Back In The Ukkr

[Chainsaw]

I moved back here 6 weeks ago. I have just landed a job ferrying engineers to windfarms at £28,000 + £5400 expenses and doing something that I want to do instead of ferrying drunken Russians to crowded Phi Phi every day. !

You forgot to mention how much you pay in income tax, and deductions. Apart from the weather that was the other reason I left the UK.

..Then there's council tax, ludicrously expensive gas, electricity and water bills. Did I mention rip-off phone bills, TV license?

Are you sure you'll have enough left over for that holiday?

[KarenBravo]

I have free health care on the NHS which is exceptional in service.

Best laugh I've had all week..........

[snamos]

I have free health care on the NHS which is exceptional in service.

Best laugh I've had all week..........

Ill second that

[snamos]

guess pmgthailand forgot to mention he still misses thaivisa.com

[pmgthailand]

There are a lot of things that I will miss about Phuket and Thailand, I lived there for 5 years and it wasn't all bad. Jumping off the back of the yacht without having to wear a survival suit will be one of them for sure. My attitude about the place really sucked near the end, BTB was probably right when he said " having to earn a living on not very good wages " probably had a lot to do with it. But Scotland really is my home, tried Thailand but it wasn't for me.

ps been to the NHS for a health check up, nothing wrong with it. Small, modern clinic on the island no problems.

guess pmgthailand forgot to mention he still misses thaivisa.com

Edited September 18, 2011 by pmgthailand

[F1fanatic]

I moved back here 6 weeks ago. I have just landed a job ferrying engineers to windfarms at £28,000 + £5400 expenses and doing something that I want to do instead of ferrying drunken Russians to crowded Phi Phi every day. !

You forgot to mention how much you pay in income tax, and deductions. Apart from the weather that was the other reason I left the UK.

Tax is higher but other things are cheaper. Picking on tax as a downside is OK as long as salaries are in the same league...

Have to agree with the negative comments about the NHS - it is fairly crap, but one can be reasonably sure (once one manages to get an appointment at the hospital) that the doctors know what they're talking about.

Not always, but must admit I trust them (generally) more than the doctors here - even though I have insurance.

[kenny999]

I have free health care on the NHS which is exceptional in service.

Best laugh I've had all week..........

Ill second that

The NHS is is a wonderful institution, never had a problem getting appointments and the service was 1st class, the NHS is the one thing I miss about blighty...

[F1fanatic]

..Then there's council tax, ludicrously expensive gas, electricity and water bills. Did I mention rip-off phone bills, TV license?

Are you sure you'll have enough left over for that holiday?

You're right about council tax - it is ludicrously expensive. But then again 'services' are a lot better in the UK - i.e. there ARE 'services' , fire dept., ambulances etc. etc.

Not convinced that electricity is much cheaper here and on-line gas I haven't seen. Water bills are also far higher in the UK, but then you can drink the water....

Phone bills? As far as I can see, about the same and True Visions (if you enjoy Western TV programmes) is far more expensive than the TV license in the UK.

I have no problem with posters slagging off the UK (or any other Western country), as long as they aren't making ridiculous points.

[barka]

I am back in the UK at the moment, to me its all about what we all want out of our life ...its personal..i am lucky,i am retired, and can afford to come to the UK at least twice a year,both places has its pluses and minuses...but one thing is for sure Phuket is a lot more expensive to live now than before..and many things in uk are a lot cheaper than here..apart from[tax,housing,energy etc]

one thing is for sure living in Phuket you got to make sure you have enough money to live here,cause its dam_n hard to earn it here,what i have noticed lately more and more expats are leaving here for various reasons..mostly not enough money to stay here..once the rose tinted glasses have began to stop working and your money has run out its time to get back to UK were the state can help you..if you are not running away from anything....

[Peterocket]

..Then there's council tax, ludicrously expensive gas, electricity and water bills. Did I mention rip-off phone bills, TV license?

Are you sure you'll have enough left over for that holiday?

You're right about council tax - it is ludicrously expensive. But then again 'services' are a lot better in the UK - i.e. there ARE 'services' , fire dept., ambulances etc. etc.

Not convinced that electricity is much cheaper here and on-line gas I haven't seen. Water bills are also far higher in the UK, but then you can drink the water....

Phone bills? As far as I can see, about the same and True Visions (if you enjoy Western TV programmes) is far more expensive than the TV license in the UK.

I have no problem with posters slagging off the UK (or any other Western country), as long as they aren't making ridiculous points.

Council tax - it is ludicrously expensive and personally I think the services are pretty dire. Police during the riots would be a good example.

Water - would prefer to buy bottles here for 12 baht each than be forced to spend 3000 per month in the UK

TV - 5 channels via a compulsory licence or about 50 channels via UBC, I know what i would pick. Or cable that offers about 20 farang channels for 200 baht per month.

Income tax - 6% here 22% in UK

Health - Compulsory National insurance for a service that is pretty much a disaster. Would prefer to have private here..and its cheaper

Electricity - Equivalent of 7 pence per unit here and an average 14p per unit in the UK

Gas - So much less here I am unsure of the costs. I know a gas bottle here costs 250 baht to refill and about 20 GBP as far as I can remember

VAT - 7% here....20% in the UK

Petrol/Diesel- approx 56p per liter here, 130p per liter in the UK

Beer/Cigarettes - The UK now pays over 50 baht (1 pound) duty and tax on every pint sold. I think alcohol tax is approx 10% here on average...i might be wrong though.

The list goes on and on and on

[F1fanatic]

Council tax - it is ludicrously expensive and personally I think the services are pretty dire. Police during the riots would be a good example.

Water - would prefer to buy bottles here for 12 baht each than be forced to spend 3000 per month in the UK

TV - 5 channels via a compulsory licence or about 50 channels via UBC, I know what i would pick. Or cable that offers about 20 farang channels for 200 baht per month.

Income tax - 6% here 22% in UK

Health - Compulsory National insurance for a service that is pretty much a disaster. Would prefer to have private here..and its cheaper

Electricity - Equivalent of 7 pence per unit here and an average 14p per unit in the UK

Gas - So much less here I am unsure of the costs. I know a gas bottle here costs 250 baht to refill and about 20 GBP as far as I can remember

VAT - 7% here....20% in the UK

Petrol/Diesel- approx 56p per liter here, 130p per liter in the UK

Beer/Cigarettes - The UK now pays over 50 baht (1 pound) duty and tax on every pint sold. I think alcohol tax is approx 10% here on average...i might be wrong though.

The list goes on and on and on

Disagree.

The police during the riots are obviously a good reason to get rid of the police.... Or then again perhaps they realised that after the G20 fiasco the public were no longer as tolerant as they were.

Water - have to admit that I have no idea what water rates are nowadays in the UK, but I spend around 1500 baht a month on drinking water and would far prefer the convenience of not having to go out and buy it!

TV? - I buy the True Visions 'gold' package and it is not only pretty rubbish (repeats all the time), but also far more expensive than TV in the UK.

Private health insurance? Obviously you're right - its far cheaper than the NHS.

Gas - its 'on tap' in the UK and pretty cheap.

Petrol/cigarettes - FAR cheaper here than in the UK.

Alcohol - depends on what you drink. If you prefer wine, you will pay FAR more here than in the UK.

[petercallen]

Disagree.

The police during the riots are obviously a good reason to get rid of the police.... Or then again perhaps they realised that after the G20 fiasco the public were no longer as tolerant as they were.

Water - have to admit that I have no idea what water rates are nowadays in the UK, but I spend around 1500 baht a month on drinking water and would far prefer the convenience of not having to go out and buy it!

TV? - I buy the True Visions 'gold' package and it is not only pretty rubbish (repeats all the time), but also far more expensive than TV in the UK.

Private health insurance? Obviously you're right - its far cheaper than the NHS.

Gas - its 'on tap' in the UK and pretty cheap.

Petrol/cigarettes - FAR cheaper here than in the UK.

Alcohol - depends on what you drink. If you prefer wine, you will pay FAR more here than in the UK.

How can you spend 1500 baht a month on drinking water, we pay 12B for 20 litres 1500B 125 bottles

or 2500 litres even if you pay 20B a bottle its still 75 bottles

[F1fanatic]

How can you spend 1500 baht a month on drinking water, we pay 12B for 20 litres 1500B 125 bottles

or 2500 litres even if you pay 20B a bottle its still 75 bottles

I've no idea how you manage to pay 12b for 20 litres of drinking water.

However, have to admit that I just made a 'rough' calculation of one big bottle (gallon) of water a day (approx 50b) for 30 days.

Look forward to hearing your response to the other points I made.

Edit - sorry I'm a bit slow! Are you talking about the BIG containers of water available for 10b?

[LivinginKata]

How can you spend 1500 baht a month on drinking water, we pay 12B for 20 litres 1500B 125 bottles

or 2500 litres even if you pay 20B a bottle its still 75 bottles

I've no idea how you manage to pay 12b for 20 litres of drinking water.

However, have to admit that I just made a 'rough' calculation of one big bottle (gallon) of water a day (approx 50b) for 30 days.

Look forward to hearing your response to the other points I made.

Edit - sorry I'm a bit slow! Are you talking about the BIG containers of water available for 10b?

We only pay 10 baht for the big 20L refills, but even the gallon tanks cost at most 32 baht (and Tesco brand 27 baht) so 30 days = 960 baht. far less than 1,500 baht.

[cardholder]

You're right about council tax - it is ludicrously expensive. But then again 'services' are a lot better in the UK - i.e. there ARE 'services' , fire dept., ambulances etc. etc.

Not convinced that electricity is much cheaper here and on-line gas I haven't seen. Water bills are also far higher in the UK, but then you can drink the water....

Phone bills? As far as I can see, about the same and True Visions (if you enjoy Western TV programmes) is far more expensive than the TV license in the UK.

I have no problem with posters slagging off the UK (or any other Western country), as long as they aren't making ridiculous points.

Verging on the ridiculous again !

Not sure if you have been back to the UK at all but your comments are way off-line.

'Services' in the UK are declining all the time whilst council tax continues to rise - my main property in the UK is over 100,000 Baht p.a. for council tax. Zero here

Electricity and gas here are significantly cheaper - in the UK the annual running costs are in excess of 60,000 Baht - here they are a fraction of that. I believe a 15% rise in gas prices is imminent.

Water bills you cannot even think of comparing - and can you REALLY stand the taste of chlorinated water ? I can't now after drinking bottled/serviced water here.

Mobile calls seem much better value here and land lines seem similar - as does TV.

[F1fanatic]

Verging on the ridiculous again !

Not sure if you have been back to the UK at all but your comments are way off-line.

'Services' in the UK are declining all the time whilst council tax continues to rise - my main property in the UK is over 100,000 Baht p.a. for council tax. Zero here

Electricity and gas here are significantly cheaper - in the UK the annual running costs are in excess of 60,000 Baht - here they are a fraction of that. I believe a 15% rise in gas prices is imminent.

Water bills you cannot even think of comparing - and can you REALLY stand the taste of chlorinated water ? I can't now after drinking bottled/serviced water here.

Mobile calls seem much better value here and land lines seem similar - as does TV.

Yes (I'm repeating myself now), council taxes are expensive - but they provide services (fire service, ambulances etc. etc.). They 'may' be declining - but they still exist.

Electricity is little cheaper here (there is no on-line gas as far as I know) if at all.

Must admit that I didn't notice the chlorinated water (except at night for some odd reason), but I REALLY appreciated the convenience of drinking water on tap. (Edit - if you're paying 12b for one of those big bottles of water - you're being overcharged!). I normally use them, but having broken my wrist recently am reduced to the small bottles of water that I can lift with one hand.

Mobile calls are NO cheaper than the UK and TV is around 150 pounds sterling p.a. for a TV license unlike my True Visions package which costs me around 30 pounds a month for far worse programmes....

[cardholder]

Yes (I'm repeating myself now), council taxes are expensive - but they provide services (fire service, ambulances etc. etc.). They 'may' be declining - but they still exist.

Electricity is little cheaper here (there is no on-line gas as far as I know) if at all.

Must admit that I didn't notice the chlorinated water (except at night for some odd reason), but I REALLY appreciated the convenience of drinking water on tap. (Edit - if you're paying 12b for one of those big bottles of water - you're being overcharged!). I normally use them, but having broken my wrist recently am reduced to the small bottles of water that I can lift with one hand.

Mobile calls are NO cheaper than the UK and TV is around 150 pounds sterling p.a. for a TV license unlike my True Visions package which costs me around 30 pounds a month for far worse programmes....

All fair points but remember to add GBP 50 p.m. for the SKY equivalent of the True Vision Gold package.

[F1fanatic]

All fair points but remember to add GBP 50 p.m. for the SKY equivalent of the True Vision Gold package.

I haven't forgotten as we used to pay around 25 pounds p.m. for whatever TV package in the UK.

The difference is that we paid for this package 'cos my husband wanted the extra sports programmes - I thought it was a waste of money and rarely watched the programmes. The BBC and ITV provided FAR better programmes than Sky/True Visions etc.

[cardholder]

All fair points but remember to add GBP 50 p.m. for the SKY equivalent of the True Vision Gold package.

I haven't forgotten as we used to pay around 25 pounds p.m. for whatever TV package in the UK.

The difference is that we paid for this package 'cos my husband wanted the extra sports programmes - I thought it was a waste of money and rarely watched the programmes. The BBC and ITV provided FAR better programmes than Sky/True Visions etc.

I think the freeview comparison is subjective. To any thinking man - yes, to my missus, "no way" the more soap opera and puerile karaoke shows the better !!

[Peterocket]

Council tax - it is ludicrously expensive and personally I think the services are pretty dire. Police during the riots would be a good example.

Water - would prefer to buy bottles here for 12 baht each than be forced to spend 3000 per month in the UK

TV - 5 channels via a compulsory licence or about 50 channels via UBC, I know what i would pick. Or cable that offers about 20 farang channels for 200 baht per month.

Income tax - 6% here 22% in UK

Health - Compulsory National insurance for a service that is pretty much a disaster. Would prefer to have private here..and its cheaper

Electricity - Equivalent of 7 pence per unit here and an average 14p per unit in the UK

Gas - So much less here I am unsure of the costs. I know a gas bottle here costs 250 baht to refill and about 20 GBP as far as I can remember

VAT - 7% here....20% in the UK

Petrol/Diesel- approx 56p per liter here, 130p per liter in the UK

Beer/Cigarettes - The UK now pays over 50 baht (1 pound) duty and tax on every pint sold. I think alcohol tax is approx 10% here on average...i might be wrong though.

The list goes on and on and on

Disagree.

The police during the riots are obviously a good reason to get rid of the police.... Or then again perhaps they realised that after the G20 fiasco the public were no longer as tolerant as they were.

Water - have to admit that I have no idea what water rates are nowadays in the UK, but I spend around 1500 baht a month on drinking water and would far prefer the convenience of not having to go out and buy it!

TV? - I buy the True Visions 'gold' package and it is not only pretty rubbish (repeats all the time), but also far more expensive than TV in the UK.

Private health insurance? Obviously you're right - its far cheaper than the NHS.

Gas - its 'on tap' in the UK and pretty cheap.

Petrol/cigarettes - FAR cheaper here than in the UK.

Alcohol - depends on what you drink. If you prefer wine, you will pay FAR more here than in the UK.

National Insurance is about 65 pounds per month, less than my insurance here

To get the sport package in England alone in the UK is about 2000 baht per month

I don't have a clue what you are talking about ref water...

Gas is a fraction of the cost here but not on tap. I would opt for the cheaper option personally.

Electric is also 50% cheaper as previously stated.

facts are facts.....its expensive in blighty

[F1fanatic]

National Insurance is about 65 pounds per month, less than my insurance here

To get the sport package in England alone in the UK is about 2000 baht per month

I don't have a clue what you are talking about ref water...

Gas is a fraction of the cost here but not on tap. I would opt for the cheaper option personally.

Electric is also 50% cheaper as previously stated.

facts are facts.....its expensive in blighty

I hate to disillusion you, but N.I does not just pay for the NHS... And, it is a percentage of salary unless you are earning around 42k per year when the limit is reached i.e. those on low salaries pay a far higher percentage of their salary than those on very high salaries.

Private health insurance? It all depends on the cover. Personally I pay about twice the amount you pay, but I have been with them for 30 odd years so have no problems about pre-existing conditions - always the cop-out with 'cheap' companies.

I'll take your word for it though that electricity is "50% cheaper". Certainly my electricity bill here is far cheaper than my combined gas and electricity bill in the UK. But then again I don't have central heating

[Old Croc]

How can you spend 1500 baht a month on drinking water, we pay 12B for 20 litres 1500B 125 bottles

or 2500 litres even if you pay 20B a bottle its still 75 bottles

I've no idea how you manage to pay 12b for 20 litres of drinking water.

However, have to admit that I just made a 'rough' calculation of one big bottle (gallon) of water a day (approx 50b) for 30 days.

Look forward to hearing your response to the other points I made.

Edit - sorry I'm a bit slow! Are you talking about the BIG containers of water available for 10b?

We only pay 10 baht for the big 20L refills, but even the gallon tanks cost at most 32 baht (and Tesco brand 27 baht) so 30 days = 960 baht. far less than 1,500 baht.

We get the 20L white bottles of cooking water delivered to our kitchen for 10 baht each. We just ring the local shop for delivery when needed. They also bring a replacement gas bottle when empty and even instal it under the sink.

We pay 40 baht for 20L blue bottles of drinking water (same as you would use in a water cooler in an office back home) from a truck which delivers in our soi every Tuesday.

[KarenBravo]

We pay 40 baht for 20L blue bottles of drinking water (same as you would use in a water cooler in an office back home) from a truck which delivers in our soi every Tuesday.

That's weird. I get the same bottles (SPA) for 32 Bt a bottle. We just give this number a call and they bring it round in a samlor within the hour.

[petercallen]

Disagree.

The police during the riots are obviously a good reason to get rid of the police.... Or then again perhaps they realised that after the G20 fiasco the public were no longer as tolerant as they were.

Water - have to admit that I have no idea what water rates are nowadays in the UK, but I spend around 1500 baht a month on drinking water and would far prefer the convenience of not having to go out and buy it!

TV? - I buy the True Visions 'gold' package and it is not only pretty rubbish (repeats all the time), but also far more expensive than TV in the UK.

Private health insurance? Obviously you're right - its far cheaper than the NHS.

Gas - its 'on tap' in the UK and pretty cheap.

Petrol/cigarettes - FAR cheaper here than in the UK.

Alcohol - depends on what you drink. If you prefer wine, you will pay FAR more here than in the UK.

How can you spend 1500 baht a month on drinking water, we pay 12B for 20 litres 1500B 125 bottles

or 2500 litres even if you pay 20B a bottle its still 75 bottles

Bottled gas hear is much cheaper than it is in Australia even though they have unlimited natural gas there

6 years ago a 9KG bottle of gas cost approx 720 Baht in AUST at current exchange rates

From what i have been told the piped gas is getting expensive to

[petercallen]

We pay 40 baht for 20L blue bottles of drinking water (same as you would use in a water cooler in an office back home) from a truck which delivers in our soi every Tuesday.

That's weird. I get the same bottles (SPA) for 32 Bt a bottle. We just give this number a call and they bring it round in a samlor within the hour.

We have a bottled water cooler although we leave the refrigeration of most of the time and just use it

for dispensing water

The water seller comes past just about every day,We have 4 bottles and when 3 are empty we leave

them inside the front gate and they replace them with full bottles at 12 Baht each and they bring them

to the house

[Peterocket]

National Insurance is about 65 pounds per month, less than my insurance here

To get the sport package in England alone in the UK is about 2000 baht per month

I don't have a clue what you are talking about ref water...

Gas is a fraction of the cost here but not on tap. I would opt for the cheaper option personally.

Electric is also 50% cheaper as previously stated.

facts are facts.....its expensive in blighty

I hate to disillusion you, but N.I does not just pay for the NHS... And, it is a percentage of salary unless you are earning around 42k per year when the limit is reached i.e. those on low salaries pay a far higher percentage of their salary than those on very high salaries.

Private health insurance? It all depends on the cover. Personally I pay about twice the amount you pay, but I have been with them for 30 odd years so have no problems about pre-existing conditions - always the cop-out with 'cheap' companies.

I'll take your word for it though that electricity is "50% cheaper". Certainly my electricity bill here is far cheaper than my combined gas and electricity bill in the UK. But then again I don't have central heating

you have not disillusioned me as i am aware that some of the NI money is siphoned off to be wasted elsewhere however it is the 'fee' that must be paid in order to get health care so is comparable to the private health care costs here. In my case i now pay less and a good fast service at Bangkok Phuket that in my opinion is much better than the NHS service in the UK.

The unit price is approximately 7 pence per unit here and 14 pence per unit in the UK. Can answer that question in about 10 seconds on Google.. ...

[paulfromphuket]

Well folks I am back in rainy Phuket, warm rain, the garden looks terific and after a good night kip I am ready to face this world again.

The last thing I bought in the UK was a pint at Guinness at the the airport at just 3.60 GBP which was actually quite cheap, maybe they want you to leave with a nice warm feeling. I am however so happy to be home and funny enough the first thing I have bought here was a pint of O Hara's stout at about 3.60 GBP which I have to say I enjoyed a great deal more than Manchester airport,

I will have to visit the UK again next year and I shall start saving up now.

[Old Croc]

We pay 40 baht for 20L blue bottles of drinking water (same as you would use in a water cooler in an office back home) from a truck which delivers in our soi every Tuesday.

That's weird. I get the same bottles (SPA) for 32 Bt a bottle. We just give this number a call and they bring it round in a samlor within the hour.

I would call it good luck, good fortune or astute purchasing if you can buy something cheaper than me. I don't get the weird bit.

I didn't go looking for a bargain, the truck just drove past the front door and they asked if we wanted deliveries. I'm not going to waste my time looking for a better deal to save 8 baht.

Is it just me or has it gone quiet in here lately?

No one is arguing the toss on the price of eggs (or water) just for the sake of stirring things up.

I've heard they're trying to ban beach restaurants up Bang Tao way, does it apply to other things as well?

WOOHOO!!

[madmitch]

Well folks I am back in rainy Phuket, warm rain, the garden looks terific and after a good night kip I am ready to face this world again.

The last thing I bought in the UK was a pint at Guinness at the the airport at just 3.60 GBP which was actually quite cheap, maybe they want you to leave with a nice warm feeling. I am however so happy to be home and funny enough the first thing I have bought here was a pint of O Hara's stout at about 3.60 GBP which I have to say I enjoyed a great deal more than Manchester airport,

I will have to visit the UK again next year and I shall start saving up now.

O'Hara's stout? In Phuket? That's a new one on me. Where?

[KarenBravo]

I would call it good luck, good fortune or astute purchasing if you can buy something cheaper than me. I don't get the weird bit.

I didn't go looking for a bargain, the truck just drove past the front door and they asked if we wanted deliveries. I'm not going to waste my time looking for a better deal to save 8 baht.

Weird, because I would have thought these bottles of water would have a standard price.

I've been a customer for eight years maybe I'm getting "the old price".