How much to live on

kempiejon

HMRC are slow but you can chivvy them along. I learnt a couple of years ago that proactively adjusting ones own tax code via HMRC portal is easy and speeds repayment.

helensbiggestfan

Thanks for that. Tbh I'm not very techno savvy.

I attempted to register a couple of months ago but it wouldn't accept my ID. I need to get my trusty IT guy (my youngest son) on the case. Maybe it wouldn't accept my passport because at the time I tried it had less than six months till the expiry date. 🤷‍♀️. Anyway now that I have a new passport I'll try again.

It's on the "to do list". Lol.

Organgrinder

Well I received an email from HMRC last night adjusting my tax codes. My two employments as a teacher and examiner are taxed at basic rate - fair enough - but my teachers pension is on a K code and my two other pensions get just under £10,000 in tax free allowances giving me an effective tax code of about 800L.

Having automated systems is all well and good but overall if this continues I will pay approx £500 too much in tax this year, having already overpaid last year (still waiting for the calculation but I think it's a simlar amount).

I'm hoping it will all settle down next year when I'll ask them to put my whole tax code against my teacher pension and everything else at BR.

On a positive note however I checked my tax and pension contributions from 2023/24 and found I have not received all the tax relief due on my pension contributions. they owe me £78 - every little helps!

Organgrinder

Update.

I phoned HMRC and hopefully it is all now sorted. Spoke with a really helpful person (finally!!) who put all my tax code against my largest income and everything else and BR. I've run the figures and it works....although the underpayment from 2024/25 will now carry through to 2026/27 (I owe them £547 and from last year they will over me £750 but whilst it would make sense to pay me a rebate of just over £200 it doesn't seem to work like that!).

On the EV front the high winds of the last few days ruined my range substantially. I had to pull in at a motorway services for a top up. Omg. How they can justify £0.95 per kWh is beyond me. I put in the minimum needed to get me where I needed to go and then topped up using a trickle charger at normal electricity prices.

After driving round for the weekend I then had a wonderful moment in a packed public car park where the only available place was next to a standard 7kw charger at £0.55 per kWh. This gave enough juice to get home.

Total miles driven 300.

Total cost of charging including at home £28.

Equivalent mpg @ £7.90/gallon - 84

Now back home and back to a much healthier 700 mpg on my overnight tariff.

The ridiculous cost of public charging is quite beyond me.

Albermarle

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82182380#Comment_82182380

It seems when you change jobs, have multiple income streams etc there are always issues with HMRC & tax codes. Last time I changed jobs, they added both salaries together, which of course put me in a different tax bracket altogether, and the same happened to my daughter recently as well.

As in your case, a call to HMRC to reshuffle/change tax codes etc is usually necessary, and after that it usually settles down.

Organgrinder

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82182517#Comment_82182517

Indeed. In my case there are two jobs and three pensions. The system seems to have a mind of it's own! All sorted now though.

Next I need to get teachers' pensions to calculate my figures properly. They forgot to revalue my salary from a break in service in 2017 and despite pointing it out to them and explaining their error it took two attempts to get them to acknowledge a mistake. Now of course they are transferring to a new provider.

I hate to think how many people are in receipt of pensions that have been miscalculated.

louby40

Glad you got your tax sorted. HMRC are a mystery to me. Whenever you ring them the outcome seems to depend on the person you speak to. Surely they all have the same training. Who knows.

I've had 1 days supply since September. I am quite picky where I go and only accept pre booked days but last year I had 5 days from 1st October to half term. This year is very quiet. So I've earned £140 since July.

It has taught me that I actually can manage perfectly well on my pension - which is good to know.

I won't be doing any supply now until after Christmas as we are off on our big adventure to Thailand and Malaysia on Monday. Back in time to put the Christmas tree up!

Organgrinder

Now that sounds wonderful!

Have a great time.

Humboldt

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82183039#Comment_82183039

Wishing you a fabulous holiday @louby40.

louby40

Thanks. It will certainly be an adventure!