Retired or on benefits and living rurally, at a disadvantage

[Calibrate]

I live rurally. 7 miles from the nearest village, with no public transport to enable me to get to the village.

Recently my car needed to be repaired, and I had to rely on lifts or taxis to get me into the village so I could catch a bus to work, 15 miles away. This cost me £30 a day. Diesel would have cost me around £2.00 max.

As my husband and I reach retirement, it made me realise that our neighbours who may be living on a state pension, or living on benefits, are pretty screwed. What if they need to go to the doctor? £12+ for a return taxi. Shopping? The same.

It is unreasonable, plus very difficult due to housing shortages, for people to move to more built up areas, but they are expected to live off the same amount of money as someone who can walk or take buses to local shops and services.

Surely there should be some extra benefits in place for people who don't live in towns? I do understand that the majority of people do live in towns and cities, but a lot of people also live rurally, and many of those live on benefits and state pensions due to having worked in farming etc on low wages all their life. A car is not a luxury in rural areas but a necessity, but people on state pensions wouldn't be able to afford run a car.

Am I being unreasonable in thinking that people in rural areas, often people who have spent years ensuring we have food on our plates, should have some sort of additional assistance?

No. There isn’t enough money in the pot from the working population to cover the NHS/education/police and a basic standard of living for everyone as we can see from the state of the country and poverty levels. They need to take some responsibility for old age and either plan better financially or relocate somewhere closer to amenities. Or the community itself needs to help and give lifts, car share etc. Rents and house prices tend to be more expensive in towns so either way you win and either way you loose on something.

I think more should be done to support infrastructure in rural areas, especially public transport which should be easier to access. Where I live we have one bus and one train an hour, neither starts until 645am and both finish by 9pm, they don't run on bank holidays and they're usually the first services cancelled when there are staffing shortages so that service can be focused on busier areas.

One of the conditions for the lease of our (social housing) house was that we had access to our own transport and community links to the area.

People make a choice about the area they live in. If you choose to live rurally then you need to take things like this into account.
I would love to live out in the countryside and for my family to enjoy the benefits that come with that but I don’t drive so it wouldn’t be practical therefore I live in a town with good transport links instead.

No. We are rapidly approaching a situation where for every working adult, there is an adult on benefits (aged pension, UC, etc). There isn’t more in the pot.

Retirement doesn’t creep up on you, it’s your responsibility to plan for it.

Where you live is a choice, and we all have to make choices we can afford. Otherwise, where does it end?

We live rurally with no public transport and are aware that we will need to move when we cannot drive. Most of the people in our village have family to help out but those who do not tend to move. It is the reality sadly. We are hopefully years away from it but definitely will plan for it.

Could you start thinking about future proofing your life and move closer to more easily reachable services? Do it now/very soon before you get too old.

For context I have always lived rural or in a poorly served village. “You pays your penny and takes your chance.” This has been the case nearly all my life. We just get on with it.

Next time ask your garage for a courtesy car or swap to a garage that offers that service. Get that on your radar now, don’t wait for the next time you need repairs or whatever robs you of transport.

Learn to shop on line! Supermarkets deliver!

I’m afraid you are being unreasonable to think that those who choose to live rurally should be subsidised with additional assistance.

Why is it unreasonable to expect/assume that when a house doesn't suit it's occupants anymore they should move?

There are a few major life events that often necessitate moving home (having children for example) and growing old should be one of them imo. Yes it's emotionally difficult, but necessary for future long term happiness imo.

Doesn’t rural living cost less than city/town living anyway?

No. You've chosen to live rurally.

There are people who have severe health conditions and disability who have not chosen that situation, who are getting their benefits decimated right now.

What makes you think there's any money to accommodate your choices when that's going on?!

State Pension is way, way higher already than they're gonna be getting. State Pension is super high compared to working age basic benefits.

I think the argument should actually be for better public transport for rural communities.

In our village we get 2 buses and day, and none at the weekend. And now because it isn't being used (because oddly they are never at the time you want/need and overpriced) they are threatening to cut further. Perhaps if there were 6 buses each day going to the town and back, people would use them as they wouldn't then be trapped in the town for 5 hours at a time.

I love our village - but on retirement I don't know how practical it will be as the services we enjoy now are being cut / lost.

No. If someone wishes to live “very rurally” in retirement they need to factor car/taxi costs into their pension planning. Failing that, maybe find a village with better bus links although that’s risky because they could be withdrawn. Take responsibility for old age either way. That applies to everyone, wherever they live.

Well that would look a bit like being paid to live somewhere nicer I suppose, but I do understand the point. The answer is better transport links for rural areas. I used to to live in a hamlet but now, with all the building going on here, I’m almost on the edge of the nearest town I suppose. There’s still no regular bus and the new areas have none at all going through. Two local villages completely lost their bus service last year. There are various other villages locally that have never had a bus, and one that only has a bus on a Tuesday 🤷‍♀️. It was just announced last week that to cope with the huge increase in employers NI contributions, the local bus company will be cutting services. No prizes for guessing they’re not being cut from the towns and the nearest city.

If you’ve chosen to live rurally you need to accept the consequences is living rurally!

It often costs significantly less than a town or city and it’s cheaper exactly because of the limited amenities.

Rural living Vs urban living when considering the whole country is much cheaper. Maybe people in urban areas should get more money to compensate for the higher house prices?

I don’t think you should get any extra benefit, but I do agree that rural areas have been deprived of basic transportation infrastructure. I think that you’re not being unreasonable to expect some form of public transport be within walking distance of your home.

People in towns/suburbs pay a premium for housing because of its proximity to services like buses and trains so it evens out.

Just because you were farmers during your working years, it doesn’t mean that you have to live rurally forever. That’s your choice that you should own.

There used to be a scheme where you could get taxi vouchers instead of an over 60s bus pass if you lived in an area with no buses, but I don't know whether that's still running now?

People in towns/suburbs pay a premium for housing because of its proximity to services like buses and trains so it evens out.

Not really, housing is higher in towns because there is more demand for it because most jobs are there.

I live in a village and it would be very difficult to stay here in retirement without a car or unable to drive. Facilities over the years have been reduced, bus service is poor and taxi's rip you off - £15 for two miles to the station! For these reasons I am in the process of selling the house. I always knew when I got to retirement age this would be the case and I do think people to need to think carefully where they live as they get older and plan for it.

AIBU to think that people expect “the government (ie the taxpayer) to fund absolutely everything? Some villages have some sort of arrangement for community transport for those who can’t/don’t drive.

Well I certainly chose to live in a city because I didn’t want to be far away from the amenities and services.

I live in the suburbs so I can do things like walk the school run or take short taxis to emergency appointments like the hospital. My teens also enjoyed the perks of living in the suburbs like walking to friends houses and getting around without lifts because walking, cycling and short bus/taxi rides are available and reasonable.

Lots of older people choose where to live based on services. When my nan retired she moved out of central london and bought a bungalow, one key thing for her was choosing a property and location near to services. She was a single mum on low income working class who worked hard 6 days a week, bought her council property and lived frugally to pay into pensions.
She made sensible choices and had a lovely retirement until passing. Made easier by living near services.

You are right that living rurally usually costs more, you may not be on mains drainage or mains gas, there may be no public transport and you are totally reliant on a car.
Housing can cost less rurally than in a city, but obviously depends on location.
It's easy to say just move but in reality it can be tricky.
However me and DH have already decided our current home isn't in a suitable location for retirement /old age our elderly neighbour refused to move but was totally reliant on expensive taxis or lifts from her gardener or neighbours as no public transport here.
I don't want to be in that situation so as much as I love our house and it's location we will move when we retire to avoid that situation.
However in our village the overwhelming demographic is professional retirees, I guess having money and excellent pension schemes is a good buffer, however I have said we need to be out by 70 and DH would rather be out by 65.
BTW where I am not many people actually work rurally or Farm, 2 or 3 households tops.
Instead they are mainly professionals who work at home or people who run their own businesses or are retired.
So yanbu to think it costs more, it usually does but I think Yabu about getting more benefits /pension. From my home a return taxi journey to nearest town costs £60 so even if benefits or pensions went up it wouldn't be enough to cover that.
But I do think that if you aren't on mainline gas you shouldn't have to pay more for your electricity as you can't a dual fuel tariff. The government should do something about that