The other story here is that if I, in Europe, want to hire someone or buy something I will just not even look at the UK, it is just not worth the effort.
When I first came to France I joined an UK 'ex-pats' group on FB. It was quite weird really. There was a hard cadre who seemed to be dead set against integrating into local life. Everything from the people trying to smuggle bacon and teabags through customs to the lady who posted 3 articles a day from the Guardian, so we could all keep in touch with events 'back home'. Then there were the endless discussions about magnolia emulsion - and why it was better than that awful French paint. I found it all a bit depressing, so I left.
Back in 2007, I left the boat hire company I was working for and was going through the process of setting up on my own as an SARL. This was before the Auto-entrepreneur was brought in. I had an offer of a job worth €10,000 and contacted the tax people to see if I could do the work and declare it after I was officially set up. They totally refused. If you aren't 100% legal in France, forget about any work.
Some Brits in France still think that things are as they were before Brexit. Probably the newbies to France….. and the Brits in British Land still think that they still have the same rights as before until they get proved otherwise by being refused entry for a passport validity or for overstaying……. And then they will blame the EU for being racists towards Brits……. But this is Brexit - you voted for it!!!!!!!! I had to stop my mate in England from coming to visit me in Italy as he had been in the EU for more than 6 months in the last 12……… he happens to have a Spanish passport as well but couldn’t be bothered to get a new one. I told him that he cannot come here on his British Passport until he gets his Spanish one. He was traveling happily as before but because he is a close mate, I knew every trip he made to the EU and even from one EU state to another……. Because he was stopped in Switzerland and the official was repeating 90 days in 180 day rule, he contacted me as he knows that I know about this ( he didn’t care because he voted for Brexit ) but when in trouble it is always best to call your mates…… so he got the explanation and he is now in the process of getting a brand New Spanish Passport. His wife is British only……. That is now another hurdle…….! Wasn’t it better as it was before Brexit?…..!
Hello Wallybois, Another thing worth mentioning is that when you engage a French workman, they present the 'devis'.. an itemised estimate, dated and signed. You will have to pay 50% up front, the rest on completion. This is a contract in French law and so gives you protection. Cordialement,
And then the local tradies spot your british van with builders illegally stealing a local jobbie. Think that through for a second. Now who’s happy to see the gendarme.
I once did the customs clearance for an engineer who brought his own tools abroad for some work at an oil field in North Africa. When he returned, customs picked him out of the crowd for an inspection, and when they checked his baggage they of course found his tools. But since he did not make and customs declaration on exiting the EU, and of course did not have and proof of purchase or any other documentation with him, he ended up paying import taxes and fines on his own tools he bought in the EU. It cost him around 5000€ to get his own property back home. If the Gendarmerie catches those builders, there's a real risk that they will do the same to them as well, making them pay import taxes and fines on those tools they brought over. They might reclaim at least the taxes, but that will include them having to hire a customs agent to do the export clearance (which will cost them a couple of hundreds extra) and then they are at risk of getting into exactly the same trouble when they return home (although the risk of getting into a customs check on the border into the UK is rather low right now) That's of course _additionally_ to all the other trouble they're in for working without a licence and so on.
In Ireland, all electrical work must be done by a registered electrician. It's the same for all work done for gas central heating. These rules came in became unqualified people did electrical and gas systems work. There are websites that have registered electricians and plumbers. You are liable for any damages and/or injuries caused.
The Government are thinking of having a Certified Register for Motor vehicle Mechanic's . This was an idea when I was serving my apprenticeship 1974-79. I'm now Retired.
Depends on whether they are fully registered and insured in France? We use a local guy, a Brit who has been in France for over 20 years and has a French registered business. As for employing people on the Black, that’s just stupid.
It's amazing that so many years after leaving the EU Britain-Land people still can't grasp the concept of not being a member of the EU! 😂 but i do feel sorry for this couple 💑 😢 🇬🇧 💩
France is very demanding in terms of compliance with work laws. Last year, a big french company that was building new houses in my village was checked. Out of the 10 people who worked on the site, 5 were undeclared. The yard was closed, for months the company had big fines, went bankrupt. Another company bought the land and the houses under construction. I have also seen checks in the fields at harvest time. The work inspectors arrive and check all the papers. when people work illegally, if there is an accident at work, it is a disaster.
My ex boss ( British family now back in U.K. ) used a U.K. builder to refurbish his country house ( long before the B word ) Everything went ok to start with until the contractor and his crew started getting homesick and going back every other week , then using materials from B & Q or Screwfix etc first appeared to be great until a year following completion when a water evacuation pipe split . U.K. size plastic pipes with no corresponding parts in France meant having to tear down the killed plasterboard ceiling and start again .. Then other issues followed and every tradesman who was called out ( plumber or sparky ) told the owner that spare parts don’t exist . As the boss had now fallen out with the renovation company it was pointless phoning him to put things right and guess who got the job of helping the local tradesmen source something to make do until their new quote to put the job to rights was accepted … Could have saved himself a shedload of time and a little money ( so far ) if he had just got the locals to do it .
@@AllShortsPolitics indeed . Most French tradesmen won’t touch something they didn’t install or the materials were bought in the cheap with no paperwork or part numbers to help out on breakdowns . This same boss installed beautiful recessed shower valves in his bathroom from a company called Crosswater . All very good ten years ago but once the gremlins ate the seals or stripped a screw the local « Espace Aubade « after sales laughed and told him to buy a whole new shower . Muggins myself then had to spend days on the phone and online just finding spare parts … a few mm isn’t much in the bedroom but it is in the bathroom …
id love to share some of the british building horrors ive had to repair over the years,and some of the work ive seen,i originally worked for french building companys for about ten years,before going self employed but for the first six years or so 80 percent of my work was repairing work that some other brit had bodged and there were some utter catastrophies
@@AllShortsPolitics Italian shower room,the plug hole was the highist point on the floor,almost six inches higher looked more like a volcano,and the door that was fitted was a cheap wooden framed one that opened inward ,only it didnt open as it got stuck on the plughole,so the guy cut six inches off the bottom of the door like a saloon door and it all fell apart!the floor was not a mould:kit but it was about 8 inches of glue with too much water and when the guy DROPPED the mozaic tiles on to it they just sank to the bottom,he put about three sets of tiles on top of each other before trying to grout it but none of them were flush or square !the original english owner bought a piece of land and put a tent on it,then built a swiming pool by hand where there was no reinforcement and the cement (again)had too much water and very little cement,then when he started to build the house he built the front of the house directly on top of the wall of the swimingpool so you could open the sliding doors a step straight in to the pool!the last time i was there the front wall was drifting into the pool!another time i was putting in a window on the first floor of a barn and trying to get the tention on my jacks holding up the wall ,only i couldnt get any,puzzeled i went down to the cave and found that someone had screwwed four floor boards to the sides of the walls with two screws in each one and the whole of the floor was being held up by this,all the floor beams that were cut short didnt go in to the wall but sat on a 15 cm piece of wood,i had to build an internal wall around it as there was a grand piano ariving soon to be crained in to the barn,i hate to tink what would of happened there plan was to stage a concert with all there friends after the barn was compleated!
I had to replace much of the electrics that an English person had put in my house. simple enough as it was mostly a load of new circuit breakers (double pole unlike English single pole) Fortunately screw plumbing fittings have some commonality so there are a few 15mm to 12mm 'conversions' going on for the sink etc.
On "X" this afternoon I came across an Canadian Educated British Citizen of Indian origin talk to an English Audience about to many Immigrants in Britain. Just as a matter of interest I googled, What is the amount of British Diaspora Worldwide. Google replied almost instantly. There are 200Million EX-PATS World Wide. Not *Immigrants* mind you. 😂 🇮🇪🇪🇺
The France have good system. What ever you do they never check afterwards but if something goes wrong the insurance company wouldn't pay. All the work done to my house is done by France artisans and I am still impressed by the good quality! ( after 23 years)never any problems!
because the French artisan know he's on the hook for at least 10 years after any work done... they will charge you relatively more, but it will cost less on the long run that is if don't have the bad luck of associating with a crook... every countries have theirs and that's why reputation matter...
Another point to mention is that if there is serious building going on on a property in France, you need to put up a sign that says what is being done, who is doing the work and under which permit (by number) it is being done.
and if you didn't apply for a permit and get caught, even a few years down the line, you may get a fine and have to revert the conditions to the state before the "remodeling"... so, 1st rule is: inform yourself about what need to be done if you want to do any extensive work on your property. Consult the mayor of your village, he may even have local rules depending the zoning to protect the look or the historical surrounding or whatever. 2nd: get the permits 3rd: use local workers. They usually know some things that may save you time and money latter on. 4th: if you decide to go rogue, be sure to never piss off your direct neighbors, because they are 1st row spectators of whatever you do, or anyone basically in a village, because they may remember that you did a rogue work on your property and that in fact, after all those year they stayed silent, the administration deserve to know you did bend the rules...
French builder quoted €42,000, British 23, Polish 9! We paid for materials and then settled after the Polish guys had finished and were satisfied that we were happy. They book work a year in advance!
on the Polish ones, it may bee because of the "travailleur détaché" (posted worker?) rule that authorize them to do work everywhere in the EU, under THEIR country work rules and paying the taxes ans socials deductions according to the Polish rules. As the salaries are lower in Poland, of course they can charge less... then since the social deductions are based on salary, the cost of the job is lesser... then taxes, on a lesser cost job, are also lower in Poland. Meaning, even if they don't do the job on the black (paid under the table), they're more affordable... that doesn't excuse them from following French building code, btw. And if they don't, good luck finding someone local to do the maintenance or repairs... locals will not touch something that isn't up to code, because it become THEIR problem latter on. So yeah, you can hire the Polish team, but be certain they do the work by the French building code... as, when you decide to sell, there WILL be a technical inspection (the main one being the "diagnostic électrique", electrical diagnosis), it's mandatory on house sales, and any shortcuts will be caught... even if you decide to not sell, you will have to get it renovated up to code
The taxes bit is a nice one to mention. We were lucky that our property had been owned for more than 20 years, so we didn't have to prove expenses, otherwise you will be taxed for the difference between what you bought the house for and you sold it for, minus the money you put into maintenance or development of the property. So you definitely need those invoices of your workers!
Yes Sara and Hugh, I've seen exactly the same thing in the area I live in. The house owner sold-up to a French family who's surveyor picked up on this. Well they got another 10 000€ knocked off the price to put it right. Twitty British !
@@AllShortsPolitics I want to know how she knew they were French or German, did she stop and ask them?, It could have been Brits on a busman's holiday 😂. I can just imagine her, driving through France, when she sees a couple of guys on a roof, and she's like, oh, oh, oh, that's it, I'm voting Brexit🤣
We have lived in France for almost 20 years and have seen expats get up to no end of nonsense here. No matter how often I would tell friends not to get work done on the black, they all ignored me and then sometimes had the gall to complain about the standard of the work! We renovated a large farmhouse here and used mostly French artisans with a few Brit workers (all legal). We were always very impressed with the standard of work and the work ethic of the French even though it is expensive due to all the charges they have to pay. The customers you mention are being very foolish. If one of their British workers is injured in the course of the work they do on the house, the owners will be in a lot of trouble. Not to mention that if they want to sell their house later, the notaire will ask for a lot of documentation, devis, etc relating to the renovation. They will also write to the artisans to check certain details as happened when we sold our house. Ignorance is bliss until it bites you on the backside!
I didn't know the TCA included the Freedom of (temporary) Movement to the EU to make use of the Freedom of (temporary) Work and Goods ( plaster,tools etc) for UK citizens. But then who am I being just a teacher of politics and eonomics..... . :(
You raise some good points ..I live in Hungary and have been renovating a house here .lwhere I need a trade I’ve always used local. Electrical work such as re wiring has to be done by a qualified electrician who can issue a Hungarian certificate..you need this for the property insurance to be valid.
...and generally a pretty dumb idea. Only introduced and approved in the UK because of wartime and post-wartime shortages of copper. Which also teaches you something about introducing temporary quick fixes and kludges to solve temporary problems - that you shouldn't, because they tend to become permanent.
I think they are lethal and a serious fire risk... I had a insurance job where the customers kettle overheated and burnt the cable up the wall... Cause faulty Swan kettle and broken ring main... Saved by the smoke detector while asleep...
Plus, if they need to buy building materials locally, not being registered they will have to pay the full price with a 20% VAT instead of the 5% one (note that this does not apply to auto-entrepreneurs who can't benefit the 5% VAT).
You asked what rules are there in other countries: In Italy it is basically like in France. Rules are strict to safeguard a job well done according to local rules….. Ps: you can get 3 pin sockets in Italy. They are the same as all the other ones and placed within an Italian box. You can have a German and a British socket in the same box. But it is not wise to get a box in Britain and bring it here and you do it yourself if you have no knowledge how electrical systems are created in Italy.
I loved that Marcus . Ive been working here in France for the last 16 years , actually for a magasin grande surface that you mentioned frequently (BCM) . Trust me I've met them all , UK leccies that install ring mains , UK plumbers that fit entire houses with 15mm pipework , painters that bring over gallons of paint from the big name stores in the UK , only for their victims, sorry I meant clients , to find that said paint is flaking off of their shutters and facades in 3 or 4 years , hardly what you'd call a cheap alternative is it ? My favourite though was asking a customer why he didn't like French wall switches , his reply floored me , " well they dont have that reassuring click like English switches do , do they ? " 😅 Keep up the good work.
From memory - I suppose you need an ATA Carnet to export your van with all your tools from the UK, import to the EU, export from the EU again and reimport to the UK? Those are just your van and your tools mind you. Then you have your materials and work permit assuming you are even qualified/approved for this type of work. A lot of papers and fees, in order to get "foreign" workers to renovate your house in France? Again, like the importing UK cars nonsense, you are better off just hiring local builders... and accept that you are not in the UK anymore.
I cannot believe that people can be so nieve. Builders van, name on the side, all the tools and the materials!!! I had to laugh out loud. "Well we did not know about the rules", will not work for sure. Thank you for high lighting this for those nieve folks.
Les Anglais nous font bien rire. 😂 La guerre de 100 ans au moyen âge , a duré 116 ans entre les Plantagenets et les Valois, entre France et Angleterre. Idem plus tard, pour toutes les nombreuses coalitions de toutes les nombreuses Monarchies Royalistes contre Napoléon. Même Le Général De Gaulle, ne voulait pas que Le Royaume-Uni rejoigne l’Union Européenne. C’est bien dommage. Les anglais sont nos amis. Ils nous font toujours rire et sont courageux. 😉🇫🇷🇪🇺🇬🇧 Bonnes vacances ou bon courage. Bienvenue !😃 Merci All Shorts pour tes vidéos et partages sur UA-cam. 🤝👍😉
I won't employ an English Builder, plumber, joiner or electrician. Some may be Qualified in the UK, but the majority are P&O Tradesmen. They all seem to gain their qualifications on the ferry. I know one such cowboy who claimed to be a roofer. After seeing his workmanship on his own house, that he later sold to an unwitting family, I knew he was lying. I use to get sea sick looking at it. There where more waves in it than the Atlantic Ocean. Live in France use French builders, or tradies.
I always seemed to amaze me I know of several so called British 'builders' who came over to France to live, whether they were Policemen , Prison officers , Accountants , the job list is endless ........by some miracle , call it what you will , they all automatically turn it a builder half way across the channel !.......
Depends on the country..not countries have the same rules for what happened with Brexit...Portuguese have very easy rules allover for foreigners, but country's as Spain , France , Italy and Germany and some more have more painful rules for 3rd countries so to change to brits they will have to change for all, and that will create a massive issue with right wing parties and people.
There are interesting rules about occasional workers (musicians/actors for example) who can claim benefits for times they are not working but as a 'muso' they must not play for 'fun'. so tagging along with mates at a pub gig HAS to have an invoice presented even if only a handful of Euros OTHERWISE they can lose up to a year's social security payments. I think this is correct, as I as told by a French friend Musician several months ago. An acquaintance had tagged along to a gig and not prepared an invoice and foolishly was photographed on social media and was recognised and lost a load of SS payments. As an Autoentrepreneur myself I suppose I should be careful not to accidentally repair things which is my stated (and Siret registered) business. NO I can't put a new plug on your kettle, sorry! Not needed a devis yet so will have to look that up. Still, I have been careful to put ALL payments through a dedicated French bank account to keep things clean.
At the port, Calais or wherever, they will get sent back or fined for trying to smuggle material to France and the EU without any document and would end up having to pay duty and TVA on the value given by the Douane officials. You either pay or go back. 2 options…….
...or if they let slip they're planning to work. Actually, if customs finds a bunch of used tools and building material, I'm sure they'll put 1 and 1 together on their own. Hello being refused entry and getting a 2-year ban on entering Schengen. Plus a bunch of fines/fees for all the gear they tried to smuggle - assuming they even get that option, or just have them confiscated outright.
These British builders you mention Marcus when coming over to France for this typical job will find out they cannot do this job because of brexit. The couple you mention they willbe stuck waiting for builders who can't come to them at the French customs!
@@AllShortsPolitics just a DIY’er, was travelling back and forward with tools in the boot so I didn’t had to duplicate, but when the rules came in did buy a French set so if I got stopped wouldn’t have to pay. Over a Grand I could have done with out paying for.
The insurance company that I use here in Spain has service where you can call to them and they will come to fix it. If it goes to insurance then you will not see the bill. They even give you 3 hours for free per year. So if you somehow brake a window 🪟 you just call them and they will send a guy to change it *. Why do I use them? Their work goes under the insurance. They mess up something and I don’t need to worry. It is all covered by the insurance company. It is also incredibly easy for me. I don’t need to call around asking who can do this and who can do that and then trying to guess when will the job be ready. I have just one phone number. For the other stuff I have my hot construction worker 👍🏻(* they have everything from a lawyer to a carpenter. Have a question about your taxes and you get an accountant to help you. I even use their concierge to arrange my travel)
Insurances are important when you are an immigrant. You can hire a lawyer for example. Also I would be very upset if I would have to start building everything again from the scratch. Now if something happens the my family is fully covered.
I'm not a builder have only visited France a couple of times but I knew this. It's all part of EU over regulation. The anti John Wayne directive I believe. Who needs qualified, competent, registered and insured tradesmen, eh?.. Oh yeah.. Everyone.
Wow...lots of complications. i think, in my state, anyone can do anything...they don't always require a license. But the work does have to be checked by the town to make sure it meets requirements for new additions/build-ons.
Hey, one of your best non walking vids (which I like, love where you live and the dogs, and your wife is a diamond, and not as annoying🤣) for a long time, informative and entertaining. I miss Builder rambles after Brexit decimated my income and can no longer afford to go to my local. If they didn't listen to your advice more fool them. But hey they're Brits they are exceptional!
Hi, I've been an immigrant electrician here in France for 20yrs now - great comments on French vs UK electics but; PLEASE dont advise people to use adapters. 1. Half of them dont actually have an earth pin connected. 2. Half of them have smaller pins, which can cause arcing at the socket (especially when using high loads - fan heater, vacuum, wash m/c etc). 3. They almost always reverse the phase and neutral when using a UK plug. Cut off the UK plug and fit a french one. Always. Keep up the good work.
@@AllShortsPoliticsexactly what i recommend, if people dont want to change plugs (usually because it invalidates any UK warranty) then put a French plug on a UK multisocket. Works especially well for newbies behind the telly .....
i have a card sejour,but the prefecture said i didnt need one?ive been here for 23 years and a auto entrpre,kids were born here,but i was employed by the commune as a cantonillier so that covers me,but theres still loads of british builders working on the black here,and living here without quallifications
🇬🇧 exceptionalism despite 🌐 UN convention with majority 🚘 🚘 🚘 not displaying "UK" international distinguishing sign(s) 🤔 Grant Shapps quietly scrapped (illegalised) "GB" in 2021 😢
I've noticed that plumbing methods are very different in France. They don't use soldered joints on piping. Non monsieur! "C'est inconstitutionnel!" Everything has to be brazed! And, I believe they're seriously strict about mechanical joints too.
@AllShortsPolitics I was also thinking while you were talking about the guys importing plaster and materials.... all the tools in the van would have had to be accounted for, in terms of itemising them and valuing them in order to avoid Import and Export (on the return trip) VAT/TVA..... I remember the training I had from Irish customs pre-brexit for sending our service engineers to Northern Ireland in the event of a no-deal brexit.... but then the Irish government prepared businesses and traders here in Ireland for brexit, unlike our unfortunate counterparts in GB. Hopefully these guys see your cautionary and educational video!
I wonder why so many Brits assume they would be treated different then those people in the boats? To EU member states, they are no longer different then somebody from Nigeria, Syria or Kenia. In fact, they are often treated better than EU citizens trying the same in the UK, where Tories created the "hostile environment" to please their racist voters. To change it for a better, there is a choice at the next GE to turn the tide.
In a way you've hit the nail on the head Marcus. My partner and I set up a small specialist engineering company we could easily have relocated to France. As the uk market is by it's nature small, we used to sell between 1/3 and 1/2 of our products into the EU. I don't believe we'll survive given that we've only sold three items in the last year. I'm working one the idea of possibly investing in Greece, a country I've lived and worked in for a decade but the business won't be able to survive that move. I am feeling very bleak at the moment as I hate living in the uk with the bad food, bad weather and bad people who've done their damndest to ruin everything. I worked in Germany too fully registered. I don't think there's any future in the uk.
@@AllShortsPolitics Thanks Marcus. I've gone as far as to change my instructions if something happens to me. I don't think cremation is environmentally friendly but I've asked for my body to be cremated and my ashes scattered in France and Greece in places I have lived. I don't want anything of me left in a country I've come to detest 🥺
Guess the same applies if it's a French Builder who's doing things cash in hand and isn't qualified/Registered/insured? It's the person who's employing them who get it in the neck?
Auf Wiedersehen Pet I = 🇬🇧🇩🇪 both inside 🇪🇺 = 👍 Auf Wiedersehen Pet II = 🇪🇸 outside 🇪🇺 = 👎 Great eighties 📺 series highlighting 🇬🇧 working both inside (I) and outside (II) 🇪🇺
I'm currently living in a place that take the rules _very_ seriously. Having an unlicensed and uninsured Brit do work for you on your home here is not something I'd recommend. Both you as the owner/employer and the person doing the work for you would be in deep doo-doo if discovered, doubly so if something goes wrong and you have to bring in your insurer. If we're talking major work, you'd be on the receiving end of a court order to have anything this person did reversed/demolished at your expense, including the inspection afterwards and any corrective work the inspector deem necessary to bring the place back up to code. From the time it's all discovered and until it's inspected and deemed up to code, nobody can live there. Which sucks doubly if it turns out that the work, although major, didn't actually bring the place out of code. Basically, it's assumed out of code until the unlicensed work has been removed/reversed, and what's left inspected and found up to code. Hope you have someone whose place you and your family can couch surf at for a couple months, so you don't have to stay at a hotel or something.
This is one of the most interesting videos you've ever done. And I have no link to, or need of builders etc! LysanderLH mentioned Polish builders. As you are a pro, why in your opinion does Poland ''produce'' generally appreciated, excellent builders and related trades? It must have something to do with apprenticeship/training but what do they do that other countries don't? Bonne continuation. 👍🐕🐈🍀🌳🐞
We hired Polish in the UK... At first it was an all-round learning curve but once we got over that I found them excellent and with great work ethic... Thanks buddy 🤠
Yup, there's a guy round the corner from us that does building jobs using his UK registered van, dont know how legal he is, but the van certainly isn't.. one of these days the Guardia Civil will catch him for the van if nothing else.
Also have to note that its impossible to import a trade vehicle into Spain, and much more expensive since Brexshit to re register a UK car onto Spanish plates
There would be absolutely no legal protection, in fact, you may drop yourself in it for employing an unregistered worker - not 100% sure about that. In fact I’ve just listened to the remainder of the video and (for once) I was right.
@@timwilliams19 I believe Marcus mentioned that hiring them on without checking they have the proper paperwork lands you in the kind of trouble that for someone residing on just a carte de sejour (sp?) may lead to losing it and having to leave the country in a hurry without being able to return for a long time.
Maternity laws in the UK are stronger than France so it's swings and roundabouts... The 35hrs weeks in France is better... So No they're quite different... Cheers buddy
Good grief Marcus Brexit just gets better and better doesn't it 🙄 I have a question, my father owns a property in France and just shortly we will need to pop over to do some maintenance to the property to keep it weather tight (its not a home its a old nunnery that hasn't been developed) are we going to run in to problems just cleaning up the sight and fixing a few leaks ?
True, a customer was doing up a second home in France and lived in it for a bit sold it and moved back to their original property... But if the family inherits then the profit and loss applies, cheers buddy 🤠
For a Larf, how many laws did you break, as a expat Brit, having a French residency doing work in Panama on Jinja Is. without a work visa? PS all evidence on record on youtube ? LOL.
It could be a language barrier for British expats. I know a handyman in Prague who exclusively does work for expats- painting, light installations, cabinets- things like that. While English is a 2nd language in Prague- the center mostly, in the trades you’d be hard pressed to find a handyman who speaks it well enough to get work done. Older people especially don’t know English. Kids today have to pass English to graduate high school. Since some expats only have other expats as friends and who don’t bother to learn the language because they are here on a temporary basis, they will hire an American immigrant to do work..
@@nicks4934expats are here on a temporary basis. Immigrants plan to stay permanently. While I am a resident I am an expat. When I get citizenship I will be an immigrant…. I understand terms are difficult for some. A digital nomad who may stay someplace for a few months is an expat. Someone who is living somewhere because of a job assignment is an expat. Someone on extended holiday or who has a primary residence in their home country is an expat. Someone who leaves their home country specifically for economic or social reasons is a migrant. Someone who flees war is a refugee. Someone who moves somewhere on a permanent basis and gets permanent residency and then citizenship is an immigrant. You also have asylum seekers. A Ruzzian, for instance, who spoke out against the war and government, who would face the gulag back home in Ruzzia. Just calling everyone an immigrant is as silly as calling everyone an expat. There are different words because each has different meanings…
@@AllShortsPolitics We've seen, post-Brexit, that there are plenty of so called Remainers and Rejoiners who are every bit as entitled and exceptionalistic as the worst of the Brexlings. The slow realization that Brexit is a bust is sure to create more of them, or rather, there will be lots of former Leavers who just wants the pain to end and see rejoining as the quick fix, just like Brexit was their quick fix for other complaints (that really didn't have anything to do with the EU). As such, they (still) won't actually be onboard with all that EU membership actually entails, and will likely cry like stuck pigs when the realization that there is no "rejoin" rollback to pre-2016, only join with no opt-outs, rebates, or special deals, and having to accept the _full_ Acquis, including Schengen and the Euro, finally sinks in. And then even more shrieks when they find out that the UK doesn't even meet the requirements for joining, and likely won't for quite some time, thanks in great part to the Tories strategy of Borrow & Steal driving up the national debt. No doubt, they'll blame it all on EU "rigidity" and "refusal to compromise", rather than the compromised(!) Tory MPs they elected and kept in power for well over a decade.
The other story here is that if I, in Europe, want to hire someone or buy something I will just not even look at the UK, it is just not worth the effort.
I gave up on Brexshit day buying from UK on line.
Always support local businesses, no matter where. It's what keeps communities alive!
Spot on xx
You can’t beat English exceptionalism, I want my England in the sun 😂.
Try Jersey.
🇮🇪🇪🇺
Ya try Tahiti dreamer@@derekmulready1523
@@derekmulready1523 Isn’t Jersey full! 😂 of English Gammon already 😂
Yes, unsurpassed exceptionism !
When I first came to France I joined an UK 'ex-pats' group on FB.
It was quite weird really. There was a hard cadre who seemed to be dead set against integrating into local life. Everything from the people trying to smuggle bacon and teabags through customs to the lady who posted 3 articles a day from the Guardian, so we could all keep in touch with events 'back home'.
Then there were the endless discussions about magnolia emulsion - and why it was better than that awful French paint.
I found it all a bit depressing, so I left.
Now you know why the expression "Brits abroad!" was coined. Just imagine how non-Brits feel when they encounter such people.
Makes you wonder why in the world these people left the UK to live abroad at all.
@@flybywire5866 I once saw a Brits abroad tv show, a nutter in "Dordogneshire" raised the Union Jack up his flagpole daily !
Back in 2007, I left the boat hire company I was working for and was going through the process of setting up on my own as an SARL. This was before the Auto-entrepreneur was brought in. I had an offer of a job worth €10,000 and contacted the tax people to see if I could do the work and declare it after I was officially set up. They totally refused. If you aren't 100% legal in France, forget about any work.
Make sense
It makes you realise just how much low level illegality/tax fraud the British public accept as a matter of course.
Some Brits in France still think that things are as they were before Brexit. Probably the newbies to France….. and the Brits in British Land still think that they still have the same rights as before until they get proved otherwise by being refused entry for a passport validity or for overstaying……. And then they will blame the EU for being racists towards Brits……. But this is Brexit - you voted for it!!!!!!!! I had to stop my mate in England from coming to visit me in Italy as he had been in the EU for more than 6 months in the last 12……… he happens to have a Spanish passport as well but couldn’t be bothered to get a new one. I told him that he cannot come here on his British Passport until he gets his Spanish one. He was traveling happily as before but because he is a close mate, I knew every trip he made to the EU and even from one EU state to another……. Because he was stopped in Switzerland and the official was repeating 90 days in 180 day rule, he contacted me as he knows that I know about this ( he didn’t care because he voted for Brexit ) but when in trouble it is always best to call your mates…… so he got the explanation and he is now in the process of getting a brand New Spanish Passport. His wife is British only……. That is now another hurdle…….! Wasn’t it better as it was before Brexit?…..!
Hello Wallybois,
Another thing worth mentioning is that when you engage a French workman, they present the 'devis'.. an itemised estimate, dated and signed. You will have to pay 50% up front, the rest on completion. This is a contract in French law and so gives you protection.
Cordialement,
That's exactly what we do
And then the local tradies spot your british van with builders illegally stealing a local jobbie. Think that through for a second. Now who’s happy to see the gendarme.
In the Channel 4. Escape to the Chateau. Dick Strawbridge only used French Builders. He explained why. And that was before brexit.
Sound advice Marcus. Makes perfect sense, brexit aside nobody wants to see Johnny foreigner turn up and take local jobs.
I once did the customs clearance for an engineer who brought his own tools abroad for some work at an oil field in North Africa. When he returned, customs picked him out of the crowd for an inspection, and when they checked his baggage they of course found his tools. But since he did not make and customs declaration on exiting the EU, and of course did not have and proof of purchase or any other documentation with him, he ended up paying import taxes and fines on his own tools he bought in the EU. It cost him around 5000€ to get his own property back home.
If the Gendarmerie catches those builders, there's a real risk that they will do the same to them as well, making them pay import taxes and fines on those tools they brought over. They might reclaim at least the taxes, but that will include them having to hire a customs agent to do the export clearance (which will cost them a couple of hundreds extra) and then they are at risk of getting into exactly the same trouble when they return home (although the risk of getting into a customs check on the border into the UK is rather low right now)
That's of course _additionally_ to all the other trouble they're in for working without a licence and so on.
Blimey that was costly
In Ireland, all electrical work must be done by a registered electrician. It's the same for all work done for gas central heating. These rules came in became unqualified people did electrical and gas systems work. There are websites that have registered electricians and plumbers. You are liable for any damages and/or injuries caused.
The Government are thinking of having a Certified Register for Motor vehicle Mechanic's . This was an idea when I was serving my apprenticeship 1974-79. I'm now Retired.
@@ecaeas4439 Hello. We haven't seen your comments for a while. It's good to have you back. 🙂
Depends on whether they are fully registered and insured in France? We use a local guy, a Brit who has been in France for over 20 years and has a French registered business. As for employing people on the Black, that’s just stupid.
Absolutely nothing wrong with using immigrant builders as long as the are registered, even if they are 'British'
It's amazing that so many years after leaving the EU Britain-Land people still can't grasp the concept of not being a member of the EU! 😂 but i do feel sorry for this couple 💑 😢 🇬🇧 💩
Keep those crims out of the EU... It'll be considered a "Brexit Benefit" soon.
France is very demanding in terms of compliance with work laws. Last year, a big french company that was building new houses in my village was checked. Out of the 10 people who worked on the site, 5 were undeclared. The yard was closed, for months the company had big fines, went bankrupt. Another company bought the land and the houses under construction. I have also seen checks in the fields at harvest time. The work inspectors arrive and check all the papers. when people work illegally, if there is an accident at work, it is a disaster.
I've heard similar too, so risky why do it?
My ex boss ( British family now back in U.K. ) used a U.K. builder to refurbish his country house ( long before the B word )
Everything went ok to start with until the contractor and his crew started getting homesick and going back every other week , then using materials from B & Q or Screwfix etc first appeared to be great until a year following completion when a water evacuation pipe split . U.K. size plastic pipes with no corresponding parts in France meant having to tear down the killed plasterboard ceiling and start again ..
Then other issues followed and every tradesman who was called out ( plumber or sparky ) told the owner that spare parts don’t exist .
As the boss had now fallen out with the renovation company it was pointless phoning him to put things right and guess who got the job of helping the local tradesmen source something to make do until their new quote to put the job to rights was accepted …
Could have saved himself a shedload of time and a little money ( so far ) if he had just got the locals to do it .
I've seen this so many times myself. UK 15 Vers FR 14 or 16 pipe is not exactly compatible... I had to make adapters. The 18mm is fine though...
@@AllShortsPolitics indeed . Most French tradesmen won’t touch something they didn’t install or the materials were bought in the cheap with no paperwork or part numbers to help out on breakdowns . This same boss installed beautiful recessed shower valves in his bathroom from a company called Crosswater . All very good ten years ago but once the gremlins ate the seals or stripped a screw the local « Espace Aubade « after sales laughed and told him to buy a whole new shower . Muggins myself then had to spend days on the phone and online just finding spare parts … a few mm isn’t much in the bedroom but it is in the bathroom …
id love to share some of the british building horrors ive had to repair over the years,and some of the work ive seen,i originally worked for french building companys for about ten years,before going self employed but for the first six years or so 80 percent of my work was repairing work that some other brit had bodged and there were some utter catastrophies
Me too real PO qualification shit
@@AllShortsPolitics Italian shower room,the plug hole was the highist point on the floor,almost six inches higher looked more like a volcano,and the door that was fitted was a cheap wooden framed one that opened inward ,only it didnt open as it got stuck on the plughole,so the guy cut six inches off the bottom of the door like a saloon door and it all fell apart!the floor was not a mould:kit but it was about 8 inches of glue with too much water and when the guy DROPPED the mozaic tiles on to it they just sank to the bottom,he put about three sets of tiles on top of each other before trying to grout it but none of them were flush or square !the original english owner bought a piece of land and put a tent on it,then built a swiming pool by hand where there was no reinforcement and the cement (again)had too much water and very little cement,then when he started to build the house he built the front of the house directly on top of the wall of the swimingpool so you could open the sliding doors a step straight in to the pool!the last time i was there the front wall was drifting into the pool!another time i was putting in a window on the first floor of a barn and trying to get the tention on my jacks holding up the wall ,only i couldnt get any,puzzeled i went down to the cave and found that someone had screwwed four floor boards to the sides of the walls with two screws in each one and the whole of the floor was being held up by this,all the floor beams that were cut short didnt go in to the wall but sat on a 15 cm piece of wood,i had to build an internal wall around it as there was a grand piano ariving soon to be crained in to the barn,i hate to tink what would of happened there plan was to stage a concert with all there friends after the barn was compleated!
I had to replace much of the electrics that an English person had put in my house. simple enough as it was mostly a load of new circuit breakers (double pole unlike English single pole) Fortunately screw plumbing fittings have some commonality so there are a few 15mm to 12mm 'conversions' going on for the sink etc.
On "X" this afternoon I came across an Canadian Educated British Citizen of Indian origin talk to an English Audience about to many Immigrants in Britain. Just as a matter of interest I googled, What is the amount of British Diaspora Worldwide.
Google replied almost instantly. There are 200Million EX-PATS World Wide.
Not *Immigrants* mind you.
😂
🇮🇪🇪🇺
The France have good system. What ever you do they never check afterwards but if something goes wrong the insurance company wouldn't pay.
All the work done to my house is done by France artisans and I am still impressed by the good quality! ( after 23 years)never any problems!
because the French artisan know he's on the hook for at least 10 years after any work done... they will charge you relatively more, but it will cost less on the long run
that is
if don't have the bad luck of associating with a crook...
every countries have theirs
and that's why reputation matter...
hope this video gets shared a lot esp on Brexit people
Me too xxx
If France taxes the builder and they are back in the UK HMRC will assist in collection of the tax under the Double Tax Agreement. There is no escape!
Not allowed to build anything, not registered in the EU and the uk is a 3rd country now…British construction has been knackered!!!
Another point to mention is that if there is serious building going on on a property in France, you need to put up a sign that says what is being done, who is doing the work and under which permit (by number) it is being done.
and if you didn't apply for a permit and get caught, even a few years down the line, you may get a fine and have to revert the conditions to the state before the "remodeling"...
so,
1st rule is: inform yourself about what need to be done if you want to do any extensive work on your property. Consult the mayor of your village, he may even have local rules depending the zoning to protect the look or the historical surrounding or whatever.
2nd: get the permits
3rd: use local workers. They usually know some things that may save you time and money latter on.
4th: if you decide to go rogue, be sure to never piss off your direct neighbors, because they are 1st row spectators of whatever you do, or anyone basically in a village, because they may remember that you did a rogue work on your property and that in fact, after all those year they stayed silent, the administration deserve to know you did bend the rules...
French builder quoted €42,000, British 23, Polish 9! We paid for materials and then settled after the Polish guys had finished and were satisfied that we were happy. They book work a year in advance!
on the Polish ones, it may bee because of the "travailleur détaché" (posted worker?) rule that authorize them to do work everywhere in the EU, under THEIR country work rules and paying the taxes ans socials deductions according to the Polish rules.
As the salaries are lower in Poland, of course they can charge less... then since the social deductions are based on salary, the cost of the job is lesser... then taxes, on a lesser cost job, are also lower in Poland.
Meaning, even if they don't do the job on the black (paid under the table), they're more affordable...
that doesn't excuse them from following French building code, btw.
And if they don't, good luck finding someone local to do the maintenance or repairs... locals will not touch something that isn't up to code, because it become THEIR problem latter on.
So yeah, you can hire the Polish team, but be certain they do the work by the French building code... as, when you decide to sell, there WILL be a technical inspection (the main one being the "diagnostic électrique", electrical diagnosis), it's mandatory on house sales, and any shortcuts will be caught... even if you decide to not sell, you will have to get it renovated up to code
@@kolerick Yes agreed. Everything they did was plastering, tiling and a false ceiling… on a 200 year old farmhouse.
The taxes bit is a nice one to mention. We were lucky that our property had been owned for more than 20 years, so we didn't have to prove expenses, otherwise you will be taxed for the difference between what you bought the house for and you sold it for, minus the money you put into maintenance or development of the property. So you definitely need those invoices of your workers!
We once viewed a property for sale in france and the owner had proudly installed " the finest English sockets" 😅
Yes Sara and Hugh, I've seen exactly the same thing in the area I live in.
The house owner sold-up to a French family who's surveyor picked up on this. Well they got another 10 000€ knocked off the price to put it right. Twitty British !
🤦♂️
Ahh, but Marcus, builders in France don't follow the rules, I saw a woman on question time who voted brexit because of this 😂
😂😂😂
Because they were on a woof
@@AllShortsPolitics I want to know how she knew they were French or German, did she stop and ask them?, It could have been Brits on a busman's holiday 😂. I can just imagine her, driving through France, when she sees a couple of guys on a roof, and she's like, oh, oh, oh, that's it, I'm voting Brexit🤣
We have lived in France for almost 20 years and have seen expats get up to no end of nonsense here. No matter how often I would tell friends not to get work done on the black, they all ignored me and then sometimes had the gall to complain about the standard of the work! We renovated a large farmhouse here and used mostly French artisans with a few Brit workers (all legal). We were always very impressed with the standard of work and the work ethic of the French even though it is expensive due to all the charges they have to pay. The customers you mention are being very foolish. If one of their British workers is injured in the course of the work they do on the house, the owners will be in a lot of trouble. Not to mention that if they want to sell their house later, the notaire will ask for a lot of documentation, devis, etc relating to the renovation. They will also write to the artisans to check certain details as happened when we sold our house. Ignorance is bliss until it bites you on the backside!
Deffo. Xx
What are "Expats". Every other nation in the world calls the immigrants so why are they "expats"?
Haha and they said there be no changes only for the better leaving the EU we in in the UK became the muppets show
I didn't know the TCA included the Freedom of (temporary) Movement to the EU to make use of the Freedom of (temporary) Work and Goods ( plaster,tools etc) for UK citizens.
But then who am I being just a teacher of politics and eonomics..... . :(
Great satire
You raise some good points ..I live in Hungary and have been renovating a house here .lwhere I need a trade I’ve always used local. Electrical work such as re wiring has to be done by a qualified electrician who can issue a Hungarian certificate..you need this for the property insurance to be valid.
ring mains are forbidden all over the continent
...and generally a pretty dumb idea. Only introduced and approved in the UK because of wartime and post-wartime shortages of copper. Which also teaches you something about introducing temporary quick fixes and kludges to solve temporary problems - that you shouldn't, because they tend to become permanent.
I think they are lethal and a serious fire risk... I had a insurance job where the customers kettle overheated and burnt the cable up the wall... Cause faulty Swan kettle and broken ring main... Saved by the smoke detector while asleep...
VAT on building work is always in the country where the property is.
Grassing up Johnny Foreigner! Love it.
Plus, if they need to buy building materials locally, not being registered they will have to pay the full price with a 20% VAT instead of the 5% one (note that this does not apply to auto-entrepreneurs who can't benefit the 5% VAT).
Good point 🤔
You asked what rules are there in other countries: In Italy it is basically like in France. Rules are strict to safeguard a job well done according to local rules…..
Ps: you can get 3 pin sockets in Italy. They are the same as all the other ones and placed within an Italian box. You can have a German and a British socket in the same box. But it is not wise to get a box in Britain and bring it here and you do it yourself if you have no knowledge how electrical systems are created in Italy.
It sounds like "Auf wiedersehen Pet", where the lads did a job in Spain and had to smuggle the tools in.
I loved that Marcus . Ive been working here in France for the last 16 years , actually for a magasin grande surface that you mentioned frequently (BCM) . Trust me I've met them all , UK leccies that install ring mains , UK plumbers that fit entire houses with 15mm pipework , painters that bring over gallons of paint from the big name stores in the UK , only for their victims, sorry I meant clients , to find that said paint is flaking off of their shutters and facades in 3 or 4 years , hardly what you'd call a cheap alternative is it ?
My favourite though was asking a customer why he didn't like French wall switches , his reply floored me , " well they dont have that reassuring click like English switches do , do they ? " 😅
Keep up the good work.
🤦♂️ reassuring click 🤠 cheers buddy 🤠
From memory - I suppose you need an ATA Carnet to export your van with all your tools from the UK, import to the EU, export from the EU again and reimport to the UK? Those are just your van and your tools mind you. Then you have your materials and work permit assuming you are even qualified/approved for this type of work.
A lot of papers and fees, in order to get "foreign" workers to renovate your house in France?
Again, like the importing UK cars nonsense, you are better off just hiring local builders... and accept that you are not in the UK anymore.
Making an ATA carnet video at the Mo... You're right
I cannot believe that people can be so nieve. Builders van, name on the side, all the tools and the materials!!! I had to laugh out loud. "Well we did not know about the rules", will not work for sure. Thank you for high lighting this for those nieve folks.
So true!
Les Anglais nous font bien rire. 😂
La guerre de 100 ans au moyen âge , a duré 116 ans entre les Plantagenets et les Valois, entre France et Angleterre.
Idem plus tard, pour toutes les nombreuses coalitions de toutes les nombreuses Monarchies Royalistes contre Napoléon.
Même Le Général De Gaulle, ne voulait pas que Le Royaume-Uni rejoigne l’Union Européenne.
C’est bien dommage.
Les anglais sont nos amis.
Ils nous font toujours rire et sont courageux.
😉🇫🇷🇪🇺🇬🇧
Bonnes vacances ou bon courage.
Bienvenue !😃
Merci All Shorts pour tes vidéos et partages sur UA-cam. 🤝👍😉
''Nos amis'', ''courageux''. Mais deux fois (!) ''ils nous font rire''.
Pas sûr que tous les Anglais vont apprécier!
👏😉
I won't employ an English Builder, plumber, joiner or electrician. Some may be Qualified in the UK, but the majority are P&O Tradesmen. They all seem to gain their qualifications on the ferry.
I know one such cowboy who claimed to be a roofer. After seeing his workmanship on his own house, that he later sold to an unwitting family, I knew he was lying. I use to get sea sick looking at it. There where more waves in it than the Atlantic Ocean.
Live in France use French builders, or tradies.
I always seemed to amaze me I know of several so called British 'builders' who came over to France to live, whether they were Policemen , Prison officers , Accountants , the job list is endless ........by some miracle , call it what you will , they all automatically turn it a builder half way across the channel !.......
Those same people import RHD cars and use UK wiring in their houses.... et ils parlent anglais
An other gr8 Brexit advantage !!
I really feel sorry for Brexiteers with Criminal records . English coast for them only, no more Spain.
Depends on the country..not countries have the same rules for what happened with Brexit...Portuguese have very easy rules allover for foreigners, but country's as Spain , France , Italy and Germany and some more have more painful rules for 3rd countries so to change to brits they will have to change for all, and that will create a massive issue with right wing parties and people.
@@heldertorres4296 Etias is going to be same for all EU countries. So perhaps countries outside of the EU like Belarus, Maroco and so on.
@@jerryorange6983 it depends on a lot of things ..if you do everything as asked it will be ok
There are interesting rules about occasional workers (musicians/actors for example) who can claim benefits for times they are not working but as a 'muso' they must not play for 'fun'. so tagging along with mates at a pub gig HAS to have an invoice presented even if only a handful of Euros OTHERWISE they can lose up to a year's social security payments. I think this is correct, as I as told by a French friend Musician several months ago. An acquaintance had tagged along to a gig and not prepared an invoice and foolishly was photographed on social media and was recognised and lost a load of SS payments. As an Autoentrepreneur myself I suppose I should be careful not to accidentally repair things which is my stated (and Siret registered) business. NO I can't put a new plug on your kettle, sorry! Not needed a devis yet so will have to look that up. Still, I have been careful to put ALL payments through a dedicated French bank account to keep things clean.
At the port, Calais or wherever, they will get sent back or fined for trying to smuggle material to France and the EU without any document and would end up having to pay duty and TVA on the value given by the Douane officials. You either pay or go back. 2 options…….
...or if they let slip they're planning to work. Actually, if customs finds a bunch of used tools and building material, I'm sure they'll put 1 and 1 together on their own.
Hello being refused entry and getting a 2-year ban on entering Schengen. Plus a bunch of fines/fees for all the gear they tried to smuggle - assuming they even get that option, or just have them confiscated outright.
These British builders you mention Marcus when coming over to France for this typical job will find out they cannot do this job because of brexit.
The couple you mention they willbe stuck waiting for builders who can't come to them at the French customs!
To be fair, I don't think they could do the job pre-Brexit either, still gotta have your paperwork and insurance in order.
Tools are going to be a issue going though customs, there will need a carnet
And inventory
About to record a video on that
@@AllShortsPolitics just a DIY’er, was travelling back and forward with tools in the boot so I didn’t had to duplicate, but when the rules came in did buy a French set so if I got stopped wouldn’t have to pay. Over a Grand I could have done with out paying for.
Monday evening 🇫🇷 Calais - Dover - Noticable 🇬🇧 Border Force enforced 🚘👁️🔎 checks 🤔
Always stick to the local regulations. If anything wents wrong and it is not made to code no insurance will pay.
The insurance company that I use here in Spain has service where you can call to them and they will come to fix it. If it goes to insurance then you will not see the bill. They even give you 3 hours for free per year. So if you somehow brake a window 🪟 you just call them and they will send a guy to change it *. Why do I use them? Their work goes under the insurance. They mess up something and I don’t need to worry. It is all covered by the insurance company. It is also incredibly easy for me. I don’t need to call around asking who can do this and who can do that and then trying to guess when will the job be ready. I have just one phone number. For the other stuff I have my hot construction worker 👍🏻(* they have everything from a lawyer to a carpenter. Have a question about your taxes and you get an accountant to help you. I even use their concierge to arrange my travel)
* Te Cuidamos, Mapfre
* You might see a bill depending what kind of insurance you have. Mine covers everything.
Insurances are important when you are an immigrant. You can hire a lawyer for example. Also I would be very upset if I would have to start building everything again from the scratch. Now if something happens the my family is fully covered.
I'm not a builder have only visited France a couple of times but I knew this. It's all part of EU over regulation. The anti John Wayne directive I believe. Who needs qualified, competent, registered and insured tradesmen, eh?..
Oh yeah.. Everyone.
I just wish we could treat foreigners in England like they do in France.
Wow...lots of complications. i think, in my state, anyone can do anything...they don't always require a license. But the work does have to be checked by the town to make sure it meets requirements for new additions/build-ons.
In the UK building regulation approval is needed for extensions and new builds etc xxx
Hey, one of your best non walking vids (which I like, love where you live and the dogs, and your wife is a diamond, and not as annoying🤣) for a long time, informative and entertaining. I miss Builder rambles after Brexit decimated my income and can no longer afford to go to my local. If they didn't listen to your advice more fool them. But hey they're Brits they are exceptional!
Hi, I've been an immigrant electrician here in France for 20yrs now - great comments on French vs UK electics but; PLEASE dont advise people to use adapters.
1. Half of them dont actually have an earth pin connected.
2. Half of them have smaller pins, which can cause arcing at the socket (especially when using high loads - fan heater, vacuum, wash m/c etc).
3. They almost always reverse the phase and neutral when using a UK plug.
Cut off the UK plug and fit a french one. Always.
Keep up the good work.
Cheers buddy, a friend cooked their cooker with the house electrics in reverse 🤦♂️I make my own adapters using old UK multi sockets
@@AllShortsPoliticsexactly what i recommend, if people dont want to change plugs (usually because it invalidates any UK warranty) then put a French plug on a UK multisocket. Works especially well for newbies behind the telly .....
i have a card sejour,but the prefecture said i didnt need one?ive been here for 23 years and a auto entrpre,kids were born here,but i was employed by the commune as a cantonillier so that covers me,but theres still loads of british builders working on the black here,and living here without quallifications
I may do more on this since it's rife
🇬🇧 exceptionalism despite 🌐 UN convention with majority 🚘 🚘 🚘 not displaying "UK" international distinguishing sign(s) 🤔
Grant Shapps quietly scrapped (illegalised) "GB" in 2021 😢
I've noticed that plumbing methods are very different in France. They don't use soldered joints on piping. Non monsieur! "C'est inconstitutionnel!" Everything has to be brazed! And, I believe they're seriously strict about mechanical joints too.
👍
I think you will have to tell them Marcus and i think he will be stopped before he gets there . Keep us updated.
I will
@@AllShortsPolitics Cheers
That was one of your very best videos, hilarious 😂 👏👏
Glad you enjoyed it xxx
@AllShortsPolitics I was also thinking while you were talking about the guys importing plaster and materials.... all the tools in the van would have had to be accounted for, in terms of itemising them and valuing them in order to avoid Import and Export (on the return trip) VAT/TVA..... I remember the training I had from Irish customs pre-brexit for sending our service engineers to Northern Ireland in the event of a no-deal brexit.... but then the Irish government prepared businesses and traders here in Ireland for brexit, unlike our unfortunate counterparts in GB. Hopefully these guys see your cautionary and educational video!
MDR : Mort De Rire.
LOL : Laughing Out Loud.
😂
I wonder why so many Brits assume they would be treated different then those people in the boats? To EU member states, they are no longer different then somebody from Nigeria, Syria or Kenia. In fact, they are often treated better than EU citizens trying the same in the UK, where Tories created the "hostile environment" to please their racist voters. To change it for a better, there is a choice at the next GE to turn the tide.
In a way you've hit the nail on the head Marcus. My partner and I set up a small specialist engineering company we could easily have relocated to France. As the uk market is by it's nature small, we used to sell between 1/3 and 1/2 of our products into the EU. I don't believe we'll survive given that we've only sold three items in the last year. I'm working one the idea of possibly investing in Greece, a country I've lived and worked in for a decade but the business won't be able to survive that move. I am feeling very bleak at the moment as I hate living in the uk with the bad food, bad weather and bad people who've done their damndest to ruin everything. I worked in Germany too fully registered. I don't think there's any future in the uk.
Sorry buddy hope you find a solution xxx
@@AllShortsPolitics Thanks Marcus. I've gone as far as to change my instructions if something happens to me. I don't think cremation is environmentally friendly but I've asked for my body to be cremated and my ashes scattered in France and Greece in places I have lived. I don't want anything of me left in a country I've come to detest 🥺
I am so sorry to hear that. Do you think coming back to Germany would work? Ich drück' die Daumen!
If you have a UK criminal record. Will you will need to state on your application next year..
Guess the same applies if it's a French Builder who's doing things cash in hand and isn't qualified/Registered/insured? It's the person who's employing them who get it in the neck?
At least he won't get deported 😬
@@AllShortsPolitics always a plus 😁
very good vid marcus very informative , hello from eu ireland.
Thanks for watching! cheers buddy
Well I must omit Shorty I’m here in Italy and it’s very similar
Cheers buddy 🤠 I think it's catching up but slowly
Make sure you are not considered involved in doing work with these illegal immigrants.
What is your qualification as a builder living in France ,do you enjoy your life in France ,or do you have any regrets
NVQ3 NO regrets although a learning curve... When registered I only needed to prove experience or qualification
Auf Wiedersehen Pet I = 🇬🇧🇩🇪 both inside 🇪🇺 = 👍
Auf Wiedersehen Pet II = 🇪🇸 outside 🇪🇺 = 👎
Great eighties 📺 series highlighting 🇬🇧 working both inside (I) and outside (II) 🇪🇺
I'm currently living in a place that take the rules _very_ seriously. Having an unlicensed and uninsured Brit do work for you on your home here is not something I'd recommend. Both you as the owner/employer and the person doing the work for you would be in deep doo-doo if discovered, doubly so if something goes wrong and you have to bring in your insurer.
If we're talking major work, you'd be on the receiving end of a court order to have anything this person did reversed/demolished at your expense, including the inspection afterwards and any corrective work the inspector deem necessary to bring the place back up to code.
From the time it's all discovered and until it's inspected and deemed up to code, nobody can live there. Which sucks doubly if it turns out that the work, although major, didn't actually bring the place out of code. Basically, it's assumed out of code until the unlicensed work has been removed/reversed, and what's left inspected and found up to code.
Hope you have someone whose place you and your family can couch surf at for a couple months, so you don't have to stay at a hotel or something.
Plumbers carpenters mechanics car cleaners painters pool builders etc, we’ve seen them all 😊
This is one of the most interesting videos you've ever done. And I have no link to, or need of builders etc!
LysanderLH mentioned Polish builders. As you are a pro, why in your opinion does Poland ''produce'' generally appreciated, excellent builders and related trades? It must have something to do with apprenticeship/training but what do they do that other countries don't?
Bonne continuation.
👍🐕🐈🍀🌳🐞
We hired Polish in the UK... At first it was an all-round learning curve but once we got over that I found them excellent and with great work ethic... Thanks buddy 🤠
Yup, there's a guy round the corner from us that does building jobs using his UK registered van, dont know how legal he is, but the van certainly isn't.. one of these days the Guardia Civil will catch him for the van if nothing else.
Also have to note that its impossible to import a trade vehicle into Spain, and much more expensive since Brexshit to re register a UK car onto Spanish plates
I didn't know that about Vans
I reckon there is no legal protection if things go pear shaped.
In fact you're more open to prosecution 😬
@@AllShortsPolitics Makes sense.
European Union for benefit of is citizens and those entitled to legally live and work there.
NOT for foreigners.
There would be absolutely no legal protection, in fact, you may drop yourself in it for employing an unregistered worker - not 100% sure about that. In fact I’ve just listened to the remainder of the video and (for once) I was right.
I imagine it would be like employing someone on a British site, without CSCS cards, etc. Only a fool would do it.
@@timwilliams19 I believe Marcus mentioned that hiring them on without checking they have the proper paperwork lands you in the kind of trouble that for someone residing on just a carte de sejour (sp?) may lead to losing it and having to leave the country in a hurry without being able to return for a long time.
Yes immigrants....
can you tell me if in England the labor laws and safety rules are almost the same as in France, thank you for me, I am French and I would like to know
Maternity laws in the UK are stronger than France so it's swings and roundabouts... The 35hrs weeks in France is better... So No they're quite different... Cheers buddy
Ah, the weekend "foreigner" that ballses the rest of your life...
Good grief Marcus Brexit just gets better and better doesn't it 🙄 I have a question, my father owns a property in France and just shortly we will need to pop over to do some maintenance to the property to keep it weather tight (its not a home its a old nunnery that hasn't been developed) are we going to run in to problems just cleaning up the sight and fixing a few leaks ?
Nah, you'll be fine since there's no transaction... Have fun xx
Actually, you don't get taxed on gains from selling your primary residence.
True, a customer was doing up a second home in France and lived in it for a bit sold it and moved back to their original property... But if the family inherits then the profit and loss applies, cheers buddy 🤠
Auf Wiedersehen, Cherry.
Some people dont learn Marcus🤠🤯
You mean SIRET number - a registration number for a business in France.
Useful info cheers
Glad it was helpful!
So many horror stories in BG with xpat builders FB is full of scammers and poor workmanship lol
Isn't that because the French fall asleep for the whole of August?
Cant blame them,im in ltaly and it's 42°C in the sun,and im changing broken roof tiles😂
@@itawolf2494 😂 pazzo inglese
The UK government is asleep at the wheel 24/7
For a Larf, how many laws did you break, as a expat Brit, having a French residency doing work in Panama on Jinja Is. without a work visa? PS all evidence on record on youtube ? LOL.
I didn't receive a penny so they're welcome to the tax 🤠🤔
Would it work if their names were "Albert and Robert" french accents please. Thus "Robert la builder"
Sorry I'll get my coat
Ummmmmmm ahhhh YES
😂😂😂👏👏👏👏👏🍻🍻👍
It could be a language barrier for British expats. I know a handyman in Prague who exclusively does work for expats- painting, light installations, cabinets- things like that. While English is a 2nd language in Prague- the center mostly, in the trades you’d be hard pressed to find a handyman who speaks it well enough to get work done. Older people especially don’t know English. Kids today have to pass English to graduate high school. Since some expats only have other expats as friends and who don’t bother to learn the language because they are here on a temporary basis, they will hire an American immigrant to do work..
Immigrants not ex pats 😂
@@nicks4934expats are here on a temporary basis. Immigrants plan to stay permanently. While I am a resident I am an expat. When I get citizenship I will be an immigrant…. I understand terms are difficult for some. A digital nomad who may stay someplace for a few months is an expat. Someone who is living somewhere because of a job assignment is an expat. Someone on extended holiday or who has a primary residence in their home country is an expat. Someone who leaves their home country specifically for economic or social reasons is a migrant. Someone who flees war is a refugee. Someone who moves somewhere on a permanent basis and gets permanent residency and then citizenship is an immigrant. You also have asylum seekers. A Ruzzian, for instance, who spoke out against the war and government, who would face the gulag back home in Ruzzia. Just calling everyone an immigrant is as silly as calling everyone an expat. There are different words because each has different meanings…
Please tell me they voted leave 😂
Remainers but naïve
@@AllShortsPolitics We've seen, post-Brexit, that there are plenty of so called Remainers and Rejoiners who are every bit as entitled and exceptionalistic as the worst of the Brexlings.
The slow realization that Brexit is a bust is sure to create more of them, or rather, there will be lots of former Leavers who just wants the pain to end and see rejoining as the quick fix, just like Brexit was their quick fix for other complaints (that really didn't have anything to do with the EU).
As such, they (still) won't actually be onboard with all that EU membership actually entails, and will likely cry like stuck pigs when the realization that there is no "rejoin" rollback to pre-2016, only join with no opt-outs, rebates, or special deals, and having to accept the _full_ Acquis, including Schengen and the Euro, finally sinks in.
And then even more shrieks when they find out that the UK doesn't even meet the requirements for joining, and likely won't for quite some time, thanks in great part to the Tories strategy of Borrow & Steal driving up the national debt.
No doubt, they'll blame it all on EU "rigidity" and "refusal to compromise", rather than the compromised(!) Tory MPs they elected and kept in power for well over a decade.
I know an electrician who now lives in south France, from the same place as me (here). Aren't all appliances in the EU double insulated?
Yes
Immigrants not expats.