Ruchabo

what a bizarre Q. Someone who drives in France fairly frequently and who's been spot checked twice. Re the info...it's only a heads up...take it or leave it. Mick Mac Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > And as for you Ruchabo... WTFAY ?

Missing the point here...the French are removing all their signs telling you where their speed traps are (fair enough) and installing many more, to try to reduce their 500+ road deaths per year. That's only part of the package..the other is that they are increasing spot checks to make sure people have their reflective jackets, warning triangles etc, and these will include checking on any Satnav you may have in the car. And they say they're going to be much aggressive in the amount of checks they'll be undertaking. So you can be tootling along the autoroute at an entirely legitimate 110Km and be pulled over for a spot check. And if your Satnav isn't disabled and is on default to speedcam checks, as many are, you're liable for a fine of up to 1,500 euros. So possession is enough, regardless of your speed. And it's a helluva fine.

Hi, I am looking to buy a laptop/notebook for my niece who's recently been diagnosed with a serious illness (on her 11th birthday, bless) which means she'll be having to have lots of bed rest over the coming months. She's a really active kid, so it's gojng to be really tough on her, so we're looking at ways of relieving the tedium. I'd like to get her a reasonably priced laptop type thing that doesn't need to be super high spec, will need a decent battery life, as she's likely to be in hosp and not able to plug into mains (parents will have to take home and recharge overnight), can play music and DVDs and doesn't cost a fortune, (but isn't rubbish...it will get a fair amount of use in the long term from herself and her two siblings). Am open as to the screen size..am thinking probably a smaller one is better... I'm hoping to get away with under ?300. Is this doable? Can anyone recommend something? Cheers

There's been loads of coverage recently about the new law in France requiring drivers to carry a single use breathalyser with them while driving in France. In reality the law won't be enforced until 1 Nov and only carries a 11 euro fine. What hasn't received nearly as much coverage, is that it's illegal to have a Satnav that can detect speed cameras. even if the Satnav's not currently in use. Fine : 1,500 euros! So, if you have one of these you should get the speed camera detection bit disabled, or else.... There's more about this on any of the big motoring sites.

It is entirely legit. I got the response below from King's media team. I am going to let them know however, that there was no direct explanation of the fact that the collector wanted to come into my home to sign me up for monthly gift collection and this needs to be made much more clear. And also that their training needs to be tweaked to deal with the issues I raised earlier. Shame it was done like this, cos I'd be very very happy to support this, and indeed will do so. Kings response: Thank you for getting in touch with your concerns regarding a recent doorstep fundraising visit. King?s College Hospital Charity is currently operating a door to door fundraising campaign where our fundraisers ask members of the local community if they would like to support the hospital through a monthly gift by Direct Debit. Our fundraisers are expected to dress appropriately; wearing a charity t-shirt and displaying a visible ID badge, and of course at all times remaining courteous and polite. At no point should our fundraisers be putting people into a position where they feel they have to sign up. I?m sorry that on this occasion our fundraisers did not meet our high standards. We endeavour to make sure that any fundraising activity undertaken by the charity is carried out with care and consideration as the reputation of our hospital is paramount. I will be making sure that the team involved takes greater care in their approach to fundraising and in the information they give out about our campaign. I will also remind all our fundraisers of the importance in showing their ID badges. Door to door fundraising has shown itself to be an incredibly effective fundraising tool for many charities, helping to inspire people to give who otherwise might not have heard of the charity, or in this case are not aware that they can support their local hospital in this way. King?s College Hospital has long benefited from philanthropic support and the charity has provided funding for many new initiatives and projects, including the Variety Children?s Hospital. Once again, I apologise for any distress caused and if you do have any further questions, please don?t hesitate to get in touch.

I've reported it to King's media team. If she's genuine she's in breach of basic door to door protocol..she didn't offer her badge for inspection (altho she was wearing something round her neck) and was quite insistent to come in and fill out a form with me....both very poor practice I reckon. I will post any response I get from Kings.