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P

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Everything posted by P

  1. [quote user="Ford Anglia"] Case one: a man found guilty of two counts of burglary, two counts of failing to answer to bail, and not acting in accordance with a previous sentence. Result: Probation. Case two: a man found guilty of speeding who had pleaded NOT guilty. Fined £300, with £150 costs against him AND three points on his license, (so THREE punishemts there, then). And no, he wasn't doing a silly speed. 46 in a 40mph limit. In one of the above, no-one was hurt. In the other, people lost their property, and a convicted criminal put two fingers up at the system. But which one got the harshest sentence? [/quote] But which one had the potential to cause the most hurt - not sentimental but physical hurt? The person committing burgulary or the person colliding with a pedestrian at 46 mph? For me it would be the motorist. Also is there any difference between case one and case two - they are both breaking the law. However, some motorists seem to be selective in what they think applies to them. Speed and you stand the potential of being fined. And is the police attitude merely to take money off of motorists? Many years back a cousin and his brother-in-law were killed when their car (a sports car) crashed into the barrier on a flyover and they were thrown out onto the road below - a mix of speed and alcohol. I volunteered to liaise etc with the police. The inspector seemed genuinely affected and commented 'why do the insurance companies insure young people for these type of cars'. But there again according to FA no one gets hurt from speeding. Paul
  2. To latch on to this as I have an interest in Toulouse airport - do they offer a 'jump-start' service for flat batteries as some of the UK airport parking areas do? - oh for the days of the starting handle Paul
  3. Following a posting that I placed here due to the door of our burner going black the reply was that there are burners that pass air across the inside of the door and keep it clear - go for one of these if you want to see the fire. Paul
  4. And some 'modern' installations are not always wired correctly - i.e. only one pole through the fuse / circuit breaker and the other via a busbar - little job for me on our next visit to sort this out. Also, from my experience, because there is a two pole and earth socket there it does not necessarily mean that there is an earth wire! Paul
  5. I do not know what they wish to achieve by not being up front on their websites. My preferred route is Gatwick to Toulouse. Look on Easyjets website and follow it through to the conclusion, having removed the travel insurance, to see the total price. Then to BA, firstly look at the flight with the minimum fare for the day I want, if it is not low enough abandon, if it is acceptable click to see if this fare applies to the flight I want, if so carry on, if not abandon. Whilst I approve of BAs approach to including things they still slightly make it unkonwn the actual cost of the flight you want until you view the various flights on the specific day. Paul
  6. English beer in a foreign pub - no go? I was in Philadelphia a few years ago and went with a US friend to a bar to watch the band in which her daughters play. This was not in a touristy area. Imagine my surprise that they had Youngs on draught. Comments that I have received in various parts of the US is 'oh you like warm beer' with an incredulous note to their voice. Well, in the case of Philadelphia it is obvious that some 'foreigners' do like English beer. On another occassion, chatting to a stewardess on a Japan Airlines flight from Tokyo to London, who kept bringing me different Japanese beers to try, asked how long her stop over was in London. 'Two days' was her reply, 'time to drink some dark beer'. Paul
  7. [quote user="Abbaye"] Frankly I am furious that my original question has brought about threats of reporting people to the authorities and other such ridiculously out of context comments ..... it is verging on defamation and actually rather worrying. No more from me ....... [/quote] Abbaye think you are reading things into this. I viewed Nicks comments as one of frustration on his part - he is fully legit with all the costs associated with that but losses some jobs because others who are not legit can easily undercut him. If his livelihood is being taken from him then I can understand his attitude. However, you seem to be taking the attitude that it was directly aimed at you. The threads often meander but normally do provide the answer to the original question which seems to be the case in this thread. Paul
  8. Another option could be to buy a cheap caravan and stay in that Monday to Thursday in the UK (admittedly away from your girlfriend but there is always that saying 'absences makes the heart grow fonder') and travel over on a Monday and back on a Friday. That should greatly reduce the costs. The caravan would be resellable so buying it would not be lost money. You may need to have a few sites that you can use. Some will have restrictions on them as to the length of time that you can stay and some do not like you using them as a means of working. Paul  
  9. Catherine, congratulations for taking what people have said without complaining about it and taking note of it. I did not see your original site but positives for me are: No kids No smoking. However, if I was looking for accommodation then the negatives are: Not all en-suite The bedrooms in the photos do not appeal in the least. Others have also said this - you are aiming for niche markets and only advertising in main stream markets. Best of luck Paul
  10. We were looking at bedroom and kitchen units in both France and the UK. When we compared the various price lists the UK was always dearer. Some display units we bought were also dearer in the UK. Paul
  11. Opas, firmly in the leave well alone camp for the reasons that have been stated. And ignorance is no excuse for him - it is quite easy to find forums like this one where he could have easily found out what he needed to do. If you do drive the car and something goes wrong who will he blame? Paul
  12. Den, I might be weird, but I like breakers yards. Both from rummaging for parts for older cars plus, I rather like the look of the cars stacked (ok I am weird). I would have thought that if it is 1km away it should not affect your actual property unless the recovery vehicles actually pass by. As for being part of a walk it must be only a small part of the walk. Paul
  13. Beware of the quick setting stuff - marvellous for deep filing [:D]but starts to set before it sees the water [:(]. Paul
  14. Baz Do report it to www.saynoto0870.co.uk so that it receives a wider audience Paul
  15. Thanks SD. My posting was because someone else had posted the quote that I included. I was therefore interested if anyone else had problems insuring a UK van. If it was going to be a problem wondering if it is worthwhile registering it. Take your point about extra cost due to extra cost in obtaining spares (would need to be sourced from a UK dealer). However, we are happy with the van and, taking into account the depreciation / dealers profit margin, there would be a financial loss in selling and buying a French van.
  16. [quote user="sid"] I'm currently going through the registration process for a Lunar Clubman caravan of 1989 vintage. I can assure you that everything  SD has told you is correct. There's enough red tape to put you off, particularly if you don't like speaking French on the telephone, but you just have to make a list of the jobs and work your way through them. I've found that the people at the DRIRE and Bureau Veritas are very helpful. The issue of the positioning of the door is, in fact, a non-issue! It doesn't matter. With a more modern 'van, with a manufacturer's certificate of conformity, it should be relatively straightforward. As to the question of weight; there are not many caravans (in fact, none that I can think of!) with a PTAC (max loaded weight) of less than 750kgs, so insurance and registration will be essential. Sid [/quote] Whilst we shall be trying to register a 2004 van at some point in the future would be interested in what was required for compliance in order to register your van. Paul
  17. Did not want to bomb the thread where this was posted: The door on the "wrong side " seemed to matter when I tried to insure mine .....please post the name of a French insurance company who will cover your UK van ..lots of caravan owners would love to know one ......My  house insureres are one of the biggest not just in France but all over Europe and they would not cover my UK made van ..."door on wrong side " they said .....I dont think French companies want to know about UK vans  and the "wrong side door " is their get out . We are contemplating trying to register a UK van in the future. For those of you who have been successful have you obtained insurance - or is it a case of selling the UK van and buying one in France. Paul 
  18. [quote user="Dotty "]P. For goodness sake get a life.  Some of us commute to the UK from France, isn't it enough we pay for tolls, petrol and the ferry crossing, without resorting to paying for extra temporary plates?[/quote] Dotty - sorry you did not pick up on it but it was tongue in cheek - as if Gordon needs any help in taking money from people. Paul
  19. Here is one for Gordon.... Any foreign vehicle entering the UK must have a UK registration. Any vehicle entering for a limitied period must have a temporary UK registration issued at the arrival point at a cost of, say, £200 a time (plates extra). Paul Ps - SD sorry about insulting you by saying you are charitable [:D]
  20. SD I think you are being extremely charitable and Ernie you are right that ignorance is no defence. Would have thought that at some point he would have noticed the plates and thought 'that's funny they are the same as on the other vehicle'. The whole thing does stink - I do not know of anyone who has had 2 sets of plates made up because they 'forgot' that they had had the first set made up. And the big question did the vehicle in the UK ever go to France (unless it was purchased in France) if it did not then the plates would have had to be sent to the UK to be attached to the vehicle
  21. He does say he is unsure of how many cars he has - wonder if they all have this registration plate? Presumably he might also get away with fines for other road traffic offences if he incurred any. Paul
  22. When we completed in late Jan 07 (the vendors were present) the notaire spoke about sharing the costs of the TF and added that for 2007 they would not be payable until later in the year when the bill would be issued. I just thought that it seemed a little petty splitting the bill with the vendor paying less than a thirteenth, added to the fact that the total bill is only what we pay in the UK in a month and a bit. We have therefore decided that when the vendors receive the bill they would send it on to us and we would pay it. He was most clear that the 2007 bill would not be received until later in 2007. Is it a case that whilst the bills received in 2006 show payments in 2007 this is because they are, effectively paid in arrears? Paul
  23. You will find that the door issue is an old wives tale.
  24. Hi Paul I do exactly the same at Carcassonne. Also the last 2 times I have booked with Hertz the cars have been dirty and both had damage that they had not pointed out. Thankfully I always check but then you have to go back to the portacabin to inform them-and rejoin the end of that blasted queue. Smiley, we never had a clean car. We now fly in to Toulouse and the cars we hire there are dirty - they might have been cleaned but only parts. The one advantage with Hertz at Toulouse, if you are a club member, is that you go directly to the cabin in the car park instead of having to queue in the airport terminal. The ont time I had a problem at Carcassonne I just wenrt striaght back to the counter with the papers in my hand and was dealt with. Did not really feel I was pushing in just an extension of being served. Paul
  25. Looking at Europcars website, in France, they want £21 / 29 euros to hire a child seat for 5 days. Buying might be the easiest and, depending on days, the cheapest.
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