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London’s Personal Finance Chokehold
Everyone’s out to get your cash!
Living in London feels like navigating a financial minefield. Step out of your Zone 2 flat, and you’re instantly in a cash flow vacuum. Everyone, from the government to small independent shops, seems hell-bent on getting a piece of your hard-earned money. It’s been an expensive lesson in our first year here, and it’s not just the big players — it’s everyone.
Traffic Tickets and Hidden Fees: The Unrelenting Hustle
In just one year, I’ve paid more in traffic tickets than in 15 years living in Ireland. London isn’t particularly litigious, but it’s relentless. Middlemen, agents, brokers — they’re all in on it. Their incentives? Catch you in the act and get their cut. It’s the polar opposite of laissez-faire; it’s a chokehold on your finances. And all this when we’re law-abiding, decent people.
The Small-Time Scammers
Even the small establishments are in on the act. They take deposits they don’t return unless you explicitly ask for it, hoping you never do. They mis-sell insurance products you’ll never use, and when you call, you’re thrown into a web of interconnected companies, each more clueless than the last. Quick to take your cash, slow to return it, even when it’s your…
