Peterh

We have the misfortune to have a real criminal type living next door and he keeps doing things like cutting our grass and hedges, putting up fences for us and planting a hedge as well as fixing a door that was damaged in a storm.  A local farmer is as bad or even worse.   He brought a tractor and trailer onto our land and took away all the spoil from a bac a sable that was being installed for us to save it lying on a heap on the garden.  All these things have been done without any request on our part and when we have not even been there and without any payment.  Are we guilty or is it just them? What should we do? I think that we will have to look for a house somewhere else before the law catches up with them (and us).  Ought I to report them before someone else does? I am curious to know the law that is being broken.  If anyone can point me to it I would be grateful.  In this country I suspect that it would be contrary to something like The Anti-Social Behaviour (Being a Good Neighbour) Act but I'm not too good on French law. But I know a man (or woman rather) who is. Peter

Why on earth would this be illegal? If no money is changing hands then what law is being broken? Is it seriously being suggested that it is illegal in France for neighbours, friends or relatives to help each other doing household repairs or renovations? Presumably this would cover such crimes as holding a ladder, passing a paintbrush or, God forbid, actually using one to apply some paint. As far as I am aware the problem only arises where people are "employed" or paid to do work without the necessary registrations etc. I have had unpaid help from family, neighbours and friends (British and French) without for one moment considering that I was doing anything wrong. I shall continue to do so without losing one wink of sleep.

Dear Val Thank you for your reply to my posting. The original posting was done by my son whilst we were in France. The light twisting that I applied to the slates did show up some concealed weaknesses before I put them on the roof and I saved myself some grief thereby. The lesson that I learned was to buy better quality materials in the first place as money and time would probably have been saved by doing so. The builders merchants did give me an extra 100 slates to compensate for those that broke but I lost rather more than that. In the event I took rather longer than expected to recover the roof after discovering timber that needed replacing as well as slates and battens but I did finish the job with a full 3 hours of my holiday left to enjoy so it could have been worse. Thank you again for your advice. Peter

I am in the process of recovering a roof in Spanish Slates described as "1erchoix".  A number of slates were broken and others broke in my hands.  As a precaution I have been lightly twisting slates before putting them on the roof and a large proportion (10% - 15%) have broken due to inherrent weekness.   I have two questions.  Namely, is it usual to expect a percentage to be broken and could I expect these to be replaced and, secondly, is it reasonable to subject slates to minor pressure prior to use?   I would add that I have bought these slates through a reputable builders merchants.  I would be grateful for any advice that can be offered.   Many Thanks,   Peter

I am in the process of recovering a roof in Spanish Slates described as "1erchoix".  A number of slates were broken and others broke in my hands.  As a precaution I have been lightly twisting slates before putting them on the roof and a large proportion (10% - 15%) have broken due to inherrent weekness.   I have two questions.  Namely, is it usual to expect a percentage to be broken and could I expect these to be replaced and, secondly, is it reasonable to subject slates to minor pressure prior to use?   I would add that I have bought these slates through a reputable builders merchants.  I would be grateful for any advice that can be offered.   Many Thanks,   Peter

Both my wife and I have annual travel insurance but my in laws, who come to France with us twice a year, have found the cost, now that they are in their late 70's/early 80's, prohibitive. They are both very healthy but what would be the position if they became ill in France?  Would the E111 cover all the costs of any emergency treatment or could they be billed for part of any treatment?  

Thank you for your reply. I believe that the hooks used to hold the slates in place are called "crochets" but I may be wrong.  Any further information would assist. Thanks. Peter

I've got a few questions on this subject and any comments would be welcomed:- 1. Can anyone recommend a book that deals with the techniques involved in reslating a roof using crochets? One written in English would be preferred but that may be asking too much. When I looked in French DIY books they did not seem to deal with roofing. I am particularly concerned with spacing of battens, dealing with the ends and sides of the roof, joining up with other areas of roof and the point raised at 2. below. 2. I have just fitted a roof window in part of our roof covered with rectangular slates (as opposed to the diamond shaped ones) and had difficulty fixing the bottom row of slates at the top of the window because of the depth of the flashing.  I did this by making extra long crochets but I suspect that there is a much easier way that I am missing. Can anyone explain the technique for doing this? 3. What is the relative cost of slate and fibro ciment "slates" and how do they compare in quality and longevity? Thanks Peter

We are trying to find an economical way for 2 people to get to this area next week, without a car, from the South East. Eurolines are unable to help as they do not seem to have any coaches going to this area. I cannot find any budget airline travelling between the two areas and the train fare is £320 per person.  Can anyone offer any suggestions?  In particular does anyone know of any budget airline flying from any London (not Luton), Kent, Sussex or Surrey airport to within 75 miles of Chateaubriant? Any information will be gratefully received. Peter

I suspect that this brilliant new strategy by Eurotunnel will be a source of great satisfaction for their competitors. I believe that Eurotunnel had in excess of 4,000 regular travellers tied to their service via the POC.  If these customers used their service an average of only 5 times per annum this would equate to an income of about £2.8 million that they are now abandoning.  In reality the figure is probably much higher. The group of travellers using the POC are likely to be the most assiduous in searching out the best deals because of the frequency of their journeys and will be looking elsewhere.  Furthermore, members have enjoyed the advantage of flexibility which has been extremely valuable to those of us who get delayed by trying to repair a wall or fix the plumbing just before we leave.  With the loss of that flexibility we may as well use the cheaper options and ensure that we arrive on time rather than risk paying extra charges to Eurotunnel.  Speedferries are offering a return ticket for £50 with a £10 fee for any amendment to the booking.  From speaking to a member of staff at the Eurotunnel call centre it was apparent that they also fear the effects of the new pricing policy and the abandoning of the POC. Having travelled back from France via Eurotunnel last night it was apparent that customers were feeling very frustrated when they arrived early for their planned, after midnight, crossings (to get the cheaper rate) and were unable to change to an earlier one.  Like many other members of the POC, I regret its demise  and will now have to shop around for the best deals for our frequent trips to France.  However there is a bright side to all this. With the loss of a number of P&O Crossings it is important that there is strong competition for these routes and the Eurotunnel policy is likely to have the effect of strengthening the position of its competitors by abandoning £2.8 million+ for them to seize to help improve their own services. Why Eurotunnel should want to do this escapes me. Peter

Sorry. I should have been more specific. I want to treat the wood for woodworm, dry rot, wet rot etc.  Thanks for the replies so far. Peter

We are anticipating cold weather when we are at our house at the end of the month and we will need some free standing heaters.  We have seen petrol heaters advertised in France and wonder whether they have any advantages over electric heaters. Secondly are electric heaters cheaper in France than in England? If we take them from England I anticipate having to pay about £40 for a 3 kw output with thermostat and timer. How does that compare with French prices? I know that we should have looked when last over but didn't think about the cold when the sun was shining,  which it did occasionally.  Any help would be much appreciated. Peter

I will need to treat some timber in our house when we visit later this month. Previously I have taken 5 gallon cans of Wickes Wood Treatment liquid (Cuprinol) with me but wonder if the French equivalent would be a similar price. Can anyone advise the name of a similar product and what the cost is in France. Thanks for any help. Peter

We used Speedferries for the first time over the August bank holiday weekend.  Having arrived in plenty of time for the 18.15 crossing and queued for half an hour we were told that the crossing about to leave was actually the 14.45 and we couldn't get on it and we were offered a place on the 21.45 sailing.  Apparently there had been problems with the weather earlier in the day but no-one had made any effort to contact passengers and let them know that there was a problem.  They had both our telephone number and our email address.  As we had a long journey the other side we caught a P&O sailing but with all the delays it became necessary to stop at a hotel for the night.  Because Speedferries have no reciprocal arrangements with the other companies we had to pay for the P&O crossing at top rates.  Combined with the additional hotel costs our trip from Dover to Calais became the most expensive one that we have ever made.  So much for a cheap crossing.  I would have tolerated this better if the staff had been polite but they weren't. On our return on Monday I telephoned the Dover call centre to check that there were no delays as we could have caught an earlier departure if necessary.  I was assured that there were no problems but I asked for confirmation of this and duly received it.  I know that you will have guessed it, but on arrival at Boulogne we were advised that there were delays due to engine problems.  The French staff were extremely polite and apologetic which made the irritation much easier to bear.  Nevertheless we arrived back in Dover about two hours late. A member of staff on the ferry suggested that we should write to SF about our experiences. We did, by email on Tuesday,  but we also received no response except for an acknowledgement. A follow up telephone call today received a similar lack of interest. I wish Speedferries all success with their venture because they are providing much needed competition but we will be travelling with other, more efficient, operators who can provide a better customer service. 

I have got to the stage in my house renovations where I (or rather my father in law) need to fit some ceiling lights. The French ceiling fittings seem inferior to British ones, although at the moment I cannot quite see how they are installed. Is there any reason why I should not use British ones with the junction box included in the rose? If there is, could anyone explain how the French ceiling fittings are installed? Neither of the two books that I have show how to fit them. Thanks in advance for any help. Peter

After reading all the discussion on this subject we have decided that we should probably upgrade our fosse despite the fact that our French neighbours don't seem inclined to do anything about theirs, which I assume don't comply with the new regulations either. A recent enquiry with one neighbour about whether he would have to upgrade was met with a shrug of the shoulders and the comment "un jour........peut-etre". Has anyone in the Chateaubriant area installed a fosse recently and if so can you recommend an installer? What can I expect to have to pay for this? The price seem to vary from one area to the next. Any experiences of fitting one oneself would also be welcomed. Any information will be gratefully received. Peter

I remember seeing a thread on this subject some weeks/months ago but I can't now find it. I thought that the conclusion was that TVA would remain at 5.5% for renovation work but I have heard that it has now gone back to 19.6%. Is this right? Peter

There is no problem in changing plugs. We have used British appliances in France and vice versa without any problems. The French plugs (and all other French electrical fittings) always seem very flimsy compared with ours but presumably they are adequate.