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Our moving back experience
Moved back to Britain after 7 years in Vancouver. I'd like to reflect on the experience so far...
Arrived at Manchester Airport about lunchtime early May on a bright but blustery day with 11 cases. The airport is still in a terrible state with posters saying "we know we're not perfect but we're doing our best" everywhere. What a stupid thing to say. To my surprise at the carousel, Manchester has now adopted the detestable practice of renting luggage carts, albeit at a quid each but it's not that airport tax in Britain is all that cheap to start with. The car rental companies are on the roof of one of the carparks - classy. All of the agents dressed in ill-fitting budget suits; very friendly and helpful. The car I got was much smaller than expected (a Nissan Qashqai), although I grew to like it so much I plan to buy one. Stayed in Wilmslow for a few nights, I was surprised by how small the roads felt. I never remembered it to be so packed everywhere on the road, and dire lack of parking. Overtaking parked vehicles and missing oncoming vehicles by an inch or so is a shock to the system. Cost of fuel as well - yes I was expecting this to be a unpleasant but it at least to be £ for $. Now it's quite a bit more in pounds than dollars (against canadian dollars this is). However, what matters is how much it costs you not how much the fuel costs. To my surprise is the vast numbers of hyper economical cars. Even the qashqai which is Petrol was delivering me about 40+ MPG. In fact I swear I have saved money even at ludicrous fuel prices compared with my vehicle in Canada (Infiniti). My first trip to a supermarket, was pleasant. Finally I can stop being treated as a naughty infant and bloody well buy some booze at the same time as my food, instead of resorting to specialist outlets for a drink, as if fuelling some kind of secret peverted fetish. Supermarket prices have gone done from what I see. I was in Sainsburys, not typically renowned for being the best value, yet had a good choice of excellently priced basics. The cost of such basics are outrageous in Canada, a country you would expect to do whatever it can to protect the base cost of living, yet all it ever did was hike up the prices of fundamental foods. So incredibly glad to be out of there! I quickly got into driving manuals having done so for years before I left but not at all in 7 years. Even when I made my only trip home in that period the rental car company said they'd give me an auto at no extra charge, which I gladly accepted. The road system is quite busy around major motorways and of course the cursing speed cameras seem to be every few yards. What I have noticed is that people do seem to drive the speed limit around such obscenities rather than slowing down especially. Driver discipline seems to be very high in other ways. For example the keep to the left rule strictly enforced by a vast majority of drivers. Almost to an extreme level. With full indicating right to overtake and then left to go in between two lorries, then right again to overtake the second lorry. It's almost too much but welcome compared with the lazy as ass driving I witnessed in Canada with zero road sense, zero courtesy and and utter contempt for other drives (and no signalling, well no signalling the way they actually go). One thing I was looking forward to was having reasonably priced mobile phones again as I found the charges in Vancouver excessive and almost criminal. "Pay as you go" however has gone sky high in price in britain. Typically everyone seems to be on 25p/minute which is more than Canada. That would be outgoing calls only though and I don't think credits expire at all or as quickly in UK. Also places like Tesco give you 3 times the money you topup right now so the effective cost can be quite a bit lower. But I didn't waste much time before choosing a Blackberry on an 18 month contract for the princely sum of £15/month with as many minutes as I could possibly use, loads of data and effectively unlimited texts. This was with Tesco mobile but on contract not PAYG. The phone itself is quite nice albeit far more user hostile than any Apple device but then you don't look like a bloody sheep using one. In the month I have been back I have been staying with family and my daughter is in at the local school and settled in very quickly. I was desperately worried about the damage the sub-par canadian education system would bestow on her but I figure my concerns were unjustified. She has quadrupled the friends she made in Canada in 7 years, in the few weeks we've been here. I also found and bought a home and will likely be in there before the end of June. The price was excellent and the agents a dream to deal with, who cannot do enough to assist me. Sure you're probably thinking that this is a buyers market and across most of Britain this would be correct. But where I bought they've had a mass influx of people with a major UK employer having relocated there, causing a tidal wave of home searchers and effectively a sellers market LOL. But I still managed to swing a bit of a deal and don't feel that this market blip has gone to the heads of developers who are grateful for your business and have done a stellar job making sure my move in is smooth and easy. One major setback in my limited time back here was car insurance. I heard that the prices had gone up but realised that they couldn't have ever reached the criminal rates that the ICBC insurance cartel in Vancouver charged. And I'm right in this regard. However when I'd read on here about people not getting their no claims discount honoured, I underestimated how bad the problem is. I just assumed that these were isolated cases where perhaps the insurer had misheard, and was not anticipating any issue myself. THe fact is that almost EVERY insurer will not honour your no claims discount, which for a country as well tied to Britain as Canada is, is disgusting. I feel like asking them whether I can disregard my 10 DUI offences, and I'm sure when it benefits them they'd be all ears to push my policy rates through the universe. I'm kidding about the DUI but I can just imagine they'd want you to declare your negative history but won't give you any credit for your positive. A scam in other words. I have searched this site and glad that some companies do honour NCD. But to be honest if you search the lowest cost insurers based on a 0 NCD and those where you have 6 years NCD but a recorded accident (someone I'd leant my car to in my case), there is not an appreciable difference in cost. Makes me wonder whether I just start my NCD from scratch. Going with a company that gives me credit for it will only work if I stick by them. Any other company will expect all NCD I'm claiming to be UK earned. So getting an insurance company to honour my 6 years and then at renewal make this up to 7, will still only effectively gain me one year NCD in UK according to most of the insurers. Saying all of this, even with ZERO NCD it's still way cheaper in UK than Canada and the insurance cover even with the cheapest and nastiest insurer is infinitely superior to the best cover through the ICBC mafia. Some irritations of Britain include every company seemingly getting a premium rate number which means you have to pay to call them even if you get inclusive minutes on your home or mobile phone. What a bloody cheek! Almost everybody has one now, not the odd call centre as it was in the mid 2000s. Also what really hacked me off big style was charging for using credit cards. And it's not a matter of covering the percentage the vendor has to pay but another way of extorting money from people. My solicitor for example charges £4+VAT for credit cards. Hang on a minute, PLUS VAT????? Where did that come from? I can understand it if you're buying a 99p lollipop but a bloody solicitor; you'd be lucky if you aren't raising a small mortgage to pay their bills. Other gripes are Costco chucking me out about 2 minutes before their close. In North America this is when they roll down the shutters on the entrance but let most people finish their shopping before steering them out. My final gripe is with DFS when I went in their to take advantage of their clear pricing on furniture. I've never in my life met such a shark of a salesman. He just wasn't hearing that I just want the f-ing sofa. Then when I had the audacity of saying I wanted the IFC he said I could take 6 months if I paid a massive deposit. Hang on a tick sunshine, what are all these 4 years IFC no downpayment posters you have everywhere? In the end he attempted to turn it around to suggest that I was being dishonest with him as clearly I had something to hide or some kind of rocky past to have the nerve to ask for what they're clearly advertising without voluntarily paying a massive down payment and going for a few months IFC instead of years. It must have been a bad day as I didn't storm out of the store but largely because at the end of the day I like their sofas and I need one for my new place. HOwever there will be a follow up as soon as I have confirmation that they haven't screwed up the order. I'm simply amazed that an ass hole like this can exist in the modern day where companies reputations have never been under such scrutiny through social media, although sadly my business that day probably meant he had food on the table that night and will live another day to rope in another sucker to rip off. Overall I cannot express how delighted I am to be back in Britain. Having the recent Jubilee celebrations makes me very proud to be back and to be British. I loathed Graham Norton's suggestion on the Eurovision Song Contest, that all the union jack flags around the UK entry made it look like a BNP rally. It's a great shame that we feel awkward and apologetic as a nation about waving our flag. The Jubilee has done wonders for our national identity in my opinion and I feel lucky to have returned to soak up some of the celebrations and in time for the summer olympics. Now to get a job and on with the rest of my life. I wish everyone here the best of luck and leave you with this thought. I have taken many risks in life, but all calculated. I cannot recall too many that I regretted to the extent that I felt they destroyed my life or even had a major impact. Moving to Canada was a bit like this and it worked out despite a string of unanticipated disasters. Moving back has been far smoother and restores my faith in our ability to weather whatever storm is brewing and just get on with it (or "Stay calm and carry on" as countless posters which have swept across the nation will now assure you) |
Re: Our moving back experience
Very informative.
Thankyou for your post. I was dreaming about moving to Canada about 3 years ago. It never worked out, but I live the dream thru other peoples posts on here. Its about as close to the dream I can get. Since I first applied to immigrate to Canada my wife and I had triplets, so it all got put on hold. |
Re: Our moving back experience
Wow! Thanks for such a detailed post. I know that I am definitely going to have problems driving in the UK as I have never driven there before. Other than that, I look forward to the day I can move in..in the meantime I live vicariously through posts such as yours of others who have made the move before me:)
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Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by b2b
(Post 10113039)
Moved back to Britain after 7 years in Vancouver. I'd like to reflect on the experience so far...
Arrived at Manchester Airport about lunchtime early May on a bright but blustery day with 11 cases. The airport is still in a terrible state with posters saying "we know we're not perfect but we're doing our best" everywhere. What a stupid thing to say. To my surprise at the carousel, Manchester has now adopted the detestable practice of renting luggage carts, albeit at a quid each but it's not that airport tax in Britain is all that cheap to start with. The car rental companies are on the roof of one of the carparks - classy. All of the agents dressed in ill-fitting budget suits; very friendly and helpful. The car I got was much smaller than expected (a Nissan Qashqai), although I grew to like it so much I plan to buy one. Stayed in Wilmslow for a few nights, I was surprised by how small the roads felt. I never remembered it to be so packed everywhere on the road, and dire lack of parking. Overtaking parked vehicles and missing oncoming vehicles by an inch or so is a shock to the system. Cost of fuel as well - yes I was expecting this to be a unpleasant but it at least to be £ for $. Now it's quite a bit more in pounds than dollars (against canadian dollars this is). However, what matters is how much it costs you not how much the fuel costs. To my surprise is the vast numbers of hyper economical cars. Even the qashqai which is Petrol was delivering me about 40+ MPG. In fact I swear I have saved money even at ludicrous fuel prices compared with my vehicle in Canada (Infiniti). My first trip to a supermarket, was pleasant. Finally I can stop being treated as a naughty infant and bloody well buy some booze at the same time as my food, instead of resorting to specialist outlets for a drink, as if fuelling some kind of secret peverted fetish. Supermarket prices have gone done from what I see. I was in Sainsburys, not typically renowned for being the best value, yet had a good choice of excellently priced basics. The cost of such basics are outrageous in Canada, a country you would expect to do whatever it can to protect the base cost of living, yet all it ever did was hike up the prices of fundamental foods. So incredibly glad to be out of there! I quickly got into driving manuals having done so for years before I left but not at all in 7 years. Even when I made my only trip home in that period the rental car company said they'd give me an auto at no extra charge, which I gladly accepted. The road system is quite busy around major motorways and of course the cursing speed cameras seem to be every few yards. What I have noticed is that people do seem to drive the speed limit around such obscenities rather than slowing down especially. Driver discipline seems to be very high in other ways. For example the keep to the left rule strictly enforced by a vast majority of drivers. Almost to an extreme level. With full indicating right to overtake and then left to go in between two lorries, then right again to overtake the second lorry. It's almost too much but welcome compared with the lazy as ass driving I witnessed in Canada with zero road sense, zero courtesy and and utter contempt for other drives (and no signalling, well no signalling the way they actually go). One thing I was looking forward to was having reasonably priced mobile phones again as I found the charges in Vancouver excessive and almost criminal. "Pay as you go" however has gone sky high in price in britain. Typically everyone seems to be on 25p/minute which is more than Canada. That would be outgoing calls only though and I don't think credits expire at all or as quickly in UK. Also places like Tesco give you 3 times the money you topup right now so the effective cost can be quite a bit lower. But I didn't waste much time before choosing a Blackberry on an 18 month contract for the princely sum of £15/month with as many minutes as I could possibly use, loads of data and effectively unlimited texts. This was with Tesco mobile but on contract not PAYG. The phone itself is quite nice albeit far more user hostile than any Apple device but then you don't look like a bloody sheep using one. In the month I have been back I have been staying with family and my daughter is in at the local school and settled in very quickly. I was desperately worried about the damage the sub-par canadian education system would bestow on her but I figure my concerns were unjustified. She has quadrupled the friends she made in Canada in 7 years, in the few weeks we've been here. I also found and bought a home and will likely be in there before the end of June. The price was excellent and the agents a dream to deal with, who cannot do enough to assist me. Sure you're probably thinking that this is a buyers market and across most of Britain this would be correct. But where I bought they've had a mass influx of people with a major UK employer having relocated there, causing a tidal wave of home searchers and effectively a sellers market LOL. But I still managed to swing a bit of a deal and don't feel that this market blip has gone to the heads of developers who are grateful for your business and have done a stellar job making sure my move in is smooth and easy. One major setback in my limited time back here was car insurance. I heard that the prices had gone up but realised that they couldn't have ever reached the criminal rates that the ICBC insurance cartel in Vancouver charged. And I'm right in this regard. However when I'd read on here about people not getting their no claims discount honoured, I underestimated how bad the problem is. I just assumed that these were isolated cases where perhaps the insurer had misheard, and was not anticipating any issue myself. THe fact is that almost EVERY insurer will not honour your no claims discount, which for a country as well tied to Britain as Canada is, is disgusting. I feel like asking them whether I can disregard my 10 DUI offences, and I'm sure when it benefits them they'd be all ears to push my policy rates through the universe. I'm kidding about the DUI but I can just imagine they'd want you to declare your negative history but won't give you any credit for your positive. A scam in other words. I have searched this site and glad that some companies do honour NCD. But to be honest if you search the lowest cost insurers based on a 0 NCD and those where you have 6 years NCD but a recorded accident (someone I'd leant my car to in my case), there is not an appreciable difference in cost. Makes me wonder whether I just start my NCD from scratch. Going with a company that gives me credit for it will only work if I stick by them. Any other company will expect all NCD I'm claiming to be UK earned. So getting an insurance company to honour my 6 years and then at renewal make this up to 7, will still only effectively gain me one year NCD in UK according to most of the insurers. Saying all of this, even with ZERO NCD it's still way cheaper in UK than Canada and the insurance cover even with the cheapest and nastiest insurer is infinitely superior to the best cover through the ICBC mafia. Some irritations of Britain include every company seemingly getting a premium rate number which means you have to pay to call them even if you get inclusive minutes on your home or mobile phone. What a bloody cheek! Almost everybody has one now, not the odd call centre as it was in the mid 2000s. Also what really hacked me off big style was charging for using credit cards. And it's not a matter of covering the percentage the vendor has to pay but another way of extorting money from people. My solicitor for example charges £4+VAT for credit cards. Hang on a minute, PLUS VAT????? Where did that come from? I can understand it if you're buying a 99p lollipop but a bloody solicitor; you'd be lucky if you aren't raising a small mortgage to pay their bills. Other gripes are Costco chucking me out about 2 minutes before their close. In North America this is when they roll down the shutters on the entrance but let most people finish their shopping before steering them out. My final gripe is with DFS when I went in their to take advantage of their clear pricing on furniture. I've never in my life met such a shark of a salesman. He just wasn't hearing that I just want the f-ing sofa. Then when I had the audacity of saying I wanted the IFC he said I could take 6 months if I paid a massive deposit. Hang on a tick sunshine, what are all these 4 years IFC no downpayment posters you have everywhere? In the end he attempted to turn it around to suggest that I was being dishonest with him as clearly I had something to hide or some kind of rocky past to have the nerve to ask for what they're clearly advertising without voluntarily paying a massive down payment and going for a few months IFC instead of years. It must have been a bad day as I didn't storm out of the store but largely because at the end of the day I like their sofas and I need one for my new place. HOwever there will be a follow up as soon as I have confirmation that they haven't screwed up the order. I'm simply amazed that an ass hole like this can exist in the modern day where companies reputations have never been under such scrutiny through social media, although sadly my business that day probably meant he had food on the table that night and will live another day to rope in another sucker to rip off. Overall I cannot express how delighted I am to be back in Britain. Having the recent Jubilee celebrations makes me very proud to be back and to be British. I loathed Graham Norton's suggestion on the Eurovision Song Contest, that all the union jack flags around the UK entry made it look like a BNP rally. It's a great shame that we feel awkward and apologetic as a nation about waving our flag. The Jubilee has done wonders for our national identity in my opinion and I feel lucky to have returned to soak up some of the celebrations and in time for the summer olympics. Now to get a job and on with the rest of my life. I wish everyone here the best of luck and leave you with this thought. I have taken many risks in life, but all calculated. I cannot recall too many that I regretted to the extent that I felt they destroyed my life or even had a major impact. Moving to Canada was a bit like this and it worked out despite a string of unanticipated disasters. Moving back has been far smoother and restores my faith in our ability to weather whatever storm is brewing and just get on with it (or "Stay calm and carry on" as countless posters which have swept across the nation will now assure you) |
Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by b2b
(Post 10113039)
Moved back to Britain after 7 years in Vancouver. I'd like to reflect on the experience so far...
Arrived at Manchester Airport about lunchtime early May on a bright but blustery day with 11 cases. The airport is still in a terrible state with posters saying "we know we're not perfect but we're doing our best" everywhere. What a stupid thing to say. To my surprise at the carousel, Manchester has now adopted the detestable practice of renting luggage carts, albeit at a quid each but it's not that airport tax in Britain is all that cheap to start with. The car rental companies are on the roof of one of the carparks - classy. All of the agents dressed in ill-fitting budget suits; very friendly and helpful. The car I got was much smaller than expected (a Nissan Qashqai), although I grew to like it so much I plan to buy one. Stayed in Wilmslow for a few nights, I was surprised by how small the roads felt. I never remembered it to be so packed everywhere on the road, and dire lack of parking. Overtaking parked vehicles and missing oncoming vehicles by an inch or so is a shock to the system. Cost of fuel as well - yes I was expecting this to be a unpleasant but it at least to be £ for $. Now it's quite a bit more in pounds than dollars (against canadian dollars this is). However, what matters is how much it costs you not how much the fuel costs. To my surprise is the vast numbers of hyper economical cars. Even the qashqai which is Petrol was delivering me about 40+ MPG. In fact I swear I have saved money even at ludicrous fuel prices compared with my vehicle in Canada (Infiniti). My first trip to a supermarket, was pleasant. Finally I can stop being treated as a naughty infant and bloody well buy some booze at the same time as my food, instead of resorting to specialist outlets for a drink, as if fuelling some kind of secret peverted fetish. Supermarket prices have gone done from what I see. I was in Sainsburys, not typically renowned for being the best value, yet had a good choice of excellently priced basics. The cost of such basics are outrageous in Canada, a country you would expect to do whatever it can to protect the base cost of living, yet all it ever did was hike up the prices of fundamental foods. So incredibly glad to be out of there! I quickly got into driving manuals having done so for years before I left but not at all in 7 years. Even when I made my only trip home in that period the rental car company said they'd give me an auto at no extra charge, which I gladly accepted. The road system is quite busy around major motorways and of course the cursing speed cameras seem to be every few yards. What I have noticed is that people do seem to drive the speed limit around such obscenities rather than slowing down especially. Driver discipline seems to be very high in other ways. For example the keep to the left rule strictly enforced by a vast majority of drivers. Almost to an extreme level. With full indicating right to overtake and then left to go in between two lorries, then right again to overtake the second lorry. It's almost too much but welcome compared with the lazy as ass driving I witnessed in Canada with zero road sense, zero courtesy and and utter contempt for other drives (and no signalling, well no signalling the way they actually go). One thing I was looking forward to was having reasonably priced mobile phones again as I found the charges in Vancouver excessive and almost criminal. "Pay as you go" however has gone sky high in price in britain. Typically everyone seems to be on 25p/minute which is more than Canada. That would be outgoing calls only though and I don't think credits expire at all or as quickly in UK. Also places like Tesco give you 3 times the money you topup right now so the effective cost can be quite a bit lower. But I didn't waste much time before choosing a Blackberry on an 18 month contract for the princely sum of £15/month with as many minutes as I could possibly use, loads of data and effectively unlimited texts. This was with Tesco mobile but on contract not PAYG. The phone itself is quite nice albeit far more user hostile than any Apple device but then you don't look like a bloody sheep using one. In the month I have been back I have been staying with family and my daughter is in at the local school and settled in very quickly. I was desperately worried about the damage the sub-par canadian education system would bestow on her but I figure my concerns were unjustified. She has quadrupled the friends she made in Canada in 7 years, in the few weeks we've been here. I also found and bought a home and will likely be in there before the end of June. The price was excellent and the agents a dream to deal with, who cannot do enough to assist me. Sure you're probably thinking that this is a buyers market and across most of Britain this would be correct. But where I bought they've had a mass influx of people with a major UK employer having relocated there, causing a tidal wave of home searchers and effectively a sellers market LOL. But I still managed to swing a bit of a deal and don't feel that this market blip has gone to the heads of developers who are grateful for your business and have done a stellar job making sure my move in is smooth and easy. One major setback in my limited time back here was car insurance. I heard that the prices had gone up but realised that they couldn't have ever reached the criminal rates that the ICBC insurance cartel in Vancouver charged. And I'm right in this regard. However when I'd read on here about people not getting their no claims discount honoured, I underestimated how bad the problem is. I just assumed that these were isolated cases where perhaps the insurer had misheard, and was not anticipating any issue myself. THe fact is that almost EVERY insurer will not honour your no claims discount, which for a country as well tied to Britain as Canada is, is disgusting. I feel like asking them whether I can disregard my 10 DUI offences, and I'm sure when it benefits them they'd be all ears to push my policy rates through the universe. I'm kidding about the DUI but I can just imagine they'd want you to declare your negative history but won't give you any credit for your positive. A scam in other words. I have searched this site and glad that some companies do honour NCD. But to be honest if you search the lowest cost insurers based on a 0 NCD and those where you have 6 years NCD but a recorded accident (someone I'd leant my car to in my case), there is not an appreciable difference in cost. Makes me wonder whether I just start my NCD from scratch. Going with a company that gives me credit for it will only work if I stick by them. Any other company will expect all NCD I'm claiming to be UK earned. So getting an insurance company to honour my 6 years and then at renewal make this up to 7, will still only effectively gain me one year NCD in UK according to most of the insurers. Saying all of this, even with ZERO NCD it's still way cheaper in UK than Canada and the insurance cover even with the cheapest and nastiest insurer is infinitely superior to the best cover through the ICBC mafia. Some irritations of Britain include every company seemingly getting a premium rate number which means you have to pay to call them even if you get inclusive minutes on your home or mobile phone. What a bloody cheek! Almost everybody has one now, not the odd call centre as it was in the mid 2000s. Also what really hacked me off big style was charging for using credit cards. And it's not a matter of covering the percentage the vendor has to pay but another way of extorting money from people. My solicitor for example charges £4+VAT for credit cards. Hang on a minute, PLUS VAT????? Where did that come from? I can understand it if you're buying a 99p lollipop but a bloody solicitor; you'd be lucky if you aren't raising a small mortgage to pay their bills. Other gripes are Costco chucking me out about 2 minutes before their close. In North America this is when they roll down the shutters on the entrance but let most people finish their shopping before steering them out. My final gripe is with DFS when I went in their to take advantage of their clear pricing on furniture. I've never in my life met such a shark of a salesman. He just wasn't hearing that I just want the f-ing sofa. Then when I had the audacity of saying I wanted the IFC he said I could take 6 months if I paid a massive deposit. Hang on a tick sunshine, what are all these 4 years IFC no downpayment posters you have everywhere? In the end he attempted to turn it around to suggest that I was being dishonest with him as clearly I had something to hide or some kind of rocky past to have the nerve to ask for what they're clearly advertising without voluntarily paying a massive down payment and going for a few months IFC instead of years. It must have been a bad day as I didn't storm out of the store but largely because at the end of the day I like their sofas and I need one for my new place. HOwever there will be a follow up as soon as I have confirmation that they haven't screwed up the order. I'm simply amazed that an ass hole like this can exist in the modern day where companies reputations have never been under such scrutiny through social media, although sadly my business that day probably meant he had food on the table that night and will live another day to rope in another sucker to rip off. Overall I cannot express how delighted I am to be back in Britain. Having the recent Jubilee celebrations makes me very proud to be back and to be British. I loathed Graham Norton's suggestion on the Eurovision Song Contest, that all the union jack flags around the UK entry made it look like a BNP rally. It's a great shame that we feel awkward and apologetic as a nation about waving our flag. The Jubilee has done wonders for our national identity in my opinion and I feel lucky to have returned to soak up some of the celebrations and in time for the summer olympics. Now to get a job and on with the rest of my life. I wish everyone here the best of luck and leave you with this thought. I have taken many risks in life, but all calculated. I cannot recall too many that I regretted to the extent that I felt they destroyed my life or even had a major impact. Moving to Canada was a bit like this and it worked out despite a string of unanticipated disasters. Moving back has been far smoother and restores my faith in our ability to weather whatever storm is brewing and just get on with it (or "Stay calm and carry on" as countless posters which have swept across the nation will now assure you) |
Re: Our moving back experience
Great update -thanks! I'm also thrilled to be back and don't have any gripes at all except the one you mentioned about call centers - pretty amazing that they charge you to call in and get help when their products don't work!
Do you really buy phones that you don't like using just so people don't think you're a 'sheep'? :lol: |
Re: Our moving back experience
Excellent UK review- cheers and good luck
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Re: Our moving back experience
Very helpful info, thanks for posting. We'll be arriving on August 10th and I can't wait, although I must admit I'm currently feeling daunted by the amount of "stuff' we have to sort out. One step at a time...... I think it will be better once school gets out on Friday.
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Re: Our moving back experience
Just for those that don't like paying for phonecalls to companies, this may be useful - http://www.saynoto0870.com/
HTH. |
Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by Pombat
(Post 10116552)
Very helpful info, thanks for posting. We'll be arriving on August 10th and I can't wait, although I must admit I'm currently feeling daunted by the amount of "stuff' we have to sort out. One step at a time...... I think it will be better once school gets out on Friday.
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Re: Our moving back experience
Welcome back
We got in at about the same time as you did. as someone else has already said www.saynoto0870.com is great. As for your NCB comparethemarket.com have an option 'earned in another country' and my bonus got accepted no problem by elephant who came up top on that site. Good luck with the job and the move |
Re: Our moving back experience
Great review.
Re car insurance, not all insurers accept letters of experience, as I was told by Swinton but the guy I dealt with at Swinton was superb and got me a deal with Aviva. I am paying £367 a year ... he wanted me to take it monthly but I balked at paying the credit ... so he gave me a cash back which covered the credit costs. I was paying around £900 a year in Canada before I came back and that was in my fourth year of insurance!!! I wanted an automatic but settled for manual as I had driven manual most of my life ... the narrow roads are a little nervewracking and living in a rural area, I had forgotten about the tractors on the road! Regarding 0845 numbers, if you go on a lot of the websites, they will have a number for international callers which is a regular number. I have a friend who always finds that number and calls it from the UK and he says he avoids paying the premium charges. One thing I have noticed is the amount of delivery vans and couriers around and about due to online shopping. I must confess that I have found online shopping a real plus as I live in a small town. Amazon in particular has come up trumps for many things, including .... believe it or not .... bread flour! They are in partnershp with a mill and offer free delivery and, if you subscribe to a regular order (you decide how often you want an autodelivery) you get an extra 10% off!! Great range and best prices I could find anywhere. I do agree it does feel great to be in Great Britain in 2012. I am loving being back home and after 3 1/2 years away, I have just slipped back into my previous life as if I have been away for a 2 week holiday! Was it all just a dream? .... |
Re: Our moving back experience
fantastic post, thanks for all the info. We move back in 76 days, not that i am counting lol :rofl:
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Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by jenny heading home
(Post 10130107)
fantastic post, thanks for all the info. We move back in 76 days, not that i am counting lol :rofl:
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Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by lf1
(Post 10130115)
That will make 3 of us in the Calgary area who are moving back shortly. Me, you and Back2UK.:)
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Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by Moggiemiss
(Post 10124087)
Great review.
Re car insurance, not all insurers accept letters of experience, as I was told by Swinton but the guy I dealt with at Swinton was superb and got me a deal with Aviva. I am paying £367 a year ... he wanted me to take it monthly but I balked at paying the credit ... so he gave me a cash back which covered the credit costs. I was paying around £900 a year in Canada before I came back and that was in my fourth year of insurance!!! I wanted an automatic but settled for manual as I had driven manual most of my life ... the narrow roads are a little nervewracking and living in a rural area, I had forgotten about the tractors on the road! Regarding 0845 numbers, if you go on a lot of the websites, they will have a number for international callers which is a regular number. I have a friend who always finds that number and calls it from the UK and he says he avoids paying the premium charges. One thing I have noticed is the amount of delivery vans and couriers around and about due to online shopping. I must confess that I have found online shopping a real plus as I live in a small town. Amazon in particular has come up trumps for many things, including .... believe it or not .... bread flour! They are in partnershp with a mill and offer free delivery and, if you subscribe to a regular order (you decide how often you want an autodelivery) you get an extra 10% off!! Great range and best prices I could find anywhere. I do agree it does feel great to be in Great Britain in 2012. I am loving being back home and after 3 1/2 years away, I have just slipped back into my previous life as if I have been away for a 2 week holiday! Was it all just a dream? .... |
Re: Our moving back experience
Re: car insurance in UK,
Online quotes ask if applicant has been resident in UK since birth, or state the date of entry to country. This seems to miss out those that have been expats. I enquired of Churchill Insurance and they said as long as applicant was born in UK then don't worry that you were not UK resident while expat. Also it strikes me as odd that UK car insurances start at midnight and expire at midday on the same date 1 year later. This means there is an overlap of 12 hours. Some car insurance companies will include an automatic renewal and debit/credit card deduction for the following year unless you specifically call them at the time to stop it. If you don't remember and choose to go elsewhere next year then you can end up with two insurances and cancellation fees. |
Re: Our moving back experience
Admiral and elephant said 10 years was too long and I couldn't tick "from birth"
My insurance cover could be timed to the minute |
Re: Our moving back experience
I tried recently to get temporary car insurance and was told that you have to have lived in the UK for the last three years in order to get temporary cover to drive someone elses car. (Cue shouts of derision from my family about why I didnt tell them a fib!)
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Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by Back2UK
(Post 10130254)
I have spoke to another 2 this week who are preparing to move back. Poor Canada:(
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Re: Our moving back experience
Even though we been back 2 years I feel I am still behind the curve; the info re: 0845 is good to know.
Thanks |
Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by jemima55
(Post 10132785)
I tried recently to get temporary car insurance and was told that you have to have lived in the UK for the last three years in order to get temporary cover to drive someone elses car. (Cue shouts of derision from my family about why I didnt tell them a fib!)
Must be dependant on the insurer. I got covered on my mums car over Christmas with no problem. And wrote it off, at which point they would have found out any fibs and caused real problems.They really care about the info you gave if you have a claim. |
Re: Our moving back experience
I know, but couldnt convince my family that you cant just feed them any old rubbish. Glad you had a good experience, though!
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Re: Our moving back experience
[QUOTE=Moving back has been far smoother and restores my faith in our ability to weather whatever storm is brewing and just get on with it QUOTE]
Wow, I have been inspired by your post. Our family has weathered many a storm in our nearly 3 yrs of living in Australia. Ultimately, we have chalked it all down as an "EXPERIENCE" but have finally decided to move back home. It took nearly 2 yrs of planning to get here and 6 weeks to plan the move back. Very daunting but am just getting on with it. I have hit a few snags, namely with our old school asking for proof of address in the school zone. No address, no school place! No jobs, no home and no car yet either. All that will eventually come right though. What I do have is the happiness I feel about moving back, the support and love from my wonderful family looking forward to our return, the joy on my children's faces when they speak about seeing their grandparents and aunts and the excitement of seeing my dear friends again. So, we are booking a one way flight for end August and the next chapter in our lives begins....:) |
Re: Our moving back experience
[QUOTE=springoz;10171058]
Originally Posted by Moving back has been far smoother and restores my faith in our ability to weather whatever storm is brewing and just get on with it QUOTE
Wow, I have been inspired by your post. Our family has weathered many a storm in our nearly 3 yrs of living in Australia. Ultimately, we have chalked it all down as an "EXPERIENCE" but have finally decided to move back home. It took nearly 2 yrs of planning to get here and 6 weeks to plan the move back. Very daunting but am just getting on with it. I have hit a few snags, namely with our old school asking for proof of address in the school zone. No address, no school place! No jobs, no home and no car yet either. All that will eventually come right though. What I do have is the happiness I feel about moving back, the support and love from my wonderful family looking forward to our return, the joy on my children's faces when they speak about seeing their grandparents and aunts and the excitement of seeing my dear friends again. So, we are booking a one way flight for end August and the next chapter in our lives begins....:) I hope it works out for you. |
Re: Our moving back experience
I am surprised to hear that, maybe the situation is different when coming from Canada because you drive on the other side so you are considered a higher risk ? I know that sounds crazy but we had absolutely no problem and probably 75% of companies would accept my Australian no claims. We went with Co Op Eco Insurance in the end and they didnt even want to see my proof of no claims.
Originally Posted by b2b
(Post 10113039)
One major setback in my limited time back here was car insurance. I heard that the prices had gone up but realised that they couldn't have ever reached the criminal rates that the ICBC insurance cartel in Vancouver charged. And I'm right in this regard. However when I'd read on here about people not getting their no claims discount honoured, I underestimated how bad the problem is. I just assumed that these were isolated cases where perhaps the insurer had misheard, and was not anticipating any issue myself. THe fact is that almost EVERY insurer will not honour your no claims discount, which for a country as well tied to Britain as Canada is, is disgusting. I feel like asking them whether I can disregard my 10 DUI offences, and I'm sure when it benefits them they'd be all ears to push my policy rates through the universe. I'm kidding about the DUI but I can just imagine they'd want you to declare your negative history but won't give you any credit for your positive. A scam in other words. I have searched this site and glad that some companies do honour NCD. But to be honest if you search the lowest cost insurers based on a 0 NCD and those where you have 6 years NCD but a recorded accident (someone I'd leant my car to in my case), there is not an appreciable difference in cost. Makes me wonder whether I just start my NCD from scratch. Going with a company that gives me credit for it will only work if I stick by them. Any other company will expect all NCD I'm claiming to be UK earned. So getting an insurance company to honour my 6 years and then at renewal make this up to 7, will still only effectively gain me one year NCD in UK according to most of the insurers. Saying all of this, even with ZERO NCD it's still way cheaper in UK than Canada and the insurance cover even with the cheapest and nastiest insurer is infinitely superior to the best cover through the ICBC mafia. |
Re: Our moving back experience
We are another family moving back home from calgary in September, we have been planning it for about a year now and can't believe that its only six weeks to go. We are really excited about going home but the amount of work still to do is daunting! Thanks for all your great comments and advise :)
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Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by yuridog
(Post 10175626)
We are another family moving back home from calgary in September, we have been planning it for about a year now and can't believe that its only six weeks to go. We are really excited about going home but the amount of work still to do is daunting! Thanks for all your great comments and advise :)
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Re: Our moving back experience
We have lived in Canada for about 45 years and are finally going "home" to finish out our retirement. The planning for this has been very daunting, particularly the tax implications associated with investments and pensions.
Finally it appears that once we have established ourselves back in the UK and have "severed all ties" with Canada (still will have Canadian citizenship) the Canadian Tax authorities will deem us "non residents for tax purposes". What this means is that any bulk withdrawls from our pension plans will have taxes capped at 25%. Also, our Canadian Pension and OAS will be 0% tax (although I expect the UK government will tax me) because of the tax treaty between Canada and the UK. The real headache is getting any withdrawls (regular monthly amouns or bulk amounts) from RBC to an account in the UK - we are supposed to close bank accounts (where possible!) to be recognized as non-residents. The only way we have found it possible to open a bank account in the UK before getting there is to open an account with HSBC in Canada and they will open an HSBC account in out home town in the UK (this takes about 4 weeks and lots of paperwork - which they did for us) ..... just waiting to receive our debit card and account info at the moment. We are selling practically all our furnishings, just transporting clothes, china and personal effects. After contacting a few moving companies for specific info, by far the most helpful response we received was from AMJ International, who we will be using. We are hoping to arrive in the UK just before Christmas. We are in the process of buying an apartment there .... a whole set of added complications doing it remotely, but it will allow us to "hit the ground running". Even at this late stage, I would appreciate feedback from those that have gone before. |
Re: Our moving back experience
Good luck with your move. We have been back for two months after over 30 years in Canada. We were advised that we can keep a bank account open and that is what we have done. To transfer bulk amounts from RBC to our HSBC account I plan to write a cheque to myself and send it to my contact at our HSBC Calgary branch. it will then be deposited into our Cdn funds acct in Calgary and then I can transfer it to my GBP acct whenever I want. I did visit RBC, before leaving, and asked if they would transfer funds from RBC to HSBC, when required and the answer was no. Hence the reason I am using the old fashioned cheque method.
Long term, I am hoping to open a Cdn funds acct with HSBC UK and have my CPP etc, deposited there, when the time comes. If I think of anything else, I'll let you know.:) |
Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by lf1
(Post 10332151)
Good luck with your move. We have been back for two months after over 30 years in Canada. We were advised that we can keep a bank account open and that is what we have done. To transfer bulk amounts from RBC to our HSBC account I plan to write a cheque to myself and send it to my contact at our HSBC Calgary branch. it will then be deposited into our Cdn funds acct in Calgary and then I can transfer it to my GBP acct whenever I want. I did visit RBC, before leaving, and asked if they would transfer funds from RBC to HSBC, when required and the answer was no. Hence the reason I am using the old fashioned cheque method.
Long term, I am hoping to open a Cdn funds acct with HSBC UK and have my CPP etc, deposited there, when the time comes. If I think of anything else, I'll let you know.:) |
Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by sallysimmons
(Post 10116101)
Do you really buy phones that you don't like using just so people don't think you're a 'sheep'? :lol:
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Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by Tstimpson
(Post 10332206)
Thanks for the response! Does this mean that you have 2 bank accounts open (RBC and HSBC)? I too understood that I would be allowed to keep an account open, but as you have found unless your investments were already in the HSBC, then you also need to keep a chequing account open in the RBC to do as you say (good idea by the way).
Where are you moving to? |
Re: Our moving back experience
Quick update - now in work, house bought, got a nice car that is quite a big comfortable one but so economical I hardly notice the cost. I found working back in Britain a big culture shock. Very long hours, everyone seems depressed. Dress code which I feel uncomfortable in every day. Your every move monitored by the boss who seems to want to micromanage everything. I think it's more about that particular company than worklife in general but we do have a culture of expecting everyone to work well over the allotted hours and I think the depression I notice in the workplace is just a natural consequence of this.
I found it much easier settling back in Britain than in Canada but I guess this is only natural. I really miss the landscape of where I used to live, but now I'm working can always stop by that way on holiday some time in the future. |
Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by lf1
(Post 10332398)
Yes, we have both accounts open. We don't have our retirement savings with RBC, so when we collapsed our non-registered investments the firm we were dealing with simply put the proceeds into our HSBC Cdn dollar account and I can put the money into my CDN GBP acct. when ever I want to. Using the Global View on the HSBC acct, I can then transfer my GBP funds in Canada to my HSBC GBP account in the UK.
Where are you moving to? I hope some of this discussion is also helpful to others reading along. We are returning to our home town of Plymouth.:thumbsup: |
Re: Our moving back experience
Originally Posted by Tstimpson
(Post 10332131)
The real headache is getting any withdrawls (regular monthly amouns or bulk amounts) from RBC to an account in the UK - we are supposed to close bank accounts (where possible!) to be recognized as non-residents.
The only way we have found it possible to open a bank account in the UK before getting there is to open an account with HSBC in Canada and they will open an HSBC account in out home town in the UK (this takes about 4 weeks and lots of paperwork - which they did for us) ..... just waiting to receive our debit card and account info at the moment. Bev |
Re: Our moving back experience
I came back to Scotland in May after being in the US 25 years. I opened a bank account no problem. I did try Clydesdale Bank, but I didn't have a job and so they told me to come back with a letter from an employer. I went to Bank of Scotland and no problems. Just explained I was back and they asked for my NI number, passport and I was able to open on. Recieved my pin with chip card the next week. Good Luck to you. Going back with decent funds will make all the difference.
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Re: Our moving back experience
For anyone finding difficulty opening a bank acount because of credit record (poor, or lack thereof), there is a thing caled a basic bank account. I think they are legally required (i.e., I think everyone is legally entitled to a bank account).
More info here: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/ban...-bank-accounts Banks don't tend to advertise them, so you have to ask specifically for one. - this could be an option for a few months until salary has been comng in, you have built up a credit record, and can then open a more typical bank account with overdraft facility, etc. |
Re: Our moving back experience
Well as of this morning I have a bank account in the UK! I would advise anyone making the move back to the UK to work with your local HSBC who will assist you in the process. Their employees were all very helpful, understanding of our situation, and very professional.
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Re: Our moving back experience
Expats
Just a follow up after a year back in UK. Thank you for comments on my original post. I always intend to write short, punch, brief notes but end up in a major dialogue. So please excuse this example here. The biggest question that will be of interest to others here is, on reflection am I still glad to be back? The short and somewhat evading answer is Yes; mostly. One of the biggest failings I have made since returning, is exactly what I did when I moved to Canada. Comparing countries on a like-for-like basis and criticising the deficient one. My enthusiasm with Canada quickly diminished and I became very unhappy indeed very quickly. Things turned out ok in the end and I got quite a big cash rebate from the Karma bank (but that's a different story). Now in UK it's difficult to avoid criticising it. There is so much to criticise it for. Canada does a great job at looking after its best interests while in UK we pussyfoot around not wanting to offend people who, quite frankly, offer our country nothing and are just here to bleed it dry. Yet we not only deal with this in a less efficient way, but manage to lose respect and credibility with our own immigrant population. And with the recent burning down of a Mosque in London I am wondering whether my Canadian citizenship might come in handy if things get out of control. There are plenty living here who absolutely detest us and our ways. They have the capabilities of taking over our country and are already doing so. Yet most British people are less concerned by what's going on and what could inevitably happen than ensuring they don't get branded a racist. Being somewhat protective of your country and your heritage does not make you a racist. I don't see anything wrong in protecting your race. EVERY other race does this, yet when we do it we're classed as racists and nazis, almost exclusively by our own. Can we find middle ground where we more forcefully protect our interests and live in peace with other races in UK? I hope so but one of my key fears is that this is unworkable. And it's the single reason I can think for wanting to move away again. Workwise I am very pleased with how things worked out. I was concerned by the stories of gloom. McDonalds now has a waiting list whereas in the past it was always an option at the end of the road. Not only was I to find work quite quickly but the pay was good too. I generally consult rather than being an employee so perhaps my experience is not mainstream. On my first day I must say I found the workplace to be a lot less fun than I remembered in Canada and also previous work in UK. It was almost unfriendly, and people seemed miserable. Now in my last few days in my contract and the company is shifting a lot of the jobs to Eastern Europe with a new centre there. This was kept under cover but no doubt people sensed "trouble at 'pit". What I didn't appreciate too much is how I was watched like a hawk and my hours scrutinised. In fact I ended up having a discussion about this with my boss. In my field a lot of my daily energy is devoted to the work I do which includes whilst at home and at weekends. I tended to stick to my hours in general but a lot of value I delivered came from my downtime rather than work time. I felt so strongly that in the end I negotiated to work from home for the remainder of the contract and I must say I think they are happy with this arrangement. In Canada I could generally work from home and I think Canadians have a lot more faith in people as my integrity was never questioned. One of my concerns was with how my children would integrate into the education system and how their Canadian experience would impact them both in education and socially. I'm pleased to report that both have blended in well. My concern was that as Canadian schools begin a year later whether they were behind. In both cases there was a little catching up, but my eldest daughter (1st year in senior school) has now started excelling. My youngest daughter was diagnosed as being on the Autism scale, something we suspected. The thing about this is that I felt the move back would better support her without being financially crucified. And this has worked out well. She has the diagnosis which means that her school will have to become more aware of the condition. They had reacted inappropriately to some of her behaviour but I am so pleased that Autism is recognised less as a disability because my daughter is very capable and quite talented in areas that continually amaze us. One of the reasons for moving back was that I felt it would be more affordable. So on reflection how do I feel? Well in most cases I've found the cost of living either the same or a bit cheaper in Britain. Even petrol/diesel which has actually increased in price compared with Canada and US is a bit cheaper thanks to the amazing Diesel cars we have. Cost of running these is a bit higher but I am finding I'm not doing the miles I used to. Britain is much smaller in scale compared with North America and this has a positive impact on the miles people tend to do. I regret the beautiful and luscious geography of North West Americas and appreciate the relaxed and chilled out attitude of many people living there. I've managed to find a place to live which is a lot more affordable but the region is geographically dull as hell and although the people are not unpleasant it is a soulless place to be. However the housing market is stagnant so it's quite possible to move on without finding that one has been priced out of the market. And when the need and opportunity arises, that's exactly what I'll do. |
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