How to Get Help With Bills: Resources
One unexpected emergency can wreak havoc on your finances, wiping out your savings and leaving you with piles of unpaid bills. Thankfully, there are not-for-profit and government programs as well as crowdfunding resources that can help you overcome financial setbacks. We’ve compiled the best resources that can help you understand how to get help with bills and get back on your feet.
Charities that help with bills
There are many charities eager to help out if you’ve fallen on hard times. Below are some of the most well-known not-for-profit organisations that can help you pay medical bills or find safe housing.
Charities that help with car costs
For millions of Australians, a reliable vehicle allows them to travel to work, visit family members and go to doctors appointments. Without a car, everyday life can screech to a halt. These charities specifically help individuals and families get from point A to point B safely.
Sheltered by Grace believe that when homeless people, or folk at risk of homelessness, have a reliable vehicle, they have a 90% chance of being found a job by the organisation. They receive sturdy, secondhand cars by donation and give them to people who need them.
An initiative by The Salvation Army, CarCare provides used vehicles and crucial mechanic work to existing vehicles so that needy families have access to safe and comfortable transportation.
Hand Brake Turn is a social enterprise set up to not only fix up and donate old vehicles, but teach at-risk youth valuable trade skills to help them find work in the process.
Charities that help with utility bills
A brightly lit home and running water are conveniences that are easy to take for granted until they’re suddenly gone. If you need help with utility bills, get in touch with one of these organisations for help.
Anglicare can help with negotiating and setting up a payment plan on existing bills, as well as providing vouchers directly to electricity and gas providers and phone and water companies that cover some, if not all of the outstanding amount.
In NSW, the Energy Accounts Payment Assistance (EAPA) voucher scheme exists to credit your home electricity and/or gas accounts in time of financial hardship, when you cannot make those payments yourself.
Charities that help with housing costs
Housing costs are typically one of the largest monthly expenses on the budget. If you’re having trouble paying that bill when the first of the month rolls around or if you’re searching for a safe and affordable home, these faith-based charities want to help.
A registered community housing organisation, Salvos provide crisis, transitional, long-term housing and rooming house accommodation for singles, couples or families that are homeless or at risk of homelessness or on low income.
A safe bed quickly, access to community housing, crisis payments where eviction might otherwise occur, financial counselling – Wesley Mission work to ensure you always a roof over your head during both good and bad times.
Vinnies run parish conferences that see support workers venture out into the community to work with families struggling to make ends meet. They can offer direct rental assistance, advice on how to pay rent during tough times and warm clothes and blankets where the heating might have otherwise been switched off.
Government assistance with bills
Depending on your situation, government programs can be a lifeline while you get back on track. Federal and state programs offer assistance for everything from mortgage payments to phone bills.
Government help with medical bills
Whether it’s a trip to the emergency room or long-term chemo treatments, these visit can lead to hefty medical bills. The below government programmes can help you avoid medical bankruptcy.
Services Australia provide help with one-off payments, advance lump sum payments, special benefits, as well as vouchers to cover medicine and transportation to and from hospital.
Government help with utility bills
It can be easy to fall behind on monthly utility bills, especially in the summer and winter months when the weather is the most extreme.
Signing up for Centrepay ensures that all bills and expenses are taken as regular deductions from your Centrelink payments. This helps to ensure you’re never behind.
Using crowdfunding to pay bills
Emergencies like car accidents or devastating house fires can wipe out your savings account and leave you with bills for years to come. Countless people have launched emergency fundraising efforts through GoFundMe when they didn’t know how to get help paying bills.
Crowdfunding lets you raise money from your friends, family and community online. While some people aren’t sure if their need is worthy enough for an online fundraiser, there is no cause too small or too big for GoFundMe.
Why fundraising makes a difference
Most government and not-for-profit programmes have strict eligibility requirements, long waiting times and a capped amount of money they can offer. These factors often make it difficult to receive the financial help you need, right when you need it. Online fundraising is often the quickest and most efficient way to conquer mounting bills and find emergency financial assistance. Through GoFundMe, you can start fundraising right away and receive your donations within just a few days.
Setting up a GoFundMe takes just a few minutes and we make it easy to share your fundraiser with people who can rally around you. We also offer a fundraising platform, which means you can keep more of your donations.
Tips for running a successful fundraiser
Once you’ve launched your GoFundMe, you’ll probably be focused on hitting your fundraising goals. The below fundraising tips will help you create a fundraiser that encourages people to donate.
- Add photos and videos to your fundraiser to help tell your story and captivate readers.
- Use social media to promote your fundraiser.
- Aside from social media, share your fundraiser link with everyone you know through text messages, emails and phone calls. Read our blog post 42 ways to share offline for more ideas.
- Learn how to ask for donations effectively so people will be more willing to donate.
- Be sure to post a fundraiser update a few times each week to remind people that you still need help.
See how others use GoFundMe to pay bills
When unfortunate circumstances left them in dire straits, these people found help through crowdfunding.
Olivia’s Story: Transplant & Liv it up!
Olivia was just an average schoolgirl living in a small town in Indiana when a cancer diagnosis turned her world upside down. After chemotherapy failed to stop the cancer, doctors recommended a bone marrow transplant. Olivia’s family couldn’t afford the $350,000 surgery, so a friend came to the rescue and helped raise over $300,000 in just five months through GoFundMe.
Oliphant Family car
Jen and her daughter were driving home on a Wisconsin highway when they spotted a car in flames on the side of the road. They pulled over to help and discovered that the family ran into car trouble shortly after being discharged from the hospital. The family’s 5-year-old son Jackson had been in the hospital recovering from a liver transplant. Wanting to help them during a tough time, Jen started a GoFundMe. She raised over $50,000 so the family could purchase a new car and go to doctors appointments.
Find financial relief right now
Becoming debt doesn’t need to take months or years when you can start raising funds for bills right away through crowdfunding. If you still need emergency help with bills after exploring government and charity programmes, GoFundMe can allow you to find financial stability. Start a fundraiser today and begin focusing on what matters.