visiting after Brexit

[nigelcave]

Quite. But I suspect that the last couple of days pre 29 March will be busy and that April would be a period to avoid heading 'over there' unless, of course, things are (sort of) resolved by then. I wonder if they will do what the EEC did in years gone by, when they stopped the clock - 29 March could become a very long day, at least by a EU standard. Not restricted to them, of course; I gather that there used to be two Guardsmen above Horse Guards by the clock (with, presumably someone else lurking around to 'do' the deed, to stop the clock before it got to 11 if HM was held up for some reason for Trooping the Colour.

[mva]

29 minutes ago, KIRKY said:

Whatever happens will not stop me going to the Somme couple of times a year, love the place!

Tony

merci, Tony !

kind regards from the (eastern part of) Somme, martine

[healdav]

On 09/11/2018 at 11:26, gillchadwick said:

Still don’t think it will make that much difference !

We always had to get a ‘Green Card ‘ from our Motor Insurers and Travel Insurance for Health Care.

Even with the E111 you still have to pay and reclaim money back (in my experience)

Passports were always examined on entry to a ‘Foreign Country’.

Perhaps there will be different arrangements for traveling with Animals ,however nowadays Rabies has been eradicated .

Does it really matter how much Wines /Spirits etc. can be brought into UK?

Will be interesting to see how it affects those of us UK citizens living in Europe?but will cross that bridge when it comes to it.

 

I don't think the E111 exists any more. It has been replaced by the EH1C and using that means that the bills are sent direct to the NHS. I can't see how that will remain after Brexodus.

It will be difficult to go back to showing passports as you go across Schengen as most of the border posts have been demolished.

As for bothering about how much wine, etc you take to the UK. The Customs were paranoid before the Single Market, and will, without any doubt paranoid again. After all, it is the only reason for their existence (forget all this propaganda about stopping drug smugglers; they have never have and never will), and will give them something to do instead of leaning against the wall and nattering at the taxpayer's expense.

 

[Dragon]

On admission to hospital In France, using your EHIC, you pay ~20% plus an inpatient fee. You pay separately for any prescription the hospital gives you to cover your departure from hospital and return home; in my case they issued a prescription to be taken to a pharmacy and wouldn't allow me to leave until my husband had obtained the specified drugs and bandages. The drugs alone were hundreds of euros which we had to pay the pharmacist and reclaim once I was back in the UK.

 

Mine was an emergency bluelight admission in Alsace and the hospital was greatly relieved that we had both the EHIC and travel insurance documents (using a company which is also registered in France so the hospital could get fast authorisation).  We were charged directly for the ambulance. We sent off copies of my EHIC, feuille de soins, prescriptions, receipts and other details to the Caisse Primaire d'Assurance Maladie while still in France. Filing in forms and getting photocopies is really about the last thing you feel like doing when you're ill. We were refunded money we had paid directly but most of the hospital fees were paid straight to the hospital by our insurer. It takes weeks for the refunds to be transferred to one's bank account.

 

I have also had to visit a dentist with an abscess with two associated separate visits to doctors for opioid analgesics. For all those visits and prescriptions I had to pay upfront and send off my feuille de soins to reclaim. Happily the dentist's charges were a fraction of what our non-NHS dentist here charges for even looking in your mouth. And because of pharmacy professional regulation in France you can't just pop into a petrol station and buy a pack of paracetamol for 40p.

 

It would be great if they can work out some way of allowing UK visitors to have an EHIC after Brexit (if it happens) though I don't see why we should, but whatever happens it underlines how vital it is to have adequate insurance.

[sassenach]

Presumably they all accept payment by credit card, or are you expected to have the cash?

[Dragon]

We paid by card in France, but different countries apply the EHIC according to their own practices. Given that banks set a daily limit of cash withdrawals I can't see that it would be practical to do otherwise. I have a vague memory that the hospital swiped my husband's card to preauthorise funds on my admission but I wasn't in a fit state to take any notice. Pharmacies take cards.

 

Edit. They did swipe his card.

Edited 22 November , 2018 by Dragon

[keithfazzani]

I paid nothing for a short stay in A&E in Arras. I showed my EHIC and was given excellent treatment. On my return to the UK, I received a bill from the hospital about 6 weeks later for €60 which was 20% of the cost of my visit to the hospital. I sent this amount and received a detailed receipt. I was never asked for any money up front. On another occasion when I visited a local GP I paid €25 for the appointment plus a direct payment to the pharmacist for the drugs he prescribed. As all these costs were below my insurance excess I didn't claim them. However, without an EHIC card, I have heard that payment before leaving the hospital is required. 

[sassenach]

Does anyone have experience of this in Belgium?

[Dragon]

10 hours ago, sassenach said:

Does anyone have experience of this in Belgium?

 

There is a country by country guide here.

 

I would add that my experience of being an inpatient in the hospital in Colmar was excellent. Within 20 minutes of arrival at Urgence they had taken bloods, identified the pathogens, planned the antibiotics and taken a full medical history. They said I would be admitted to a room at 2100h and the porter with trolley arrived at 2055h. When they had settled me into bed, the first thing the nurse asked me was whether I was hungry and would I like a mushroom omelette!

Edited 22 November , 2018 by Dragon

[seaJane]

1 hour ago, Dragon said:

whether I was hungry and would I like a mushroom omelette!

That beats ending up with what the patient before you in that bed chose, which is my usual experience.

[Dragon]

She popped off to the kitchen and rustled up a mushroom omelette there and then. I think wine was on offer too. They didn't ask you to prebook your meal the day before; the menus came round a couple of hours before the meal time. I didn't realise until it was too late that you could have superior meals if you chose to pay for them. The food was ok, but I remember the sweet elderly lady in the other bed in the room (two beds per room) pushing something particularly unappetising round her plate muttering, 'On peut manger, on peut manger', in a very unconvinced manner because they'd just told her she was diabetic and she couldn't have her favourite foods.

 

The plus side of being in a room with Mme Buhler who couldn't speak English was that I can now talk about ulcers, diabetes and heart problems like a native.

[seaJane]

2 hours ago, Dragon said:

The plus side of being in a room with Mme Buhler who couldn't speak English was that I can now talk about ulcers, diabetes and heart problems like a native.

That's bound to come in useful some time ... 

[bazunitec]

I returned from Belgium after the Armistice weekend, that being the 6th trip this year alone to visit various battle sites and family graves around Flanders etc. and one visit to the 100th Anniversary of the Zeebrugge Raid which my grandad was part of. I did notice that the queues for passport checking had increased on the last couple of trips, mainly down to the new checks imposed halfway through the year

 

I always take the Hull to Zeebrugge route as I live in Warrington and Hull is only 2 hours away as opposed to about 7 hours to Dover! (plus there is no M25 across the pennines!

 

Previously, on arrival at Hull, the ferry just opened its doors and everyone drove off, straight out with no checks... now there is at least a half hour queue.... but not as bad as I expect it will be post Brexit in Dover/Calais

 

Not booked anything yet for next year, but I fancy Aubers Ridge will be on the cards again for 9th May and maybe Zeebrugge again in April... will just see how things pan out

[nigelcave]

Things change for reasons various. There was a time last year and before when getting through Calais could be pretty slow - maybe half an hour pre ticket booth, as French soldiers had a look see and then UK customs on the far side; on he other hand, the last few return trips, since late summer/early autumn, have been relative plain sailing. French douanes seem to have been quite busy checking for people buying cigarettes in Luxembourg (at least they were in  October) - not sure why, as (perhaps dangerously) I assumed there was a Customs Union. The 'limit' was (is?) apparently one carton - i.e. 200. I think that there is an implied UK limit of 10,000 ....

[Open Bolt]

I can't be the only one to notice how they seem to have put all their prices up since the referendum...

There are forecasts the pound will be worth less than a euro in 2020, so visiting after Brexit might mean my budget will not stretch to mere vin ordinaire. Customs may wonder why I am taking so many tins of bully beef with me.

[sassenach]

1 hour ago, Open Bolt said:

There are forecasts the pound will be worth less than a euro in 2020

There are probably also forecasts that will tell you the exact opposite. Anyone who thinks he knows what will happen next week, never mind in 2020, is deluded.

[Dragon]

3 hours ago, Open Bolt said:

.... Customs may wonder why I am taking so many tins of bully beef with me.

 

You may not be able to take meat products from the UK into Europe if we leave the EU and become a third country. Personal imports.

[Open Bolt]

2 hours ago, sassenach said:

There are probably also forecasts that will tell you the exact opposite.

Ah but the difference is it would be unwise to plan to a budget and assume the best.

31 minutes ago, Dragon said:

You may not be able to take meat products from the UK into Europe

Good point. I shall stick with Huntley & Palmers.

[mva]

Hoping I may post this here (otherwise, ok if deleted) ; just seen on twitter (link =>pdf)

 

[healdav]

On 06/12/2018 at 09:45, nigelcave said:

Things change for reasons various. There was a time last year and before when getting through Calais could be pretty slow - maybe half an hour pre ticket booth, as French soldiers had a look see and then UK customs on the far side; on he other hand, the last few return trips, since late summer/early autumn, have been relative plain sailing. French douanes seem to have been quite busy checking for people buying cigarettes in Luxembourg (at least they were in  October) - not sure why, as (perhaps dangerously) I assumed there was a Customs Union. The 'limit' was (is?) apparently one carton - i.e. 200. I think that there is an implied UK limit of 10,000 ....

The French arbitrarily put a limit of some 800 cigarettes being taken into France from anywhere. Illegal in principle, but no one can be bothered to argue. Everyone knows that it is unenforceable - just don't go past Customs.

The French security stopped me last week at Calais, and looked in the boot. Then 50 metres later the British stopped me, and asked to look in the boot. "It's just as empty as it was 50 metres back there". They were so surprised (having watched the French), that they waved me through and disappeared.

 

[healdav]

 

     No- I checked-France is still there-just south of Dover.(Mind the bit of water in between).  Never was a problem before 1st January 1973. And only problem then was the occasional "flic" asking for ID papers when in Paris.

20 or 30 times the number of people and lorries moving; Britain obsessed by illegal immigrants; lots of paperwork done away with that will again be resurrected (for the British anyway). Checkpoints that have been pulled down or never put in during rebuilding, having to be put back in place (usually where there is no space).

Never been asked for an ID card in France; and I live there (except in a bank or similar).

Lots of things have changed.

[healdav]

On 08/11/2018 at 16:18, keithfazzani said:

I have been travelling to Europe via ferries for 60 years. As previous posters have said it never presented a challenge that I can recollect. Yes we used to have a green card for insurance and sometimes our passports were stamped. The EHIC card and the paper E111 existed as I remember before we joined the EU and were (and are?) subject to a seperate International Agreement which includes some countries outside the EU.

 

I have forgotten jus how many Brits visit France for holidays, but it is millions. If there is a problem expect to see thousands of empty camp sites and some very disgruntled camp site owners, café owners etc.

 

I can see the concerns of pet owners as there may be some confusion in this area.

 

But I have several trips organised for next year and don't propose to cancel any of them. 

 

The E111 went the way of all flesh some years ago. It is now the EH1C. That did NOT exist pre British entry into the EU, in any shape or form.

It was brought in in the early 90s as a result of requests from EU citizens (nasty EU doing what people want).

Whether it will exist for the British after Brexodus is a mystery. Just one of those minor details.

Edited 7 December , 2018 by healdav

[healdav]

 

     Fair enough. There are all sorts of scare stories out there-which would be classed as "politics" if we comment on them- and I understand that the Mods. have just done a deal with  ViolentPolice Equipmentplc for the supply of extra full charged tasers, so lets not go there. Shortly after the Second World War, Britain entered into the Treaty of Dunkirk 1946-when Ernie Bevin was Foreign Secretary (I believe it was the first BBC international live TV broadcast as well).  Bevin's view of Europe was straightforward-  go down to Victoria Station, buy a ticket and go where I damn well please.  Nothing has changed, nothing is likely to change.

  (I have a 3 month visa for France in an old passport, from 1981-long past EEC membership by Britain- France is "l'etat administratif"-  those in charge of the paperclips rule the state. I had to get a 3 month visa from M. Le Prefet  for the Aube in order to get married in his department. French delight in pointless and repetitive petty administration is part of the intellectual concept of "La France Eternelle" -that aint gonna change 

Bevan actually said, Go to Victoria, and buy a ticket to anywhere without a passport.

This was taken up by the EU as a slogan for the Schengen agreement; which Britain promptly refused to join.

[Open Bolt]

On ‎06‎/‎12‎/‎2018 at 10:38, sassenach said:

There are probably also forecasts that will tell you the exact opposite

I have been looking for them but have yet to find, advice sought please.

[nigelcave]

2 hours ago, healdav said:

The French arbitrarily put a limit of some 800 cigarettes being taken into France from anywhere. Illegal in principle, but no one can be bothered to argue. Everyone knows that it is unenforceable - just don't go past Customs.

The French security stopped me last week at Calais, and looked in the boot. Then 50 metres later the British stopped me, and asked to look in the boot. "It's just as empty as it was 50 metres back there". They were so surprised (having watched the French), that they waved me through and disappeared.

 

Just a query really - presumably this is unenforceable in law as there is a customs union - i if you buy product 'x' or 'y' in a country that is a member of the customs' union, that should be that?