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Attractive rural property in friendly hamlet, 12 minutes from all amenities, 45 minutes from airport, Limoges.
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Quality French properties in all regions of France. |
Flying lessons in the Limousin
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Lee Homewood All your property needs under one roof!
Plastering, general building and property maintenance Covering areas south Haute Vienne and north Dordogne
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Articles and visitors letters
Do you have a story to tell? An experience you can share with others? Something amusing about your time in France? Or perhaps a hint or tip to pass on?
We want to know about it and others would to.
So please send us your interesting items and we will publish them HERE!
General letters to the web site can be found here too!
Email dordogneonline@gmail.com
| We are pleased to publish the letter below on
behalf of
"Following my letter to you several weeks ago I would
like to ask you to find a little space to print the attached letter from
Elizabeth Finn Care as well as the information on the fund-raising
aspect of our organisation. We think it is important that our supporters
understand where some of their money goes.
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We received this letter this week from Rosie Logan, perhaps you can offer help or advice? Email her on rosielogan@ymail.com
"I hope you are able to help me to resolve a situation I believe is totally unfair and possibly against the European convention. I am registered as an artist here in France and have been since 01/01/06 paying all the cotisations due and the business is classed as a micro business BNC (benefice non commercial). I design and create textiles – finished as contemporary wall panels and cushions. www.tactileinteriors.com
I have a siret number but not a siren number as I do not charge TVA and therefore do not claim it back. I was put into this category by the local tax office in Sarlat I was not given a choice of any other registration based on the artist category with the Maison des Artists in Paris who have checked I am qualified and each year I have to send my gross turnover and photos of my work to show all the textiles are different and not mass produced.
I applied for the RMI in 2006 after my first born baby died in july 2006 due to medical negligence and asked for 3 months help as my partner and I were unable to work. I was refused: with a letter stating I had not paid enough cotisations. We are still involved in a legal battle with this awful tragedy.
I was then pregnant again in 2007 and never received any maternity benefit and when I applied to the CAF for the RMI as a top up for my low income I was refused again and the local social assistant said basically the conseil general in the Dordogne has made the decision that any micro business registered in dept 24 have no rights to any benefit. I am not sure this is legally allowed and I ask the question how are people on a low income supposed to live and pay bills when there is no help, especially if you are at home with young children and obviously unable to work full time.
My partner is a sculptor and has found it difficult to work again to create artwork from positive emotions, he has been working on house restoration in order for us to live – he is registered in the UK and pays tax as a self employed person there since 1989, his income is also low and we are really struggling and in debt but there seems no help from either country.
I am at home looking after a toddler aged 2 1/2 years full time. I have 14 years paid up NI in the UK and am completely distraught at the French system denying me any income top up while I have a young child. The Maison des Artistes in Paris has said I have a right to about €800/month but the local council refuse to pay it.
Please give me any MP’s names or contacts I could speak to find out if I can change this bizarre ruling and help probably lots of people in a similar situation or let me know if I can register differently and have the rights to European benefits for those on a low income."
Regards, Rosie Logan
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Sue Virr from www.nearlyheaven.com would like to share the story of her puppies arriving this week (15 April 2010)
Lucia and I sustained ourselves with endless cups of coffee, we had a struggle to keep the puppies warm, so when Meg was busy producing babies we were drying them for her, she could not complete the drying before another one popped out.
I can admit that I am totally exhausted even though I did manage to sleep last night, it must be something to do with my age!
best wishes Sue"
Sue Virr La Chataigneraie 87310 Gorre France. Telephone:(mobile) +33689713603 Home : +33555481750 |
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Anyone got rabbits??? Interesting tip from Linda.
Thank you for your super newsletter & all the hard work that you must put into it.
We have lots of Rabbits here and last time we had snow, earlier this year, because the grass was covered, they decided to chew their way through some varigated ivy stems that we were training up a fence to try to make it blend in more with our surroundings......................we had bought about 10 plants at several Euros each so we were not amused!
Then we hit on the idea of taking empty plastic bottles, at least one & a half litre size, cutting off the neck just below the shoulder, cutting off the bottom and then cutting down the bottle length with removing the label then you have a purpose built stem protecter for free! Because of the bottles being springy they naturally form round the stems with no tying then in the Spring we just collected them up slotted them inside one another ready to use again with our latest snow fall.
Hope this might be a help to other people who have "bunny villas " near or on their property.
Every good wish for Christmas & the New Year
Kindest Regards
Linda 21 December 2009 |
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This letter was sent in by some regular readers of our newsletter who experienced the Cinema in Thivers this week.
Hi
We decided this week to visit Thiviers Cinema to see Easy Virtue film in English and what a wonderful night we had. We stopped off first at the Hotel de France for a drink and Nicki (the owner) made us very very welcome and then we headed up in to Thiviers centre to find the cinema. Must admit from the outside it just looks like a shop but inside it was lovely. Very comfortable and spacious seating. Only 4 euro that night to get in and the film was good. We shall definitely go again and will be keeping an eye on the newsletter for the next English films.
The Girls! 18 June 2009 |
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This letter was sent to Sue Virr of www.nearlyheaven.com and she has forwarded it to us for inclusion as it follows the same "doggy" theme as below.
Bonjour Sue
The arrival of a new puppy, called Poppy
Poppy arrived at La Grue at the age of 7 1/2 weeks, not that you would know she was so young or so little. No fear or apprehension of her new surroundings, or new family. The two old girls who have lived at La Grue for years were only slightly curious of the new arrival, which of course Poppy wasn't going to take lying down. It took her just two days to ensconce herself into the fold, it has been mayhem and hurricane force ever since. Poppy has spurts of Poppy power, this is when she flies around the house at 40 miles an hour, looking for trouble or the odd game of tug o war with Taz the Alsatian, who, I might add, is 12 years old. This manic mayhem usually ends with Lucy, the pointer, stepping in and slapping both of them so that normality can return. We think that Lucy may know where the puppy keeps her batteries, because the result is usually a couple of hours of peace and quite whilst Poppy has a puppy nap. At the slightest rumble of thunder she is in our bed, if she can't sleep, in our bed, cold in our bed, do you see a pattern developing, there is already restricted room during storms, with Taz under the bed and Lucy on it. We never knew that Puppy's teeth were so sharp, however we know now, as she has taken a liking to fingers and toes.
In two weeks she has put on 2 kilo's and grown 5cm from the floor to her shoulder. I am only able to write this because a game of tug o war has just finished and all 3, Lucy Taz and Poppy are fast asleep, ah bliss, but you know what, can't wait until she's awake again, even though it means for the next however many weeks not much is going to get done around the house.
Ron and myself (Jackie) have never had a puppy before, we have always rescued dogs, usually Lurchers. We both agree that having Poppy is absolutely delightful, even with the odd puddle of pee and pile of poo, which she does on the odd occasion, she thinks that it is good fun, when we have a mad dash to the garden, which of course she refuses to come in from, so it's a titbit for enticement!!
We can't wait to introduce her to the outside World, it's like having a baby grow, we can see everything through new eyes, she is excited by everyone and everything. It's probably one of the most satisfying things we have done.
Congratulations to Mum and Dad for the production of such beautiful puppies and to Sue and the girls for the love and care they received until it was time to leave and go to there new homes.
Jackie and Ron Soutar. 22 May 2009 |
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Dear Dordogne on Line
We brought home an 8 week Hungarian Vizsla pup last week and seriously had
forgotten what hard work they are. At the moment it would be totally impossible
to (a) leave him on his own (b) ask anyone to 'pup-sit' as he is at stage
of being placed outside every half and hour or so to do his business and as our
house is definitely not easy to puppy-proof being one big living space, it is
very time-consuming. I know you have at least one dog, so I am sure you
appreciate what I am saying! I have come to the conclusion that babies are
easier, at least you can put nappies on them!
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"Good
Morning, Thought you might like to know that George East's new book
about Brittany - 'French Impressions: Brittany' will be published next
week on 1st June 2010. A wonderful, humorous and entertaining travel
book which is available at www.George-East-France.com
where you can learn more about the author and his time spent in
Brittany. The first in a series of French regions. Please find attached
some details which you may like for your site. Many thanks in
anticipation." Yours Francesca Brooks
La Puce Publications Marketing & Sales Manager – contact/enquiries Francesca on francesca.brooks@hotmail.com or telephone 02392 468181 for answerphone enquiries
Editor/ Reviewer Information Sheet
Title: French Impressions – Brittany Author: George East
The author: If anyone should know his onions about France and the French, it is or should be George East. His books and newspaper and magazine articles and TV and radio programmes on our nearest continental neighbours and their intriguing country have been enjoyed by millions.
Now George has created a new type of travel book.
George East was born in Hayling Island and ran away to sea at an early age. He got as far as the Isle of Wight before jumping ship and completing his education at Portsmouth Technical High School and Big Charlie’s Snooker and Poker Academy. After completing one term of his degree course in English at Portsmouth Polytechnic (he was thrown out when it was discovered he had forged his ‘O’ and ‘A’ level certification), George tried his hand at a number of occupations. Amongst others, his professions included private detective, brewer’s drayman, night club manager, disc-jockey and bouncer (often all at the same time), snooker club proprietor, hotel manager, male model for outsize womens’ clothing (for a certain shop catering for men with a liking for female attire), seamstress (for the drag shop), pickled onion manufacturer, radio and television producer and presenter, publican and PR consultant.
The last of these activities came about when George was appointed as the world’s first professional bed tester. The recognition came after a leg of the East’s ancient bed pierced the ceiling of the lounge bar of their pub and became a significant tourist attraction. After being signed up by American giant bed maker Sealy Inc, George appeared in the world’s press and on hundreds of British and American radio and television stations.
Realising from this experience how easy it was to make up stories and gain publicity for their sponsor, George went into PR and marketing, and ended his proper working days with a number of national and international clients. When an unexpected windfall came their way as the result of a slightly dodgy deal, the Easts had the choice of paying off some of their mortgage or buying a new second-hand car. After hiring a car ferry and taking a thousand publicans and their spouses on a memorable day trip to Cherbourg, George and his wife looked into an estate agency window and decided to keep their mortgage and old car and use the windfall to buy a tiny cottage in the Normandy countryside. Having made every cock-up in the book that had not yet been written about the perils of buying a foreign property, George decided to write it. Home & Dry in France became a classic of its genre, and seven more books about trying to make a living out of living in France followed. After mistakenly buying a manor house next door to a thriving dog kennels, the Easts gave up trying to be sensible and decided to spend the autumn of their lives on the road and moving around their second favourite country.
The book: French Impressions-Brittany is the first in a series of books about the 22 very different regions of France. It is also a truly innovative travel book. It is a deliberate hybrid of information about Brittany, melded with anecdotes about the often eccentric expatriates and Bretons George encountered on his travels. Taking the advice of travel writing legend Louis Theroux and rather than racing around the region in a camper, George decided to take his time and live where he was writing about. So the Easts spent a year in a tiny hamlet half way up what counts as a mountain in Brittany, in the wild and often desolate reaches of the Finistere department. While attempting to fit in with the Breton-speaking community and their sometimes funny little ways, George toured the region in search of unusual places and people….and to discover how and why Brittany is so different from the rest of France. The result is totally unlike any other sort of travel book you will have read, and French Impressions: Brittany has already been described as a blend of Billy Bryson, Eric (Short Walk in the Hindu Kush) Newby - and the ravings of an ill-educated lunatic. Whether either of those is a fair description is for you and the reading public to decide.
The facts:
· A new sort of travel book about the most popular destination in France for Britons · Author with proven appeal, unique style and often quirky ‘take’ on people, places and Life · More than a hundred towns and tourist attractions reviewed · The history and culture of Brittany explored · Dozens of traditional Breton food and drink recipes · Information on holidaying, visiting or moving to live in Brittany
Summary: Millions of Britons visit Brittany every year. Many dream of moving to and starting a new life and perhaps business in this fascinating region. French Impressions – Brittany not only explores the region, but its history, culture and appeal. It is the first in a series about different areas of France, and the first of its type. Whatever you want from it and whichever way you look at it, this is Brittany in a book…
Title: French Impressions-Brittany by George East Publisher: La Puce (The Flea) Publications Type of book: Paperback, 296 pages ISBN: 978-09523635-9-0 Main Distributor: Gardners Books Official Launch: June 1st 2010 Price: £9.99 More information from: francesca.brooks@hotmail.com or visit www.george-east-france.com
Extracts
La Puce Publications Marketing & Sales Manager – contact/enquiries Francesca on francesca.brooks@hotmail.com or telephone 02392 468181 for answerphone enquiries
A Taste of French Impressions: Brittany
On the locals:
Turning into the square I have to swerve to avoid running into Eddie Izzard. He has just emerged from the pork butcher’s shop and favours me with a nihilistic stare before flouncing off in the direction of the post office. It is of course not Eddie Izzard, but a local lady doing an unintentional but impressive impression of the comic and enthusiastic wearer of women’s clothing. Brittany certainly seems to be the European capital of lookalikes, and Huelgoat its headquarters. As well as the Clint Eastwood and Rasputin dopplegangers, the owner of the creperie down the road is a spitting image of Robbie Williams. There is also a woman who could be a clone of Margaret Thatcher - had she become a bag lady instead of one of our greatest Prime Ministers. In one of the bars, there is even a pug dog which has a sneer exactly like the late great Elvis Presley. Such is the prevalence of lookalikes here, there is a regular contest to see which townsperson looks most like a famous personality. Last month there was a special event to find who looked most like the mayor of Huelgoat. The contest was won, unsurprisingly, by the mayor.
On the expats: Yesterday I met a Scotsman who believes he is a reincarnation of an ancient Breton king with magical powers; to me he looks more like a reincarnation of Rab C Nesbit on a bad hair and teeth day. Riothamus (or Dougal to his former friends in East Kilbride) lives in an impressively distressed caravan, carefully hidden from official view alongside an as-yet restored stretch of canal. We met when I was passing his hideaway and he accosted me to say he recognised me from a past life. Steeling myself for a probable touch, I accepted his invitation to take a cup of dandelion tea and was fascinated to learn that apart from his other talents, he is a skilled wind-maker. With the right incantation and frame of mind, he says he can raise anything from a zephyr to a full-blown hurricane. Unfortunately, when I asked for a demonstration he said it did not work when there were other humans around to interfere with the temporal forces. Riothamus says that the canal was deliberately built along a really strong leyline and always attracted unusual people, and I believe him. After I slipped him a few euros to keep him going until he secures his next windmaking commission, we parted and promised to look each other up in another thousand years.
On sightseeing:
We cannot get closer to the castle at Vitré than the car park, which is anyway being dug up and taken away to foil would-be visitors. Across the morass, a cherrypicker is holding two men up against one vast wall. I see that they are re-pointing it, filling the gaps between huge slabs with mortar. As they are using trowels not much bigger than soup spoons, it is clear they have a job for life.
On the way back to the car we marvel at the range and condition of buildings, and note probably the only restaurant in France calling itself The Cabbage Soup. Spotting a sign bearing the silhouette of a teapot, I go in to the café to be confronted by the glinting glasses of a short, fat woman who seems to be chewing a wasp. She denies all knowledge of tea and how to serve it, and when I point my umbrella at a plate of fancy cakes and ask what they are, she completely loses it, grabs my brolly and orders me from the premises. After a spirited tug-of-war, I retreat from the shop and we find somewhere more welcoming. * Beneath the waves in the bay of Douarnenez is said to lay a place with a history of nearly as much drama, sex and misery as a TV soap in desperate search of ratings. The island city of Ys has several great stories associated with it, the most common and popular claiming it was built for the princess Dahut by her father Gralon, the king of the Cornouaille region. As well as suffering from a shortage of vowels, the island was below sea level and protected by a gated dyke for which the king held the only key. Ys was to become the most impressive and beautiful city in the world, but was also a byword for sin and corruption. Dahut was a bit of a ladette, and had a penchant for organizing orgies then killing her lovers when day broke. One fateful evening, a knight in red arrived and was invited to join in the fun. During the night, he suggested that Dahut steal the key from her sleeping father. She did, and the Devil (for it was of course he) threw open the gates and allowed the sea to swallow Ys. Enraged, the king threw Dahut into the oncoming torrent, where she became a mermaid, doomed to swim the lonely seas for eternity. As with all drowned cities, it is said that on stormy nights you can hear the bells of the church at Ys ring dolefully out, and sometimes even the mournful cries of the lonely mermaid.
Title: French Impressions-Brittany by George East Publisher: La Puce (The Flea) Publications Type of book: Paperback, 296 pages ISBN: 978-09523635-9-0 Main Distributor: Gardners Books Official Launch: June 1st 2010 Price: £9.99 More information from: francesca.brooks@hotmail.com or visit www.george-east-france.com
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shop
– newsletter March 2010
Les Arrondières, 03210 Gipcy – tél 04 70 47 36 09 / 06 31 13 47 53 – www.LAshop.eu – mail : info@LAshop.eu - SIRET 509 229 258
A new year – a new approach
After about 1½ year exploiting the little village shop of Gipcy, LAshop starts the new year with a new approach.
In March we move to LAshop and café in our own ferme Les Arrondières, also at Gipcy. Les Arrondières is situated very close to our former store. It is the last ferme (“the one with the blue shutters”) of the bourg of Gipcy, on the D11 in the direction of Souvigny.
Because of our move LAshop is closed between 1 and 15 March!
After March 15 all customers are again very welcome. Please note: as from that date we open on request only. It is no longer necessary to hasten in the mornings. For some customers this appeared to be a problem. Now you can -ON APPOINTMENT ONLY- also visit LAshop on other hours.
Please do call beforehand to 04 70 47 36 09 and/or 06 31 13 47 53 to hear whether or not your visit is possible on the intended moment. If necessary leave your message on the answering machine and we will call you back as soon as possible.
As always LAshop and café is the address for:
• Typical Dutch, English and local products • Fresh eggs from free-range chickens • Unique cartes postales made by local artisans • Second hand Dutch and English books (to swap and now also for sale) • Seasonal plants • A cup of tea or coffee, a glass of wine (or something stronger) or a snack • dépôt de gaz (Antargaz, the red bottles)
As usual we have a small stock of many products so at times certain products may be sold out. Larger quantities or other products may be ordered. The price of ordered products is 10% less than the price of the same products on the shelf. Check the details on www.lashop.eu. We are always looking for new local products and services which might interest our clients. We will try to sell them and/or mention them on the links-page of our site. Suggestions? Please contact us via phone (see above) or e-mail (info@lashop.eu)
Nanneke en Pieter Commerce Bourbonnais LAshop, Gipcy
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The Forthcoming Regional Elections
On 14 and 21 March 2010 there will be the elections of the 26 Regional Councils (Conseils Régionaux) of France. The Conseil Régional of Limousin which meets in Limoges, covers three Départements; Haute Vienne, Corrèze, and Creuse,
The regional level is the first subdivision of authority in France below Parliament and the Senate, sitting above the Départements, which are above the Communes. However there are also other groupings of communes such as Cantons and Communautés de Communes which are grouped for practical purposes rather than the distribution of political power. *
The Conseil Régional of Limousin sits in Limoges, the regional capital, and comprises 43 Members. They are distributed between the Départements, with 21 seats in Haute Vienne (371,000, 50%), 14 seats in Corrèze (242,000, 33%) and 8 seats in Creuse (124,000, 17%). In brackets are their respective populations. It should be noted that only French citizens are allowed to vote in these elections, with foreigners being restricted to the local council, and European parliamentary, elections. Independently in each Département there is a separate Conseil Général with its own elected members.
For the regional elections, in each Département, the various political parties create lists of candidates and votes are cast for these party lists. The party which has the greatest vote when added up across the whole region is given one quarter (¼) of seats of each Département. If one party has gained more than 50% in the poll the remaining seats gained by each party will be the total number of seats remaining in the Département, multiplied by the fraction of the poll received by that party. If not, there is a second run-off vote, with only the two leading parties in competition. The candidates filling the seats will be the topmost candidates of the list of that party.
Thus in Corrèze, if the Socialists (PS) receive the largest vote in the whole region then ¼ of the 14 seats go immediately to them, ie 4 seats. Assuming that no party obtains more than 50% in the first ballot then the smaller parties, ie the Verts, Communists, National Front are eliminated and it is likely that the run-off will be between the Socialists and the UMP., The remaining 10 seats will then be allocated on a proportional basis, and if the PS and UMP are neck and neck then they will get 5 seats each.
If one believes that there should be a reasonable representation of the all the citizens in the Conseil Régional, then this system has its flaws, as the lists which are prepared by political parties may well bear no relationship to the distribution of the population across the department. It is possible for all the candidates to come from one area leaving the rest without any contact with a regional councillor. In the last election (2004) some 25% of Corrèze had no such contact.
Discussions are now taking place in Parliament in Paris to reform the current situation. The proposal is to create a new post, conseiller térritorial who will replace, in 2014, both the conseiller régional and the conseiller général. The intent is that the conseiller térritorial will be elected from a constituency comprising several adjoining cantons. Typically a canton comprises 10-15 communes. Beyssenac is a part of the canton of Lubersac. In this way there will be representation form all parts of the Territory ( Region) in the political organs.
From 2014 therefore it is proposed that the Conseil Régional filled with Conseillers Territoriaux will sit in Limoges at the existing Conseil Régional, and the Corrèze group also in Tulle at the Conseil Général, and that for Corrèze the 14 Conseillers Régionaux and the 37 Conseillers Généraux will be replaced by only 25 Conseillers Territoriaux.
At present all Conseillers are elected for terms of 6 years but to enforce the change the Conseillers Régionaux elected in 2010 will serve only for 4 years and Conseillers Généraux to be elected in 2011, for three years, until the new arrangement commences in 2014.
In Beyssenac we have a particular interest in 2010 as our Mayor, Francis Comby, is the lead candidate of the UMP list for Corrèze. The UMP party is that of the current French President, M Nicolas Sarkozy, and it is likely that the vote in Corrèze will be fairly evenly shared between the UMP and the Socialists. Thus M Comby will almost certainly become a Conseiller Régional for Corrèze. Overall, however, the Conseil Régional is likely to be returned with its Socialist majority.
It is generally felt that in the future the Conseil Régional will get increasing powers to the detriment of the Département. Obviously their main focus is on grand projects that span the Départements, and in particular in Limousin there are;
Neil Spoonley Beyssenac January 2010
This article has been greatly aided by the advice and help of Francis Comby, Mayor of Beyssenac.
*For general description of the current French political structure send an e-mail to me asking for a copy of my article on French Politics
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Pont Lasveyras Memorial Ceremony 2010 Tuesday 16th February 2010 at 3.00 pm We were astonished in 2007, that on a cold Friday afternoon in February that nearly 500 people would assemble in a remote part of Beyssenac to remember the occasion in 1944 of the massacre by the Germans of over forty young men from the communes of Lanouaille, Beyssenac, Payzac etc
In 2008, the 16th February being a Saturday, some 800 people attended with 50-60 banners of the resistance being paraded, and most mayors of the surrounding communes were present. The same happened in 2009 when the ceremony took place on Sunday 15th. This year, 2010, it reverts to the traditional date of the 16th, being a Tuesday.
This occasion is an important symbol of the wish of local communities to never see or hear of such an atrocity again. Those of us who have now made our homes here can stand alongside those whose families were touched by the massacre, offering our support for the same ends.
The mill has now been acquired by the local communes, turning it into a museum of the Resistance, with the avenue along the river between the Pont and the Mill becoming a memorial walk with educational panels concerning the resistance activities.
The principal ceremony will take place at the impressive Memorial by the Mill starting at 15:00 hrs. There is a turning on the right hand side of the road from Pompadour to Payzac, just after Pissac, which leads to the Pont. Many will park at the Pont Lasveyras where fields have been made available and walk to the Memorial, about 600m. If you wish to attend do remember to wrap up warm and have good shoes in case it is wet and cold. It is best to arrive at about 14.30 hrs to make sure that you can park and also walk to the Memorial area.
In the morning there will be other wreath laying ceremonies at St Yrieix (10:30, Monument), Payzac (11:00, Cemetery) and Savignac-Ledrier (11:30, Mairie)
Please pass this around to others that you know, and of course everyone is welcome to attend if they wish.
Neil & Sue Spoonley (sue.neil@orange.fr)
For details of the actual event in 1944, please e-mail to us for a copy of an article. |
| Dorothy Race
Author
Having written poetry, stories, articles etc over the years – all for personal pleasure – I had forever hoped that one day I might get something published. Hello Little Snail is that dream come true. Roger and I met in 2003, and married in 2004. Our joint family of four adult offspring are all settled in their own life styles across England, with one having emigrated to Australia so with retirement approaching we were looking for a new a adventure. Last year we found our lovely new home here in France. Please visit my web site www.mousetec.co.uk to read more about Little Snail and how you can purchase the book.
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Just over 10 years ago I bought some new shoes – they cost me £99 in the sales. About 2 months ago I bought some shoes for €19 and got one pair free. The 10 year old shoes are still just about as good as new – the new ones, well, one pair is ruined already. THE most frequently asked question about eco systems is payback – or to put it another way “How long will it take to recoup my investment?” This is one of those “How long is a piece of string “questions - there are so many variables - but that’s not a satisfactory answer so let’s consider one specific product and the one considered to be the best investment, a Solar Hot Water System. So “What is the pay back?” Well, first and foremost it does have a payback. If you buy Oil, Gas or Electricity there is no pay back at all - ever. No matter how much gas, oil or electricity you buy and no matter how long you buy it for, you never get your money back. You will also have to service, maintain and ultimately renew your boiler or whatever at some time. Payback is usually calculated as the equipments capital cost divided by the annual fuel bill savings - unfortunately this is simply inaccurate, misleading and wrong. You need to take a wider view and factor in future energy increases, inflation, the savings in boiler or equipment servicing and the lifetime of such equipment. There are also other factors that will affect this calculation – factors completely beyond our control such as the newly introduced French Carbon Tax for Oil and Gas – who knows what other taxes or environmental penalties will be introduced in the future? In fact Solar used to compliment central heating systems are likely to become much more popular purely because of this new Carbon Tax. If all of the variables are taken into account it is generally accepted that a good Solar Thermal System offers a pay back of between 5 to 10 years. Remember too there are French Government incentives for Eco systems such as Tax Credits and reduced TVA rates that can reduce these payback times still further if you qualify. “Up front” financials aside, it is also good for the environment, will increase the value of your home, and makes us less susceptible to the ever increasing costs of energy. Whatever form of eco system you might consider it is absolutely vital you choose a system that will perform efficiently for a very long time with a “rock solid” guarantee. A payback period of 10 years isn’t much use if your system only lasts 10 years (or less) and I have seen some systems (and shoes) that have neither performed nor lasted as long as they should have. It is quite possible to obtain efficiency figures for solar systems – they are recorded by the test laboratories that evaluate systems for product approvals such as the main one for Solar which is the Solar Keymark. One of the key tests for solar systems is Optical Efficiency which measures how much light is captured and converted into useful energy. To give you one specific example here are the key figures from two mainstream suppliers of solar systems in France (names withheld of course): The Optical Efficiency of system A is 0.37 / The Optical Efficiency of system B is 0.85. You don’t have to be a genius to know which one is better by more than twice as much so choose wisely. The up front costs are a “one off” – the operating costs are for life. You ALWAYS get what you pay for so maybe the £99 shoes were the better buy after all. Marc Asker – EcoPower
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| Appeal from Simon Williams
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Autumn Gold in Limousin From Darren EdwardsThe best way to give your garden the midas touch Autumn
is just around the corner and I’m sure we are all looking
back and reflecting on what a truly wonderful summer we’ve
had. Yet being a tree lover, for me, the best is yet to
come. The months of autumn give nature a chance for one final grand flourish to the year, as deciduous trees start to change colour. Like an allie against the coming winter, trees like Acer, Beech, Liquidamber, Poplar and Tulpifera turn to shades of fiery reds, oranges, browns and yellows, covering the Limousin countryside in a psychological heart warming tapestry of colour, until winter takes its grip and forces the leaves to finally fall. 
So how does it all happen? Well, most of these colours are
already present in the leaf, but are masked by the green
chlorophyll which the leaf needs for photosynthesis. As the
day length shortens, trees ready themselves for the coming
winter and shut down food producing elements. The
chlorophyll disappears from the leaf and any trapped
glucose, is turned by sunlight and cooler autumn nights into
the brilliant red colours we see. If
just walking the roads and lanes of the region is not enough
for you, there are a couple of excellent arboretums in the
region. Arboretum de la Sédelle, in Villejoint, Crozant is
open until the end of October. Or Arboretum de la Jonchère,
located in Le Bourg, near La Jonchere Saint-Maurice.
Hopefully all this natural beauty will stimulate you into
planting at least one tree in your own garden. If not, then
take a deep breath........ The oxygen that has just filled
your lungs was produced in part by trees.  Just
two mature trees produce enough oxygen annually to support a
family of four. Now breathe out.....The carbon dioxide
exhaled will be absorbed back by the trees. Just one tree
can absorb as much carbon in a year as a car produces while
driving over 25,000 miles.Convinced? Off down to the tree nursery this weekend? Good, but before you make your purchase and rush back to plant it, here are just a few tips to ensure that your money is not wasted, both now, by planting correctly to give your tree a chance to establish itself and for the future so you’re not unnecessarily calling out a tree surgeon to cut your tree down because it’s too close to the house. Autumn is the best time to plant, so the time is right now. If you’re unsure what to plant, or what will succeed, look around you. See what is thriving in the area. Just make sure that if you go for a species out of the ordinary that it will flourish in soil and climate conditions. Matching the tree to the site is critical. When you purchase that short 3-6ft sapling, what size is it likely to be in 10, 20, 30 years time. A crucial factor when planting is to consider buildings, driveways, overhead cables, underground utilities. Remember trees spread out below ground as well as above ground and serious damage and expense can be incurred if a tree is poorly sited. Trees purchased from nurseries are sold in one of three forms:  Balled
The roots of the tree and the soil around them are wrapped up in a breathable cloth.
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How to set up a web site for your French holiday home
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Set-up a website and sell the dream |
It’s an easy decision to harness the power of the Internet to market your French holiday home, but don’t underestimate the importance of effective presentation and promotion of your website. Here, we provide some guidance on getting started with your site and how to get potential customers to view your carefully crafted pages. |
Choosing a Website Design Service
There are many options to consider when selecting a company to design your website. Don’t be tempted by the false economy of the homemade site option. First impressions are important and a poorly presented website is unlikely to engender interest in your gite or chambre d’hote.
Consider the services that you require when choosing website designer. These will very likely include a content management system (the facility to log-in and make real-time updates to your website), web hosting, domain registration and logo design. You should certainly be offered access to reports on the number of people who have visited your site, and where they have clicked through from (sometimes called “site stats”).
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Template based websites can look great |
A full-featured, professionally designed accommodation rental website need not cost more than about £500-£600, and an annual fee of around £100 may also apply.
An excellent option for the budget conscious is to use a template-based website building service. These typically involve selecting from a range of pre-designed templates and then adding text and images using an online tool. These services vary in quality and cost, so check their portfolio pages and compare prices. One such service, whose templates are specifically designed for guest and rental accommodation websites, is Simplicity Websites (www.simplicitywebsites.co.uk). |
Your domain name will influence how highly your site is placed in search engine listings. Firstly, decide if you want your domain to have a .co.uk or a .fr extension. Google will generally list .co.uk domains higher for searches conducted in the UK, so if your site is in English choose the .co.uk extension.
The domain name should include two or three keywords that your potential customers might enter into search engines, this will improve your listing position. For example, a bad domain name to choose would be www.chezjanet.co.uk as it includes no keywords that users might use in Google searches. An example of a good domain name would be www.charentegiterental.co.uk as it includes three highly relevant keywords.
Unfortunately, no one will find your site unless it establishes a good web-presence so, once it’s complete, the underrated and time-consuming task of promoting the site begins.
It’s important to get your site into the main general search engines and directories, these are Google (www.google.com) Yahoo (www.yahoo.com) MSN (www.msn.com) Ask (www.ask.com) and Open Directory Project (www.dmoz.com) . These sites may eventually find and list your website but it could take several months so it’s advisable to visit each one and submit your site.
There are a number of online directories that specialise in listing French gites, chambres d’hotes etc; some are free but most charge a fee of up to £100 per year. These are worth using but they do vary in the amount of enquiries that they generate so use them selectively and monitor the results from each one.
An effective way of increasing traffic to your site is to create a links page and ask other sites to exchange links with you. It is advisable to only include links to relevant websites so offer to swap links with other French holiday home owners, your local taxi service, tourist attractions, estate agents etc. A great tip is to ensure that, when another site links to yours, your main keywords are clickable text. Search engines will use this clickable text to determine the content of your site, enabling them to list you highly for relevant searches.
Finally, a content rich site packed with relevant information will always attract visitors and search engines love them. Build your site with 6 to 10 pages, include loads of content on your establishment and pack it with plenty of local tourist, travel and heritage information.
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By Trevor Owen of chambre d’hote and gite website creation tool Simplicity Websites.
Please email Trevor for further help and advice: trevor@simplicitywebsites.co.uk |
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Programme of
Equestrian Events in Pompadour 2010
Click HERE for more information on the programme of events for 2010
Hopefully it will not be long now before we have lovely warm days and we can begin to plan for things in the summer sun. As ever Pompadour has a full programme of equestrian related events from March through to November. So get out your diaries and make some appointments with Pompadour.
One of the early highlights will be the Horseball competition to take place between 9 -11 April. If you have never witnessed Horseball it really is a ‘must’ to be there. Try to Google ‘Horseball’ and you will see that it is a sort of rugby on horseback on a fairly small pitch!! This year one of the events in the Ladies National Championship is taking place. This event overlaps with a National level dressage competition so a good week-end is in store. One week-end later is a National level eventing competition .
May has the opening horse racing event on Sunday 23 May so you can come along and have a flutter. However on Thursday 13 May, Ascension Day, which is a National Holiday in France there is the annual walk and picnic called a Rando-Calèche organised by the association Réunir au Pays. This is a good morning walk in one of the local communes followed by a picnic and an afternoon to relax. You can come on foot, in a calèche, with a dog,, a vélo, or even a horse. All are welcome.
June follows with a month of dressage, showjumping, and eventing. Throughout July there is horseracing starting on the Sunday 5th where there will also be an exhibition of classic cars in the hippodrome. The following Sunday is when we welcome people from Folkestone.
The 14th July, Bastille Day is special as for many years it has been National Day of the Donkey in the Hippodrome. The event is organised by Rèunir au Pays of St Sornin, and has a Spanish theme this time. It is day for the whole family with the main activities in the afternoon. In the evening the town of Pompadour will have organised a funfair, and a spectacular fireworks display late in the evening. This can be viewed from the Hippodrome but a dinner is also on offer in the Panoramic Restaurant of the Hippodrome, from where the fireworks can be seen. The night activity continues with an open-air dance in the town.
Should you like horses there is a delightful occasion of the 20th July when a competition for mares and foals is held. The last race day in July is Picnic day when many come to have a picnic in the hippodrome before the racing takes place. Food is available or you can bring your own.
August brings in more race meetings and in particular the Day of Elegance when all can dress up and there are competitions for the best hat, clothes etc.
The big day though in August is Sunday 15th, Assumption, which starts with a Mass held before the stand on the racecourse. This is followed by a race meeting in the afternoon with the prestigious Grand Prix de Pompadour, the richest race in the Pompadour calendar. Throughout the day there is also the last day of a three day, high level, showjumping competition.
The last two race meetings are early in September, the second one being predominantly for lady and amateur riders. One of the greatest events of the year is the Grand Week of the Horse between 15th-19th September. Over 500 horses will be in Pompadour competing in dressage, show-jumping, and cross country events. Again one of the most charming events is that for mares and foals. A ‘village’ of shops and cafés will be set up and the whole event is well worth a visit.
Generally most events are free for spectators. However for race meetings there is an entrance fee of 6€ and for National Donkey Day it is 8€.
Neil Spoonley
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My name is Jon Prince and I have been involved in the carpet and flooring trade for the past 30 years or so - either selling them, fitting them or cleaning them. (Being self-employed, most of the time I was doing all 3!)
But the majority of the time I've been fitting carpets, vinyl and laminate/wooden flooring either for my own clients or sub-contracting for the likes of Allied Carpets, Carpet Right and Courts Furnishers. The idea was, that now the system for starting a business here in France has been simplified, I would carry on where I left off in the UK 3 years ago and fit customers own carpets and flooring.
Although that has been the start of the business, almost every person I've spoken to has asked me to supply the carpets/underlay's etc. - and now I can!
Free measuring/estimating Carpet samples to your home Guaranteed fitting
From May 1st. 2009 we will be making monthly return trips to the UK to collect all your carpet and flooring requirements - so from measuring to fitting should never be more than a month away (bearing in mind that most carpet retailers in France will quote you 4/5 weeks delivery).
Maison Secondaire
If you have a second/holiday home in France and are limited to the amount of time you can spend here, try to identify the carpet you want at one of the major UK high street stores - the chances are we will be able to give you a quote for the same range.
Areas covered
France is a very big country and although we are based centrally in the Correze/Limousin our services are mainly for our own surrounding departments - depts. 15, 16, 23, 24, 46, 63 & 87 - and of course 19.
However please feel free to contact us for work outside these areas - we will help where we can!
See our advert here and our web site www.jon-thecarpetman.com
Joanna Wright and Jackerobi Textiles
Joanna Wright Background
All my life I have worked in fashion and textiles. I am passionate about colour and design, and my main attributes are my constant enthusiasm and my organizational skills. I began my career as a textile designer becoming fully conversant with all fabrics, the yarns that make those fabrics, and the various textures that are woven or knitted, stable or stretch, which has been essential to designing fashion and soft furnishings.
I have worked as a fashion or textile designer for many UK companies including Courtaulds, London, then I started my own business whilst living on a Leicestershire farm.
The name ‘Jackerobi’ is made up from the names of my children.
I had a shop and workshop near Leicester, and the business became very successful creating and supplying sweatshirts and fleeces to several schools, and made to measure trousers for individual customers, especially those with awkward sizes.
During my career I have cut hundreds of patterns and fitted many a toile, and have conquered all shapes, styles and sizes in baby wear, children’s wear, ladies wear, and men’s wear. I have designed, cut, and manufactured tailored garments, leisurewear, dancewear, costumes for productions and fancy dress, bridal wear and corsetry. I relocated to France along with my industrial sewing machines and rolls of fabric in 2005, initially to expand my versatility and take some time out to study fine art and art history, before starting this new French enterprise.
La Féolle is a perfect place for my work and anyone is welcome to discuss anything from alterations of clothes, furnishings, upholstery, painting commissions, animal beds, to new designs, or to view stock that’s for sale.
We currently have our soft furnishings on sale in Paris.
WHO
ARE WE?Phoenix is a non-profit making organisation, run on a voluntary basis. We have no paid staff and rely entirely on the goodwill of our helpers/supporters
Phoenix is a network of foster
homes, not a single adoption centre. The dogs and cats are fostered and
integrated happily into family life.
We operate on the principle of 'small is beautiful', concentrating on only one
or two newcomers at a time, so as to give them maximum care and attention before
offering them for adoption. Some stay, and become permanent members of their
foster households.
Click the following links to find out more about this wonderful organisation
http://www.phoenixasso.com/gang.html
http://www.phoenixasso.com/adoption.php3
http://www.phoenixasso.com/membership.html
http://www.phoenixasso.com/links.php3
http://www.phoenixasso.com/horse.php3
Tax Credits and VAT in France - Credit’ d’Impot et TVA : Caveat emptor – Let the buyer beware
France has well publicised system of tax credits which apply to certain products. These products are mainly those considered ‘renewable energy’ systems such as solar hot water systems, or for property heating and include log or pellet boilers, wood burning stoves and some heat pumps.
The purpose of the tax credit scheme is to provide a financial incentive to buyers to encourage them to invest in environmentally friendly technologies, which is good for everyone and of course the planet. In essence, if you buy a product approved for tax credits (more later) then the tax office will reimburse a percentage of the product cost, on the proviso the product is supplied and installed by the same company (vitally important*), and the company must of course be registered to install such equipment.
For example, you purchase a wood burning central heating boiler which costs say 7000 Euros plus installation. The tax office will reimburse you 40% of this, i.e. 2800 Euros in the following tax year. If you don’t pay this much tax, or in fact pay none, then they will send you a cheque – yes really !! Please note, the credit applies to product cost only and not labour.
Personal qualification criteria
The main requirement is that you must be fiscally resident in France, and if your principal residence is in France then in theory you are fiscally resident from day one.
Until recently the scheme only applied to principal residence but has now been extended to include properties that are rented unfurnished for a period of 5 or more years.
Products approved for tax credits
The products have to achieve a certain level of efficiency, i.e. say 85% efficient, and meet certain standards. For example, for a solar hot water system has to be either CSTB approved, Solar Keymarked or be approved to a Pan European standard such as EN12975 etc. This is not something that you should be concerned about – the supplier should be able to tell you whether the product qualifies or not.
How much tax credit and for how long?
Up until February 2009 you could for example receive up to a 50% reimbursement against many qualifying products, however this has recently been reduced to 40% for some items. It is also very important to note that the tax credit does not necessarily apply to all of the products that might be used.
For example, for solar hot water systems the tax credit applies to what is deemed the ‘renewable energy part of the system’. Therefore, in this instance it only applies to the solar panel/s and not for example the pipework, pump etc. The amount of tax credit is limited to 8000 Euros for a single person and is 16000 Euros for a couple.
The scheme was due to finish at the end of 2009 but has been extended to 31st December 2012. That said, the percentage amount of tax credit is being reduced each year so in 2010 it is no longer 40% for boilers but reduced to 25% and so on.
Whose responsible for complying with the tax regulations?
As the person submitting the tax return you are responsible. If you claim tax credits the ‘tax office’ will not necessarily check you qualify. This shouldn’t really be a problem but read on – some details have been removed to protect the identities of customer and supplier.
Caveat emptor - a horror story*
We bought our xxx
in 2006 from ABC and received the 50% credit d'impot. After receiving the rebate
we have not thought about it again.
Anyway, in February this year we received a
letter from the tax office stating that as the xxx wasn't installed by the
company who supplied it and we have to hand back the rebate plus interest!!
They're not claiming it's fraud but they want the rebate back.
Obviously it's a shock. What's most annoying is
ABC should have made this clear to us this when we bought it. Their 50% rebate
stickers are extremely misleading...my partner went in to the store to point
this out and they uselessly said 'c'est noté'.
So a word of warning - if you've not bought yet
it must be bought from and installed by the same company. If you didn't and you
had a rebate I'd make sure you put a bit of money aside just in case your tax
form gets checked too. Who'd have thought they still went over these things
years after!
It’s an unfortunate fact of life that the tax credit scheme has been and is being badly misrepresented and abused by numerous companies both big and small. The company referred to above is a major multi national so don’t assume just because they’re big they’re right.
Reduced rates of TVA
In a similar vein to get a reduced rate of TVA (VAT) the product/s have to be professionally installed.
The standard rate of TVA is 19.6% and the reduced rate is 5.5% so quite a saving.
There are a few other requirements such as the property being more than two years old, that the work is replacement / refurbishment etc etc but the above point re ‘professional installation’ is the one to watch.
The main French TVA form is a very simple one which is a pleasant surprise.
My advice
Despite the fact that legally it is your responsibility to ensure you are not making any false tax claims unwittingly or otherwise, (which could be considered as fraudulent), the supplier has a moral obligation to give you accurate advice.
If they are not prepared to help then maybe they are not the company for you?
Do try and take advantage of these schemes – there are huge financial benefits there for the asking and of course it’s money back from the taxman which is a bonus in itself – but do your homework and then you can be secure in the knowledge that you have complied.
Article by Marc Asker of EcoPower France
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Read here Angel Traders newsletter June 2010
Newsletter Angel Traders returns to Eymet dept 24 in July
You are invited to our English Speaking Business
Fair in Eymet Dept 24 on a busy market day Thursday 15th July 2010. Make your business work harder and let business come to you.
If you have a trade or service that you can provide
to the expatriates in your area then why not book an inexpensive stand.
We look forward to seeing you all very soon
Amanda and Melanie
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Sterling Shopping May2010 Newsletter
Sterling Shopping Ltd – Spring News letter
Hello and welcome to this latest edition of the Sterling Shopping newsletter. The warm weather has certainly arrived in France and judging by the number of orders for garden furniture, garden equipment and bbq’s, many of you are already spending a lot of your time in the garden. As ever, we have a lot to tell you about including our recent expansion, our move to a bigger depot and the very exciting new loyalty scheme due to start in May.
NEW DEPOT
Due to our continued increase in business, we have outgrown the current depot on the farm in Weston and so we are pleased to announce our move as of 1st May to our new depot in Brackley, Northants. Our new address will be Unit D1, Lincoln Park, Borough Road, Brackley, Northants, NN13 7BE. This address should be used for all orders for goods arriving after 7th May 2010.
The new depot has given us a much greater handling capacity to more than double our customer order capabilities from 400 orders each week to more than 1000 each week. This should help us to reduce the waiting lists and enable us to offer our customers slots, most weeks of the year. As ever, we would still recommend that you book early at the traditionally busy times and holiday periods.
SUPERMARKET PUSHES STERLING FOR MORE VEHICLES
Following a meeting with representatives from ASDA, we have committed to increase the number of vehicles on the road from 5 to 10 in the year. At the same time, ASDA requested that we moved from fortnightly deliveries to weekly deliveries and this has now been implemented in a number of drop areas.
The increase in vehicles and regularity of service means we will be able to add further drop locations and more of our current locations will see a weekly service.
As well as ASDA and WAITROSE, our new depot will offer food deliveries from SAINSBURYS. Another well known supermarket may be added shortly following current negotiations, but more of that once the deal is concluded!!
NEW DROP POINTS
As we have had so many requests to open up new areas, we have now added more than 10 new drop points to our delivery schedule. These include, Bellac, Bessines sur Gartemp, Abjat sur Bandiat, Rouen, La Souterraine, Riberac, Souillac, Montpon and Paris English residents club. Other drop points will be added to meet your requirements, so feel free to call us with your requests at any time. To find your nearest drop point, simply follow this link to our site on the google map system.
At every drop point, we now offer to accept any parcels, items or suitcases for return to the UK. The cost can be advised by Alyson in advance or directly with the driver on the day, so just turn up with your parcels and we will take care of the rest.
We also continue to provide the free letter posting service in the UK that many of you use each month.
REMOVALS
We wanted to say a big thank you to all of you who have been spreading the word about our services. We had our record month in terms of removal works in April, and all but one of the jobs came by personal recommendation from existing customers. Our combination of vehicles means we can offer 12 cu. mtr, 26 cu.mtr. and 38 cu.mtr volumes for removals, so even the largest of houses can be catered for with ease. We have also taken on the return load delivery works for 4 of the most well know antiques dealers in the southwest region of France. Their e bay sales in the UK, of antiques sourced in France are going extremely well and our dedicated UK truck is now kept busy all around the UK delivering these EBay items. As a company we have now managed to eliminate most of the “no load” mileage and that allows us to offer our loyal customers even better rates as detailed in the loyalty scheme below.
STERLING SHOPPING REGULAR SHOPPERS LOYALTY SCHEME
Sterling shopping has now been trading for a year and has more than 2000 registered customers with more joining us every day. We have seen the supermarkets successfully run various loyalty schemes and we wanted to do something along this line for our regular customers.
From the 1st May, we will introduce a loyalty scheme as follows;
So if you wish to shop regularly (at least once a fortnight), please e mail Alyson at thesterlinggirls@yahoo.co.uk and put the words REGULARS LIST in the subject box of your e mail. Alyson will then respond and confirm your delivery drop point to you.
If you wish to get in contact with us for removals or larger item quotes, please e mail Mark at markatsterling@yahoo.co.uk
To contact us about tree services and garden machinery sales, please contact Simon at simonatsterling@yahoo.co.uk
To contact us about garden furniture and personal shopping services and deliveries in the UK please e mail Jack at jackatsterling@yahoo.co.uk
And finally
The directors of Sterling Shopping were touched by the hundreds of messages of support you sent to Alyson, following the sad passing of her father. Whilst she could not respond to you all personally, the support so many of you showed at this difficult time was very much appreciated.
Thank you. |
Article prepared by www.mobiles.co.uk
The mobile phone industry in France is strong and growing stronger as the years progress and the mobile phone penetrates the hearts and minds of the population. There are over 53 million mobiles active in France itself and the country has a variety of networks providing services for their citizens. It`s interesting to note that a recent report linking mobile phone use with brain cancer was taken very seriously by the French government, who now aim to actively discourage mobile use for children under 12, with a ban on advertising to this age group. This is a progressive move that it is considered will be followed by other European nations in the future if further evidence is produced. Amongst the adult population mobile phones are of course an incredibly popular way to communicate and do business, and France also has 3G networks allowing fast access to the internet on your mobile phone as well as access to mobile broadband services on PCs and laptops. Lets look at some popular phones on the French market and some up and coming stars that are taking the country by storm.
HTC Magic - This is one of the latest touch screen handsets produced by iPhone-bothering manufacturers HTC. Called the Magic, this phone has all the smart applications and hardware that you`d expect, including a large 3.2" touch sensitive display that makes navigating menus, playing games, using applications and browsing the web simple and fun. It also features the Android operating system seen so far only on the G1 on T-Mobile because it is an OS developed by search engine giants Google. However, it works well here and it will be interesting to see how this new handset fares in the long run. It`s is available on the SFR network in France on a monthly contract.
Apple iPhone - As popular in France as it is in the rest of the world, the iPhone 3G is still a great piece of kit and is due for its second update later this summer. Available on Orange in France, the iPhone has a massive 3.5" touch sensitive screen, 8 or 16GB of on board storage space for videos, music and photos, and a powerful processor to make playing games and using applications a doddle. Then there`s the acclaimed iTunes software included to make your iPhone a fully fledged media player as well as the lauded App Store where you can sift through loads of useful applications and download them direct to your iPhone.
LG Cookie The Cookie is like a baby smart phone, featuring a decent touch screen interface, good camera and video recording functionality and an attractive design. It`s available in a range of colours, and in silver on Bouygues Telecom in France with unlimited mobile internet, which is a mobile phone deal that is hard to pass up. There are loads of great deals and handset available for every price range on the French market, and using online price comparison is the best way to sniff them out.
Auto entrepreneur - where do you begin
BECOMING AN AUTO ENTREPRENEUR, WHERE DO YOU BEGIN? (13 April 2009)
At the beginning I suppose, and where is that?
Why, after 17 years in France, living the frustrations and the hassle do I still want to get involved? And even crazier, Yes, I still want to start a business? What is it about us Brits!!
Well, I suppose I should thank President Sarkosy for liberating his government and making it all possible! If somebody didn’t sort France out I think a lot of people were wondering how it was all going to end. And now a crisis has intervened as well.
Is this a bad thing; are we in a worse state than our buddies overseas, who knows?
I live here, my life is here and so, I’m launching into AUTOENTREPRENEUR.
In March 2009 it became possible for me to register as an interpreter/translator, under the new scheme.
Firstly, I needed to look at what I wanted to achieve and realistically whether it was possible, would it make money etc. Nothing replaces good common sense.
For me, the goal was to launch this project without spending money, well, very little, as I didn’t have it to spend.
I work part time as a secretary/translator for an estate agency; and as you can imagine, business has been quiet to say the least, and as I have the time to achieve another goal I felt that this was the right moment for me, if ever there was one.
I started with an outline plan to the Mayor of St Yrieix, Daniel Boisserie, as I considered without this there was no business. I wanted a new out look on an old problem, COMMUNICATION AND INTEGRATION, or the lack of! After an initial conversation by telephone he was kind enough to call me in the same day to discuss my proposition. He is a man who likes action, motivation and free thought, so I think I scored a few points there.
Receiving a positive approach for my project, I ploughed on, remembering that I was getting myself involved with the heart of the French administration. It will be of no surprise to find out that a further month went by before I got the official stamp!
I spent that month learning just how you can produce a website at low cost on a DIY basis, with some very useful help from a kind friend who gave me the basics and put me in the right direction. In the end the total cost was £25 for my domain name and a year’s subscription. Business cards were easily obtained using Vista print, 250 free; just pay for the postage, and now as for the other possible costs, well.
From the outset, you do need to print off your guide. I did this on French Entrée Limousin, and also on the French site, Auto entrepreneur, so I could compare any discrepancies.
French text always takes the precedent, so it’s important to try and understand both. Only French text stands up in a court of law in France.
In that guide it mentions three very important points to be considered well before registration.
Will I need a professional insurance? It’s not obligatory, but check it out, I found Gerard Chevalier of AXA Insurance very efficient at evaluating my needs.
Do you need to protect your personal property against seizure should you run up huge debts? Well again I went to see the notary Jacques Delcroix In St Yrieix who helped me to see if I was at risk or not. There is a cost for this contract so you should think about it very seriously.
Professional Bank accounts, do you need one? NO, but if you think you will need an overdraft facility then you might be better to approach CREDIT AGRICOLE or the official bank for Auto entrepreneur, LA POSTE, to see what is on offer.
Having decided to carry on and that this was for me; I then made another list of questions to ask the auto entrepreneur help line. I could not believe it was going to be as easy as it said, so naturally I had lots of questions, because I was waiting for the trap!
There didn’t seem to be one! and you only have to go online and read some of the comments to realise that though it is a new scheme that may well have some quirks that need ironing out, for all the people wanting to “HAVE A GO !” without getting hooked into what was a very complicated system! En fin, It has arrived!
They have an excellent help line, or you can put your questions in email if you prefer; in French of course.
So once you are through these first steps, next week I’ll bring you up to date on the rest, if you just can’t wait, then get in touch straight away and I’ll help you get under way!!
http://www.link-styrieix.info/
Telephone 05 53 62 13 12
*****************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
BECOMING AN AUTO ENTREPRENEUR, PHASE TWO! (25 April 2009)
After my initial interest and keenness comes the reality
· Will it work?
· Are the council going to allow me to do this?
· Will my sponsors back me?
Well the first questions have been answered with a positive sign so…..
Why wait?
I brought up the AUTO ENTREPRENEUR website and pressed the enrol button.
You need to have ready a document with your passport details and a handwritten signed declaration; as well as your own health cover details if you have them?
Choosing the category to enrol in is probably the most complicated part but the information is there if you look carefully and think carefully.
I had my confirmation email back within 24 hours and my written confirmation from INSEE (the register for business accounts) within the week. So then you have the infamous Siret number and can plough ahead with your advertising etc.
On the registration form it states clearly you need to report your earnings trimestiel or mensuel, three monthly or monthly. At the moment only three monthly is on offer until July 2009.
IF YOU DO NOT REPORT YOUR FIGURES, EVEN IF THEY ARE ZERO you can lose your right to run a business. At the end of one year if you have reported O € for the whole year then your business can be ended for you by the authorities.
I hope it goes without saying that trying to start another business at this point could become very complicated, if not impossible.
It never pays to ignore the French Administration.
Following this I have now received a registration document from the retirement fund where my payments will be made should I make any money. Plus lots of options they offer BUT all costing money. Nothing is obligatory apart from the payments shared from your earnings which are done for you when you make your online declaration.
PAPERWORK
The documents you need are there for you to download and then personalise. You should keep a day to day record of activity, if you are lucky enough to have some, plus copies of bills you issue to your clients. These are all for your records should the authorities decide to run a control. Otherwise there are no formal books to keep, no accountants needed etc. You simply go on line to make your declaration once every three months and then you will be told the amount you need to pay and by what date.
Well for me that will be the 1st July.
If there is any major hitch I will let you know!
FOOTNOTE
If you don’t have success with the help line, information will always be available at the
LA CHAMBRE DE COMMERCE
LA CHAMBRE DE METIERS
ACPE
CPAM (QUERIES FOR BENEFITS AND HEALTH ISSUES)
ASSEDIC (BENEFITS, CHILD ALLOWANCE ETC)
And if you don’t know what these places are, try tapping them in online and seeing the wealth of information that can be had.
Good luck, and should you want someone to help get you up and running just give me a call.
Telephone 05 53 62 13 12
Or email me patricia@link-styrieix.info
For more information about my own business go to www.link-styrieix.info
Regards Patricia Littlewood
13 July 2010
http://www.equinerescuefrance.org/
Founded in 2007, ERF is a not for profit association (Loi 1901) whose aim is to improve the welfare of equines in France through rescuing, campaigning and education.
After living in France for several years, friends Jon and Kathryn Dobson (President), Jenny Lupton (Secretary) and Trina Summerfield felt that there was a need for an English speaking association to bridge the gap between UK charities and other associations in France, and ERF was born. In early 2008, ERF were accredited as a Member Society of the W.S.P.A (World Society for the Protection of Animals).
Based in the South West (with bases in Depts 24, 16 and 86), ERF offers advice and support for both English and French speakers facing equine welfare issues. Working with key UK charities, ERF are able to campaign for welfare improvements, whether enforcing existing legislation or campaigning for change. By forging links with the key French associations and welfare bodies, ERF are able to support their work as well as to instigate local actions.
ERF
regularly rescue horses and donkeys from maltreatment and then rehabilitate
and re-home them under long-term loan contracts, often the process takes many
months. ERF offers help and support to individuals who need to re-home their
equines due to changes in their circumstances – an increasing problem in these
times of financial hardship. In other cases, ERF can support owners by
offering expert help and advice, Trina is a Monty Roberts Registered Associate
and has show jumped at a National level, and Jenny has many years of both
Eventing and Training behind her. Working together with the relevant DDSV (Directions
départementales des services veterinaries),
they have been successful in ensuring that neglected animals are regularly
visited and improvement plans implemented.
ERF
campaigning efforts focus on raising awareness of the long-haul transport
issues facing equines in Europe where they do valuable work alongside WSPA and
WHW (World Horse Welfare).
Fund raising is an important part of their work since, although the majority of work is voluntary, there are regular vets’ and farriers’ bills to be paid. Funds are raised through association membership and fund-raising activities organised by volunteers – donations are always welcome!
ERF’s blog at http://equinerescuefrance.wordpress.com/ is a valuable source of information as it is regularly updated with news and videos of the rescues as well as other welfare news and general information about caring for equines in France. For more information on becoming a member or supporting their work, see their website at www.equinerescuefrance.org.
For further information on this article, please contact:
Kathryn Dobson (President): Kathryn@equinerescuefrance.org
Tel: +33 (0)549 971017
La Chaux, 86400 Linazay
WSPA : World Society for the Protection of Animals: www.wspa.org.uk
WHW: World Horse Welfare: www.worldhorsewelfare.org
Last updated Jan 2009
Internet Problems?? - if anyone has had any experiences like this below do email us and let us know.
We were clients of Tele2, recently taken over by SFR who offered us a good package to join straight away.
All went pretty well and our old contract and email address finally finished on the 24th January. We had already been functioning with the neuf box since the 10th January all working well.
And then! 23rd January, we started to have black outs on the box. The phone went first and our area has very bad cover with mobiles; so started a long week of calls to the technical service etc and a lot of frustration as they want to run all the checks while you are in front of your box but finally they would give me the tests and I would phone in with the results from work. They could find nothing!! During the week the line came back for a day, then gone again!! I started to lose my patience being sent back an forth between the commercial service and the technical service. I was lucky as at least I speak French and they did try to explain but not very thoroughly.
Eventually this week everything came back on Tuesday. I was so frustrated I even ran the adsl test from work for my area and phone number; during this period SFR was suspended; giving the impression there was something much more serious at fault that seemed to be out of their control. I was so up tight that I thought about changing operators, then I thought, well, I'll write a formal letter of complaint to the commercial service and the consumer agency and give them a month to explain themselves and see if all remains stable.
The very same afternoon, my first phone call at home was from ORANGE, asking me if I had been having problems and would I like to change to a much better service! and they would even pay the cancellation fee to SFR! I'll let the readers make their own deductions, and I would be very interested to hear if this has happened to anybody else?
A work colleague, recently had enormous problems similar to mine with Orange here in St Yrieix. She got told that her line was being pirated by Alice (now Free.fr).
If all the companies are using dirty tactics to try to poach clients I don't suppose any of them are going to own up to this; meanwhile you spend a small fortune on calls to their services trying to find out what on earth is going on. I'll let you know the follow on from my letter as they have acknowledged receiving it and promise to deal with it quickly. last week they even said they would reimburse the wasted calls with the technical service (two hours) that remains to be seen!!
Let me know if you think I am becoming paranoid??
with regards, Patricia Littlewood
Update 14 February 2009
with regards, Patricia Littlewood
Update 25 February 2009
It is now one week sine the new box was installed, and working like a dream ( I really hope I don't regret saying that)SFR have been excellent and I am getting a refund for the period where my service was spasmodic + a refund for all the calls to their technical centre.Thank you SRF, and it was with pleasure that i filled in the survey they sent me.
regards Pat
Do you make your own marmalade?????
We (Neil and Sue Spoonley) were in the spicy shop in St. Yrieix (Haute Vienne) and the lady asked if I made my own marmalade and I said no why and she said that she takes orders from the English for Seville oranges for making marmalade and asked if I knew of anyone who might be interested in placing an order for some oranges....
You have to contact her direct Michelle Aguilera 05 55 75 91 25. Her orders arrive on Tuesdays. It seems she orders 50 kilos!!! Not for herself of course but for others..
Regards Neil & Sue Spoonley 29/01/09
You can also also buy Seville oranges (Amere) at
Grand Frais both the
new one in Trellisac and the shop near Auchan at Marsac
have them for 1.5 euros a kilo. The shop is worth a visit even if you don't
want Seville oranges!
Julia 30/01/09
And another house buying scam!
Dear Dordogne on Line,
we would like to make you aware of a recent scam. We were contacted regarding
our house firstly to see if they could rent it out for a week in April, I
explained the house was for sale, he said he has a friend who is interested but
doesn't speak much English so he was doing it on his behalf, so after many
emails, asking how much, could he see more picturess etc, he said he wanted to
buy it and would send a cheque as a deposit and covering his agents fees to get
him to France, when we receive it we are to forward 9,000 euros to him.
We actually received a cheque for £30,000 from Barclays bank - a branch in
London, this was deposited into an English account and bounced, the bank has
frozen the account as the cheque was stolen.
He also phoned us once to say they wanted the money asap to give to their agent,
but I explained we can not send anything until the cheque has cleared.
This is all the information we have on these scammers
Mark Steven also put James Smith on a few emails.
pzone1@gmail.com
+44 7045751642
The cheque was on behalf of (Mitsubishi electric finance europe plc, re
mitsubishi elect europe be power systems group) and then a signature and no name
from Barclays bank, 1 Churchill Place, lLndon, E14 5HP.
Name withheld 21 January 2010
Hello,
please could you make sure everyone on your site selling properties privately
on your site is aware of this scam.
Name Fabrice Croichet, 00225 06 43 87 34 (be warned its the code that's
important as he had a few different email address and numbers, he says
he is a Belgian business man looking to move to this region of France for work
and wants to move in very quickly, he does not haggle the asking
price, emails and phones constantly speaking very fast, he is Africian not
French, he has no Notaire and when you ask for a deposit and this is where we
got suspicious, he asks for all of your bank details, Rib, Iban, code guichet
etc, then he will send you 30% of the asking price to lay down to secure the
property so he is the future owner.
Then you receive a certificate via email saying "we are the UEMOA, we have
stopped this transfer of the funds from the Ivory Coast to your bank, in order
to release the funds you need to pay 750 euros ASAP, then the funds will be in
your account".
We contacted the UEMOA office via the official site which is
http://www.uemoa.int/index.htm and
we received an email back saying that the 2 names did not match up and there is
no one working for them and the UEMOA has nothing to do with financial dealings.
We wish to warn any potential sellers who are English because when we received
his original email Dordogne On Line was cc in the email and other
potential suspects.
If you have any questions please contact us.
Thanks Simon Williams 19 January 2009
williams.jean087@orange.fr
NB DORDOGNE ON LINE DID NOT RECEIVE ANY COMMUNICATION FROM THE GUY AS HE LANDED IN OUR SPAM FOLDER BUT IF WE HAD WE WOULD HAVE NOTIFIED EVERYONE IMMEDIATELY THAT IT WAS A SCAM, PLEASE BE CAREFUL.
Changing Internet Provider Wanadoo to Neuf/SFR
Ok as promised the write up on changing from Wanadoo (Orange) to Neuf which is now SFR.
We took the decision after some friends told us they had changed and were paying less for the adsl connection including calls in France and the UK and we all want to save money don’t we?
We went onto the web site for SFR
and you will see on the site under Boutique Mobile et Internet the option to click on ADSL and if you do that in the right hand corner you can test your line by putting your phone number in and it will tell you what options are applicable to your line.
Well ours was
Neufbox non degroupe de SFR
Which for 34.90 per month gave us 8 meg adsl, free calls in France and another 60 countries including the UK – BUT only to land lines this does not include mobile numbers and some 08 numbers so be aware of that. Also SFR take over your France Telecom line and pay the 16 euro per month line rental. You keep you own phone number 05 xxxxxxxx.
So we were paying 32.90 per month to Orange for ADSL plus 16 euro per month, getting free calls in France but paying for calls to the uk which averaged 7 euro per month so total cost was 55.90 and we were going to get a better deal for 21 euro a month less. Got to be worth a go.
34.90 is your TOTAL COST, no additional line rental, nothing.
There is a box once you go through this procedure where you can click to talk to someone and I clicked on that, put our phone number in and within 2 minutes the phone rang and it was Neuf! The lady spoke English and over the phone we set up the contract, had to give RIB numbers, address, email address for contact.
They said to do nothing until the equipment arrived within 3 weeks and then they would terminate the France Telecom line and once the new Neuf box is up and running then we have to notify Orange by letter (Avis de Reception – and I have a copy if anyone wants one – just email me
dordogneonline@gmail.com with Termination Letter in the subject box) to terminate the internet connection.
And our payments to France Telecom and Orange are by direct debit so also have to sort that out so will keep you posted.
Within 14 days the post lady delivered our Neuf box. As we unpacked it our ADSL went off! Could not believe it and went into panic but decided to try and install the new box and see what would happen.
We unpacked everything and put the CD in the computer and re-connected with the new box and surprise surprise it all went very easily and we connected to the internet via SFR again immediately. Now I cannot say this will happen for everyone, perhaps we were lucky. Our friends were off over night but the timing for us was perfect.
We could still receive our emails via Orange at this point so our next job was to set up Outlook Express to receive via SFR.
We suddenly realised we had not been sent a new email address or password, could not access our account on SFR or move forward.
I rang their helpline on 1077 which is sent to you in a letter and the guy gave me an email address and password over the phone. Be aware he did not speak English. Should have been more patient as the passwords arrived with new email address the next day in an email and by post.
The only problem you have is that IF it goes down you have no phone at all unless you also have a mobile which most of us do I would imagine.
So we will monitor it and see how it goes. Will keep you posted if there are any problems at all.
Just one point on the 1077 service client number, you only get to speak to a real person between 8 am and 2.00 pm and 5.00 pm and 8.00 pm, otherwise it is a recorded message help line only.
We have received a letter from France Telecom to say our phone line is disconnected and that we now have to use our new provider if there are any problems and the letter to terminate the internet account has been sent.
Will update this space as necessary with any problems etc.
Dordogne on Line 4 December 2008
3 November 2009
1,000lts 0.684 2,000lts 0.654. Just called and price the same as last week. If people can get a group together and make a total of 2,000lts + then they do get it a bit cheaper see 2,000lts price.Hope this helps towards the search. best wishes Neil & Sue Spoonley
Neil and Sue Spoonley sent us this information regarding LD Lines new route for 2009.
LD Lines
has received full approval from the Port of
Dover for the introduction of its new Dover – Boulogne freight and passenger
service in 2009.
Scheduled to start from 1st July 2009, the new service will provide four return
sailings daily with a crossing time of one hour 45 minutes and proposed sailing
schedule of :
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Local times):
Dep. Boulogne Arr. Dover Dep. Dover Arr. Boulogne
05.00 05.45 06.45 09.30 (NotSundays)
10.30 11.15 12.15 15.00 (NotSundays)
16.00 16.45 17.45 20.30
21.30 22.15 23.15 03.00
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Freight and tourist traffic, including coaches, cars and additionally foot
passengers will be carried. The vessel "Norman Spirit", which currently operates
on LD Lines’ Portsmouth – Le Havre service, will be replaced on the Western
Channel and is then expected to be transferred to operate the new Dover –
Boulogne route.
The ship has capacity for 1850 passengers, 700 cars and 110 freight vehicles.
"We are delighted to have now received confirmation from the Port of Dover that
our new Dover – Boulogne route has official approval and we look forward to a
very positive, long-term working relationship with the Port Authority, " says LD
Lines’ Directeur Général, Christophe Santoni.
"Our entry into the highly competitive short sea cross channel ferry business is
a major development for LD Lines. We are convinced that the service will
undoubtedly attract new freight and tourist customers, which will benefit both
Dover and Boulogne as departure and destination ports."
In the first year of operation the company expects to carry in the region of
120,000 freight vehicles, 133,000 cars and 400,000 passengers.
Bob Goldfield, Chief Executive, Port of Dover said, "The Port of Dover welcomes
the additional capacity at a time when it is planning a second ferry terminal to
meet forecasts in traffic growth."
Fares and reservation information for tourist passengers will be published in
due course - visit : www.ldlines.com
Note :
LD Lines new service will operate to the newest French port
terminal for passengers, cars and freight, as the first cross channel ferry
company to inaugurate the Port of Boulogne’s new Ro Ro terminal from 1st
July 2009.
The construction of Boulogne's new Ro Ro terminal and the first
linkspan began in the second half of 2008 and will be operating by 1st July
2009.
This represents an initial 35 million euros investment as part of
the Hub Port Boulogne development. Construction of the second phase, with the
addition of a second linkspan and further investment of 45 million euros, will
be completed by 2010.
The new route will also be re-introducing a cross
channel freight option, which currently does not exist between the UK and
Boulogne. With Boulogne being France’s most important fishing port, LD Lines new
service and specific sailing times will cater for this industry.
Boulogne is also France’s 9th ranked
commercial port and is therefore an ideal choice for freight companies looking
to export steel, forest products (paper, pulp, wood), cement and food. Also the
global leader for dairy products and number two in bottled water and biscuits,
has a very large commercial presence in Boulogne.
For further information :
Nick Stevens –
Press & PR Agency (UK & Ireland) : LD Lines
" " " (UK) : Boulogne Chamber of Commerce / Port of Boulogne
Tel : 00 44 (0) 1303 892631 / 00 44 7768 832899
email :
nick@heyfordclose.fsnet.co.uk
Airport Scam - East Midlands UK (27 July 2008)
We received this email from one of our advertisers this week, reproduced here as a warning and for you to beaware. This was at East Midlands Airport.
CANCER SUPPORT FRANCE; A NEW BRANCH IN THE CREUSE.
A successful presentation by Cancer Support France was held on Friday 11th January 2008 in Saint Etienne de Fursac, Department 23, and it was decided to set up a new CSF branch in the Creuse. CSF provides an information and listening service for Anglophones affected by cancer, and currently has branches covering 5 Departments in France with three more in the pipeline. They offer support through visits at home or in hospital, guide clients and their carers to other sources of advice and help, and provide access to written information about cancer and its treatment. All active-listening volunteers receive specialist training, and French speaking volunteers can be called upon to help with communication with doctors and hospital staff.
CSF is a an association of volunteers and relies heavily on donations and fund raising support. The new branch in the Creuse, department 23, (hopefully based in Gueret) is looking for a suitable venue for meetings and for more volunteers throughout the Creuse region to help with administration, fund raising or one to one support work. If you can help in any way, no matter how small, and are interested in being involved, please contact;
Helen French; telephone 05 55 63 35 73 (e-mail alnellfrench@gmail.com)
Christine Wakefield; telephone 05 55 62 29 68 (e-mail pete.wakefield@orange.fr)
Our next meeting will be at 2.00 p.m. on Monday 25th February 2008. Please contact us for details of the venue.
Ian Tench has kindly allowed us to detail below his thoughts and advice regarding private health cover following the changes in entitlements to the CMU in France. This is a very worrying time for many and Ian has put together a spreadsheet of costs for private health care which he is happy to email to interested people. Please email Ian on
dordogneonline@gmail.comfor a copy of the spread sheet. (Please put SPREADSHEET in the subject box of any email)
A big thank you to Ian for the information below.
Attached is the spreadsheet. It is based on
the work I did when we were looking for a policy. The prices will vary as
those quoted at the time were a mix of 2007 and 2008. They are for a
couple aged 57 with no pre-existing conditions.
I have sent out quite a few of these in recent days as you can imagine. By all
means use them as guide as to what is provided and value for money but please
ask people to check for themselves.
I also advise people to consider factors other than cost and coverage. For
example, expired E106 and CMU holders have no rights to NHS treatment back in UK
so do they need more than one country cover?
Also consider travel elsewhere. For
example, I usually fill up my car in Spain so I need to be
insured for Spain & UK as well as France. Also, if things go in our
favour, can you cancel mid term? Finally look at the excess - many of them
are designed so that routine treatment fall under the excess - so you could
still end up paying in most cases, although this may be preferable to a higher
premium, it depends on your attitude to risk and medical history. Some excesses
are per visit to medic, others are per condition.
Happy for you to publish my comments.
Please ensure that people realise the spreadsheet is not definitive and they
must check for themselves. My E106 expired today and I am off skiing in
the Alps in a weeks time, not to mention the skiing and hill walking I fit in
during the week so I had to get ahead of the game.
Can I offer another tip that worked for us with Morgan Price and may work for
others who need to act quickly and want to avoid postal delays in setting up a
policy?
Once we had a quote we liked, we downloaded the
application form from the internet, filled it in using a Mark 1 biro and then
scanned the completed form, saved it as a PDF and then e-mailed it back as an
enclosure. They were happy to accept this. I suspect they would also
have accepted a fax. Other companies may do the same and it cuts out the snail
mail exchange.
I am happy to accept e-mail requests as well. From time to time I update the sheet with additional info. That would ensure a latest version goes out. Also - if people find additional info I can incorporate it in the sheet.
Hey, perhaps I should go into business and get
round my E106 problem that way!
Regards Ian
5th January 2008
Thought you might be interested in details of this clever credit card scam. It was forwarded to me by one of our clients, originally from the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce. (27-11-07)
"This one is pretty slick since they provide Y O U with all the information, except the one piece they want.
Note, the callers do not ask for your card number; they already have it.
This information is worth reading. By understanding how the VISA &
MasterCard Telephone Credit Card Scam works, you'll be better prepared to
protect yourself.
An employee was called on Wednesday from 'VISA', and someone else was called on
Thursday from 'Master Card'.
The scam works like this: Person calling says, 'This is (name), and I'm calling
from the Security and Fraud Department at VISA. My badge number is 12460. Your
card has been flagged for an unusual purchase pattern, and I'm calling to
verify. This would be on your VISA card which was issued by ( name of bank)
Did you purchase an Anti-Telemarketing Device for $497.99 from a Marketing
company based in Arizona ?' When you say 'No', the calle r continues with,
'Then we will be issuing a credit to your account. This is a company we have
been watching and the charges range from $297 to $497, just under the $500
purchase pattern that flags most cards. Before your next statement, the
credit will be sent to (gives you your address), is that correct?'
You say 'yes'. The caller continues - 'I will be starting a Fraud
investigation. If you have any questions, you should call the 1- 800 number
listed on the back of your card (1-800-VISA) and ask for Security.
You will need to refer to this Control Number. The caller then gives you a 6
digit number. 'Do you need me to read it again?'
Here's the IMPORTANT part on how the scam works The
caller then says, 'I need to verify you are in possession of your card.' He'll
ask you to 't urn your card over and look for some numbers.' There are 7
numbers; the first 4 are part of your card number, the next 3 are the security
Numbers' that verify you are the possessor of the card. These are the numbers
you sometimes use to make Internet purchases to prove you have the card. The
caller will ask you to read the 3 numbers to him. After you tell the caller
the 3 numbers, he'll say, 'That is correct, I just needed to verify that the
card has not been lost or stolen, and that you still have you rcard. Do you
have any other questions?' After you say, 'No,' the caller then thanks you and
states, 'Don't hesitate to call back if you do', and hangs up.
You actually say very little, and they never ask for or tell you the Card
number. But after we were called on Wednesday, we called back within 20
minutes to ask a question. Are we glad we did! The REAL VISA security
Department told us it was a scam and in the last 15 minutes a new purchase of
$497.99 was charged to our card .
Long story - short - we made a real fraud report and closed the VISA account.
VISA is reissuing us a new number. What the scammers
want is the 3-digit PIN number on the back of the card. Don't give it
to them. Instead, tell them you'll call VISA or Master card directly for
verification of their conversation. The real VISA told us that they will never
ask for anything on the card as they already know the information since they
issued the card! If you give the scammers your 3 Digit PIN Number, you think
you're receiving a credit. However, by the time you get your statement you'll
see charges for purchases you didn't make, and by then it's almost too late
and/or more difficult to actually file a fraud report.
What makes this more remarkable is that on Thursday, I got a call from a 'Jason
Richardson of Master Card' with a word-for-word repeat of the VISA scam. This
time I didn't let him finish. I hung up! We filed a police report, as
instructed by VISA. The police said they are taking several of these reports
daily! They also urged us to tell everybody we know that this scam is
happening .
Please pass this on to all your family and friends. By informing each other,
we protect each other."
Entry to France as a new resident
This information has been taken from The Complete France Forum (16 September 2007 - with the moderators and forum members permission) and is high priority information to ALL new residents to France. Please click through to the forum for more information if you wish.
6 August 2007
Just had a telephone call from one of our advertisers in the Limousin who had taken a booking for 2 weeks from a guy called Terry Smith who subsequently sent a bankers draft for far more money that the gite booking demanded. Luckily our advertiser considered something was wrong and found the bank transfer was fraudulent! The matter is now in the hands of the Fraud Squad. Please note this name and beware!
France on Line 23 July 2007
Latest scam report (19 November 2009)
We received this email from one of our regular readers, PLEASE BE AWARE!!!
Dear Dordogne on Line,
We have fallen victim to a scam. We are with Orange (internet provider) and we
received an email from Orange saying they had taken 90 euro from
our account and needed to pay it back. When you click on the link you have to
fill in all areas including card number etc. On the same day some one had 1503
euros out of our account, no one else has the card details.
We checked our bank
account on line there hadn't been any debit of 90 euro from orange but instead
airline tickets for eurostar and qatar airline plus other amounts adding up to
1503 euro.
Please inform all Orange users of this scam!
Regards S W (identity protected by this web site)
Latest scam report (5 August 2009) they are STILL AT IT!
"Dear Limousin on Line - I have recently advertised various items through your internet site and have become away of a scam being used. The person contacts you enquiring about an item for sale on behalf of a client and asks you to send pictures and confirm the price. They then accept the price without question. They then tell you that they will send you the asking price plus some extra for you to remove the item from the web site. They agree to arrange shipping, but want to send you the cost of shipping for you to forward to the shippers yourself. As we were aware of this sort of scam we have not done so, but if you do you will find that the cheque will appear cleared, but then the money will disappear from your account. As you have sent your own cheque to the shippers, you will be debited for the cost of the shipping. I would like to make others aware of this scam." Regards Deborah Highmore
And another reported this week 1 December 2008 by one of our advertisers and after their last email to "willy" they have heard no more.
We reproduce the emails here. We have deleted personal info.
Dear seller,
Do you still have your
www.france-on-line.info/classified_adverts.htm for sale? kindly get back to me with last offer you have, also let me known
the condition of it, i hope to read from you Best regard
willy
Hi Willy
Do you mean the ????????, if so yes it is still for sale and in very good
condition. If you would like to view please call.
Dear Seller
Yes ???????,kindly get back to me with last offer you have
on it
willy
Hello,
Thank you very much for your mail fast, I inform you that I am okay and
meet with the asking price you have on it, as regards the delivery do not
worry about that I have a freight forwarder who will come to your location
for the gathering. Payment is by check, I will instruct my representative to
the issue of check on your behalf with the sum of 8000.00euro, as soon as
payment is received by you, you deduct your selling and updating of 'surplus
funds to my shipper. Come back to me with your information to be drawn to
check for the payment name, address, telephone number.
Hope to hear from you soon. willy
Thank you very much for buying the ?????? and I understand that you will
instruct your representative to send us a cheque for the amount of 8,000
euros, 5,500 euros for us and the balance to go to your shipper (I hope that
is correct). The cheque should be made out to:
AN Other
The address is: ?????????????????????
Tel: ???????
Please could you give us some idea of when we will receive the cheque and
when your shipper will arrive here to collect the ???????
Hello ???????,
Thanks for mailing the payment information and I want to let you know that
the delivery of the cheque to you will be next week.So i want you to keep
all buyer's off ,Consider the ???????? sold to me.Am also compensating you
with (50?) for your runing arround to get the transaction completed the same
day you receive the payment.I want you to deduct the the western union
charges to get the funds wired to the shipper the same day you receive the
payment cashed.About the shipper's information for the wire transfer will be
sent to you with the Name and Address of the shipper for you to get the
funds transfered by western union as soon as you receive the payment and the
funds is been available in your bank..The shipper will be at your location
for the pick up upon receipt of payment via western union by next day.i want
you to know that the pick up will be done 24 hours upon receipt of payment
via western union by the shipper.That is the shipper will be at your
location to do the pick up by next day.
I await your soonest reply to know if all is okay / understood at this
END. hope to here from u soon
Dear Willy
I have looked up Western Union on the internet and I assume that they are
the transfer of money company, I'd rather use my bank to do any transfers,
so therefore would it not be easier if you send me a cheque for 5,500 euros
and send a separate cheque to the shipper (what is the name of the shipping
company) or would it not be possible to give the shipper a cheque/cash when
he collects the caravan?
Obviously once I have received the cheque, I will have to wait until the
cheque has cleared in my bank before I transfer money to the shipper.
DO NOT RESPOND TO THESE TYPE OF EMAILS OR TRY CHECKING THEM OUT ON THE INTERNET AS OUR ADVERTISER DID AND CALLED THE SUPPOSED BUYERS BLUFF!
The following was sent to us by one of our advertisers Vivienne Teasdale, she agreed to reproduce it here as a warning to others.
Thought I’d better provide this following information so you are aware and can warn your other clients as I am sure this enquiry I have had is a scam. You may be aware of it as others may have had similar emails.
I received an enquiry a week or so ago for long term B&B rental for 3 months from 1st August to 30th October from a guy called “Harry Jimmy” from Churchill Manitoba Canada for himself, his wife and 2 twin boys aged 8. and have attached the latest email from him for your information
I replied with a quote (just short of 3500 euros) which he followed up with a yes he would like to book but could I quote him for electricity, security deposit, bills, etc. and mentioned renting the “apartment”, a term he has used all the time since.
Thinking there was a misunderstanding and that he was looking for an independent house or apartment with usual facilities such a kitchen, etc though he did not mention this I emailed back said we would be happy to rent our rooms (increased the quote to just short of 4000 euros) but explained thoroughly that we are a B&B, and what he would and would not get i.e. no kitchen but space in fridge and use of laundry facilities (necessary I think for a 3 month stay).
I also sent him some alternative sites for gites, houses etc including your own, and have received a return email still confirming that he would like to rent the “apartment”.
However, - and this is where is gets suspicious - he waffles on about his wife having ordered 2 bicycles during her last vacation which she has yet to pay the balance (of 5000 euros???) for so they can be delivered here for the boys?? Also she will be driving a BMW 5 series which she required space for but can he pay me just under 9000 euros for me to send the balance for the bicycles????
Also that his wife will meet me at the airport at 4pm (I assume he means on 1st August) to be brought here??? What about himself and the children and where’s the BMW??
His email then asks for details of my account no, etc but what is really suspicious is the whole email is worded and set out very similar to the emails we all seem to be receiving at the moment telling us we have won a lottery we have never entered or there is a person in Africa who has made a fortune in diamonds or something and wants an investor they can trust – Yeah Right!!
Anyway hope you can pass this info on and your comments and thoughts on it may also be of help.
E mail vivienne.teasdale@club-internet.fr
Registering for health care with MSA
This short over view has been submitted by Paula Grainger and she is happy to communicate in more depth with others who may need to go through the same process when starting their own business, email Paula via dordogneonline@gmail.com
Just to let you know how we got on with MSA Mutual Societe Agrigole, dealing with us getting on to the French health system. A lady came to our house from MSA and checked out our business plan and our equipment and then satisfied that we had a good business, we then went through about 20 mins of form filling, we then had to wait for about 2-3 weeks for our application to be processed, and then received our attestation to say that we had been accepted!!! and ofcourse the "Bill", So here we are finally, your French has to be of some sort of understanding as they don't speak English, or if not have someone who can translate.
Perigord Lawn Bowls Club 2007 season
|
Our first full season ended in September 2007 with the Club Championship finals being played.
The mixed Pairs were won by Carol and Peter Allars beating Sian and Vince Foster.
Alan Biss ran out
the winner against Dick Passmore in the Men’s Singles.
Throughout the winter months we will be playing Short Mat Bowls after having a short mat very kindly donated by Mrs Patricia Smith.
Our sincere thanks goes to our sponsors AXA Assurance; Blevins Franks Financial Management and Périgord Renovation we look forward to their continued involvement in 2008.
Our Annual General Meeting will be on Wednesday 20th February 2008 at the salle des fêtes in Vieux Mareuil commencing at 14.00hrs. If you are looking for a sport or a new hobby why not come along, full coaching can be provided.
Dick Passmore. Président. |
(Click HERE for more info on this club)
Pauline
and Clive Davie took over La Charrue in September 2004 and through
their business met many new arrivals to France. Over the odd glass of wine
discussions turned to past sporting exploits Sue and Dick Passmore said
they had been very involved in flat green
bowls during the summer and
short mat bowls during the winter. Both had
achieved county badges at short mat and Dick
went on to represent England throughout the nineties. So the idea of creating
the first flat bowls green was born and in
September 2005 we pegged out an area of 35m.sq. on the lower field at La
Charrue. During the October and November the ground was dug out with Clive
driving the JCB.
The boulders and roots were not too bad but because of the unevenness of the land we soon realized that we would need the assistance of some French farmers to help move tons of earth from the site. So off Clive went to negotiate with some neighbours who had tractors and were willing to help. When we were ready along came our friendly farmers and with other new arrivals at La Charrue and friends the excavation begun. Some of course just stood in total bewilderment, as for our French friends they scratched their heads and couldn’t understand what we were doing, crazy English!!
The delivery of
several tons of gravel was laid to aid the drainage of the site then it was time
for the sand, tons and tons of it, 19 lorry loads, all having to be levelled as
evenly as possible. Time was drawing in and the days were getting shorter and we
knew we had to level the ground before winter set in. But eventually we were
satisfied so we left our project to settle down throughout the winter. In the
meantime the proposed rules and constitution were drawn up and sent away for
translation into French in readiness for applying to become an Association.
In the Spring of 2006 the sand was again levelled and finally in May seed was sown. After only a few weeks grass was seen peeping through the ground so a few glasses of wine were had in celebration, then Clive’s work really begun in looking after the green.
So
good was his work that in August we actually were able to bowl a few woods, the
feeling of elation over took us, broad smiles all round and of course
congratulations to Clive for all his hard work. The committee took the bold
decision to hold two demonstration days in September and even though it poured
with rain on both days we were satisfied with the number of people that came
along to support the new Club.
Our application to become an Association had been accepted so our Treasurer opened a bank account in the Club’s name, he is now busy seeking quotes for Public Liability Insurance so all members and their visitors will be fully covered against accidents.
We held an Open
Evening in October so prospective members were able to ask questions and to
voice their thoughts on the future events both on the bowls green and socially.
The green has now been top dressed and put to bed for the winter months.
We are situated between Brantome and Vieux Mareuil on the D939.
If you are interested in joining the Périgord Lawn Bowls Club as an experienced bowler or as a complete novice please contact our President Dick Passmore 05 45 23 62 17 or email nirvana8@wanadoo.fr
Full coaching will be available.
MEDICAL COVER
- A
word of warning! (September 2004)
From recent personal experience please do seriously think about medical cover when moving to France. Do not rely on an E111. We have an E121 where I am covered 100% for all costs but my husband was only covered for 65%. In our 40's we did not consider it necessary to take a top up policy. However in the past month my husband has suffered a heart attack and was admitted to hospital for 7 days. He underwent an angioplast and is now recovering at home. We have not had the bills as yet but know that one hospital (he was moved part way through the week) charged 320 euro per day. The transfer to Limoges was 40 euro. Some blood tests have been charged extra and his monthly medication bill will now be 153 euro for life. This was totally unexpected but now we have taken a top up policy with Groupama and will be covered from now on for all costs and also for dental treatment and glasses. If anyone would like further information please feel free to e mail us. The good news after this was because my husbands condition is life threatening he is covered 100% but the top up policy has come in useful for dental treatment and an operation for myself in 2005 where we paid nothing.
MEDICAL COVER - A word of warning again! (April 2005)
A friend two weeks ago was taken ill and admitted to Limoges hospital where he underwent tests for diabetes. When asked for his top up/mutuelle details he did not have one and was informed that his hospital stay was costing 200 euros per day and he would have to pay 35% of that cost and his anticipated stay would be 2 weeks at least. This information did nothing for our friends state of health at that point. He had been "thinking" about taking a top up policy but had never "got round to it". The good and bad news is that the hospital discovered his diabetes is category 1 and therefore he will not have to pay the huge amount he at first anticipated which one the one hand made him feel better. PLEASE PLEASE do seriously consider a top up policy no matter what age you are or how healthy, you just never know and the cost implications can be huge. Obtain quotes from insurance companies or your bank and investigate the different options, the policies are not always easy to understand but are absolutely necessary.
Below is one persons
account of moving money to a French bank
"A personal experience about moving money to France via a building society. We banked with the Nationwide Building Society in the UK and after some research they were the cheapest option to send money to France, charging £20 whatever the amount to be moved. They used a commercial rate of exchange, not the tourist rate, but you cannot be exactly sure what it will be as the rate can move up or down before they press the button. You can either move the money by completing a form with a specific date to move the money and post it to them or do what we did which authorised a family member, still in UK, to do it for you. Our money arrived within 24 hours into our French Bank account and there was no charge to receive it, but you do need to allow around 5 days so if you are signing for a house do not leave it until the last minute. Your UK bank will need the RIB number, which is the account information about your French bank including your account number, the IBAN, which is the International Bank Account number and the B.I.C. or Swift number and the full name and address of your bank. Your French bank will be able to give you all these numbers. It's a good idea to go to your UK bank, and see if you can get a form for transferring money abroad so you can see how to fill it in long before you might need to use it. It can be a little daunting to fill out a form and see maybe £100,000 disappear off into Europe. If it does get lost in the 'system' it can take weeks before it comes back, we were told."
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"
This
first puppy, a boy, came backwards it was not too difficult to
ease him out. 
We
moved "Meg" into her bed in the kitchen and she continued her
endeavours, and easily produced several more puppies. Then we
waited nearly two hours for the next one to arrive, the reason
for this long delay was that this puppy was stillborn. (In many
years of breeding this is the first still born puppy that I have
ever seen). 
After
this, the puppies came quite quickly and naturally, sadly, we
had another long wait until another still born arrived.
Well,
after a long and worrying night finally at 6am the last puppy
arrived .Our courageous lady had produced thirteen puppies, the
eleven that survived were 5 girls and 6 boys, no wonder they
came early, she could not contain that many any longer.
As
each puppy arrived, we recorded the time that it was born and
its weight, unbelievably they were all of normal size and a good
weight, most of them weighed nearly 400 grams which is heavier
than her previous litter of puppies!
All
the babies are thriving and gaining weight rapidly, we offered
them supplementary milk, but they did not seem to want it at
present. She is a wonderful mum, she looks very well, she is
content, and she is very proud of her
offspring.
Now
it is time to mention the humans in this saga, Lucia has not
been to bed for two nights, she helped me with the births, then
last night she sat beside their bed maintaining a vigil to make
sure that they were all drinking properly. She has refused to go
to bed during the daytime, as I write this she is mowing the
lawns! 
Review
Container
Grown 
Bare
Rooted 
