UK Visitor Visa

I'll try to keep this short.

Do they stick rigidly to the ' no more that 3 months in advance' rule about a visa application?

I want to go with my flipper family in September, but they needed biometrics done, which meant flying 4.5 hours to Sydney, overnight, etc. Total cost about $2400. My missus and kids have just got their Aus PR status and she got a job, casual, but good pay, and she was told no chance of time off in July/August as it is busy +++. I did the online application for them on 30 May, they flew to Sydney on 14 June. VFS told them they would not submit my covering letter, which explained all this crap-I am used to dealing with immigration people and know they are human and will take account of circumstances, so when my missus came back and told me this I was livid. The VFS person told her to alter her/our arrival dates to 30 August, only all our evidence, prebooked, non-refundable airfares and accommodation to the tune of $8000 is for September. I tried to contact UK Immigration, <deleted> me, no wonder people go via the back door. Apart from spending $2 a minute to speak to some numpty who has no access to your records, there is a 500 character email. I asked them for a proper email addy, they stated there isn't one. I got a ref number from my first reply, which I quoted on my subsequent 6 replies-you can't reply to a reply, it requires a brand new webmail based wank thingy. Each time I got a different response, sometimes asking me the same question I had already answered, and but from 'Steve', from names I can't even pronounce, with generic cut and pastes about shit I know and told them I know.

I have submitted complaints, but am not holding my breath.

Does anyone know, does any UK immigration officer, hopefully on an indigenous UK background, with a grasp of English and common sense, have the common dog <deleted> to overlook the 3 month advance <deleted>, or am I <deleted>?