Viix's Journey

Viix

UncannyScot - Hello and thank you! I agree on the importance of an emergency fund, poor sick puss to the tune of £150 reminded me of that (vet is a darling and allowing me to pay it up). I am so relieved to still have him with us though.
I have signed up to Prolific though not had many surveys yet. I will sign up to Panelbase also thank you for the recommendation!

So I dropped a quick call to my GP practice and discovered that my results are in but the receptionist informed me that she is not qualified to give me the results and no GP's are available to give them to me but I will get them at my next scheduled appointment in 2 weeks.... ugh.

Viix

Wow what a week.

Work has been tough as it is a lot more physical than my normal job but if nothing else it will help me drop the weight I gained and get my fitness up quicker. I am really enjoying working though.

I don't get paid until the last Thursday of the month but it will still only be SSP so July is going to be insanely difficult which is very likely to see missed payments and a lot of "robbing Peter to pay Paul". My boyfriend has always said since my accident that he will help me out if I need and to let him know, so I think a conversation with him will be on the cards as much as I hate to.

On a positive note though, I had word from my manager that I should claim travelling expenses for my temporary placement as it is nearly 18 miles away from where I am contracted to work so that will help a lot as my employer always pays the full 45p a mile for travel expenses and it always is more than the travel itself.

Also, I got my test results from my GP practice! I requested copies to include with the application to get my licence back which was posted yesterday morning. . I am starting to see a light at the end of this despairingly dark tunnel.

Viix

Okay so I am admitting it...

I am in debt to the tune of £11553.19. (reserved post edited)

Even though I have not missed any payments I am completely mortified. Admittedly £5000+ of that has just been since January while I have been unable to work. I was stupid and didn't apply for any financial help believing it would just be a very short period of time before I returned to work so only had SSP, Child Benefit and a little bit of Tax Credits as income.

How could I have been so stupid?! I spent years making sure I never landed in debt after I was left in thousands of pounds worth of debt by an ex. My pride in not wanting to claim financial support and foolishly thinking I would only be a couple of weeks off my feet has led me here.

I have been such a moron.

mark55man

we all pay stupid taxes one way or another, the important thing is you are out of that situation now, and have taken back control (sorry - but true in this instance)

As you know many many people have beaten debts that are bigger than that. Its just a long old slog while its happening.

As for this month (ie your last SSP month) get over to the Old Style board and either look for emergency budget threads ("I have £20 to last a month") or post your own question there you may find you can do more than you imagined with what you have. They are formidable - so don't be shy about asking for help - "no doubling up on the stupid tax"

Above all don't beat yourself up too much - its to your credit that you tried to be self sufficient, you were just unlucky to have been let down by the delays in the system - I'm sure everyone meant well but its you thats left dangling

And in the scheme of things a month is well only a month - and looks like being a cracker so find somewhere you can relax out in the sun and let it recharge you.

redofromstart

Just popping in to say good luck with your journey :hello:

Viix

I know it has been a while since I last posted, seeing my debts written down in black and white in one place hit harder than I thought it would. On the up now though.

I admitted to my BF the level of debt I am in and he was amazing about it. He sat with me and sorted through all the debts and said it is fixable. His main concern was the Barclaycard, the MBNA (has a higher APR than Barclaycard once 0% ran out) and the Currys Store Account. The Tesco CC didn't bother him so much as £2000 of it is Balance transfer which still has 0% on for a little over a year but still needed the balance bringing down in his opinion.

So... the most amazing person I know and who I adore completely has loaned me some money to make my debts more manageable. The loan is 0% and he refuses to take any money back until my income following my sick leave stabilises and only if he feels I can afford to that month (he doesn't want me to pay it back but I refuse to freeload. My employers payroll works kind of weird...basic pay 1 month in arrears, overtime 2 months in arrears and travel expenses either 1 month or 2 month in arrears depending on dates claimed for and my next pay is going to be a mix of basic pay and SSP and because my temp position is more than my contracted hours I wont get the additional hours until the month after..if that makes any sense whatsoever...

So the current state of my debts are as follows..

Barclaycard £0.00 - To close when next statement comes in to ensure no additional interest.
Tesco CC £3053.61
Clydesdale CC £358.54
Curry's Acc £0.00 - To close when next statement comes in to ensure no additional interest
MBNA CC £0.00 - To close when next statements comes in to ensure no additional interest.
Scott&Co £2400
Historic CT arrears £1087.94

Total = £6900.09

A much less scary number I must admit and as much as I struggled explaining my situation to my BF I am so glad I did. The guys a keeper for sure.

On a non financial note, my licence application is away and I just need to wait until I hear from them now which hopefully wont be too long.

mark55man

that all sounds the best of news all round

£7K isnt that much now is it - a bit of a cheap year and a bit of extra income and you'll make big progress

I think you are right to want to pay the money back - if he wont take it, then put it in savings and ringfence it. If he is a keeper you will be able to use it later together

beanielou

Blimey, that is awesome

Viix

So I got the latest statement in from Barclaycard and balance is zero so I called them up to cancel the account. I explained to the guy that I wanted to close the account completely and he asked me why. I said the interest is just too high and I don't want it anymore. He offered me a 8% reduction on the interest to which I said "No, I would rather close the account please". He went off on a spiel I didn't listen to and stated again that I wanted to close the account. The guy just kept on and on about it and then my anxiety kicked in so now I still have the account with a 8% reduction on the interest rate. I really don't want this account anymore but can't face calling them back so I am going to wait until my bf is back (he works other end of the country a lot) and will tell them that he has my permission to act on my behalf and have him close the account. I felt so in control when I initially called them up to close the account...UGH!

The positive note for this post is that I have registered for my next module to study with The Open University. I don't get the results of my last module until the 17th so I won't complete the application and funding paperwork until I get my results. Being prepared!

I am also driving again! I confirmed with my Dr, DVLA and my insurance company that they are happy for me to drive under Section 88 of the Road Traffic Act and after a quite anxious start I feel like I never stopped driving. I am reluctant to go back to my original position with work until I actually get my licence back but the commuting is helping me build my driving confidence up.

Overall a fairly good week this week even though I chickened out with Barclaycard and as I have had no income this week no progress on my debt blasting.

beanielou

Good news on the driving.
You dont need to use the BC.