My Money Mistake is a weekly PiggyVest series that explores the worst money mistakes real Nigerians have made, and the lessons they learnt from it.

---

For this week’s episode of My Money Mistake, we spoke to a 42-year-old driver who took a cooperative loan to buy a car for his business, but ended up with a faulty one and had to sell it at a loss. He tells us about how he was able to repay the loan and the lessons he learned from the experience.

Could you tell me about your money mistake?

Some years ago, I borrowed ₦380k from my cooperative society to buy a car, so I could start a cab business. The car cost about ₦370k, and I went through the entire process. However, upon reaching home, I realised that the car I had bought was not in good condition.

Huh? What happened?

I’m not sure what happened because I checked the car before I bought it. But when I got home, it turned out the car was in bad shape, and I couldn’t use it. I returned to the place I bought it from and complained, but they didn’t pay attention to me because they already got their money. 

I just had to leave the situation to God. Since I borrowed money for it, though, I couldn’t keep the car for long. 

So what did you do with the car?

I eventually sold it for ₦200k, putting me at a loss of almost ₦200k. I used the money from the sale to buy a bike, so I could start an okada business and earn enough to repay the loan from the cooperative. It took me almost three years to repay that loan because the profit from an okada business is not a lot.

It wasn’t until last year that I secured a job as a driver in a construction company that gave me steady monthly pay. If I had used the money for something else, instead of that car, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

I’m so sorry about this. How much is your salary now?

₦50k per month. Although, sometimes, we also get extra money when we travel.

And how’s your new place of work?

It’s okay. I work for a Chinese company. The salary isn’t a lot, but I’m managing. 

What lesson did you learn from this experience? 

The lesson I learnt is to always ask for advice before I make any financial decision. 

Why did you say so?

If I had asked my relatives or people who have been in the business ahead of me for advice, they would have shown me more reliable places to get a car or advised me on how to get a good one. 

Oh, thank you for that. 

I also have a question for you. I need your advice. 

Go ahead, please.

I’m already getting older, but I’ve been struggling with my finances since that event happened, and ₦50k isn’t a lot of money, especially in this economy. How can I ensure that when I’m 60 and need to stop driving, I won’t be stranded?

Do you know how much all your expenses are every month?

No, I don’t. 

Can you remove ₦5k every month from your salary and still do all the things you need to do?

Yes, I can. 

Okay, so you could download PiggyVest on your phone and open an account. Every month, when your salary comes in, you remove ₦5k and save it inside the app. You can also do this automatically and set the app to remove the money every month on a date you choose. You’ll get interest on your money and be paid your interest every month. Whenever you get extra money at work that you don’t really need, you can also save it manually inside the app. I hope this helps. 

Yes, it does. Thank you so much.