To use a Food Bank if I also had a holiday last month?

[NoseAboveWater]

Checked my account this week and it's not good. I've had a few job options not work out. I now have an offer for February for part time so I'm obviously very happy, however it is minimun wage and freelance so I feel cautious about taking on a payday loan just in case. Not eligible for proper loan from bank as no income right now.

I went on holiday with a new bf last month before things got so serious with my money situation. Part of me thinks I need to prioritize rent and bills I can just about pay until new job starts, if I don't really buy food for the second half of December - I have plenty of food for about a week. However, I should not have gone away so it's my own stupid fault and so really don't deserve any help from the Food Bank. I've been hanging around supermarkets late for a few days trying to get reduced items but not having much luck. Been looking online for information about getting thrown away food from restaurants at night, not found anything yet, but if anyone knows where I could get that that would be great?

I cannot ask family or friends and certainly not bf. Wwyd? No children btw it's only myself so no worry there.

tarla what rubbish. The amount is clearly spelt out in figures on the agreement you sign. The first payment is due in 3 months, not 2 weeks.
Have you ever used a pawnbroker? I have, so I know what I'm talking about. No need whatsoever to obtain a payday loan.
creakyknees you can sell the item if you don't to redeem it in the future. If you do want it back then you pawn it.
Done it many times myself without spiralling into debt.

Even with the payment due in three months, when the time comes if you (the hypothetical 'you' using the pawnbroker) couldn't afford to pay to get the item out of hock but needed/wanted it back then yes, there is the possibility that further debt could be incurred. It's not rubbish to think that it could lead to further debt and advising someone who is in financial difficulty to pawn something is pretty shoddy advice to be honest.

OP - apologies if I have missed it but have you said where you live?

I give to foodbanks regularly, I'm far from rich but I know there are people more needy than I am. I am happy to give you some of the food I am about to drop to them?

I hope you're ok You are no less worthy because you are single and childless btw. We all need to eat

tarla why would you incur further debt?. If you can't afford to redeem the item then you make another payment and they hold onto the item for another 3 months. You can do that indefinitely. If you can't afford the interest then you forfeit the item, which is something you are made aware of when you enter the agreement. There's no further debt though .
If a person takes out a payday loan to service a pawnbroker loan then they're being a bit of an idiot, quite frankly.
As I said, I've used pawnbrokers several times and they've served me very well.

creakyknees you can sell the item if you don't to redeem it in the future. If you do want it back then you pawn it. Done it many times myself without spiralling into debt

So, I pawn my gold ring which has a value of £150 and the pawnbroker will lend me £100 against it over 6 months. I can either repay a total of £220 (£20 interest per month plus the main loan) and chuck £120 down the drain. Or if I can't afford to pay the extra £120 that has amassed in interest, the pawnbroker keeps my ring and I lose its sentimental value, plus £50 (the difference between the value and what was lent to me).

Can you really not see the problem with this loan model? The fact that you have used pawnbrokers many times tells me that you must have an appalling credit record or be long term unemployed. People in employment who can obtain credit do not visit pawnbrokers. You would pay around £8 interest on £100 over 6 months if you got a credit card or overdraft facility. They lend to the poor and desperate and many of them will not understand the way that the system works. Some of them may well take a payday loan to get their item back. We are talking about people going to pawn wedding and engagement rings or children's christening jewelry. The pawnbrokers know this and take full advantage.

The only other thing I can think of in respect of your defence of pawnbrokers is that you are one yourself or you work for one.

why would you incur further debt?. If you can't afford to redeem the item then you make another payment and they hold onto the item for another 3 months. You can do that indefinitely. If you can't afford the interest then you forfeit the item

And if you don't have money for this further payment but don't want to/can't forfeit the item then you'd need to borrow money from somewhere in order to make the payment. It's at that point that payday loans start looking like a good idea and then the repayments on the loan make an already difficult situation even worse.

I don't understand why you can't grasp this concept?

If a person takes out a payday loan to service a pawnbroker loan then they're being a bit of an idiot, quite frankly.

Oh. There's my answer. You literally don't understand how someone could be so desperate that a payday loan is there only option.

Keep working on that compassion thing, you'll nail it one day

*their

creakyknees of course I'm not a pawnbroker. Simply sharing my real life experiences of actually being in this situation. I'm not offering advice, simply stating what worked for me.
Oh, and fuck off with your 'evaluation' of what you think my credit rating and unemployment history is. My life has got nothing to do with you.

tarla wtf?
Pawnbroker loans are lent on jewellry. Pieces of metal. If you are Desperate not to lose a piece of jewellry then don't pledge it. Go to the food bank instead.
I understand perfectly why people use payday loans. I just happen to think pawnbrokers are a better option.
And you can fuck off with your 'compassion' as well. I used pawnbrokers to feed my children. I didn't need advice from twats on mumsnet who I suspect haven't actually being in this situation in real life.

No need to swear or fling insults, dearie.

tarla its an adult forum. Swearing is allowed.
And I considered your last post extremely insulting.
It smacked of someone who has never needed to use a foodbank, pawnbroker or payday loan themselves but still think they can lecture other people about them.

I'm well aware it's an adult forum, I just don't feel the need to swear at someone or call them a that for explaining the point that they were making.

You have no idea of my situation, now or in the past, and you yourself got snippy when someone made assumptions about you a couple of posts ago. Let's not slip into hypocrisy with you making assumptions about me now.

If you are Desperate not to lose a piece of jewellry then don't pledge it

That is exactly the point though! Someone who is desperate and needs cash now isn't in a situation where they could easily make that decision. It's a case of "need cash and need it now, think about the consequences later" so they pledge the jewellery but then they can't afford to get it back or extend the pledge even though it's an item they really can't face losing so they have to make another desperate decision, namely to take out a payday loan in order to get the item back/extend the pledge. The loan repayment leaves them short that month so they then end up in another desperate situation and on it goes, perpetuating itself.

There's a reason that poverty is a trap and part of that reason is the willingness of payday lenders, pawnbrokers and load sharks to prey on people in dire straits.

I'm glad pawning things went well for you but it's not exactly sound financial advice and I fail to see why you can't understand that - for someone in a desperate situation - it could very easily lead to further debt.

tarla you're still missing my point.
Using a pawnbroker doesn't in itself lead to a spiral of debt because it's a stand alone debt. You've already paid collateral, so if you can't pay the pledge is taken, rather than further debt.
Now, if you feel 'desperate' about losing the jewellry that you have pledged, to the extent of taking out a payday loan to make your payments, then a prawnbroker isn't for you. It was a good option for me because jewellry doesn't bother me. I don't get upset over it.
Nowhere have I given advice, simply said what I would do. In the OP's position I would probably have pawned a small piece of jewellry for a tenner or whatever, to tide me over, simply because I'd rather have the cash than use a food bank. I'm pretty sure I could manage the interest and
No need to explain the 'poverty trap' to me, thanks. Already well aware.
Lastly, I apologise if I misjudged you from your posts.

Oh, and fuck off with your 'evaluation' of what you think my credit rating and unemployment history is. My life has got nothing to do with you

Cheers and you're right, it has nothing to do with me. But what I am saying is that pawnbroker loans are generally not in the borrower's interests. You may think they're great- someone else might come along to say that Wonga are fab because they helped them out of a sticky spot. That doesn't change the fact that pawnbrokers rip people off and they rely on the fact that borrowers are desperate to get their item back and may keep extending the loan and paying more, but never enough to get the ring/necklace back. If you sit down and add up how much interest you have paid on pawnbroker loans over the years, it can be quite sobering. 20% a month is 240% a year. Yes, it's not in the Wonga realms of 3,000% but does that sound like a reasonable interest rate to you?

Anyway, an unmarried person (without wedding rings etc) is unlikely to have loads of valuable 'gold' lying around, so this discussion is probably academic.

Now, if you feel 'desperate' about losing the jewellry that you have pledged, to the extent of taking out a payday loan to make your payments, then a prawnbroker isn't for you. It was a good option for me because jewellry doesn't bother me. I don't get upset over it

So why didn't you sell it at its full value if you didn't care about it? Rather than borrowing a percentage of its value at a really high interest rate? That doesn't make sense to me if you say that you aren't bothered by it. You could have made £200 rather than borrowing £100 and paying £40 in interest for example.

Look up the reducing times, they're all online so you could be there n get them to mark it down, seen people do it n done it myself.
Apps like Olio give away free food n other things, ie offers of meals that someones made too much of.
Fling things like bedroom tvs to cash generator, don't need more than one in the house.
Call any bill places and see if you could get a deal on any services or if you're 100% certain you'll be able to pay it next month ask for a promise to pay, perhaps giving them a small token amount till then.
Go to your council n check benefit calculators, you may be able to have a percent of your rent paid this month.
Feed your family for £20 a week is a Facebook page that could give you loads of budget friendly recipes.

Regardless of you not wanting to or feeling bad about asking, unless you broke up n don't speak, I'd ask the boyfriend if he's worth a £350 holiday he'd surely loan you £20 rather than let you starve. Or at least have you round for dinner a few nights a week.

Don't be afraid to get referred for a foodbank but you'll obviously need further help than a 3 day parcel. Your council may also have a crisis payment avaliable for no food no cash situations and could help with bills.

If you have a car you could see if take aways need a driver, often paid that night and given a free meal.

And if your pop your local area on there's probably someone clearing space for their turkey. I know I'd be able to give a weird frozen mix up over if you were local.

nocreakyknees just keeping my options open. It's not that I didn't care, I would only take out small loans that I knew I had a good chance of repaying.It's not that I didn't care, just that I didn't care desperately enough to take out another loan to keep it. It is a bit of a gamble if course, but so is any loan. Obviously you have to consider what you think what you will able to afford
Re your second point, I don't think people are quite as desperate as you think. Never noticed any desperation myself. And I know plenty of people who use them, including my quite wealthy inlaws .
They are more of a traditional working class kind of thing, of course, which I realise some on mumsnet won't be familiar with.