As if to prove my last post true, Kwik Fit have provided some excellent service to me today.
A couple of days ago my car started making some horrendous metallic noises. I thought, actually, that a part of my car was dragging along the ground. When I got to the gym (for that was where I was going) I checked the underside and could see nothing too loose. I did, though, discover that the exhaust pipe gets quite warm (mind your fingers says the voice of experience).
At lunch time today I took my car down to the Kwik Fit on Old Shoreham Road in Hove and they took a look at it while I returned to work. When they phoned me back they told me that there was a bracket loose and that they’d welded it back on. I asked what the damage was (you know, to my wallet) and they said “Oh, no charge for that“.
So this is a big thumbs up to Kwik Fit and it’s multinational parent company, Ford Motors.
Capitalism, Consumer, Customer Service
I have a frequent debate with one particular person about large companies. Her argument is that where they behave in an unethical way or in a way which, were it an individual, would be illegal, they should be rebuked somehow (our discussions never extend to what form that rebuke should take).
And now the Trade Unions, having failed at ruining domestic businesses thanks mostly to Mrs Thatcher (for all her social-engineering faults) are going to try to destroy multinationals instead in a new form of traditional socialism: TUC on multinational businesses.
But I remain confused by this attitude. The trade unions, even now domestically, believe that in private companies where there is genuine competition (and not oligopolies) direct action is a reasonable response to poor behaviour by companies. Surely, actually, companies are the greatest examples of genuine free democracy? Information about publicly listed companies is available to all and, just like Acts of Parliament or decisions made at local government, the people do not read them — they have better things to be doing. But they have access.
So, when people choose to shop at Evil Corp. plc, they are choosing to support exactly what that company is doing. When people boycotted Nestle in the mid-90s, they were reacting, democratically, to what they considered unacceptable behaviour by that company. I am proud to admit I joined in with that boycott and evangelised too.
Trying to react, from within, and unilaterally against a company (as Trade Unions might) is to defeat the general will of the buying public who are exercising their democractic beliefs. Much like terrorism or violent protest (as opposed to civil disobedience, voting and peaceful protest) trade union action is a disproportionate response against what the majority want. And, hopefully, the tyranny of the majority will be avoided by the twin impactors of minor intervention by the State (regulation) and the empathy of that majority acting in the interests of all.
I was appalled, incidentally, to read in Scientific American a while ago (and it came back to me as I wrote today) an article which stated as fact that pure libertarianism was an outdated and simply wrong ideology. I intend to tell you not only why it is not wrong, but also what impact it has on speed limits, in a future post. Please keep comments related to speed limits for that post.
Capitalism, Consumer, Current Affairs, Free trade, Libertarian, Liberty, Politics, Socialist, Tax
A couple of weeks ago I asked Everest windows to come around and give me a quote. I made it quite clear to the salesman I was not expecting him to play games with the price. Give me the best price and let me shop around.
My property has three standard windows, a squat window and a bay. The quote came in at £13,000 and some change. He then said, that if I bought all the windows at once, that would go down to £8,500 and some change. I balked and the price instantly dropped to £7,400 due to their ‘summer sale’ which, coincidentally, ended the next day.
So I said thank you and sent the chap on his way.
Then during the week I was phoned and told that they may be able to provide a substantial discount so I agreed (I had to be in all morning for another purpose) and the same chap arrived this morning.
The price is now £5,500-odd but only if I sign up today because (get this) the summer sale ends tomorrow! So I said that that was great, an £8,000 saving! Can I have a quote and I’ll compare prices. Nope — this price is now only.
So my question is this: If I want to compare prices between companies, do I have to have all the salespeople at my home at once? I cannot get a price from any particular company without signing up before comparing prices. This is no way to run a business.
I will buy my windows from the cheapest company that makes the best products who doesn’t give me an ultimatum price.
Capitalism, Consumer, Customer Service
I’ve been trying to buy some paint recently. Who knew how hard it was to tell what a paint colour looks like without buying testers?
Why don’t big companies like Homebase and Focus provide samples on display in the shop actually painted onto plaster? The big brands that rarely change their colours would be able to charge a little more for their paint because people aren’t having to buy testers… Or would the lighting conditions at home still make you want to test it out? Who knows!
Who knew, too, that I would like DIY when I started doing it…?
Consumer, Lancing, Personal
I suggest that BT try calling their New Business phone number. After 40 minutes (not an exaggeration, I have call length on my phone’s screen) was put through to a chap who failed entirely to set me up with a new account.
I’ve gone with Virgin Media instead. Fools.
Consumer, Customer Service, Personal
I don’t know what’s wrong with the car. Despite two years of an Engineering degree I didn’t actually learn how to diagnose problems, I just know what the bits do (in some cases). To be honest the problem’s my fault really. I let it go way longer than I should and now the warning lights are too many I am sufficiently alarmed to book it in. Not so alarmed that I won’t continue using it to get to work, of course: I have a free parking space at work at the moment!
So with the Campaign for an English Parliament holding a National Council meeting this Saturday I went off to the websites of all the greatest car hire places to see what bargains I could find myself — I’m not going to risk taking it on a motorway or to Birmingham even. It turns out that there is a great variance in pricing. I had not expected this.
For a similar quote National Rental/Europcar in Brighton offered £51 for the weekend; Enterprise rent-a-car offered £67.99 and Last Minute.com offered £85. The odd thing about the LastMinute.com offer is that the pick up and drop-off location was the same as the Europcar place… Quite a mark-up then. This is a warning — shop around.
Consumer, Personal
Update: Due to wake up calls from Devils’ Kitchen, Tim Worstall and many welcome visitors please note that my post below is littered with economic nonsense and that I focussed, for reasons that are beyond me, on the wrong enemy. I was wrong — let’s hear all elected representatives admit that…. Blair? Clarke? Reid? Brown?
Original post continues…
Sorry.
I am livid about the water ‘crisis’. Crisis is often an over-used word. A crisis really should be an event so sinister, so apalling that there is little hope of recovery. So, in the strictest sense, this isn’t a crisis — rather a period of stupidity caused, bizarrely, by OfWat, Water Companies and the previous administration. Let me explain.
The Conservatives privatised the water companies. It was a part of the general privatisation agenda which we also force on undeveloped economies when they need money from the International Monetary Fund (but that’s another gripe). Water is, in my humble opinion, an absolute. No-one in the West should want for water and no-one should be making a profit or loss out of its supply. In a modern country, water should be free and available to all.
That water is charged for probably serves a social function rather than an economic one. Maybe people waste more water if it’s free at the point of use…
But as a general point water should be free.
So I am shaking in anger that shareholders can be profiting while water companies have leaks that, at least in part if not mostly, are the reason for the drought order called for in Surrey. This doesn’t affect my part of the country yet, but it is likely to soon.
OfWat should have been told at the point of privatisation, that water companies should not be allowed to profit while drought restrictions are in place and their infrastucture is being wasteful. Of course individual leaks are going to occur, but systemic failures to deliver water should not be rewarded by profits.
The water companies should be investing in new infrastructure at a frantic rate. They should be doing all they can to avoid drought orders and, ultimately, this should result in the complete spending of shareholder-returned profits until this is achieved. Those of us who are unmetered are going to pay, now, for water we are denied while shareholders reap the rewards. Let’s make capitalism fair and just — otherwise, how can the right defend it?
Capitalism, Consumer, Environment, Free trade, Green, Local, Politics, Socialist
Those of us in Europe spend two ten thousandths of our wages each year on space exploration and related research. That £5 is nothing if you ask me. Consider, for example, that each taxpayer in England pays £281 each year to Scotland in subsidies.
So when you hear that the Earth really cannot cope with everyone being as rich as people are in the UK, it makes you stop and think. What are our priorities? Should we be worrying about third-world poverty when the very act of bringing them up to our standard will result in the destruction of Earth?
We must not ignore the third world, but if we’re to continue to survive as a species, living elsewhere is our only hope. We must explore space.
The article goes on to make some ridiculous claims though. It says:
* In 2004, the UK exported 1,500 tonnes of fresh potatoes to Germany, and imported 1,500 tonnes of the same product from the same country
* Imported 465 tonnes of gingerbread, but exported 460 tonnes of the same produce
* Sent 10,200 tonnes of milk and cream to France, yet imported 9,900 tonnes of the dairy goods from France
I am sure there are German potato species that are the same and which, if things were organised a la Swiss, we could avoid duplicating the export and import of; but isn’t it far more likely that the potatoes are different varieties and that they’ve grown at different times of year?
We import 9,900 tonnes of “dairy goods” from France, but would we really be happy to see the copious amounts of French brie replaced with English stilton? They’re not comparable! (I had to work really hard to avoid the old chalk and cheese similie). Yes, yes, I know Somerset makes lovely Brie, but can they make it in the proportions necessary to replace all French imports?
Finally, when it all comes down to it, isn’t this really a question of socialists using environmentalism to further their once-dead cause?
BBC, Capitalism, Consumer, Environment, Europe, Free trade, Green, Politics, Science, Socialist
England is not Britain
According to Tesco, Caledonian cheese is Scottish (they display the Scottish flag on the product).
Likewise, according to Tesco, Stilton is a British cheese (they display the Union flag — the flag of the United Kingdom).
Now call me fussy, but I believe Scotland is British so either the English cheese should be labelled with the Cross of St George or the Scottish cheese should be labelled with the Union flag as the English one is currently.
Also, anyone who likes Stargate Atlantis will notice the same mistake made there on the Atlantis team’s shoulder flags.
Update: I notice that this is not new, but I still think it is worth rementioning. Kudos to Wonko for having this on his site already.
Consumer, England
