it's that time again.
On our way back to cow-town from my parents home town, Jordan's truck broke down. I learnt that a 61km tow costs just under $300 - and that's after we got a 'deal'. I also learnt that an alternator costs about $180. Those little devils, plus the visa balance I wrote about last week, plus the gas for our vehicles and other fun times in my home town = a very nasty credit card bill.
we've had to re-evaluate how we're going to pay it off.
My total visa balance is now about $2,080 - not everything has posted yet - but I believe that number is fairly accurate. Well, it will be about that when Jordan buys the truck part today.
I have already taken $575 from my account - this includes monies from my pay pal account, gift fund and a little from my e-fund. That was part of my original plan to pay off my lower balance last week. I have also already taken $500 from our joint chequing bills account. I have transfered the money from my christmas and Efund, but it hasn't hit my main bank - it should later today or first thing tomorrow as I initiated the transfers last night.
Jordan is still intending on giving me at least $500 from his $1,000 grant that's coming his way - and that will go straight into the emergency pot. I should also have about $350 from my next pay day (Friday) to put back as well.
On an aside, I'm not longer sure that $1,000 is a good enough emergency fund. Sure - it's gotten us out of this mess - but what if it was something bigger then the alternator - and what if it was 100km tow - not 61km.
Jessie look into CAA - the tow would have been free...they have a plan that costs $100 per year (or so) and gets you 200km from your home address. There's a small fee for tows that are more than that.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about the truck trouble.
Unfortunately for CAA to work I have to be with the vehicle - and Jordan was by himself. I had to go ahead w/ my cousins to get them to the airport :(
ReplyDeleteIs there such a thing as a joint membership? At least you have a plan! And I agree, if you have the only E-fund, It should be bigger.
ReplyDeleteUgh, I feel your pain. T has paid off his car loan but we still have $1300 on CC from an old car accident he had. And now he's not working, who knows when it will be paid off. I think we've also inflamed the situation by letting a few small purchases in the past add to the balance.
ReplyDeleteAwww sorry to hear about that. I hate car issues!! Maybe it is time to up your E-fund just a bit. Maybe even to $1500. A little more leeway just in case. Take your time building it though.
ReplyDeleteyou can definitely have joint membership with CAA
ReplyDelete"A CAA Basic Membership is $69.30, which includes GST. To add a family member as an CAA Basic Associate, the cost is $45.15, which includes GST."
http://www.caamanitoba.com/membership/basic.jsp
AMA (CAA in Alberta) provides 160Km not 200km like in Southern Ontario but it is from wherever you are not your home address. And yes it is on the person not the car so Jordan would have had to have the membership. It is possible to have someone provide (pay for) the membership as a gift (like Christmas). 2 plus memberships (the "family plan") would be less than $190.00
ReplyDeleteI used to work for CAA and I will always have my CAA membership - its an "insurance" policy I am willing to pay for. I am even the donor for my sisters membership to ensure she keeps hers up to date.
Joanne
What a bummer! Car troubles are the worst. I agree that $1,000 doesn't seem sufficient for an e-fund. Eventually I'd like to boost mine up (once I pay off my cc debt).
ReplyDeleteI don't know if it's available in Alberta, but in Ontario we also have the Canadian Tire Auto Club. What makes it different is the coverage is on the vehicle - no matter who is driving it. So if you have one vehicle in a family prone to breakdowns, this is likely the better way to go.
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I had a $1000 E-fund while we were paying off debt. However, after all credit card bills were gone, we built up our fund to be 3 mos of expenses. That way, in the case anyone lost a job, we would still be able to pay the bills for quite a while. With that much $$ sitting in an account, not many emergency expenses will leave you reaching for the credit card.
ReplyDelete