason in writing.

    If they tell you to get stuffed go to the Parliamentary Ombudsman and ask for their response to this. Your MP a well (waste of time but still worth a shot).

    Don't take somebodys word on the phone, ever, Get it in writing and go as far as you can, its only a few stamps at the end of the day.

    http://www.revenuebenefits.org.uk/tax-credits/guidance/how-to-deal-with-hmrc/making-a-complaint/adjudicator/
    I'm Debt Free :j 2/09/2013
    Debt at LBM 30/04/2010 £24,109.38,
  • julie2710
    julie2710 Posts: 1,381 Forumite
    Didn't realise all this. I need to get some letters done. I have copies of the forms I'd submitted with the fact that I had declared my company car, they just didn't include it in my income. To be honest it didn't occur to me that they should! Pity they can't borrow it for a couple of months to pay back some of what I owe? My mortgage lenders won't go for that either :o
    MBNA [STRIKE]£2,029[/STRIKE] £1,145 Virgin [STRIKE]£8,712[/STRIKE] £7,957 Sainsbury [STRIKE]£6,870[/STRIKE] £5,575 M&S [STRIKE]£10,016[/STRIKE] £9,690 Barclaycard [STRIKE]£11,951[/STRIKE] £11,628 CTC [STRIKE]£7,629[/STRIKE] £6,789 Mortgage £[STRIKE]182,828[/STRIKE] £171,670
    LBM Dec12 excl mort 47,207/42,784 Dec13
    Excl mortg and CTC 39,578/35,995 Dec13
    Incl mortg 230,035/214,454 Dec13

    Extra payment a week:this week £0 / YTD£1,457.55
  • julie2710
    julie2710 Posts: 1,381 Forumite
    Ok so this is exactly why I need to get on top of things! It's like one step forward and two back. Took up the offer of extra work this weekend. Cleared £80 after childcare which I thought I would use an extra payment on one of my credit cards as I sat down this morning and worked through my bank account. All payments made on cards for this month, cheque done for school fees and £300 left to last me until the end of the month. Would have some spare which is good and I will be working this coming Friday plus two nights next week.

    The two steps back? I have a leak somewhere for the boiler! The pressure isn't dropping but there is a pool of water in the loft and its come through the kitchen ceiling leaving a stain! :eek: So tomorrow the engineer will be out and there goes my £80 plus some possibly! The redecorating I can do myself and I know I have paint knocking around. Just such a pain as no move forward.

    Same thing happened last year. I had done a load of extra work, put nearly £2k aside to pay off a card and then I end up having to force the sale of my exs flat which he had failed to remove my name from and it was going to be repossessed :( It cost me just short of the £2k but I suppose on he plus side if I hadn't done the extra work it would have still happened but I wouldn't have had the money to sort it out!

    Still I will do this! I. So determined. Can't stand living like I have for the last year worrying every month about how I'm going to make ends meet.
    MBNA [STRIKE]£2,029[/STRIKE] £1,145 Virgin [STRIKE]£8,712[/STRIKE] £7,957 Sainsbury [STRIKE]£6,870[/STRIKE] £5,575 M&S [STRIKE]£10,016[/STRIKE] £9,690 Barclaycard [STRIKE]£11,951[/STRIKE] £11,628 CTC [STRIKE]£7,629[/STRIKE] £6,789 Mortgage £[STRIKE]182,828[/STRIKE] £171,670
    LBM Dec12 excl mort 47,207/42,784 Dec13
    Excl mortg and CTC 39,578/35,995 Dec13
    Incl mortg 230,035/214,454 Dec13

    Extra payment a week:this week £0 / YTD£1,457.55
  • emsywoo123
    emsywoo123 Posts: 5,440 Forumite
    Speak to tax credits and the school. You may well find you can claim tax credits for fees! (Partly!) :D
  • julie2710
    julie2710 Posts: 1,381 Forumite
    emsywoo123 wrote: »
    Speak to tax credits and the school. You may well find you can claim tax credits for fees! (Partly!) :D

    I would be able to claim for the youngest and the after school portion of the oldest child fees but I'm not entitled to tax credits as I earn too much. They include my company car as taxable income as well. Well they do now they want back everything they paid me for 4 years :(
    MBNA [STRIKE]£2,029[/STRIKE] £1,145 Virgin [STRIKE]£8,712[/STRIKE] £7,957 Sainsbury [STRIKE]£6,870[/STRIKE] £5,575 M&S [STRIKE]£10,016[/STRIKE] £9,690 Barclaycard [STRIKE]£11,951[/STRIKE] £11,628 CTC [STRIKE]£7,629[/STRIKE] £6,789 Mortgage £[STRIKE]182,828[/STRIKE] £171,670
    LBM Dec12 excl mort 47,207/42,784 Dec13
    Excl mortg and CTC 39,578/35,995 Dec13
    Incl mortg 230,035/214,454 Dec13

    Extra payment a week:this week £0 / YTD£1,457.55
  • harrys_dad
    harrys_dad Posts: 1,997 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Yes you can do this Julie. There will be setbacks along the way, but that is just the way things are. Whatever rate you go at you will always do more steps forwards than back and will get there :)
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