Veteran's Cards

[Nolongerin]

Veterans Card applications now open for those of us who have left some time ago. I’ve just applied .

Veterans can apply for their cards by emailing [email protected], including your name, year of birth, and year they left service. They will then receive an email invitation to apply for their card.

[What Limits]

A little more information...

The application and issuance process is still being tested and is not open for the whole veteran community. In particular, applications are only open for UK residents, overseas residents will be able to apply at a later date..

Also, all the negative feedback has been already received, analysed and acted on accordingly therefore thank you for not posting.

[Ninthace]

A little more information...

The application and issuance process is still being tested and is not open for the whole veteran community. In particular, applications are only open for UK residents, overseas residents will be able to apply at a later date..

Also, all the negative feedback has been already received, analysed and acted on accordingly therefore thank you for not posting.
UK Government link here
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/hm-armed-forces-veteran-cards-will-officially-launch-in-the-new-year-following-a-successful-assessment-from-the-central-digital-and-data-office
The Ministry of Defence has been working closely with the Office for Veterans’ Affairs and Government Digital Services to develop a new digital service to enable veterans who left the Armed Forces prior to December 2018 to verify their veteran status and receive a Veteran Card in the post.

Veteran Cards have two primary functions: to ensure that veterans can quickly verify their status to access public and charitable sector support if they need it and to provide a recognition of service in the Armed Forces.

The service will officially launch by the end of January 2024 following a successful assessment from the Central Digital and Data Office, with updates on this to follow.

Further details of the application process will be available soon (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-veterans-id-cards-rolled-out-to-service-leavers).

[NutLoose]

The big question that will make them actually useful, is if they will be accepted as a photo ID.

[MPN11]

And does 'overseas' include the Channel Islands? No doubt I will find out eventually.

[pembroke]

Interesting. I recently tried to apply for a TfL veterans Oyster card, only to be told that a "veteran" requires proof of pension or other retirement payment. The national railcard asks for one day of service! The reason I looked into this was the threat from TfL to cancel London wide travel cards, which I'm sure many of you use. I wrote to TfL and J Mercer, Minister of Vet affairs pointing out the discrepancy, no joy. I understand TfL has rowed back on the travelcard decision, in the meantime I now have and Oyster card with my "Senior" discount added.
PS, this is my sixtieth year gainfully employed on flying machines, started as an LAC on Vulcans, lots of bits in between including BA Flt/eng, pilot, now FI/FE GA/Microlights. Still enjoy it but a recent engine frame change on a CTSW in a cold hangar reminded me of the downsides. Happy Christmas. JT

[vascodegama]

I sent the read info and got a link . A little bit of a faff but all sent off. Time will tell.

[ex-fast-jets]

I know nothing about Canada and its link to vets......

But having spent 6+ years of my life on exchange in the USA - 3 with the USN and 3 with the USAF - I can only observe how much better their vets are treated than us pofolk in the UK.

They treat their vets with care, consideration and decent benefits. We are ignored and left to our own devices.

Shameful, really.

[PapaDolmio]

Unfortunately the tradition of ignoring veterans in GB goes back hundreds of years so I can't see it changing much anytime soon.

Same goes for the other GB military tradition of fighting the next war with the kit and tactics of the last war- with a few exceptions of course, and we often catch up in the end, or at least just in the nick.

Merry Christmas btw!

[BEagle]

Lucifer Morningstar, see post 2:

The application and issuance process is still being tested and is not open for the whole veteran community. In particular, applications are only open for UK residents, overseas residents will be able to apply at a later date..

So perhaps you don't really have anything to worry abooot, eh?

[Whenurhappy]

The big question that will make them actually useful, is if they will be accepted as a photo ID.
I received one almost 4 years ago. It's in my wallet and apart for using it to get a veteran's discount once or twice (Cotswold Camping) that's it.

[NutLoose]

So not acceptable as a photo ID then? rather a waste of space, it was one of the main advantages that it could have had when dealing with the bureaucracy that one finds the country over.

[Speedywheels]

I received one almost 4 years ago. It's in my wallet and apart for using it to get a veteran's discount once or twice (Cotswold Camping) that's it.
I suspect there are some crossed wires on this thread. The item in your wallet is the Defence Discount Service card which provides discount services from a host of retailers and service providers. The new Veteran’s card is an ID and will carry your photo for recognition purposes.
Quoting the government website “Veteran Cards have two primary functions: to ensure that veterans can quickly verify their status to access public and charitable sector support if they need it and to provide a recognition of service in the Armed Forces. The service will officially launch by the end of January 2024”
I presume the DDS card will be obsoleted by the Veteran’s ID card.

[Nolongerin]

I had thought that in the past ‘few’ years , leavers were being issued a Veterans Card, but it is only now that those who didn’t get issued a card on leaving, can now apply.

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

Sent an email to [email protected] with the requested details, no automatic response acknowledging receipt which is a bit unusual for a Government site ? No requirement for things like sevice number either. Seems a bit sketchy ?

NEO

[dmcg]

I suspect the idea of the Veterans Oyster card is to allow free travel to those who meet the criteria (as per TfL website) but are not yet eligible for one of the other options ie 60+ or Freedom Pass.

[superplum]

So not acceptable as a photo ID then? rather a waste of space, it was one of the main advantages that it could have had when dealing with the bureaucracy that one finds the country over.

When the local election ID rules changed, was it this or last year (?), I checked their print outs to see if the Vet's ID was included - it was. I've now applied so I won't need to carry my Driving Licence.

[2Planks]

Whilst we wait with bated breath, a standard Oyster Card can be linked with a Veterans Railcard. Just present both to an attendant at any large underground station, wait for a lot of button pushing and hey presto a third off on all Oyster card tickets.

The trick is finding an attendant that knows how to do it, had to ask 2 people at Kings X, the second could not have been more helpful.

[downsizer]

I left in May and recieved mine 2 weeks later. It's sitting unused in the envelope it arrived it which includes the pointless veterans badge as well.

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

I live outside London but visit regularly and am on my second Veterans Oyster card. The criteria for it are either/or for over 60s. From the TFL website:You can get a Veterans Oyster photocard if you:


Receive ongoing payments under the War Pensions Scheme (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/war-pension-scheme/war-pension-scheme-what-you-need-to-know) in your name. This includes widows, widowers and dependants
Receive Guaranteed Income Payment under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/armed-forces-compensation/armed-forces-compensation-what-you-need-to-know) in your name. This includes widows, widowers and dependants

Ongoing payments are awarded to service personnel who've sustained a certain level of physical or psychological injury in the line of duty. If you received a one-off gratuity payment instead, you can't get a Veterans Oyster photocard.

You also can't get a Veterans Oyster photocard if you live in a London borough (https://directory.londoncouncils.gov.uk/) and are eligible for a 60+ London Oyster photocard (https://tfl.gov.uk/fares/free-and-discounted-travel/60-plus-oyster-photocard) or Freedom Pass (https://tfl.gov.uk/fares/free-and-discounted-travel/freedom-pass).

On the other hand, the Veterans id card does not appear to have any unique value as the id requirements it may fulfill are already covered by other common documents. I applied for one in anticipation of that changing.

​​​​​​​NEO

[dmcg]

When the local election ID rules changed, was it this or last year (?), I checked their print outs to see if the Vet's ID was included - it was. I've now applied so I won't need to carry my Driving Licence.

You may need to check that info. Veterans who hold a MOD F90 can still use it, providing in date. Veterans ID is not accepted….yet.

[Rigga]

Applied yesterday - we’ll see….

[Aeronut]

This is a real downer for me. Here in Canada I would get a discount in many places with a UK veteran card, but I cannot have one because I live in Canada!

I cannot be the only veteran who found a far better life abroad, surely this must change? I have a UK bank acct and NI number, just not the address. Oh well, the UK pisses on veterans once again…imagine my surprise.

Maybe commitment & loyalty is a 2 way street?

[superplum]

Those who are feeling a little grumpy on this should note that these recent applications relate to a "test service" designed to work out any problems prior to the full service being released later. As such, the invitations were sent (containing Logins/passwords) to a number of individuals (c 500). Those hiding overseas should be patient (or grumpy).

[Aeronut]

22 years and 17 op tours. Think I probably don’t need a lecture on either of those things. Just saying.

Get some time in. Turncoat.

[downsizer]

If it helps any of you is welcome to mine, I literally see no point in this. My med records are already marking me out as a vet.

[1.3VStall]

Used the e-mail address in the link this morning and got an acknowledgement this afternoon inviting me to apply for the card. I created a new GOV.UK One account and followed the process, using my Android phone and my passport, to prove my identity and apply for the card. Took about 15-20 mins for the whole process.

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

Following my email the other day for which no acknowledgement was received (I did wonder if it had disapeared into the ether), I received an invitation to apply today. Long winded/thorough, needed to install the GOV.UK ID check app on my phone which validates passport photo page, scans the biometric chip and scans the face (not a photo, some sort of flashing light scan). It's a Beta service.

As I progressed one of the requirements sprung out; in order to qualify a person has to have served ONE DAY. Not sure what lower limit could be arrived at as a criteria for calling someone a Veteran but one day seems derisory. It also says that people resident overseas are not able to apply YET.

Enquiries can be sent to the following (copied from the application): [email protected]

NEO

[ex-fast-jets]

What, exactly, does this "Veteran's Card" do for us?

We have the Defence Discount Card and the "Blue Light" card which offer discounts in a few places - but not ones that I tend to use.

So, apart from free or discounted travel in London - which is of no use to me - what does this card offer other than another bit of plastic to carry in the wallet?

I doubt that it would gain me easier - or even faster - access to "public services" that are of interest to me, such as my GP or the NHS - so why do I need or want one?

Is it worth the bother to apply?

All answers gratefully received!

Happy New Year to you all.

[Ninthace]

Following my email the other day for which no acknowledgement was received (I did wonder if it had disapeared into the ether), I received an invitation to apply today. Long winded/thorough, needed to install the GOV.UK ID check app on my phone which validates passport photo page, scans the biometric chip and scans the face (not a photo, some sort of flashing light scan). It's a Beta service.

As I progressed one of the requirements sprung out; in order to qualify a person has to have served ONE DAY. Not sure what lower limit could be arrived at as a criteria for calling someone a Veteran but one day seems derisory. It also says that people resident overseas are not able to apply YET.

Enquiries can be sent to the following (copied from the application): [email protected]

NEO
Are yes, thereby hangs a tale. For every simple idea there are myriad of complications.

“ Let’s award a Jubilee medal, should be a piece of cake with your computer thingy”
”Yessir - everyone?”
”Yes everyone”
”Even those that only joined yesterday​​​​​​?”
”Well, not them of course”
”So we will need to add a qualifying period?”
”Well yes, of course”
”And those that left the service yesterday?”
”Well them too”
”How far back should we go then?”
”Don’t be awkward”
”And what about those who are in but have been naughty boys and girls? Or those that have recently left and were naughty”
“Are you deliberately trying to be difficult?”
”Who sir, me sir, no sir, It’s the computer thingy”

And that is why it is probably one day’s service.

I did not actually have the above conversation, but I had one very like it.

[dagenham]

You can get a discount on your partners or your own wrestling gear from lovehoney ;)

[Ninthace]

You can get a discount on your partners or your own wrestling gear from lovehoney ;)
That doesn’t need a Veteran’s Card, just a Defence Discount Card. Gets you cheap admission to the Newquay Aquarium too.

[dagenham]

That doesn’t need a Veteran’s Card, just a Defence Discount Card. Gets you cheap admission to the Newquay Aquarium too.

I wonder if I can double dip ?

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

Are yes, thereby hangs a tale. For every simple idea there are myriad of complications.

“ Let’s award a Jubilee medal, should be a piece of cake with your computer thingy”
”Yessir - everyone?”
”Yes everyone”
”Even those that only joined yesterday​​​​​​?”
”Well, not them of course”
”So we will need to add a qualifying period?”
”Well yes, of course”
”And those that left the service yesterday?”
”Well them too”
”How far back should we go then?”
”Don’t be awkward”
”And what about those who are in but have been naughty boys and girls? Or those that have recently left and were naughty”
“Are you deliberately trying to be difficult?”
”Who sir, me sir, no sir, It’s the computer thingy”

And that is why it is probably one day’s service.

I did not actually have the above conversation, but I had one very like it.

I see your point, however the Union Jack Club has a two year requirement. I've been a member (automatic when serving, paid since discharge) since 1975 and have never seen or heard any objection to that. One day seems a bit too short ?

NEO

[Ninthace]

I see your point, however the Union Jack Club has a two year requirement. I've been a member (automatic when serving, paid since discharge) since 1975 and have never seen or heard any objection to that. One day seems a bit too short ?

NEO

I can see why it might be. It is a Veteran’s card. It is not a medal, a battle honour or even a record of service. It is just an acknowledgement that you drew the pay. If not one day, then when? And would you discriminate on the grounds for leaving after a short period of service, which could be many and various? Just as easy to say, if you took the shilling and got a Service Number, you can have a Card.

[NutLoose]

Precisely, so why not reissue an ID card to those leaving as none expiring and stamped veteran across it, then do similar to those that had left, as now a leaver can retain their ID and also have this one, sense would have said have one card.
Then bin the defence card and transfer the benefits to the new ID and veterans version and any other card issued to Veterans or service members.

[Compass Call]

Applied for mine today. They say 4-6 weeks to receive it.

Richard

[DeanoP]

Very easy application process, took about 20 mins. Hopefully, it will give those of us whose passports and driving licenses have expired, some form of valid photo ID. Better than producing a pathetic Council Tax Bill !!

[Ninthace]

I wonder if I can double dip ?
You can at Go Outdoors - the store discount card and the Defence Discount Card are both accepted against a purchase,

[dagenham]

You can at Go Outdoors - the store discount card and the Defence Discount Card are both accepted against a purchase,

do they have pets at home for supplies if you go doggin? With apologies to car share and Peter Kay

[Mogwi]

Sent them an e-Mail today and got this useful reply!!

Thank you for contacting the HM Armed Forces Veteran Card Team. If you are interested in applying for a veteran card, please be advised that we have now reached the limit for our latest round of applications.
Our full online application service will launch on GOV.UK (https://www.gov.uk/) later in January. Details of the online service, and how we will be rolling out cards to veterans in phases, will be published soon. Please look out for updates on GOV.UK (https://www.gov.uk/).
If your enquiry relates to an existing application or a recent invitation to apply, then one of the team will be in touch soon.

Kind regards,
HM Armed Forces Veteran Card Team

[Janda]

I put in my request on Tuesday and was quite surprised to get a response on Wednesday. I followed the link eventually getting to the ID proof on the Gov website. Had an issue with my camera reading the passport chip but eventually got a positive ID response. I was then redirected back to the Veterans website which told me that my ID had not been confirmed. So I am now waiting for the paper version of the application. Fingers crossed I will get the paper work early in the new year.

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

The Beta application process appears to have been offered to 600 people. This was the body of the acknowledgement:We’ve received your applicationDo not reply to this email as the service it was sent from does not accept incoming messages.
If you need to contact us, you can email us at [email protected].
What happens next?If we’re able to match your information to the armed forces service records we hold, we’ll start to process your veteran card. We’ll contact you if we need any more information.
The process can take around 4 to 6 weeks to complete. Your card will be sent to the address you gave us.
NEO

[ORAC]

Well I applied and jumped through all their hoops, waiting to see how long it takes for the card to actually arrive.

[Ninthace]

I have managed this long with just a Defence Discount Card, I can wait a bit longer for an ID card that nobody recognises as yet.

[MG]

Well I applied and jumped through all their hoops, waiting to see how long it takes for the card to actually arrive.

About six weeks as I got mine a couple of days ago.

[Ninthace]

And now that you have it, what can you do with it?

[Compass Call]

Janda
That happened to me. Went back after 10 minutes and the clearance had gone through.
No need to ask for a paper application form.

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

And now that you have it, what can you do with it?

A mate I served with got a retirement gig with MOD business service, whatever that is. He told me the plan is for the card to replace most current cards, combining them into one. Bus pass, railcard, NHS services etc.

NEO

[Ninthace]

That I should live so long!

If it could find an NHS dentist, that would be a start!
I hope it has a chip in it if it is to achieve all those things in one card.

[diginagain]

I hope it has a chip in it if it is to achieve all those things in one card.
Not a biometric card, no chance it'll do more than shift a light dusting from your windscreen, other than be a tangible reminder of service along with the tinnitus and sore knees. My GP has never heard of the concept of a veterans identity card getting you access to veteran-specific service-provision, nor has my local authority for theirs.

[MG]

And now that you have it, what can you do with it?

Not a lot! I applied because I could. Didn’t really think of why.

[ORAC]

Personally,

Having served 25 years as a Cold War warrior I have no medals of any description and my uniforms and the like went another 25 years ago.

My commissioning scroll has faded so it is unreadable, and is tucked away in a frame beside a bookcase.

. It will be nice to have something indicating my service.

[Ninthace]

My commissioning scrolls are both in the tubes they came in, they never were framed. Perhaps I will get round to it one day but when you start where do you stop? There are degrees and all sorts of other stuff I could do. My uniform went ages ago although I still have my Kuwait Armed Forces combat jacket ranked to Staff Major, with Royal Air Force in Arabic over one pocket and my name, misspelled in Arabic over the other. I also have the Kuwait Military Driving Licence that went with it - that is ranked to Brigadier in case I was stopped while in mufti.

I suppose the Veteran’s card scratches that itch we all acquired when someone took the scissors to our ID card on the last day we were allowed inside the wire.​​​​​,

[Whenurhappy]

I suspect there are some crossed wires on this thread. The item in your wallet is the Defence Discount Service card which provides discount services from a host of retailers and service providers. The new Veteran’s card is an ID and will carry your photo for recognition purposes.
Quoting the government website “Veteran Cards have two primary functions: to ensure that veterans can quickly verify their status to access public and charitable sector support if they need it and to provide a recognition of service in the Armed Forces. The service will officially launch by the end of January 2024”
I presume the DDS card will be obsoleted by the Veteran’s ID card.
No, mine is the veterans ID card, which loosely resembles the MOD form 90 - for obvious reasons I won't post a photograph of it here. I have yet to find a regular use for it; it has not been accepted as a form of photo ID except as part of a wider application for my TFL Veteran disability travel card. It has a 10 year shelf life.

I do have a DDS card and used that last Summer for discounts on DFDS channel crossings; tbh it was hardly worth the hassle as I had to speak with an operator, who was very helpful, to get the 10% discount. I suppose the savings allowed me to get s bottle of wine or two in France.

On the matter of the TfL travel card, I had to provide up to date evidence that I was still in receipt of my service invaliding pension, and initially they rejected the application as the correspondence I sent was more than 12 months old. Veterans UK very kindly sent me a letter outlining my entitlement which was accepted by TFL Of all the discounts that are available, for me the TFL one is worth the most. It saves about £10 a day when traveling in London, which is several days a week.

[Blue_Circle]

So not acceptable as a photo ID then? rather a waste of space, it was one of the main advantages that it could have had when dealing with the bureaucracy that one finds the country over.
I’m not sure why anyone is surprised when in a lot of cases an active service ID card isn’t accepted either.

[Janda]

Slightly off topic. I have recently tried booking a mini cruise to Amsterdam with DFDS. I initially went through the DDS website that showed a 30% discount. I also went direct to DFDS who offered an early booking discount of 20%. The result was that booking direct with DFDS was £25 cheaper than the DDS offer. I have had similar experiences with the DDS card in the past. However, I have also had some success especially with Samsung products and British Airways flights.

[EngAl]

A few years ago while on holiday in America I used my RAFA membership card to get discounts all over the place and in some instances slightly warmer attitude from the assistants!
I suspect a DDS card will have the same effect. But if you have neither and there's a prospect of going to the States it would be sensible to get a Veterans' card. And who knows it may prove useful in some instances here?

[downsizer]

Personally,

Having served 25 years as a Cold War warrior I have no medals of any description and my uniforms and the like went another 25 years ago.

My commissioning scroll has faded so it is unreadable, and is tucked away in a frame beside a bookcase.

. It will be nice to have something indicating my service.

One would have thought the pension would scratch that itch, certainly does for me. I guess you need a "look at me" trinket.

[ORAC]

You seem somewhat jaundiced for someone who only left in May…

https://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/656525-veteran-s-cards.html#post11562430

[Dan Gerous]

I’m not sure why anyone is surprised when in a lot of cases an active service ID card isn’t accepted either.

Decades ago I was in Jessops in Shandwick Place in Edinburgh buying a camera and I think a lens. It was the days of cheques and bank cards and the assistant asked for some ID. I showed him my RAF ID card and he wouldn't accept that as ID. So I said keep your stuff I'll go along to Currys and buy the same stuff there. His attitude quickly changed with the prospect of losing a decent sale.

[Ninthace]

I was in a bank in Surrey with a colleague, both of us wearing RAF woolly pullies. A customer asked my friend if he was with the RAC as he had a car problem. Even the uniform is not enough ID.

[NutLoose]

I was in a bank in Surrey with a colleague, both of us wearing RAF woolly pullies. A customer asked my friend if he was with the RAC as he had a car problem. Even the uniform is not enough ID.

The RAF trialled black cabs as transport at Upavon, they had the yellow stripe down the side with Royal Air Force emblazoned on it and an MT driver in uniform…. When doing pickups it still didn’t stop punters jumping in and saying take me to XYZ and they still argued when asked to get out as it was a military vehicle.

[Video Mixdown]

You seem somewhat jaundiced for someone who only left in May…
How is that jaundiced? I think it's an entirely rational attitude. We did a job, got paid for it and now draw a fairly decent pension every month. They even gave me a couple of medals. That's thanks enough for me. I'll probably get one of the cards because it's free and it may possibly be useful one day, but I don't like the horrid americanism 'veteran', I prefer ex-forces.

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

Like joining the Armed Services (since 1960), the decision whether to apply for a Veterans Card (or throw it in the bin if issued automatically), is entirely for the individual.

NEO

[downsizer]

You seem somewhat jaundiced for someone who only left in May…

https://www.pprune.org/military-aviation/656525-veteran-s-cards.html#post11562430

Not at all fella. I just don't see the point of these trinkets.

If you want to go rounf flashing a "veterans ID" so people can know what you used to be great, I guess I'm just far more comfortable in my own skin than you.

[Toadstool]

TBH the “offer”, for those of us still in, is becoming steadily eroded so I’m not surprised that this veterans card won’t amount to much.

That said, I chose to join, and I’m choosing to remain until I’ve had enough. I’ve had 37 years of a fantastic career with a lot of memories, both as a Cold War warrior and a lot of time on Ops. Personally, I’m not much into this “veteran” thing so will leave with my memories, a fairly good pension, a fair few medals and never look back.

[Ninthace]

So hypothetically, if later on you are in an NHS queue and you could move up the queue because you had the card, would you use it?

[Toadstool]

So hypothetically, if later on you are in an NHS queue and you could move up the queue because you had the card, would you use it?

Jump ahead of other people, just because I served? Would you?

Hypothetically, if I did and there were other veterans, should we place ourselves in the queue, having jumped above civilians, based on how many op tours, time served etc?

[Ninthace]

Jump ahead of other people, just because I served? Would you?
Not sure tbh. I guess it depends.

[trim it out]

I've had surgery twice while serving. The first time I was informed I was on a different list due to serving, the second time I was told no such list exists and I was in the queue like everyone else. Both times operations were conducted around 3 months from surgery being the chosen COA.

[superplum]

Got mine! Applied on 26 Dec, found in postbox today - 24 days. Valid for 10 yrs.:cool:.

[Just This Once...]

Mine arrived this week, despite my 'rejected for now' email. It's very flimsy and nothing like the construction of a normal ID card. Shame they come in the Army ID colour only, rather than the light blue I served with. Given the lack of formal ID provided by the card the 10 year life seems rather restrictive.

Still, we have something plus they are delivering more than they committed to and at a faster rate than predicted.

[EngAl]

Mine arrived today - valid for 30 years! We'll see what it can be used for.

[Nolongerin]

I opened this thread on 24 Dec 23 noting my application. The card arrived yesterday 20 Jan 24.

now……what can I use it for?

[Roland Pulfrew]

I was in a bank in Surrey with a colleague, both of us wearing RAF woolly pullies. A customer asked my friend if he was with the RAC as he had a car problem. Even the uniform is not enough ID.

Wow! You are the genuine source of that fable. Amazing how many times I’ve heard of someone whose mate was asked, but never met anyone who was actually asked. Nice to be getting close to the original source.

[Ninthace]

Yes, really happened!

[Biggus]

Nolongerin - you can use it to scrape the ice off your windscreen.

[dctyke]

Do you have to report it’s loss, potentially a security issue.

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

Mine arrived today - valid for 30 years! We'll see what it can be used for.

Likewise. The letter it was stuck to said I can apply for a DDS card with it. Bit late, had one for years. Also mentions using it in conjunction with the Veterans Gateway.

NEO

[NutLoose]

Got mine! Applied on 26 Dec, found in postbox today - 24 days. Valid for 10 yrs.:cool:.

As everyone else appears to have theirs valid for 30 Years, do they know something you do not?

[superplum]

As everyone else appears to have theirs valid for 30 Years, do they know something you do not?

:eek:!!!!!

[Mogwi]

Mine is only for 10 years as well. Prob see me out, to be fair!

Mog

[Compass Call]

Mine also is valid for 10 years.

[NutLoose]

In that case good folks, may I point you in the direction of..

https://www.death-clock.org/

:p ;)

[superplum]

In that case good folks, may I point you in the direction of..

https://www.death-clock.org/

:p ;)
Damn, you'd started me thinking I should be drawing my pensions for another 30 odd years (until I reach 109) before ID renewal!
:{

[ORAC]

Got mine in the post today - good stiff card - with a life of 10 years till 2034.

[MPN11]

In that case good folks, may I point you in the direction of..
https://www.death-clock.org/

Ooh, I'm good for 86! Worth applying for the card.

[Georg1na]

Should have died in 2009 at 67!! Now 81.5!!

[Ken Scott]

Applied for mine but told ‘we’ve reached the limit for applications’. Apparently I’ll get a chance to apply again later…

I should have received one automatically having retired within the last 5 years but alas…

[Video Mixdown]

Applied for mine but told ‘we’ve reached the limit for applications’. Apparently I’ll get a chance to apply again later…
I should have received one automatically having retired within the last 5 years but alas…
I got the same reply at first, but a few days later received an 'invitation to apply' e-mail and it all went through. Not sure if that's typical.

[Ninthace]

Visiting the government websites to find out how to apply for a card only provides "jam tomorrow" links,

https://www.veteransgateway.org.uk/bulletins/new-digital-verification-service-for-hm-armed-forces-veteran-cardhm-armed-forces-veteran-card-new-digital-verification-service-update/
https://www.veteransgateway.org.uk/thousands-of-veteran-cards-to-be-rolled-out-in-2023/
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/hm-armed-forces-veteran-cards-will-officially-launch-in-the-new-year-following-a-successful-assessment-from-the-central-digital-and-data-office
The last one contains a circular link that takes you to another page that then takes you back to the first page.

[Mogwi]

I got the same reply at first, but a few days later received an 'invitation to apply' e-mail and it all went through. Not sure if that's typical.

Exactly what happened to me.

Mog

[orionsbelt]

I applied a couple of weeks ago and the Card arrived yesterday, valid until 2034.
***

[Ninthace]

The online application site appears not to exist yet, did you just cold email your personal details to [email protected]?

[Video Mixdown]

The online application site appears not to exist yet, did you just cold email your personal details to [email protected]?
That is how you begin the application process.

[Ninthace]

That is how you begin the application process.
That is not what the current website would have you believe:
The Ministry of Defence has been working closely with the Office for Veterans’ Affairs and Government Digital Services to develop a new digital service to enable veterans who left the Armed Forces prior to December 2018 to verify their veteran status and receive a Veteran Card in the post.

Veteran Cards have two primary functions: to ensure that veterans can quickly verify their status to access public and charitable sector support if they need it and to provide a recognition of service in the Armed Forces.

The service will officially launch by the end of January 2024 following a successful assessment from the Central Digital and Data Office, with updates on this to follow.

Further details of the application process will be available soon (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-veterans-id-cards-rolled-out-to-service-leavers).

My understanding the email address was for a trial of 600 applications.

[minigundiplomat]

I had the same email on Tuesday Ken, then a link to apply on Wednesday........

[Ken Scott]

No second chance email received so far, perhaps I shouldn’t have sent them an angry email regarding their failure to automatically send me one on my (relatively) recent retirement..!!

[teeteringhead]

Just wrote this morning to the email address quoted above ( [email protected]) and got this reply:
Thank you for contacting the HM Armed Forces Veteran Card Team. If you’re interested in applying for a veteran card, please note that our full online application service will be available at GOV.UK (https://www.gov.uk/) during w/c 29th January. Please search for ‘apply for a veteran card’ on GOV.UK (https://www.gov.uk/) from then.

If your enquiry relates to an existing application during testing, then one of the team will be in touch soon.

Kind regards,

HM Armed Forces Veteran Card Team
So it seems that those who have got them already must have been part of the "testing", and the rest of us will have to wait 'til next week.

[downsizer]

I wonder how much these trinkets are costing out of the MODs budget?

[Ninthace]

Not a lot I would have thought. Other concerns give me a card with my name on it for free. The underlying data it is based on already exists.

[Mogwi]

Just wrote this morning to the email address quoted above ( [email protected]) and got this reply:
So it seems that those who have got them already must have been part of the "testing", and the rest of us will have to wait 'til next week.

Must be part of the pilot scheme 😊

Mog

[Ninthace]

Must be part of the pilot scheme 😊

Mog
Does that mean only the two winged master race are entitled . . . again (sigh) ;-)

[ORAC]

Johnny Mercer:
https://x.com/johnnymerceruk/status/1751521846757880246?s=61&t=rmEeUn68HhlFHGKbTPQr_A


As of midnight last night (yes the team were up watching it go live) anyone can now apply for a veteran’s ID card who has served in the UK’s Armed Forces.

Years of work including a £45m effort to digitise veterans records has matured today.

​​​​​​​https://www.gov.uk/veteran-card

[NutLoose]

Still up to a year to get your records though lol.

[Ninthace]

Well that was high tech and exciting! It even read my passport chip. Trouble is it turned on the contactless reader in my phone to do it but it left it on and I had to dig into the nether regions of my phone to find how to turn it off again.

[Out Of Trim]

Johnny Mercer:


As of midnight last night (yes the team were up watching it go live) anyone can now apply for a veteran’s ID card who has served in the UK’s Armed Forces.

Years of work including a £45m effort to digitise veterans records has matured today.

https://www.gov.uk/veteran-card

Hmm, on seeing the above I thought I'd have a go. Jumped through the online hoops of a Gov .UK One Login, Photo of passport, scanned passport chip, scanned face with coloured lights… Submitted info OK ✅. Submitted Address with start year of address and got no further for some reason. .???

Having to switch back and fore between iPad & iPhone probably didn’t help?

​​​​​​Edit: Retried using my iPhone only and all OK and accepted now!

[SLXOwft]

I got a we can't use this type message after registering for Gov.uk One, I restarted the card application and it accepted it.

[BEagle]

My application hung up after the security question. It asked about details of a bank loan repayment, but I don't have any loan....

When I contacted the help line, a very pleasant lady said that there are still some bugs in the system, so they'll be sending me a paper application form instead. Fortunately I still have some unused passport photos!

[papa_sierra]

If you haven't got the latest iphone or an Android phone with NFC (Near Field Communication) apply via the paper route. 2 hours of my life I won't get back.

[Lyneham Lad]

Hmm, on seeing the above I thought I'd have a go. Jumped through the online hoops of a Gov .UK One Login, Photo of passport, scanned passport chip, scanned face with coloured lights… Submitted info OK ✅. Submitted Address with start year of address and got no further for some reason. .???


I started the process on my desktop computer and ploughed through the 'create Gov.UK One account', then the passport and biometric chip scanning etc etc - switching backwards and forwards from pc to phone as required. Everything accepted, so good to go I thought. Back to the Veteran application page and nope, all that newly created identity data and photos not enough, had to upload a passport-type photo from my phone in order to complete the application. Ah, well - just have to wait eight weeks now for it to arrive...

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

Having received mine I'm still no wiser as to what it's used for ? Until that becomes clear I'll store it with all the other "might need that" items I've collected over the years.

NEO

[Ninthace]

The instructions at the start list the things you will need. In my case, passport, NI number and passport picture, it even specifies the maximum file size for the picture, I used the picture I used for my last passport application and checked the file size at the same time. I did the application on my laptop and used by Android phone camera and NFC to load the passport details. Once you have your ducks in a row and follow the instructions, it is not too hard to follow the instructions and I gained the Govt ID check app on my phone in the process.

[212man]

The instructions at the start list the things you will need. In my case, passport, NI number and passport picture, it even specifies the maximum file size for the picture, I used the picture I used for my last passport application and checked the file size at the same time. I did the application on my laptop and used by Android phone camera and NFC to load the passport details. Once you have your ducks in a row and follow the instructions, it is not too hard to follow the instructions and I gained the Govt ID check app on my phone in the process.
Yes, I found it very straightforward and took about 5-10 minutes

[Ninthace]

Applied on 29 Jan, received in the mail on 5 Feb, considering there was a w/e in the middle, that is a pretty good turn round, BZ to all concerned.

[Janda]

Started my application just before Christmas. Got an email this morning saying my application has been received and subject to verification will get my card within 8 weeks. Nowhere as quick as some of those above.

[mabmac]

I applied for mine late on Sunday 28 January and received it on Monday 05 February. Good Show.

[Out Of Trim]

I applied for mine on Sunday 28 January as well and no sign of it yet! 🤷‍♂️

[DSAT Man]

These cards are totally useless. Back in November some of my retired officer colleagues attended a formal dinner at RAF Halton. While their names were 'on the list' in the MGR, and their transit accommodation keys eagerly awaited them, they were refused entry on production of their RAF Veterans' Cards but, fortunately, had their driving licences with them which were deemed as acceptable proof of identity.

[SilsoeSid]

That shouldn’t have come as a surprise because on the back of the card it says “This card will NOT allow access to Defence Establishments”.

(Capitalisation not for effect, the NOT is in capitals on the card)

[132bod]

But neither did the driving license! What did, was use of the driving license to confirm identity of a notified visitor. As has already been noted by others, the Veterans Card is not being recognised as a valid means of identification.

[deltahotel]

Haven't really followed this - could it be used for voter ID?

[Low average]

I'm getting really tired of people saying these cards are useless and a waste of money. They can be used for a multitude of things - Golf ball marker, scraping ice from the windshield (thanks Biggus), digging small stones out of tyres, vegetable patch labelling, bird scaring, Christmas tree ornament, straight line drawing, the list goes on and on!

Thank you for your service.

[topgas]

Haven't really followed this - could it be used for voter ID?

No

https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/voting-and-elections/voter-id/accepted-forms-photo-id

[diginagain]

As has already been noted by others, the Veterans Card is not being recognised as a valid means of identification.
Sadly, the messaging around these cards has been poorly handled, as few of those organisations who should be recognising them as a valid means of identification haven't been advised of that little snippet.

[mole man]

Applied for mine 30 Jan got it today

[downsizer]

Still waiting to hear of a sucessful deployment of this trinket.....

[ShyTorque]

Don’t think I’ll bother.

[Haraka]

Possibly actually a scanning exercise for prioritising personnel for recall to service in a national emergency?

[[email protected]]

Applied for mine yesterday - a bit of a faff going back and forth to get the Gov ID bit sorted but less than 20 mins to complete the process.

[Rigga]

These cards are totally useless. Back in November some of my retired officer colleagues attended a formal dinner at RAF Halton. While their names were 'on the list' in the MGR, and their transit accommodation keys eagerly awaited them, they were refused entry on production of their RAF Veterans' Cards but, fortunately, had their driving licences with them which were deemed as acceptable proof of identity.

Interesting! What is an RAF Veterans Card?

[Mogwi]

Possibly actually a scanning exercise for prioritising personnel for recall to service in a national emergency?

They’d have to be pretty desperate if they wanted me to dust off my No 5s!

Mog

[Haraka]

I think we would be quite a way down the priority list Mog!

[ShyTorque]

My reserve commitment finally expired at the age of 60, as I understand most do. These days I can’t even fablon a map, honest guv.

[Q-SKI]

I applied to renew my passport and get my veterans card on the same day. The process for my passport was far simpler and quicker. My passport arrived within a week. The veterans card process required me to jump through many hoops, including scanning my existing passport. It arrived after three weeks and I wonder if it was worth the hassle. I’ll probably take my passport as identification means at an upcoming Sqn reunion to get access onto the station. Military Covenant…….

[SilsoeSid]

I applied to renew my passport and get my veterans card on the same day. The process for my passport was far simpler and quicker. My passport arrived within a week. The veterans card process required me to jump through many hoops, including scanning my existing passport. It arrived after three weeks and I wonder if it was worth the hassle. I’ll probably take my passport as identification means at an upcoming Sqn reunion to get access onto the station. Military Covenant…….

Probably a good idea Q, because if you read the back of your card you’ll see, as mentioned in post 121, it says “This card will NOT allow access to Defence Establishments”.

(Capitalisation not for effect, the NOT is in capitals on the card)

p.s. Maybe applying for a new passport and applying for the veterans card, the application of which is verified by your passport, at the same time wasn’t the best of ideas. My card took a week, 5 working days, from an evening online application to arrive, oh, and I bet there were also quite a few hoops you had to go through when first applying for a passport!

[Nolongerin]

I think I click onto this thread more than any other in the forlorn hope that someone has had a eureka moment and found a good use for the card. 🤷🏼‍♂️

[Biggus]

Scraping the ice off your windscreen?

[Janda]

My Boots Loyalty Card is sturdier for scraping ice and is more useful.

[Biggus]

Ah, but if you trash your veterans card scraping off ice it won't matter.....

[Out Of Trim]

Might be useful to get Costco membership?

[Out Of Trim]

My Veterans ID Card arrived on Saturday. It took 4 weeks and 6 days to arrive after applying online. 👍

[XL189]

Applied for mine 5 weeks ago, still waiting for it to arrive.

[Q-SKI]

Well I wonder what the real benefit of this card is. I’m due to attend a squadron reunion at a local RAF base in the near future. I’ll make sure that I have my photo driving license or passport as proof of ID as I’ve heard that they haven’t been accepted at other military establishments despite the attendees being on the guest list. Military covenant at its UK finest

[Biggus]

Q-SKI,

If you go back 8 posts to No. 137 you will see quoted the fact that it specifically says on the back of the Veterans Card that it cannot be used to access an MOD establishment, or words to that effect....

[Q-SKI]

Q-SKI,

If you go back 8 posts to No. 137 you will see quoted the fact that it specifically says on the back of the Veterans Card that it cannot be used to access an MOD establishment, or words to that effect....


yes I understand that, my point is what use is the card and why is a photo driving license valid for ID purposes when the veterans card is not despite them both being issued by a government agency or an I missing something

[Biggus]

No idea - apart from the fact that a driving licence is considered proof of identity in many parts of UK society, so MOD had little choice other than to accept it's validity.

Like you, I have yet to appreciate the usefulness of a Veteran Card, but I'm still open to being convinced.

[chinook240]

Well, I managed to use it to visit the Uxbridge BofB Bunker today for free. Their website doesn’t mention the Veterans ID Card, possibly because the card is relatively new. It’s always worth asking.

[SilsoeSid]

yes I understand that, my point is what use is the card and why is a photo driving license valid for ID purposes when the veterans card is not despite them both being issued by a government agency or an I missing something
I take it that when applying for the card people are reading the very first paragraph on the .gov application web page that says:

“An HM Armed Forces Veteran Card is a way to prove that you served in the UK armed forces. The card can make it quicker and easier to apply for support as a veteran.”

Under the second paragraph is the link ‘Check what you can do with a Veteran card (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/using-a-veteran-card-as-a-service-leaver)’.

Are any details about the cards being read before applying, which involves giving a shedful of personal details…

Again on the first page, you’re told

‘When you apply, you’ll be asked for:

your service number for your last period of service

your National Insurance number (https://www.gov.uk/national-insurance/your-national-insurance-number)

the approximate year you started and ended your service - it does not have to be exact

a recent digital passport style photo (https://www.gov.uk/photos-for-passports), showing your head and shoulders’


And we wonder how so many people fall for the many many scams going around !

[MrBernoulli]

My reserve commitment finally expired at the age of 60, as I understand most do. These days I can’t even fablon a map, honest guv.
You don't need to know how to fablon a map, ST!

Why? Experience shows us that merely carrying some fablon and a map could be very handy in a survival situation. Imagine you find yourself alone, in bad weather, unsure of your position, perhaps low on food and water, lacking shelter. All you have to do is break out the fablon and map, and make like you are about to stick the former over the latter. In just a few minutes you will find yourself joined by four or five other folk, all of them with an opinion on how to stick the fablon on the map, without inducing wrinkles in the fablon! Works like a charm! 😂 🤣

😉

[SLXOwft]

n how to stick the fablon on the map, without inducing wrinkles in the fablon

Gives me another idea what to do with my card now it has arrived.:)

[SilsoeSid]

Not forgetting the pfennig/cent/penny map fablon combo !

Experts knew exactly where on a particular map a fold line would be :E

[BEagle]

Where did you first hear that tale, Mr.B??

I thought that I'd invented it 25 years ago!!

[2Planks]

Mr B

A copy of the Telegraph Crossword had the same effect.

Even in the depths of beyond someone would appear and say give us a clue.

Clearly in the Ante Room the reply would be:

Overladen postman.

How many letters?

F****** Hundreds.

[MrBernoulli]

Where did you first hear that tale, Mr.B??

I thought that I'd invented it 25 years ago!!
BEags, I have a recollection of hearing it in 1989, at RAF Church Fenton, so about 35 years ago?

Mr B

A copy of the Telegraph Crossword had the same effect.

Even in the depths of beyond someone would appear and say give us a clue.

Clearly in the Ante Room the reply would be:

Overladen postman.

How many letters?

F****** Hundreds.

😂 😂

[NutLoose]

I take it that when applying for the card people are reading the very first paragraph on the .gov application web page that says:

“An HM Armed Forces Veteran Card is a way to prove that you served in the UK armed forces. The card can make it quicker and easier to apply for support as a veteran.”

Under the second paragraph is the link ‘Check what you can do with a Veteran card (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/using-a-veteran-card-as-a-service-leaver)’.

Are any details about the cards being read before applying, which involves giving a shedful of personal details…

Again on the first page, you’re told

‘When you apply, you’ll be asked for:

your service number for your last period of service

your National Insurance number (https://www.gov.uk/national-insurance/your-national-insurance-number)

the approximate year you started and ended your service - it does not have to be exact

a recent digital passport style photo (https://www.gov.uk/photos-for-passports), showing your head and shoulders’


And we wonder how so many people fall for the many many scams going around !





I cannot understand the photo request but here goes.


https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/1000x1000/9a2a28c4_6d0b_45f1_91b3_e8c7876136f5_4b97c78efd13a894b9df7a4 096d576ab_11819826_33387bd57b66dde39722acfe4ed07eb22484ea7e. jpeg

[SilsoeSid]

Nice one NutLoose, are you free Thursday evenings for an 8 o'clock gig? :D

[Ninthace]

I have just read a report on another forum that Paramo shops will offer 20% discount on presentation of the card.
For the non outdoorsy: https://paramo-clothing.com/en-gb/

[Mogwi]

My reserve commitment finally expired at the age of 60, as I understand most do. These days I can’t even fablon a map, honest guv.

Takes me back to my mis-spent youth when we not only fablonned maps but soaked them in the bath! We then pealed off the back, so leaving just the top layer of paper along with the print, attached to the fablon. Map could then be scrunched up and stuffed in an appropriate pocket, taking up 1/20th of the space. That left more space for nutty etc!

Mog

[BEagle]

As many will doubtless recall, the summer of 1976 was very hot! One fine day in August I was tasked to fly a Hunter F6A from Brawdy to Leuchars so that they could swap some bits of the jet with another which needed them - a drop tank or something. So I stuck a couple of ERCs together and fabloned them, then snipped the work of art into a convenient size.

Up in the high-20s, I was pointing north-eastish in conversation with the air traffickers when I decided to consult the chart I'd lovingly crafted. But a combination of a sweltering cockpit and the fact that my old jet leaked like a sieve had conspired to expand the air which I must have trapped under the fablon, lifting it off the chart so that half the detail became illegible. Fortunately military radar and the dubious benefit of the odd Eur7 beacon soon had me close enough to Leuchars for them to point me at the runway!

I was able to stab the balloon chart into reasonable legibility as I waited for my jet to be turned, then off back to Brawdy! Where I was asked to do half-a-dozen instrument approaches to help cat a new air trafficker - such fun in the heat of the summer of '76!

[NutLoose]

Summer of 76 Easter, at Saint Athan on my course, bunch of ropey old Hunters in the Engineering training hangar serving out their time training us lot.
Arrive back after Easter to see they had all gone, BAe or whoever it was then had flogged them to Lebanon, so during the break they had got them airworthy to ferry for refurbishment and onward sale.

[MrBernoulli]

But back to the thread ...... Veterans' Cards ...... do we need to fablon the ruddy things (I haven't got one yet)? 🤔

😂 😉 🫡

[Speedywheels]

But back to the thread ...... Veterans' Cards ...... do we need to fablon the ruddy things (I haven't got one yet)? 🤔

😂 😉 🫡

The card is plastic, similar to a UK driving licence, and does not require any fablon.

[MrBernoulli]

The card is plastic, similar to a UK driving licence, and does not require any fablon.
Well done, Speedywheels ..... but perhaps you missed the icons in my posting ...... I was trying to signify irony.

I know the card is plastic and does it's job as-is, but as fablon had been part of the thread for several postings I was merely being lighthearted. 😉

[Biggus]

Fablon is so 1980s (I know that was the whole point of the jest)....

These days you would laminate your card if it needed covering ...

Mind you, that's probably so early 2000s!

Today you wouldn't have a physical card at all, just some sort of app on your phone!

[BEagle]

[...] just some sort of app on your phone!

Not on my excellent old Nokia 6310i though!!

[Haraka]

Remember guys (and Gals) you are just doing the politicians' job for them in drawing up likely candidate categories for selective recall.
NB for obvious reasons Expat retirees are currently excluded ( the too difficult category Perchance? )

[SilsoeSid]

Remember guys (and Gals) you are just doing the politicians' job for them in drawing up likely candidate categories for selective recall.
NB for obvious reasons Expat retirees are currently excluded ( the too difficult category Perchance? )

Not speaking for anyone else, nor pointing any fingers, but I think all most of us would be capable of in the defence of the country these days is shouting ‘Put that light out!’ :ok:

Aircrew Medical aside, I think there’d be probs not only with dash, down, crawl, observe, sights, fire… getting up again would be a cheeky stumbling block :{

However, might be up for a bit of modern day behind the lines business…

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/1242x1716/img_7367_3846a3328058335d5c073ef5c3376ab0906bf5c4.jpeg

[Bill Macgillivray]

Two types of tree in the British Army and RAF REgiment - "Fir trees and bushy topped trees - a further sub-division of the bushy topped tree is a bush"!!
I will never forget this from my Corporal DI (and he was before the Regiment took over!)
Happy days (I think!) and fairly simple! It got more complex with time and promotion!!

[dctyke]

Had my first experience of veterans id on Friday night In Driffield East Yorkshire. A clearly inebriated ex serviceman around 40 yrs old rolling around the pub waving his card in the air demanding “respect” for whatever it was he had done whilst serving. Never fully understood that word when reading about nasty things happening to folks who never gave enough “respect”. Ah well.

[Rigga]

Fablon is so ‘80s!
Nowdays you have to use a heat-shrunk envelope!!

[ShyTorque]

Aircrew Medical aside, I think there’d be probs not only with dash, down, crawl, observe, sights, fire… getting up again would be a cheeky stumbling block https://www.pprune.org/images/smilies/boohoo.gif

Sid, never mind all that roughy toughy army stuff. You should have joined the RAF. All you have to do to regain currency is to be able to cope with an overnight stay in a hotel without a carer.

[Q-SKI]

Ah fablon…….remember the masterclass back on the Puma OCU when a would be crewman achieved the perfect fabloning (is that a word?) of his local area map with everyone admiring his handiwork until someone spoke up “oh, great job but you’ve fabloned the back of the map!”

[BEagle]

On the subject of 'local area maps', John Redding used to have a neat trick during his introductory lecture to new VC10 students...

"This is a VC10 local area map", he used to announce, before producing a world globe from behind the lectern. Which rather made the point!!

Back to the Veteran Card, I sent off my paper application form and photo on 4th Feb. On 5th Mar I received an acknowledgement stating that the card would arrive in 'up to 8 weeks'......

[Mogwi]

Two types of tree in the British Army and RAF REgiment - "Fir trees and bushy topped trees - a further sub-division of the bushy topped tree is a bush"!!
I will never forget this from my Corporal DI (and he was before the Regiment took over!)
Happy days (I think!) and fairly simple! It got more complex with time and promotion!!

Aah, the Bushy-topped Tree! I was talking to a FAC in Germany one sunny afternoon, when he advised me that the reference point was a bushy-topped tree. When I asked if he was “‘avin a larf”, he said “Just trust me”. Some 30 seconds down the attack run, I spied on the horizon, a HUGE tree on the top of a ridge, with the biggest bushy-top that I had ever seen. I was so amazed that I failed to hit the target!

Sorry for the drift,

Mog

[downsizer]

I'm still yet to see anything that suggests to me this isn't a massive waste of money.....

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

Sadly I'm inclined to agree. Issuing an i.d. card which isn't accepted as an i.d. seems counter intuitive and wasteful. Mine is in a card wallet with other never used cards.

NEO

[Low average]

They cynicism displayed in this thread is appalling.

The card has allowed MOD to pretend to care about ex-serving personnel! It's kept staff busy, distracts from the Mcloud disaster, and actually hasn't cost very much. There is no risk attached, and it fills up space in various press releases. Good value.

[Ninthace]

Gets money off tyres too.

[212man]

Gets money off tyres too.
What - prising out coins stuck in the tread?

[Biggus]

Mine still hasn't arrived.....

[Toadstool]

They cynicism displayed in this thread is appalling.

The card has allowed MOD to pretend to care about ex-serving personnel! It's kept staff busy, distracts from the Mcloud disaster, and actually hasn't cost very much. There is no risk attached, and it fills up space in various press releases. Good value.

Next thing you know, they’ll be issuing a veterans pin so that people will know you’re a veteran without having to tell them first. 😬

[Ninthace]

I thought that was certain classes of FJ pilots.

[Rigga]

30% discount (£4) for entry to the Yorkshire Air Museum today….

[SilsoeSid]

Issuing an i.d. card which isn't accepted as an i.d. seems counter intuitive and wasteful.

NEO
It’s never been described in any HMG reference as an ID card.

[Nigerian Expat Outlaw]

It’s never been described in any HMG reference as an ID card.

Agreed, however ISTR it was to identify people as Veterans. Identify to who ? And what for ?

NEO

[Ninthace]

Agreed, however ISTR it was to identify people as Veterans. Identify to who ? And what for ?

NEO
IIRC that is covered in the website

[Scribbly]

Agreed, however ISTR it was to identify people as Veterans. Identify to who ? And what for ?

NEO
Long time lurker here: I work in the NHS and if you identify yourself as having a military connection (serving, veteran, spouse, children etc) you get referred to the Defence Medical Welfare Service who are ace and will make sure you are looked after appropriately. This could be treating you in a better way if you have PTSD relating to hospitals, or would rather not have a beeping machine, or if your partner is deployed and you are struggling to get to appointments with your kids in tow and no childcare. Whatever it is that military life has made harder for your appointment/treatment the NHS & DMWS will try to sort it out, but only if they know you are military. So a pin badge helps (I wear mine on my lanyard in case anyone spots it and wants me to help) and maybe a card would too? All patients are supposed to get asked on their arrival whether they have a military connection but it doesn't always happen.

[Compass Call]

Toadstool
I got my veterans badge years ago!!

[diginagain]

Long time lurker here: I work in the NHS and if you identify yourself as having a military connection (serving, veteran, spouse, children etc) you get referred to the Defence Medical Welfare Service who are ace and will make sure you are looked after appropriately. This could be treating you in a better way if you have PTSD relating to hospitals, or would rather not have a beeping machine, or if your partner is deployed and you are struggling to get to appointments with your kids in tow and no childcare. Whatever it is that military life has made harder for your appointment/treatment the NHS & DMWS will try to sort it out, but only if they know you are military. So a pin badge helps (I wear mine on my lanyard in case anyone spots it and wants me to help) and maybe a card would too? All patients are supposed to get asked on their arrival whether they have a military connection but it doesn't always happen.
I'm pleased to learn that you work in an NHS Trust that knows what it means to be a 'Veteran Aware' Trust. I work in a 'Veteran Aware' Trust - one of the founding 53 - that doesn't have a clue, and despite re-accrediting with VCHA 18 months ago shows little interest in supporting Armed Forces community staff or patients.

[ShyTorque]

My NHS medical centre is so out of date with my medical records that they still believe I’m overdue some vaccinations - overdue since 1957.

My son’s mother in law has worked there for many years and she recently told us that she is appalled how ineffective the system there has become with regard to patient administration.

They are about to build a new health centre on vacant land nearby. I inexplicably received a patient’s opinion survey on how the architecture at the front of the building should look. I responded saying that I didn’t care what the building actually looked like as long as I could get an appointment, which is nigh on impossible by any means these days.

I haven’t even bothered to mention that I’m a veteran. Knowing the standard of English of some of the staff they would probably think I look after sick animals.

[Ninthace]

There is an NHS app which can be used to sort these things out, view test results, order repeat prescriptions and all sorts of other useful stuff.

[ShyTorque]

Yes, I’m very much aware of the app and regularly use it for repeat prescriptions but it’s no help in getting a GP appointment when it simply states “no appointments available”, no matter how far in advance. The useless vaccination records are available there, too.

This health centre was placed in a “special measures” category for some time. Presumably these were lifted at some stage but things have gone very much downhill over the last few years.

It can only get worse. There is a massive house building surge in this area but no additional facilities seem to be in hand.

[PICKS135]

Yes, I’m very much aware of the app and regularly use it for repeat prescriptions but it’s no help in getting a GP appointment when it simply states “no appointments available”, no matter how far in advance. The useless vaccination records are available there, too.

This health centre was placed in a “special measures” category for some time. Presumably these were lifted at some stage but things have gone very much downhill over the last few years.

It can only get worse. There is a massive house building surge in this area but no additional facilities seem to be in hand.

Also use my local GPs app for repeat prescriptionss. It has the make appointment section too. However "This function is disabled until further notice" :ugh:

[Ninthace]

I must be one of the lucky ones. The appointments option appears to be open, with options to select surgery, doctor and type of appointment. I did not actually try to book one though, so full test not complete.

[ShyTorque]

Glorious Devon is obviously better served than elsewhere. Our local health services are overwhelmed. They keep building multiple housing estates here but there are no more medical or dental facilities being made available. We have family members who cannot register with a dentist.

It has proven to be next to impossible of late to get a phone call to our GPs surgery answered. You get to listen to a message telling you to book an appointment online….despite having tried and failed to do so first.

I was recently sent a letter from them saying I needed to provide a urine sample for aftercare monitoring. No sample bottle was included. I had to make a special journey to the surgery to collect one, only to be told it had to be taken first thing in the morning, rather than there and then. So I had to make a second journey the following day to deliver it. I then subsequently received a second letter telling me they also needed a blood sample. I had to make a third journey.

The only practical way of seeing a GP now is to call 111 or 999 and I have no idea who my GP actually now is.

[SilsoeSid]

Seen on SM that the Army Flying Museum has replaced the ‘AAC Veterans with AACVA membership card’ requirement in its discounted/free admissions, to ‘Veterans with a HM Armed Forces Veteran Card’.
https://armyflying.com/visit/admission/#militarydiscounts-1

[diginagain]

Seen on SM that the Army Flying Museum has replaced the ‘AAC Veterans with AACVA membership card’ requirement in its discounted/free admissions, to ‘Veterans with a HM Armed Forces Veteran Card’.
https://armyflying.com/visit/admission/#militarydiscounts-1
Not "Either/Or"?

Still, I can now bin another ice-scraper from the wallet.

[Mortmeister]

I must be one of the lucky ones. The appointments option appears to be open, with options to select surgery, doctor and type of appointment. I did not actually try to book one though, so full test not complete.

Not sure what part of glorious Devon you live in but it certainly can’t be Plymouth.
No chance of GP appointment where I live and our hospital is in a constant state of emergency.

The current Government (and their predecessors Cameron & Osborne) have done an excellent job of breaking the NHS, I hope they are proud of themselves.

[SilsoeSid]

Discounts gained last weekend:

Portsmouth Historic Dockyard:
£20 Ultimate Explorer ticket (or 30% off an Ultimate Explorer ticket for Veterans and up to 4 guests.)

Spinnaker:
10% Discount on all tickets purchased (in addition to any other discounts also applied to accompanying persons eg blue light, student).

Army Flying Museum:
Free entry for me with Vets card, no discounts for better half, despite Blue Light/NHS/Student cards (she didn’t go in, coffee and iPad instead).

Weekend savings:
(we were going anyway and online bookings would save more).
£33.50 (Portsmouth)
£20 (AFM)

[Janda]

Discounts gained last weekend:

Portsmouth Historic Dockyard:
£20 Ultimate Explorer ticket (or 30% off an Ultimate Explorer ticket for Veterans and up to 4 guests.)

Spinnaker:
10% Discount on all tickets purchased (in addition to any other discounts also applied to accompanying persons eg blue light, student).

Army Flying Museum:
Free entry for me with Vets card, no discounts for better half, despite Blue Light/NHS/Student cards (she didn’t go in, coffee and iPad instead).

Weekend savings:
(we were going anyway and online bookings would save more).
£33.50 (Portsmouth)
£20 (AFM)
Is that with your DDS Card or the new ID card?

[talk_shy_tall_knight]

Found an indirect use for it. The veterans card allowed me to get a blue light card (£4.99), the blue light card was then linked to my Asda rewards card so I now get 10% off food. I'm up to £4.16p after 2 weeks so I'm giddy.

[SilsoeSid]

Is that with your DDS Card or the new ID card?
With the new Veterans Card.

[cynicalint]

Talk Shy tall knight, the Blue Light card also gives you a free Esso Fuel card, normally £43 per year. It gives 3 p off a litre of unleaded, 4 p off a litre of diesel, 5p off a litre of unleaded plus and 6p off a litre of super diesel. Pay at the counter, then Esso takes it about three days later as a debit.

[Ninthace]

Talk Shy tall knight, the Blue Light card also gives you a free Esso Fuel card, normally £43 per year. It gives 3 p off a litre of unleaded, 4 p off a litre of diesel, 5p off a litre of unleaded plus and 6p off a litre of super diesel. Pay at the counter, then Esso takes it about three days later as a debit.
Anything for EVs?

[cynicalint]

Anything for EVs?
Not that I've seen....

[Nolongerin]

I’ve just applied for a Blue Light Card using the Veteran Card as proof of eligibility.

[1.3VStall]

I just got a whopping 7% off at Halfords with my Vets Card!

[ZH875]

I just got a whopping 7% off at Halfords with my Vets Card!
Same as the Blue Light Card.

[Paying Guest]

I see from the Electoral Commission web site that the veterans card is not listed as one of the government issued photo IDs acceptable for proof of identity when voting. On the other hand it did get me a useful discount at the Kennedy Space Center last week!

[Roland Pulfrew]

Talk Shy tall knight, the Blue Light card also gives you a free Esso Fuel card, normally £43 per year. It gives 3 p off a litre of unleaded, 4 p off a litre of diesel, 5p off a litre of unleaded plus and 6p off a litre of super diesel. Pay at the counter, then Esso takes it about three days later as a debit.

Looks good, but just checked my local area to find that super unleaded at Esso is 7p per litre more expensive than the cheapest brand, so still 2ppl more expensive with the Esso card. Better savings on my diesel though; Esso only 2ppl more expensive so I could save 2ppl with the Esso card.

[BEagle]

But Roly, old chap - diesel is simply NOT an officer's fuel!

[SLXOwft]

I see from the Electoral Commission web site that the veterans card is not listed as one of the government issued photo IDs acceptable for proof of identity when voting. On the other hand it did get me a useful discount at the Kennedy Space Center last week!

Good to know.:)

In the usual kicking the can down the road mode, adding MOD Form 100 to the list of accepted IDS will only occur when all pre-2018 veterans who ask for one have got it. As it would be an SI under the affirmative procedure (presumably as proof of ID for voting is controversial), I can't see it being actioned in the near or even medium future. I suspect it was left out by oversight or sloppy drafting.

Rosie Duffield MP, Labour, Canterbury

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the validity of veterans' ID cards as a form of identification in the May local elections.

Dr Andrew Murrison, Conservative, South West Wiltshire (Parliamentary Under-Secretary)

Answered on 23 March 2023

Currently, Veterans’ Recognition Cards are not on the list of approved photographic ID for use in polling stations. This list is set in secondary legislation and further legislation would be required to add the Veterans’ Recognition Cards. A comprehensive list of the accepted forms of identification is available at the following link: https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/voter/voter-id/accepted-forms-photo-id

Consideration will be given in the future to including the Veteran’s Recognition Card on the list of approved ID for use in polling stations, once the rollout of cards to pre-2018 veterans is complete. However, in the meantime, there is a wide range of different types of ID on the list, so a lack of Recognition Card should not act as a barrier to veterans being able to vote.

[cynicalint]

Looks good, but just checked my local area to find that super unleaded at Esso is 7p per litre more expensive than the cheapest brand, so still 2ppl more expensive with the Esso card. Better savings on my diesel though; Esso only 2ppl more expensive so I could save 2ppl with the Esso card.
Yep, where I am, the local Esso (£1.51) is the cheapest by 1ppl compared with Asda (£1.52) and Tesco (£1.52). yet another Esso garage on the main road is £1.56!. Worth carrying the card as it is free and can be used at any Esso forecourt....worth shopping around, The interweb will give you the nearest forecourt and its prices to save driving around.

[cynicalint]

But Roly, old chap - diesel is simply NOT an officer's fuel!
I wouldn't know, the chauffeur always fills up for me.....

[Haraka]

I didt submit earlier my observation thet applying for a Vet Card did give data of interest to those seeking tranches for conscription
Currrent political gossip is bouncing around the topic!
Those skilled , fairly recently retired, still living in UK. reasonably fit etc, might see their profiles suspiciously congruent with some stated requirements concerning possible selective conscription.......
Hmmm

[Biggus]

So are they planning to resurrect the LDV by conscripting veterans on the basis of card applications?

[Herod]

I'm 77, and would make a good Godfrey!!. Thinking further, maybe a better Mainwaring.

[Ninthace]

I wondered who would be the first to think of that!

[ShyTorque]

Talk Shy tall knight, the Blue Light card also gives you a free Esso Fuel card, normally £43 per year. It gives 3 p off a litre of unleaded, 4 p off a litre of diesel, 5p off a litre of unleaded plus and 6p off a litre of super diesel. Pay at the counter, then Esso takes it about three days later as a debit.

That would be useful…if there were any Esso garages near here. I can’t think of any in this area.

[Ninthace]

That would be useful…if there were any Esso garages near here. I can’t think of any in this area.
I think you will find it works in some other fuel stations, BP IIRC.

[diginagain]

https://www.essocard.com/en-gb/network/

[teeteringhead]

I see from the Electoral Commission web site that the veterans card is not listed as one of the government issued photo IDs acceptable for proof of identity when voting. I can beat that! Nearing retirement I had applied for a Civil Service job in an RAF Command HQ where I was then working, was shortlisted and duly interviewed by a serving 2-star.

His (civilian) outer office was checking my identity - and I discovered that my 1250/Mod90 was NOT acceptable ID!!!

Fortunately I was about to go on hols so had my passport in my bag .......

[Didn't get the job ...... maybe cos I told the AVM what I thought of the above]

[talk_shy_tall_knight]

Talk Shy tall knight, the Blue Light card also gives you a free Esso Fuel card, normally £43 per year. It gives 3 p off a litre of unleaded, 4 p off a litre of diesel, 5p off a litre of unleaded plus and 6p off a litre of super diesel. Pay at the counter, then Esso takes it about three days later as a debit.
Thanks for that, I'll have a look