How can I make £1000 quickly?

[QuestionableMouse]

Not a begging thread! Even if people offered money I wouldn't take it!

My car caught fire driving home from work last night. The engine is fucked and it'll never run again. I'll get probably £3-400 scrap value for it so that's a start. Realistically looking at about £1000 for a new car - I can't get to work without one (genuinely - the closest public transport stops miles away and due to the condition of the lanes it's not safe to walk the rest of the way!)

I'm sorting some stuff out to go on vinted which might get me another £50 or so. And some models/pocket dragons that will get about the same.

A loan or a credit card isn't an option - I'm already struggling monthly without adding another payment!

A couple years ago my car needed a huge repair, I ended up managing to take a credit card out on 0% for 6 months, at the end of the 6 months I managed to transfer the balance to another card on 0% for 6 months. Not sure if it’s still possible to do now? I think it was because I hadn’t had a credit card for 20 years that I was able to do it. It meant I could borrow money with no interest and I paid the balance off in a year. I am in a similar situation again but not sure I can get 0% on any card 😢.

At financial year end, send copies of the P60s and P45s for both jobs off to HMRC with a cover letter asking if you've overpaid tax and if so please would they refund you. I've had a couple of hundred quid back from doing that for year-round multiple jobs.

Won't you get money off your insurance?

Would your employers be able to pick you up for the last bit of the journey?
Alternately can you post on Facebook to see if anyone is going your way who would be willing to carshare?

Read The Post. It's nowhere near enough, never is.

I also recommend matched betting, if you put the time in you could easily make £1,000

As long as your credit is good and you have an income you should be fine.

Check here: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/eligibility/credit-cards/

How far do you travel to work OP?

Your driving licence may allow you to ride a scooter / small motorbike. I wouldn't recommend riding on a dual carriageway but if you can go another route a scooter can be had for a lot less than a car.

@QuestionableMouse When you reinsure, it's always worth adding in a use of a replacement car , (hire car) short term, as part of the package. This would have tided you over at the moment.

The insurance payout will only cover you for the current value of the vehicle.

OP - Do you definitely need a car? If you passed your test before Feb 2001 then you can ride a 50cc moped without needing to do a CBT. Alternatively could an electric bike be an option?

If it has to be a car then I'd recommend a 0% purchase credit card as others have suggested. Then do what you can to pay it off in a more reasonable time frame.

It’s very difficult to just make a quick £1,000 pet/dog sitting. You need to pay for insurance (granted you can do that monthly), apply for a licence (if boarding at your home ) that takes time and is approx £1,000 a year (London council here- maybe different elsewhere) then you’d need a car to take them to the park anyway if there’s not one in walking distance. Things like this and ironing take time to build up a clientelle - it’s no quick fix.

@Cornettoninja

True, but I checked by me (and it will vary by location) and two weeks over Xmas was £500 - half of what the OP is looking to raise. Taking everything into consideration it might be better to have transport and continue to save /work to raise extra over potentially losing money because she can’t work.

How could an extra £500 spend be beneficial in any way at all?

Not really a good idea tbh - riding a motorbike is completely different to driving a car and you are out in the elements at all times which can massively affect the quality of your riding. There are many experienced riders who don't go out in rain for example, because it affects the riding conditions so much.

Also it's very hard to find even a cheap, crappy quality Chinese bike/scooter for less than £800 (trust me, I'm looking for myself 😂) because they are so desirable and hold their value. Plus you'd have to pay out a few hundred extra for decent protective gear and helmet and then you're basically paying the same amount as a cheap car.

Lol and what will she do after the two weeks is up? Will she have magicked up a new car by then? Seriously, some people 🤦‍♀️

But mopeds aren't cheap, plus you need to pay for all the protective gear anyway, so she may as well just get a car

Depending on when OP passed her car test, she might need to take Compulsory Basic Training to ride a moped.

If you can get a 0% credit card, the minimum payment will probably be around £25 a month. I know you said you didn't want debt but this would solve the immediate problem and buy you some time while you try to pick up extra work etc.

I also do surveys and current site I use is LifePoints. Usually make about £20-30 a month for not that much effort so that could cover your credit card bill each month.

Honestly get a second job (retail, bar, or care work will be desperate for people) to fit around your current job, and in the meantime take out a loan.

Some of these suggestions are just so unbelievable laughable.

OP as others have said, it will have to be a credit card (if you can get one). You won’t be able to make money from ironing or dog walking. Seriously, it’s a myth propagated by people who have never been in financial hardship. You don’t just put an ad up and suddenly have 50 ironing clients (plus you then need to work a lot of hours to actually do their ironing!). I genuinely can’t see anyone paying money to wrap presents either - maybe in middle class fantasy land and you’d have to be an excellent present-wrapper to justify charging (most shops do it for free or for a tiny amount so why bother?). You could try the matched betting but it’s quite cumbersome and it takes time too - it might take a couple of months to make a grand.

So it’s either get into debt or do actually do a begging thread because plenty of people do donate.

Very interested in the selling dirty socks idea that someone posted 🤔

Well, switching bank accounts can make you a few hundred quite quickly, and most of us aren't doing that, so your logic doesn't really follow.

@QuestionableMouse Can you get a cheaper form of transport instead of a car? I can see mopeds on autotrader for £500, might be cheaper ones where you are?

Are you home over Christmas? Could you offer to cat sit for locals over that time, popping in, feeding and playing with the cats? I have a friend who does this and he gets people desperate for his services at this time and he gets booked up way in advance!

If you had a moped you could get delivery work, to earn the money to buy a car!

That was a good one. EBay and most other selling sites ban selling used underwear and the like. I’m sure that there are some fetish sites out there where you can sell them but do people really think that you can just log on and there will be loads of blokes clamouring to pay hundreds for Kelly from York’s smelly socks? It’s like people who think they can make millions posting pics of their feet on OnlyFans.

Doesn't your insurance cover fire?