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What debt to pay first? - Currently stuck with my decision
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Just hit the little three dots in the righthand upper corner of your post when you need to edit.If you've have not made a mistake, you've made nothing1
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Anything you get back with those claims can be used to bolster your emergency fund or possibly down the line for making full and final settlements. It all helps!
If you already have smart meters then just make the monthly meter reading ritual as part of the financial bits you do for your own records - then check against the bill when it lands that they are billing you on the correct readings. Never assume that a smart meter is being as smart as it ought to be - while most of them are, gas meters in particular can sometimes get flat batteries and stop sending the readings through to the comms hub...and then subsequently end up with a blank screen. Vest to check the meter itself once a quarter even if for the monthly readings check you use the IHD instead🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00. Balance as at 31/12/25 = £ 91,100.00
SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her0 -
Thanks for all your help on this everyone
from my first post i have paid off Drafty (which increased to £793.12) and closed the account completley
Also paid off Studio, while also paying minimum on all the other debts.
My phone contract finished yesterday so will be looking for a sim only option today so i can lower that as well to put on to another bill.2 -
You are confident that you now have a robust budget that you can live with and as a result of that you definitely have sufficient surplus this month to enable the clearing of both of those? It's important that you check on that as the risk is that you go full speed ahead with an enthusiasm for clearing things, leave yourself short for the remainder of the month and then find yourself reaching for credit again!
Getting rid of Drafty is a game changer though - payday loans are one of the most damaging forms of credit so getting shot of that is a gamechanger.
Definitely get on to sorting the phone out - there is a section on the main MSE site that might signpost you to current deals worth looking at.
In your shoes I think for peace of mind I would be looking to attack the overdrafts next - as there is a good chance those are actually more expensive than that nasty credit card. (And they are also more risky of course).🎉 MORTGAGE FREE (First time!) 30/09/2016 🎉 And now we go again…New mortgage taken 01/09/23 🏡
Balance as at 01/09/23 = £115,000.00 Balance as at 31/12/23 = £112,000.00
Balance as at 31/08/24 = £105,400.00 Balance as at 31/12/24 = £102,500.00
£100k barrier broken 1/4/25
Balance as at 31/08/25 = £ 95,450.00. Balance as at 31/12/25 = £ 91,100.00
SOA CALCULATOR (for DFW newbies): SOA Calculatorshe/her1 -
Well done on paying these off!
You can check GiffGaff - I pay £10/month, I believe they have even cheaper options too. Have been with them for over a decade now and no issues.Mortgage: £173,700 Sep 22 £157,700 Feb 26
MF Date: Sep 52 Mar 52
CC Debt: £15,250 Nov 25 £9,200 Feb 26
NSD: Jan: 17/31 | Feb: 12/28
2026 Challenges:
MFiT-T7 #5
DFbyXMAS #7
Sealed Pot Challenge #022
2026 Grocery Challenge: 20/01 - 19/02 £132.79/£200
2026 Grocery Challenge: 20/02 - 19/03 £31.85/£200
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