I can't afford to get to work

[FiscallyChallenged]

I was laid off my last job in July, and received my last set of wages (3 weeks worth) at the end of that month. I live in London, and I didn't get a travelcard last month because I didn't see the point if I wasn't going to be travelling every day, and I needed to make my money last as long as possible.
I started my new job last week, and have to pay pay-as-you-go fares to get there and back, which costs £7.60 per day. It would be cheaper to get the bus, but there's never any telling how long it would take- I took one home on my first day and it took almost three hours! I now have £15 left, I'm not paid til the end of next week and I have no idea what to do. It's way too far to walk, I have a bike but it's a bit of a wreck and doesn't have any lights. I'm already surviving on an apple and cup-a-soup for breakfast and lunch. I can't get a season ticket loan as you have to buy the ticket first before you're reimbursed. There's nobody I can borrow money from.

Help! Any ideas?

I can definitely understand the reluctance to ask a brand new employer for an advance - what impression does it give? I work for a very large company and have no idea how we would go about doing this - by the time it was sorted it would almost certainly be too late to be helpful.

In the OP's shoes I would get a payday loan but ensure I pay it back immediately and look to build up a buffer asap to cover this.

I'm not explaining it so that the OP can try and claim retrospectively. I'm explaining it because, firstly, I'd hate anyone else in the position of having just lost their job to have read this and believed that there wasn't any employment benefits that they are entitled to. And secondly because from the posts it sounded like the option of benefits was looked at but she wasn't entitled to anything, which isn't true, so either the she was subject to woeful advice at the job centre or there is some misrepresentation of the actual situation.

And it's very standard to ask for an advance in a new job. You don't go to your line manager, you go to HR. It happens all the time. There will be no bad impression to give. It's not fairly standard for the company to have to ask for authorisation from their international headquarters.

Shy not ask if your workplace do a car share scheme. That's a great idea for reducing pollution and helping people out who don't/can't drive.
Other than that, buying lights for your bike is probably cheaper than the £15 you have left.

And my first employer offered me an advance. I didn't ask, they just did for all new staff.

Speak to your employer and see about a referral to a food bank if you haven't got enough money for food.

Can anyone and everyone get a payday loan just like that? The OP said she couldn't get a loan or an overdraft so is there a chance she might not get a Wonga loan?

ImperialBlether Wed 16-Sep-15 21:50:09
OP, this is your only post here. Are you a regular under a new name?

Is this now standard practice on here? To search every bloody username we haven't seen before?

Lazy They specialise in poor credit, so yes, most people can. They are hoping you don't pay it back until they've added a lot of interest, as that's how they make their money.

You won't get one if you've already got a lot of debt with other payday loan lenders, though.

MrsDeVere No, sorry, I wasn't aiming that at you - I realise you were trying to help others. It was the post about how she'd have been entitled and so her story doesn't add up. It's quite possible that she didn't realise at the time, and therefore she can't claim now.

In that case, in the OP's position, I would in this order:-
1 - pawn something
2 - get a payday loan
3 - ask the new employer for an advance
I wouldn't want my employer judging me for not having enough to get to work - people can be so harsh and judgy. I'm sure most people wouldn't jump to harsh conclusions, but I wouldn't feel comfortable taking the risk.

I wrote my posts late last night so it may not have been clear
I also wanted to be sure that anyone else reading this who might be in the same boat would realise they are entitled to non-means tested JSA

also, if the OP isn't used to using buses she might not know about the daily cap and think she is paying £1.50 for each bus ride.

I think I paid my payday loan back within a couple of days and paid about 50p interest - it was a while ago so I can't remember.

Hi everyone - whilst we have no reason to suspect the OP here isn't genuine, we would like to remind everyone that, although we're awed daily by the astonishing support our members give each other through life's trickier twists and turns, we'd always caution anyone never to give more of themselves to another poster, emotionally or financially, than they can afford to spare.

FiscallyChallenged - wishing you all the best from MNHQ

re: eating, op do you have a sikh temple near you? They provide meals for people in need in the community of all faiths. It'll be something like veggie lentil curry & roti, but filling.

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/gurdwarasturnedfood-banks-sikh-temples-are-catering-for-rise-in-britains-hungry-8991824.html

Payday Loan, this is one of those rare situations where this is actually what they were originally designed to do! Just pay it all off as soon as you get paid.

First instance bank, second instance and only if can afford to pay all amount straight back I'd consider a pay day lender. Congratulations on the new job

Apologies if this has already been suggested, i've only skim read, but could you ask your bank for a short term extended overdraft?

I'm not having a dig but I've seen this sort of thing a few times (so nothing personal to the poster of below) and I just wondered why this would be a problem and why posters have to always explain themselves? A poster could be brand new with a genuine problem but feel that they can't post for advice because they haven't posted previously. I get that their are trolls about but the response below could be very off putting. Apologies OP for going off-track on your thread

OP, this is your only post here. Are you a regular under a new name?

Some companies are funny about giving an advance, or their systems are so slow that it has to wait for a "bank run" the next week, so I sympathise that isn't a guaranteed option for getting cash quickly.
OP walthamstow swap and sell is ideal for odd bits- lots of people have random food left over (I hear cooking apples are very much available) they advertise it as free to the first person to pick it up etc.
I don't know if you can still cash a cheque at the money shop or similar- years ago I was in the same position and gave a cheque for £100 and got £85 cash, not very pocket friendly but I needed to eat and get to work until payday

Yup agree ! she already said she named changed anyway ( I think ) I'm guessing to not want to out herself in rl which is perfectly understandable

BlueWombler I get what you are saying. I'm sure some posters who are in need of advice don't post because they are worried about being accused of trolling/begging. That's why I think it's best to never offer money but to give practical advice. If you offer money them it just encourages other posters to troll.

Anyway, here's hoping the OPs got something sorted and isn't currently walking to work.

I also don't get the comments about new names. I name change every few days. I'm pretty sure I'm not a troll.

BlueWombler, I said that, because if it was a poster I recognised I'd PM them and offer to send them something. I wasn't doing it for hostile reasons.

Can you go to your bank and arrange an overdraft?