Last year we woke up on Christmas morning to find our heating had decided to take some time off over the festive break. 😉
It didn’t exactly ruin our Christmas but we did spend a fair amount of it under a pile of blankets on the settee snuggled up together until it was finally fixed a couple of days later.
This Christmas, as you might have seen if you follow me on Instagram, we seem to be having similar issues. Our new freezer was delivered yesterday which Mr Frugal tried to move into place in he garage on his own and somehow, something fell and literally smashed our plug socket from the wall in the garage.
This is an even bigger drama (not to me but to him) because our TV and the PS4 are all plugged in through the garage so as to avoid any wires in the living room. We (he) frantically called around and managed to find someone to come out straight away for an extortionate call out fee and after sitting in the house in darkness for half an hour we had lights again.
But then I realised that the heating hadn’t come back on as it should have done so we checked the boiler and there was an error code flashing on and off which no amount of resetting or turning the system on and off will fix. That’s about the level of our capability when it comes to boilers so we turned to our trusty British Gas homecare policy and I’m currently sat waiting for a man to come and fix it for us. FIngers crossed.
What is it about Christmas and things going wrong? It’s like someone knows that we’ve spent all our money on presents and thinks they’ll mess with us a little!!!!
We tend to have a little money spare for things like this but honestly, if anything else goes wrong then we’d struggle. Unless I classed the electrician fixing the plug as Mr Frugal’s Christmas present!
I did get an email from a company called Fair for You who say they’re a more flexible alternative to high cost weekly payment stores or short-term lenders.
It provides loans to buy good quality, new items for the home, which can then be repaid in flexible weekly, fortnightly or monthly instalments to suit your budget.  And, because they’re flexible, you can choose the duration of the loan – it can be for any period from 3 months to two years – the quicker you pay it off, the less interest there is to pay.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m never a fan of buying things and paying them back over a period of time where you’ll end up paying more than the value of the item BUT you’re going to seriously struggle without a washing machine or a fridge freezer for example and if you don’t have a rainy day fund for emergencies like this then the likelihood is that you’ll need some help replacing them. Â Fair to You seem like a good option for circumstances like this where they can give you a hand when you need it and you can pay them back as quickly as you can.
They’ve loads of items to choose from, and from top brands that you’ll recognise, from Hotpoint and Indesit to Whirlpool and Vax, and it’s not even just appliances as they stock a range of household furniture, bikes, rugs and baby cots, strollers and car seats. Prices include FREE delivery and removal of old items.
If you’re lucky enough to be able to pay in one go, they have a Buy it Now option, at the same prices, and which compare very favourably with Currys and ao.com, as they don’t charge to remove and recycle the old appliance – it’s all included in the price.
You can browse through a range of online shops on the Fair for You website at www.fairforyou.co.uk, apply online and get a quick decision on your loan application, usually within 24 hours.   The Fair for You team will contact you to make sure you’re happy with the arrangement. Once confirmed, the item will be delivered for free, usually within 72 hours.
I did think carefully about sharing this with you because I’m well aware that you would be buying something and paying back more than it’s worth but at the same time, sometimes needs must and in a similar vein to my post about payday loan alternatives, I wanted to share with you another option available to you.
The reviews on Trust Pilot are great as well which always reassured me….
Do you have a rainy day fund?
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