...to feel slightly annoyed when people claim to be "living in poverty"

[ihateconflict]

...and have huge TVs/smoke/drink/have a holiday abroad each year/wear designer clothes and shoes and handbags, and have all the latest electronic gadgets. In contrast, as a "middle class" (hate this label) professional living in an expensive area, i cant afford any of the above (dont smoke or drink, so dont include those). We havent had any holiday for 5 years, let alone one abroad. AND, when DCs were at school, their friends with EMA allowance were the ones who had driving lessons for their 17th birthday, and cars for their 18th birthday. My DCs had to pay for own driving lessons, and didnt get cars until they finished uni and were earning. I am full of sympathy for those in "genuine" poverty, but somewhere priorities and definitions seem a bit wrong

Kendodd has it right - people spend money differently because they have different priorities and often people who pay less in rent have larger disposable income than someone with a big mortgage. There is also some interesting ways that people view time - some people plan ahead for the future and other people live in the present so if they have money now they spend it.

I haven't met anyone like this either.

Also, all tv's look big and expensive now don't they?

I'm still plodding away with a fat one my mum bought us as a housewarming present, that was ten years ago and it cost £120 then so relatively speaking I don't think these big fancy tv's are really that big an issue. A tv is hardly a luxury item is it?

Agree with the TV thing too Kendodd. Last time our big tv broke we had it repaired and TV repairman said it was a good TV because it could be repaired - LCD are not easy to repair so shorter lifespan.

My son's friends offered to club together to buy him a second hand x-box because they thought we couldn't afford to buy him one. We are very comfortably well-off, just opposed to x-boxes, TVs in bedrooms etc. DS thinks we are v poor as he doesn't have any gadgets beyond a Kindle.

MrsKR, they have set up another direct debit, you know the one I had before that they cancelled themselves last month without our knowledge (we really need a ffs face) BUT getting them to acknowledge the discrepancy in units is a bit of a nightmare :( and actually having a bill saying you need to pay £812 NOW , you will have bailiffs, you can ring for a pre paid meter etc when you have had no previous correspondence is a bit disheartening and as I say I am not on benefits, I don't think we are poor, though certainly not rich, but we cannot afford that NOW

The ones in our rooms are freestyle jobbies

LOTs of people who are poor rent white and electrical goods. Is this not really common knowledge I think most of my family rent their tv's. They rent them off a local company. I think i might start renting a washing machine actually I do 3-4 loads a day (2 lots of nighttime bedsheets off the same child - SN) and then well other stuff, dirty clothes)
I have beko atm and I am paranoid it will set on fire

our british heart foundation shop has loads of big tvs too

Oh, yeah, competitive gadgeting! 'My kids have only an abacus. Those people on benefits have slide rules!

someone will mention those free cars in a minute

I might go and have a fag and glass of wine

An abacus? mine only had a stick to play with, bloody grateful they were too.

That's sort of what happened with us owl but the dd they wanted to set up was way beyond what we could pay so we went for the meter. It took ages but we paid off 600 at a fiver a week. Finished paying it in Dec just as the price we're implemented so never really felt the benefit but never mind.

I've done comparisons and switching to the best deal available would save us £56 annually so the difference between prepaid and credit might not be as bad as you think. I like the control now.

Love your post MrsD about living with the day to day reality of poverty.

OP, I don,t belive you're a GP, at the very least your observation and narrative would have been a more intelligent read.

Your goading post, is cuntish to say the least.
Report away you hairy handed fucker.

Was it a shitty stick usual?

"what would you consider genuine poverty how do people live if they are in genuine poverty ?"

I would say they don't have access to fresh drinking water, who die of disease because they cannot afford or don't have access to proper healthcare, don't have access to a proper education and if they have no work they have no money to eat or live.

That is poverty to me.

See we're ok financially even tho we're on a low income because our mortgage is stupidly low, if we were paying rent we'd be fucked.

A lot of things are down to different circumstances op.

feel rich

That's like us red, we purposely didn't borrow as much as we could have to give us some breathing space, which we really really need just now but a few years ago we were laughing!

If the OP is a GP and has genuinely been unable afford any sort of holiday for last 5 years, even one in the UK, then either she has some serious financial difficulties which she hasn't divulged on this thread (and is therefore drip-feeding) or she is truly dreadful at managing her money, and it's a miracle she hasn't already gone bankrupt.

I'm bemused by the opening post - EMA was only £30 per week maximum. There is no way that would cover the cost of driving lessons, taking the tests AND the cost of buying a car, not to mention tax, MOT, petrol and the astronomical costs of insurance for the under 21's.Is she suggesting that ALL recipients of EMA used all the money exclusively for the purpose of running a car? It doesn't make sense!

can i just say to those who say that as a GP i get a good wage, so must be able to afford things, well, in theory yes, in practice, no. I i work part time, have a very sick DH who has a degenerative disease, and needs constant care i have to employ a live in carer to help me care for him ,he doesnt meet continuing care criteria, so i have to fund this at nearly £700 a week, so i dont have much disposable income, hence DCs not getting driving lessons etc, i guess all peoples circumstances have a story behind them, as does mine, and who are we to judge without knowing the true story!!!!!!

I was right! Drip feeding .

'and who are we to judge without knowing the true story!!!!!! '

What like your OP you mean?

WHOOOOOOISH

OP I'm sorry about your husband.

But I reckon people that live in real poverty tend not to talk about it in the context of TVs. They're too busy trying to figure out how to live it to even think about TVs.

surely if you have a severely poorly husband though you must understand why SOME people are in poverty? surely you can see that, if not as a GP then as a wife and carer yourself?