Armed Forces Personnel - tell the MOD about its effect on your finances.

Si_M

inforeq wrote: »

In response to Si_M.

Where I am going with the mess is - if he/she is late with the payment (regardless if on course etc) then you can expect to obtain extras. The monthly fee is ridiculous, his normal standard month is around £40 and then there is summer balls etc to pay for in advance. For that £40 a month, what does he get, nothing, it goes to "mess funds". Then theres the tea and toast fiasco, £1.25 a week for the privellage (if you want it) to go and have it on a morning, this should be optional, but its not. Mess dinners or ladies dinner nights which are "compulsory" in many units, if he wants to take his wife for dinner then take her, not to sit with 200 odd others and listen to people waffle on and have to ask for permission to go to the loo and you have to pay for the privellege of being ordered to these dinners (another drain on the soliders finances).

Then there is the issue of the mess is known and "Sgts and W0's mess", the SGT pays less than the Warrant Officer. Yes my husband has accepted several ranks over the years but has deserved the promotions, as you would do in civvie street. When you get a pay rise or promotion in civvie a proportion of the money is not taken straight off you, in lieu of an elite boys club.

The mess should be an optional extra when you are in the army, its an elite boys club and a drain on the soliders pay.

Who is unhappy with the mess you or your husband?

If you book out when going on courses your mess bill will be reduced, if you pay by direct debit you will never be late and pick up any extras.

You can look at the books at any time and indeed do so every month at the mess meetings on the liquidity state, so this is the time to question why the bills are excessive and you get absolutely nothing in return.

Tea and Toast is an opportunity for departments to get together and talk indeed quite often clearing up business that otherwise gets ignored, but really a fiasco at £1.25 a month that's 4p a day.

The Warrant Officer and Sergeants mess is in Queens Regulations for all Sgts and above to be a member of, it's not a big boys drinking club, so it's compulsory membership, I bet the promotion from Cpl to Sgt would pay more than £40 a month so he is getting a pay rise.

If you feel so strongly about the mess you should rescind your rank it's a privilege not a right.

lucy_helen

My boyfriend is in the Navy and with car insurance for it to be valid you have to give the address at where the car for the most part is parked. Living on base increased his car insurance this year by £150, when he asked why they said due to terror and bomb threats and then proceeded to explain that if his car was bombed they wouldn't pay out anyway. So basically he's had to pay an extra £150 for bomb/terror threat cover that won't pay out anyway.

gt568

Moans about the mess are a total red herring.

Everybody who gets promoted knows they will have to pay a mess bill, it is no surprise. If you don't want to pay it, turn down the promotion.

inforeq

gt568 wrote: »

Moans about the mess are a total red herring.

Everybody who gets promoted knows they will have to pay a mess bill, it is no surprise. If you don't want to pay it, turn down the promotion.

why on earth would he turn down promotion? Would you? You obviously are not a senior rank as you would know how most married soldiers hate paying their mess bills.

inforeq

Si_M wrote: »

Who is unhappy with the mess you or your husband?

If you book out when going on courses your mess bill will be reduced, if you pay by direct debit you will never be late and pick up any extras.

You can look at the books at any time and indeed do so every month at the mess meetings on the liquidity state, so this is the time to question why the bills are excessive and you get absolutely nothing in return.

Tea and Toast is an opportunity for departments to get together and talk indeed quite often clearing up business that otherwise gets ignored, but really a fiasco at £1.25 a month that's 4p a day.

The Warrant Officer and Sergeants mess is in Queens Regulations for all Sgts and above to be a member of, it's not a big boys drinking club, so it's compulsory membership, I bet the promotion from Cpl to Sgt would pay more than £40 a month so he is getting a pay rise.

If you feel so strongly about the mess you should rescind your rank it's a privilege not a right.

Actually both hate paying the bills and he has done so for 12 years! Tea and Toast should be optional, if matters cant be resolved during normal working hours then they are never going to be. It is actually a big boys drinking club as you put it - have you never done "last man standing" at mess dinners and left @ 2 in the morning with a port fine for not staying till the last man falls down?

Yes, the soldier can look at the books at any time but when his current mess has +£86,000 in the account and still charging 120.00 per person for the xmas ball, you can only come to one conculsion, you get nothing for your money. Roll on 2more bills to pay and then the mess owes him for December as he isnt going to the ball due to resettlement!

zyonchaos

Believe it or not, your husband doesnt have to take part in "last man standing" it doesnt matter what he has told you, as to force him would be against the law (Civilian and Military). The mess does cost money, deal with it it is not up there on the grand scheme of things that are being eroded from service life to worry most people since its not like all of a sudden we are being charged for the service.

And what Si_M says is true, I have seen more work problems ironed out in the mess or the bar as people are more relaxed and inclined to listen to reason.

As for charging 120.00 per person for the xmas ball, what kind of entertainments do you have at the xmas ball or any other function through the year?? For example if you have a band for a night, you are looking at prices from £350 just for two 20 minute sets. Then you add in a DJ to cover up the bits the band isnt playing, most stations tend to have some one in house who can do this on the cheap so starting from about £50 (and a crate of lager lol). Then you have entertainments on top of those two, so the prices add up.

inforeq

If you are impling that my husband is a liar about last man standing, you had better get your facts straight, I was actually in attendance.

This forum was set up for moans about finance and anything else which is relevant to HM Forces etc, the mess (particularly this one) is a serious drain on a families resources. As for xmas balls etc, this year is immaterial as he should have de-kitted etc prior to this, but to be honest £240.00 per couple (no drinks involved either) is an extreme amount for a night out.

Si_M

inforeq wrote: »

Tea and Toast should be optional, if matters cant be resolved during normal working hours then they are never going to be. It is actually a big boys drinking club as you put it - have you never done "last man standing" at mess dinners and left @ 2 in the morning with a port fine for not staying till the last man falls down?

Yes, the soldier can look at the books at any time but when his current mess has +£86,000 in the account and still charging 120.00 per person for the xmas ball, you can only come to one conculsion, you get nothing for your money. Roll on 2more bills to pay and then the mess owes him for December as he isnt going to the ball due to resettlement!

Obviously you both don't like the mess and what it stands for, however the Tea and Toast fiasco is easily resolved if you believe in democracy and live with its outcome.
Get your husband to propose prior to the next mess meeting that tea and toast is not levied to all mess members but costs borne by those attending, this will probably not please the mess manager but heh ho. If the vote is carried you will have made a saving of £1.25 a month, result.
I have never played last man standing in any of the 6 messes I have been a member of, so I can't comment on this.
You may have £86k in assets but this can't all be used on a Christmas Ball, also your assets may include mess debtors from people away on courses or just not paying their bills thus this may not be cash in the bank.

gt568

inforeq wrote: »

why on earth would he turn down promotion? Would you? You obviously are not a senior rank as you would know how most married soldiers hate paying their mess bills.

He could have turned down the promotion and thus not paid a mess bill.

I on the other hand accepted my promotions and although I don't use the mess that much I pay my mess bill without complaint. It is part and parcel of service life. If he doesn't like it pvr or hand back his rank.

cwodavids

"For us the hardest thing has been working to restore a decent credit rating after my husband lived in barracks, as it is one address, he would have the same address as 100 people he had never met, but by this had fianancial links to, it has taken 4 years of carefully planning for us to be in a position to apply for a mortgage."

If you have been told this then you have been misled. Finance companies do not score your credit rating based on other people living at an address, this would mean that anyone who had bought a repossessed house would never get another mortgage as the previous owner was bankrupt! You will only be financially linked to someone else if you have applied for credit together.

If you wish to see who you are linked too then access your credit report online with Experian or Equifax, this report will show you EVERYTHING that finance companies hold on you.

Hope this clears things up

C