Mickey Scams Herbstmesse Patrons; Drivers Reminded To Equip Winter Tyres; SBB Ticket Sales Derail

News For 8 November 2022

If you've been to Herbstmesse this year, chances are you've seen a person dressed as a large Mickey Mouse figure walking around.  Typically, when one of these Mickeys approaches you, they'll aggressively try to put a balloon in your kids' hands in return for money.  Basel police have released a public statement advising people to avoid close proximity with the crafty mice, as they are also liable to try and scam you for money in return for taking your photos. Officially, the man-rodents are not even allowed on the fairgrounds, as their activities are expressly forbidden, but this year there seems to be an excess of them relative to the policing of the event.

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While there is no legal obligation to put winter tyres on your car, the law does require drivers to always maintain control of their vehicles.  Therefore, in the case of an accident, a driver may be found liable for damage if their cars were not equipped with winter tyres when weather conditions warranted them.  Your insurer may even take legal action against you for negligence.  Despite recent weather trends in Switzerland - with warmer winters featuring less snow - authorities advise people to equip their cars with winter tyres between October and March.

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Earlier today, an IT mishap at the Swiss Railway operator SBB has caused on-line ticket purchases to be curtailed or impossible.  Left scrambling, train conductors have been instructed to accommodate penalty-free ticket sales on trains. Customers could also purchase tickets using the machines at train stations.  The failure of the affected systems seem to have also impacted announcements and the information displays at station and terminal tracks.  Accurate information seems to be unavailable at the moment, and the general SBB website is also down.