It's getting tough out there. Feeling the pinch?

Spendless

Electronic items also become obsolete etc. For his 16th birthday my DS had a computer. He was finishing yr11 and going on a computer course for sixth form with a possibility of  going on to do a computer degree (now in his final year) . He was 22 earlier this month. He has now replaced over 6 years  every piece of that computer with an updated and superior part without ever buying another computer (I compare it to Trigger from Only Fool and Horses broom!).
For myself at the same age electronics didn't exist. If I was bought a gold piece of jewellery, 6 years on I'd still own it. It didn't need updating in the same regard.
Same with DD. The only one in the house that has an iphone, she always gets a second hard/re-furbished model, but a few years later they break or slow down further and a new (to her) one is needed. 

It's not always that a younger generation 'want' something now but the case that there's more items to be replaced. 

[Deleted User]

I’m in my mid 30s, and since I was a student we’ve had debt thrown at us like it was the norm. Thankfully due to my upbringing I avoided debt like the plague - I have friends who are still stuck in overdrafts that they took out as students.

On the whole though most people my age that I know are very similar to me in mindset - maybe that is from being in a rural farming village, we don’t just go to the shops for the sake of it as they’re over an hour’s drive away! It’s very much a ‘use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without’ mentality up here, and a lot of my friends are farmers who have been badly affected by us leaving the EU in terms of subsidies etc so really need to work hard and save money wherever possible to maintain their livelihood. But I digress 😊😊

atrixa

I'm also in my 30's and experienced a complete lack of financial education at school but an inundation of offers of credit cards and things that could be bought on finance as soon as I hit 18.

My parents got into debt quite badly when I was a child for reasons that probably seemed perfectly reasonable to them at the time, but when I look back now I think they were quite irresponsible. I think they were the first generation in their families to be able to get cheap credit and there was always a catalogue lying around the house. All well and good until the income is lost then you're saddled with repayments you can no longer afford. That experience made me very credit averse, so while people at college were putting holidays on credit cards I was spending my money on driving lessons. For some reason it became very normal to have thousands of pounds worth of consumer debt.  I knew someone my own age who thought that overdrafts were cheaper than paying off a credit card at the end of the month. Hopefully Gen Z have a bit more sense.

nannygladys

I guess it depends on how we are bought up, job opportunities, etc to how we react to money, my dds saw how I struggled as a one parent family, who worked, bought a house, managed to hold onto an old car and still had food on the table for them, and struggled with some debt and I think it's made them more aware. Eldest has always been frugal (more so than me) and is on track to playing her mortgage off very soon, way early and youngest and her friends mostly have children around the same ages, so things like high chairs, clothes etc get passed onto each other in a circle, and they both know how to cook from scratch, but have takeouts and meals out occasionally. I must admit I have probably done the younger generations an injustice regards being able to manage as I know mine are more than capable, it's just that I didn't want mine (or anyone else's children) having to go through hard times, it shouldn't be like that, but everything seems to happening at once.
Sorry if I've offended anyone.
Nannyg

SIRENS

Just got my council tax bill and it's up £11.50 a month! I confess to struggling a bit to budget as since I lost my husband last year my income has nearly halved but I still have all the bills and the kids to feed and clothe as well as travel for me and dd. I have reapplied for single person discount on the council tax as they removed it when dd turned 18 earlier in the month despite her still being in full time education. But it's a whole new learning curve in juggling money. Hopefully I shall be able to pay off the mortgage when the life insurance finally pays out but it's been over 7 months now and still waiting. Dd has been applying for part time jobs but 'lack of experience' is hampering her efforts. It's tough going some days.

helensbiggestfan

Sirens.....7 months waiting for life insurance payout is outrageous. 🤬  have they said what the delay is. 

When my husband died I sent the claim form and all supporting documents on the Monday (registered post) and received a cheque on the Friday.  

helensbiggestfan

Re...."feeling the pinch". Still ok but things are definitely starting to bite now.  

I was born in 1951 and luckily my parents and aunts taught me how to live frugally.  I do still have some wriggle room in the budget and some savings if needs be but there are going to be a lot of people who are going to really struggle.  

SIRENS

helensbiggestfan said:

Sirens.....7 months waiting for life insurance payout is outrageous. 🤬  have they said what the delay is. 

When my husband died I sent the claim form and all supporting documents on the Monday (registered post) and received a cheque on the Friday.  

It's always something different, they wanted probate which I gave them in November, then they wanted records from our doctors, now it's something else from the nhs. They're forgotten to send requests before, or had their requests blocked by their own email security, and didn't notice that it hadn't been sent for weeks until I called to chase them. It's the last thing you need when you're in shock. My husband died very suddenly, no warning at 48, so it's been tough on the kids and me, let alone all the financial hoopla. 

helensbiggestfan

That's awful.  Why do they need doctors records and nhs.  Sorry to ask but did he need a post mortem.  That can cause delays, however as soon as the pm report has been done the death certificate can be issued, and provided you ensure you send all the necessary documentation the claim should take no more than a couple of weeks. 

It's life insurance, all they should need is the death certificate, probate maybe not always, a copy of the will if there is one, proof of your ID, your marriage certificate - even if your husband died intestate (no will) it should not take 7 months.  

It's truly disgraceful. It's bad enough being widowed but to be given the run around like that and suffer financial hardship because of their incompetence is just dreadful.  

I know it's too late for you but for anyone who might be reading this......if I could give one piece of advice.  Always put life insurance policies in trust so that the beneficiaries of the policy can be paid without delay.  A trust means the proceeds of the policy do not form part of the deceaseds estate, so no need for the will or probate.  Putting a policy in trust used to be free, however, last time I did it I was charged £25 but its still worth doing.  

(Yes you've guessed I used to sell life insurance at one point).  

Keep chasing them, demand to speak directly to higher management, not just the minions.  Tell them how you are struggling because of their mistakes.  If you still get no joy, I suggest you try the financial ombudsman or your local MP. 

 Tbh it sounds like you deserve compensation for such lengthy delays.  Hope you get it sorted soon.  

SIRENS

helensbiggestfan said:

That's awful.  Why do they need doctors records and nhs.  Sorry to ask but did he need a post mortem.  That can cause delays, however as soon as the pm report has been done the death certificate can be issued, and provided you ensure you send all the necessary documentation the claim should take no more than a couple of weeks. 

It's life insurance, all they should need is the death certificate, probate maybe not always, a copy of the will if there is one, proof of your ID, your marriage certificate - even if your husband died intestate (no will) it should not take 7 months.  

It's truly disgraceful. It's bad enough being widowed but to be given the run around like that and suffer financial hardship because of their incompetence is just dreadful.  

I know it's too late for you but for anyone who might be reading this......if I could give one piece of advice.  Always put life insurance policies in trust so that the beneficiaries of the policy can be paid without delay.  A trust means the proceeds of the policy do not form part of the deceaseds estate, so no need for the will or probate.  Putting a policy in trust used to be free, however, last time I did it I was charged £25 but its still worth doing.  

(Yes you've guessed I used to sell life insurance at one point).  

Keep chasing them, demand to speak directly to higher management, not just the minions.  Tell them how you are struggling because of their mistakes.  If you still get no joy, I suggest you try the financial ombudsman or your local MP. 

 Tbh it sounds like you deserve compensation for such lengthy delays.  Hope you get it sorted soon.  

They did have to do a post mortem as he wasn't ill at all but that was all done by the beginning of November, there was no will and you are right about having the policy in trust, we hadn't done that, I have learnt the hard way about that, I've been waiting for my dd to reach 18 so I can put mine in trust for her and her young brother. I will go to the ombudsman, and have already put in several complaints so far. Thank you for your advice x