Written by John Kruse, one of the leading experts on Bailiff Law, this consumer friendly guide is essential reading for anyone who comes into contact with a bailiff.
The book is easy to understand and clearly explains the rights
a bailiff has, and also what they cannot do when collecting debts and repossessing goods etc.
I recently sent a 2nd letter to A&L, together with the spreadsheet asking for my bank charges of £1800 to be refunded. They have replied to me quite quickly saying "While I understand your concerns, please be assured our fees are reasonable and competitive with those made by other financial organisations.
The OFT has commented that they consider the level of late payment fees to be unfair, however, they were actually referring to late payment fees for credit card payments, which are quite distinct from a bank's fees on current accounts.
Discussions are ongoing between the banks and the OFT regarding current accounts and once the outcome is known, A&L will review its position as apprpriate.
As well as making our customers aware of our fees when opening accounts, we also continue to do so through our website, our branches, by telephone and on the back of statements. In view of this, I do not feel that you have been unfairly charged and regret that I cannot agree to refundy your fees".
As far as I'm aware, you have to give the bank 28 days from when you first request your charges back in writing before you can start court proceedings, i.e. you do your first letter requesting a refund, then a second if you don't get a satisfactory reply to the first threatening them with court action. Give them 14 days to reply to each letter, then you can file a claim.
As everyone will tell you, all A&L's letters are standard and we've all received them. Also their actual 6 page defence is standard, so don't worry about anything they send to you ... we've all been there.
A & L
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