Many
people across the UK are living on low incomes and are living month
to month. Incoming coming in is often already ‘spoken for’ and
goes out as quick as it hits the bank to pay bills and debts. That
leaves very little money to live on, with the end of the month being
the hardest time as people struggle to survive until pay day.
For
people, couples and families who have low incomes which leaves them
with very little, if any disposable income having ‘spare’ money
for treats and non-essentials can be difficult or even out of the
question.

When
treats, non-essentials and special days out are difficult to afford,
being able to afford an emergency can be impossible. So when
something unexpected happens such as a broken home appliance or
unplanned bill finding the money to cover it can be a nightmare.
How
do you get money urgently when you are in a bind and financially live
most of your life on very tight purse strings?
Unfortunately
I have personally been in situations like that many times of the
years. Managing just about to survive on a low income, budgeting like
my life depended on it and succeeding to cover bills and have money
for daily living expenses but then the car breaks down and leaves me
with a huge car bill or the fridge freezer packs up and I have to
find funds for a new one. Finding a chunk of money quickly and in one
go when the money is stretched as far as it can go feels
unachieveable and a hopeless task.
As
I know how difficult it can be to cover unexpected costs I try to
find a little money from our monthly family budget - even a few
pounds every now and again helps - or ways to make extra money to put
into an ‘emergency rainy day fund’.

So
here are a few of the ways I have managed to get money urgently when
an unexpected financial problem has arisen and ways I have made a
little bit of ‘spare’ money for our emergency fund.
Ask
for help
A
traditional option when in a financial mess thanks to an unexpected
expense is to ask your loved ones for help with a loan. The beauty of
borrowing money from parents, family and close friends is that they
usually don’t expect any extra back in interest and if they can
afford it they can sometimes be happy for you to pay it back slowly
as and when you can afford it.
Piggy
bank
We
have a big change pot that we chuck loose coins into. Every once in
awhile I add up the coins which then gets changed at the bank and put
into our emergency fund. It is always surprising how the coppers
quickly add up - as the saying goes ‘look after the pennies, and
the pounds will look after themselves’.

Sell
unwanted and unused items
Not
only is it a way to make extra money for putting in an emergency fund
it is also a good way to declutter and get rid of things you don’t
want or use. The renowned selling site eBay is a popular option and
gaining increasing popularity are local Facebook selling groups and
Facebook marketplace.
Loan
Whilst
not something for everyone when things have been very tough
financially and we had to pay an unexpected car bill so we had a car
for work to keep on earning, we got a small loan. Using a website
such as Cash Lady to get loans for bad credit worked for us at the
time as it allowed us to get our car back on the road to keep earning
for our future finances. We weighed up all options carefully and
ensured the loan was affordable for us.
Streamline
budget
Even
if you think your budget is working well it is worth a look at it
every once in awhile to see if there are any costs you can cut-back
on and things you are spending money on but don’t use that could
save you money. It is worth looking at big expenses for products and
services such as mobile contract, broadband, energy (gas/electric) or
insurance and shopping around for a better deal or contacting the
supplier to see if there is something they can do to lower your bill.

Cashback
websites
Use
cashback websites like TopCashback or Quidco to get a percentage of
cash back for purchases on things you would have been buying anyway.
The money adds up over time which you could add to your emergency
fund.
Money
making apps
There
are a range of money making apps that pay you (pay varies between
apps and tasks) to complete quick and easy tasks such as shopping
tasks. Some good apps include Field Agent, Roamler, Clic and
Walk, BeMyEye and Task360.

These
are just a few of the ways I have made money to put in our emergency
fund or managed to get money quick to pay an unexpected bill. I have
also found it useful to talk to the company to see if you can pay via
a payment plan over time rather than one big payment making it more
affordable and less stressful.
Do
you have any tips for making or saving money to put in an emergency
fund?
* Collaborative
post *
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