The grumpy thread

[mrbenn]

33 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

Given how full this weekend is going to be, ain't happening.

Plus I fly regularly enough to know that "an hour flying" actually means four or five hours faffing around by the time you've got to the airport in time etc.

As I recall getting to MK from Luton by train is actually far more of a pain than it should be because of how the lines are arranged...that's why I wound up flying out of Birmingham last time, as getting to/from Luton was going to be a royal faff.  May well have been trains didn't start earlier enough as it was quite an early flight too.

Yes, fair points.

I remember when I did something similar not so long ago. However, it was only two hours each way so not a big deal.

[xtriple]

The last time someone had a go at my son (he was about 8 at the time) I went for the bastard with a hammer! I am not a fighter but I do have a good grasp on the use of tools so I am possibly not the right person to give advice! It is totally unacceptable to rant at a kid for something the dog did_ rant at me to your hearts content and I'll just stand and take it but...

With my sensible head on I'd agree with posters above and 'try' and have a calm word with him and be apologetic about the dog but warn him against abusing your (or any) child in future. If he tries to escalate it, then and only then, hit him with the biggest hammer you can find! When the police turn up to arrest you  for attempted murder just expalain that some random off the internet said it would be fine (it really won't) but the bloke wot said to do it does have 'mental health issues' ( a polite way of saying: 'He's fucking insane!').

Seriously, I know how infuriating it can be and is when some idiot has a go at an innocent but try to stay calm. It usually has a MUCH better outcome.

[davehedgehog31]

I could understand him being upset about the dog jumping up on him, but there's a difference between a cross word and a sustained verbal tirade.

[junkyarddog]

I'd apologise to him because of the dog jumping incident,

But tell him in no uncertain terms that if he used bad and offensive language to your 7 year old again,that you will not be responsible for your actions!

[beko1987]

2 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

Given how full this weekend is going to be, ain't happening.

Plus I fly regularly enough to know that "an hour flying" actually means four or five hours faffing around by the time you've got to the airport in time etc.

As I recall getting to MK from Luton by train is actually far more of a pain than it should be because of how the lines are arranged...that's why I wound up flying out of Birmingham last time, as getting to/from Luton was going to be a royal faff.  May well have been trains didn't start earlier enough as it was quite an early flight too.

How easy is your house to break into? 

[HillmanImp]

Fucksticks

No new car for me then..... 

Just as well I didn't buy one. I was going to look at a V70 over the weekend and was bidding on one yesterday that I thankfully didn't win. 

[gm]

I think I just lost at timing belt roulette

engine spinning but with less resistance than usual

non interference so not a biggie when I get it home 

 

[Noel Tidybeard]

On 11/9/2019 at 12:07 PM, vulgalour said:

Yes we can get you that generic radiator cap, we haven't any in stock now but we can order one.  Reg number please?  Oh, you don't have the reg for the car this part is for.  Sorry, can't help you.

I have given up trying to buy a radiator cap in a shop and have instead ordered it online and I hope to goodness I've ordered the correct one.  For clarity, it's a small radiator cap for the Princess, which normally has a large cap, but I've done that non-standard coolant system thing to eliminate a bad factory component.

how smoll? civic spaceship uses a smoll cap if you need a reg no in future

[Zelandeth]

3 hours ago, beko1987 said:

How easy is your house to break into? 

It isn't.  One of the reasons all the doors and windows were upgraded shortly after we moved in.  There will be no less than three locked doors to get past...plus the alarm.

We did eventually get things sorted out when the pharmacist in the Boots round the corner from here phoned my surgery back and basically have them both barrels...they were basically taking the stance of "we're dispensing this medication, you can either approve and log it on your system, or you can argue at the misconduct hearing why you were refusing a patient with mental health problems essential medicines."

Hats off to them for being really helpful.

Sadly this sort of nonsense is about situation normal for my surgery.  They specialise in being as awkward as possible in everything they do.

[beko1987]

Ah that's OK then. Was going to say a quick repairable break in and a 24h courier, but common sense prevailed! 

[gm]

1 hour ago, gm said:

I think I just lost at timing belt roulette

engine spinning but with less resistance than usual

non interference so not a biggie when I get it home 

 

Hats off to the RAC, arrived within 15 mins of calling them, had a quick look under the bonnet and agreed that a tow home was the best course of action. 

Timing belt - guilty, as charged ! 

hopefully not too much of a fuss to replace, I bought a crank locking tool many years ago (from junkyarddog off here) which I finally have a use for

[Noel Tidybeard]

56 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

It isn't.  One of the reasons all the doors and windows were upgraded shortly after we moved in.  There will be no less than three locked doors to get past...plus the alarm.

We did eventually get things sorted out when the pharmacist in the Boots round the corner from here phoned my surgery back and basically have them both barrels...they were basically taking the stance of "we're dispensing this medication, you can either approve and log it on your system, or you can argue at the misconduct hearing why you were refusing a patient with mental health problems essential medicines."

Hats off to them for being really helpful.

Sadly this sort of nonsense is about situation normal for my surgery.  They specialise in being as awkward as possible in everything they do.

it is an absolute piece of piss to change "nominated pharmacy" on your records-(just remember to check it's been reset when you next order)

*cannot be done if you are in The Wales*

[Zelandeth]

1 hour ago, Noel Tidybeard said:

it is an absolute piece of piss to change "nominated pharmacy" on your records-(just remember to check it's been reset when you next order)

*cannot be done if you are in The Wales*

One of the issues is that my GP doesn't let a pharmacy normally send prescription requests through...they send everything out directly to the respective pharmacies.  Makes ordering repeats a royal pain as there is no way to set regular repeats to go through automatically...you have to manually request each one through their convoluted web system.  Which then takes a minimum of ten days to actually make it to the pharmacy.

It's just unnecessarily complicated and time consuming.

[Noel Tidybeard]

1 minute ago, Zelandeth said:

One of the issues is that my GP doesn't let a pharmacy normally send prescription requests through...they send everything out directly to the respective pharmacies.  Makes ordering repeats a royal pain as there is no way to set regular repeats to go through automatically...you have to manually request each one through their convoluted web system.  Which then takes a minimum of ten days to actually make it to the pharmacy.

It's just unnecessarily complicated and time consuming.

TEN DAYS!1!!!!! its sposed to be 48 hours!

[Zelandeth]

Yeah... especially as they won't let you put the request in on regular stuff until you have five days worth remaining.

Getting a normal appointment requires a wait of about eight weeks.

There's a reason their rating on Google was 2.1 stars when I last looked.

[Tamworthbay]

11 hours ago, paulplom said:

The lad from upstairs indirectly had a proper go at my 7 year old daughter yesterday morning, while I was in the flat but my partner didn't tell me till I got in from work. Her reasoning being I would have fucking killed him and I'd be locked up now.

She'd let the dog out of the front garden and the dog had jumped up at him (he's too friendly for his own good and I'm training him not to do it). Que lots of swearing and shouting. 'for fucking hells sake, get your fucking bastard dog under fucking control etc.' He went on far too long and made a proper show of it. My partner heard the whole thing but didn't interact for fear of escalating it. She's quite a large lady and I would't fight her put it that way ?

I really want to grab him by the throat and squeeze till his eyes pop out and then give him a proper head butt, followed by a few stamps. This will get me into trouble though. Can anyone recommend how I can tell him how displeased I am without violence? I need to make sure he doesn't do it again. I know he abuses Natalie's kids upstairs (not sexually), he has massive anger issues and seems to be out of control. I'm not a big bloke but I'm very fit and a bit raw boned. He is very slender and a bit of a runt. He does have a decent job and leaves at 5.30 am every morning so catching him by himself isn't too big of an issue.

Another problem is, if he back answers I will kill him.

 

Contact the Police and say he has been abusive to your daughter, point out her age and the situation. At the very least they will have a chat with him.

[chaseracer]

Zel, have you considered a complaint to your Clinical Commissioning Group (or whatever the hell they're called this week)?

https://www.england.nhs.uk/contact-us/complaint/

[Parky]

On 11/13/2019 at 2:30 PM, Parky said:

Well here we are six weeks from my car accident and the situation report update.

Other party admits liability, his insurer has car for a fortnight, finds loads more structural damage and declares it a write off.  Makes offer that doesn’t cover the outstanding pcp after early redemption penalties - having had the car three months that was inevitable.  They recommended going to my insurer as I have new for old cover in first three months.

My insurer won’t accept their assessment of the car being uneconomic to repair and so it is shifted to another shop “approved” by eSure.  This is a an old petrol station in Basildon with a shed out the back where the car sits in a muddy puddle in an insecure compound for another week.  These guys declare the car repairable and let on that the repair figure is 54% of the cars value,  at 55% it is a write off.  If I hadn’t paid extra for sat NAV, the repair cost  would have exceeded limits and it would have been declared a total loss.  However they also slip up by revealing salvage parts may be used where appropriate in order to keep costs down,

Complain to insurer who is adamant the work quality is superb, meet standards for uk repair shops etc.  Claims it is a superb garage but has never been there himself.  Don’t get me wrong, they are great panel beaters but when their main engineer rolls his eyes at the prospect of removing the dash and making sure it all works after I lost a lot of confidence.  And if anything doesn’t work after, like the auto wiper function the car has to Ben fixed by Brian out the back who has the big screwdriver.   

Then told it is standard practice to use salvage parts on repairs and my insurer can’t understand why I would want my car fixed with genuine parts.  I don’t fancy it being bits of crashed Mini with a blow over respray.  And I know Mrs P won’t use it anymore as she won’t trust it.  I also doubt this mob will reassemble it to factory  as the dash and screen have to come out, as does the front suspension to allow removal of the entire side panel.  In the factory this is done by laser guided robot, this lot have a mig welder and a tape measure.  

And the car will have a marker on it showing extensive repairs estimated to take at least six weeks. And that will fuck my pcp trade in figure as the garage isn’t Mini approved.

So have just insisted it has to go to the local Mini garage for an approved repair.  Insurer not happy as “They will be more expensive and they will write the car off” which is what I want them to do. 

I tell you what, dont ever let anyone crash into you.  The guy who hits me with his £500 Focus goes off and buys another.  His work is done.  I have had nothing but grief and shit and it seems to be never ending.  I can’t understand it, the other party admits liability, the insurer agrees and has stated in writing they are liable, their engineer writes the car off, but mine is determined to fix it on the cheap.  I don’t understand why they don’t just give me a cheque, claim it off the other party, and draw a line under it.

I certainly don’t see why I should end up with a patched up poorly aligned amalgamation of salvage parts on a three month old car.  Or am I being snooty and unreasonable?

Right then, at long last eSure agreed the car was a write off but only because “Letting Mini do it will be too expensive”.  So basically admitting they were doing it to a price rather than a standard.  Ah well.  Anyway next thing.  Apparently despite having a policy that pays full value if written off within the first year, it only applies if you own the car.  So because there is finance on it, they don’t have to pay full amount at all!  I said fine, I will speak to the finance company and you can pay them but no, they aren’t the registered keeper so they can’t get involved!  Nice little sidestep there eSure, wonder what the Ombudsman make of that?
 

So looks like I will be left with no car and my deposit monies just disappearing.  Like tears in the rain.  Like fuck that’s happening.  Even if I have to add it to my injury claim as a financial loss I will be having that thanks very much, even if it costs eSure loads in legal protection costs.  In the meantime I have a 19 plate A class Merc.  Nice Merc you got here eSure....

(me on the left)

 

[vulgalour]

That's insane. Why is insurance in this country insane?  I thought they only bullshitted owners of old cars but now, it looks like people with practically new cars in a no-fault incident get screwed over too.  What a shitshow.  Sorry I can't be more helpful or useful, Parky, I've just been amazed at how much of a crapshoot your insurers have been through the whole process of what should, in the face of it, have been pretty open and shut.

[chompy_snake]

2 hours ago, Parky said:

eSure 

Good luck with getting anything out of esure! 

They are one of the worst insurers in the ever. It's who the tw@ in the BMW was insured with when I was involved in horror van smash..... They tried saying it was our fault, shortly followed by I was passenger so entitled to nothing. 18months later I got a less than fair payout that didn't reflect injuries correctly. 

 

[captain_70s]

57 minutes ago, vulgalour said:

That's insane. Why is insurance in this country insane?

It's mandatory by law and run by completing businesses to make the maximum profits possible. Can you think of a worse combination for actually delivering a good service to a customer?

Having said that Footman James did send me an email asking if I wanted to combine my insurance policies for the Dolly and Acclaim for a saving of £3.05... (Although in fairness it would also add agreed value on to the Dolly's policy).

[Parky]

54 minutes ago, vulgalour said:

That's insane. Why is insurance in this country insane?  I thought they only bullshitted owners of old cars but now, it looks like people with practically new cars in a no-fault incident get screwed over too.  What a shitshow.  Sorry I can't be more helpful or useful, Parky, I've just been amazed at how much of a crapshoot your insurers have been through the whole process of what should, in the face of it, have been pretty open and shut.

It has been a pretty awful experience to be honest.  It couldn’t be any more straightforward.  Man hits me, admits liability, his insurer bent over backwards to help me yet mine fights me all the way.  I can’t understand it.  Whatever they pay me, they get back off Privilege so they literally have no loss whatsoever.  

Still it’s a nice Mercedes hire car.  Probably in their interest to settle this fairly soon as the costs of that will mount up pretty quick

[paulplom]

6 hours ago, chompy_snake said:

Good luck with getting anything out of esure! 

They are one of the worst insurers in the ever. It's who the tw@ in the BMW was insured with when I was involved in horror van smash..... They tried saying it was our fault, shortly followed by I was passenger so entitled to nothing. 18months later I got a less than fair payout that didn't reflect injuries correctly. 

 

It took me 7 months to get my money from them when I wrote my van off. They even sent an assessor out to make sure I didn't do it om purpose. 'It's my work van you cunt!' A total shower of shit and I vowed never again.

[New POD]

6 hours ago, captain_70s said:

It's mandatory by law and run by completing businesses to make the maximum profits possible. Can you think of a worse combination for actually delivering a good service to a customer?

 

That can be countered by saying if you are seen by customers as fair reasonable, easy to deal with, generous, honest, those customers will stay, and bring back more customers.   Who will spend more. 

 

[rainagain]

I’ve had a couple of non fault accidents and every time the insurance company have been total twats. 
 

Stupid things like even though they’re claiming full costs from the third party they wouldn’t hire me a replacement car bigger than a three door corsa as my car was over ten years old. That’s fine my family will just magically shrink. When I complained the guy had the cheek to say “you can’t expect a rolls Royce when you own a mini”.

I didn’t want a rolls Royce or a mini just a car the same friggin size as the one we bought to suit our family. Eventually when I told them there was no way my pregnant OH could bend into the rear of a three door car to strap in our kid did they eventually ‘upgrade’ me to a five door corsa. 

I’d bought the insurance from privilege who are a broker, they kept trying to pass me to the actual insurer who told me they wouldn’t speak to me as I wasn’t their customer. I actually ended up getting two phones and calling both at the same time and putting them on speaker phone and letting them argue it out themselves. 

[scdan4]

This is why 2 things now exist.

1) accident management companies 

2) gap insurance.

Which when you think about it both cost the insurance industry more now  than doing the job properly in the first place would have.

 

(However, having insured abroad, ours is actually cheap imho. (Not very good, but cheap))

 

[bub2006]

10 hours ago, chompy_snake said:

Good luck with getting anything out of esure! 

They are one of the worst insurers in the ever. It's who the tw@ in the BMW was insured with when I was involved in horror van smash..... They tried saying it was our fault, shortly followed by I was passenger so entitled to nothing. 18months later I got a less than fair payout that didn't reflect injuries correctly. 

 

I didn't know they tried saying it was our fault,if you told me I forgot! How could it have been my fault? Maybe i was impeding his travel by doing 65 in the inside lane and he was doing 142 at point of impact. What about him stating my van was evil and should be rammed off road too! Insurance companies are big fuck ups. Regulated by themselves with no government guidelines as such or external complaints procedures for something required by law. 

[MikeR]

Je       , every claim I hear about seems to be a horror story !!!  ...  you work hard to get something nice and it gets twatted !!

after getting stung over a low car park  wall that ran into the side of my decent *  car one dark night ....                  * if a Fiat can be

I decided running a shed was the best way forward.    ie    old volvo followed by a Micra ,   Mk1 Zaffy  , Meriva ,  Focus .

Never again would I be tied to a insurer that reams me out because I had to tick the claims in the last lifetime box  .

so I do have a  Focus that is worth sweet FA I can walk away from if the worst happens ...  I still have not fixed the rear wing some one hit ...

and dont mention the window winder ...... and suffered 2 break ins and numerous parking hit and runs with out doing a claim ...

[strangeangel]

 

<Answers four pages of questions>

 

 

Shame it didn't tell me that when it asked me what the car was on the first page...

 

[Tadhg Tiogar]

2 minutes ago, strangeangel said:

 

<Answers four pages of questions>

 

 

Shame it didn't tell me that when it asked me what the car was on the first page...

 

It's the online equivalent of a telephone options system which doesn't cater for what you want....