Rip Off Britain

[Captain VXR]

I'd like to know how things made in Britain cost so much that foreign imports are often far cheaper
I'm not talking about dvd players etc but things like soft drinks and sweets
For example a Mars bar in a normal shop will cost between 45-60p, but I saw one today imported from Poland in a Polish Food shop here for just 20p
Mountain Dew is damned expensive here too - a 1 litre bottle in Tesco and Sainsbury's will normally cost £1.80 but I can buy double the amount of Dew (2l) for 31p LESS in the same shop as the 20p Mars bar, also a Polish import. In fact, in an Asian food shop a ten minute walk from my house they sell 1.25l bottles imported from The PHILIPPINES for £1.85!
In fact in the last year I've come across French, Polish and Dutch Pepsi, Dutch Dr Pepper, and Polish and Northern Irish (same currency as Britain) Coca Cola all cheaper than their British equivalents and all in independently owned high street shops...
Anyone else found products from far abroad much cheaper than locally made versions?
Rant over!

[Mark]

Or £13.85 for a pizza at Pizza Hut, I mean WTF!

[BDunnell]

I must say, since moving abroad last year I haven't noticed that I've been making substantial savings on everyday items. I get more for my money rent-wise, but that's it.

[Mark]

Would that be a round, flat piece of bread cover in cheese with tomato sauce Mark? lol

Yeah got to love the leaflets that come through the door from Domino's... "Two pizza's for 30 quid and get a free bottle of Coke".... Err I'd much rather stick a chopstick in my eye thanks.

Exactly. It probably costs about 50p to make.

[Dave B]

Susy makes lovely pizza, probably not Pino's standard but delicious anyway. Probably about 3 quid of ingredients for 2 monsters.

[Rollo]

I'd like to know how things made in Britain cost so much that foreign imports are often far cheaper
I'm not talking about dvd players etc but things like soft drinks and sweets

Two questions:
- Are you willing to take a drastic cut in pay?
- How much do you pay for rent/mortgage/lease payments?

[Daniel]

Tbh I don't think the cost of living is that bad in the UK.

[Mark]

Nevermind, just saw on watchdog, £17.99 for a pizza at Domino's :crazy:

[Captain VXR]

Two questions:
- Are you willing to take a drastic cut in pay?
- How much do you pay for rent/mortgage/lease payments?

1) Nope.
2) I'd prefer not to discuss that :)
Before anyone says things like "wouldn't Coca Cola's employees be paid far more over here than in East Europe?" I'd guess the production lines are so heavily automated that it really shouldn't have much, if any, of an effect on the price of a can/bottle of whatever

[Captain VXR]

Nevermind, just saw on watchdog, £17.99 for a pizza at Domino's :crazy:

How can it seriously cost that much!
Cheaper takeaways that charge like £4.50 for Pizza, chips and a drink are the way forward

[GridGirl]

I've been working in London on and off for the last couple of weeks and jeez is it so much more expensive. I managed to spend £8 on a chicken wrap, and two drinks the other day. If it wasn't going on my expense claim I would have told em to sod off!

[Captain VXR]

^^^I can beat that - I once spent 5 EUROS on a bottle of coke on the Eiffel tower

[Mark]

How can it seriously cost that much!
Cheaper takeaways that charge like £4.50 for Pizza, chips and a drink are the way forward

Our local pizzeria charges £6.99 for a pizza. For that you get to sit in a nice restaurant and have a proper hand made pizza. None of your mass produced rubbish

[Rollo]

1) Nope.
2) I'd prefer not to discuss that :)
Before anyone says things like "wouldn't Coca Cola's employees be paid far more over here than in East Europe?" I'd guess the production lines are so heavily automated that it really shouldn't have much, if any, of an effect on the price of a can/bottle of whatever

It's almost as if you know exactly where I'm going with this... The labour inputs on a Mars Bar are so minimal that this has to be exculded as the main driver for the final price.

The truth is that because wages are higher in Britain generally, this has the effect of shifting the supply curve for Mars Bars to the left (because suppliers realise that they can shift the same amount of stock at higher prices), thus creating a higher equilibriums for clearing prices.

[Daniel]

Our local pizzeria charges £6.99 for a pizza. For that you get to sit in a nice restaurant and have a proper hand made pizza. None of your mass produced rubbish


Pizza hut pizza's are handmade though.

[Mark]

Pizza hut pizza's are handmade though.

Well, they all are to be fair. What I mean is that it's of far superior quality than you'd find in any national chain, for around half the price.

[Daniel]

Well, they all are to be fair. What I mean is that it's of far superior quality than you'd find in any national chain, for around half the price.

Yeah but who is stupid enough to pay full price for a pizza hut pizza? I've only ever bought them on offer :p

[Captain VXR]

Our local pizzeria charges £6.99 for a pizza. For that you get to sit in a nice restaurant and have a proper hand made pizza. None of your mass produced rubbish

Sounds similar to a local chain called Bottelinos - huge delicious pizzas, nice restaurants and before a certain time (6:30 I think) £6 per pizza
http://www.bottelinos.net/branches/bath.aspx
:facelick:

[Daniel]

just got a BOGOF email through from Pizza Hut :p

[Dave B]

I've been working in London on and off for the last couple of weeks and jeez is it so much more expensive. I managed to spend £8 on a chicken wrap, and two drinks the other day. If it wasn't going on my expense claim I would have told em to sod off!
I actually find London pretty cheap if you avoid the chains as there's so much competition and plurality of supply. You can eat out for very little armed with a search engine.

[Dave B]

Pizza hut pizza's are handmade though.

Only the toppings. We went there last year and were told they had run out of stuffed crust bases, they apparently arrive ready made. Far too salty and artificial anyway. We ended up with a massive discount because the service was so shocking, never been back since.

[Daniel]

The bases are all handmade onsite. Unless things have changed since I worked there

[Mark]

just got a BOGOF email through from Pizza Hut :p

I get those all the time but if you only want one pizza then it isn't much good :p

[Daniel]

Only the toppings. We went there last year and were told they had run out of stuffed crust bases, they apparently arrive ready made. Far too salty and artificial anyway. We ended up with a massive discount because the service was so shocking, never been back since.

BTW the stuffed crust dough, deep pan dough and thin and crispy are all different doughs. They're usually made in the morning and they have to estimate how much is needed for the day so occasionally we would run out.

[steveaki13]

Slightly different, I went to Gatwick Airport the other day to pick someone up. Went into the Pick Up Car park.

0-10 minutes free
10-15 minutes £5.
15-20 minutes £10
20-30 minutes £20.

I swiftly turned around and went to short stay car park, which was still £5+ for an hour.

Rip Off.

[BDunnell]

Slightly different, I went to Gatwick Airport the other day to pick someone up. Went into the Pick Up Car park.

0-10 minutes free
10-15 minutes £5.
15-20 minutes £10
20-30 minutes £20.

I swiftly turned around and went to short stay car park, which was still £5+ for an hour.

Rip Off.

Now, that sort of thing I do agree is a rip-off. Far worse, though, is having to pay to park at hospitals. It's in this sort of regard that I do feel people in Britain are ripped off, not with basic cost of living items.

[steveaki13]

Now, that sort of thing I do agree is a rip-off. Far worse, though, is having to pay to park at hospitals. It's in this sort of regard that I do feel people in Britain are ripped off, not with basic cost of living items.

I agree too.

A few years ago a family member was very ill, and was in hospital for around 3 months, the cost of the car parking for that time, let alone actually finding a space was just wrong.

At a time when your by a bedside, your not really thinking oh I'd better go and pay another £3 for another hour, you just don't want to think about that.

[BDunnell]

I agree too.

A few years ago a family member was very ill, and was in hospital for around 3 months, the cost of the car parking for that time, let alone actually finding a space was just wrong.

At a time when your by a bedside, your not really thinking oh I'd better go and pay another £3 for another hour, you just don't want to think about that.

I remember when this started early in the last decade, and politicians with hospitals in their constituencies were up in arms on exactly those grounds. Now, it's just accepted.

[steveaki13]

I remember when this started early in the last decade, and politicians with hospitals in their constituencies were up in arms on exactly those grounds. Now, it's just accepted.

Trouble is it just doesn't differentiate between people just nipping in for the odd appointment and people visiting everyday for months.

The total ammount paid once you visit someone in a distant hospital for a few months is outragous.

Sometimes the car park you pay for is not even a real perminant carpark. At Broomfield hospital in Chelmsford the last 3 years the carpark has been mixed up in mass building works, so you were parking on gravel in spaces where people just block you in and still your paying a high price.

[GridGirl]

I actually find London pretty cheap if you avoid the chains as there's so much competition and plurality of supply. You can eat out for very little armed with a search engine.

I was avoiding the chains on that particular lunchtime purchase. I went to Starbucks for lunch the next two days as it was cheaper! :s

[Eki]

Rip off in peace.

[driveace]

As a guy said i dont think Britain is that expensive,you just have to shop around. I can remember when I could put 4 gallons of 5 star Cleveland Discol petrol in my Vauxhall 12 ,for 19 and sixpence (about97 and a half pence) in todays money.
AND a new Mercedes Benz C220 Elegence diesel was £23000 in 1995,and you could buy one today for only about £4000 more ,than that 16 years later.
I can also remember a packet of Polo,s being 6 old pence(2 and a halfpence)in todays money.How much are they now?

[GridGirl]

You ate of course completely ignoring inflation there though.

[555-04Q2]

Try US$ 35 for a Heineken beer in China.

[Dave B]

I can remember when I could put 4 gallons of 5 star Cleveland Discol petrol in my Vauxhall 12 ,for 19 and sixpence (about97 and a half pence) in todays money.
AND a new Mercedes Benz C220 Elegence diesel was £23000 in 1995,and you could buy one today for only about £4000 more ,than that 16 years later.
I can also remember a packet of Polo,s being 6 old pence(2 and a halfpence)in todays money.How much are they now?

I needed a new heel for my shoe so I decided to go to Morganville, which is what they called Shelbyville in those days. So I tied an onion to my belt, which was the style at the time. Now, to take the ferry cost a nickel, and in those days, nickels had pictures of bumblebees on them. "Gimme five bees for a quarter", you'd say. Now where was I... oh yeah. The important thing was that I had an onion tied to my belt, which was the style at the time. You couldn't get white onions, because of the war. The only thing you could get was those big yellow ones...

[Daniel]

I needed a new heel for my shoe so I decided to go to Morganville, which is what they called Shelbyville in those days. So I tied an onion to my belt, which was the style at the time. Now, to take the ferry cost a nickel, and in those days, nickels had pictures of bumblebees on them. "Gimme five bees for a quarter", you'd say. Now where was I... oh yeah. The important thing was that I had an onion tied to my belt, which was the style at the time. You couldn't get white onions, because of the war. The only thing you could get was those big yellow ones...

I seriously LOL'ed when i read that :D

[schmenke]

Try US$ 35 for a Heineken beer in China.

:?:
I used to pay ~$1.00 for a can of imported ale in Shanghai.
Out in the sticks (I was working on a job site in the middle-of-nowhere) we used to purchase a dozen 750ml bottles of the local brew for about $6.00 :mark: (it was cheaper than bottled water :s ).

[555-04Q2]

:?:
I used to pay ~$1.00 for a can of imported ale in Shanghai.
Out in the sticks (I was working on a job site in the middle-of-nowhere) we used to purchase a dozen 750ml bottles of the local brew for about $6.00 :mark: (it was cheaper than bottled water :s ).

It was the first time I went to China. Landed there with 3 mates, I offered them all a beer and ordered 4 Heinies. The bill was US$ 140 for the lot. I should have noticed something was up when there were no prices reflected anywhere :p : To put it bruntly, I got taken as I did not know the country, but I could afford it.

In my subsequent trips to China I no longer get taken, I know how to bargain with them and where to go and where to buy :)

[Robinho]

in excess of £6 for a 500ml Guiness in the local in Norrkoping, Sweden.

On the subject of airport parking I can pre book on the internet and get 5 days in the short stay multi storey 1 min from the terminal at Liverpool airport for £42 which i think is pretty good.

I don't agree with the parking at Hospitals, but they are generally close to city centres and if free would be abused by commuters/shoppers wanting free parking. Also if you have to make multiple visits you can usually buy a permit which dramatically cuts the cost. I would hope that the hospitals get to keep the cash too, as it should be a useful source of revenue for them and most are broke, but i'd be pretty surprised if it doesn't all go to private parking contractors

[Drew]

I'm sorry but this is complete and utter rubbish. I live in Italy and pretty much everything is more expensive here. I pay 3 times as much for milk, clothes are much more expensive, shoes too and drinking in bars is extortionate. On top of that, wages are a lot lower over here.

[J4MIE]

But Drew you will have next to no weather there and good food :p :

[Captain VXR]

But Drew you will have next to no weather there and good food :p :

Hmmmmm.

[Drew]

But Drew you will have next to no weather there and good food :p :

You forgot the women too. Believe me, I'm not complaining :D But Britain really isn't as expensive as everybody seems to think it is