Whinge, Moan, Rant And Anything Else Put It Here ...

[chunkygull]

Parked at about 19:40

[ferrarilover]

And you aren't appealing the ticket because...?

Matt.

[Gullscorer]

The story so far:

British hospital gives child NHS treatment for cancer. Parents discover that there is a possible better treatment. Hospital cannot or will not administer this other treatment. Parents determine that the treatment is available in Spain.

Parents gather all appropriate equipment and medication to ensure child is safe and comfortable pending treatment in Spain. Off they go, as they are entitled to do, in their child's best interests. They have broken no law.

British hospital issues an OTT statement claiming the child is in serious danger. British police, without any investigation, immediately assume parents are neglecting child, and issue international arrest warrant. British Social Services apply to have child made a Ward of the Court, thereby removing legal guardianship from the parents.

Spanish police arrest and jail parents. Spanish hospital confirms child is fine and in no danger. Spanish judge considers evidence and submissions. Spanish lawyer says parents will sue British hospital.

In a just and perfect world:

Spanish judge declares parents to be perfectly competent and no crime has been committed. Child receives treatment the parents are seeking. Parents successfully sue the British hospital, police and Social Services, who all issue grovelling apologies.

In the real world:

Parents are arrested and jailed on return to UK. Child is placed in 'care'. The half-witted hubris of health authorities over-rides the Hippocratic oath, the self-satisfied supererogation of Social Services continues unabated, and the pompous arrogant self-important power of the police takes precedence over individual rights.

[ferrarilover]

That's not quite how it went down, but the reality is that the authorities are now digging themselves a big hole to cover up the sensible but not strictly procedurally correct issuing of the EAW. If they'd come clean, they'd be sued and they'd lose and it would cost lots of money, but probably less than its costing at the minute. The initial decision to act as they did was, in all the circumstances, correct. Everything since has been a farce.

Matt.

[PhilGull]

As I understand they went to Spain to get some money (they own a property there) to then go and have the treatment in the Czech Republic. I would question why they couldn't have got the money first and then taken the child?
Also, there is nothing to suggest that this new treatment will actually work for this child. Even the doctors administering it in the Czech Republic say until they have seen the x-rays and data they wont know whether he is a good fit for the treatment or not. The NHS have actually paid for people to have this treatment in the past but in this case did not think it would help.
I'm sure the doctors, nurses and other hard working folk of the NHS just love it when random bumpkins walk in off the street and think they know medicine better than them.
And, to defend the hospital and the Police had they done nothing and the child died you would all be up in arms about it, blaming Labour and Europe and god knows what other dumb shit bollocks you usually harp on about.

[Gullscorer]

That's correct, they went to Spain to sell their property before going to the Czech Republic. However, these parents are not bumpkins, they are intelligent and knowledgeable and researched their son's condition thoroughly before taking the action they did. And they had every right to choose the treatment they thought best for their child, and have broken no law.The child was never in any danger, a fact confirmed by the Spanish hospital.

And now the arrest warrant has been withdrawn and the CPS have said they will take no action. The authorities finally realised they never had a leg to stand on. It may be that communications between the hospital and the parents could have been better, and the parents may also have fallen short in this respect. But the actions of the police and social services in jumping the gun with an arrest warrant in the way they did before finding out the full facts was certainly over the top and the arrogance of the police in refusing to apologise, while not surprising, was reprehensible and will almost certainly come back to haunt them.

[PhilGull]

You know, you're right. Any parent should have the right to remove their ill child from hospital and travel abroad, without telling anyone. And the authorities should sit onn their hands and do nothing. Nothing at all. Just keep quiet and let it happen.

[Gullscorer]

You know, you're right. Any parent should have the right to remove their ill child from hospital and travel abroad, without telling anyone. And the authorities should sit onn their hands and do nothing. Nothing at all. Just keep quiet and let it happen.

Except it turns out that the parents did tell the hospital, numerous times, what they wanted to do, and the woman they were dealing with at the hospital simply threatened them with an application to the court to have their child taken away from them. No apparent willingness by the hospital to collaborate with the parents to investigate the possibility of the alternative treatment. It also turns out that the Czech clinic has now examined the boy's health records and confirms that the boy can be so treated.

Nobody has suggested the authorities should have done nothing. The issue is that the authorities should have behaved reasonably and appropriately, and this they have not done. They have behaved with egotistical self-important hubris and responded with arrogant unapologetic heavy-handedness.

[Southampton Gull]

Avoid Swift Cover at all costs. Bunch of robbing bar stewards.

I'm with them for my car. Now I'm in the position of being unfortunate in so far as I was reversed into by a Jag last week wrecking my front bumper and pushing the bonnet in, and then on Monday a BIFFA lorry decided to cut the corner on a dual carriageway and totalled every panel on my nearside as well as trashing both alloys. Not a problem I thought, that is until I started trying to contact them. Gave up trying to phone them so I emailed them. Every bloody email they send says to call their premium rate number, I managed to get the geographical number and code but the waiting is infuriating. They've demanded access to mine and my partners driving licence at DVLA (They were fantastic) and if I refused to give them permission they wouldn't proceed with my claim. My partner has never driven my car and is only on there in case of emergencies but they insist on accessing her details too. Looking hard for a reason not to pay up it seems to me.

Their recommended repairers list is another story. 2 weeks before they can even give me an estimate and that's with me driving to them, a visit from them is over a month. Needless to say they won't be getting my business again.

[Richinns]

I'm with them for my car. Now I'm in the position of being unfortunate in so far as I was reversed into by a Jag last week wrecking my front bumper and pushing the bonnet in, and then on Monday a BIFFA lorry decided to cut the corner on a dual carriageway and totalled every panel on my nearside as well as trashing both alloys. Not a problem I thought, that is until I started trying to contact them. Gave up trying to phone them so I emailed them. Every bloody email they send says to call their premium rate number, I managed to get the geographical number and code but the waiting is infuriating. They've demanded access to mine and my partners driving licence at DVLA (They were fantastic) and if I refused to give them permission they wouldn't proceed with my claim. My partner has never driven my car and is only on there in case of emergencies but they insist on accessing her details too. Looking hard for a reason not to pay up it seems to me.

Their recommended repairers list is another story. 2 weeks before they can even give me an estimate and that's with me driving to them, a visit from them is over a month. Needless to say they won't be getting my business again.

Sounds familiar. Makes my blood boil just thinking about them.

After a claim (which I admitted my partner was at fault for) they gave us only 14 days to find a new vehicle (ours was written off) otherwise the year term would become null and void and all money would be kept. We did this but then weeks later they proceeded in cancelling my insurance I had paid in full for almost the year on this replacement car. Reason given for this was their own 'checks' had uncovered something in the cars history which was supposedly not declared to them. I asked how they would take this money if I paid monthly and they said they would not have been able to do anything yet refused to refund me. I asked how I was supposed to get future insurance as I would have to declare why the policy was cancelled and they said I did not have to declare this as there was nothing suspect about the thing they had found but that it did invalidate the insurance as it stipulated in my (thousands of pages or wordy ballocks!!!) terms and conditions. Tried to fight it but in the end it would have cost more to pursue it in terms of time and stress then the money was worth to my health. Have though (ever since) told everyone I know and took many people away from them so they lose out in the overall scheme of things.

AVOID AT ALL COSTS PEOPLE!

[ferrarilover]

Is this the AMG, Dave?

Out of interest, have they asked for electronic access via the new portal or are they asking for forms of authority?

Matt.

[Southampton Gull]

Yes Matt it's the AMG. Wheels alone are £1500 each so it'll probably end up being written off unless I agree to buy it back. Every single panel on the nearside is fcuked.

No, they just make a phone call, although they messed up with Lisa's details and were refused access. Funny thing is, they put her name down wrongly and also our address and postcode even though it's the "insureds address".

[Glostergull]

wow. will look and ask a lot of questions when next come to insure my daimler if i ever get the chance to drive it again. wont want that happening to me.
reminds me of a scam operated by an insurance company some time ago. About 6 or 7 years i think.
I had my car damaged in an accident when a hit and run driver collided with me at a roundabout. he was speeding toward a roundabout whixh was just after a sharp bend. i couldnt see him and he came round and hit me for six. He ran off in the process nearly getting run over by the polica car attending the scene. They could trace the owner who supposedly lived in Northampton. So whoever bought it never registrered it.
I claimed on insurance and was asked if i needed a courtesy car. which i paid on the insurance for.. next thing i know a firm of solicitors from Leominster rang me asking if i needed a car. I said yes and next thing I know a guy arrived at my shop with the hire car. I drove a Vauxhall vectra Nornally. They sent a £50,000 Mercedes. How could they claim for that. It also turned out that I was liable if they couldnt claim from the other driver. I didnt take the car. I was glad I did some digging. I would have been liable for some £1500 in hire fees. a clear scam as you are not supposed to have a car better than what you owned.

[ferrarilover]

Gloster, I don't doubt for one moment that you posted the above in good faith, solemnly believing it to be true (sounds sarcastic but isn't).

It is, in fact, mostly tripe and shouldn't be relied upon by anyone as a statement of how things really are.

Accident management companies, JUST SAY NO!

Matt.

[Southampton Gull]

Well, after an hour on the phone with them trying every way possible to find a way out of honouring my claims they've had to admit defeat and allow them to proceed. I have the car registered at my work address, it's mainly kept there anyway but they've tried all manor of ways to trick me into saying it goes to my home address more than it stays at my work address. I was put on hold for 10 minutes at a time while the caller was obviously discussing tactics with someone else, asking me the same thing but in a dozen different ways still produced the same answer "It's 'usually' kept at my work address as per the policy declaration". Not my fault it happens to be cheaper than using my central Southampton home address. They tried to catch me out via the licence details, didn't work and now they've tried the location of the vehicle and that didn't work either. Now I'm waiting for a low valuation but am already armed with several examples of the same vehicle but each one has higher mileage than mine so let's see what they try next