Small things that annoy you (3) - Page 303

Stepford · #**9061** 9th February 2023, 00:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronnie_Pickering

Whyy does my muppet housemate have to get up and move around at 4AM? Itâ€™s not bloody normal. Sheâ€™s doing her flipping washing up there.

Like me then.

Ronnie_Pickering · #**9062** 9th February 2023, 07:32

Do you yell at your friends on the phone in Portuguese too? If so you might be related to her.

Stepford · #**9063** 9th February 2023, 13:05

No, I try not to make lots of noise after 9pm. Friends!

Tembo · #**9064** 11th February 2023, 23:37

Talking head documentaries about topics I enjoy tend to ruin the topic for me

Rocket Spud · #**9065** 14th February 2023, 12:07

Selling my copy of HeroQuest 10+ years ago and looking at it's worth now on ebay. Not only that but i had the Advanced Quest edition and the Witchlord expansion. Looking at 'sold', i can see the Advanced Quest edition 'map book' sold separately can fetch Â£60... !!

This search was off the back of watching this...

Ronnie_Pickering · #**9066** 14th February 2023, 14:42

I got to listen to the drunk incessant conversations of my housemate to another housemate on the doorstep. Why must you torture me god?

Rocket Spud · #**9067** 16th February 2023, 19:27

Virgin Media upping their prices by Â£7 this May. Pisses me off. I'm paying Â£28 now when i should be paying Â£21 - they reneged on a deal and, after speaking to several people about this issue, threatening with ombudsman, etc etc Â£28 was the best i was going to get. Whats more is that VM are the only providers of fibre in the area and standard connection is awful here at 2-4 mb/s.

Has anyone else had an increase email from their provider? Is there any way to challenge it?

Stepford · #**9068** 16th February 2023, 20:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rocket Spud

Virgin Media upping their prices by Â£7 this May. Pisses me off. I'm paying Â£28 now when i should be paying Â£21 - they reneged on a deal and, after speaking to several people about this issue, threatening with ombudsman, etc etc Â£28 was the best i was going to get. Whats more is that VM are the only providers of fibre in the area and standard connection is awful here at 2-4 mb/s.

Has anyone else had an increase email from their provider? Is there any way to challenge it?

Can they do that if you have a contract? I thought the prices were going down? I don't like the way Virgin media treats its long-time customers. My M250 Fibre Broadband is Â£57.00 with a credit of Â£21.25 so I actually pay Â£35.75

2-4 mb/s costing Â£28? That's terrible.

biscuits · #**9069** 17th February 2023, 08:17

^^ here are Martin Lewis's tips:

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/ne...ce-hikes-2023/

If you scroll down to the emboldened part that says:
Want to stay with Virgin? HAGGLE â€“ Virgin is the top firm to negotiate a discount with

It has some links for tips.

Rocket Spud · #**9070** 17th February 2023, 08:45

Thanks, Bix. I already checked the moneysaving site yesterday. Yes, i'm within my right to cancel, but the only alternatives for me are standard broadband at insanely (criminally? for the price) low speeds. The other option is to try and haggle it. I'm sure they're expecting a mass of calls and will probably have a planned allowance for 'discounts' for those who hassle the most.

Rocket Spud · #**9071** 17th February 2023, 08:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stepford

Can they do that if you have a contract? I thought the prices were going down? I don't like the way Virgin media treats its long-time customers. My M250 Fibre Broadband is Â£57.00 with a credit of Â£21.25 so I actually pay Â£35.75

2-4 mb/s costing Â£28? That's terrible.

Nah, i'm on M125 .. i think. It's one up from their lowest, which is M50. I get speeds of just short of 100mb/s, which is more than enough for me.

I see Cityfibre are installing in my area soon. Good link here for those with little option and wondering what's happening in their area with regards to ISP infrastructure. Pop your postcode in and you'll see what's what.

Also, they're all going up. Expect an email soon.

Jen. · #**9072** 17th February 2023, 09:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rocket Spud

Virgin Media upping their prices by Â£7 this May. Pisses me off. I'm paying Â£28 now when i should be paying Â£21 - they reneged on a deal and, after speaking to several people about this issue, threatening with ombudsman, etc etc Â£28 was the best i was going to get. Whats more is that VM are the only providers of fibre in the area and standard connection is awful here at 2-4 mb/s.

Has anyone else had an increase email from their provider? Is there any way to challenge it?

I haven't heard anything from Virgin yet, but the last time they announced a price increase I found that haggling for a new deal was now done on WhatsApp, which was incredibly easy. I can send you the transcript if you want? It was mostly me just saying "ok" and choosing from lists of options, and the back and forth took hours because their responses were so slow, but the outcome was exactly the same as when I've done it by phone in previous years whenever the contract was up or they announced a price increase during the contract.

When I first went with them in 2014 I was paying Â£28 for 100mb, but for the last year I've been paying Â£25 for 125mb. From what I've seen online some people are paying Â£50+ for the same thing after never questioning the increases. If you haggle every time they announce a price increase or your contract is up then you're always starting from a lower point. Once it's allowed to creep up it's impossible to get it back down unless you leave and later become a new customer again.

I've found the trick is to let them offer more to justify the price increase, then ask how much it would be without that thing added on. E.g. if you were paying Â£25 for 100mb and they say they're putting it up to Â£28 and you say you're not happy, they might then offer 150mb for Â£30. If you then say hmm maybe but how much would 100mb be, they'll probably say Â£24, so you just go with that. They've done it to me before with offering an increased speed or a TV box and it's always ended up either less than the current price or without the price increase added once I've said I want to keep what I currently have (the speed increase I've had since first signing up was added on top of a reduction in monthly bill).

Their price increases always sound high but that's because they've taken into account all those who will negotiate it down but also all those who won't bother. So if they announce, say, 15%, that's probably because they've calculated it'll give them a 7.5% increase in their profits overall (or whatever it is they're aiming for) because lots of people will negotiate but plenty won't either because they don't know they can, don't feel able to or can't be bothered.

Rocket Spud · #**9073** 17th February 2023, 10:04

Thanks, Jen. I actually Whatsapp'd my last contract renewal back in November. The first person i was put in touch with offered Â£21 and i snapped their hand off, i was so pleased. I waited 48hrs or so for the changes to take place, checking online but nothing happened. I then went through about 6-8 people over the course of the week, all refusing the new offer, fobbing me off. I had screenshots of the offer, threatened with ombudsman, etc. My patience ran out and i settled for Â£28. It was a pain in the arse.

Stepford · #**9074** 18th February 2023, 01:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rocket Spud

I see Cityfibre are installing in my area soon. Good link here for those with little option and wondering what's happening in their area with regards to ISP infrastructure. Pop your postcode in and you'll see what's what.

Thanks. VM can be a real pain in the arse

when trying to change policies sort issues out and haggle with. I think it's terrible the way they treat customers, some who are old and/or vulnerable...

It's nice having 250mb/s when downloading however I often find sites/servers are slow so defeats the object of fast broadband. I may well get 100mb/s like you as the only time I really need the speed is on Steam downloads. I will hopefully remember to take both of your advice when my contract ends in 12 months I think.

Stepford · #**9075** 18th February 2023, 02:05

What's with all these slapping videos, they're everywhere lately? Youtube is now spamming me with their slapping category, Rumble and Fire TV the same. I don't have any intension to watch Neanderthals slap each other silly...

Ronnie_Pickering · #**9076** 22nd February 2023, 10:51

a cheap flat comes along..... Drawback, it's in the most spookiest place I might have ever set foot in.

Dougella · #**9077** 22nd February 2023, 12:36

^ What was spooky about it?!

Ronnie_Pickering · #**9078** 22nd February 2023, 13:11

old victorian place. I went in there once. Spooky cupboards. Huge doors. Was once a refuge for 'fallen women' in victorian times.

Dougella · #**9079** 22nd February 2023, 13:41

^ Ooh I'd love to live somewhere like that

Ronnie_Pickering · #**9080** 22nd February 2023, 14:07

best picture I got of it:

Pic makes it look harmless. But it's worse close up.
https://boveytraceyhistory.org.uk/devon-house-of-mercy/

Stepford · #**9081** 22nd February 2023, 15:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dougella

^ Ooh I'd love to live somewhere like that

Me as well. I don't believe in ghosts but love spooky 'gothic' places.

Dougella · #**9082** 22nd February 2023, 15:13

^^ I still like the look of it! Was it very run down inside though?

Ronnie_Pickering · #**9083** 22nd February 2023, 15:24

you two are peculiar!

Not run down, some flats have been quite modernised, but going in the hallways is spooky. I wish I'd taken my phone with the camera. I had to do a meter reading there, and these electric meters were ridiculously high up. The people in the buildings were normal enough.

Stepford · #**9084** 22nd February 2023, 18:29

Tescos "removed from range" many of the things I like. This week it's Onken (fat free) Strawberry Yogurt. Was nice on cereal...

Stepford · #**9085** 23rd February 2023, 18:55

The new Diet Coke lid. Whoever thought that one up?

biscuits · #**9086** 23rd February 2023, 21:51

Being seemingly unable to remember to take daily medication. It's like, come on... it's twice a day at the same time. I still forget.

Yet, I can remember some of my lines from when I was seven years old and narrating the nativity play at school. I can remember all of my lines from Bugsy Malone.

Come on, brain... shake out some of that useless stuff and make room for prospective memories!

Ronnie_Pickering · #**9087** 24th February 2023, 21:32

when you miscount.

Lidl supermarket Â£25 voucher. I only want to spend Â£25. It was tough, I treated myself to some steak, and some posh escalopes, some branded cornflakes. I thought I totalled around Â£24. Got to checkout..... Â£33. Argh.

biscuits · #**9088** 25th February 2023, 07:12

^ or the opposite. You get to the till and you've spent Â£22, so you grab till-side shiz to get the total up to Â£25, but everything at the till is 25p

Ronnie_Pickering · #**9089** 25th February 2023, 07:59

oh yeah thats annoying too.

BFG_ · #**9090** 25th February 2023, 19:49

My car alarm annoys me. It kept going off randomly when we had minus temps at night, bought a new car battery in the hope that would resolve the issue then on Thursday night it went off again at half one. Friday evening after work jacked car up took wheel off removed arch liner and disconnected the noisy bastard alarm siren. Now it comes up with a sulky little message every time I start the car "alarm not available".