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Tuesday, October 8, 2024

I paid my housemate’s bills

In our weekly series, readers can email in with any financial dilemma and enter the Money Moral Maze.

Are your friends racking up big drinks tabs and then trying to split the bill equally, is your partner overspending on your joint account? No matter your dilemma, email in anonymously, and the i money and business team will do our best to answer.

This week’s dilemma can be found below – email us at [email protected] with yours.

The dilemma

I covered my housemate’s portion of the bills this month because she told me she was poor.

She paid the rent but I paid for the energy, broadband, council tax and water.

This came to around £300 for her portion, on top of mine.

However, when I was working from home the other day, a delivery driver came round.

She had two large parcels of clothing delivered. When she got home, she showed me all the items she had bought.

I don’t know the exact amount but it seemed around £100 worth.

Can I address this with her? It seems very unfair that I paid for her when she clearly has money for clothes.

Grace Gausden, i’s money and business editor, responds

It was very kind of you to pay for your housemate when she said she couldn’t afford the bills this month.

I can only imagine your frustration when you laid eyes on the clothing she had bought in the same month.

Even worse, she showed off her purchases seemingly without a thought about your generosity.

I think it is important that you address it with her.

The likeliest outcome is that she is mortified about her actions and will apologise.

You haven’t said when she promised to pay back the money but I would ask for a set date by which she can return the money or even suggest arranging a payment plan so you are not long left out of pocket.

If she is resistant to the idea, you could suggest that she returns the clothes so she can pay you back at least however much she spent on those.

It is not your responsibility to pay for someone else and you only did so to be helpful and a good friend.

Ultimately, I wouldn’t suggest lending her money again – especially if this is the way she treats your kindness.

Try and get the money back when you can – and as soon as she is able to return it – and you could even suggest that she learns some budgeting skills so this doesn’t happen again.

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