The System - or Lack Thereof

william webster

Platinum
Jan 16, 2009
30,247
4,328
113
Surely, we can all agree that navigating the DR landscape can be difficult.

Predicting an outcome, trying to comply.... a myriad of issues.

I saw two today that caught my attention.

1/ One of my workers got a new health card...
I know her birthday from other conversations.

The health card has the wrong date - an April cumpleano, not September
Same day - wrong month

I asked -
Yes, my cedula reads April so I always fill in April 'officially'

Oh no --- don't correct it... just continue ... in error

2/ My new car insurance

Somehow when you buy a car, it has some form of insurance to get you to where you're going.
I never ask...just run home and sign a new policy.

So, Banco Progreso does my insurance
Gotta be big enough company in the country... not too shabby....one would assume.

They call me today.... refund for me .... big one !!

So....
After buying the new policy.... a full year.... I get a new tarjeta.
You would assume a new policy ... dates. etc.

Oh No !!!

THe refunds were twofold..
First, to refund the balance of the old policy
Second, to credit back the overpayment for the new car -

They keep the policy the dates the same - 6/30 in my case
That part is nice and neat.... 2 cars , same anniversary.

But in doing that, a refund for cancellation & a refund for overpayment.
$14,000 pesos each

No such thing as a credit/debit/balance to the account...
meaning less work, less paper....It makes sense to them... if not to me.

Convoluted way to get from A to B ????
I guess so !!


Just when you think you have a grip on how things work...

Don't even try....just roll with it


I'm sure others here have more examples...
Both of mine happened today.....and caught my attention

WOW!!

Feel free to add yours.......
 

botemon

Active member
Jun 28, 2008
221
29
28
I suppose this would fall under “lack thereof”. Several years ago, my wife goes into the local Ednorte office to pay our electric bill. Keep in mind that the account is in HER name. We are married (in two countries LOL) but we have different last names. The woman at Ednorte could not find her account and unfortunately she did not have the factual in hand with the account number. (Very important)! So….after a while the woman say’s “Hey, your husband is Ken W. right”? (Everyone knows me). My wife say’s “yes it is”. The woman says “I found your bill”! The bill was in line for what we pay for electricity each month at about 1.8 k pesos. So she paid it!
A couple days later Ednorte was out to our house ready to disconnect our power for failure to pay. (No really!……we’re gringos right?). Well…I ran into the house and got the receipt that we did in fact pay. “Here…see? We paid!” I never saw two Dominican men laugh so hard all the time we have lived here. Rolling back on the truck just laughing and laughing. My mouth is just hanging open looking dumb. One guy say’s “You stupid Gringo! Why did you pay someone else’s electric bill?” I’m like Whaaaaa????? Yup! Sure as shinola, we paid someone else’s power bill. OK. No problem. They left us hooked up and we went down to Ednorte to “fix it”. You would think that a few “clicks” on the computer could just make it all right? Noooo! “We have no way of doing that”! Small argument ensues, but we paid our bill again, this time correctly. So I ask, “How can I get a credit and fix this”? She answers “Go to Sosua and find Ken W. and get the money from him”. True story. Lesson learned. I still Love this country!!!!! Cheers
 

william webster

Platinum
Jan 16, 2009
30,247
4,328
113
Precisely... once the die is cast..... sayonara.....bye-bye...goosed... SOL

Not so smooth sometimes...
other times - your stunned - how did they do that ??

Bizarro World
 

Cdn_Gringo

Gold
Apr 29, 2014
8,670
1,132
113
I have this firearm license, well actually I have more than one. One has my first, middle and last name spelled correctly. One has two letters of my middle name transposed. Of course the one with the error is the one that needs to be renewed regularly.

One would think that at renewal time, some non-dyslexic clerk could easily correct the mistake by typing the letters in the correct order...

Oh no, back to ministry you must go. Submit paperwork, multiple copies of passport and cedula and wait and wait, no thank you, I'll live with the misspelled middle name until the most inopportune time arrives when someone actually notices and makes a stink.
 

Cdn_Gringo

Gold
Apr 29, 2014
8,670
1,132
113
Same thing happened to me with my cell bill. Paid at Orange near Baileys, amount credited to wrong account (two numbers transposed). Didn't check the receipt until 7 days later when I got a text reminding me to pay. Went back to Orange and was told that I only had 5 days to bring errors to their attention. Found this out after having to wait for 45 minutes for the only person who can work the cash system to come back from lunch.

...had to pay again. You're welcome, whoever you are. Adios Orange!
 

Gadfly

member
Jul 7, 2016
1,051
650
113
I have my expired passport and my current one.  I carry the expired with me and use it at banks to get cash, casa de cambios, etc. (Not at airports obviously). Only once in two or three years did a vendor say sorry it’s expired, we need a current passport.  It was at western union on north coast.   I was SENDING money. 
 

botemon

Active member
Jun 28, 2008
221
29
28
I LOVE this one! The wife goes to get a cell phone contract 10 years ago. She brings our employee Erby (Abby) in case we need translation.
Wife: “I need a cell phone and contract”.
Representative: No Problem! Let me get the paperwork together.
Representative: “OK….where do you work”?
Wife: I don’t work anymore, I’m retired”.
Representative: “Oh No. That’s a problem. I can’t give you a contract if you do not have a job”
Representative: Looking at Erby, “Do you have a job?”
Erby: “Yes. Yes I do have a job”!
Representative: “Ok. Great! Where do you work?”
Erby: “I work for her” (pointing at my wife)
Representative: “OK….no problem…here is your phone and contract”!
Everyone smiles and exits.
I Love this country!
 

lifeisgreat

Enjoying Life
May 7, 2016
3,269
1,161
113
Ok this one is Fuc_ed up to.... realestate agent screwed up on telling ednorte the proper info on a villa sale and now they won’t fix it!somehow between ednorte and agent things got messed up... Now he pays neighbors bill ,neighbour pays his bill...everything was fine till one neighbor is snowbird and account ran out of money and the people that live here full time had there electricity cut off, one week...1st two days they thought it was ednorte power outage ;)
 
Aug 21, 2007
3,030
1,966
113
All great examples of life here. I have a couple, too. But instead of explaining, I will say that is, in part, why I love it here. The country gives me bigger than life clips to share with friends.

Lindsey
 

william webster

Platinum
Jan 16, 2009
30,247
4,328
113
OK, LK

Here’s one for your album

Early on we asked about a veterinarian.... Dr Bob came up in neon lights 

So we go one Thursday afternoon and the line is out the door...
Wow, this is the veterinarian... you bet he is!!

But somehow by charm, good looks.... good Dog.... we get called past the line .... VIP.
Not that I’m not used to that treatment....joke

It turns out Thursday afternoon is people day for Dr Bob.... big Haitian lineup 

Not only did I have dog.... I was a paying customer!!


I tell that one and people just stare at me....incredulous.

It actually happened 
 

LTSteve

Gold
Jul 9, 2010
5,449
23
38
Surely, we can all agree that navigating the DR landscape can be difficult.

Predicting an outcome, trying to comply.... a myriad of issues.

I saw two today that caught my attention.

1/ One of my workers got a new health card...
I know her birthday from other conversations.

The health card has the wrong date - an April cumpleano, not September
Same day - wrong month

I asked -
Yes, my cedula reads April so I always fill in April 'officially'

Oh no --- don't correct it... just continue ... in error

2/ My new car insurance

Somehow when you buy a car, it has some form of insurance to get you to where you're going.
I never ask...just run home and sign a new policy.

So, Banco Progreso does my insurance
Gotta be big enough company in the country... not too shabby....one would assume.

They call me today.... refund for me .... big one !!

So....
After buying the new policy.... a full year.... I get a new tarjeta.
You would assume a new policy ... dates. etc.

Oh No !!!

THe refunds were twofold..
First, to refund the balance of the old policy
Second, to credit back the overpayment for the new car -

They keep the policy the dates the same - 6/30 in my case
That part is nice and neat.... 2 cars , same anniversary.

But in doing that, a refund for cancellation & a refund for overpayment.
$14,000 pesos each

No such thing as a credit/debit/balance to the account...
meaning less work, less paper....It makes sense to them... if not to me.

Convoluted way to get from A to B ????
I guess so !!


Just when you think you have a grip on how things work...

Don't even try....just roll with it


I'm sure others here have more examples...
Both of mine happened today.....and caught my attention

WOW!!

Feel free to add yours.......

DUMB & DUMBER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! however not surprising.