Find Ancestors

No doubt someone will try to say I can't publish a web address on these pages, but in this case, there is a bigger picture and a much bigger issue.

For those who do not know, our magnificent government have come up with another idea to rip even more money from our overstreched pockets, by increasing the cost of GRO certificates a whopping 32% from £7 to £9.25. I personally don't care which way they (the government) slice it, it is an increase which cannot be justified and shouldn't be allowed to happen without a fight. Please sign the petition against this rise, it is in your best interest, go to:-

http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/grocertificates/

When you think that certs have been £7 since 2003 i don't think it's a whooping jump

I joined GR in 2003 at £5 & it's now £9.95

People need to stop moaning about it & no i won't be signing a petition

I do wish Julie, you were my employer, and I'd come into your office and ask for a 32% rise for no additional work, and see what your reply would be lol

Don't worry you'll be safe as i wouldn't employ you in the 1st place

GR's jump in the same length of time is a lot greater... & the site hasn't really change, but i ain't moaning about it

And what you want, people to comment on here only if they agree with you...you'll come unstuck, life ain't like that

Much as we all want certs to continue our family trees, they aren't exactly essential to life! We can't expect others to subsidise our hobby. I budget for a maximum of 2 a month. though at this stage I rarely buy them. It will now be one a month! It just slows things down, but that's OK.
The only issue I have is that it is more expensive to get essential current certificates, such as death certs which seems most unkind. A more gradual yearly increase would have softened the blow a bit.
Jan

Hi Paul
I agree with you and I will sign your Petition.
I think that because Genealogy has taken off so much your goverment is just cashing in on it as they always do with everything.

I live in Western Australia and if you want a cert from here it cost you $ 30 the last time I bought one ,thats about 15 English pounds.

Well done for trying to help.
Sue

If Aussie certs cost £15 then ours are relatively cheap aren't they?
Jan

Why should the taxpayer fund a hobby?

There are far more important calls on the public purse.

Would you ask your neighbour to pay for your leisure activities?

That's what it would amount to..................

£7 is the price of a half decent bottle of wine,£9.25p is just a better bottle of wine.
Few people complain at paying for flowers, booze ,cigs ,jewelry,makeup or holidays,so why complain about paying for your hobby?No one is forcing you to buy the certs.

So a cert instead of the bottle of wine is what I will carry on doing.

I am quite supprised that people don't think the rise in the price of certificates is a problem.

I sent for 6 certificates last week at £42, shortly that amount will cost £75. I signed the petition last week.
Carol

Life doesn't owe you 'treats' - you have to pay for them.

I'm an OAP, and a widow, but I don't expect to have my hobby subsidised by anyone.

But, then I'm old enough to have been brought up to believe that one has to pay one's own way in life.

What is needed is an English equivalent of Scotlandspeople especially for the older certificates i.e births more the 100 years ago, marriages more than 75 and deaths more than 50. On Scotlandspeople it can work out as little as £1.20 to view and download the correct entry in the register.

Also if you live in Scotland and can spend a day in the Scotlandspeople Centre in Edinburgh it only costs £10. You can look at any entries (which is exactly the same information you get on a certificate) and make notes. So you're only limitation is time! It also means that if you are researching a fairly common surname it isn't costing you money (other than the £10 entry fee) to elimainate incorrect entries.

I find receiving them in the timescale is no longer achievable. The last 5 I have ordered by standard service ... so within 4 days has not happened and I have had to call each time. The same reason has been given each time... They are in the print queue. The time for looking at "compliants" which is how GRO described my call... is 10 days

On 3 of the 5 occasions they have not ever arrived and I was offered my money back. Not very helpful really.

I suppose the demand has outgrown the service. Lets hope any cost increase goes towards improving the service.


I may be wrong but I think you can look at the records for free? I know this is not always feasible.

I currently need quite a few from Carlisle, a 3 hour drive for me... so it is going to be cheaper to drive there and spend the day in the records office and note what I need rather than order everything.

Sadly everything seems to be expensive nowadays

Hi Paul,

I am half with you. I think the GRO provides a lousy service. The fee for a certificate is 23 quid for a 'fast service' (turnaround time one business day) but when I paid this extortionate amount they still took eight days to send it (nor counting the actual postage days). I got an apology but no refund of any of my money. My Dad always complains about 'rip-off Britain' and I think he's right. Increasing prices AND poorer services. The GRO should not put up charges unless it can guarantee it will provide a more efficient service.

I was going to make a comment on this which it appears is the same viewpoint as Root, why can't we have the same kind of process as SP?

I know there were several projects on the go around the mid 00's, but these have all gone by the wayside as time passes and the government runs out of cash.

I am happy to pay £7 and will possibly be happy to pay £10 (almost) because as i need a cert i don;t have a choice.

I do not think they are profiteering from me, i still believe we get a bloody good deal !!! If i order a Scottish cert i have to wait at least a month sometimes 6 weeks to get it. The GRO is alot faster than that!!

I have to say i rarely use the GRO these days directly, i always where possible, now use the local registry service. The certs arive in good time (2 days or so), the people are on the whole good natured and they treat you like a real person.

As with all hobbies there is an expense, and as has already been mentioned there has been little if no price rise for 7 years or more.

There is so much available for free these days, baptism records on sites like Lancs OPC or the Durham Online Project, there will become a time when the GRO will become almost obsolete...


Tracey x

If everyone that has BMD certificates uploaded the details to BMDshare then we would all be able to save ourselves some of the costs.
I buy approx one cert per month and always put the details on BMD share for others to see.
At the present its a long shot finding the cert you require there but if more of us did it we'd all benefit.

Eddie,

I used to do that all the time 'back in the day'

I am currently upto 250 certs still more to get.....

It's a mammouth task.... but def worth it.

T x

I think the main problem is the ‘all in one’ hike. If the price had been incremental then it would have been more acceptable

Personally I’m lucky enough to be able to afford them, although I have most of what I need. But I do see it will be a problem for people on a tight budget

It’s as though the Government ‘forgot’ about the GRO and some MP has stumbled across the fact there has been no increase in years.......Eureka!!

Ginny
x

Tracey...
I hope you never have to send to Carmarthen for any certs..

3 wks this time for a birth and last time ,just before christmas,they said they couldnt find the one I was after,2 weeks later!
it must be in Lampeter they said,I said Lampeter have already searched but Ill ask again.
Lampeter said no again after another search that same day and a phone call to me the next morning to tell me the result..
Back to Carmarthen and 3 weeks later,oh dear,yes we have it after all.

So 6 weeks to get a birth from Carmarthen.

I fume about them as they are the worst organised and slowest reg office that I have ever sent to..

The GRO for me everytime if I can,even at £9.25p as at least I dont have to wait weeks.