Money nightmare - anyone have any ideas?

[repiV]

I think this is probably the first time I've actually asked for advice here, but as far as I can see I'm absolutely ****ing screwed so any help would be greatly appreciated.

I've basically managed my finances on the assumption that I'd always be able to work and keep on top of it. Now I've had no income for a month and I'm ****ed. In the space of four weeks I've gone from having a ?50 interest-free overdraft I rarely touched to being ?988 overdrawn on an expensive ?1000 overdraft with a bounced direct debit to one of my creditors. The only way I can now go and make that payment is by racking up yet more credit card debt - which currently totals about ?2500, ?1000 of that is interest free for another couple of months but the rest of it is at roughly 17.5% APR.
I also have nearly ?800 left to repay on an unsecured personal loan I took out over a 12 month period to pay for my bike etc., which is only about three payments (great timing). Plus several hundred more pounds tied up in 12 month 0% finance agreements.
In total I owe somewhere between four and five grand. When they finally get around to sorting out my benefits application I'll be recieving about ?100 a week, backdated to the 21st of October. It's not enough to stay on top of my debts. And right now the only source of cash I have available is credit cards, to make it even worse I got stung with an enormous ?150 phone bill I was not expecting at all.
Can't get any help from family, they're just as poor as I am. To add insult to injury, I've always had a good credit rating.

I was given the okay to return to work today by the doctor, but I have no way of actually getting to work so that's immaterial. The government won't help me get to work because my disability is only temporary (they'd rather I was sponging off the system than earning a wage!)
Depending on how the bone growth goes, they may remove the external fixation from my leg in a month's time - it's about a 50/50 chance really. And I've been given the ok to ride again once that happens, so in the best case scenario I'll be able to get to work in January. It could be another month before I'm able to do that, and even then I don't have any money to either repair my bike or buy another one.
Best case scenario, it will be April before I'm physically able enough to use public transport again. Worst case scenario, next October.

So I don't have any money and I can't count on the opportunity to be able to earn any money in the near future either. What the hell am I supposed to do? I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't it seems.

Thanks...

 

[Pesmerga]

I read this as "monkey nightmare".

Your situation is unfortunate- you don't have any friends that could spare taxi change?

 

[Acepilotf14]

The inability to see the money signs makes this thread hard to read.
Oh, and,
Sell your unneccesary games.

 

[Pulse]

Liquidise unneeded assets and see what close friends/family can sort out for you in the short-term.

 

[repiV]

I read this as "monkey nightmare".

Maybe it's that too.

Your situation is unfortunate- you don't have any friends that could spare taxi change?

Sadly the nature of London means that it would cost me more to commute via taxi than I would actually earn. The only viable options for the little guy are public transport or two wheels.

 

[The Monkey]

Scam the government.

 

[Pesmerga]

 

[repiV]

Liquidise unneeded assets and see what close friends/family can sort out for you in the short-term.

The only asset I have of any real value is my bike, and it's probably a write-off. I've yet to have it examined by an expert, but it looks like a complete wreck. It's a different shape to what it should be and about a foot shorter than it used to be.

I don't really feel that there's anyone I can turn to. My family have no money to give, and the only friends I could ever ask for money have financial problems of their own. One a student, one working minimum wage and paying rent and one on 18k struggling to keep up with the mortgage.

The inability to see the money signs makes this thread hard to read.

Yeah I know - annoying isn't it?

Oh, and,
Sell your unneccesary games.

I haven't bought any games in a long time. :|
Well, except for Quake Wars, and Orange Box via Steam.

 

[NeptuneUK]

Sorry dude, I wish I could advise

If it makes you feel any better I have to live on ?30 for two and a half weeks..
My balance is like ?-1220.... at least its interest free as a student....

Good luck I hope you get shit sorted.

 

[repiV]

Scam the government.

I like, I like.

Sorry dude, I wish I could advise

If it makes you feel any better I have to live on ?30 for two and a half weeks..
My balance is like ?-1220.... at least its interest free as a student....

Good luck I hope you get shit sorted.

Hey, at least you get to eat Supernoodles every day right? There is a silver lining.

Thanks man. Btw, I haven't seen you around for ages - where the hell ya been at?

 

[Solaris]

Shit, there's no way you can work from home?

 

[<RJMC>]

rent your body on the streets

:naughty:

 

[Eejit]

Hmm you could always check out the advice from places like this http://www.debtadvicebureau.org.uk/index.html

Some of these debt advice places are fairly genuine and not just trying to get all the money paid to themselves or whatever horror stories you hear sometimes. I think the one I linked looks fairly legit.

 

[repiV]

Shit, there's no way you can work from home?

Not through any of my recent employers. I don't really have any marketable skills that would allow me to make a living from home. I can persuade/influence/sell, I sound great on the phone and I can type really fast. That's about it, really.
I know there are cases of being able to work telephone-based jobs from home through having your PC connected up to a remote network, but the opportunities are pretty rare at present. I'll definitely keep an eye out for anything that might present itself though, thanks matey.

rent your body on the streets

:naughty:

I'd totally love to! But it's too cold.

 

[NeptuneUK]

I like, I like.



Hey, at least you get to eat Supernoodles every day right? There is a silver lining.

Thanks man. Btw, I haven't seen you around for ages - where the hell ya been at?

I shit you not I have instant noodles nearly every day!!
Coupled with vitamin tablets of course so I don't die of malnutrition.


Been lurking a lot recently tbh
Doing uni work.
Getting drunk
And TF2ing a lot - maybe see you about on the hl2net server if u got it?? There's an imposter going by the name of Repiv!!! I thought he was the cool one but no.... Just a fake.

Arent there some free helplines or something that can give you practical advice on this shit? I'd hate to see you leave hl2net and see you on the streets of London drinking whiskey out of a brown paper bag...... ;(

 

[delusional]

Tip: Stay away from credit cards and never use them for the rest of your life. If you want to buy something, save money, then buy it.

 

[repiV]

Hmm you could always check out the advice from places like this http://www.debtadvicebureau.org.uk/index.html

Some of these debt advice places are fairly genuine and not just trying to get all the money paid to themselves or whatever horror stories you hear sometimes. I think the one I linked looks fairly legit.

Thanks. I did try and get in touch with the Citizens Advice Bureau today as they run a phone-in session on Thursday afternoons but there was never anyone available to take my call.
I also spoke with an independent financial advisor, who suggested that I should switch all my credit card debt to 0% cards and agree to pay lesser amounts of the big loan for a couple of months. The problem with that is I would have to resume the normal monthly payment on the third month PLUS make up for the arrears on the third month or I would get a default. That means monthly payments of ?340 for six months starting February, when I should have finished paying the loan off by then, assuming I pay only ?100 for December and January. That's almost as much as my entire benefit money. If I go along with that course of action, I HAVE to be working full-time by the new year or I'll be in an even worse situation.
It's gotta be worth speaking to more of these organisations I guess, I just totally freaked out this evening when I looked at my online banking and found that ridiculous phone bill I must have run up in hospital leaving me with no spare money AT ALL and not enough money to cover the payment they tried to take for one of my loans and the bank refused to extend my overdraft.
This is causing me far more distress than the accident itself ever has. It's disturbing.

 

[Mr Stabby]

Claim mental health benefits, depression etc.

 

[repiV]

I shit you not I have instant noodles nearly every day!!
Coupled with vitamin tablets of course so I don't die of malnutrition.

Yeah, most of my student friends exist on a diet of instant noodles.
Before I broke my leg, I went down to spend the weekend with my best friend in Exeter every couple of weeks. The ingenuity that goes into that kitchen never ceases to amaze me. It certainly makes dinner an interesting experience.

Been lurking a lot recently tbh
Doing uni work.
Getting drunk
And TF2ing a lot - maybe see you about on the hl2net server if u got it?? There's an imposter going by the name of Repiv!!! I thought he was the cool one but no.... Just a fake.

There are actually quite a few Repivs floating around, which is really lame. I'm repiV because about a million and one people are called Viper and were forever taking my nickname and it just kinda stuck. It's a much better name. I've experimented with "bat out of purgatory" recently, a bit more original at least...
Most of these Repivs seem to be Danish, maybe it means bastard in Dane-speak.
I have got the hl2net server in my favourites, but I'm not a regular player and I've never seen anyone on there when I've looked. What kinda times is it usually populated?

Arent there some free helplines or something that can give you practical advice on this shit? I'd hate to see you leave hl2net and see you on the streets of London drinking whiskey out of a brown paper bag...... ;(

Yeah, I ought to do some more ringing round. I called a couple of places today but didn't get much success with them - and then I looked at my online banking outside of business hours and paniced.
Fortunately I don't have to worry about rent or food or anything like that, we get this house free because of the highly improbably array of disabilities within the family (I'm the only one of us without a serious, life-crippling/shortening condition and even I have epilepsy - it's truly bizarre). But I am very concerned about destroying my credit rating, being harassed by debt collection agencies, being taken to court and ending up in a neverending spiral of debt. That's no way to live.

 

[DEATHMASTER]

parents?

 

[Mr Stabby]

Is there anyway for you to cut your spending?

 

[repiV]

Tip: Stay away from credit cards and never use them for the rest of your life. If you want to buy something, save money, then buy it.

You're so right. Credit cards are an absolute disaster.
I tell you what, my new aim in life is to clear all my debts and then make a reasonable living doing something easygoing that I enjoy, bike sales perhaps, and then living stress-free and happily within my means.
Chasing highly paid careers in business and living beyond your means is a fool's errand. I just wish I'd realised that sooner.

Claim mental health benefits, depression etc.

You can do that? :O

 

[repiV]

parents?

70k in debt and facing bankruptcy for the second time, living off overdrafts and credit cards. My mum is fighting a terminal brain tumour and my dad has MS. I'm the only member of the family able to earn any money.

Is there anyway for you to cut your spending?

I don't really have any opportunities to spend money at the moment, as I'm pretty much housebound. Excluding the money that's extracted from my account in the form of repayments, I haven't even spent 20 quid since the accident. I treated myself to a Tops Pizza once, and I bought a few drinks on a date - nowhere expensive.

 

[Mr Stabby]

You can do that? :O

I think so, you also get Valium


Found this on google

http://www.benefitsinmind.org.uk/

 

[repiV]

I think so, you also get Valium


Found this on google

http://www.benefitsinmind.org.uk/

Wow, that's something I didn't know.

Thanks buddy, I'll check it out.

On the subject of disability benefits, I used to get 300 quid a month in DLA a few years back because my epilepsy was totally disabling for years until they managed to find the right medication for me. I'm not sure if I could claim DLA for my epilepsy now, it doesn't affect my daily life whatsoever and I haven't had a seizure while I've been awake in nearly four years. I could exaggerate but if the DVLA found out they'd revoke my driving license, and then I'd really be screwed for work prospects.

I really ****ing hate the benefits system in this country. It makes no sense whatsoever. All I want is some help getting to work for a very short period of time, it's not so much to ask. I'd LOVE to go back to work.

 

[Dr0ndeh]

depends how fast youre going to return to work really. if your credit rating is good you could get another creditcard just to tide you over. better that then **** your finances forever (defult on your creditcard or loan and you can kiss goodbye to any credit for the next 5 years)

im guessing i dont have to ask if you took repayment protection on your creditcards and loan? (yes, i sell creditcards and loans)

then when you return to work get a consolidation loan for ALL your debt.

 

[Eejit]

You could always try local churches. You know like those people that hand out tea late at night on weekends etc.
There's often religious groups who'll give people lifts if they have someone heading in the general direction (or even go out of their way). A friend of mine got lifts for a few weeks from a local Christian group and he'd never really spoken to any of them before. Pot luck depending on if you can find it in your area.

Be prepared to listen to them though if you do try that route.

Or hell I have no idea if you're at all religious, if you are just try asking your rabbi/minister/priest/whatever if he knows anyone from your area who can give you a lift.

 

[Mr Stabby]

What benefits are you currently getting, are you not getting DLA, for a bad leg?

 

[NeptuneUK]

Athiesm..... Good in logical debates - but open to turning to god for support when life sucks and no one's to blame!

 

[repiV]

depends how fast youre going to return to work really. if your credit rating is good you could get another creditcard just to tide you over. better that then **** your finances forever (defult on your creditcard or loan and you can kiss goodbye to any credit for the next 5 years)

I must avoid defaulting at all costs...
I think maybe my credit rating isn't so good now that I'm no longer employed and my income is 400 a month - I have a feeling that's why my request for an overdraft extension was declined.
The problem is that I just don't know how soon I'm going to be able to return to work. I might try and persuade one of my fair-weather rider friends to lend me their bike to commute on over the winter, then I can be assured of work by February at the latest but I don't really think it would be fair to ask. Expensive machines that get looked after as much as they get ridden, don't get subjected to the punishment of winter and if I had an accident I would have no way of paying for the damage. Which is something I definitely have to consider as winter riding is very treacherous and I've not been riding long enough to even have winter experience behind me.

im guessing i dont have to ask if you took repayment protection on your creditcards and loan? (yes, i sell creditcards and loans)

None. It always seemed extortionately expensive to me, and they probably wouldn't pay out anyway as I had a temp job.

then when you return to work get a consolidation loan for ALL your debt.

Hmm...can I do that now? Could that be the answer to my troubles?
What if I have another disabling accident during the repayment period?

You could always try local churches. You know like those people that hand out tea late at night on weekends etc.
There's often religious groups who'll give people lifts if they have someone heading in the general direction (or even go out of their way). A friend of mine got lifts for a few weeks from a local Christian group and he'd never really spoken to any of them before. Pot luck depending on if you can find it in your area.

Be prepared to listen to them though if you do try that route.

Or hell I have no idea if you're at all religious, if you are just try asking your rabbi/minister/priest/whatever if he knows anyone from your area who can give you a lift.

Wow, that's good-natured charity for you. I'm not religious in the slightest, but that's certainly an option I hadn't considered before. Thank you.

 

[NeptuneUK]

I think I'd try out what eejit said anyway, which was what I was trying to suggest while trying to add some light humour...

 

[repiV]

What benefits are you currently getting, are you not getting DLA, for a bad leg?

No DLA - to be eligible the disability must have existed for a period of three months prior to your claim, and it must last for a period of at least nine months.
I had the accident a month ago today, so we're talking 21st January before I could claim, and then it would depend on how they define disability. I should be off crutches in six months, but it will be at least a year before I'm as physically able as I was before the accident (the left leg will be extremely weak from going unused for six months and need extensive rehabilitation).
It's physically shrunk a great deal already, although on the plus side I've never had more muscly arms in my life.

I'm claiming for Incapacity Benefit and Income Support, just waiting on the hospital's letter to send in as evidence. IB is about 61 quid per week and income support is about 45. I'm not entitled to any further government support as a broken leg is not counted as a disability due to its temporary nature.

Athiesm..... Good in logical debates - but open to turning to god for support when life sucks and no one's to blame!

Exactly.

 

[repiV]

I think I'd try out what eejit said anyway, which was what I was trying to suggest while trying to add some light humour...

If I can find a source of work a bit more local, I'll definitely give it a shot.
My "current" employer is in the opposite corner of London. Took me an hour each way by BIKE, which doesn't get stuck in traffic jams. I can assure you that noone would drive me there.

 

[Mr Stabby]

I'm claiming for Incapacity Benefit and Income Support, just waiting on the hospital's letter to send in as evidence. IB is about 61 quid per week and income support is about 45. I'm not entitled to any further government support as a broken leg is not counted as a disability due to its temporary nature.

The benefits system sounds like idiotic bureaucracy, It baffles me as to why a temporary disability doesn't lead to temporary benefits.

 

[Krynn72]

Start up a paypal donation thing, and pimp it out over the internet.

 

[repiV]

The benefits system sounds like idiotic bureaucracy, It baffles me as to why a temporary disability doesn't lead to temporary benefits.

It really is. It also actively discourages people from going to work - if I were to find a source of part-time work, they would take every penny I earn from that work out of my benefits. So there would be absolutely no point in me working part time.
It's the same with jobseekers benefits etc. And if you take a temp job that comes up, you have to sign off and go through the whole application process FROM SCRATCH if you work more than 16 hours in a single week. It's utterly insane.

As far as I'm concerned, as a productive member of society I should be entitled to a source of short-term emergency help on those rare occassions when I really, really need it. It's not just the money, either - the government's Access to Work scheme will pay up to ?28,000 a year to enable a disabled person to work. That's a hell of a lot of cash - all I asked for was a lift to and from my place of work each day. I was told that I could not take advantage of the scheme because my disability is temporary, and it's as simple as that. So they'd actually rather I claim benefits than go to work. It's nonsense.

 

[repiV]

Start up a paypal donation thing, and pimp it out over the internet.

Never.

Thanks for the thought, though.

 

[kirovman]

If your problem with getting a job is commuting, can't you sort out some short term rental accommodation thing? I know renting is expensive in London, but if you share, the costs can be cut quite a lot.

Once you get back on your feet financially, you'll be in a position to resume normal life, I guess.

I wouldn't recommend putting yourself in credit card debt (what's your interest rate now?), although if you have 0% for one year, then transfer it, etc, it may work out if you're diligent in playing that system.

What you're really after if a monthly income, and probably from London. Temporary relocation seems the only suggestion I can think of.

Hope you find a solution that suits you soon, these money lending institutions can bleed you dry.

In a departing attempt at irony, a semi-serious suggestion... have you considered an Islamic loan? :E

 

[Ennui]

Never.

Thanks for the thought, though.

Will you accept paypal donations at all? I don't have a whole lot I can spare but if you'll let me I'll send $50 your way. Sounds like you need it.

 

[repiV]

If your problem with getting a job is commuting, can't you sort out some short term rental accommodation thing? I know renting is expensive in London, but if you share, the costs can be cut quite a lot.

Once you get back on your feet financially, you'll be in a position to resume normal life, I guess.

I wouldn't recommend putting yourself in credit card debt (what's your interest rate now?), although if you have 0% for one year, then transfer it, etc, it may work out if you're diligent in playing that system.

What you're really after if a monthly income, and probably from London. Temporary relocation seems the only suggestion I can think of.

That's a really interesting idea actually. It's brilliant and unique, and I genuinely thank you for coming up with the idea for me. Unfortunately I'm not sure it's a viable solution because walking on crutches is a lot more difficult than you would imagine. The distance of a 20 second walk at a brisk pace would leave me sweating, trying to catch my breath and wobbling all over the place from exhausation. A walk to the local shops is completely out of the question.
Crutches only provide very local mobility - around the house and such. They're no substitute for having two legs. I'd have to live literally a few doors down from my workplace to be able to walk there.
They also slide on wet surfaces, so it's basically impossible to use them in heavy rainfall and snow. I've hurt myself multiple times with a crutch slipping on a wet floor forcing my bad leg onto the ground - today from wet footprints on the hospital floor. If I fell over I'd be unable to get up again, also. I fell over the night I came home and it was absolute agony. Had to call the ambulance to get me up and it took a day and a half to recover from it.

Interest rate is about 17.5% btw, on ?1500 of the credit card debt. The other thousand is 0% for a couple more months, I think I'll have to find a new home for that debt.

Hope you find a solution that suits you soon, these money lending institutions can bleed you dry.

Thanks.

The biggest problem with debt I find is that it forces you to live your life a certain way. It's like a prison cell. You HAVE to maintain a certain level of income in order to meet the repayments, and that really infringes on your freedom. I would have gone to teach English in China but my debts made that impossible - with the money I'd earn over there I'd have to be completely debt-free to make it viable.
From now on I intend to live a lifestyle without overspending and then I can enjoy life without having to worry about financial commitments or being tied down. Then a modest salary would be perfectly acceptable.

In a departing attempt at irony, a semi-serious suggestion... have you considered an Islamic loan? :E

Are they ... 0% interest loans? Do they ... actually exist? Are there companies out there genuinely stupid enough to hand out 0% loans? Where can I find them? :E

I have been looking at these consolidation loans that were mentioned earlier...certainly sounds like it could be the solution to my problems. If I end up paying more debt or making payments for a longer period of time that's not such a problem so long as the monthly payments are manageable and I don't run up any more debt.
The question is whether I can get those loans at the moment and what kind of insurance I could have in case this happens again.
Although, I'm sure there must be a catch somewhere. Taking out a loan to pay off other loans? Strange concept...