Wedding expenses?

TJ07

Hello,

This is my first post here so apologies if I'm posting in the wrong place.

I declared BR last month but last year I was asked to be best man for my best friend's wedding. I didn't know I'd be going BR at the time and now I am BR I am starting to worry about affording this commitment.

The groom knows about my BR and is keeping costs down to a minimum for me but some costs are unavoidable, i.e travel and hotel. I'm not expecting a holiday of any kind this year and was wondering if I could ask my OR for family holiday funds to cover this, as it is essentially a mini holiday. I know holidays aren't an essential expense but I also know people do get these expenses approved sometimes.

I know this doesn't sound like an essential cost but I agreed this commitment last year and would really hate to let everyone involved down. And I'm not expecting a holiday this year in any shape or form really.

What do you think my chances are of getting these funds approved?

Thanks

egrescrimp

I assume you have a holiday allowance in your SOA? Just so you are aware, you dont have to live by the SOA. Life isn't as straight forward as putting down x amount for this and X amount for that, if you need to spend a few hundred from your monthly allowance then go for it and live a little more frugal in other areas to cover it.

I doubt the OR would see it as a valid expense though.

tigerfeet2006

A holiday fund is a normal expense on a SoA. £25 is usual for a single person going up if you have a partner and children, do you have one?. Also as Eg says you can juggle your expenses a bit.

TheGardener

The OR has no interest in how you spend you income once the SOA process is complete - they don't 'approve' your personal expenditure - if you can find the money from your current income then its fine. If you are asking for a reduction in an IPA (do you have one?) to cover this cost - then I'm afraid that is unlikely.

TJ07

I didn't think to include a holiday allowance in my SOA as I didn't know it would be permitted.

Is it too late to get this added to my SOA?

I have an IPA setup but it hasn't started yet.

egrescrimp

Has your SOA been approved yet or is it still going through the working out stage with the OR? I wasn't aware of being allowed a holiday allowance either, the OR added it into my SOA.

You can always submit a change of circumstances to include a holiday allowance and see what the OR says. £20 per adult and £10 per child each month is a reasonable figure in my opinion, you could request higher but that may make it harder to be approved.

TJ07

Here' a quick breakdown of my timeline:

11 Feb: Declared BR, submitted SOA which was approved, IPA setup.

11 Mar: Accepted offer of new job, adjusted SOA to include new travel costs and IPA figure amended. I'm assuming this has now reached the OR's office by now and is in the process of being amended.

Yesterday: Spoke to groom and remembered I have this commitment coming up. Wondering if possible to amend SOA again.

I've been speaking with my OR several times a week and I get the feeling that he's getting annoyed by my frequent calls. Unfortunately I was extremely modest making my SOA and didn't really consider anything for a holiday.

I also stupidly assumed once discharged the IPA is fixed and surplus income can be kept (I'm expecting another payrise after discharge). I've been so naive about the whole process.

tigerfeet2006

Who did you take advice from before you went BR?

Please can you pop up your current SoA you have just submitted to the OR. Use this calculater to make it easier.
http://www.stoozing.com/calculator/soa.php

alastairq

Whilst Undischarged...and, if an IPA is agreed beforehand, whilst the IPA is running [3 years]...you will be obliged to inform the OR of any change in [financial, usually] circumstances...within 21 days of the change.


So..if you do agree to a surplus-based IPA, start paying it..and get a pay rise, the OR must be informed when it happens...and your IPA will be adjusted accordingly.

Remember, you are not re-paying any debts.....[that is already being dealt with] you are contributing your surplus income to the BR estate....!

TJ07

tigerfeet2006 wrote: »

Who did you take advice from before you went BR?

Please can you pop up your current SoA you have just submitted to the OR. Use this calculater to make it easier.

Hi, here's my total SOA

Income Amount(£)
Monthly income after tax 1549
Total monthly income 1549

Rent 725
Groceries etc. 230
Clothing 30
Other travel 175
Haircuts 12
Entertainment 10
Emergency Fund 20
Total monthly expenses 1202


IPA monthly figure 347

lilybankrupt

blimey there's loads missing here that the OR should allow?

gas / electric
phone / broadband / TV (basic)
prescriptions / dentist / optician
plus the £25 a month approx for holidays

unless your rent covers some of these all inclusive?