BobDee

Thanks to all the respondees. Another factor from the info from SD, it would seem its not just tyre size but complete specification. My 1987 Mercedes 300E ogininally had a V speed rating on the tyres, (150 MPH). So I have to fit tyres to that spec. Michelin's or equiv make work out at around €100 per with fitting balancing taxes etc. Rediculous on a 22 year old car thats worth all of £500 in the UK!!! Fume fume. Off to the CT station this afternoon to battle re the headlights for the Chrysler armed with SD's info. Will report back   BobD 

Bad day yesterday...Both my old cars failed the CT. Two years back, both passed with no problems, but now new rules apparently apply. 1) A car must have the tyre sizes as originally fitted when first produced. In my case a 1987 Mercedes 300E originally fiited with 195/16's, but for the past 10 years fitted with 205/16's. Very sad and expensive to have replace 4 good tyres with good tread  to comply. 2) Head lamps must dip to the right. My Chrysler Voyager has american style lamps that dip down, not to the right or to the left. Two years ago, no problems, now must be changed. Any one else experienced this?

Can you legally have a number of livret A's with the maximum amount in each? I thought this was going to be stopped? BobD

I have just received the renewal notice for our 20 year old French registered Mercedes. This will be for the third year and the cost  is roughly the same as when we first took the policy out. In the UK I had a 12 year NCD but the French agent would only allow me 5 years on the French Insurance. This policy with limited milage (8000 Kms per year), My wife as Co driver and breakdown cover, currently costs €370.  Is this reasonable or should I be looking for a new insurer next year?

Interstingly, SFR now send out mailings if your mobile number is about to be lost if you havnt topped up in the last six months. Sadly their website that should allow you to top up on line using a credit card hasnt been working for the last few days. IMHO, SFR is generally a pain ,  and I really cant understand how they can get away with their short term top up validity. Vodafone UK and Vodafone Spain both have validities well in excess of six months. I use a UK based mobile in the car for emergencies and keep about £10 of credit on it. Still cheaper than keep paying SFR. Even with an "expired" SFR card, you can still receive calls and use their incoming voice mail facility. Leclerc would seem the best bet. Only trouble is that you have to physically visit a store to sign up. None in my area unfortunately. BobD

There are two charging levels in most places . For example if you move house or move into Lot et Garonne, no charge for a new Permis de Conduire is made, but for a brand new license and this includes changing a UK one for a French one, then you must pay your  52 Euros.

Lot et Garonne (47), € 52, but then we do live for ever on our diet of duck fat and local red wine. BobD

Ernie, Technogy has advanced mightily these days. The fiendish devices have built in timers such that they alledgedly turn  themselves off after typically 2 hours, and have a setting that allows for all night use All to lull you into a false sense of security. Teapot's fire brigade link is a good one to read. BobD

[quote user="teapot"] That was not mainly down to manufacture but just wear and tear. [/quote] The blanket has only been in use for less than one year. It seems as though the internal plastic insulation around the heating element has become brittle with the heat. BobD

I purchased an electric blanket from a very large french company selling on Ebay just about one year ago. The day before yesterday, the blanket caused a small fire in the bed that burnt a hole in the mattress and similar holes in the mattres cover, duvet, duvet cover and singed a pillow case. I was alerted to the event by the smell of burning that became evident some minutes after my wife had switched on the blanket prior to our planned retirement some 30 minutes later. Obviously, I immediately disconnected the blanket and made sure the damage was not ongoing. I took a number of photographs and yesterday sent off a suitable email to the supplier. We also went to the insurance company that afternoon to see if we could get perhaps some reparation for the damage, again giving them a copy of our communication with the company. We were told a fire expert would be in touch. As of this morning , no response from the supplying company concerned has been received. My question is, is there a central body in France that needs to be alerted to this sort of thing? Clearly the blanket could have caused a very very serious fire and even a death had the bed been occupied at the time. The blanket carried all the usual CE and international approval marks. The manufacturers name is WELLCARE, but I can see no country of manufacture marked on the item itself or on the user instruction sheet. One suspects a far eastern origin. No doubt the supplying company has to consider its response carefully, but in the mean time, there could be many thousand of these blankets out there just waiting to catch fire. Advice anyone? BobDee

Its a wonder how attitudes change as time goes by. I remember joining the CND when I was sixteen and a lot of other not to be mentioned youthful daliences. Now in my 60's I find myself applauding the fact that in France there are no health checks at 70 for car drivers. I dont see too many posters in their 70's advocating medicals. BobD    

An update. We received our Permis de Conduire this morning. Though not without a couple of problems. I received a call from the Prefecture a few days after they had received all the documentation from the Marie.  1) They didn't like the computer generated photographs I had supplied, although they were glossy and of the correct size, in fact we supplied two sizes;  they said they wouldn't scan and professional ones would, so a trip to the local photographer had to be made. 12 € for the pics, done in 5 minutes. 2) They wouldn't accept the Swansea Statements of License entitlement. I explained these were official documents and not copies, they looked at them again and accepted that they were now OK. Anyway, all OK now and we still have our UK licences. I'm tempted to keep these whilst they are still valid. Dont know if the Prefecture tell Swansea they have issued French licences. No doubt someone will be in touch.  Total cost at today's exchange rate, around £120 for two licences! BobD 

Our French hosts are not stupid. Looking at the whole matter from their point of view, it may well be a matter of expediency. Possibly they have access to a lot of information concerning the financial status of incoming Brits. The UK government would be more than happy to reveal all. They would know of those who had significant savings and investments and who were paying sizeable tax amounts in the UK. The affairs of these people would be examined and a "no French Tax Return", would be flagged and acted upon. They would also know of folk who relied on just a pension income and these folk would also be catagorised as "leave alone". If no or very little tax can be collected, why get them into the system? After all, you will collect from them when they move house or die without making appropriate arrangements. BobD

How about a new paragraph in the French Tax FAQ's: Do I have to pay French Taxes? Well not really. Of course, if you feel you want to contribute to the economy of the country in which you live and generally be a good citizen, then go ahead and ask to be allowed to contribute. On the other hand, you can just keep quiet, generally cheat the system, and you probably wont get into any trouble. Apparently not so silly. BobD

[quote user="parsnips"]   Bob Dee said he felt miffed if it is easy to stay outside the system with no apparent comebacks; I don't see why ;  [/quote] The main negative causing miffyness, is that we pay tax in the UK, pay tax in France, do all the right things to claim back the UK component and here we are nearly ten months later, still waiting for the refund.

JR, Just to have something in the "locker" when at some Christmas event a fellow reveller starts telling all and sundry that he knows best and rules dont apply to him! Edited also: No intention of spilling any beans but if it becomes the normal way of Brit behaviour to spend ones life getting round the system, then we all suffer. BobD  

Clair, Yes but, (Fonciere + D'habitation + Carte Vitale - Revenues) = Bastille!  or: (Fonciere + D'habitation + Permis de Conduire - Revenues) = Bastille Non? BobD

So, todate, other than healthcare, and I'm not really sure about that, see below, no one has said that there are any major penalties in not being in the system. We have been here for just under two years, both above retirement age and therefore courtesy of the E121 procedure, were issued with our Carte Vital's within 4 months of our arrival. At that point we were not in the French tax system and made our first return for 2007 in May this year. So the healthcare cover was not dependent on our tax status. Like CL, I feel a tad 'miffed if it is that easy to stay outside with apparently no comebacks. A lot of dark mutterings about how you will be caught out eventually, but no one seems to have actual experience of steps being taken. I note from looking at  my "avis d'impositions", that the "numero fiscals" are all the same, so it must be very easy for the authorities to see that a person is payng Tax Fonciere, Tax d'habitation but not "Impot Sur les Revenues". Really puzzling. BobD 

This is real, it happens all the time.. What if a person having  lived in France for say three years, has knowlingly or perhaps unknowingly,  never completed a French tax return? As I understand it from the forums, there are issues with capital gains tax if and when you wanted to sell your home, but even that has been denied, and it would even seem possible to get into the the french health system etc. If someone is in this position and and is now convinced or the error of his or her ways, can he/she go the local Impots office and say "sorry, I didnt know that I should have made a declaration". Ignorance will  be no excuse, but what happens then? A retrospective declaration, a fine, or worse? I have seen it argued that one's concience should be the arbiter in such matters, but that dosnt always come to the fore in some situations. Not personally applicable, I have to say, but hard information on this would be good to have at hand as necessary. BobD     

Thanks for the replies folks. One side of the connections is the hob itself and this has, what I take to be standard, a smooth flange surface on a female thread. The connecting copper pipe has a male connector again with a flat mating surface, which overscrews the flange area , similar to a washing machine hose connector. Certainly no washer present. Are the propane specific washers available from the likes of Bigmat etc? Thanks BobD  

Notwithstanding,  ( I like that word), the above which I am still investigating, having disconnected the old hob, the copper piping joins to the hob itself via a screw flange fitting. The original joint seems to have been liberally smeared with a sort of Bostic white compound. I would have expected a hard rubber washer to feature somwhere but there is none. Should there be one, or is it common practice for propane flange joints to be assembled with just the gunko? BobD 

LP. Many thanks for that.  I will make some urgent enquiries.   BobD

That would make more sense. Les did you get 'mail on other subject? BobD

Cant argue with the sheer commonsense of the regs as posted by BigMac, but in practice??? We have been here for nearly two years now, but inspite of having the equivalent of a HIPS inspection with the house, no mention of a gas certificate was ever made. We have Propane in a monster tank in the Garden and a maintenance contract from Primagaz, our supplier. They have been here once on an annual inspection, but only checked "their" tank and didnt set foot in the house. So just where do these "regs" fit in? Is this another "depends on the Departement" sort of thing?   BobD

SD, I guess the charges aren't in error? !! BobD