Often the knowledge that Christmas is coming can be daunting and anxiety-inducing to those of us that don’t have a lot of cash to splurge over the holidays. What should be a time of togetherness and belonging can make us feel guilty, jealous and judgemental towards one another.

Many of us are unhappy with the commercialism that almost inevitably plays a part of the lead up to Christmas day, and know that it’s silly to buy lavish presents for family members that will be left unopened despite being accepted with a genuine smile and a thank you. Here are some ways that you can help keep family and friends the focal point of your Christmas, keeping the spending low and spirits high.

Be honest

Being straight with your friends and family could be a quick way to get through without hurting anyone’s feelings nearer the time. If you can’t afford to buy everyone presents like you have in previous years, or just want to change your usual Christmas gift swapping, say in advance what you’re going to do, and make sure that everyone is happy with it. You never know, someone might have been waiting for someone else to mention it for years.

Implement secret santa

Secret santa doesn’t have to be something you only do at work. Introducing secret santa to your family or group of friends adds a bit of mystery and excitement to the day, and means you only have to buy one present rather than many. Try as best you can to keep the person you’re buying for a surprise for extra fun on the day and make sure everyone agrees on the budget.

Bring in a ‘kids only’ rule

If you typically end up buying presents for kids, adults, friends of kids etc the costs can really add up. If you feel like secret santa may not work in your family, try implementing a new rule where only the children receive presents, or that you only buy one present for each family. It’s normally only the children that expect a gift anyway.

Make extra money in the lead up to Christmas

Decluttering could make you some extra money to go towards the holidays. Have a rummage through your home and see what you can get rid of – you might be able to sell some items on eBay or use something like ‘Music Magpie’ to sell old CDs DVDs and games. For larger items on eBay you may need to use a courier like Shiply so don’t forget to factor this into the price.

There are lots of apps around where you can make money by doing very little. Answering surveys can make you a nice pot of cash. The app ‘job spotter’ rewards you in Amazon credit for uploading photos of job advertisements in shop windows which you could put towards gift buying.

Use your creativity

If you’re a great cook, seamstress or artist, why not play to your strengths? Those receiving a gift made by you will appreciate it much more and hopefully can save you some money, too. This might of course take more time to make but will save you hunting around the shops. You could even swap your expertise for something else, like offering to bring a dessert for Christmas dinner rather than bringing the hosts a gift.

If you’re struggling for cash, you have probably searched the web for quick money making ideas, or other ways of making money. What most people don’t realise is that there is money sitting all around their house in items that they rarely use. Some people choose to sell their unwanted items online, but this can get expensive with commission and postage costs. Car boot sales are a great way to make some quick cash with minor expenses.

Why Are Car Boot Sales A Good Way Of Making Money?
Car boot sales are often very cheap to sell at, sometimes they are free. Usually a car boot sale site will charge a small fee per car. Unlike selling online or through newspapers, car boot sales allow you to sell your items very quickly. You may not think that your old stuff is worth a lot, but someone else might. Most people that do a car boot sale are surprised with the amount of money that they accumulate from it, and also the space they are able to free up in their house.

Equipment You’ll Need For A Car Boot Sale
1. A Car – This goes without saying, you will need a vehicle to transport your goods.
2. Tables – You’ll need one or more folding tables to display your goods to the punters , if your items aren’t on display then nobody will see what you have to offer.
3. A Lockable Money Box – This is essential for you to keep your earnings secure.
4. A Float – You’ll need to get some change together to successfully run a car boot sale. It’s a good idea to go to the bank and convert some cash into mixed coins to give as change at the car boot sale.
5. Boxes – If you are selling DVDs, CDs, vinyl, or books then it’s a good idea to get some boxes for people to browse through. Plastic, or cardboard boxes will do, anything to free up space on your stall and keep things contained.

Tips For Succeeding
There are several things to consider when you are looking to succeed at a car boot sale, having old stuff isn’t enough on its own:

• Display your items well, if your stall looks like a mess it probably won’t attract many buyers. Try to set out your stall in a way that looks appealing and also showcases your best items, ensure that everything that you have for sale is easily visible.
• Consider using price tags on your items, this can often generate quicker sales and eliminate bartering.
• If buyers barter on your prices then have some flexibility, just because you have set a price in your head doesn’t mean that anybody will buy it. Remember, you are selling items that you no longer use, sometimes it’s best to let it go for a little less than you wanted for it.
• Keep an eye on your stall, thieves do operate at car boots so watch out for anybody trying to distract you allowing another person to steal from your stall.
• Make sure you have enough change for the duration of the car boot sale, if you don’t have change to give people then you will lose out on sales.
• Bring some carrier bags and offer them to buyers when they make a purchase, it can be frustrating to carry around everything you have bought at a car boot sale in your arms.

Where To Look For Places To Do A Car Boot Sale
It’s usually pretty easy to find a location for your car boot sale. Try using a search engine to search for car boot sales near you, they are usually held in fields or car parks. Often, signs will be displayed in locations that hold regular car boot sales, so keep an eye out for these.

With less than two years left for consumers to make PPI claims, the scandal may finally be coming to a close. Over 10 years ago, the highly-profitable payment protection insurance was sold onto products such as mortgages, loans and credit cards.

In an attempt to sell the insurance to more people, banks often encouraged employees to hard sell the insurance. This meant employees did not explain all of the terms and conditions and added PPI onto products as compulsory insurance. In the worst cases, customers were unaware that they even bought it.

After a decade of fines and customers claiming back money, the banks have paid out over £27 billion. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) decided that a deadline needed to be put in place to encourage people to make a claim, rather than keep putting it off. 29th August 2019 is that official deadline. All PPI claims should be made before this date.

Are PPI Claims Increasing Because of the PPI Deadline?

Although early signs suggest a rise in the amount of PPI claims being made, it’s too early to know for sure. Official promotion of the deadline began two months ago with, Arnold Schwarzenegger telling customers to “Do it Now!”

May 2017 saw a slight increase in the amount of money paid out by the banks. At that point, the FCA had spoken about a deadline, which could have caused the increase. PPI claims can take up to six months to be resolved, therefore we may not see the results until early next year.

How Many People are Still Due a PPI Refund?

It is believed that there are still hundreds of thousands of consumers who have not made a PPI claim. There are multiple reasons for this high number, but much of it comes down to the fact that many are simply unaware that PPI was mis-sold to them and don’t know that they are due a refund.

While some banks wrote to customers to let them know they are due a refund, many people are still uninformed and don’t know how to make a claim. With the promotion of the PPI deadline, the FCA has set up a helpline to provide information about how people can make a claim.

PPI claims companies are offering a service to take the hassle out of customers making a claim. As well as contacting the bank or provider, they can also find out if PPI was added to the product in the first place (which many people are unaware of). While a fee incurs, many people find using a claims company simpler and more stress-free.

Will the PPI Deadline End the PPI Scandal?

Both the banks and Financial Ombudsman (FOS) are hoping that the PPI deadline will finally bring a close to the scandal. The banks have paid out billions of pounds to compensate customers and the FOS has a huge backlog of PPI complaints to work through.

The advertising campaign will eventually cease and customers will no longer get calls from claims management companies. Hopefully, the banks have learnt their lesson from the PPI scandal. With the money paid for fines, compensation and hiring more staff to deal with the backlash, banks are unlikely to want a repeat.