SOA figures for Grocery?

brandons

Hi All

I am in process of doing an SOA and trying to understand what is reasonable for grocery and what you might buy at supermarket, I mean it is not all food is it.

I am single, live by myself, visited by my kids most weeks but they do not stay over, although they do eat things.

The purpose of the SOA will be to try to persuade my creditors that I am a lost cause with no realistic chance of paying back debt, my total debt is just too big and I have no money left over.

I struggle with forms and there is so much SOA data, I have no idea what I spend on these things

I would appreciate some input on the headings below of what is considered reasonable.


Monthly Income (after tax)
Benefits £550

Enter your monthly expenditure

Rent
Council Tax
Electricity
Gas
Oil
Water Rates
Telephone (land line)
Mobile Phone
TV Licence
Internet Services
Groceries etc.
Clothing
Petrol/Diesel
Road Tax (car)
Car Insurance (including breakdown cover)
Car Maintenance (including MOT)
Car Parking
Other child related expenses
Medical (prescriptions, dentists, opticians etc.)
Presents (birthday, christmas etc.)
Haircuts
Entertainment
Household Emergency Fund (e.g. for repairs)

Enter SECURED debts and Hire Purchase (HP) debts

Enter ALL your mortgage, secured and HP debt details here.
Debt description Debt (£) Monthly payment (£) Annual Rate (%)

Enter your UNsecured Debts e.g. credit cards
Debt description Debt (£) Min Pay (£) Annual Rate (%)

All credit cards ended years ago and now in hands of debt collectors


Enter the value of your assets
Asset Value (£) 0
Cash 0
Car(s)
Other assets (e.g. endowments, jewellery)
Additional Information

Optional information, but very useful for anyone reviewing your SOA.

Number of adults in household 1
Number of children in household (3 teenager and adult visit)
Number of cars owned 1 (disability)







MOVED HERE AS I DO NOT SPEND MONEY ON THESE

Pet Insurance/Vet bills
Holiday
Building Insurance
Contents Insurance
Life Assurance
Other Insurance

Management Charge (e.g. on leasehold property)


Partner's Monthly Income
Other Income (e.g. maintenance payments)

Mortgage payment (from secured debt table below)
Secured/HP loans (from secured debt table below)
Satellite/Cable TV

Other Travel
Childcare/Nursery

Mortgage
Secured debt
Hire Purchase (HP)
House value (gross)
Shares & bonds

National_Debtline

Hi brandons and welcome to the forum


It's always best to start with what you are actually spending, rather than what you or a creditor thinks you should be spending. Some outgoings will be easier than others to work out. For example your rent and council tax are a set amount. You can work out your average gas, electricity and water usage by asking your suppliers what you have used in the last 12 months and using an average monthly figure.


For outgoings that can vary more, like groceries or clothing, keep a spending diary to see what you are actually spending on these. If you give this a go and post it back on the forum we can give you further guidance.


Don't worry if you need to make changes, most first SOAs will not be completely accurate. You can also get help with this from one of the free debt advice agencies.


Best wishes


Susie
@natdebtline

sourcrates

How much are your debts, and what are your personal circumstances OP. ?

Before you go for the debt write off plan of attack, have you considered any other options ?

brandons

National_Debtline wrote: »

Hi brandons and welcome to the forum

It's always best to start with what you are actually spending, rather than what you or a creditor thinks you should be spending. Some outgoings will be easier than others to work out. For example your rent and council tax are a set amount. You can work out your average gas, electricity and water usage by asking your suppliers what you have used in the last 12 months and using an average monthly figure.


For outgoings that can vary more, like groceries or clothing, keep a spending diary to see what you are actually spending on these. If you give this a go and post it back on the forum we can give you further guidance.


Don't worry if you need to make changes, most first SOAs will not be completely accurate. You can also get help with this from one of the free debt advice agencies.


Best wishes


Susie
@natdebtline

Thanks Susie

You are right about fixed costs like Council tax, but my energy kWh have gone up, not sure why, I think it was after boiler was repaired by HA, water was barely tepid before.

I really have no idea what is reasonable for one person living by themself with kids seeing me from once a month to 4 days a week during term time. What I do know is that I am not living within my income.

I can total up what I spend at Aldi, Lidl, Tesco and Poundland, but what is purpose of SOA?

Is it to show I have no disposable income or that I can manage a budget, right now my adult child might bail me out or I cut back on food and/or energy as they are the only things that are variable.

It seems to me that these must be extremely variable, some people drink wine or spoke cigarettes, while with me my biggest cost might be my car.

Also my rent is paid directly to HA, do I include that as income and expenditure?

I have done several attempts at an SOA and they add up to more than my

I do not have any thing you might call a luxury,, no gym, satellite or things like that.

My car is complicated too, I am disabled but could not do motorbility, I do not own the car but am insured on it and I pay for the Car Tax, Insurance, Services etc. It is only worth about £2k, I think online values range from £1400 to £3000, but we all know they are just to get you hooked.

I have been told that if there is no realistic prospect of paying off the debt or that no affordable amount could be paid, not even £1 a month, then they may consider writing them off.

I want to get the SOA right so they do not think I am messing them around.

Do they have a right to see my bills etc or maybe a redacted bank statement?

brandons

sourcrates wrote: »

How much are your debts, and what are your personal circumstances OP.?

Before you go for the debt write off plan of attack, have you considered any other options ?

Hi Sourcrates

I am not sure of the absolute total, I think around £45,000 to £50,000 of credit card debt, not paid anything on it for 5 years at least.

From reading this site over the weekend and the debt charity sites, it seems that Bankruptcy is the only legal option for the debt, but I do not have the money for that, I have also looked on turn2us for donation of the £680.

It is unlikely I will ever work again, I might be able to get additional benefits but I am just about managing on what I get, (around £6500 but that may change when they do the universal credit switch).
If I can get some of them to write off the debt I was hoping it might make others do the same.

I expect to be able to get something from my GP and maybe some other medical evidence.

If I get some of the debt written off to below £20k can I do a DRO after?

brandons

So does anyone have any idea about what is considered reasonable for Grocery?

NelliePie

SOA are not about what is considered reasonable as this can vary greatly by circumstances and where you are in the country - it is about what you actually spend. Take your last few month receipts (or bank statements) and find the average for the month. This is the number you should be putting in your SOA. And you should do the same for the other sections - not guess at what you think they consider reasonable to get the result you want. You going to have to be open and fill it in as accurately as you can; they won't be able to make a fair assessment otherwise.
Good luck

National_Debtline

Hi again Brandons


The purpose of a SOA is to see what you spend on your income and outgoings, and from this information determine what debt options you have available. You shouldn't be aiming for any predetermined outcome. There is no value in putting down what you think you should spend on groceries if that is not the amount you actually spend.


I agree you should total up what you have spent at the different supermarkets and use that as a starting point. Once you have posted a completed SOA you will usually find other members give some helpful advice on what is reasonable and what you may be able to change, particularly if your outgoings are more than your income.


If you claim Housing Benefit and this is paid directly to your landlord, it's best to list this as an income and an outgoing so the situation is clear to your creditors. If you have use of a car but do not own it, it's still ok to list the running costs. Most creditors won't ask to see bills or bank statements, they'll accept the information on your SOA. If they do ask for the information you're not obliged to provide it, although they may be easier to deal with if you do.


One last point to raise, you mention you have not paid your credit card debts for at least 5 years. That means they might become statute barred in the not too distant future. If a debt is statute barred, a creditor has run out of time to obtain a CCJ and recover the debt. You can find more on this here https://www.nationaldebtline.org/EW/factsheets/Pages/time-limits-for-recovering-debts/statute-barred-debt.aspx, I would recommend contacting one of the free debt advice agencies to talk through this and your other options in more detail.


Best wishes


Susie
@natdebtline

brandons

Thank you Susie, that is really helpful.

I saw that Statute Barred thing at the weekend and wondered if it was why the debt collection agencies seem to be stepping up the pressure.

I need to find the exact date I stopped paying, I remember writing them all a letter explaining I could no longer afford to service the debt. They sold it a few years later.

What I do not get about this SOA thing is there must be a big difference, someone who drinks and smokes for example.

So are they likely to tell me to cut back on grocery etc to pay them when the cumulative debt is so high?

Should I tell each one how much I owe other creditors, or can they see that from my credit record?

Weird thing is that this caused me so much anxiety, then they did not really do anything other than write letters, now the anxiety is coming back with me thinking about it. I am so broke anyway, I just know that there is nothing I can or will be able to do.

My goal is to get them to write it off, do you know if they ever do this?

Is it certain companies that do it or just a numbers game?

Can I complain to FCA or someone if they refuse?

brandons

NelliePie wrote: »

SOA are not about what is considered reasonable as this can vary greatly by circumstances and where you are in the country - it is about what you actually spend. Take your last few month receipts (or bank statements) and find the average for the month. This is the number you should be putting in your SOA. And you should do the same for the other sections - not guess at what you think they consider reasonable to get the result you want. You going to have to be open and fill it in as accurately as you can; they won't be able to make a fair assessment otherwise.
Good luck

Thanks NelliePie

I am going to download the last year of statements and then take energy and utils.

I just wonder what they make of them, on this site there are people with Fibre Broadband and others with Cheap MSE deal for a year.

Same with mobile phones, I tend to buy the phone off ebay or amazon and then pay small amount each month for data etc, but the next guy could be like my neighbour and be paying £70 a month on contract because he got talked into it.

I definately want to be honest but also to leave room in case things change.

Also as I am overspending I will need to cut back anyway.

System

brandons wrote: »

So does anyone have any idea about what is considered reasonable for Grocery?

The Office for National Statistics states that the average family in the UK spends £56 a week on grocery shopping which includes just over £4 on alcohol. For a SOA you should show your ACTUAL spend as it currently is but to give you an idea of what you should be spending then as a single person sub £30 and that is likely what your creditors will allow in their calculations.

In your situation you need to be showing everything as it is, not what you'd like it to be or what it could possibly be if you were ultra frugal.