Wake up call time

Broke_Kitty

Shoe_Gal wrote: »

Just read through from the beginning and I think you're doing really well! :j Coming from somebody who has been here 5 years, half way through paying off £30k - but have always insisted on 'having a life' whilst I do it!

Thank you very much! I appreciate the support

fallen121 wrote: »

Hello, I wear contact lenses but I buy mine online from feel Good Contact Lenses who often have free P&P and they are also on Quidco so you can get cashback as well.


I am on a scheme with my local optician where I pay £3 per month on a "no supply" contact lens scheme and that gets me free eye tests twice a year which covers both glasses and contact lenses (which would otherwise be charged for separately). My prescription is quite severe, so the 25% discount I get on glasses as a result of belonging to this scheme is worth having although I only change the frames if I have to - the discount applies even if you are just buying new lenses for old frames. Also I try and split the payments as my optician offers interest free over 4 months.


Unfortunately because I am extremely short sighted there are risks associated with laser surgery which I am not prepared to take. I have tried Vision Express and some of the cheaper opticians but I need multifocal contact lenses because my near vision is deteriorating even with contact lenses and also I have one eye slightly undercorrected which gives me better distance vision, so it's not easy to keep changing opticians as they all have different opinions about how to correct your eyes and the money you save chopping and changing opticians may result in you having to throw away lenses when optician #2 tells you that optician #1 was doing it all wrong and completely changes your prescription..


I also get a discount on solutions although I rarely use this as it is often cheaper to buy solutions from Boots using Advantage Card points or buying using a double points card.


Have you asked if your optician offers a cheaper monthly scheme whereby they don't supply the lenses? In effect you are just paying for your eye tests monthly in advance but the discount on glasses is a bonus if and when you need to change them.

Ooh that sounds interesting. I actually have a few pairs of contact lenses stock piled completely accidentally because I am a bit bad at remembering to change them and wear them for longer than a month each time completely accidentally. Which is probably not good. But I was thinking I might cancel my specsavers subscription and buy them online again from a site like that once I run out.

u_r wrote: »

well done you..read all the thread....from the frst few posts through to the recent ones, you have actually made progress in financial maturity( does that even make sense!!!!!!!)

e.g the posts just show the thought and effort u are putting in......just one thing from me...........u are very very young, have a long life ahead of you. if you can bring the social costs to vey minimal and be vvvvv frugal in otherthings too.....u could pay up quicker and then hav a hassle free life for longer!!!!!!!

also a thought....could you not borrow some money from mum( now dat she is not spending on going overseas)...dat would be interest free loan from her, which will enable you to pay off one of yur other loans??

Thank you! Borrowing off my mum really isn't an option since she doesn't work and doesn't have a lot of money herself, besides, it's my mess to get myself out of!

Broke_Kitty

Totally forgot what I came in here to say!

Last month my Invisalign payment went out before I got paid, which completely screwed me because I was overdrawn, could do nothing about it, and got charged by the bank.

So I rang them up and asked if I could make sure my payments always go out on the 1st of the month and not the 30th because my pay day is always the last day of the month so I would definitely be paid by the 1st. The person I spoke to said no problem we can actually change the date it comes out to the 31st, because if you change it to the 1st you'd have two payments coming out in a row which obviously I couldn't afford. He said that it could be changed to the 31st and he would do that for me so whenever a month only has 30 days it will come out on the 30th, but otherwise the 31st, just like my payday. I said that would be great thank you and asked him to clarify that that would be effective from this month.

Today I get a bloody text from the bank saying I'm over my limit, and having budgeted to perfection for the month I was really confused til I checked my online banking to see it has bloody gone out early AGAIN.

I quickly transferred some money from my emergency fund to cover it which I'll just have to put straight back in after I get paid tomorrow, but it's just so annoying that I have to do that! That's really not what my emergency fund is there for

fallen121

Broke_Kitty wrote: »

I actually have a few pairs of contact lenses stock piled completely accidentally because I am a bit bad at remembering to change them and wear them for longer than a month each time completely accidentally. Which is probably not good. But I was thinking I might cancel my specsavers subscription and buy them online again from a site like that once I run out.

Do try and get your eyes tested at least once a year. Remember it is not just about your prescription but the health of your eyes. An optician will be checking for things like glaucoma, which, if undiagnosed, can result in loss of sight.


It is also important to make sure that your prescription is up to date if you drive. A lot of these online places don't ask for prescriptions so it is so tempting just to keep buying the lenses.


At the very least, try and find somewhere that offers a sight test for free, and see if you can wangle a contact lens check at the same time.

Broke_Kitty

fallen121 wrote: »

Do try and get your eyes tested at least once a year. Remember it is not just about your prescription but the health of your eyes. An optician will be checking for things like glaucoma, which, if undiagnosed, can result in loss of sight.


It is also important to make sure that your prescription is up to date if you drive. A lot of these online places don't ask for prescriptions so it is so tempting just to keep buying the lenses.


At the very least, try and find somewhere that offers a sight test for free, and see if you can wangle a contact lens check at the same time.

Yeah, this is good advice thanks! I don't actually wear my glasses or contact lenses that often, I wear my glasses when I'm driving in the dark or going to the cinema, and my lenses only get worn at weekends, so I'll definitely speak to Specsavers about maybe just getting a few dailies sent to me every few months instead, which would save me money already.

Broke_Kitty

Just phoned up to make my loan overpayment (£100 this month already, thanks to the £80 from my dad for Christmas, woohoo!) and I asked the lady for the balance on the loan while I had her on the phone as it takes a while to update on online banking.

I was really taken aback to realise just how little had come off the total considering my monthly payment had gone out yesterday. About 40% of my monthly payments appear to just be vanishing presumably due to the interest! I'm so glad I joined this forum and started making overpayments because I never realised how much of a big difference it would make!

The fact that since my LBM just two months ago I've paid off over £500 from it makes me so happy, if I am able to keep it up at this rate I'll have the whole thing paid off in a year, which is a year early!

Every penny really does count.

Broke_Kitty

I have set up my 'save the change' on my debit card to go straight into my overpayments bank account, which should start adding up to my overpayments day by day.

For those who don't know what that is, I'm with Lloyds and it basically just means that anything you purchase on your debit card you can choose to round up to the nearest pound, and pop the rest in a savings account.

Gonna really try to hammer clixsense tonight, see if I can get my head around how people make so much on there!

Broke_Kitty

Lots of Field Agent tasks in my area today! Crossing my fingers that they will still be there later on so I can whiz round and get as many as possible!

Also making more on clixsense at the moment, think I might finally be getting the hang of it. I have $6 something now and although I've been signed up two weeks I didn't go on at all over the Christmas/New Year week and only realised I could do tasks recently!

LannieDuck

Hi Kitty. Just read your thread and am very impressed by how well you're doing. Good job

Broke_Kitty

Thank you! I did three Field Agent tasks today! That's £13.50 towards the loan

gayleygoo

Hi Broke Kitty, I just wanted to say I think you're doing great! There are so many young people who feel pressurised into living beyond their means just to live what they consider a "normal" life, keep up with friends etc, but obviously it all has to be paid back at some point and it's much harder to do after several years of interest piling up!

I'm happy for you that you have made so much effort and progress on tackling your debt and if you continue in this way you'll be debt free soon enough, with much more knowledge and experience of living within your means.

I giggled a bit at the thought of "not being allowed" a £3 eyeliner but you really do need occasional small treats to get you through the hard times. Do you have an overall monthly budget for personal spending/allowance for non-necessities? I give myself £40 a month and that is to cover all socialising, drinking, make-up when I need it etc. Once I've reached the limit I have to wait til next month to buy anything more, which means I often decide I don't need or want the thing anyway! Get into the habit of not impulse buying non-essentials, wait at least 24 hours and quite often you'll change your mind without feeling like you've missed out on something.

Also slightly horrified by how expensive your dental treatment is - £800 for a root canal?! Mine was £106, and that was a back tooth which apparently cost more to fix. I hope there is a solution for you which doesn't mean you take on much more debt and can be pain free (I seriously would rather go through labour again than a toothache)

For car emergencies, a credit union account is helpful, if you have one near you. While I don't intend to advise you to get into any more debt, a car is one of those things that will !!!!!! up every so often. Savings in a credit union account can be built up for emergencies, and if there is not enough in the account to cover the bill they offer very low interest rates to borrow on your savings. Much cheaper than bank loans or credit cards. It also pays dividends rather than interest, most years I get about £60-£80 return on my £300 savings! Saying that, if your boyfriend is able to lend you the money interest free to fix your car when needed then that's probably the cheapest option.

I hope your friends and boyfriend are more on board with your financial situation now. We rarely go out with friends except for special occasions - we visit each others houses, drink cheap carry-outs and homebrew, listen to music and play boardgames! Perhaps when you move into your own place that will be an option, particularly as you will have many more bills to pay than living at home. I've never liked the cinema for socialising - you can't talk during the film! (and always sneak in your own drinks and munchies rather than pay extortionate prices for them there!) In summer it is easier, you can go for a nice walk or sit in a park or forest, harder in winter when it's usually grim to go outside.

Sorry if I've rambled on or been unhelpful you're doing a great job of reducing your debts, keep at it :T