My father gambled away our money, lied about debts, and is now stealing from me.
Hi im in a desperate situation and I dont know how to handle this anymore. I need some perspective or advice on how to deal with a parent who has essentially ruined my financial start in life.
I started university at 19. Even though my father has a high-paying job, he barely sent me enough money to survive. I struggled constantly. A few months ago, our family car caught fire. Since we live far from the city center, a car is a necessity. Despite his high salary, he couldn't afford a new one for months. Seeing his "struggle" and learning he was supposedly in debt, I made the massive sacrifice of dropping out of university to move back home and work.
My commute to work is 1.5 hours each way by public transport, so we needed a car. We agreed that I would take out a loan in my name, and we would pay it back together. Even though I paid 70% of the down payment, he refused to put the car in my name. I trusted him and let it go.
Soon after, he broke his promise and left the entire debt to me. I've been struggling to pay the heavy installments alone.
I recently discovered the truth;
He hid his true financial situation from me, he is in massive debt because of a gambling addiction. The car is now at risk of being seized (repossession) because of his personal debts.
When I asked him to transfer the car title to my name to protect the asset I paid for, he exploded, screaming and insulting me. To make matters worse, this morning I caught him stealing money from my wallet**.** I also found out he used my credit card twice without my permission.
He was a bully when I was a child; he used to hit me and insult me regularly. As I got older, he started treating me better, and I was naive enough to think he had changed. I was wrong. He is still selfish and abusive. He can't have a rational conversation without resorting to screaming.
He is pushing me so hard that I can barely restrain myself from getting into a physical fight with him. I think he still views me as a helpless child who won't fight back.
Moving out is currently not an option because more than half of my income goes toward the loan I took out for the car. I am 20 years old, I’ve sacrificed my education, and now I’m being financially drained and robbed by my own father.
What are my options? How do I protect myself legally and financially when I still live under his roof? I feel trapped and heartbroken.