GP wants €30 to sign document

ceekay74

I tried getting a passport application for my infant daughter sorted out at the local garda station but was told that for a particular section that the guards can't sign it as they didn't know us personally, but we could ask our GP to sign it for us.

So far so good.

He wants €30 to sign it. Absolutely disgusted, left his office without saying a word. What a horrible money grubbing so & so. Never going back there.

hidinginthebush

The guards signed mine no hassle. Maybe come back another day and ask a different garda?

Fair play for not paying the GP!

ceekay74

hidinginthebush wrote: »

The guards signed mine no hassle. Maybe come back another day and ask a different garda?

Fair play for not paying the GP!

Will try that in a few days. Might get lucky.

Can't believe the cheek of the GP, we had being going there for over 12 years!

xpletiv

Name and shame. Name and shame...

thegreatiam

cant just be cops and doctors that can sign.
what about parish priest, lawyers etc?
is it not just a 'person in good standing' that is not related to you and you have known for 2 years?

Edi: In the uk it is pretty much a business owner or professionally qualified person with no record. not sure how it is in ireland

jd83

Just try a different garda station or go back later when another garda there. Eventually someone will sign it.

Its a joke, I had same hassle. Never broken any laws or have had any run ins with the gardai. So no one in my local garda station knows me " personally ". Even more so now considering my local garda station is half away across the city due to the station closures. Eventually got one to sign it, but wasnt short of asking them out for a coffee to get to know me!

yh never set foot in that doctors office again.

ceekay74

xpletiv wrote: »

Name and shame. Name and shame...

Is that allowed here?

Its a well known GP practice in Kilnamanagh, Dublin 24.

xpletiv

TBH, this never made sense to me.

1. Why would a garda know you unless you were not of good standing?
2. Why would a garda be more 'good standing' than others? In my experience, most gards (MOST) are thick as two short planks and only in the gards cause they couldnt do anything that required good skill.
3. What constitutes 'good standing'?

What a moronic society we live in... at the best of times...

Good on you telling the GP to go F himself. €30 for a signature. Should have called him a thief and con artist as you left!

thegreatiam

xpletiv wrote: »

TBH, this never made sense to me.

1. Why would a garda know you unless you were not of good standing?
2. Why would a garda be more 'good standing' than others? In my experience, most gards (MOST) are thick as two short planks and only in the gards cause they couldnt do anything that required good skill.
3. What constitutes 'good standing'?

1 very good point, ive spoken to one garda in my whole life.
2+3 basically no criminal record, or a job which means a dodgy record and you'd be fired. (not that it precludes garda tho )

hunglikeaflee

After studying for 7 or more years a charge of €30.00 is not bad. Remember they also have overheads to pay. What do people expect? If you called a plumber to look at something for you and they did no work but asked for €30.00 you would pay it.

Go to a solicitor and ask for it to be signed at see what they will charge.

ceekay74

hunglikeaflee wrote: »

If you called a plumber to look at something for you and they did no work but asked for €30.00 you would pay it.

I wouldn't ask a plumber who charges call out fees to look at something.

logically

hunglikeaflee wrote: »

After studying for 7 or more years a charge of €30.00 is not bad. Remember they also have overheads to pay. What do people expect? If you called a plumber to look at something for you and they did no work but asked for €30.00 you would pay it.

Go to a solicitor and ask for it to be signed at see what they will charge.

The length of time someone studies to do a job has ZERO bearing on this matter. Of more relevance is the fact that the person requesting a simple signature has been going to the practice for 12 YEARS...

A client of that many years standing should reasonably expect the courtesy of a signature for a passport application.

OP - If it were me, I would write to them and request your medical records to facilitate moving to a new practice. Let them know that their mean spirited ways prompted it.

Also, leave a review on the whatclinic site.

rubadub

ceekay74 wrote: »

Can't believe the cheek of the GP, we had being going there for over 12 years!

I hope you let him know why you are changing.

thegreatiam wrote: »

cant just be cops and doctors that can sign.
what about parish priest, lawyers etc?

Its mental, priests & lawyers? I'd trust the local fecking drug dealer more! I think accountants can do it too.

I got my passport photos signed in pearse street garda station. It seems to be the main job for them! Its ridiculous that they don't have a dedicated garda in the passport office. There was a queue in front of me with loads getting it done and nobody had any hassle at all. Though I heard some saying they did in the local garda station. Also in the passport office I heard similar tales of young gardai being wary of signing, so maybe this is the problem. Or perhaps it is a known thing with babies more.

You could ring another garda station and ask about it, a senior experienced guy might do it, its all too easy for a wary garda to say no, easy cop out.

hunglikeaflee wrote: »

After studying for 7 or more years a charge of €30.00 is not bad. Remember they also have overheads to pay. What do people expect? If you called a plumber to look at something for you and they did no work but asked for €30.00 you would pay it.

If I was a doctor with a customer of 12 years I would have done it for free, how much would you have charged?
People expect this to be a free gesture which gives goodwill. If I was going to the same plumber for 12 years, and if he was allowed sign my passport photos (I trust my plumber more than my local priest or gardai) then I would expect him to do it free if he had an office that I was popping into and only disrupting him for 2minutes. If he made a call out for the doctor to drive out to his house (like you seem to be inferring with your plumber) then a charge would be acceptable.

keithclancy

ceekay74 wrote: »

I tried getting a passport application for my infant daughter sorted out at the local garda station but was told that for a particular section that the guards can't sign it as they didn't know us personally, but we could ask our GP to sign it for us.

So far so good.

He wants €30 to sign it. Absolutely disgusted, left his office without saying a word. What a horrible money grubbing so & so. Never going back there.

Sounds about right, rather than say 'no' he just said 30 euro instead.

The GP is under no obligation to do this for you for free.

rubadub

hunglikeaflee wrote: »

After studying for 7 or more years a charge of €30.00 is not bad.

Says here it takes about 7 years to become a priest too, wonder what they charge.
http://www.catholicpriesthood.com/index.php?view=items&cid=2%3Abecoming-a-priest&id=9%3Ahow-long-does-it-take-to-become-a-priest-can-you-study-part-time&option=com_quickfaq&Itemid=38

keithclancy wrote: »

The GP is under no obligation to do this for you for free.

Nobody said he was, if you were a GP with a customer of 12 years what would you have charged them? I take it you would charge €30 as you said it was "about right", but just want you to confirm what you would charge a customer of 12 years (probably not just him but the family too)

sweetie

Did you actually speak to the GP or an administrator?

Nemeses

Another spin on this is... You are asking a Doctor (Could be anyone really) for them to vouch for you? A professional that can lose his license to practise.. One way of looking at it. You could very well be putting his job on the line - Permanently..

I'm being hypothetical but an interesting point... maybe?

rubadub

Nemeses wrote: »

You are asking a Doctor (Could be anyone really) for them to vouch for you?

I'm being hypothetical but an interesting point... maybe?

Another one I would like to hear answer the hypothetical question, if you were a GP with a customer of 12 years what would you have charged them?

Its not like he was unknown and asking them to vouch for them.

Nolimits

Nemeses wrote: »

Another spin on this is... You are asking a Doctor (Could be anyone really) for them to vouch for you? A professional that can lose his license to practise.. One way of looking at it. You could very well be putting his job on the line - Permanently..

I'm being hypothetical but an interesting point... maybe?

They are just vouching that you are who you say, not that you're a decent person so not sure how they're putting their job on the line. Will take the point about Guards not wanting to sign it though if they don't know you.

MagicMarker

Nemeses wrote: »

Another spin on this is... You are asking a Doctor (Could be anyone really) for them to vouch for you? A professional that can lose his license to practise.. One way of looking at it. You could very well be putting his job on the line - Permanently..

I'm being hypothetical but an interesting point... maybe?

No.

FGR

Gardaí won't sign a passport for an infant unless they're 100% satisfied that you are their parent. That usually requires the child's birth cert as well as identification for the parents. When these documents aren't available a Guard won't take the risk of signing it in the smallest of chances that something may be wrong.

I've seen some parents become outraged when the Guard won't sign on foot of the birth cert not being present. They believe that the child's current passport (which is due to expire) is enough. It doesn't say who the parents are on that document however yet they expect the Guard to willingly sign off that both parents consent to a passport being issued.

I'm surprised with your GP though OP.

Nemeses

rubadub wrote: »

Another one I would like to hear answer the hypothetical question, if you were a GP with a customer of 12 years what would you have charged them?

Its not like he was unknown and asking them to vouch for them.

Ask in the doctors forums..See what the professionals say. I can't speak for them as I am not a GP, nor do I hold a doctorate of some description..Would be an interesting debate.


But I'd probably wouldn't charge.. I mean its literally a 2 second job or a scribble in this case

thegreatiam

I dont see why someone would refuse to sign it, youre not vouching for the person only that the image in the photo looks like the person.

Dont understand why they need to know you for 2 years. but a random cop who ive never seen before can sign it.

It needs to be better thought out to apply to a more modern society. How many people in this country honestly know their local doctor, police man, etc.

Id say a fair % don't use regular community services. Most wont even know their neighbours.
Ive never seen the same doctor twice in this country, only ever spoke to one cop, never met a priest.

When I had to get my picture signed I asked a girl in my girlfriends work who had a bachelors degree, this was sufficient for a uk passport. But at the time I'd only met her once.

freelancerTax

they do not have to vouch for you - they are simply a witness to you signing the documents and that you are the person in your photo - nothing more - requires no skill

i had a very hard time to do this in the uk for an irish passport - police didnt want to know - ended up asking the local postmaster to do it - was the first time i met him

ratracer

Are you sure the guard didn't tell you ask a 'JP' as in Justice of the Peace to sign it for and not your GP? It seems very strange to ask a GP to sign a passport form of any description?


In any case don't GP's charge for everything - repeat prescriptions, sick certs etc. and not too much is said about that.

ceekay74

sweetie wrote: »

Did you actually speak to the GP or an administrator?

It was the reception / admin staff that I was talking to. They seemed embarrassed by the charge but seemed definite that it stood.

ceekay74

ratracer wrote: »

Are you sure the guard didn't tell you ask a 'JP' as in Justice of the Peace to sign it for and not your GP? It seems very strange to ask a GP to sign a passport form of any description?


In any case don't GP's charge for everything - repeat prescriptions, sick certs etc. and not too much is said about that.

Yes I'm sure he said GP. And yes they do they do tend to charge for anything they can. But at least it relates to their job as a doctor. This is a SIGNATURE to say they know me!!!

Oryx

Nemeses wrote: »

Another spin on this is... You are asking a Doctor (Could be anyone really) for them to vouch for you? A professional that can lose his license to practise.. One way of looking at it. You could very well be putting his job on the line - Permanently..

I'm being hypothetical but an interesting point... maybe?

Yet 30 quid somehow makes it okay for him to sign? He either can vouch for someone in good faith or he cannot. Money doesn't alter that.

It sounds like this practice have set charges for all kinds of requests. Maybe they get asked to sign all kinds of forms for all kinds of reasons. A charge is understandable, (if excessive) but to charge a flat fee with no discretion regardless of what the situation is, seems to be very bad business practice. In this case it comes across as money grabbing and they have lost a long term client for the sake of it.

hunglikeaflee

logically wrote: »

The length of time someone studies to do a job has ZERO bearing on this matter.

Of course it has, without the studying they would not be in the position, hence they wouldn’t be able to singe it as a doctor.

rubadub wrote: »

If I was a doctor with a customer of 12 years I would have done it for free,

It is easy to sit there and say that because it doesn’t effect you directly. You say you would have done it free and the next one and next one so on. Now all of a sudden you are working for nothing because word gets around about you been a soft touch.

rubadub wrote: »

how much would you have charged?

I would think 20 – 30 Euro is a fair price.

rubadub wrote: »

Says here it takes about 7 years to become a priest too, wonder what they charge.
http://www.catholicpriesthood.com/index.php?view=items&cid=2%3Abecoming-a-priest&id=9%3Ahow-long-does-it-take-to-become-a-priest-can-you-study-part-time&option=com_quickfaq&Itemid=38

I don’t know but I would think much the same and what has this got to do with a Doctors charges?

I can’t say for sure but I would think most people getting a passport needs it to travel and most people that travel with children are doing so for leisure (well hardly business). Think of it this way, it is reasonable to think that these people are spending hundreds or more lightly thousands on these trips yet don’t want to spend€30.00 to get the paperwork singed.

You might say I have a bee in my bonnet about this. I, as do most of the staff where I work get asked every day for help or advice for free. If we gave it we would be out of a job or make us busy fools.

ceekay74

hunglikeaflee wrote: »

You might say I have a bee in my bonnet about this. I, as do most of the staff where I work get asked every day for help or advice for free. If we gave it we would be out of a job or make us busy fools.

Out of curiosity, what kind of work do you do?

GoodisonPark

If the GP is the OP's regular doctor I would expect no charge for a signature. I'm sure the doctor makes enough from OP over the year on consultations.
Likewise I have a regular mechanic who services my car. A few weeks ago I neded a very minor repair done that took 5 mins. I wasn't charged , the mechanics words were "I haven't started charging for a drop of glue yet!!" I think the GP in this case should adopt the same attitude.