UK Daily Expense

[George FmplesdaCosteedback]

On 1/31/2017 at 7:09 AM, Rc2702 said:

£25 a day just for getting by day to day.

 

Must be a smoker in which case I'd suitcase a load back and buy em at 711 not at airport.

Must be a heavy smoker, cigs are about 330 baht for a pack of 20 in the UK.

 

You are right about buying cigs at 7/11.

 

Don't forget you can only take in 200 from a country outside the EU....

 

[Rc2702]

7 minutes ago, George FmplesdaCosteedback said:

Must be a heavy smoker, cigs are about 330 baht for a pack of 20 in the UK.

 

You are right about buying cigs at 7/11.

 

Don't forget you can only take in 200 from a country outside the EU....

 

What brand you quoting on them cigs?

 

B&H about £9.50 now? So 400+ baht 

 

I took a couple more than 200 back:-)

[theoldgit]

If you have been away for 10+ years you should check your status with the NHS, you might not qualify for free treatment anymore. No, I am not joking.

Doesn't matter how long you've been away, one year or ten years, if you can't satisfy NHS Trusts that you're resident in the UK, then you're not covered for free NHS treatment, apart from emergency treatment.
If however you can satisfy staff that you're returning permanently, then you're covered from day one. That only applies to NHS care, not benefits.

[JB300]

If you have been away for 10+ years you should check your status with the NHS, you might not qualify for free treatment anymore. No, I am not joking.

If you've been away more than 3 months (technically) you're not eligible for NHS unless you can prove you're "re-settled" in the UK.

After 12-18 months of not seeing you, your GP is supposed to remove you from their register, that's me screwed, haven't seen mine since I was 26 though didn't leave the UK until I was 42.

[nontabury]

1 hour ago, George FmplesdaCosteedback said:

If you have been away for 10+ years you should check your status with the NHS, you might not qualify for free treatment anymore. No, I am not joking.

 

 Officially as a Brit,he will be able to use the NHS after 3mths. Unofficially if needed ,he may find sympathetic staff turning a blind eye to that bureaucratic rule.

[George FmplesdaCosteedback]

1 hour ago, Rc2702 said:

What brand you quoting on them cigs?

 

B&H about £9.50 now? So 400+ baht 

 

I took a couple more than 200 back:-)

Naughty, it's okay until you get caught.

 

Wow £9.50, I used to smoke Stirling Superkings, they were about £7.40 last time I bought some about 18 month back.

[nontabury]

I'm also seriously thinking of returning to the UK next year.

Two question for those in the know. How easy will it be for my Thai wife to open a bank a/c , and what would be the procedure. Having left the UK 16yrs ago with a 60% no claims bonus on my car insurance, never made any insurance claim here in 

Thailand.What can I expect with car insurance on my return?

[George FmplesdaCosteedback]

18 minutes ago, nontabury said:

 

 Officially as a Brit,he will be able to use the NHS after 3mths. Unofficially if needed ,he may find sympathetic staff turning a blind eye to that bureaucratic rule.

I read that ex-pats that had been gone 10 years were going to be charged from now on.

So, if you have been back 3 months you are okay. I hope that is correct.

The rules change. I went back after being away 8 years in 1998 and tried to sign on. I had to go to a tribunal to "prove I was British". I had a passport, and a work record in the UK for over 15 years, and both parents are British. we were all born in Britain of British parents.

I won of course, but so did the other guy who was at the same hearing, Mr Shing.

Check posts JB300 (64) and Theoldgit (63).

Edited February 2, 2017 by George FmplesdaCosteedback
link

[George FmplesdaCosteedback]

11 hours ago, nontabury said:

I'm also seriously thinking of returning to the UK next year.

Two question for those in the know. How easy will it be for my Thai wife to open a bank a/c , and what would be the procedure. Having left the UK 16yrs ago with a 60% no claims bonus on my car insurance, never made any insurance claim here in 

Thailand.What can I expect with car insurance on my return?

No claims will have expired, but insurance is cheap for over 50s up to 70+.

[nontabury]

3 hours ago, Rc2702 said:

Last time I checked. Yes. Mexborough is nowhere I had heard of before so thanks. I thought it was a predictive typo. Learn something new everyday 

Mexborough is approx 12 miles west of Donny. Many years ago the Mexborough youth after drinking all evening in Donny would get off the bus half way back at the pit village of Denaby,meanwhile the Doony lads after an evenings drinking in Mexborough would also de-bus on their journey home at Denaby. There  outside the Drum pub they would try to smash each other up. "OH" what a classy area.

[Rc2702]

Honestly, lived in London 10 years and never drove within london barring a few zip vans. So I'm no good for this answer.

[Rc2702]

2 hours ago, George FmplesdaCosteedback said:

I'm allergic to cats. I lived/worked and drove in north west London for years, but it was a long time ago. I was last insured on a BMW 335i in the north east of the UK in a seaside town, it cost me next to nothing fully comp with breakdown cover etc.

As am I but I still love em. Independent little warriors

[sumrit]

11 hours ago, nontabury said:

I'm also seriously thinking of returning to the UK next year.

Two question for those in the know. How easy will it be for my Thai wife to open a bank a/c , and what would be the procedure. Having left the UK 16yrs ago with a 60% no claims bonus on my car insurance, never made any insurance claim here in 

Thailand.What can I expect with car insurance on my return?

Unless things have changed recently, your wife will only be able to open a basic bank account with very limited ATM card facilities in her own name.. 

 

One way round that though, if your already have a UK bank account, is to open a new account in your own name (you won't be given the restricted version) then, a week or two later, add your wife's name to it. A week or two after that have your name removed from that account and your wife has an 'existing account' in her own name with no restrictions.

 

A bit long winded but much quicker than waiting for a bank to decide to update a basic account

 

 

11 hours ago, nontabury said:

 

 Officially as a Brit,he will be able to use the NHS after 3mths. Unofficially if needed ,he may find sympathetic staff turning a blind eye to that bureaucratic rule.

When we decided to try living in the UK a few years ago I had been living in Thailand for a few years but still employed by a UK company. I was on a long term sickness scheme instigated by the company but still employed by them and paid Tax and NI via the normal PAYE system.  When we got to the UK we went to register my wife and stepdaughter with my doctor. A temporary doctor was on duty at the time and quite firmly informed me that, as I'd been out of the country for so long I was not entitled to free NHS treatment, she said, for six months. I would have to pay for all treatment. including the medication I needed. However, on the back of my NI and Tax payments my wife and stepdaughter were entitled to free NHS treatment from the moment they arrived in the country. 

 

It's not only Thailand where you must pay more if you're a 'farang'. 

 

I will add this was before the current NHS surcharge people pay now when moving tothe UK...............and my own GP gave me free prescriptions when she returned.

 

And finally, to keep this on subject, we didn't like living in the UK and moved back to Thailand after two years.

 

 

 

 

[chiang mai]

1 hour ago, sumrit said:

Unless things have changed recently, your wife will only be able to open a basic bank account with very limited ATM card facilities in her own name.. 

 

One way round that though, if your already have a UK bank account, is to open a new account in your own name (you won't be given the restricted version) then, a week or two later, add your wife's name to it. A week or two after that have your name removed from that account and your wife has an 'existing account' in her own name with no restrictions.

 

A bit long winded but much quicker than waiting for a bank to decide to update a basic account

 

 

When we decided to try living in the UK a few years ago I had been living in Thailand for a few years but still employed by a UK company. I was on a long term sickness scheme instigated by the company but still employed by them and paid Tax and NI via the normal PAYE system.  When we got to the UK we went to register my wife and stepdaughter with my doctor. A temporary doctor was on duty at the time and quite firmly informed me that, as I'd been out of the country for so long I was not entitled to free NHS treatment, she said, for six months. I would have to pay for all treatment. including the medication I needed. However, on the back of my NI and Tax payments my wife and stepdaughter were entitled to free NHS treatment from the moment they arrived in the country. 

 

It's not only Thailand where you must pay more if you're a 'farang'. 

 

I will add this was before the current NHS surcharge people pay now when moving tothe UK...............and my own GP gave me free prescriptions when she returned.

 

And finally, to keep this on subject, we didn't like living in the UK and moved back to Thailand after two years.

 

 

 

 

The rules on free NHS eligibility are not well understood by everyone, even by some doctors! The fact is that a UK citizen who returns to the UK with the intention of remaining on a permanent and settled basis is eligible for free treatment from the very first day. The rules in great detail, instructions to Trusts and vetting criteria and forms are here:  https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-overseas-visitors-hospital-charging-regulations

 

and here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/496951/Overseas_visitor_hospital_charging_accs.pdf

[JB300]

http://www.ageuk.org.uk/Documents/EN-GB/Factsheets/FS25_Returning_from_abroad_fcs.pdf?epslanguage=en-GB?dtrk=true

Covers most aspects of resettling in the UK for anybody over state pension age

Some good info in there for us whippersnappers as well

[chiang mai]

From what I've read previously on this subject a no claims bonus in Thailand doesn't easily transfer to the UK and may not be accepted by a majority of UK insurance firms. But as a returning expat you are allowed to drive on your Thai license for a year (?), during that time you could try buying insurance with a very high excess and buy an insurance excess policy (35 Pounds/year) to cover any loss (you'd need the excess insurance company to regard you as still resident in Thailand for this purpose hence you need to retain an address in Thailand). That would give you one year of no-claims as a start and help keep costs down.

[LivinLOS]

11 hours ago, nontabury said:

I'm also seriously thinking of returning to the UK next year.

Two question for those in the know. How easy will it be for my Thai wife to open a bank a/c , and what would be the procedure. Having left the UK 16yrs ago with a 60% no claims bonus on my car insurance, never made any insurance claim here in 

Thailand.What can I expect with car insurance on my return?

 

Phone about.. Many insurers will give someone like us an introductory ncb. 

 

Another good trick, get a family member to add you as a named driver (usually costs nothing or little) and then present that named driver policy.. Some will accept that as reasoning why your own ncb lapsed.. My initial quotes were all up at 2k plus fully comp.. I ended up being given a policy for 650 or 700 ish but after one year with them I will have 7 years NCB again and will be <400 ish (not done the renewal yet). That was with 'first' IIRC but they farm it out to 10s of insurers. 

 

 

[LivinLOS]

1 hour ago, chiang mai said:

 

From what I've read previously on this subject a no claims bonus in Thailand doesn't easily transfer to the UK and may not be accepted by a majority of UK insurance firms. But as a returning expat you are allowed to drive on your Thai license for a year (?), during that time you could try buying insurance with a very high excess and buy an insurance excess policy (35 Pounds/year) to cover any loss (you'd need the excess insurance company to regard you as still resident in Thailand for this purpose hence you need to retain an address in Thailand). That would give you one year of no-claims as a start and help keep costs down.

 

Getting insured on a Thai license even harder than getting insurance without an NCB.. 

 

As said, a few phone calls and you can usually find a sympathetic company who can work something out. 

[nontabury]

7 hours ago, sumrit said:

Unless things have changed recently, your wife will only be able to open a basic bank account with very limited ATM card facilities in her own name.. 

 

One way round that though, if your already have a UK bank account, is to open a new account in your own name (you won't be given the restricted version) then, a week or two later, add your wife's name to it. A week or two after that have your name removed from that account and your wife has an 'existing account' in her own name with no restrictions.

 

A bit long winded but much quicker than waiting for a bank to decide to update a basic account

 

 

When we decided to try living in the UK a few years ago I had been living in Thailand for a few years but still employed by a UK company. I was on a long term sickness scheme instigated by the company but still employed by them and paid Tax and NI via the normal PAYE system.  When we got to the UK we went to register my wife and stepdaughter with my doctor. A temporary doctor was on duty at the time and quite firmly informed me that, as I'd been out of the country for so long I was not entitled to free NHS treatment, she said, for six months. I would have to pay for all treatment. including the medication I needed. However, on the back of my NI and Tax payments my wife and stepdaughter were entitled to free NHS treatment from the moment they arrived in the country. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Regarding a Bank a/c for my wife. I do have an a/c with a UK bank, using a UK address. I would think it's possible to open another a/c while I'm still in Thailand, but if I then added her name to this new A/c after a few weeks, do you think the bank would need  to see her in person?

 

Regarding the NHS. I'm guessing that a Thai dependent would not now, be able to obtain free NHS treatment due to your previous NI and tax payments. I think the procedure now is, that for them to obtain the relevant visa,that you must also purchase a private health insurance to cover them for the first few years.

[theoldgit]

Regarding a Bank a/c for my wife. I do have an a/c with a UK bank, using a UK address. I would think it's possible to open another a/c while I'm still in Thailand, but if I then added her name to this new A/c after a few weeks, do you think the bank would need  to see her in person?
 
Regarding the NHS. I'm guessing that a Thai dependent would not now, be able to obtain free NHS treatment due to your previous NI and tax payments. I think the procedure now is, that for them to obtain the relevant visa,that you must also purchase a private health insurance to cover them for the first few years.

I understand that banks electronically check the Electoral Register when opening bank account, though of course that wouldn't be possible with a spouse. I think they also need to see personal ID like a passport or driving licence and something confirming your address, like a utility bill, which probably wouldn't have her name on, failing that a letter from an official body, which did.

NHS is funded from general taxation and have nothing to do with your NI contributions, they fund benefits. If a spouse is settling in the UK they pay a NHS Surcharge with their settlement visa application and again at the FLR stage, that covers full access to the NHS, if she's just visiting then, yes, either travel insurance or pay the bills.

[sandyf]

A great deal depends on where you live. I go back fairly regularly on my own and can get by relatively cheaply. In my case it is Sheffield and I have my bus pass which gets me about free of charge. There are around 7 Wetherspoons in the city which offer food and drink at very reasonable prices. You can get a full english and all the coffee you can drink for less than a fiver or a curry and a pint for about six quid, takes some beating. Average price of a pint is around the £2 mark.

Many of the pubs in the area do lunch time specials but the downside is it normally involves 2 people and you may get stung on the drinks. It is a question of looking around on eating and drinking.

Before I retired my work took me all over the UK and I know in some areas you would think you are buying the crockery and cutlery when getting a pub lunch.

[sandyf]

On 2/2/2017 at 10:00 PM, nontabury said:

I'm also seriously thinking of returning to the UK next year.

Two question for those in the know. How easy will it be for my Thai wife to open a bank a/c , and what would be the procedure. Having left the UK 16yrs ago with a 60% no claims bonus on my car insurance, never made any insurance claim here in 

Thailand.What can I expect with car insurance on my return?

Regarding your car insurance about 10% is as much as you can expect, no claims entitlement normally expires after 2 years. I had full no claims before I had a company car for many years and when I went back to my own vehicle I got a 10% introductory bonus.

[rickudon]

On opening a new bank account, the bank would want to see some ID (e.g. passport,driving licence) and proof of address ...... the second could be a bit difficult at first but for instance the person needs to get some bills in their name or some official documents showing their address. Therefore important to get some of these ASAP (applying for a NI number, if eligible, may do the trick).

 

On prices depends very much on where you live. I go back every year for a couple of months and spend about 5 GBP a day on food to eat at home. One issue may be your cooking facilities fridge space if renting a room or living with friends/relatives, which does effect me. As a result i do buy quite a few ready meals as do not have much space to store unused bits. But can still do on 5 GBP a day. Eating out is another matter - being the SE of England, you can forget about fish and chips for under a fiver, or for any take away food. You can find a few pubs or cafes that will just feed you for that, but not easy to find. Beer - down this way if you don't have a Weatherspoons 4GBP a pint is more normal, maybe more. So easy to blow  20 pounds in one session.

 

Travel - if over 64 you should be able to get a free bus pass - good for nearly all buses nationwide (England, maybe not Scotland). Trains are expensive and you do need to research cheapest options (Railcards, Cheap day returns plus the preordered tickets already mentioned) I know it costs about 30 pounds just to go see my son on a regular ticket and that's just 30 miles away.

[sumrit]

On 2/3/2017 at 1:43 PM, nontabury said:

Regarding a Bank a/c for my wife. I do have an a/c with a UK bank, using a UK address. I would think it's possible to open another a/c while I'm still in Thailand, but if I then added her name to this new A/c after a few weeks, do you think the bank would need  to see her in person?

 

Regarding the NHS. I'm guessing that a Thai dependent would not now, be able to obtain free NHS treatment due to your previous NI and tax payments. I think the procedure now is, that for them to obtain the relevant visa,that you must also purchase a private health insurance to cover them for the first few years.

To clarify, when I opened a second bank account we were already back in England. I'd had an account with Lloyds bank for many years in my own name. A few days after we arrived I opened a new account in my own name and, being an existing customer, they already had all my details so I didn't need to give any further information to the bank. A week or so later I took my wife in to the bank to add her name to that new account. There wasn't any problem at all. It was a few years ago so I can't remember the exact process but, from memory we had to take our marriage certificate (we took the Thai original and English translation) and my wife's passport for ID. I don't think anything else was needed. We certainly weren't on the Electorial Register or had any utility bills  because I'd been out of the country foe several years.

 

My niece actually worked for Lloyds Bank in another branch in another part of the UK at the time and it was her who told me how to go about it.  It was reliant on me initially opening the new account in just my name and the bank already having my details etc. and meant the bank used the same criteria they would for anybody wanting to add their wife to an existing account.

 

This was a few years ago so whether the same system can still be used I have no idea. 

[LivinLOS]

19 hours ago, sandyf said:

Regarding your car insurance about 10% is as much as you can expect, no claims entitlement normally expires after 2 years. I had full no claims before I had a company car for many years and when I went back to my own vehicle I got a 10% introductory bonus.

 

Wasnt my experience at all.. No NCB quotes mid to high 2k.. Ended up getting it down to 700 ish and when I next renew I have 7 years (full ??) NCB here on in.. 

 

I did call about for a morning though, I couldnt get anything like that when simply plugging details into the comparison sites. 

[sandyf]

4 hours ago, LivinLOS said:

 

Wasnt my experience at all.. No NCB quotes mid to high 2k.. Ended up getting it down to 700 ish and when I next renew I have 7 years (full ??) NCB here on in.. 

 

I did call about for a morning though, I couldnt get anything like that when simply plugging details into the comparison sites. 

Not quite sure what you are trying to say, when it comes to motor insurance amounts mean very little as there are too many variables, it is all about percentages.

When I went back to my own vehicle the gross premium was around £350 and I got the 10% off. When I left the UK I was with Saga and up to 60% NCB and the premium for that year was £213.29.

[LivinLOS]

What I am saying is.. I got far more than 10% off.. My initial quotes were up around 2k without NCB.. I ended up talking them into a 700 quid policy and giving me (next year) 7 years NCB. 

 

Thats not just 10% off !! 

[sandyf]

On 2/2/2017 at 8:52 PM, theoldgit said:

Doesn't matter how long you've been away, one year or ten years, if you can't satisfy NHS Trusts that you're resident in the UK, then you're not covered for free NHS treatment, apart from emergency treatment.
If however you can satisfy staff that you're returning permanently, then you're covered from day one. That only applies to NHS care, not benefits.

Mr Hunt said: "We have no problem with overseas visitors using our NHS – as long as they make a fair contribution, just as the British taxpayer does.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/nhs-overseas-patients-forced-pay-medical-treatment-health-tourism-300m-a7564416.html

 

One would think that having paid 48 years of NI contributions and still paying UK tax that the fair contribution had already been made.

Edited February 6, 2017 by sandyf

[sandyf]

14 hours ago, LivinLOS said:

What I am saying is.. I got far more than 10% off.. My initial quotes were up around 2k without NCB.. I ended up talking them into a 700 quid policy and giving me (next year) 7 years NCB. 

 

Thats not just 10% off !! 

There are many ways to reduce the gross premium without getting any discount.

[nontabury]

22 minutes ago, sandyf said:

Mr Hunt said: "We have no problem with overseas visitors using our NHS – as long as they make a fair contribution, just as the British taxpayer does.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/nhs-overseas-patients-forced-pay-medical-treatment-health-tourism-300m-a7564416.html

 

One would think that having paid 48 years of NI contributions and still paying UK tax that the fair contribution had already been made.

  For once  Sandy,I'm in complete agreement with you. As I feel like I'm a 2nd class British citizen. So unlike the Thais,who if they return to Thailand after years living in the UK, can immediately expect to be treated the same as any other Thai.

Good for Thailand,bad for the UK.