Ace

Think you mean bell-end.

But I'm sure you did. I raised a smile too.

Can't remember whether it is illegal as such, but I think the European Court frowned upon it and decided to attempt to shake things up. But, rather than do the decent thing and bring prices to "meet in the middle" (as males are naturally higher and females lower), overall males' prices have edged down slightly, and womens' have rocketed up. However you look at it, a lot of people are being priced off the road.

Slightly better - Renault Clio 1.2 Authentique, 60bhp.

Just for fun... My mother is 59, drives a '57 plate Megane GT (two litre diesel) which was bought in Jan '10 for 11k, and paid 441gbp last year for her insurance (20+ years no claims, does about 6000 miles a year, clean licence, garaged) through Direct Line. When her renewal came through in March this year, the only things pertinent to her insurance were that she had gained another year of claim free driving, and the car value had gone down (as it would), and Direct Line wanted 1100gbp off her. She hasn't moved house, changed job, dropped a twin turbo engine in the car, gained any points or caused a four car pile up. A stroppy letter to Direct Line outlining that the renewal was frankly attempted robbery merely prompted the standard template "we are sorry you are choosing not to continue your car insurance with us" response. Happy ending though, she got a renewal of 345gbp through Swift Cover. Insurance has always been a bit of a profiteering / racketeering business; now it's just becoming more and more obvious to us all.

I'm not sure if they HAVE to, I think they are all in the practice of doing so in order to help their cause. But you'd expect that they would present you with all the proof they could before expecting you to pay. Some London boroughs now send you a PCN that includes an invite to visit a secure area of their website, which details the contravention, where exactly it was (with a map) and photos of the contravention uploaded for your "viewing pleasure".

Contest it. Send a copy of the letter back advising that you have received no proof of the contravention with your letter, and will not take any further actions on the matter until such time that they can send photographic evidence showing EXACTLY where you were at the EXACT time of the alleged contravention. If they return with proof, you'll be fairly bang to rights - but it makes them work for their money. And if they have no proof, it's making them work for no gain at all. Basically, anything that is vague from them or might cause an objective person doubt as to the validity, use it against them. If you're particularly naughty, first mention the lack of a specific place or address, then when/if they confirm that, write back outlining that their letter states the contravention is alleged, and you want clarification on what they are convinced you have done wrong. When/if they reply to that, state you've received no photographic evidence backing up their claim. They may well have given up long before then.

This is quite amusing, well it made me laugh anyway. I discovered today that the Fergal Sharkey lookalike mentioned previously in this thread had recently gone on holiday for two weeks; before he left, he made sure he called each of the customers on his portfolio and told them not to book any shipments while he was away because "they won't get dealt with as I'm not here". His customers, no doubt surprised and disappointed at the attitude, duly obliged and put their business elsewhere and his figures for the month didn't increase at all while he was away. In a sales position, where revenue and performance is paramount, that must be tantamount to career suicide... I'm beginning to think he won't last very long at all if that is how he looks after his portfolio.

Bewl Water in Lamberhurst is pretty nice and scenic. Couple of nice spots on Blackheath Common too. And Ingress Park in Greenhithe as well...

Well, quite. What they giveth with one hand, they taketh with the other. I don't condone the manpower reductions within the police force either; but we'd be foolish to believe we can't have something extra from the people who run this country without them getting something in return, as it were. However, in the context of this particular issue, the announcement is a little piece of positivity. Of course, there's a whole other thread waiting to be started on the police force reductions. You lead, Charlotte, and I'll follow...

I also agree with this: the lines between what is "acceptable" and what isn't are massively blurred. However, let's take an instance covered by the OP on discovering a burglar in your own home: I think the point being made is that plans are afoot to attempt to make the distinction clearer and, in the eyes of the law, favour the homeowner rather than the burglar. In such times of doom and gloom (economic crisis, everyone's feeling the pinch, general consensus that the nation is too soft on crime), Clarke's announcement is a little bit of good news, and possibly a step in the right direction. Whether or not anything comes to fruition remains to be seen, but it's a positive statement to make.

Since collaring her on Friday, yes. She was kind enough to give me a lever arch file containing the 13 week induction programme for new sales people, and I've agreed that I will study it to gain a more rounded knowledge of the role (my knowledge of freight forwarding stretches back to 1999, it's just the sales techniques I need to pick up); in return, she will, unofficially and off the record, give me first refusal when the next opening appears. It seems the lowest performing salesperson currently at our office is looking destined to be released (failed his three month probationary period), and the sales manager cannot see him lasting much longer; not a nice thing for her to say about one of her employees, but ultimately she has to put the company first, or it's her who has to face the questions from up high. It's a matter of learning the "theory" from the induction file, and biding my time.

Absolutely spot on. For my money, if you decide to burgle someone else's hard earned items, you forfeit all your "rights" as soon as you cross the threshold of their property. Also, I would think it is much more of a deterrent to would-be law breakers if they are acutely aware of the potential consequences and hazard to their own well being and health; a case of a judge basically giving a verdict of "well, you knew the risks".

That's what I'm beginning to think. Aside from the personal gain should I do well, I like the idea of going to meet new people and potential customers and being proud to represent the company and what it offers in terms of freight and logistics solutions. It'd just be nice to actually see the results of my work in terms of actual targets rather than just looking at my payslip every month and failing to be surprised because it shows the same numbers as last month. And the month before... I like to take pride in my work, and do the best that I can possibly do: I've gotten to a point now where I think I should like to see that reflected in what I am given by the company in terms of reward. I see some of our current examples of salespeople and it's horrible to admit, but I look at some of them walking to their company cars at the end of the day (particularly the one who looks like Fergal Sharkey) and think "surely if that pleb can do it, I must be able to do it, and better than him". All about bettering and improving myself and my career, really - what better time to do it than in time for hitting 30 years of age?

I quite like the idea of going out on the road, meeting potential customers and putting the case across, then successfully building up the business they put through us and managing the account, building relationships etc, simply because I like to take pride in what I do at work; on the other hand I'm acutely aware of the risk involved in taking a leap into the unknown. But nobody was ever successful without taking a calculated risk or two. The general consensus away from this forum seems to be "man up, you fool - you'll be fine".