Your ideas

Crazy, my wife was asked to ‘”sign” an on line form, on the computer screen, using a mouse, in OakFurnitureland. It was impossible to produce anything like a real signature. I kept calm despite this

We live on a new development and can only have BT internet provider! How does this comply with Competition rules! BT have the monopoly over our estate which isn’t fair. Anyone else have this problem?

I recently tried to have wi-fi with pop telecom.
Never went live as promised.
Taking direct debit still.(double amount) .still no service
Phone calls at night demanding money to pay for an BT engineer

The Policy and Procedures for dealing with complaints about veterinary services is outlined by their Governing Body, the RCVS. This same information is mirrored on the Which? Web Site, but in reality it is a dead end. The RCVS is self governing and has vested conflict of interests in dealing with its vetinary service members. After 9 months of asking reasonable questions and expecting reasonable answers concerning the vetinary treatments that led to the death of our beloved pet cat, my wife and I are about to make an Official Complaint to the RCVS. I, we, invite you to follow us on our journey here inside the confines of Which?.
The final outcome, based on the fact that in the past 50 years the RCVS has failed some 99% of complainants, should be interesting to say the least.

Fitbit have, via Amazon in particular, promoted the contactless payment feature on their trackers. This feature is currently virtually useless in the U.K. and this should be made much clearer.

My SP3 type cover failed after update 1803. MS website has hundreds of complaints, this a common issue and known to MS; are MS liable for the issue they, in my opinion, have caused?.

Baxi outsource their servicing costs to one insurance provider, who in the last 24 months, has increased their costs by 31%. The insurance provider would seem to be independent of Baxi and to have a complete monopoly of Baxi’s servicing costs. So you have a Baxi bolier serviced by Baxi engineers, whose servicing tariffs are costed by an outsouced provider. This seems completely absurd. With costs increasing alarmingly, why would we buy another Baxi boiler as the product and service are inextricably linked? When I phoned Baxi’s Customer Services Department they understood the dilemma but asked me to call again to speak to their Customer Relations Department where I was left waiting for 25 minutes with no one answering the call – great customer relations!! Half way through this call, a computer activated voice asked me for my phone number to call back which it then refused to accept – yes I am very frustrated! But I am even more annoyed by seeing my annual boiler servicing costs increase by over 31%.

Why when you subscribe to one catalog that comes in the post do you end up with umpteen others from other Companies? I recently got a catalog from ‘Fur, Feather and Fin’. This company sells, among other things, guns for shooting animals with and clothing with real fur! Both things I am strongly against. And where did they get my contact details from?

ADBLUE- Diesel Cars
More and more car manufactures are using AdBlue to meet with the latest levels of emissions but what about the extra costs involved ?
First of all its not an option to ignore topping it up or refilling it because if you do whilst you will get warning it will stop.
The cost is something I write about like everything if you buy it in an emergency it will cost more particularly from petrol stations where many people think that’s the only place , well it isn’t.
Several supermarkets are now selling it and with the costs ranging from £25 plus down to £11.00 for 10 litres there really is a vast range of prices being changed.
My tip, well this stuff is a liquid solution of urea (the stuff found in urine), not flammable or dangerous and can be easily stored without any risk.
You can save a fortune (particularly if you do high mileage) by buying it from a good motor factors such as Europart, Carparts for less etc, they all usually deliver often for free and if you sign up to their offers you can bag a bargain, for example earlier this year I paid £11.98 for 10 litres of the stuff and that would normally have been around £16 from them or £20 plus from other sources.
Not bad, but it gets better in a recent online discount campaign that came down to £7.79 which is a bargain and a major saving so much, so I bought 20 litres and I store them in my garage as I will use it for sure.
TOP TIP
Buy your AdBlue from motor factors not high street supermarkets or petrol stations. Watch for deals and buy “Low” to save even more, you will need this stuff so why pay more than you have to many of us chase the cheapest fuel this advise will save you £££s.

They are quick enough to take instant payment from your credit card. Why am I waiting 18 days for a refund showing on my paypal account to be credited to Amex. Why is it routine to wait 10 days?

Charging mobile phones more efficiently, not directly from the mains, means that you will get a better charge, and it will last longer per charge.
The reason being that converter technology from mains to direct current is not very good, irrespective of which manufacturer makes your phone.
So, rather than plug it directly in to a mains charger, instead charge it from your car’s accessory socket or charge a separate battery bank from your car’s accessory socket, then use it to charge-up your phone. It also helps to keep your leads and sockets scrupulously clean, with a squirt of contact cleaner now and again to remove all the built-up dirt on the metallic socket/plug parts. With dirty electrical contacts, the charge has to ‘jump the gap’ and the built-up resistance means that the power has trouble getting in to the phone, so the voltage shows a false peak and switches off the charging process prematurely. Resulting in less power/ charge getting in to the battery. So, by keeping every contact clean and free of fluff and other every day debris, you can get a better charge/discharge so batteries will last longer and your phone will stay charged for longer. My previous phone( iPhone 4 ) with it’s original battery lasted me until August this year, by non-mains direct charging. I decided that ,after 7 years of continuous use, I need the extra resolution of the later SE model for video etc.I still have it, and it still works ok, much to the surprise of my local Apple store staff, some of whom had never seen an iPhone 4, let alone one in ‘showroom’ condition in it’s original case with it’s original battery. Hope this might help some of you. Cheers Ian

Does everyone want household full of items that work through WIFI and connect to each other through a router, voice command or a smart phone? What are the dangers that others might use these connections for nefarious purposes and gain access to personal data? Do these fears outweigh the advantages of the convenience offered? How reliable are they and how might they malfunction? Could they act without the owners consent if programmed incorrectly? Can Which explore this connected environment and form an opinion on these things? Can we debate that here?

I purchased two offers in a promotion in the October issue of The Oldie Magazine – “Give 12 issues of The Oldie for just £24” – quoting SP1018 and using the e-mail address shown. Six days before the offer closing date my bank account was debited with two amounts of £42.50, not £24. I queried this and in several e-mails was told:
1) I used the wrong promotion code;
2) I should have ordered three subscriptions;
3) Would I send them a photograph of the offer page?;
4) This promotion code is only valid to customers who order online;
5) I was not eligible for the promotion as I paid through a third party company.

A letter to the Editor on 20th November did not receive the courtesy of a reply.

I paid using a standard on-line system. There were no mentions on the promotion page concerning the number of subscriptions or the method of payment and if I made a mistake in filling in the on-line form it would have been obvious to their staff that I was applying for the £24 promotion, otherwise it would not have been a promotion.
It is extraordinary that I have to send a national magazine a scan of one of their published pages.

Have others had similar experiences with either The Oldie Magazine or other promotions?

I don’t see any topic related to the most basic need namely water.
The water suppliers in UK needs urgent reform. I live in London and Thames Water is the only company does water supply in London. As a result there is extortionate amount charged as “fixed charge”. I’ve got my bill for the last 6 months. Wastewater costs me £39, but the “fixed charge” is £35. Is it a joke?More importantly the water distribution system is at best broken in this country. There is no fair competition unlike the energy companies. As a result the water companies recorded a windfall gain in billions.The regulatory body Ofwat is utterly incompetent and inept in their monitoring of these companies. They have been heavily criticized in the past yet they have not learned their lesson.
Is there anything citizens could do to highlight this issue to have a proper debate in the parliament?

I don’t see any topic related to the most basic need namely water.
The water suppliers in UK needs urgent reform. I live in London and Thames Water is the only company does water supply in London. As a result there is extortionate amount charged as “fixed charge”. I’ve got my bill for the last 6 months. Wastewater costs me £39, but the “fixed charge” is £35. Is it a joke?More importantly the water distribution system is at best broken in this country. There is no fair competition unlike the energy companies. As a result the water companies recorded a windfall gain in billions.The regulatory body Ofwat is utterly incompetent and inept in their monitoring of these companies. They have been heavily criticized in the past yet they have not learned their lesson.
Is there anything citizens could do to highlight this issue to have a proper debate in the parliament?

You at which have the knowledge to help people on Unerversal credit. Stop this happening this benifit isnt working imadgin you lot not getting any money over the xmas, thats the reality 5 weeks wait for a benifit.. try it Yourself …go on try and claim now for the xmas holidays see how far you lot Get… No money for xmas .