Marie

Update on Janet & John.  No surprises when I say this was a scam, but interestingly, this wasn't confirmed by contact with the mysterious couple - they haven't been in touch since we said we wanted 2 references.  Instead we received an email from Holiday Lettings (it was through their website that the initial contact was made), saying that they were aware we had been contacted by these people, and believed it to be a scam. They have blacklisted their email address.  It was nice to know that the company is being proactive in trying to prevent frauds like this! There seems to be little enough protection for us gite owners, so I'm glad that the advertising site moved quickly to put a stop to this one. Would the mods consider it acceptable to publish this couple's email address, now that they have been blacklisted by this company? It might save other people the hassle of dealing with them. If not, I'm happy to pm anyone the details.   Marie

Thanks for the suggestion Lori. My husband wondered if they were perhaps FROM Portugal, rather than going there, and that English wasn't their first language, but that then made me question the names - hardly Portuguese! The email address was a Yahoo one, so no clues there, and the message came via the Holiday Lettings website.  We've looked to see if we can get any clues from their IP address, but can't get one from the website ( we made it a feature of our own website that it automatically logs anyone's IP address, so we can keep a better paper trail on people, but unless the message comes via our site, the address isn't recorded.) Will let you know what happens. Marie

Just got this one this morning - will let it run for a while, as I'm not sure yet.  What do you all think? "My name is John, my wife and i would be coming for a nice honey moon in Portugal we were just wondering if your appartment is going to be available between the month of june Hope to read from you soon with what is going to cost us to spend 4 weeks. Many Thanks John & Janet"   This is a request for our house (which sleeps 7) in northern France! Far be it for me to turn down 4 weeks of rent in June, but it doesn't seem right - maybe it's the Janet and John bit???or have I been listening to Wogan too often? Marie

Although we use a different exam board (OCR), the most successful of my past y12/13 pupils have chosen a famous person for their oral topic, rather than a more general theme which is more open to interpretation/opinion and may require extensive comparisons.  Past topics have included Napoleon, Louis Pasteur, Baron Hausmann.  Less successful was the French football league! A region of France is always a possibility, but you need to know a wide range of statistics to quote at the examiner - economy, geography, history,  immigration, crime etc as well as all the lovely tourist places to go! Some have chosen food/drink topics, such as champagne manufacturing, with reasonable success, and one last year chose to talk about bird flu, but as she got a 'D' it might not have been as wise as she thought! Has you tutor/teacher given you any guidance?  Hope this has at least given you some ideas. PM me if you have more specific questions.   Marie

Our security deposit is a maximum of £200 for a 14 night stay  - we charge less for shorter stays. Over the past 3 years we've found that it's more than enough, especially as we've only had to make deductions to cover breakages twice, and both were fairly minor. We ask for the deposit 8 weeks before the start of the rental, at the same time as the balance.  Being UK based, this means we can then send out the keys and directions knowing all payments have been made, and we return the deposit once the key has been returned after the stay.  This gives us the few days needed for the cleaner to go in and inspect, and if there are following guests they will hopefully have notified us about any damage they found on arrival. We've only ever had one comment about the deposit, and this was from guests who thought we shouldn't ask for anything at all!   Hope this helps Marie

How do you define what would be considered as wear and tear, and what would be the responsibility of the guests? I'm more than a little confused, as a recent thread regarding damage to a patio table produced a lot of replies saying bill the guests for the cost! Where should you draw the line? As regards compensation, our T&C state that we cannot be held responsible for temporary breakdown, but will endeavour to get repairs done asap. The idea behind the definition of compensation is that someone is to blame, but as you've said, things do and will go wrong - not your fault. I think it would very much depend on what broke down, and how long it was out of action for as to whether any compensation was due or not.   Marie

Miki, In answer to your points, there was no visible sign of damage when the cleaner went in, and we didn't get any contact from the previous guests until after the new ones had arrived.  It was only when I specifically asked them to look closely at the machine that they noticed the button was pressed further in than the one next to it. Our cleaner is able to contact repair people as and when needed, as she is on hand, and I'll be contacting her as soon as I've spoken to the technical support team at the manufacturers tomorrow.  As regards a maintenance person, we haven't really needed one until now, as the houses are brand new, and we were obliged to contact the building contractor for repairs.  This is the first appliance to break! Fortunately the customers currently in there are fine about the situation, especially as they are only there for a week.   Marie

Got a text yesterday from our departing guests that the washing machine wasn't working. Finally made phone contact with them at 9pm last night, to try and work out what the problem was.  They said it worked fine when they used it on Tuesday, but it wouldn't start on Friday.  The new guests phoned this morning to report the machine not working, and when I talked through with them, they think the start button has been pushed in too far! Will get onto manufacturers technical support tomorrow to find out if this is a common problem, and how easy it is to fix, but my question is:  who should foot the repair bill? The machine was in working order when they arrived, (and has only been in use for 12 months), they admitted they had used it, so the damage/fault has occured during their stay. Do we bill them for repairs?   Marie

If there's a Leclerc within reach, you might want to see if they've got any.  We bought a brilliant metal one from there last year at a very cheap price.  When we left France last weekend, our local Leclerc was just assembling a "show" shed, so they might be on offer about now. They're usually advertised in the many leaflets you get through the door, although they did sell out very quickly, so in the end we had to order ours!   Best of luck Marie

Ours are still having trouble getting visas - months after booking, and despite several letters from us confirming their booking and payment. What do we do if they can't get a visa? They are due to stay next week, so it's the middle of high season, and we have turned away several requests for the same week.  Would you return any of the money - we obviously can't relet it, as we won't know until the last minute if they've got the visas or not? Terms and conditions state that we don't refund unless we manage to relet - should we enforce this? Advice please!   Marie

I am pleased to say, that having just got back home, the cash on arrival worked out fine - but it certainly tested my nerves.  I had imagined every possible disaster, including trying to evict non-paying guests who had arrived before we did (which they did!), and then refused to hand over any cash - cue several sleepless nights before our arrival in France. As it turns out, they couldn't have been nicer about it, and the money was all handed over within 30 minutes of our arrival! This is not a route we will pursue again, as it really is too risky, but on this occasion, we had to take the risk because of the delay in Paypal telling us the payment was on hold.  Bank transfer is our preferred method, but as more and more people leave it until the last minute to try and book, is there any guaranteed way of getting cash transferred instantly? Being UK based, we need enough time to get the money banked, and send out a key - very difficult when people seem to think they can just get up one morning, decide they fancy a holiday in France the next day, and expect a hotel style instant booking system for a gite.  What do other people do in similar situations? What is the shortest time you allow between booking and arrival?   Marie

Just a quick word of warning to any of you who might want to use paypal as a meaning of accepting payment. We had a late booking for our gite, and due tio the lack of time, suggested a paypal payment as a means of instant payment. Our renters were more than happy with this, and made the payment immediately.  The first problem was that Paypal refused to allow a payment for the full amount as the renters were new customers.  They managed to work round this by using one account each for husband and wife - all OK. Or so we thought! The message from Paypal came through on Friday evening saying the payment had been made, so we duly dispatched the keys the next morning.  Saturday afternoon (more than 12 hours after we were told the payment was there) Paypal informed us that the payment was on hold, and would not be released until the customer had received and entered a PIN number, which would be sent by within 4 working days! After several hours of phone calls both by us and our renters, Paypal refused to release the money until the renters had been verified through the use of this PIN. After much backward and forwarding, we have agreed with the renters that they will pay us cash on arrival, as coincidentally we will be arriving the same day. I have to say this has been a real stress for all concerned, as we were anxious that having released the house keys, we were minus a payment we thought we had, and the renters were anxious that they weren't going to get their holiday. To top it all, when my husband rang Paypal today to say that we had made other arrangements and the payment order should be cancelled, Paypal said that there was only a 1 in 10 chance that the payment would have been made, as 9 out of 10 that are placed on hold are returned unpaid! Our renters have had the money deducted from their debit card, and are now trying to get it back.  They believe that what Paypal have done is tantamount to theft, as they are holding the money, and neither side can get access to it. I would strongly warn other gite owners against using this as a payment method, unless your renters already have a verified account with Paypal, or you have plenty of time to spare waiting for Paypal to sort things out! We will be going back to them once we return from France to complain. It is unacceptable for them to say a payment has been made, and then decide to withold it over 12 hours later. Marie

We have taken a booking from a UK based family, who also needed proof of accommodation for visas ( I think they are being joined by family from India).  We have had full payment (all by bank transfer) plus a list of names for people staying, so I'm hoping that you were unlucky and ours are genuine!  They're due to stay in August, so fingers crossed.   Marie

Best thing I know of is Agnus Castus (or Chasteberry) tablets, available from health food shops.  Several friends have tried it with great success, and I can testify that it really helped with  tenderness, cravings & lethargy, not to mention reducing the bread knife throwing! Have read several accounts from alternative practitioners about the benefits, and they say that after taking it for a year you should be able to stop without symptoms recurring. Not sure how widely it is available in France, nor what name it goes under there, but it is easily available in UK at health food stores, or large chemists.  Hope this helps. Marie

We've never been troubled by this issue before - just arrived before if possible, but should the M25 prevent us doing so, then we've just got the next available crossing.  That's all changed since our last horrendous experience in mid May.  We checked 20 minutes before our schduled crossing, having negotiated 3 traffic jams on M25 and thought we'd get put onto another one within a reasonable time, so we were more than a bit shocked at 7.50 pm on a Friday night, to be told the next available crossing was 1.30am!  Although there was plenty of capacity in the double decks, the coach section was full, and we had the roof box on.  We pointed out that we were frequent travellers, and shareholders, and had a young child and a diabetic on board - none of this made the slightest difference, and in fact the woman we spoke to (we were at the auto check-ins) was extremely rude, and she actually said "that's not my problem".  After much wrestling with the roof box in a howling gale, we eventually managed to remove said box (so we could fit on the double decks), put it inside the car, and we finally crossed (sitting on/ under all our luggage!) at 11.40 pm.  Imagine how furious I was when we were loaded onto the apparently FULL coach section of the train for the journey!!  I have, of course, written and complained, but got no real explanation as to how they can be full but not full, nor a satisfactory apology for the treatment we received.  Being a frequent traveller obviously carries no weight at all, so the moral of our tale is to make sure you turn up in plenty of time, particularly if you are in a high vehicle!  I suspect that when we next go in July, we'll be allowing even more than our usual extra 1 hour for delays to our journey.  Will we get told off for being too early? Marie

We've never been troubled by this issue before - just arrived before if possible, but should the M25 prevent us doing so, then we've just got the next available crossing.  That's all changed since our last horrendous experience in mid May.  We checked 20 minutes before our schduled crossing, having negotiated 3 traffic jams on M25 and thought we'd get put onto another one within a reasonable time, so we were more than a bit shocked at 7.50 pm on a Friday night, to be told the next available crossing was 1.30am!  Although there was plenty of capacity in the double decks, the coach section was full, and we had the roof box on.  We pointed out that we were frequent travellers, and shareholders, and had a young child and a diabetic on board - none of this made the slightest difference, and in fact the woman we spoke to (we were at the auto check-ins) was extremely rude, and she actually said "that's not my problem".  After much wrestling with the roof box in a howling gale, we eventually managed to remove said box (so we could fit on the double decks), put it inside the car, and we finally crossed (sitting on/ under all our luggage!) at 11.40 pm.  Imagine how furious I was when we were loaded onto the apparently FULL coach section of the train for the journey!!  I have, of course, written and complained, but got no real explanation as to how they can be full but not full, nor a satisfactory apology for the treatment we received.  Being a frequent traveller obviously carries no weight at all, so the moral of our tale is to make sure you turn up in plenty of time, particularly if you are in a high vehicle!  I suspect that when we next go in July, we'll be allowing even more than our usual extra 1 hour for delays to our journey.  Will we get told off for being too early?

"One price whatever the number of activities carried out in the same place." This is the literal translation - I assume it refers to you being able to do any number of the said activities that you want, but everyone pays the same amount whether they do a few or many of the acvtivities. Out of interest - what was this in connection with? It might have a bearing on the transation of 'activités'   Marie

Owens88 "The original poster wants to insist that the renters buy specific types of loo paper." No I don't insist, as you so nicely put it! What I do is advise the renters that it is prefable for them not to shove wads of the thick stuff down the toilet, and this is put in the information folder in the house, and on notices in the toilet.  What the renters choose to do with the information provided is up to them , but at least I allow them to make an informed choice - much better then them shoving all and sundry down the toilet and then wondering why it blocks up. I don't have a choice about having a fosse - there is no mains sewerage in the village and the mairie hasn't even discussed the installation of drains, so the 2010 deadline looks unlikely for us. The house in brand new, so I know that the waste pipes are marginally smaller diameter than those in the UK, however in 3 years of renting we have never had a problem. I raised the original question, as the notices have never caused comment before, and I was a little surprised at the idea that we should provide unlimited supplies, rather than renters simply going to the shop when the initial supply ran out.  The cleaner ensures that there is some toilet roll in each toilet when she does her clean before each new lot arrives, so we don't expect them to turn up ready-armed. I haven't asked my cleaner to provide a welcome pack, as she doesn't have a car, so transport is an issue ( she can't afford one since her husband died 3 years ago).  From a renter's point of view, we didn't get a welcome pack in 4 out of 5 houses we stayed in, but it never bothered me as I always looked forward to the trip to the shops as a chance to use my language skills and discover new things. Marie

At risk of offending you  if your french is already of a reasonably high standard, you might also get some good practice and hopefully some more confidence from looking at some of the following websites. I don't recommend translation websites, as in general they seem to produce too many errors, but that could just be my GCSE pupils typing in rubbish in the first place! For GCSE level you could do a lot worse than look at www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize  this covers all 4 skills (listening, reading, speakng and writing) and you can work at foundation or higher level.  You might also like to try www.atantot.com for vocab practice (don't be put off by the big message about it being for interactive whiteboards, you can still use a keyboard.) For more advanced exercises try: http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/rgshiwyc/school/curric/HotPotatoes/frenchindex.htm This has exercise right up to A2 level, and my Year 13 pupils found some of the grammar exercises, particularly on the subjuntive, quite demanding. Hope this helps.  There are some other good websites out there, but my list is at school and I can't remember them all.  If you want some more let me know and I'll look them up this week at work.   Marie

So, going back to the question in my original post, it really isn't a good idea to provide an unlimited supply of toilet paper For a start I'd have to provide probably in excess of 140 rolls for each gite at the start of the summer season, and even assuming I found somewhere to store them all, they might all get nicked, thus rendering the plan a complete failure! I think I'll stick to what I already do - advise them nicely to use the french stuff & not put the usual offending items down the loo. It's worked for the last 3 years, this lot were just the only ones to comment on it. By the way, in terms of strange items going missing - the lot before took one of those glass air freshener things, how weird is that? (unless of course they broke it and didn't fess up!) Marie

I'm not sure where the leap to cleaning materials came from, but we certainly do provide all the necessary sprays/ liquids etc in that respect.  At the start of each busy season, we ensure that there is a good stock of cleaning materials, bin bags, cling film, foil, air fresheners, light bulbs, kitchen roll, and, as I said, a small supply of toilet rolls.  However, we are not resident, and it really is not practical for me to pop over from the UK every couple of weeks or so just to stock up on toilet rolls for other people. In all the houses we have ever stayed in in France, the system has been exactly the same (in all cases the owners were non resident) and I had no issues at all with replacing anything which ran out - be it toilet rolls or bin bags.  I also tried to respect the property of the owner, and accept their advice about a system which they were much more familiar than I was. If that meant using french paper for a week or two, then that was fine with me.  If you are renting someone else's house then surely you are responsible for any damage you may cause during your stay - at least that was always the approach I took as a guest. Maybe it is me!   Marie

We have 2 gites, each sleeping up to 7 people, so I am talking serious quantities here if I have to provide it all, especially as we're not on site. Where would I store it??? If people are only there for a short stay, then there is usually enough left either by us, or the previous guests, but as we find French paper much cheaper then english, it's hardly a huge expense if people run out and have to buy their own. I always though the idea of self-catering was that you provided for yourselves, rather than expected everything to be done for you - isn't that called hotel service?   Marie

Had to give ours up, much to our regret, as it couldn't be read by the sensor in our Peugeot 807.  It worked fine when we had a 'normal' height car, but it wasn't interested in the new higher, steeper windscreen.  The lady at Boulogne could not have been more helpful, but even she had to admit defeat after 2 round trips with different doofers! We've now had to resort to using the credit card lanes when it's busy, but they're not accessible if we have the roof box on as we're over height then!  Oh, how I miss my days as an MG owner...no barrier was too low then!   Marie

Probably like most of you, we post notices in the toilets of our gites asking guests not to put the ususal offending items down the toilet to avoid causing problems with the septic tank. I've also pointed out that french toilet paper is preferable to Andrex, which is much thicker and therefore more likely to clog - I'd rather warn people than have to summon out the fosse repair man! On the latest feedback form from our recent guests, they suggest we "provide unlimited french toilet roll, otherwise people will take english and block the septic tank".  Now while I'm quite happy to ensure there is at least one roll in each toilet on our departure, whenever we happen to be over there, I'm not about to start asking my cleaner to supply industrial quantities in our absence. Has anyone else ever had a comment like this? My first reaction was to laugh - surely it's a joke, but my husband thinks they might actually seriously think we'd do this! What do others supply, particularly those of you, like us, who are UK resident? Marie

Ours was payable in 2 installments - the first about 6 months after completion and the second 12 months later.  The cost was about €5000, payable in 50% chunks - not that it made it any easier to find the money, as no-one had told us anything about this tax.  However, we were exempt from taxe foncière for 2 years.  Given that the taxe foncière is only about €150, it isn't much to offset against the huge planning tax bill!   Marie