shirl

Well here I am again, I have been very busy since I came back to the UK. Busy looking for somewhere to rent, busy sorting out red tape, and busy trying not to spend too much time wanting to look at all the food which I had forgotten about while living in NZ!

We finally found a rental to take us but as we have no jobs yet and no credit history as we have been out the country too long, we have had to pay 6 months up front! We move in next Friday and in the meantime we bought a touring caravan and plan on taking the contents of that into the rental until our furniture arrives from NZ which is supposed to get to Britannia Warehouse on the 28th the day we move into the rental and then it could take up to 10 days before customs inspect and we get it delivered.

Car insurance has been an absolute nightmare, paying huge premium cause NZ cannot get the wording correct on the policy for them to accept our no claims, basically they don't accept no claims from other countries so you have to start from scratch!

Can't get a contract mobile as we have no credit history, even though we bought a bank reference with us and our credit file from NZ it is not good enough. Have to pay to have pay as you go.

Ordered Talk Talk Broadband and home phone with no hassle but we did pay 12 months line rental up front not because we were asked to but because it worked out cheaper for us to do this. That goes on on Wednesday and the rental company is sorting out the utility for us as it is only a 6 month rental which will enable us to look for our own place.

Husband not got a job just yet but had had a few interviews and because he works in construction he has to have a current CSCS card which he had but ran out in 2010 and because the rules have all changed he has had to sit a test which cost over 100 quid and passed luckily but has to wait for the card to arrive before he can start on a site. I will look for a part time job soon.

Signed on with the Dr first week we were here, had blood tests and stuff and have an appointment for a mammogram for next week! Oh I had forgotten that when we turn 60 prescriptions are free, I still get my bank card out to pay for the Dr visit when I don't need to. Before I would have only gone to the Dr if necessary now I know I can go back if I am worried about anything. Not been to sign on with a dentist yet as I don't like those men in white coats! Not something I relish doing!


We cannot claim any benefit (Which we don't want to anyway!) or even have national insurance credits because we have too much money in the bank! We can buy 6 years worth of national insurance stamps to make up our future pension payments but have not looked into how much that will be yet. But I just wonder how the immigrants manage to have all that they get when a native can't even get any!

Housing people will not look at us as we are not yet 60!

Not enough money to buy a house outright so not sure where we will go from here but keeping our options open! People we speak to tell us to rent long term but not sure that is the right road to go down. Would prefer to try and buy our own place. Even a small wee place for just the two of us.

Apart from all that I am still happy to be back in ole blighty even though it is a rainy Sunday here. I am snuggled up in the caravan with the fire on and the rain tinkling on the roof in the depths of the south Devon countryside, a cream tea waiting to be consumed and a roast dinner in the oven cooking. Free wifi connection via the campsite, which has beautiful facilities and is a very quiet place to rest. Owls hoot at night, rabbits and robins popping by to say hello. Sheep bleating in the field opposite and in the distance can be heard cows and donkeys! September weather has been really good up until today. Can't have it all I suppose but the weather was not the reason I wanted to come back home. I smile much more and can't remember ever being this tired all the time, either I am adjusting to being back up in the Northern Hemisphere or we are just chilled and relaxing as no aftershocks to stir our slumber but we are really chilled out. Oh and random people strike up conversations when out shopping! I had forgotten what that was like. I had tried to strike up conversations in NZ when shopping but didn't have a lot of success!

Mum and daughter and sister and brother are pleased I am home and we have a trip to Majorca next month to see the in-laws who live there.

All is well for the moment!

Shirl

lf1

Glad that you are enjoying being back and that things are working out for you. We are up in Scotland and for a change we have the nice weather up here We just got back a few weeks ago and also had the challenge of finding car insurance. We managed to get our Cdn driving and claims records taken into account when we contacted NFU Mutual and it was nice to be able to speak to a person who understood our situation. Maybe it is too late for you to contact them, but I thought I would mention it anyway.

Enjoy your roast. OH is making a roast dinner today, that is if he ever finishes reading the Sunday papers.

dunroving

I think there is a 30-day cooling off period (or something like that) for insurance - so if the OP is still within 30 days and can get a better deal from NFU, she could either go back to her current insurer and say "Match that", or cancel her current policy and move to NFU.

Mummy in the foothills

Thats good information for any of us moving back

shirl

Unfortunately we are way past the 30 days we are in to nearly 2 months! Great info though.

dunroving

Looks like the cooling off period is less than 30 days for insurance - but there are cooling off periods for a variety of financial commitments and purchases:

http://whatconsumer.co.uk/cooling-of...cancellations/

www.Moneysavingexpert.com is a good Web site to learn things like this.

feelbritish

Great Post - I have been looking at prices of touring caravans and can't believe how reasonable they are compared to here in Canada! That will definitely be on the cards for us too as we both love caravaning, especially when retired! Thanks for sharing.

shirl

Yes we used to caravan before we left to go to NZ and found that the price of caravans in NZ were astronomical. Now we have a good second hand one we not only have temporary accommodation with everything we need to get started but we also have future holidays taken care of and with so much of England Wales and Scotland yet to explore I am really pleased we got one again. Fancy taking it over to France at some point too!

Snap Shot

Hey Shirl, how are you doing ? Great update. Glad you are starting to get straight. Must be great to be in the Autumn in the UK, nights drawing in etc. Take care x

NiHao

Thanks so much for the update, please keep letting us know how your adjusting etc.

MnB

Hi Shirl

Welcome home to the lovely south west! we are just up the road, just inside the Somerset border and glad you're settling back into west country life and enjoying being 'home'
Hope you soon get settled in your rental and find your own little nest soon........
B

luvwelly

Glad to hear you are settling in well. You deserve it all to go smoothly after the stress of the aftershocks in Christchurch.
All the best on the job front - there'll be temporary stuff in retail in the run up to Christmas I expect if nothing else turns up.

MissBetty

What a great post, really enjoyed reading that! I'm looking forward to seeing far more of the UK too once I am back and hoping to get myself a little camper van - we shall see! All the best to you both!

janeyk

great to see you are back and settling in looking forward to that soon I hope! house now sold just need to find a job!

MissBetty

Hey Janey I remember reading some of your posts on a thread we both commented on before. Congrats on selling the house cos I think you were having trouble selling it before if memory serves me correct? Hope you get everything sorted out and get back soon!