No money at all

[AngelaBB]

My husband retired in August, I have been retired two years. He didn’t talk to me about retiring , just came home and said he had talked to HR and never went back to work.
He is hopeless with money, I gave to run everything and I find it exhausting. He hadn’t bothered to sort out his pension, although he told me that he had and just left it, we now have no money at all. He has finally sent the forms in but has been told that it will take at least six weeks to all come through. I have no money at all, used my overdraft facility and credit cards maxed out. He expects me to sort it out but I don’t know how. There literally is nothing in the pot. He can live like this but I can’t, he thinks I’m over reacting and it’ll all work out but I’ve had enough. Am I being unreasonable?

Ask for a benefit assessment from Age concern, I second Pension Credit. www.gov.uk/pension-credit

I agree that it sounds like he was in some sort of trouble at work. If you’re preparing to retire you arrange your pension.

This is what you need. Good, practical advice. I'd definitely be doing this.

Are the forms that he has now sent off applying for his workplace pension or his state pension?

With the state pension, HMRC would have contacted him a few weeks before his eligibility date and he would have needed to complete a form to apply to receive his pension.

Have you both been living on just your state pension since he retired in August?

I would go to citizens advice bureau if I were you. Go as a couple. They will be able to help assess the situation and provide help and guidance re benefits.

Get yourself to you local citizen's advice today. They will help with pension paperwork and a good bank voucher if needs be. You may have to consider both getting part time job to see you though. Hopefully your husband has a work place pension

Food banks, olio, too good to go, local churches can all provide food.

I would post on the money saving expert forum. They are really insightful. You should really do a full budget to see exactly where you are financially. There isn’t enough detail on here to give detailed advice other than the obvious of saying you need to increased income and being sympathetic to your problem.

I would agree with checking if you’re entitled to any other benefits but if not, could either of you pick up some part time work?

When he is getting his state pension paid, will that be enough to keep the bills paid? And without sounding even more depressing, how will one of you cope financially when the other one dies?

It’s wrong of him to not communicate what he was intending and not to sort his own pension but perhaps he grew resentful because you’ve said you were planning to work longer but packed work in early too. You’re both a bit useless with money in my book not to have any other savings or pension!

There can be no money quite quickly, when outgoings exceed what's coming in. If they could cover all their bills when she had her pension and he was working, and then he quit working and hadn't sorted his pension, so he was bringing in nothing at all, and there wasn't enough to cover the outgoings, and there still isn't... no money.

Especially when Access to Work would pay for it.

I assume you stopped paying council tax

People often lack transport to access these options.

Subsidising? Are you single?

as others have said OP - you need to get advice. you could start with online stuff: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/benefits-entitlements/

I know it's not always easy to get seen at CAB... it looks like this one offers a helpline https://www.independentage.org/get-advice/money/benefits/extra-help-cost-of-living-low-income

your local authority may have welfare of financial advisors as well who may prioritise you given your age. if you can't pay essential bills like utilities or council tax then get in touch with them ASAP so that they are aware you need help.

if he retired in August but has only just sorted the forms for getting his pension then that is ridiculous - he needs to accept that you can't sort everything for him! as someone else said, is there anything of his that can be sold to get you through the next few weeks??

No what they need is advice on how to live before he gets his pension. She has enough on her plate due to his stupidity without having to pander to him at 67 years of age. “Psychiatric evaluation ”
ffs.

How? Please do explain your thought process? 🤔

Can you pay someone to do that side for you.

It is daft to put it off and I say that as an ND person. I've been paying my pension since late 20s.

You will regret it in time. Don't put something off tomorrow that you can start today. Paying someone to do it for you takes the stress away. Give yourself a deadline if not. I do things if I have a deadline.

This.

Plus, when all this initial stuff is sorted and his pension comes through you should both have a clear understanding of all the incomings and outgoings for the home. I say this kindly but if anything happens to you he probably won’t have a clue what to do and could find himself in a similar situation once again.

She did and has decided the husband needs a psychiatric evaluation and wonders how his sleep is. He’s probably getting loads while his wife is up all night worrying about how to pay the bills.

She has said she got her state pension, Wallace that is nine hundred and something a month so they'd have been OK while husband was working. A the moment, her state pension is their entire income so it is bound to difficult for two people to live on that alone and pay their bills.

However he will be getting his pension in about six weeks. It's the next six weeks they have to cope with.

Sorry but you are generalising there. And all without even a formal diagnosis.

Sounds like he quit or was sacked rather than retiring properly.

Anyway, do neither of you have workplace pensions? I am in my sixties and have quite a few from various jobs. Could he have entitlement he has forgotten about?

I'm so sorry you're in this position.

1. Find out what date Mr. Feckless will get his pension - and make sure the eejit has genuinely applied for it.
2. Do an honest income and expenditure statement. You will need this if you are speaking to the banks etc. Is there anything you can suspend or do without for a few weeks?
3. Check Citizens Advice, Turn2Us, your local council to see what help you might be entitled to.
4. See if you can temporarily freeze any bank cards he has to stop him spending.
5. Contact your utilities to see if they can help by freezing or lowering payments or putting you on a social tariff of some kind.
6. You mentioned your job was physically hard, did your employer have any hardship funds at all you could apply to?
7. Is there anything you can sell? Preferably his.
8. As others have suggested, olio and TooGoodToGo often have very good value food offers.
9. For a food bank you usually need a referral so get in touch with your GP and/or adult services at the local council.

10. Are you his full time carer? You might qualify for a small annual carers grant. Or attendance allowance depending on income. 11. You might also speak to your local church. 12. Check out what discounts you might get because of your age, Iceland has Tuesday 10% off for instance.

Check out the Moneysavingexpert site, it has truly excellent debt, money management, and other thrift and household management tips that will help you come through this, very frequently from people who have lived it themselves.

You will get through this, not sure what the solution is regarding Mr Feckless though.

It will all be backdated so you WILL be fine in a few weeks and can pay off your credit card etc.

Because you have money that will come in the bank could increase your overdraft facility? You could approach co op for a small loan? Use food banks in the meantime? You can use as much heating as you want, no one’s cutting you off in the next 6 weeks until your money comes through