A single mum training to become a paramedic has shared how she was forced to sell her car after being unable to afford her £300 MOT repair bill – showcasing just how much the cost of living keeps squeezing Brits’ wallets.
Lara Hanley’s “heart just sank” when she was told her trusty Peugeot 207 needed work on its brakes and lights.
Like many Brits right now, the 29-year-old is finding things “difficult financially” – with every penny going towards rent, bills, food and looking after her 11-year-old son.
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The unexpected cost was simply more than the mum from Sowerby Bridge, Halifax, could afford – especially with fuel prices already soaring.
Addressing the squeeze Brits are feeling right now, earlier this week, Prime Minister Andy Burnham told Good Morning Britain he cannot fix rising costs “straight away”.
Lara was forced to sell her car.
She says it has stripped her and her son, who suffers from asthma, of their independence, and left them reliant on public transport for everything from the school run to shopping and appointments.
“When they told me it would be around £300, my heart just sank,” Lara told Whats The Jam.
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“I knew straight away I couldn’t afford it.
“Things are really difficult financially at the moment.
“I’m a single mum to my 11-year-old son, and I’m currently not working because of the paramedic science course that I’ve recently started and am funding myself.
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“Every bit of money goes on essentials like rent, bills, food, and supporting my son.
“There’s just no spare money, so finding an unexpected £300 simply wasn’t possible without falling behind on important bills.
“All I could think about was how I was going to manage without a car, especially with my son to think about.”
Lara had owned her Peugeot 207 for several years and says it had previously been reliable.
She is not the only Brit without back-up cash for emergencies.
New research, shared exclusively with Jam Press by Creditspring, reveals that 40% of Brits would not be able to absorb an unexpected repair bill above £249 without cutting back elsewhere, borrowing, using credit or delaying another bill.
Meanwhile, 62% of Brits have cut back on their driving to save cash due to the spiralling cost of living this year, while 63% now only drive when necessary, Dacia research found.
After Lara sold her car, the proceeds were quickly swallowed up by household costs.
Lara said: “I had to make the decision [to sell it] quite quickly because I needed money for bills.
“I didn’t really feel like I had any other option at the time.
“We didn’t end up using the money from selling it to buy another car.
“It went on things we needed for the house and general household costs instead.
“I went in for my MOT not expecting it to be anything major, because the car hadn’t been acting up or showing any big problems.
“So when I was told there were issues with the brakes and lights, and that it was going to cost around £300, it was a real shock.
“We were suddenly without something we had relied on every day.
“It felt like I was losing a bit of independence.”
Lara’s son, who has asthma and is unable to walk long distances, now has to catch the bus to school each day, which is an added stress on their morning routine.
She said: “My son now gets the bus to school every day because he has asthma, so walking there is not really an option for us.
“We use the bus for getting around generally too, but it is a big change.
“It’s more expensive and less straightforward, and we have to plan around public transport in a way we didn’t have to before.
“Everything takes longer and is much more stressful.
“Even simple things like carrying shopping or getting somewhere on time have become difficult.”
The extra public transport costs have also added another burden to an already stretched household budget.
Lara hopes she will eventually be able to save enough for another car – but says that currently feels a long way off.
She said: “Looking back, it’s quite upsetting that £300 was enough to completely change our situation.
“It shows how tight things are.
“Saving for another car will take a long time in my current position, and it feels quite out of reach right now.”
Lara is now warning other parents to build up an emergency pot.
She added: “Having even a small buffer there means you are more prepared if something unexpected comes up, because a bill like that can really put you in a difficult position.”
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