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Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 1:53pm On Feb 16, 2022

IamE:
Hello guys,
It's barely 1month since my Visa came out. I had to cause a little traffic by sending multiple job application to uk indeed.
I use my wife's current address and phone number coz I am currently in Nigeria.(joining her soon)
I got some rejections, did 1or 2 interview
Finally got an offer at one of the companies as a fraud analyst.
9am - 5pm (remote after 3months training)
£10.6 pH.
Please big brothers n sisters with experience. [b]Do I take this job or turn it down.
I am eyeing something around £12-14 pH.

,[/b]

That decision is yours to make.
The pay is above the new minimum wage.
If you feel you don't like the pay, feel free to keep looking.

2 Likes

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 1:51pm On Feb 16, 2022

Aprokodaughter:
Hmmm...I just have two one traditional and one challenger both active. I was thinking two is too much for JJC like me lols.

When you switch, there is an intermediary called the current account switch service which handles the process and your old bank account is closed automatically and all your payments and dds are moved over to the new account, so switching doesn't increase the number of bank accounts you have.

RBS is offering 150 at the moment for switchers, good money in these days of high energy and fuel prices.

5 Likes 1 Share

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 10:56pm On Feb 15, 2022

Akorkor:
What is with all these negative google reviews I am seeing about HSBC Glasgow Branch? Glasgow mama & Papa, Do you advise I deep dive into this HSBC matter?

Thank you all for all your feedback on my sim matter. Jah Bless!

All UK banks apart from the challenger banks have lots of negative reviews.
Same with most of the telcos and the energy companies.
It comes with the territory, you simply can't satisfy everyone even when you're trying your best.
If you're looking to open a bank account, choose any one and proceed.

1 Like

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 2:47pm On Feb 08, 2022

omopapa:
Based on the information on here especially on accommodation request, which city would you invest in student HMO?

Aberdeen.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 12:10pm On Feb 08, 2022

sweetoma:
I’m not looking for a 3 bed. I am looking for a 1 bed room it’s for myself, husband and a small child

Apologies, I misread your initial post.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 10:44am On Feb 08, 2022*

Chreze:
I think if these guys separate and work together like every other country in the world work with close neighboring country they will survive (not because they left the UK). I believe the can do it. And between you and I, we are not talking about them getting on their feet in 5yrs or 10yrs, but I am sure in 15 - 20yrs, they will be a better country on their own, than what they are now.

Well, all that's theoretical.
Firstly, the EU won't take Scotland or Wales even if they do vote for independence, Spain won't allow them to do so because that will only encourage Catalonia.

Secondly, the level of social welfare that is currently obtainable in the UK cannot be funded by taxation of 5 or 3 million people alone. Tax levels will have to be punitive, and it will be difficult to find people willing to vote for their own impoverishment, temporary or not, out of an idealised attachment to some nationalist ideal. Support for independence mainly ran in the areas with lower income in Scotland such as Dundee and Glasgow, where deindustrialisation hit hard. Edinburgh, Aberdeen, the islands, etc., all voted to remain in the UK. They know where their interests lie.

These days people are less committed than before. Put simply, nobody is dedicated enough to suffer for years in the pursuit of so-called nationhood. In the 60s and 70s when poverty was common and hardship was not an unusual part of life in the UK (when central heating na new thing and many people were still burning wood to heat their homes and using outdoor toilets) they could have accepted that. Definitely not now.

3 Likes

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 8:31am On Feb 08, 2022

sweetoma:
Hello Everyone, I just arrived Bournemouth on Sunday, currently staying at an Air BNb. I am in dire need of accommodation, for a family of 3. Budget is between £600 - £800 per month. If you have anything please let me know. Thanks so much

I honestly dont think your cited budget range will get you a good 3 bed in Bournemouth.
That's the 1 bed to maybe 2 bed, 1 toilet range.
As someone else said, check carefully, it's an expensive place to be in.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 8:07am On Feb 08, 2022

Chreze:
If the UK were to be a person, I see it like those Aunties/uncles that have made a name for themselves as big Anty/uncle that tries to solve everyone’s financial issues. To the point when they don’t have, they go to borrow from other people to give to another person so as to keep their title “Big Anty/Uncle”, Then later turn around to be the one everyone is scolding in the family for having bad financial attitude/behavior.

I think the Uk/UK government are in a very bad financial place but keep acting like all is well. They promise a lot to people (Afghans), things they cant fulfill. They have a lot going wrong with them, but they feel they have a title globally and would prefer to involve in Ukrainian issues (to save their title) than focus on how to come out of their financial mess.

I see decisions of the UK/UK government affecting the other countries in the union (UK). I think it will be best for the union to be separated so that these other countries can take decisions that best suit them, and not let some group of undisciplined adults control their affairs. If they ever separate the other countries will do far far better than what the controlling country at the moment would achieve.

Since we are here already, it will be best to have an alternate plans. Plans that can be actualized outside the UK. I think it’s going to be a difficult run ahead for the UK and it’s residents. It will be fine at the end, but it’s gonna be ruff.

I may be wrong. Or maybe I am tired and need some rest. Abi a cup of wine. Time will tell.

Scotland, Wales and NI would shrivel and die without English money and they know it.
What Nicola and her friend in Wales do is bait and switch - they hala Boris and England and talk upandan about independence, so that the money keeps flowing.
Unfortunately for Scotland, it is depopulating and dying quickly. The extra tax Scottish residents pay to fund the more generous healthcare and education arrangements is not sustainable without English subventions and they know it. Take the recent rubbish the SNP said about rUK (i.e. England) paying pensions for Scotland after any potential separation, which is blatant nonsense. If Scotland secedes successfully, it's share of the UK's debt alone will drive it to bankruptcy and default fast.

This is not to say I've anything against Scotland - it was the first place I ever lived in the UK and I love Aberdeen, Inverness and those empty corners of northern Scotland - the scenery is wonderful and I plan to move back to Scotland when my children are heading towards university age to pay their tax and avail of settled free university status and all the old-age perks where possible, but I'm not blind to Scotland's issues.

Wales is even more of a basket case than Scotland - population 3 million-ish and falling, and it cant even afford Scotland's people-encouraging measures, doesn't have its tax-raising powers and is fully dependent on England.

4 Likes

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 12:32pm On Feb 07, 2022

Preshyi:
Hello all,
I am trying to pay the balance of my fees. A banker suggested I send the pounds back to Nigeria and pay with the bank rate. I am still trying to understand that logic and how it will help me save money. Any thoughts please?

If you send pounds back to Nigeria, it comes at the blackmarket rate. Given that the unofficial rate is much higher than the official one, you will get more naira when you convert at the unofficial rate (approx 745, variable), then use this naira to buy pounds from CBN at the official rate, so you save the difference.

Arbitrage at its finest.

3 Likes

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 6:37am On Feb 07, 2022

Viruses:
It's my first winter here and I'm already scared of the next.

Lol.
This one no be real winter na, it's actually mild, global warming has scattered everywhere.
Don't worry, you'll be fine.

1 Like

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 9:44am On Feb 06, 2022

Lexusgs430:
Kúkú just use bowl and flannel.......

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 8:49am On Feb 06, 2022

Lexusgs430:
[/b]

Once a week, seems more ideal ......

Abi o.
Working from home in winter - Saturday night-only bath oyibo style is the energy-saving way forward.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 8:47am On Feb 06, 2022

level10:
Good morning,Abeg I have 2 question.
Please is the international driving license valid for 1 year after being issued or 1 year after I started driving with it in the uk.
What is the likely amount i will pay for council tax in a 3 bed room ,Liverpool

You can use it to drive in the UK for 1 year following the date on which you became a UK resident.
If it expires before then, then of course it can't be used to drive even if you have not yet reached the 1 year anniversary of your becoming a UK resident.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 6:03am On Feb 06, 2022

Hwy9:
You may consider getting those small heaters too for your room. What's your EPC rating?

With storage heaters, the OP should be on a variable tariff and where that's the case, the peak electricity is more expensive than normal.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 5:46am On Feb 06, 2022

dupyshoo:
Since you use storage heater, which is usually for heating, do you have another boiler for hot water? I will assume no as most houses on only Electric use immersion heater. I would want to think the immersion heater is your main issue.

Immersion heater is like using a boiling ring to boil water in a big drum. Can you check If you have a very big drum with a power switch beside it? Then, that means you are using immersion heater.

Kindly let me know if that's what you are using then I can advise you on how to use it effectively.

If he's got storage heaters installed, he's definitely on electricity only.
As you said, he must be using an immersion heater, because that's the only option available in electric-only houses/flats. If the house is set up properly, he should be running his immersion heater/storage heaters on a cheaper tariff such as the so-called E7 whereby you pay less for off-peak electricity and do all the energy-guzzling activity during off-peak hours. The first thing the OP will have to do is to find out if there is any such off-peak tariff his supplier is offering him and if indeed he is on/has access to that tariff.

From my experience of using electric heating (not all houses are wired the same, but the principle is the same), there should be some sort of timer connected to the immersion heater which turns it off after about 2 hours or so (I think 2 hours is the period it generally takes to heat up a tank of water). Where that is the case, the timer switches the electricity on again when the water temperature falls below whatever temperature the boiler is set to, and reheats it, thus potentially eating up expensive peak time electricity.

Basically in such case, one solution is to simply switch off the immersion heater and turn it on again about 2 hours before you need hot water. Not easy to do, but given that the OP states he works from home and off-peak hours are not just in the middle of the night (in Aberdeen it was up to 7.30 am then, if I remember clearly), he can still get hot water and if the heater tank is well insulated, he should be able to manage as the water will stay hot throughout until night-time. I think mine used to last till the next morning.

Our flat then had two meters (I think that's an old setup that's phased out now) and all the heating (storage heaters, etc.) was wired to one meter, while the rest of the electrical power in the flat was wired to the other meter. The theory is that the white meter electricity is charged less than the rest of the electricity used in the flat to help save money on the heavy energy items.

4 Likes

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 10:03pm On Feb 05, 2022

CheesyTee:
My people, Bank of Scotland doesn't seem to have specified dates for the statement. It's not showing months. For instance, if I want to download from Jan 8 till date.

Is Starling Bank acceptable to show Proof of Fund for health & care visa? Thank you.

Of course it is.
It's a bank.

2 Likes

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 9:18pm On Feb 04, 2022

wonlasewonimi:
It's so good you will even get your salary earlier than your colleagues.

Lol, by a day, true. Why's that so? I've asked our payroll chaps why BACS transfers go through faster to the challenger banks, no concrete explanation yet.

2 Likes

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 9:15pm On Feb 04, 2022*

Viruses:
Please can I get an idea of monthly electricity bill.
Heating in one room always on (regulates itself though), fridge always on (regulates itself as well), electric cooker, microwave oven, electric jug, laptop and phone. No TV even.
Mine is £170. Scared of what it will become post increment.

If its just you two on electric heating and you're paying 170 quid a month, you need to get yourself some thick sweaters and duvets fast (think teddy fleece), then you need to do something about moving to a dual-fuel house. Do the usual DIY draught-proofing where you can, by stuffing old clothes under the doors and around the windows, change your curtains where you can for the heavier type, etc., but ultimately start to plan to move.

When I lived in Aberdeen, I was on full electric heating with the old storage heaters (the so-called OAP heaters, because they're only good if you are at home during the day, you can't stop the heat being given off, you can only turn it down to the lowest setting, so while they charge overnight at a lower tariff, when you come back from school/work in the evening, they've given off all their heat) and I think then electricity prices where about 3 times gas prices per unit. At current prices, I can only imagine what people on electric heating are/will be paying now.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 11:25pm On Feb 03, 2022

Bourne007:
LOL .. . You wan make the guy name dey naughty list for UKVI

Naughty list no be small - her next cost centre go be immigration lawyers to dot every i and cross every t as UKVI might scrutinise all her subsequent applications going forward with a fine toothcomb.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 11:19pm On Feb 03, 2022

Stevepop:
Thanks for the tips. The cheapest insurance based on quotes from confused.com requires blackbox, are there any other disadvantage to this other than the fact that ones movement is monitored?

None that I know of. I never went near telematics insurance so I can't say.

2 Likes

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 11:16pm On Feb 03, 2022

Estroller:
Rishi wan by force borrow all of us 200 quid

Drop in the ocean.
My dd is heading to 300 pcm.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 4:49pm On Feb 03, 2022

MrWood:
Hey bro. Wanna get a car soon enough. What car would you recommend. My budget is between 1200-1700 max. I don't wanna be stuck with a bad pump or electrical issue driving in a foreign country. Something you think maybe reliable. I'll appreciate a kind suggestion

Check service history if the car has any. Service history is important, because otherwise you might have to invest in some expensive brushing up maintenance when you buy (timing belt, brake pads, etc). Check the tyres too carefully, so you don't have to start replacing them immediately or soon after you buy, tyres are expensive (no tokunbo or chinko to help the less deep-pocketed here). Get yourself breakdown insurance (very worthwhile investment), all of them, RAC, AA, Green Flag are all the same, so choose any you like, add indispensable kit like a tyre pump and you're good to go. Check when the MOT's due, so you have some breathing space in between buying and doing the next one.

Just remember that old cars of that price range will have high mileage so will have almost zero resale value, so once you buy, you'll most likely have to scrap it when you're done with it. Also remember that at that price point, any sizeable repair (think clutch replacement, for instance) might mean simply scrapping the car and buying another.

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Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 4:38pm On Feb 03, 2022

Rubyventures:
Interest rates up again.

Sunak, Ofgem, Bank of England - all of them worked overtime today.

1 Like

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 4:36pm On Feb 03, 2022

MrWood:
Thank you. I'd like to confirm. Do I pay the insurance before I pick up the vehicle ?

Also as an international license holder, can I pally insurance monthly or has to be annually?

You buy a car and then you buy insurance for it.
You can pay monthly or annually, paying monthly costs somewhat more overall.

2 Likes 1 Share

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 4:35pm On Feb 03, 2022

Emmyk:
Hello everyone. I'd like to know if there is any bank here in the UK that I can get a good conversion rate similar to what is on oanda.com.

I have a GTBank Dollar card linked to my GTBank USD domiciliary account and I have been using it to withdraw since we got here and it appears no ATM is giving the rate oanda.com has on their website.

For instance, if I withdraw 100 pounds, I get charged about $158 (inclusive of charges), meaning 1 pound is around 1.55 dollars. On oanda.com, 1 pound is around 1.35 dollars. Abi there is now official rate and bank rate in the UK ni? grin

Kindly advice.

Of course you won't get any online or standard exchange rate in the real world.
Each time you withdraw, the banks include conversion charges.
Best to pull out the money in larger chunks or spend it on major expenses at a go such as the newly increased energy bill, for instance.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 6:43am On Feb 03, 2022

umarwy:
What part of UK are you located? Look for agencies ran by our people.

If by "our people" you mean Nigerians, and not perhaps Camerounians, Kenyans or South Africans, then I don't think that is a good idea, given all the horror stories we hear about Nigerian organisations in that industry.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 7:33am On Feb 02, 2022

Lexusgs430:
Certain things in life, are constant ......... When it comes, I would not even know ............

Lol - our people fear even the mention of death. Don't sow panic o.
We are a people who virtually never write wills and strenuously avoid talking or thinking about death and here you are bringing up the inevitable end.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 11:21am On Jan 30, 2022

ukay2:
Please what is the link or summary of the new code?

Thanks

You can never go wrong with a quick googling.
But just this once - https://www.gov.uk/government/news/the-highway-code-8-changes-you-need-to-know-from-29-january-2022

7 Likes 3 Shares

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 11:13am On Jan 30, 2022

icon8:
It says in the centre of their lane, not in the centre of the road.

Centre of their lane on the road, correct.

That's what the new rules state and that's what they were doing this morning.
Of course they are supposed to do so only in "slower moving traffic", but that's subjective anyway.
And they're supposed to pull over to allow cars to pass, that that's another scope for madness wink

I just had to park first and laugh it out.

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 11:12am On Jan 30, 2022

deept:
I think there is a department I govt whose job is to bring ideas to make life more difficult for people. Imagine opening car door with left hand, how are they going to implement/enforce that one.

This right here.
How do you know what hand one used to open the door if you end up hitting a cyclist riding by? And its the one of giving way to all pedestrians whether they are crossing a junction or not that is madness. So if I see someone standing at a traffic junction quarrelling with their girlfriend I have to stop and wait to see what they are going to do?

Travel › Re: Living In The Uk-life Of An Immigrant (part 2) by TheGuyFromHR: 10:42am On Jan 30, 2022

Has anyone noticed cyclists riding in the centre of the road this morning in groups, following the changes to the Highway Code? Hilarious, they're holding up the traffic and having fun.

For those not aware, Highway Code has changed as of yesterday, so familiarize yourselves with the changes.

6 Likes

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