RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

fluffygirl — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 13:38:54 GMT

Got my receipt yesterday. I would just continue to phone/email them until you get one!! Annoying but sometimes necessary.

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Claire Edgington — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 10:11:29 GMT

[quote user="Mark Patteson"]

So on a positive note they have tried to improve the system, and they have realised that doing things online is possible in 2011.

Mark Patteson

[/quote]

They do allow you to make a payment online this year but only with a credit card - which bumps up the fee due. I couldn't pay by debit card/paypal etc online.

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Claire Edgington — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 10:04:32 GMT

[quote user="fluffygirl"]

Have received an email saying they will send a receipt, but haven't as yet received it. Is there not some legal obligation to provide one in these circumstances????

[/quote]

I phoned them at the beginning of April to request a receipt and they informed me that it would be a few weeks before they started processing receipts for people......

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

fluffygirl — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 18:25:08 GMT

Have received an email saying they will send a receipt, but haven't as yet received it. Is there not some legal obligation to provide one in these circumstances????

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Victoria Tannahill — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 13:27:04 GMT

[quote user="fluffygirl"]

I sent a cheque for my registration fee well before the 31st March, mainly to avoid paying the credit card handling charge (!). My boss has agreed to reimburse me my £299 if I can provide some sort of invoice/receipt to prove I 've paid it. I now realise my mistake.......

[/quote]

I too have contacted the RCVS on three separate occasions (twice by phone and once my email) to request a receipt so that I may have my CertAVP fees reimbursed by my employer. Latest attempt to contact them was on 04 Apr 11 - still no reply.....

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Evelyn Barbour-Hill — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 17:42:34 GMT

[quote user="Mark Hedberg"]

Sorry, I was just scared of being struck off.

<-- is a chicken :)

[/quote]

They have no legal right to strike you off, nor even to demand extra payment, if they have not requested the fee in the first place.

But who wants the hassle?

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Mark Hedberg — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 16:07:05 GMT

Sorry, I was just scared of being struck off.

<-- is a chicken :)

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Evelyn Barbour-Hill — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 15:46:02 GMT

[quote user="HERETIC"] I thought that you were obliged to give advance notification before lifting money by direct debit.[/quote]

You are indeed.

I've paid my retention fee - what I think is the correct amount - by cheque even though at no time have I received an invoice or any sort of request for payment whatever. I have done this because it is the RCVS, for which I still have a slight regard, not because I am afraid of being penalised or struck off. I would not do this for any other organisation or company.

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

fluffygirl — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 15:38:05 GMT

Have e-mailed them twice and received a reply today! Hurrah! They are sending me a receipt through the post!

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Vet2Vet — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 12:20:36 GMT

Would it be any use getting in touch with them again .

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

fluffygirl — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 11:52:53 GMT

[quote user="HERETIC"]I thought that you were obliged to give advance notification before lifting money by direct debit.[/quote]

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Wren — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 10:53:27 GMT

[quote user="Bob Moore"]

When I was treasurer of RCVS I tried to set up monthly DD. But the Veterinary Surgeons Act only makes provision for an annual payment. No joy there then. But i did try.

[/quote]

I really, really struggle with this. I can't commit to an annual DD as there are very few days in a month when there is £300 available in my account for the RCVS to take and if they did take it it might mean that some of my other monthly payments (eg. mortgage/loan repayments) weren't paid. A monthly DD would be fine as it is a much smaller amount. I have to pay mine by credit card (and suffer the £8 fee and the ensuing interest) then pay the amount back to my credit card over the following few months.

I understand that for some archaic legal reason it may not be possible but a monthly DD would make all the difference to me!

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Vet2Vet — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 20:37:49 GMT

" before lifting money by direct debit " are you implying something

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

HERETIC — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 20:34:06 GMT

I pay by direct debit to avoid being "accidentally"struck off but this year I couldn't find anything to put in the tax file to say what the charge was. Finally found the (exorbitant )cost tucked away in the middle of the self congratulatory rubbish about the improved image and logo. This isn't the ideal document for the tax file. I thought that you were obliged to give advance notification before lifting money by direct debit.

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

J G Wray — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 16:09:34 GMT

[quote user="Mark Patteson"]....Sadly that is probably not the one way. As others have commented, there are lots of people working in a cramped office in a very expensive part of town who are trying hard but are thwarted by the system. The system is down to the main officials. The elected officers come and go and can't or dare not address the issue of the senior civil service of the college. I don't know if it is even possible for these poeple to be held to account for another shambles but don't count on them volunteering to take responsibity for the adminstration of our profession. Without a change in the current leading personel it is likely that the same highhanded derisory attitude to members will be continued and what could be a simple system will continue to be riddled with inefficiency.[/quote]

Dr Patterson is pointing out where systems fall down at RCVS. The senior civil service at RCVS are unwilling to change, integrate and adopt accountable management practice.In fact they are unimpeachable, unlike previous staff there. Quite a feat.

There are Councillors who have been there a long time, habitually seeking re election without actually addressing the management issues that arise. Mrs Nute has been there for more than a decade and others like Mrs Hill and Dr Moore, who are seeking re election this time have been Councillors for almost as long. I cannot remember how long Ms Shield has been there. Whenever any have sought to put in place proper management structures and integrate across the departments, there has been capitulation whenever the senior officials dig their heels in.

Some Presidents have rattled on about running the College by consensus, which has changed nothing and lamentably the future is only filled with more promise of the status quo. The new JVP Mrs Molyneux is so dazzled by and uncritical of the staff that she has stated

"As I have become more and more involved with the RCVS and the work of its committees I am amazed at the amount of work being done behind the scenes by both Council Members and the RCVS staff..." before she even gets near the Office of President. Mrs Molyneux is out to persuade us that the Emperor has clothes and is trustworthy.

Regretably, there is also little point in protesting in future because the same Mrs Molyneux has also stated:

"..During my time on the Officer team, communication with the profession will be a priority, not for the vocal minority, but with the silent majority who have no idea of the breadth of the work that the RCVS undertakes each year."

So, if you do raise a protest, you will automatically be identified, categorised and pigeon-holed as a vocal minor and have no influence. The silent majority will, in Molyneux-speak automatically hold a view entirely congruent with her own, even though she doesn't, by definition,know what the "silent" ones think. The silent ones will therefore also have no influence in Molyneux's world, which will be Right and communicated down to the profession as Right, something she has previous for elsewhere. She has stated all this more than a year before taking the Office of President,.

So, I do not entirely agree with Dr Patteson's assessment of RCVS. Some Councillors could have changed the way RCVS has been run. They have chosen not to and some are even setting out to bolster the status quo

They may not have put this in their election manifestoes, but hey ho what's the problem with that?

JGW

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Mark Patteson — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 19:40:54 GMT

I had a rather major falling out with the College last year which I fear triggered some of these changes. So on a positive note they have tried to improve the system, and they have realised that doing things online is possible in 2011. Also, this year I have spoken to a lady in the registration department who was friendly and helpful, and they replied to an e-mail, so that is two things that have changed for the better. However as other correspondents have noted a modicum of endeavour in improving things has fallen by the way side due to a failure to get things right, Lucky that they are not running a business. I can see that they do have a problem with vets moving without telling them and they are right to say that you are obliged to tell them (Vet Surgeons act I am afraid). However they are not obliged to tell you that they have altered your details or make it user friendly for us to imput important information. We have to realise that we as vets are the main problem that the RCVS have. Without us all their troubles would be over. They are bound to be irritated by us calling or -emailing them because it is bothersome.

So a few issue to run off:

the change to providing a business address is to help them or others contact you. As the register is a public document, I for one would rather have my business address there than my home address. The annual renewal of details ensures that if they have deleted your address without your knowldge or agreement you can give it to them again. Do not assume that they will not change your details without informing you (although I am told that they wil try not to), or that they may be sufficiently competent to get the details right, both are unfortunately a hope too far. So although it is a pain it may be better than allowing them to control your details
Previously, getting correspondence to the correct address from one RCVS department did not mean that another department had got your details right. Neither do the registration department use that useful publication the RCVS register of Veterinary Surgeons should they wish to contact you, they don't appear to have a copy. However I have been told that with the new system all departments will have the same details for you, and I am sure that they have lived up to their word (but I haven't checked)
A direct debit would seem to make good sense - many businesses give discount or insist on this method. Unfortunately the DD system is not RCVS proof. If they say that they will take you payment by direct debit but then they don't, you will be fined for late payment. After June 1 (as I recall) the fine increases to £300 approx. I have been told by the registrar that it is our responsibility to check our bankaccounts to see that the fee has been taken. As they take it on or after 1 April, if they fail to take it you are automatically going to have the first fine, if you fail to spot it before June you get another fine, and then you get stuck off. Even at that point they won't tell you that you have been struck off until several weeks later .
Most online payments or other transactions give a reciept. Clearly receipts are handy for accounts purposes too, but this would be a step too far for the College, we need to know our place. Clearly being registered isn't important enough
You should get a reminder if your payment does not go through. But if they have deleted your address you won't, so the new renewing your address each year should avoid that pitfall and may be a good idea
They do use e-mail reminders, but I note that there is nowhere on the form to enter an e-mail address to ensure that they have got that right
If you send a cheque and they don't cash it it is again your fault if you don't notice and you will be fined and in due course struck off
This year they solved my problem by sending me a letter to say that they would take a direct debit from my business account (which thy actually did this year, hurray) and another letter saying that the direct debit would be taken from my old practice account, so that is two registration fees. But at least it may be better than being struck off.
It looks like the BACs payment followed by a barrange of e-mails to the finance office until they reply may be the best way. I am sure that there is some way of getting Outlook to send the same e-mail every day until they reply to confirm receipt. Have many other tried the BACS method
I was assured last year that this new improved system would avoid any problems. Clearly earlier correspondents are being overly fussy.

There is only one way to change this. I would like to think that if everyone who grumbles about the college writes to them (snail mail may be best, I have been told that their e-mail system isn't always reliable, although that may have improved) then they will recognise the problems and improve the online system which should be a simple way to ensure accuracy of current details and simple payment with a reciept.

Sadly that is probably not the one way. As others have commented, there are lots of people working in a cramped office in a very expensive part of town who are trying hard but are thwarted by the system. The system is down to the main officials. The elected officers come and go and can't or dare not address the issue of the senior civil service of the college. I don't know if it is even possible for these poeple to be held to account for another shambles but don't count on them volunteering to take responsibity for the adminstration of our profession. Without a change in the current leading personel it is likely that the same highhanded derisory attitude to members will be continued and what could be a simple system will continue to be riddled with inefficiency.

Mark Patteson

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

mariette asselbergs — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 18:07:46 GMT

[quote user="Kate Richardson"]

Does anyone know if you have paid your fees previously by direct debit each year will the payment automatically be taken again this year or do I need to set a new one up? As I have yet to receive my renewal letter as well

[/quote]

Every year I am curious what will happen, because the RCVS tells me in a letter that since I pay by DD, I must not pay in any other way. But they haven't taken the money untill well into April. Hopefully without the extra fine...... So I think it did work automatically this year.

Mariette

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Bob Russell — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 11:09:59 GMT

Just spoken to them! Nice attitude on the phone. 'A few glitches with the database and backlog of emails!'

I suspect everyone there is rattling with diazepam or would like to be.

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Clive Ansell — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 10:21:37 GMT

Posted a cheque first class on the 18th, has cleared from my account today - so all done.

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Bob Russell — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 09:52:49 GMT

No email reply, no letter/invoice. Not sure if I have set up a D/D so I suppose I will have to phone them. What a mess!

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Bob Russell — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 13:45:11 GMT

Sent an email yesterday morning to get my log-in details. Nothing back yet!

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Thomas Johnson — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 10:01:29 GMT

I had my letter yesterday, fee will be collected by direct debit as in previous years, and I have logged on to the website to confirm my details without any problems.

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Evelyn Barbour-Hill — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 16:04:17 GMT

[quote user="Bob Russell"]

No sign of any invoices here for membership or practice so thanks for the bank information. Has the RCVS website got information on it giving advice on what to do if they fail to send out letters?

[/quote]

No invoice or other request for payment: nothing to pay, obviously.

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Kate Richardson — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 11:04:59 GMT

Yes I just managed to get through on the phone to check, and I was told that the payment will be taken as usual around the beginning of April.

Re: RCVS Fees - Anyone got their letter yet?

Derek Lyon — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 10:53:51 GMT

[quote user="Kate Richardson"]

[/quote]

Mine came this morning. Non Practicing member at £49 fee will be taken as in previous years by Direct Debit. Easy!