A 19-year-old woman has spoken out to warn young people not to make the same mistakes as her after she found herself in more than £15,000 of debt.
Lucy Firth’s “irresponsible” spending on clothes and shoes, and use of payday loans, led to a spiralling financial situation.
While she tried to renovate an annexe in partner Jordon’s family home, her finances became more and more precarious, until she realised earlier this year just how badly things had gotten.
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Before then, she had booked a £1,400 holiday for herself and Jordon, 20 – which she has, somewhat controversially, decided to still go on.
Her current finances stem back to her early teenage years, and Lucy has issued a warning to fellow young people about using payday loans to try and correct money issues.
“It all stemmed from the fact I had no savings,” the trainee dispensing optician from East Yorkshire told What’s The Jam.
“I was spending irresponsibly as a younger teenager, and wasting my wages on clothes and shoes.
“I realised earlier this year the extent of the situation as I couldn’t afford to buy a new car, fix my car, or go away with my partner.”
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Lucy had previously booked a holiday in December 2025 for this month [October 2026] to celebrate her fifth anniversary with Jordon, before she had realised how significant her debt had become.
It wasn’t until February that she realised her debts totalled £10,000.
She said: “I tried to consolidate them using payday loans, and that’s when it became a huge problem.
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“I took out three loans, totalling £5,000, to pay off as much as I could, thinking it was the right thing to do.
“But my monthly repayments went from £150 to £500.
“I accumulated more interest charges and put myself in a worse position.
“So, even though I paid off so much with the loans I’d taken out, my debts then totalled £15,000.”
At that point, her holiday had been largely paid off, but Lucy contacted the holiday company to cancel it so she could use the money to put towards paying off her debt.
She said: “They came back to me saying our trip was only partially refundable, and I’d lose around £1,200.
“I thought, ‘Absolutely not.’”
“I would much rather take a month or two longer to pay my debt off and keep the holiday than not have the holiday, lose £1,200 and pay it off a month or two sooner.
“It may be a controversial decision, but after all we have been through over the years, this holiday is deserved.
“We have never been abroad together, and I have never had a summer break.
“It will be a week of relaxation, and reminding us why we have stuck together.
“For people our age, this is a huge milestone celebrating five years together.”
Lucy, who has since gone on the trip, insists she will not be taking any more holidays until her debt is cleared.
She added: “I still don’t know whether it is the right decision.
“I feel an immense amount of guilt for going, but I want to remember that I can still try and live.
“This debt has consumed me for the last eight months.”
Lucy is now on a mission to become debt-free by the time she turns 21, and has managed to pay off £1,000 so far.
She said: “Payday loans are dangerous because of the high interest amounts you pay – and they are fairly easy to get.
“I would warn every single person to stay away from payday loans.
“The interest is almost always double what you borrow, so it isn’t worth it.
“Yes, short-term cash is nice, but in the long run you set yourself back so much.
“All credit should be harder to get – especially for young people.
“It is irresponsible lending.”
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