Put away your purse & become debt-averse

maryb · 8 October 2018 at 8:27PM

wishing you strength for the sad time you will have to go through

foxgloves · 10 October 2018 at 4:32PM

Thanks, Maryb & joeyjimbles for your thoughtful wishes.

Well, the inevitable sad news to report that my Mum died yesterday. I'm back home sorting out some clothes etc, & to spend a couple of nights with mr f & cat before heading back south tomorrow morning to start sorting out all the necessary arrangements & legal stuff. I will need to live between two places for a while, as we have a house to clear & sell too, so there is lots to do. I'm aiming to update my DFW diary when I can, because I really don't want my good money habits to start falling by the wayside because I'm so out of my routines. So, I've started how I mean to go on today. I've done my mid-month budget check-in a few days early to make sure everything is looking ok, & I've shuffled some funds around to keep the various different 'pots' straight. Even though I'm feeling sad & stressed at the moment, I was pleasantly surprised (actually, I nearly had to summon mr f to physically scrape me off the floor!) by something which arrived in the post today. I'm sure I've moaned about this before, but one of my real bugbears with insurance is how much the premiums increase at renewal time despite the fact that we haven't claimed. It is just WRONG to my mind when UK inflation is below 3% to shove a whopping 30% increase onto premiums in the hope that enough silly narnas will pay up without querying it. I suppose there must just be a LOT of silly narnas. Anyway, every year, my home & contents renewal lands on the doormat, I look at the quote, I work out the % increase, I google the current UK inflation rate, then I phone them & ask them to match the cheaper online price. They say they can't do that, so I tell them I am letting that policy lapse & that I am heading online RIGHT NOW to purchase the exact same policy at the price, I, as a loyal customer, expect to be charged. They say 'Ok', so that's what I do. Every bloody year! So, today when I spotted the letter lying ominously on the doormat, I got ready to adopt my usual procedure........well, I read it once, I read it twice.......& heaven forfend......the price had gone down!! OK, not by much, I'm not talking a night out on what I've saved, but they are very definitely charging me £5.04 less than last year. So I decided to renew there & then. It's one less thing for me to be faffing about with at a very busy time. Is this a one-off? (It was Co-op Insurance) or are they finally getting the message? I don't know, but it was a pleasant surprise not to see that big jump in premium for no good reason.
Well, I need to crack on now, I've got the last of Sunday's joint of roast meat to turn into a nice pan of spicy rice tonight, & it had better be served with some wokked courgettes as despite mr f assuring me he'd picked them last week when I was away, I don't think he realised that another 6 grow the minute he turns his back! And importantly, I need to make sure I find all the necessary ID documentation I need to take with me to assist with all the forthcoming legal proceedings. Off to do that now, then I'd better think about cat food, as cat is currently marauding around in utter disgust at the state of his bowl.
Take care all, cherish your families & friends & keep on with the debt-busting.
F x

Chrystal · 10 October 2018 at 5:07PM

I'm sorry to hear about your Mum foxgloves. I hope you can see it as a release for her, not having to suffer anymore. ((hugs))
The legal side of it can be a nightmare - we're still in the throes of it 2 years later! Hopefully yours will be more straightforward.
Take care of yourself XX

Kantankrus_Mare · 10 October 2018 at 6:07PM

Just popped in as I had a feeling...:(

So sorry for your loss ..............even though it was expected, doesnt make it any easier. Look after yourself. XX