Random Rants
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There are some Youtubers doing a good job fighting the scammers. Their channels are some of my favorites. Sharing their videos with potential scam victims (old people, for example) may help.
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Got mail from London. The TfL says endomobile went through some low emission zones the days after our Gosport meeting in September. Well, photos suggest it was acutally there, however I have no idea how it got there.
Anyway, they - or rather their international
mafiadebt collecting agency called 'European parking collection' - are now asking for the humble amounts of 95,70 and 1.196,25 Euros (in case I'd pay immediately, otherwise 287,10 and 3.588,76 €).I'm not money-mad, but this exceeds a little bit the range I'm used to spent without batting an eye.
Any suggestions? (all educated guesses and encouragements very welcome, but legal advice even more)
Are these fuckers able to get some money from me not living in the UK?
Would this be the first time Brexit will be beneficial for me?Hey @endo, this sucks.
Not my area of law but I’ve done some quick research. It seems like the grounds of appeal are pretty limited - they all seem to amount to “it wasn’t me” - for example because you are a car hire company and the car was hired out at the time of the offence, or because you sold the vehicle before it was caught in the LEZ or the ULEZ and hasn’t updated the registered keeper details at the time of the offence. I don’t think these apply to you though.
I’m interested to know why you say “I have no idea how it got there” in case that might be of any help, but the photographs suggest it was in the zones…
So the next thing you might look at is whether the endomobile is the type of vehicle that is caught by the charges. I think the ULEZ is supposed to catch all diesel vehicles regardless of type, but the LEZ is (i think!) supposed to be catching commercial vehicles. There are stories online of people driving non-commercial vehicles but the system thinking they were in commercial ones, and getting over the fine that way. See this guy, for example: https://www.theguardian.com/money/2019/aug/31/i-was-charged-20000-for-driving-my-car-into-the-london-emissions-zone
As for Brexit and how that affects enforceability of the charges, this now depends on multilateral treaties, rather than EU law, and domestic law in Germany. The U.K. is signed up to the Hauge Convention in its own right, so recognised foreign judgments. I assume that Germany is also a signatory and so would also enforce a U.K. judgment, if it came to that. (At the moment it is just a Penalty Charge Notice, but will go to court to be turned into a judgment if you fail to react to the PCN or fail a court challenge against it.) You’d need a German lawyer to advise on the enforceability of a PCN in Germany.
Incidentally, I have first hand experience of taking on a PCN (and winning!) but it was a gruelling, Kafka-esque experience. I only eventually (18 months it took me!) won because I was actually in the right - neither my car nor I were in London at the time (my number plate had been cloned by some prick who made an illegal turn). The issue was that TFL enforcement and the debt collectors are so process driven that the human beings involved refused to actually read my letters or messages and simply closed every ticket immediately upon receipt… but that full story is a rant for another day as it would take me a good few paragraphs to tell properly.
Oh, P.S. thanks @Matt for summoning me!
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https://www.campsidemedia.com/shows/chameleon-scam-likely
@goosehd @Anesthetist if you are podcast listeners this is a great one on the scam. most of it involves foreigners and 'expired visas" and similar, but it revolves around the gift card scam and how crazy involved it all is.
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My nieces brought us all the stomach flu for Christmas. It has been a rough couple days [emoji1785][emoji2961]
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another plague year Matt. Not to lighten the mood or anything
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I strongly dislike my neighbors. I had to write it down. They irk the shit out of me. Always deciding to party late at night when I have to work the next morning. I thought people moved to the suburbs for a quiet life. Oof.
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A new homeowner here and I just want to vent about modern appliances. Had a 'professional' come to look at a problem I was having with our stove, he thought he knew exactly what the issue was and ordered the part (you probably know where this is going)…so long story short $400 and still no resolution. Could try this could try that. Looks like just replacing it.
Nothing is made to last anymore. I go home for Christmas and my parents' fridge from the 70's (now my dad's beer fridge in the basement) is still chugging along and it hasn't been maintained in 25 years.
I find this especially irksome now that I've gotten into apparel and boots made to last. I wish more things lasted like my IH denim
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Came across a post in Reddit where this picture was shared. Found it funny, thought of sharing it here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/rawdenim/comments/1044bih/stronghold_x_primark_selvedge_jeans/
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JFC that is beyond atrocious and beyond low effort. The fabric doesn't match and there's no seam in the middle.
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Why on earth do people think it is acceptable to have a phone conversation in a restaurant on speaker?
Next time it happens, Paula will have to do all she can to restrain me from going over to the ignorant twat and saying to the person at the other end. "I'm Giles. On the basis that you wanted the whole fucking restaurant to listen to your meaningless twaddle, I thought I ought to introduce myself"…..
I don’t get why people care so much. Are you mad that you can only eavesdrop on one side of the conversation and not both? Or would you have conversation be banned all together?
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Why on earth do people think it is acceptable to have a phone conversation in a restaurant on speaker?
Next time it happens, Paula will have to do all she can to restrain me from going over to the ignorant twat and saying to the person at the other end. "I'm Giles. On the basis that you wanted the whole fucking restaurant to listen to your meaningless twaddle, I thought I ought to introduce myself"…..
I don’t get why people care so much. Are you mad that you can only eavesdrop on one side of the conversation and not both? Or would you have conversation be banned all together?
Using a speaker in public is just rude and inconsiderate.
There was a fella watching videos at full volume in the airport the other day. Not like you can really move from that when most of the seats are taken. On the plane this happens a lot too now.
I've seen more and more of this behavior especially since COVID. It is not OK.
Just get a headset or hold the phone to your ear. Don't be a loser.
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I specifically said "have a phone conversation in a restaurant on speaker", the implication being that I could hear both sides of the conversation, so no I am not mad about only hearing one side of the conversation. There is something about a conversation on a speakerphone at high volume in a restaurant, or the like that, I think is fundamentally rude, just like I think that a conversation at excessive volume by 2 people at the same table is also rude.
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People used to step outside for a phone conversation or just say they would talk to them later….
On the flipside I've had a few instances where someone is in a public space having a conversation on their Bluetooth headset and I initially thought that they were talking to me...
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So really it’s the volume . So as long as you talk on your phone quietly it’s ok.
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So really it’s the volume . So as long as you talk on your phone quietly it’s ok.
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Only if you talk quietly…outside.
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So really it’s the volume . So as long as you talk on your phone quietly it’s ok.
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How about put your fucking phone in your pocket and enjoy your meal. It’s blatantly rude to the person you’re eating with and to every other person who has to listen to you. Mobile phones are a privilege, not a right. I expect to say things like that to my children, not to adults.
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On the plane this happens a lot too now.
Yep, I had a guy next to me a year or so ago watching something on his speakerphone for almost the whole flight. When we landed at Heathrow, he asked if he could borrow my phone to call his taxi driver, because his phone had run out of battery. I'm afraid I declined.
