I demand a refund.
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Look, I live in southern France but the weather so far this ‘summer’ has been pitiful.
I demand a refund forthwith
Are there things, French or otherwise you are disappointed with ?
I’m often disappointed with some of the so-called customer care in France, some of the shop assistants and other employees don’t seem to give a toss.
After sales care…..it doesn’t exist…unless you shout loudly .
The weather?it’s better than a drought.
Only my opinion!
happy July 14th.
If you get a refund, let us know.
I agree that some French shops are terrible in respect of customer complaints. They ignore consumer rights in respect of defective goods. But they should not all be tarred with the same brush. I have had some really good experiences. Yesterday I was in my local Leclerc and an item I wanted was not on display. I found a member of staff who phoned a colleague who said he/she would check the store room. Minutes later the item was on the shelf. In some shops they simply look at the vacant space and say they don’t have that item. Other times I have been taken to an item I could not find instead of being told which aisle it is in.
On one occasion I was in Aldi wanting to buy their excellent pain au céréale, but there was none. I spoke to a man who I think was the manager. He said if I wanted to wait he would bake some. I had shopping to do elsewhere, so I said would return in half an hour. I dumped my trolley near the checkout, and when I returned the man was just bringing the freshly baked bread out. Beat that for service.
Are there things, French or otherwise you are disappointed with ?
Brits who break the law by working on the black, usually driving UK registered vehicles. In fact all Brits who continue to drive on UK plates with UK insurance years after they arrive here. And Brits who don’t try to blend in with the locals, and don’t try to speak or learn French.
Just another rant over.
After sales care…..it doesn’t exist…unless you shout loudly . The weather?it’s better than a drought. Only my opinion! happy July 14th.
I don’t mind a bit of rain or cold but this summer so far has been depressing. Things should improve this weekend hopefully.
Happy Bastille Day to you too marmite.
My goodness , things that we don’t like about ………….
The weather , the reaction of the environment to humans , get used to it and be happy that it isn’t 40 degrees , we are.
Be happy with what you have , ( look around the world) it can and probably will get a lot worse !
When we move from here , we will be going North , because if you see the general weather patterns in the world , the South will become uninhabitable .
If you get a refund, let us know. I agree that some French shops are terrible in respect of customer complaints. They ignore consumer rights in respect of defective goods. But they should not all be tarred with the same brush. I have had some really good experiences. Yesterday I was in my local Leclerc and an item I wanted was not on display. I found a member of staff who phoned a colleague who said he/she would check the store room. Minutes later the item was on the shelf. In some shops they simply look at the vacant space and say they don’t have that item. Other times I have been taken to an item I could not find instead of being told which aisle it is in. On one occasion I was in Aldi wanting to buy their excellent pain au céréale, but there was none. I spoke to a man who I think was the manager. He said if I wanted to wait he would bake some. I had shopping to do elsewhere, so I said would return in half an hour. I dumped my trolley near the checkout, and when I returned the man was just bringing the freshly baked bread out. Beat that for service.
Are there things, French or otherwise you are disappointed with ?
Brits who break the law by working on the black, usually driving UK registered vehicles. In fact all Brits who continue to drive on UK plates with UK insurance years after they arrive here. And Brits who don’t try to blend in with the locals, and don’t try to speak or learn French. Just another rant over.
I think the operative word in my posting was ‘some’. Many shops and services are very good.
Black working is endemic in France, always has been. The Brits are only a very microscopic part of this problem.
Why should Brits have to blend in with anyone else ? It’s a free country apparently though I find it ridiculous foreigners not bothering to make an effort to speak the lingo. Isn’t a certain level of French now required to pass the naturalisation checks ?
My goodness , things that we don’t like about …………. The weather , the reaction of the environment to humans , get used to it and be happy that it isn’t 40 degrees , we are. Be happy with what you have , ( look around the world) it can and probably will get a lot worse ! When we move from here , we will be going North , because if you see the general weather patterns in the world , the South will become uninhabitable .
I’m ecstatic with what I have but that doesn’t mean France is perfect. I can’t see me ever heading north again but maybe towards the mountains to somewhere like the Ariège. I had hoped to move this year but Covid has delayed things for the moment.
France , is the best place to live ( in the world) at least….. it is for us .
( that’s why we live here )
Life is what you make it anywhere…if you are happy in one country/town the odds are you will be happy wherever.
I try and enjoy life wherever I am.
tempus fugit….carpe diem.
I would love to see mountains around me…but when we visit my daughter in Haute Savoie I know I couldn’t live there….too hot in summer …too cold in winter.
So we settle for visits and Suisse Normande.
Life is what you make it anywhere…if you are happy in one country/town the odds are you will be happy wherever. I try and enjoy life wherever I am. tempus fugit….carpe diem. I would love to see mountains around me…but when we visit my daughter in Haute Savoie I know I couldn’t live there….too hot in summer …too cold in winter. So we settle for visits and Suisse Normande.
I spent much of the 70s in the Suisse Normande/ bocage areas and my lungs are still trying to recover from the dampness. Lovely in summer, ok in late spring and early autumn but not nice the rest of the time.
You are obviously better suited further south …I suppose that’s what life is about finding what suits you best…I spent all my younger life in the Thames Valley always considered bad for anyone with chest problems…
Today it’s damp and overcast but it won’t last the suns coming back.
Black working is endemic in France, always has been. The Brits are only a very microscopic part of this problem. Why should Brits have to blend in with anyone else ? It’s a free country apparently though I find it ridiculous foreigners not bothering to make an effort to speak the lingo. Isn’t a certain level of French now required to pass the naturalisation checks ?
The problem with Brits working on the black is that they target Brits, and are often rip-off merchants.
When I lived in England I used to hear comments about foreigners, mainly Asians, coming into the UK unable to speak a word of English, and living in ‘enclaves’. Now the boot is on t’other foot.
Was some ability to speak French not required when you applied for naturalisation? It certainly was when I applied.
Black working is endemic in France, always has been. The Brits are only a very microscopic part of this problem. Why should Brits have to blend in with anyone else ? It’s a free country apparently though I find it ridiculous foreigners not bothering to make an effort to speak the lingo. Isn’t a certain level of French now required to pass the naturalisation checks ?
The problem with Brits working on the black is that they target Brits, and are often rip-off merchants. When I lived in England I used to hear comments about foreigners, mainly Asians, coming into the UK unable to speak a word of English, and living in ‘enclaves’. Now the boot is on t’other foot. Was some ability to speak French not required when you applied for naturalisation? It certainly was when I applied.
I attained my naturalisation in the 90 s with different rules. The process took about three months in those days and included a half hour interview with two gendarmes in the kitchen.
Some UK artisans are rip off merchants but so are some French, registered with a Siret or not.
Human nature is just that..there will always be those everywhere that cheat the system.
We have had bad experiences with both French and English and good experiences with both.
I judge people not by their race or colour but by their behavior.
My interview with the gendarmes was in the gendarmerie because they couldn’t find my house. It was a farce because they simply asked questions from a printed form which had already been dealt with in writing. I finally handed them my papers, from which they copied the information. My interview at the préfecture was much more intensive. Two hours, partly interview and partly working through a mountain of papers. I was exempt from the compulsory language exam because of my age.
For those applying for cartes de residence outside the special procedures under the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement, they will be subjected to the same procedure. No French exam for over 65s (I think), but interview in French with no translators present.
Pity the UK didn’t do the same years ago.
What don’t I like about France?
The lady who runs the paint department in the Bricomarche in Luneray.
I was looking for something in there a couple of years ago and I told her that French paint is rubbish – for some reason she didn’t seem to agree – I’ve never understood why, because I was only telling the truth that French paint IS rubbish.
Any way – Alain, our local guy who does odd jobs for us was doing some external painting for us not long after using English paint and he said “Wow, this is good stuff”. I said “well, you better go and tell that to the old girl who runs the paint shop in Luneray”.
Which he did – Even from a fellow countryman, it obviously didn’t make a lot of difference because the next time I went in, the moment she saw me, she disappeared out the back – can’t think why – she doesn’t make the damned stuff and I was only telling her the truth – French paint is rubbish.
Yep, French paint compared to some UK stuff is overpriced crap.
Aha! A subject where we are (mostly) in agreement.
I wouldn’t use French wall emulsion even if it was free. I just don’t fancy having to apply three or four coats to get coverage.
The exception is for external wood finishes. I have used French “lasure” products from the most expensive to the cheapo own brand stuff and it is all way better than Cuprinol, Ronseal, or other such UK stuff. It lasts much longer and applies easier. The UK stuff is too watery and in the south of France you’re lucky to get two years out of it before it simply erodes away.
I have used French exterior wall paint on render on 3 different houses. One with an expensive brand because the house owner supplied it and the others with cheaper shop brands. All of them still look fresh after ten years of Brittany’s damp environment.
“Are there things, French or otherwise you are disappointed with?”
Yes, a few, but they are vastly outweighed by the good things compared to having to live in UK.
Toilets.
Toilet facilities in places like supermarkets are inadequate and often dirty. There are often no public toilets at all in small towns.
One positive result of Covid is that supermarkets now have soap in the toilets some of the time.
I can’t understand why a country that is so sophisticated in so many ways tolerates the situation. It is such a fundamental thing – we all have to “go”.
For people with IBS it’s a nightmare.
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