Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

Criminal activity is not the first thing that comes to my mind, in fact it would be way down the list. There are many varied reasons why life can become so intolerable to individuals that they wish to relocate and change the situation.

Rosemary

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

Again, that explains why infections went through the roof. I don't see it explains why there is a higher mortality rate out of those infected.

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

State of the NHS after years of underfunding, higher proportion of BAME among frontline workers, health and care staff, variant viruses with higher mortality.

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

:focus:

Please stay on topic for the sake of the OP.

Rosemary

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

To me the OP is beyond help.

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

I am potentially very sympathetic to the OP because I am also in potentially the "wrong" country for my best interests and debating with myself what if anything to do about it.
But at the risk of talking in clichés, I think there are relatively few situations where moving countries magically solves all your problems. Your baggage tends to go with you. Plus the stress of finding your way round an unfamiliar country, maybe in an unfamiliar language, without the extra weight of Covid and Brexit.
I fear the OP is clutching at straws, and with no safety net in case the straw breaks that could be disastrous.

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

Interested to know what you mean by the wrong country for your best interests? Do you like bullfighting or something?

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

Very sensible post. I hope you can do what you wish.
I would say anyone wishing to move to the EU now from the UK has to research and research again and even research a third time just to be sure. If it takes a couple of years at least you will be sure its right for you.
Even retirees can spend 90 days, that at least gives anyone enough time to form a proper opinion, travel around to visit different areas and even experience the fact that it aint always holiday weather.
Due to the visa requirements and costs now, just think if you did all that work only to get here and hate it.

Arrivals from the Uk cannot now just upticks and try another EU country. They would have to return back to the Uk and start again.
Although those of us who took residency under the WA terms are also stuck, but at least we wont have spent out for the visa, police checks etc.

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

LOL no. Although, watching the bull runs where the bulls don't get hurt, is quite fun.
Too complicated to explain in any detail and off topic, but basically having lived in France 2007-2019 I have permanent residency rights there under the WA, however I came back to work in the UK a couple of years ago and am currently locked down here. And if I don't get back to France soonish I might have trouble swapping my existing residence card for the new one. So not really comparable to the OP's situation, but I think I understand his frustration.

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

I thought the clock had stopped ticking due to Covid?

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

Not that I know of.

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

A bit off-topic, but doesn't your Titre de Séjour allow you to be absent from France for xxx (5 or even more?) years?

Re: Driving down and renting in lockdown.
 

The WA says 5 years. In theory it should be clear cut but in practice it seems a number of préfectures are wrongly insisting on recent proof of residence. I just feel I need to not leave it too late in case there's going to be to-ing and fro-ing about this, or about my card having been posted out and returned undeliverable, or about some other aspect that I'm blissfully unaware of as yet.