What cost of living crisis?

[pagopago]

Beauty salons mega busy and some with waiting lists of a month or two.

People piling trollies high in supermarkets, carrying bags of shopping in shopping centres

Airports and flights busier than ever.

Tradesmen e.g. plumbers, painters/decorators, carpet fitters booked well into next year.

Is this people burying their heads in the sand? Or making the most of things while they can still afford to?

Right now it doesn't really feel like there is a shitstorm approaching.

God God, didn't any of you study history at school?
Rise of the far right?
Persecution of minorities?
Strikes?
Nationalism?
Cult of leadership?
Hyper inflation?

Well we keep going into our unplanned overdraft which we haven’t done for many years so we are most certainly feeling the pinch and literally have no money for anything and we have a car that desperately needs fixing!

@tttigress

Totally agree , hysteria seems to be setting in when in reality no one really knows the impact or what new help will be announced .

Yeah...

Capitalism works out pretty well for the elite.

We’re being more sensible but also, there has to be some pleasure in life. Got my nails done last week for £40 as a payday treat at a walk-in place. Salon was busy but not as much as pre-covid where there’d be a queue out the door! We won’t struggle too much; food is going up, we’re saving slightly less but I’m hoping we can ride the storm by seeing things like nails as a little luxury and not an every 2 week thing!

Possible review their spending and cut back on non essentials if there is no spare in the budget at the moment. Not just carry on spending and then in three months time be whining when they get their energy bill.

I'm a lone parent, my income after tax plus including UC and CB is about £2000 a month. I have no debt, I'm on pre payment meters, I live in social housing and I budget, budget budget and I save whatever I can.

I don't get my hair done, I don't get my nails done, mainly because they are not things I'm interested in, not that I am "going without"

We go on 2 holidays a year (short breaks) one UK based like centre parcs for 4 nights and one little long weekend in a European city somewhere.

I've saved up enough to have my front garden landscaped and sorted this month with the hedges cut and shaped and the lawn cut back, I will then save and have the back garden done in the spring. Fences, lawn, and bedding plants.

I am thrifty, I buy clothes from the charity shop, amongst other things like baking trays, pyrex bowls and "stuff".

But I also live within my means, I avoid debt, have no credit cards or anything my car is 11 year old, I bought it outright with cash 3 years ago.

No I don't have a flashy extravagant Instagram lifestyle but I have a lovely home, it's warm, it's got electric, we have nice food, little trips away and I work a 40 hour week.

I'm happy with it, I've no need to keep up with the jonses' . End of the month I just move whatever surplus I have in to the savings account, some months it's like £100 other months it's like £5. But it all adds up.

My child seems happy, he has a Nintendo game boy thing, he has Lego sets, he goes away on holidays he spends time with his mother and we have fun in the park the beach, bowling, cinema now and again. He's hardly having a downtrodden childhood.

I'm not too worried about it all at the moment, other than the gas, electricity and petrol prices I won't really be effected. I'll just cut my cloth accordingly as things go on.

For fucks sake not everyone is going to be in the gutter.

I don’t think it’ll get really bad until small businesses start going under but that’s not far off. Businesses don’t have their energy price capped. How many cafes, restaurants, salons, small manufacturers can afford to spend £50k on electricity that cost them £5k last year? It’s not many. Every small business that closes means jobs lost.
Unless this lousy government actually helps businesses, it is going to get very very bad.

It’s really naive to think it’s a media frenzy.

Lots of people are and will be seriously struggling.

Just this week on the energy forum on Facebook there’s been someone’s child apologising for wanting to use a nightlight because they know their mum and dad are worried about the increasing bills (obviously mum and dad reassured them that their nightlight can stay).

Another one where an elderly woman has resorted to eating cat food because it’s cheap.

And another one where a woman with lung cancer has been sitting in her house in the dark scared to put the lights on because she literally can’t afford any increase in her energy bills.

All of these families are entitled to the extra help from the government but it isn’t anywhere near enough.

Lots and lots and lots of families this year won’t be able to use their heating at all - we are one of them.

Just because you can’t see poverty yourself doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. You just aren’t looking in the right places. The high street / beauty salons etc aren’t the places to look for people already struggling.

Another one of these ‘crisis, what crisis?’ threads.

That’s because the crisis hasn’t hit us yet. Wait until the price cap goes up to £3500 in October, with further increases in the coming months. Then tell us people are still spending money and there is no crisis.

I'm trying to support local businesses but...

It's now £6 for a coffee and flapjack at my - very basic - local cafe.

I used to go quite frequently, but I can't afford that.

“Tradesmen e.g. plumbers, painters/decorators, carpet fitters booked well into next year.”

dont mistake this for people having cash to burn. I tried to get essential:major building works done last July 2021. It took me until May 2022 to have someone start work. I have to do this work before my roofs start leaking properly…they were already beginning to leak by last winter.

that is about massive shortage of labour due to brexit working in uk prohibition and lack of investment in training / apprenticeships over years . And a backlog of jobs due to material supply chain during covid. Building work planned and funded over12-18 months ago still can’t be completed as just no capacity and that is also driving up costs to stupid levels.

Bought sale wool ( needed) jumper, and expensive ( last longer) replacement bedding, and yes I have the money

I imagine shopping centres are ram packed full of people buying for start of term next week. I know last week I easily spent hundreds kitting my children out with uniform and new shoes. Likewise I have a large family so even a small supermarket shop (which takes place a couple of times a week) requires a piled high trolley.

I'm very wary of the price increases and have really cut back on driving longer journeys and going to paid attractions during the holiday. We've had a lot more days playing at home and in the garden. It means when we do go somewhere for the day I don't mind spending a little more and buying treats as its more of an occasion.

Another one where an elderly woman has resorted to eating cat food because it’s cheap.

Oh behave

Tesco's cheapest 12 pack of cat food is £2.80 for 12 pouches

You can buy 22 sachets of Oats So Simple (plain or golden syrup!) for £2.50.

If someone is seriously eating cat food they need more than financial help.

I’m not making it up. Maybe they do need help - these are the people who will need a lot of help, understanding and paying their bills.

Sorry, are you claiming there is no cost of living crisis?

If anyone is doubting there is a crisis please come and read the posts here -

www.facebook.com/groups/966754150512356/?ref=sharewww.facebook.com/groups/966754150512356/?ref=share&exp=9594

Mixed picture, some already feeling it for many it hasn’t yet begun. Friends are a mixed picture many are still doing the regular stuff but talking of the ever rising costs and what to do. DH works in commercial property and it is biting, his clients (landlords are concerned) businesses are struggling and energy costs haven’t hit yet. Many were supported through COVID with loans & support payments they are no longer there other than putting off loan pay backs. The bank even called yesterday to ask if all was ok, what facilities they can put in place. Friends in construction are beginning to feel it after ever increasing costs and his conversations with them in the village pub don’t translate to the several holidays abroad, days out etc that their partner (my friends) are posting all over social media. Many places I have been are much quieter than pre covid and seeing more families eating sandwiches in the car than in the cafe. It will be a steady trickle of economic misery.

I have always washed my own car. But the cheapest wash locally is £3.50. That really is not a lot to pay say once a month.
And lots of younger people get their nails done. Again can be done fairly cheaply.
It is local restaurants and pubs that will suffer first.

Definitely it is the last hurrah. Weather is still ok, school holidays not over yet. Come October we won’t be able to afford to even socialise. Unaffordable coffee shop, or sitting in at my freezing cold flat, or theirs? I am absolutely dreading how to afford Christmas.

I am worried about rising costs. I was in the supermarket today getting a full trolley of shopping as our family needs to eat.
It is the school holidays and lots of people are using tickets for attractions booked a while ago.

I always to go family abroad for hols, save up for plane ticket/ spending money, hardly mega money to Spain

Ha we are one of those families who earned funny looks in Aldi the other day with our trolley "piled high".

Meanwhile that 180quid Aldi shop needs to last a month with only a little money left over for bread and milk.

Don't judge people by snippets that you see.