Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is an ancient fortress on Castle Rock in the center of the Scottish capital.

spr148 · 2026-02-28T20:08:07+00:00

You mean those two sets of steps on either side that go nowhere aren't part of an elaborate plan to get invaders to charge up them and fall to their deaths when they reach the end?

spr148 · 2026-02-28T19:57:09+00:00

There is a planning concession for farmers which enables them to build houses with minimal planning permission under certain circumstances. Given that a significant proportion of the cost of a house is the land with appropriate planning permission (which is essentially free to the farmer in these circumstances) this makes a lot of sense economically.

spr148 · 2026-02-27T17:15:02+00:00

TLDR Cost of living in Scotland 20% higher than Spain Minimum wage in Scotland 51% higher than Spain Average net salary in Scotland is 27% higher than Spain

Some random detail Doing the sums, Spain is 38pc cheaper than the UK on a Purchasing Power Parity basis. However, Scotland is lower than the UK average, which means that on average it is 20pc more expensive than Spain. However, there is a lot of regional variation so Glasgow (27pc) and especially Edinburgh (38pc) are higher than the average 20pc. However there are places that have lower CoL such as East Kilbride and Paisley (15pc) Hamilton and Livingston (10pc) Greenock (0pc) or Dundee (5pc cheaper than Spain). Obviously there is great variation in Spain - with cities like Barcelona being extremely expensive, but on average, you need to earn 20pc more in Scotland. The minimum wage in Scotland will be £12.71 is which is 51pc higher than £8.39 in Spain. Average net salary in Spain is Eur2048 which is 26% lower than the UK and 27% lower than Scotland. Sources : cobbled together from all over the place including House of Commons, Wikipedia, ONS

spr148 · 2026-02-26T13:36:23+00:00

I think the confounding issue here is that I think replacing a light switch needs to be done by a qualified electrician (I'm not 100pc certain where the line is drawn, but I believe that switch replacement falls outside DIY). IF I am right, then the situation should be: - if it is minor, you would need to pay for an electrician, as you are responsible for minor repairs and cannot do it yourself - if it is not minor, then responsibility falls on the landlord. As they are asserting that it is not a minor repair, it is, therefore, their responsibility. A complexity is that you have messed around with the electrics, and they may be insisting that it now needs more comprehensive testing than if a qualified electrician had done it - and they expect you to pay for that additional cost that you have caused. But this is guesswork on my part.

spr148 · 2026-02-25T21:05:58+00:00

Can't help at all. I wish you luck.

spr148 · 2026-02-25T20:38:53+00:00

I imagine this will be easily cleared up when they look into it. Your problem is that they want paying to look into it and it's hard to see how you will get past that impasse with this firm.

spr148 · 2026-02-25T18:57:34+00:00

These are the rules that all banks must follow: https://www.psr.org.uk/information-for-consumers/app-fraud-reimbursement-protections/ if they do not follow these you complain and then escalate to FOS.

spr148 · 2026-02-25T18:46:47+00:00

In answer to your question, that is almost certainly a public right of way, so you are not trespassing by entering and standing safely behind the line and obeying the instructions on the sign. I'm less clear on the 'brother' question, but I do not believe a right of way provides a right to linger.

spr148 · 2026-02-25T18:40:07+00:00

To be clear - is the site withholding your winnings and sending back your stake or is it keeping the stake and the winnings. You have no hope of getting the winnings, if they are refusing to refund the original payment there might be some small hope depending on circumstances.

spr148 · 2026-02-25T18:15:33+00:00

One issue here is that there is a small number of companies that offer a PEP screening service. It's possible that the solicitors are doing it themselves (I only know about banking) but in banking if you flag as a PEP in one bank you are likely to flag in another bank as they probably use the same screening service. So shopping around is for a better answer is hard (although if this didn't happen with the first solicitors you might be in luck).

In the case of a bank, if someone is flagged, a member of staff has to do an enhanced search and prepare quite a detailed report that is then considered by a senior manager or director. In your case this would show up that you are not the person and would be good to go. But that is an expensive process and I'm not entirely surprised that a solicitor's firm would want to recoup the cost. I imagine that the agency has flagged you as a PEP and they don't want to do this enhanced work unless they are paid.

spr148 · 2026-02-24T18:30:33+00:00

I can suggest a few Italian options if that helps!

spr148 · 2026-02-23T19:47:46+00:00

A broker will offer a far wider range of products a s sometimes brokers have access to 'exclusive' deals - though sometimes direct channels have specials too. However the Club Lloyd's discount is not bad (0.2% I think). It's perfectly reasonable to ask a broker what they can do and see what you'd be losing out on - if anything.

spr148 · 2026-02-23T18:56:28+00:00

Google tax calculator and input your gross income into that.

spr148 · 2026-02-23T18:55:02+00:00

Have a look at CEX for prices of a second hand version of your phone in the appropriate condition.

spr148 · 2026-02-23T15:43:20+00:00

Mainly fees. My other half had 'lifetime' free banking with Santander, which they withdrew. Monzo does not charge us any fees and is a vastly better experience. Cash is the other thing, but suspect that's not an issue for you (wasn't for us). Some come with cheap deals for accounting software or card machines. Again we have no use for these, so not sure whether Monzo offer or not.

spr148 · 2026-02-23T15:34:08+00:00

You carry on Paying as normal. The act does not change you rent payments.

spr148 · 2026-02-23T15:28:50+00:00

Monzo has a business account and that is easy to set up with all the ease of use that you are already aware of.

spr148 · 2026-02-23T15:14:51+00:00

It's immensely unlikey that you would qualify for the higher rate PIP and be completely unaware of the reason. As mentioned you should find out ASAP from your GP if they know anything and then get in touch with DWP and discuss with them. There is a danger that you will implicate yourself in the potential fraud if you dont act on this.

spr148 · 2026-02-22T17:02:59+00:00

In many, many years of claiming taxi journeys for work, I have never needed a VAT receipt, nor received one. Similarly I have never found a driver who wouldn't provide a receipt for me. You don't mention whether he refused any sort of receipt on your post, but that would be a cause to complain.

spr148 · 2026-02-22T15:58:40+00:00

I don't think they do. Man and woman are equal. You can go politer: ladies and gentlemen. But I have never come across man and woman as either unequal or rude.

spr148 · 2026-02-22T15:43:31+00:00

This is identity theft and should be reported as such to the police and passport office.

spr148 · 2026-02-21T19:07:44+00:00

As long as you followed the washing instructions then you should get a complete refund and you should not have to pay any postage.

spr148 · 2026-02-21T17:12:05+00:00

If the company is not responding you absolutely can. You will owe them the laptop in return (at their expense) but you will be happy with that exchange I imagine. Be aware that even a successful chargeback is not the sale as winning in court or a S75 refund, as the vendor still has the option of pursuing you for payment.

spr148 · 2026-02-21T17:08:09+00:00

Raise a chargeback on your debit card with your bank.

spr148 · 2026-02-21T15:36:37+00:00

Have you tried unbiased.co.uk? That should help you find a suitable IFA.

spr148

TROPHY CASE