Deaf guy who has made a possibly bad financial decision

A question about : Deaf guy who has made a possibly bad financial decision

As a deaf guy, I get approx Ј200 in DLA per month. No other income.

I decided to buy a car, spending Ј1k in car, Ј2k in insurance. This was in response to commuting approx 1.5 hours per day, 5 times a week which has been reduced to approx 45 minutes + better stability + less stress.

I have 2 debit cards, one ~Ј500, another ~Ј300.

I will need to save up about Ј1.5k before Christmas for insurance renewal as well as paying up Ј1k for uni fees (to be paid on sept).

So, in sept I will have gotten 7*200 = Ј1400 which pays for uni fees, Ј400 left over. Money remaining: Ј1200 which will be increased by Ј400-Ј600 to Ј1700-Ј1900 before Christmas.

Sounds good? Not really, I have to pay petrol as well as maintenance. I estimate that petrol from now to November will cost around Ј200-Ј300. Still affordable as I can easily go into overdraft (Ј2k limit) temporarily. I don't know how much maintenance would cost me. The car is quite old but reliable and the parts for it are plenty.

However, this money is also for anything else. Ever since I bought a car and insurance, I hadn't had a midday lunch ever since. I wasn't able to afford luxuries e.g. better quality pen/paper. I'm worried that I might go into debt quite quickly seeing how tight ship I'm running at moment.

To be honest, I'm at loss what to do right now.

Note: Before anyone tells me that this wasn't what DLA was intended for. I wouldn't have needed to pay for a car if I wasn't deaf. Deafness is part of the reason why I bought a car.

Best answers:

• You can't afford to run a car on an income of Ј200 per month. What about the MOT? Road Tax? New tyres etc? The insurance of Ј2000 equals almost Ј170 per month!!
  Where do you commute to, Uni? I don't know why being deaf means that you can't use public transport but you definitely can't afford a car. Sell it and catch the bus.
• Sell the car. Im not sure why being deaf is even mentioned. If your deaf can you not use public transport?
  I presume quite a few of the students at the local college will be gutted to know they can no longer use the bus or train anymore.
  Even if we take your top estimate of Ј300 for fuel that going to be less than 2500 miles.
  Is a car really worth it?
  To me the car was a WANT item not a NEED item.
• How come you gave no other income?
  DLA is not means tested but should open you up to all sorts of other benefits. How do you pay rent / mortgage, council tax / utilities etc?
• I have every sympathy with your being deaf, but it isn't an excuse not to use public transport. You might just as well say that you shouldn't drive if you're deaf because you can't hear other cars coming up behind you etc.
  Plenty of deaf people use public transport with no problem at all. It might be stressful, but you can learn to manage stress.
  You can do all the calculations you like but it won't increase your income and you simply can't afford a car. To put it bluntly, you have no realistic alternative but to start using the bus and train. The sooner you accept that, the happier you'll be.
• I see your point. Is it better to cancel the insurance and sell the car right now? I'm with one of cheaper insurance company which has expensive cancellation fee. I think it could be cheaper to hold out till insurance runs out.
  Also, suspension of car insurance during university holidays would allow me to commute well into towards the end of academic year in 2016 without paying a penny. Not sure if car insurance company will agree this.
• Is the constant worrying about money not a lot more stressful than using public transport? Get rid of that car as soon as you can, before it creates some unexpected costs for you.
• You can't afford a car.
  To help with public transport; you can usually tell when there are important announcements because other passengers look grumpy and roll their eyes. There are a wealth of smartphone apps you could use - if you have a smartphone - that include station departures and information on cancellations. Find one you like and that'll help fill the information gap.
• If you have to attend college five days a week and have Ј200 a month to spend -how do you pay for things like lunches at uni, photocopying, buying books and stationary -even the odd coffee. If it is uni why are you not getting any maintenance grant/loan and also DSA ?
  You mention it is your only income but then talk about getting money termly -is this your loan/grant ?
  You also say the car is old but parts are cheap. The big expense for older cars isn't the cost of the parts but the cost of having them fitted . You appear to have no provision for this- and an overdraft which you have no way of paying off without needing to borrow more money to then cover running costs the following term is nuts .
  I'd suggest a visit to student services and making an appointment to see if you qualify for any other additional financial support (like DSA or hardship awards) would be a good idea. You could also approach the uni's disability team for the same advice -but they may refer you on to student services or the Union office -for advice. It varies between unis.
  Even if you have lectures every day it may be worth checking out for part time work at the university. Most have jobs available for students and a strong diversity policy (My uni counts such work for additional awards under their employability policy whether it's casual occasional hours or regular hours) and obviously a bit of extra cash earned would help you financially.
  I note you say you don't live alone (but don't mention rent) If you live at home - could you not take a packed lunch to college. Not eating all day is stupid and will inhibit your learning at best and affect your health at worst.
• Is there a cost implication for public transport or do you get free as disabled travel?
  I can understand the benefits of using the car for reducing stress (I am hearing impaired myself) but the stress of being so skint you can't eat lunch is probably worse.
  First things first, take your lunch from home, don't buy it, a cheap loaf and some slliced ham should last you all week.
  As others said, get some help from uni support services and try Deaf societies, there might be some grant you could get in addition to uni funding.
  Any chance you could get a Job to help you pay for this, either way make sure you sign up for any freebies like free postcode lottery, filling in surveys etcs, to make a few extra quid, it will all help. Don't sign up for anything where you are charged without checking it out with someone else first, scams are everywhere.
  Consider asking family for donations to,insurance fund rather than presents at birthdays and Christmas. Offer to do jobs for family and friends if they can help out, you have a little extra time now the travel time is less.
  Use MSE forums to guide you on food budgeting, and anything else you might be able,to save on.
• I don't understand why your DLA is being saved to pay uni fees, surely that's what student loans are for? There must be something you're not telling us if your DLA is really the only income you have.
• Hi
  To help we really need some more information such as any other income you have, whether you have a part time job etc, what your bills are etc.
  I can't see how you can afford the car at the moment with the information there, sorry.
• How many days a week are you in uni? Could you put some posters up in the library or somewhere looking to car share with someone? Even if it wasn't every day that might make it less stressful for you.
  Have you looked into car rentals instead as if you combined that with car sharing maybe it costs would meet your budget still.
• For some reason, I'm not able to multi quote all the posts posted after me.
  #9 @ Archi Bald
  I don't really have a constant financial worry as I could sell the car, end insurance and move on. It's just that it's depressing me at moment as I can't afford even simplest things at moment. I can already afford all basic necessities but that's it.
  #10 @ Surf King
  I currently receive student loan, tuition loan only. I absolutely refuse to burden myself any more debt other than tuition loan. And the loan is already being paid off as I study. All grants/bursaries are being used to pay the loan off. I only need to chip about Ј1000 per year in to pay the loan off completely.
  #11 @ Armorica
  I use 2 different apps to check train times, updates, etc. I even check Twitter/FB pages of train operators. This still isn't enough as the information never reaches me as quickly as announcers reach hearing people.
  #12 @ Duchy
  See my reply to #10.
  I already do some maintenance myself to save on the costs.
  The overdraft limit is Ј2000. It lasts couple years after I graduate. I will have paid that off by long then. I'm eligible to receive DLA/PIP indefinitely.
  I'm discussing with DSA at moment, I doubt they'll be that useful. I'm not eligible for hardship funds due to having funds to pay the tuition loan off.
  Never thought about packed lunch, I'll start doing that as soon as possible.
  #13 Sazzie23
  Public transport isn't free before 9:30 around here. I pay roughly same monthly in public transport costs compared to fuel costs.
  The university are unsupportive, and deaf societies around here don't do financial support.
  I applied well over 100 jobs last year, got rejected in half of them, and got invited to interview then rejected in the other half.
  #14 Agrinnall
  See my reply to #10.
  #15 Alanq
  Yes, when using public transport, I face a lot more people. It's not so much that I can't understand them or that I can't reply them if I do understand them, it's the effects of a lot more stress. I get to spend the rest of day wondering what else could have happened if I was able to answer or what are they trying to tell me.
  Missing announcements are not so big issue compared to what happens after it. Sometimes I need to get to the university at specified time, some of my classes have records attendance. Announcement states the platform change, I miss the train and arrive the university late. Whose fault is it? Mine, as they state "Well, you should gotten the earlier train" despite making sure to get on three trains early and arriving at the university 30-45 minutes before classes starts.
  What happens if the train I'm sitting in skips some stations and I land at a station where my tickets are not valid? Looks like it's an automatic fine for me. Takes me some time arguing with ticket inspector and sometimes, appealing the fine.
  #17 On My Way
  See post #10.
  #18 pathtofreedom
  5 days a week and I've tried the car share. My timetable doesn't really match with anyone wanting to car share.
  EDIT as my situation has changed slightly
  It seems that as of now, I am able to get Ј100 extra on my income per month. Also, I discussed with car insurance people, my car insurance can be suspended for up to 6 months. I think I can get cash refund + NCB once the policy ends.
• I have to say you only have yourself to blame if you're short of money but refuse to take a maintenance loan. I'm afraid I'm out.