Bounty Reps

[Bellabutterfly2016]

So last night I visited my friend on our local labour ward.
Baby was born at 34 weeks, early but ok and small and my friend very stressed as her milk hadn't properly come in/baby not latching.
Her husband is in the forces flying home today so she was feeling very low and emotional.

Yesterday she had her curtain drawn and was trying to feed with the breastfeeding counsellor and a bounty woman opened her curtains and tried to flog her a photo package!!!!!!!!

I was outraged for her, when I was in 3 years ago they came round handing packs out and then said there was a card attached and to text/ring if we wanted photos doing - no hardsell at all. I didn't have them done anyway because I thought they were too expensive but it was the invasion of privacy I was shocked with.

Fortunately the breastfeeding counsellor told her in no uncertain words to do one but was just thinking - AIBU to think this is bang out of order???

Yes, just go on line and organise it.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/child-benefit-claim-form-ch2

So they are liars too!

Even the midwives told me I needed to see bounty to get child benefit, this was after I told them I don’t want to be harassed by Bounty.

@hownowhashbrowns the bounty reps when i were there wore bright pink tunics that said bounty. Very easy to identify, nd they identified themselves.

I had already decided i was having the photos done before baby was born so was actually waiting for them to come round in the morning.

They were only allowed onto the ward from 10am when visiting hours started, nd by then the nurses had already been round for all the medical bits.

My hospital also let partners stay which i thought was great

I’m pretty sure I heard the woman in the bed next to me get told the photos she wanted/was offered were several hundred pounds. I nearly fell off my bed and have assumed ever since that the blood loss and appalling maternity care must have made me lose my ability to hear properly. I really want to know how much the packages are.

I feel the opposite. After my baby's birth the bounty rep was fine, only a soft sell. Having read about all about them, I said no thanks to the photos. But months later I saw examples of the types of photos taken and I wish we'd done them after all. Our lo had to spend the first week under a photo therapy light and we had a terrible time breastfeeding, so we don't have particularly lovely photos of those first few days (plus my DH hardly bothers with taking photos so there are tons of him and hardly any of me and lo). The bounty ones are a little posed, but in retrospect I wish we'd had more thoughtful photos on that first day when everything was just bliss.

Yes can we start a campaign to ban them. On my first child I was being all polite because she didn't introduce herself. I was really confused. 2nd child she interrupted the moment that my MIL met her grandson. Children no 3 and I was ready for her! She hardly got near the bed. They have no business coming near you when it is such a special time and you are so vulnerable. BAN THEM!

£129 for the digital slideshow. So yes that combined with a photo book and a few pics could have been a few hundred.

www.bounty.com/bounty-portrait/baby-photo-products

I've just googled it!

Oh to the m to the f to the g!

Really?
In an age where we all have good cameras on our phones, why do people pay for them?!?!?!?!

Wasn't on at all! I've had three babies in just over 5 years and never once seen a bounty rep!

I have to be honest the bounty woman in my hospital was lovely- and yes, wire a pink apron.
She asked if she could come behind the curtain, clearly identified herself, asked how I was feeling and if I had everything I needed/ support I wanted. Explained about the bag, and then what she wanted (details basically ), gave me the bag and said I could call her on mobile or find her near nurses station and tootled off after getting me some water! I actually felt she was too nice to do her job.

I think regardless of the odd positive experiences, marketing should NEVER have a place in a ward.

People need to stop supporting it. Even the false info shows a demand for what they are selling or “giving away”

Ds1 was born bank holiday Monday, so wasn’t approached until the Tuesday when I was able to ask what she needed my details for and decline her photos etc.
Ds2 was born on the Sunday so wasn’t expecting to see one but I got their visit when he was a few hours old, I was exhausted DS had failed his hearing check and the lady told me she would be back so I assumed the bounty lady was her as she had a computer on wheels exactly like the hearing team.
She offered no introduction and started to ‘check’ my details it wasn’t until I was halfway through my address that I cottoned on enough to ask her who she was!
DS then needed feeding so asked her to leave and she left the pack and her details for photos. I binnd the pack and applied for cb online so didn’t need the form anyway.

I had to track down my bountry rep. Bargain compared to what my friend paid days later in a photo studio and very relaxing. No pressure to buy anything. Sounds like you had a bad one op x

I vote that the packs should be on your bed on the ward after you've given birth then bounty reps based in an office somewhere do that they can be approached rather than the other way round! And leaflets given with clear prices on them of the various "packages" on offer.
Nobody should be taken advantage of at such a special time x

There are threads on here, with posts into the hundreds, and many, many people have had appalling experiences with Bounty reps.

It's the good ones that seem to be the exception, not the bad ones.

Omg I had ds a few months ago and was thinking this very thing. She came in hrs after birth I was royally pissed off. Never had this dd1.

I've had two babies in a Scottish hospital and never met a bounty rep, never seen or heard of them either so I think they must be banned in my hospital. I was never given any bounty pack and child benefit has always been sorted over the phone

I agree that the way some Bounty reps treat new mum's is appalling.

But I just wanted to give a slightly different perspective.

My DS is adopted and was taken into foster care at birth, where he was looked after for the first year by a couple nearing retirement. They are absolutely lovely people but took hardly any photos of DS, and the ones they did take are of a really, really poor quality. They had the Bounty photos taken although didn't purchase any, but knowing he would eventually be adopted they kept the login details so that when he came home to us, one year later, they could give me the details. They may be ridiculously expensive, but these are the only decent quality photos I have of my son before he came to live with us. The only photos I have of him as a baby.

I am so shocked that this is still allowed.
Disgraceful practice. I wish I had told the one that intruded on me 8 years ago to f off, but I was in shock after an emergency C section and didn't really know what was going on. I thought that Mumsnet had helped to highlight this and restrict it a few years ago. Maybe it needs another campaign?

The rep with ds1 was fab- she’d seen me a lot during my pregnancy being monitored and was a welcome familiar face when ds arrived. She also supplied me with tons of additional sudocreme mini pots and towels. As we were in a while her popping in for a cuppa and a chat most days was lovely. And she didn’t even mention the photos.

Second time round I was disappointed it wasn’t her and told the person to leave me in peace.

I was quite annoyed to learn they do not sell bounty chocolate bars. I could have done with one about the time they bust in and woke up me and the baby I had just spent hours trying to get to sleep....

They shouldn't be allowed on the wards.

They came round when DS was critical in neonatal with a cheery "oh where is baby?" I said quite matter of factly that he in neonatal with a 50/50 chance.

She then complained to the midwife I had hurt HER feelings

(He pulled through and is fine)

www.mamaacademy.org.uk/shop/wellbeing-wallet-for-mums-notes/

Our local hospital give you your notes in a "mama academy" folder and then the bounty folder is given separately.

My bounty pack on my booking in appointment had a box of 8 pregnacare tablets, an out of date magazine and hilariously a "babysrus" catalogue when toysrus has gone into liquidation!!! And a load of useless leaflets about Ocado deliveries and uploading the bounty app to your phone. I put mine straight into my recycling bin!!!!