What is it with being poor..

[scaryclown]

That makes everything more expensive??

I'm fuming/despairing at the moment. I've just managed to get control of my money after a period with no income and no soon as i get my first month finishing with £10 spare the fucking DVLA have written to me to trap me thus...

pay £300 or so quid NOW or we will take you to court where you will have to pay £1000. You cant pay in installments.

so because i'm poor, i'm forced to go to court to be charged £1000 because the court CAN enforce installmemts to pay...

fir a wealthier person, this is inconvenient and manageable, for the poorest its MORE EXPENSIVE ..

what the hell?

Also the reason is that i was clamped for pulling up on my 'to the MOT station' journey to collect the numberplate that i needed to pass the MOT and PAY THE DVLA ...they also charged me £260 to unclamp the vehicle.

UTTER BASTARDS...

my food bill is £120 a month

WIBU to put their windows in?

I should also say that part of my reason to be wary stems from a previous incident.

Basically, my children's nanny (I know!) took one of them to a dental appointment, and the dentist was running late, so the ticket expired and there was a fine levied (it was my husband's company car). She hadn't allowed for any delays. For some reason, she decided not to tell us, but deal with it herself (we are not scary, I promise you, and would have just paid it and said be careful next time).

Anyway, she told the authorities that she was the driver and was trying to get it cancelled; apparently, she even got a letter from the dentist to say that the appointments were running late that day. However, she didn't actually pay the fine or anything and we only found out about it when debt collectors turned up at my husband's law firm to try to enforce the debt!

It seems quite funny now, but it wasn't at the time!

OP

Go to court. Have your case written out clearly and explain to the judge/magistrate.

Explain that you cannot afford £300 and that is why you are there, and that you only got clamped because you were on your way to the MOT place.

Do this calmly, not emotionally.

I once had to go to court for parking on double yel;low lines - but I had a blue badge.

After some discussion with the police lawyer they decided (police) to 'offer no evidence' which meant I left with no fine and no points on my licence, although it was stressful.

But I spent the morning listening to other people making their cases and they were dealt with fairly.

You might still end up with the £1000 fine, but you might not.

It also seems that the poor are held to far higher moral standards than everyone else; unless you have sacrificed absolutely every scrap of joy from your life then you aren't worthy of sympathy. You have no money, therefore you must suffer and anything you do that is interpreted as frivolous such as having internet access or a car (never mind that they enable you to earn money in the first place!) you will be rigorously condemned for. Can some people truly imagine what it would be like to live the meagre, miserable existence they advocate for low earners? A life devoid of any tiny treats or anything nice because you can't afford it, so you must endure. Oh, and in the case of your OP, as a poor person you must also avoid making any mistake or error of judgement because any expense incurred thereof is ALL YOUR FAULT and therefore you lose entitlement to any sympathy. Did you see how one or two people were absolutely desperate to tease out your wrongdoing, OP, so that you could be blamed and they didn't have to spare a thought for someone who is both poor and not superhumanly perfect or sufficiently humble and consequently whose frustration and anger can be dismissed.

Agree a car can be essential. I needed to go to a town 10 miles away with no car. Bus would be a 10 mile journey to another town and a further 10 Mile journey back. Or I could get train. 30 minute walk to station. Train for 5 minutes which was 20 minutes or so late and another 30 minute walk the other end. Plus being at the mercy of kind passers by to help with double buggy. So 90 minutes as opposed to 10.
That was the 1St and last time I made that journey.
Op I sympathize. My dsis faces the shoe situation. She is on jsa and walks everywhere so is very heavy on cheap trainers. But she can't afford to buy more expensive ones. Fortunately I got some comparatively good quality (Clark's) for her on free cycle and they are still going strong

^^
This. And everything you've said OP.

Good luck

By this I meant CaptainBrickbeard. My arrows disappeared!

But its not about being poor is it? You would have no fine to pay if you had parked legally........

Could you see your MP. It's ridiculous that a government agency won't accept payment in instalments for a debt. And whatever their normal procedure is they can waive it. Also, I can't see how a court will impose a fine if you have made a reasonable offer to pay.

I also don't think the fine should be imposed in this case anyway -for reasons you've said but that's harder to argue

It did. I did a series of tests myself and determined that it may need some new bulbs which i replaced, and a new plate which i arranged to be ready for the day.

You have had a go at other posters about your number plate yet here you deem yourself it may not have passed.

Hyster: OP, I'll lend you the cash. I know exactly how you feel and much as I hate them, you can't win against the DVLA. Pm me if you want to take me up. No hassles

Have you taken up this offer OP?

I hated having no money to pay for unexpected stuff but you took a risk parking up en-route and it backfired.

I just find it a bit odd that, according to tour story, you were on your way to the MOT garage, nipped out of the car to 'pick up' the number plate you had presumably ordered (how long does that take?) and in that short time someone from the DVLA turns up, runs checks and clamps you....

I think the fine should be imposed OP. You broke the rules (and ignorance is no excuse) but you should be allowed to pay in installments.

If you can't do the time etc.

Somerset. We all make errors of judgment, if that is what this is. The point is that it is so much harder to rectify them if you don't have the financial means. I find your message disconcerting. Op is a person, warts and all. Moreover, she explained why her car ran out of mot. It was because it took a long time to be fixed. Where's the human compassion?!

It also seems that the poor are held to far higher moral standards than everyone else; unless you have sacrificed absolutely every scrap of joy from your life then you aren't worthy of sympathy. You have no money, therefore you must suffer and anything you do that is interpreted as frivolous such as having internet access or a car (never mind that they enable you to earn money in the first place!) you will be rigorously condemned for. Can some people truly imagine what it would be like to live the meagre, miserable existence they advocate for low earners? A life devoid of any tiny treats or anything nice because you can't afford it, so you must endure. Oh, and in the case of your OP, as a poor person you must also avoid making any mistake or error of judgement because any expense incurred thereof is ALL YOUR FAULT and therefore you lose entitlement to any sympathy. Did you see how one or two people were absolutely desperate to tease out your wrongdoing, OP, so that you could be blamed and they didn't have to spare a thought for someone who is both poor and not superhumanly perfect or sufficiently humble and consequently whose frustration and anger can be dismissed.

This. Very very well said CaptainB.

Still failing to see why being poor is an excuse for driving your vehicle illegally. I understand why it came to be untaxed, but at the end of the day you broke the rules by attempting to make more than you're one allowed journey. Not having understood the rules correctly is not a defence.

I could however moan about people driving around without correct tax and insurance bumping up my insurance premiums...

I agree it was Esmerelda.

Those, who are most judgemental may be wealthy of pocket but not of soul.

The point of the thread is that it is harder being poor and more expensive for poor people. Whether the fine was appropriate or not is not the relevant part of this thread.

It's hard being poor, I have been there. I'm fortunately not now, but it's taken many years of graft and sacrifices to not be. I have never forgotten hiding from the milk man or not having the money to repair the washing machine or go to the launderette whilst it was broken.

I would also agree with my mum's saying that money breeds money. It does. Little things like a certain salary can mean a nice company car which despite the tax is still cheaper than buying your own, and no bills to worry about.

A job where you entertain clients means you don't eat at home as often and get to try foods you may never be able to afford.

A position where you travel with work means frequent hotel stays so reduced bills at home and and the ability to save masses of reward points and air miles so personal holidays are cheaper.

Bonuses allow the opportunity to invest and tinker with shares and finances.

Networking in certain circles can lead to other things being done cheaper or free because of the client/supplier relationship.

I can confirm all this is true because I am now benefitting from being in that position, neither way or wrong or right it's just the way it is.

I don't disagree with the OP.

Some people are so into rules being imposed, no matter how unfair the outcome of that imposition.

At least you will never be that much of a rigid, unimaginative, vindictive twat, OP.

I just wanted to drop in and offer my support OP. Your original post was about how if you are poor you end up paying more for things - and with this, I totally agree.

I also second everything that Esmeraldada said above - her post was beautifully put and so true.

FWIW I think that the 'no stop rule' to get your MOT was absolutely stupid. You clearly had a time scheduled and you were on your way, doing a related task. That the law punishes you is proof to me of the cruel idiocy of the law.

I do think it is worth seeing your MP. Take what evidence you can with you (including anything you have proving you were going to get your MOT). Tell them your circumstances. You never know.

Since others have been quoting the modern Bard I will also offer up his notion of the crab bucket from Unseen Academicals - a version of which seems to be playing out here in this thread.

Hugs, OP.

But its not about being poor is it? You would have no fine to pay if you had parked legally.......

You have missed the point. The point the OP was making was that, if she had been richer, shecojld have easily paid the fine andnot had to cut back on food or take out a loan or go to court and have to pay more. Which is absolutely right. I would kick myself for the mistake, pay up and not notice the "missing" £300. It's not fair. I'm not entirely sure what the answer is - as someone else said, poorer people are often poor credit risks so paying in instalments is not always the answer.

The fine, however, was fair as you can only drive to the MOT appointment, not make stops to buy stuff on the way. You must have been damn unlucky to be spotted and clamped in the time it took to pick up a number plate though.

Have you contacted them to explain what you were doing?

That is shit OP.

I hope you don't to go in to debt for this.

Whoever said being poor is expensive is right.

The unfairness is that someone who is managing makes a mistake and can pay £300 while the poor person makes the same mistake and has no option but to pay £1000. The knock on effect of such a bill is enormous if you couldn't afford the £300 in the first place. It's disproportionate in the suffering it causes.

Credit Union is a good idea. Tell them what you need the money for and if you can provide proof of sw/income they will lend to you. (Providing nothing nasty comes up on a credit check)

I agree with the fine as you did break the rules, but I do think they should allow you to pay in instalments for what you can afford.

Let it go to court. Take examples of where people have stopped on the way to an MOT and got a fine, gone to court and been let off. Google will help with this. Also take a breakdown of your income and outgoings with a suggestion of what you could afford to pay if you are told to pay it.

Good luck.

It's a bit shit, in a fairer world fines would be income related, I expect it would be too tricky to administrate.