Ripped Off in Poland? - Expose here:

It's worth doing, or at least was, as there used to be less preservatives used in Polish food production (don't honestly know about the way it is now). So a loaf of bread or tub of whipping cream could really go bad on you in a jiffy. Not that there's anything wrong about that - food is naturally prone to degeneration, and the longer it keeps, the more suspicious I get ;-)

I well remember those packets of milk made from plastic bags! More than once I bought a pack in the evening and by the next morning it had gone off.

It is still worth checking use-by dates: big supermarkets here get up to sh!t they would never dream of trying in their home markets. Yesterday I went to a French owned supermarket and saw puddles of water on the floor, rotten fruit (as in so rotten that the skin had rotten through) and a whole shelf full of milk which was use-by the day before yesterday!

It would have to be false in order to be libelous.

Saying that Carrefour makes their ground pork out of Kazakh children would be libelous. Writing about being sold rotten meat on the other hand, not libelous, just a statement of fact.

You would still have to be able to prove it in a court of law.

I bought 3 kgs of chicken on Fri in a large French owned hypermarket, the queue was so long that you wait at least 20 min to get your meat and found out that they are rotten, have to throw them all away. In fact, it happened at least 2-3 times a month for the last couple of years, and I had tried different places, those so called 'better' supermarkets (P&P, or alma) even worst. Does it count as ripped off? They may not be the most expensive in this world but is not eatable by normal people who don't drink enough and notice the smell from them (chicken is always the worst).

I don't want to argue with any body who think nothing is wrong here but I would need advice where to buy food. Because of this, I also feel not comfortable when eating out as I think they will careless about the quality of the meat than the waste. I live in Magdalenka, any advice pls.

Can you buy direct from farmers here? The only things I see for sale in the countryside tend to be potatoes and onions. I've been looking for a good supply of beef and chicken. I used to get my beef in Prague from a farmer that had a herd of grass fed angus. I'd gladly pay a healthy premium here to get meat from a decent source. Anyone have any ideas?


where's that?

First - you have to find a local "targ" or "rynek. These are usually function only on "dzień targowy" - one day of the week.

Selling unregistered (that wasn't checked by vet) meat is illegal in Poland. Therefore I suggest to take a Polish friend with you to do "small talk" and negotiations. Other way is to find a small local slaughterhouse.

You'd think so, wouldn't you. If only. I'm not sure about Polish law, but if it's anything like English law, it doesn't have to be false to be libelous. The important thing is how it's written, the intention in writing and (most importantly) how it's taken by whoever is assumed to read it and the effects which result from that.

If it's about rip-offs, I have a good story, recent too.

I rented a flat for five years. On moving in, all meters were read, the amounts recorded and everything was signed.

It puzzled me that there were only two water meters, one for the kitchen and one for the smaller of the two bathrooms. But the owner of the flat was on the management board of the spoldzenia (housing co-op), and very much one of the great and the good (a reasonably well-known person here, important enough to have an official car and driver), so I assumed it was either in order or not a potential problem. There were other irregularities too, but I assumed she knew what she was doing. After almost five years, some people from the spoldzenia visited, opened some fitted furniture in the bathroom and took it off the wall with a crowbar. I told them they should speak to the owner, a director of the spoldzenia, but they told me she'd been voted off the board, and the chickens were coming home to roost.

They revealed a water meter, boxed in behind a very firmly fitted permanent cupboard, covered in twenty years' worth of dust and cobwebs...

Apparently it had never been read. Ever. Even though she and her (large) family had lived there for ten years and the flat had been rented out for another ten.

The owner later turned up with an absolutely huge bill (five figures) and said I must pay it, because it's in the contract.

Fortunately for me the rental contract had expired three years before, but she still made all sorts of threats about legal action, debt registers etc. Nice about it, but very firm that the money must be paid. She brought an English-speaking relative, even though she knew very well that I'm fluent in Polish. Though this was all just bluster.

She doesn't have a leg to stand on and won't get so much as a groszy from me (and frankly doesn't need it), but I can imagine some people taking fright and paying at least part of the bill.

Obviously I left, and quite reasonably withheld the last month's rent and utilities money to compensate me for the hassle of having to move at short notice, having the spoldzenie breaking the cupboard from the wall with a crowbar (while I had dinner guests), and being threatened with a bill for ten years of her family's and five years of the previous tenants' water bill. But I can just imagine it happening all over again to someone who would just worry and pay something..

Only if you're the plaintiff. Or is it that the foreigner is always wrong?


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Keep taking the tablets, Magda.

I used to know US libel law somewhat, and technically whether or not it is true is irrelevant as to whether it's libel, it's just that if it's determined to be true then it is legally permissible libel.

Irrelevant here, just thought I'd throw it out there.

If you travel to and from Poland by coach, NEVER travel by "Orbis" nor "Sindbad". My very recent travel experiences with them BOTH ways UK - PL - UK are: toilets out of order (is that legal?); luggage only accepted if you bribe the staff a tenner; coach smelly; windows filthy; very rude staff etc., etc. A jerk who 'works' for Orbis wouldn't take my suitcase (ONE normal-sized one) until I gave him ten pounds. He called it a "wersalka"! Now that's what I call a Polish Catholic chain-smoking lard & vodka guzzler. Everyone on the coach was complaining they were ripped off. PASS THIS ON. Orbis and Sindbad deserve to go bust!!

Agreed 100%

Try telling my miss tho, she semes to think if it cost more its much better quality.


Miss,s parents spent 3 hours in our Pountland when they come over last summer, and got down the town for 8am the next day to look again!!!

I gave my card to a small hotel in center of Krakow. They charged me 4500 zl instead of 450 zl for 1 night stay...

Ripped off like usual

My experience with stores swindling customers (both outside Poland).

I went to do grocery shopping on a Saturday. At one point I pick up a package of sliced ham and I read the expiry date. It says Monday of the following week. WTF? That Monday will happen in two days! And then I notice the expiry label is on top of another label. So I peel off the top label and it says the expiry date was 2 weeks prior.

Another one, since the name Panasonic was cited here. I go to a reputable electronics store and I buy a decent quality vacuum cleaner by Panasonic, $400 is not cheap. So the sales fella offers extended warranty. Only $50 buys me 3 more years so, stupid me, I go for it. Two years later a major part of the vacuum cleaner wears out and the machine is pretty much useless. I go to claim a warranty service. The service is refused on the grounds that the vacuum became faulty due to its use. Not "misuse" but due to its regular use. I assume Panasonic manufactures items so that their owners could put them on displays.

As a rule, I never buy extended warranty. Not even on the car. Instead, go for more reputable brand name/manufacturer.

Lesson learned. Now I don't either.


I'd consider Panasonic a reputable brand.

Absolutely right. Extended warranties make money because people pay 3 times more than these companies pay out. It's a bad deal for the consumer.

About everything you buy there involves some rip off. Crap service, non existent return/exchange policies, dishonest workers.

Saturn actually tried to make me send a blender in for service the day I bought it because it was defective when I got it home. I went right back not an hour after I bought it and they insisted it had to be sent in. Well I wasn't having that. I have learned that Poles are not used to be stood up to in these situations so if you just insist and keep repeating what the proper thing to do is they will finally cave...it may take a long time but stick to your guns. I guess most Poles just accept the horrible customer service and the shops get away with it. They don't even follow their own rules or EU law often.

I got to where I would order everything I needed from abroad as I got sick of dealing with Polish retail. Of course they still dipped their greedy little hands in it in the form of customs fees (which never followed the same formula) but at least they didn't profit anymore than necessary.

I,m at that stage now, and ironically the items I order are cheaper from abroad even with the postage charges.


Free trade in the EU, so no customs either.


The ultimate word.

You just didn't quite make it in Poland, but it's nice to see your fascination with our country continues. Living here must have been so foreign to you.

1jola

The Pole is happy when someone else cries...
I think you belong to this thread.

The word " spite " comes to mind.

Please make your mind up which user name you're going to use.

If you put toghether a complete thought, I might reply you.

Polish people cannot really keep their words and have no pride.

I lived in Wroclaw for 8 months, and the owners of flats, who were renting out, advertised a price of 900 zl per month, and when they saw I am british, they raised the price to 900 zl per week, thinking I am so naive or easy to rip off :(

You're not British, you're American. And under this username, you previously claimed to be from Estonia. Make your mind up!

200 smackers a week, fcuk me, that is taking the Micky a tad bit far

(mind you looking at ur profile if ur in2 Real estate, financial investments u can afford it)

He's fabricating the story. It's not uncommon to see people try to push an extra 20% on foreigners, but he's speaking nonsense. It wouldn't surprise me if one person tried it, but it's not normal at all.

Polish service sector never was as good as in USA. Nobody even try to say something like that. In fact American services are widely regarded as the best in the world. So I'm not surprised you're nervous here dealing with shop workers who don't care. I feel your pain. But you are overreacting. I think you should just depart from Poland as soon as possible. Otherwise your allergy on Poland will intoxicate you totally and the forum posters as well.

Like said if she,s in2 fcuking little ppl over with Real estate & financial investments i,d try and fcuk her over with rent and anything else come to think of it.

Not in my experinece the best service ive had out side the UK was Germany. The US service is false all this "how are you" and "have a nice day" crap, all designed at getting a higher tip.


So you should have showed them the advert for 900 PLN / month and said why are you trying to charg me 900 PLN / week.

They must have thought you were one dumb individual.

Yes, false smile isn't so nice as sincere one - still better than scowl.
However I haven't meant face grimacing but the getting things done attitude. German service workers are stiff. If you're late with something and need extra quick service, you can forget about it in Germany as I remember from printing industry. But it's only my personal observation. I'll be happy to hear what are yours.