idun

Six years, ie this year, pre the next election and then a further five years. I was usually good at sums.[Www]

No idea how many posters have the the awful misfortune to have any of their children go through the french education system with dyslexia. We are still reaping the 'rewards' of the totally reprehensible teachers who were arrogant beyond words and bullies, that my youngest faced at school. We had a good 10 odd years of it, and nothing and no one helped. Well we paid a fortune in what our MG called charlatans. The ignoramuses of teachers and profs believed that it could be 'cured', one can only surmise that they believe being 'gay' could be cured too! Things may be better now, I do hope they are with all my heart, if I had a god I suppose that a prayer would be something I would be doing. I will add that one particular malevolent teacher is now in charge of the college............. so unless this person  has had a dramatic conversion to decency, I would imagine that things are still the same at that college. I am mildly dyslexic myself, which actually did not interfere with my education, I take very very badly to criticism of spelling and grammer mistakes. Life's too short to check every last thing I do so that those who feel superior won't be offended by my spelling.

I read yesterday that in India they are now unable to say exactly how many people are dying of Covid, they cannot keep up with the numbers. I was wondering how other countries dealt with what they considered 'covid' deaths. I do know a few weeks ago, that deaths in the UK for the first time in about a year had more deaths from other than Covid. Anyone any idea if those figures we see are correct, or just about correct?

You will see how it pans out in the Uk with so much opening up soon. There was a rave in Liverpool and in theory that should have been OK, but as with everything concerning Covid.......... nobody really knows, it is tenacious!

After I had been chatting to french friends and their worries about AZ AND my son telling me how his friends and collegues were talking about it, it felt like there was more than an element of not wanting something perceived that is from the UK. This is not just articles, this is ordinary people discussing concerns and refusal to have AZ,  because of the things they had,  read and seen on tv in France, but mainly on tv. But it was not the first time that I have noted that oddities have happened, as I said, took 10 years to stop aspirin for children........... because the french had not done their own research! I could give too many other examples, but won't go on. [:D]Ah Geordie, who cares if it was a typo or dyslexia ( I have mild dyslexia ), are you the spelling police............. and if you are, I would hope that your french is absolutely 20/20 if you feel you can criticise others.  Took me four goes to try and type criticise and it says it is OK now, but unless I get the dictionnary on the go, I have no idea........... and it is saying I have misspelled that too, but what the heck! I simply do not care.

 My thought about all this is it is better to take any risk and have a vaccination than get Covid....... and if anyone doubts how bad covid is, just look at news reports from India. Does anyone on here take any medication at all without any Effet indésirable  being listed. A few of mine have 'death' as a side effect, although I would question whether ' side effect ' would be the correct term. What ever you answer, I do. Rightly or wrongly I believe that with my prescriptions that the benefits will outweigh anything else untoward, and they would be 'unfortunate' but a risk I am prepared to take. And Covid, well, I just cannot believe how selfish people are not getting vaccinated when they can, because it is not just them who will continue to be at risk, but putting others at risk too, especially giving the variants breeding grounds. Grrrr!

Should I have expected that LBF would have kicked up about anything with a hint of  anglo saxon about it?  ie AZ! No, I should not. I know that the french health service can be considered manifique, well, not quite my experience, don't get me wrong we have had some excellent things, but also indifferent and even some bad. The first difference that comes to mind is that what I consider somewhat of a uniquely french ailment, the 'crise de foie'.  I am still unsure what exactly it is, although many years ago I do  remember a poster being rather excited that their toubib had diagnosed a crise de foie! I was thinking back. We were holidaying in England and my son had a cold and I asked my MIL's neighbour who had kids if she had some children's aspirin, she told me it had been banned for kids the previous week.  That was 1986. In 1996 it was proscribed for under 16's in France.  We have been told, when questioning certain things, that it was anglo saxon nonsense............. maybe some of it was, but other things were not and LBF eventually changed it's ideas, a la francais bien sur! Just took 10 to 20 years for them to do some things.

betise, that is why one of my friends used to vote FN in the first round, and so many did in 2002. For my friend at least it was a shock ending up with Chirac vs Le Pen.  I have never dared ask her if she has done it since, maybe I will next time I ring her.

Alert! I think you are trying to confuse the issue here. These people are protesting to change what they perceive as injustices. We may not agree with them, but they believe that that is their right to do such things. And the gendarmes intervening often does not help, or stop them. Even the most mild mannered of my french friends will say that the government knows that if 'the people' get pushed too much that they will rebel. Me, I could think of lots of things in France for people to man the barracades and fight against, but that never happens. My sense of injustice is not quite 'french'.

As yet, I haven't read that they know that our current vaccines could fight off the new indian variant. And I expect that there will be other variants emerging too unless this is brought under control.

Yes, we get everything from Humanis / Malakoff and they make the payments, but we still have a link to Agirc Arrco, they just do nothing any more. The reason you need the info from the UK, is as if you have missing years  your french pension will be reduced. So if you have all your contributions from the UK until you moved to France then they will not reduce the amount. The link to Cleiss is live and that is the pertinent info about how they reduce the amount. The pension is based on the past 25 years salary in France, so maybe they will just treat your last ten years.  You need to get what you are entitled to, no point in accepting less than your 'right', is there. You should hopefully get 167/40 at a taux plein, you don't need that reducing by 6.25%, or more. https://www.cleiss.fr/docs/regimes/regime_france3.html La pension au taux minoré (décote) Les personnes qui demandent la liquidation de leur pension de vieillesse et qui ne totalisent pas la durée d'assurance nécessaire pour obtenir une pension au taux plein (50%) se voient appliquer une décote, ou taux minoré. Le coefficient de minoration est déterminé en fonction du nombre de trimestres manquants et de la génération à laquelle appartient l'assuré : 1,25 % pour les assurés nés à partir de 1953 (soit une diminution de 0,625 par trimestre manquant). La liquidation de la pension avec application de la décote est définitive. Trimestres manquants Taux de la retraite 1 49,375 % 2 48,750 % 3 48,125 % 4 47,500 % 5 46,875 % 6 46,250 % 7 45,625 % 8 45,000 % 9 44,375 % 1043,750 %

Yes Geordie, I am  saying exactly that, that in general people should check up with official sources about official stuff. I understand about used cars, buying cars in France can be odd to say the least.  AND asking about say paint or good bricolage things........ yes, but official things, especially post brexit so anyone moving will have to check very carefully to do things properly and until we have a poster who has been through it with some astuces. Until then, this board, IMO is NOT the best place to ask. AND my past life in France, well, remember it still is sort of, as our income comes from France, so we will always be linked........ plus friends and family. I am well aware of what is happening AND 'I' know how to get all the info I need, always did, even with little french and no internet! AND France and their destructive manifestations have always been like that, so often the gendarmes simply let them get on with it. So whinge away, you will not change it.

I know a few people who waited for their GP to contact them about getting vaccinated. We did not. I know I spent quite some time on the internet  trying to book, but book I managed for the pair of us, him first as he was over 70 and me a group down. OH's first one was supposed to be on 14th Feb but his surgery called on the 10th and asked if he wanted to go the next day. He said yes, and I cancelled the other appointment on line. The surgery  called last week and he had his second jab yesterday. My second one was booked at the same time as my first and that is on May 14th. I have no idea why anyone would want to wait for their GP in the UK unless they had no internet access. No idea at all, and millions of us did not. As I kept saying when there were posts about those who had both doses within three weeks in France, those very lucky few! Simply that we could not have the second without having the first first............. and just wait and see what'll happen in the UK when they start all the second doses along with younger groups getting their first doses. There have been lots of mistakes with all sorts of things,  many issues that I am sure that those who were not in the situation  to have had the power to make any decisions, will unashamedly condemn every last thing done, when this started, we will see. But what can I say, re the jabs, well, it has worked well in the UK. We are ahead of combined Germany and France, and that is what 150million people. What worries me is that these new variants will be stronger than our current vaccinations........

Geordie, ALBF's experience of France may not be yours, but I recognise much of how my life was and what my french friends and my son tells me now. And all the details about CDS's is easily available, people just have to use official french web sites to find out, so why ask on a board. It is not other posters who will deal with the fallout if these people are badly advised. How ALBF words his posts, well, he has his own style, it's fine with me.

I have no idea why they don't take just anyone who wants it then. My son would LOVE to have his, and yet he cannot, even the stock at work in the medical centre cannot be touched by 'younger' folk, even though older ones are not going in to get it. I have been keeping my eye on the figures in France, they are truly terrible at the moment for no good reason. Just why is the infection rate currently so high? What is going on? How are  the people you are all seeing behaving?

 NH was there a good reason why they did not lump all your pensions together? We had about 6 over the years and then suddenly a letter wrrived with them all on it and their values and Humanis started paying as one payment.

Yes, the complementaire will ask when you get your CRAM pension, but they actually do know that you are not getting it yet and it is, IMO simply a gee up to get the state pension people to do their stuff. The complementaire and CRAM have been linked up for years and years and in theory are even more linked up now, which does not help if one is simply stuck. We had moved back to England when we had to apply, and the amount of paperwork we had to fill in and send back was obscene. And it kept coming and coming. The only good thing for us was that the complementaire was a bigger amount than the state pension and they started paying it immediately until they realised that the CRAM had not followed suit and that was when they started threatening us with stopping it completely. My friend was used to dealing with the CRAM as part of their job, and they still ended up waiting months and months and months. I am so sorry for you and the only thing I can suggest is that you call Newcastle on 00  44  191 218 7777 and ask if they have even requested your NI contributions, you really need this in France, it will affect your pension, as they reduce the state pension by %'s if there is not a full working life. AND see if they can send it the CRAM if you give them the address. Then call the CRAM and ask to speak to a manager and ask what on earth is going on, calm and polite though.  And you could ask how one Did you know it is illegal in France to get angry with the fonctionnaires? Good luck, this happens to french people too, and there will be some system in place to complain officially, but they will cover their backsides with Corona excuses at the moment, remember you are not alone, your story simply sounds like that of so many others.

Just how many Mr Magoo's are on the road? Too many! Ignore speed limits and any other sign on the road. Saw a very good program a few years back on TV5 Monde from Quebec about the really bad state of tunnels and bridges there. Too many huge camion-remorques who ignore the weight limits and speed limits in tunnels apparently.

Interestingly, our Morrisons supermarket had plenty of fresh fruit and veg from Spain. I didn't notice anything from other countries, but I wasn't on a detecting mission, just looking for my usual shopping. Lots of spanish strawberries, which must have got here quickly because strawberries don't keep, so something must be working OK. We have a wonderful old fashioned food emporium, in fact I would call it gourmet, in this region, better than Hediard!  And we called in the other day, they were lacking in some foods though, and no merguez, which is the only place we can currently get them. We did get some raclette cheese though. And in general they were well stocked with world wide goods. If things are starting to 'flow',then hopefully next time we go there, we will be able to get some merguez.

Is that a carte de sejour in France? I suppose that that is what it is called in the UK though[Www], getting a WARP, how lovely!

Several years before the french pension was due, we were asked to hand in the NI contributions. Then as soon as permitted, so months and months before it was due, we applied for the french pension, we were sent endless paperwork, literally it went on and on and on. Then in early January and the pension should have started at the end of January I called and asked if we had had all the paperwork to fill in. And was told yes. Late February another lot of paper work arrived and another lot. So I called again and was told that yes, to be filled in. The complementaire had started paying from the end of January. Off went all this paperwork, and then the complementaire started writing to us, stating that unless we were in receipt of a state pension then the complementaire would stop. Panicked, I called and called and called the CRAM, and the complementaire wrote again with a stop date. I think that they gave us another month or so. I called the CRAM several times and was told in no uncertain terms that they would get round to our dossier and there were lots of other people who were also waiting, but they now had all the paperwork. So I made it perfectly clear what I would do if they did not get our dossier sorted out immediately. No shouting on my part, I was speaking to a Manager. That was the Wednesday or Thursday, the money was in our account on the Friday.  That was in May! How do they expect people to live. Friends did exactly as we did, and theirs was paid bang on time.  Another friend had a nightmare getting them to get their NI contributions, as they would not accept the copy they had, it had to comeby post from Newcastle apparently.

What is the WA RP please[:)]

Yes, NI is very important, but soccer fans are in HUGE numbers in England, and I would imagine that these fans would find this far more important a thing in their lives than  anything going on in NE. So lets change the word 'fans' for voters in elections and I am sure that politicians will usually try and appease the voting public when they are so fired up against such a scheme.

At the notaires we had to put our initials on every single page of a copy of the deeds and sign at the end, sur l'honneur etc. The notaire didn't mention the really important stuff.

Is it really at the time of signing that someone should be 'not' signing because of a right of way? And would this be a good enough reason to not lose a deposit? Also, in the OP's case, this place is owned by their parents, therefore, any oddities in the contract are already in place. Now if they don't buy, theneither their parents sell to someone else, OR when they eventually go, they and family will be stuck with this house, no matter what it states on the deeds. PLEASE ONE AND ALL, tell me if you had sight of the deeds prior to signing, because we did not, never suggested at all. AND signing for our houses in the UK I don't think we saw anything in advance either. Re understanding, well, there were pages and pages of blather on our french deeds, that I doubt I will ever understand half of it.