Living on The Dole

[elster]

Well a friend of mine was on the dole. He said he went through all his savings in this time (Was only 2 months)

So I said I could live on that easy if I had to.

Then the bet was set. So I have £60 to last the week (Excluding work things, as that goes through the business)

So done the weekly shop (£23)

Including

Kippers (offer of 10p)
Liver
Stewing Beef
River Cobbler
Whole Chicken

Plus all salad, veg, pasta, milk, bread and sauces.

I didn't need any household products. So didn't buy any.


Do you think you could cope on the basics for £60 a week?

Also why do those on the dole buy pre-packed food? I went round looking at the prices, it is so much cheaper on fresh stuff.

I'm looking forward to my holiday he will be paying for in 2 weeks.

[Targarama]

This is all well and good until you realise you also need to pay for clothes/shoes/dental work etc. from this (assuming the rest of your needs are met with housing benefit etc.). Not sure about Council Tax relief? I assume it exists?

[HOGEPH]

Targarama said:

This is all well and good until you realise you also need to pay for clothes/shoes/dental work etc.

I thought dental work was free for the unemployed?

Edited by HOGEPH on Tuesday 21st April 13:07

[ShadownINja]

elster said:

So I said I could live on that easy if I had to.

Got your car tax, car insurance, home and contents insurance, water bill and gas and electricity bill, car service or MOT due soon, plus mortgage/rent? What about going to the cinema? Pub? Sky+/Virgin Media? Mobile phone?

Personally, I need about £6k a year to live, maybe less.

Edited by ShadownINja on Tuesday 21st April 13:12

[BoRED S2upid]

I was thinking the same thing the other week and providing I didn't have to pay any rent or bills I could do it. If it was just a matter of food and petrol I could get by on £60. Probably £20 on petrol and £40 on food and drink.

[Pyro]

Well for your own sake i hope you dont find this too easy, you may begin to question why you work in the first place!!!

[BoRED S2upid]

Pyro said:

Well for your own sake i hope you dont find this too easy, you may begin to question why you work in the first place!!!

And just think if there are two of you both claiming £60 a week plus 4 kids with whatever child allowance is now add a touch of disability benefit onto this sum (Im sure there is something wrong) and it could total up to a reasonable monthly sum.

[elster]

ShadownINja said:

elster said:

So I said I could live on that easy if I had to.

Got your car tax, car insurance, home and contents insurance, water bill and gas and electricity bill, car service or MOT due soon, plus mortgage/rent? What about going to the cinema? Pub? Sky+/Virgin Media? Mobile phone?

Personally, I need about £6k a year to live, maybe less.

Edited by ShadownINja on Tuesday 21st April 13:12

Well this was just based on living expenses.

2 months was all he had, so no car tax, no insurance, no car service, I'm not sure about mortgage (I thought there were conditions for this), he has no sky, so just mobile and socialising.

[elster]

Pyro said:

Well for your own sake i hope you dont find this too easy, you may begin to question why you work in the first place!!!

Christ my work pays me well enough to only work 1 week of the month. They have it harder on the dole.

[Famous Graham]

Housing Benefit is capped depending on the type of property (and the council concerned). My rent is 350 a month sharing a 2 bed flat with my landlady - I got 320 pm from the council.

I wasn't eligible for Council Tax benefit, however, as my name's not on it. It's just my landlady's as owner/occupier. But of course, since I'm living there, they stop her 25% single occupancy discount.

If I was renting from an absent landlord/lady, and thus had the CT in my name, I would have been exempt.

So the 60 quid a week suddenly becomes 40 quid a week (240pm - rent shortfall of 30 and CT of 50). And that's before utility bills, clothes, household products, cigarettes (if you smoke - but I'm not suggesting you should get a fag allowance or anything ). And you can forget running a car.

[Amused2death]

Working on an annual basis...single person

income 52 x £60 = £3120

food..52 x £30 = £1560

Energy bills 52 x £20 = £1040

Water meter annually = £150

This adds up to £2750..divide by 52 = £52-88 per week just to exist.

Can you run a car on £7-12 a week including RFL, MOT and insurance??

I don't think so.

[Stevenj214]

Water rates £3
Gas & Electricity £15
TV License £2
Internet Access £2.50

There's £22.50 per week gone already.

[AndrewW-G]

Famous Graham said:

So the 60 quid a week suddenly becomes 40 quid a week (240pm - rent shortfall of 30 and CT of 50). And that's before utility bills, clothes, household products, cigarettes (if you smoke - but I'm not suggesting you should get a fag allowance or anything ). And you can forget running a carLegaly.

EFA

[bazking69]

Excluding all my household bills, unexpected bills like the dentist etc and any costs associated with running my car I could quite easily survive on £60 a week. Infact I could probably survive on £60 a month if I had to.

[Office_Monkey]

Why not have a competition, and post up receipts to prove it?

[ShadownINja]

elster said:

ShadownINja said:

elster said:

So I said I could live on that easy if I had to.

Got your car tax, car insurance, home and contents insurance, water bill and gas and electricity bill, car service or MOT due soon, plus mortgage/rent? What about going to the cinema? Pub? Sky+/Virgin Media? Mobile phone?

Personally, I need about £6k a year to live, maybe less.

Edited by ShadownINja on Tuesday 21st April 13:12

Well this was just based on living expenses.

2 months was all he had, so no car tax, no insurance, no car service, I'm not sure about mortgage (I thought there were conditions for this), he has no sky, so just mobile and socialising.

Oh, I see. Subtly different, I guess. But his savings would have been screwed eventually.

[Jasandjules]

Sorry, I don't get this.

Can you cope on the dole (but exclude mortgage, gas, leccie, water, council tax etc..)? That is not coping on the dole surely? Because those bills have to be paid by those on the dole?

[elster]

Jasandjules said:

Sorry, I don't get this.

Can you cope on the dole (but exclude mortgage, gas, leccie, water, council tax etc..)? That is not coping on the dole surely? Because those bills have to be paid by those on the dole?

Including bills, not coucil tax though.

[Mr POD]

BoRED S2upid said:

Pyro said:

Well for your own sake i hope you dont find this too easy, you may begin to question why you work in the first place!!!

And just think if there are two of you both claiming £60 a week plus 4 kids with whatever child allowance is now add a touch of disability benefit onto this sum (Im sure there is something wrong) and it could total up to a reasonable monthly sum.

My boss has started a careful campaign to constructively remove me from my job as he believes my performance is unacceptable (which may or may not be true, but after 20 years in different industries as a manufacturing engineer I'm fairly comfortable with the fact that I'm no better than average and no worse that mediocre)

Or it could be a witch hunt.

Anyway Tomorrow is the first disiplinary hearing, which will result in a verbal warning, and sometime later a written warning and later still a final written warning and ultimately my dismissal. I am resigned to the fact that this will take 3-6 months, and whilst I have the support of my union, it will happen.

Anyway I'm currently taking home £2K a month. We have enough money to pay off the mortgage and then I'm looking at using Brown's benefit system creatively but legally.

IF I work 16 hours a week at min wage at a local shop and claim all the working family tax and benifits that I am entitled I would take home £1100 a month.

So just how far is the gap from £2K to £1100 ?

Take off my mortgage £450, Petrol to work £200, add that my son will be in the sixth form and can get an extra £120 a month. So the gap is now only £50 a week.

So effectively I'm currently doing 25 hours a week for £50. £2 an hour.

[Wacky Racer]

ShadownINja said:

elster said:

So I said I could live on that easy if I had to.

Got your car tax, car insurance, home and contents insurance, water bill and gas and electricity bill, car service or MOT due soon, plus mortgage/rent?What about going to the cinema? Pub? Sky+/Virgin Media? Mobile phone?

Personally, I need about £6k a year to live, maybe less

You're supposed to be on the dole ffs!..........