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    • Better version attached with the late appeal explained more clearly for the judge. This will sound silly, but I think it would be a good idea to e-mail it to the court and UKPC on Sunday.  It's probably me being daft, but Sunday is still March, and as it's late, sending it in March rather than April will make it sound like it was less late than it really is.  if you get my drift. You can still pop in a paper version on Tuesday if you want. E-mail address for the court: [email protected] And for UKPC: [email protected]   [email protected] Defendant WS.pdf
    • Update 15th March the eviction notice period expired, and I paid my next month rent along with sending them the message discussed above. After a short while they just emailed me back this dry phrase "Thank you for your email." In two weeks' time I'm gonna need to pay the rent again, and I have such a feeling that shortly after that date the contracts will be exchanged and all the payments will be made.  Now my main concern is, if possible, not to end up paying rent after I move out.  
    • they cant 'take away' anything, what ever makes you believe that?  dx  
    • The text on the N1SDT Claim Form 1.The claim is for breaching the terms and conditions set on private land. 2. The defendant's vehicle, NumberPlate, was identified in the Leeds Bradford Airport Roadways on the 28/07/2023 in breach of the advertised terms and conditions; namely Stopping in a zone where stopping is prohibited 3.At all material times the Defendant was the registered keeper and/or driver. 4. The terms and conditions upon  entering private land were clearly displayed at the entrance and in prominent locations 5. The sign was the offer and the act of entering private land was the acceptance of the offer hereby entering into a contract by conduct. 6.The signs specifically detail the terms and conditions and the consequences of failure to comply,  namely a parking charge notice will be issued, and the Defendant has failed to settle the outstanding liability. 7.The claimant seeks the recovery of the parking charge notice, contractual costs and interest.   This is what I am thinking of for the wording of my defence The Defendant contends that the particulars of claim are vague and are generic in nature which fails to comply with CPR 16.4. The Defendant accordingly sets out its case below and relies on CPR r 16.5 (3) in relation to any particular allegation to which a specific response has not been made. 1. Paragraph 1 is denied. It is denied that the Defendant ever entered into a contract to breach any terms and conditions of the stated private land. 2. Paragraph 2 and 4 are denied. As held by the Upper Tax Tribunal in Vehicle Control Services Limited v HMRC [2012] UKUT 129 (TCC), any contract requires offer and acceptance. The Claimant was only contracted to provide car park management services and is not capable of entering into a contract with the Defendant on its own account, as the car park is owned by and the terms of entry set by the landowner. 3. It is admitted that Defendant is the recorded keeper of the vehicle. 4.  Paragraph 6 is denied the claimant has yet to evidence that their contract with the landowner supersedes  Leeds Bradford airport byelaws. Further it is denied that the Claimant’s signage is capable of creating a legally binding contract. 5. Paragraph 7 is denied, there are no contractual costs and interest cannot be accrued on a speculative charge.   I'm not sure whether point 4 is correct as I think this side road is not covered by byelaws? Any other suggestions/corrections would be appreciated.
    • Dear EVRi parcelnet LTD t/a evri   evri parcelnet isnt a thing also you say defendant's response which is a bit of a weird format.   Something like   Dear EVRi, Claim no xxxx In your defence you said you could not access tracking. Please see attached receipt and label Regards
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    • Hello,

      On 15/1/24 booked appointment with Big Motoring World (BMW) to view a mini on 17/1/24 at 8pm at their Enfield dealership.  

      Car was dirty and test drive was two circuits of roundabout on entry to the showroom.  Was p/x my car and rushed by sales exec and a manager into buying the mini and a 3yr warranty that night, sale all wrapped up by 10pm.  They strongly advised me taking warranty out on car that age (2017) and confirmed it was honoured at over 500 UK registered garages.

      The next day, 18/1/24 noticed amber engine warning light on dashboard , immediately phoned BMW aftercare team to ask for it to be investigated asap at nearest garage to me. After 15 mins on hold was told only their 5 service centres across the UK can deal with car issues with earliest date for inspection in March ! Said I’m not happy with that given what sales team advised or driving car. Told an amber warning light only advisory so to drive with caution and call back when light goes red.

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    • Housing Association property flooding. https://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/topic/438641-housing-association-property-flooding/&do=findComment&comment=5124299
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    • We have finally managed to obtain the transcript of this case.

      The judge's reasoning is very useful and will certainly be helpful in any other cases relating to third-party rights where the customer has contracted with the courier company by using a broker.
      This is generally speaking the problem with using PackLink who are domiciled in Spain and very conveniently out of reach of the British justice system.

      Frankly I don't think that is any accident.

      One of the points that the judge made was that the customers contract with the broker specifically refers to the courier – and it is clear that the courier knows that they are acting for a third party. There is no need to name the third party. They just have to be recognisably part of a class of person – such as a sender or a recipient of the parcel.

      Please note that a recent case against UPS failed on exactly the same issue with the judge held that the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 did not apply.

      We will be getting that transcript very soon. We will look at it and we will understand how the judge made such catastrophic mistakes. It was a very poor judgement.
      We will be recommending that people do include this adverse judgement in their bundle so that when they go to county court the judge will see both sides and see the arguments against this adverse judgement.
      Also, we will be to demonstrate to the judge that we are fair-minded and that we don't mind bringing everything to the attention of the judge even if it is against our own interests.
      This is good ethical practice.

      It would be very nice if the parcel delivery companies – including EVRi – practised this kind of thing as well.

       

      OT APPROVED, 365MC637, FAROOQ, EVRi, 12.07.23 (BRENT) - J v4.pdf
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The following is an explanation of a residential tenant's legal rights in respect of challenging a rent increase under an Assured Tenancy or an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (commonly called a "Shorthold").

 

However, it should be borne in mind that a Shorthold tenant can be evicted very easily, so these rights are illusory, because most tenancies are Shorthold, where if the tenant opposes the rent increase the landlord can evict.

 

 

Fixed Term Tenancy -v- Periodic Tenancy

 

Whether the landlord has a right to increase the rent depends on whether the tenancy is a fixed term tenancy or a periodic tenancy.

 

A fixed term tenancy is one where the tenancy has a specific length, such as six months or one year.

 

A periodic tenancy is one in which no fixed length is agreed, so it just runs indefinitely. The period of the tenancy is set by the frequency at which the tenant pays rent, e.g. monthly.

 

When a fixed term tenancy ends, if the tenant remains in occupation after the last day then a periodic tenancy arises automatically.

 

 

Rent increase for a Fixed Term tenancy

 

The rent cannot be increased during the fixed term, unless:-

• the tenancy agreement allows for rent increases; or

• the tenant agrees to a rent increase.

 

When the fixed term ends, a landlord will often ask an existing tenant to sign a new tenancy agreement, at a higher rent, as this is a common way for the landlord to increase the rent.

 

That does NOT violate the rule that the rent under a fixed term tenancy can't be increased, because: (a) the increase is taking effect only after the end of the fixed term, not during the fixed term; and (b) the tenant is agreeing to the increase.

 

 

Tenancy Agreement allows for rent increases

 

You must check the tenancy agreement to see what it says, if anything, about rent increases. This might be referred to as the landlord's right to vary the rent.

 

If the tenancy agreement allows rent increases, the tenant has to pay the increase, as often as the tenancy agreement says the rent can be increased, provided that:

• the clause in question is contractually enforceable, and

• the landlord complies with all the provisions of the clause.

 

 

A clause in a contract is not enforceable in court if:

 

(a) The clause is unfair or unreasonable. For example, a term stating that the landlord has the right to increase the rent "from time to time", without specifying what that means, is not enforceable; or

 

(b) The wording of the clause is not clear enough for the tenant to be able to tell what the increase will be. It should state the amount of the increase, or give a formula for how the increase will be calculated (e.g. by applying the Retail Prices Index). And it should say how much prior notice of the increase the landlord must give the tenant.

 

In one case, a clause allowed the rent to be increased to a level which the tenant could not possibly pay. The Court decided that the clause was really a device to force the tenant to run up arrears, so that the landlord could evict him for non-payment of rent. The Court of Appeal decided the clause was unenforceable (Bankway Properties Ltd v Penfold-Dunsford, April 2001).

 

 

The tenant can also challenge the rent increase on the basis that the landlord has not complied with the provisions of the clause in question (e.g. has not given the correct period of prior notice).

 

This is because if the landlord has not complied with the terms of the agreement, then the tenant is not contractually bound to pay the rent increase.

 

 

Some examples:

 

The landlord can increase the rent by:-

 

• Specifying in the tenancy agreement the intervals at which the rent is to be increased, e.g. every twelve months after the beginning of the tenancy. If this is the case, no further notice is necessary; or

 

• Specifying in the tenancy agreement that the tenant will be given notice of a rent increase, to take effect after a specified period of time (e.g. one month's notice); or

 

• A combination of these. For example, the tenancy agreement might say that the landlord can increase the rent annually but must give the tenant one month's notice of the increase.

 

 

If the tenant doesn't pay the rent increase, the landlord can start court proceedings for rent arrears. The tenant can challenge the validity of the increase in that court case.

 

However, where it is the tenancy agreement that allows the landlord to increase the rent there is no right to apply to a Rent Assessment Committee to challenge the increase.

 

 

Statutory procedure for increasing the rent

 

There are two statutory procedures for increasing the rent, in respect of a residential tenancy.

 

The landlord can use:-

• section 13 of the Housing Act 1988; and/or

• section 6 of the Housing Act 1988.

 

 

When to use section 13 of the Housing Act 1988

 

The landlord can use the procedure under section 13 of the Housing Act 1988 to increase the rent if:

 

(a) the tenancy is a periodic tenancy, and

 

(b) there is no clause in the tenancy agreement providing for increase in the rent.

 

 

How to use section 13 of the Housing Act 1988

 

The landlord must give the tenant a notice in writing, entitled "Landlord's Notice Proposing a New Rent Under an Assured Periodic Tenancy or Agricultural Occupancy" (known as a section 13 notice).

 

The notice must specify the new rent. The notice must also state the date from which the increase is payable. That date must be:

 

• if the tenant pays rent monthly or more often (e.g. weekly, monthly, or fortnightly), at least one month later;

 

• if the tenant pays rent less often than monthly, at least one rental period later (e.g. if the tenant pays rent quarterly, he must be given at least one quarter's notice of the increase);

 

• if the tenant pays rent yearly, at least six months later.

 

Thus in 99% of cases the tenant will be notified of the increase one month before it takes effect.

 

The notice must be expressed to end on the day on which the new rent is due; so the notice period is worked out by counting backwards from that date. The tenant should carefully check whether he received the notice at least one clear calendar month before that date.

 

If the rent is payable less often than monthly, the tenant must check whether he received notice of the increase at least one clear rent period (or six months, where applicable) before that date.

 

 

Date of increase

 

The earliest date on which the rent can be increased under section 13 is 52 weeks (i.e. one year) after the date on which the tenancy began.

 

Subsequent increases can take place at intervals of not less than one year; but the landlord must properly serve a section 13 notice each time.

 

To take account of these rules, a landlord might lawfully choose to increase the rent on the same date each year.

 

 

Appealing against a Section 13 increase

 

A dispute about the validity of a section 13 notice will be heard by a Rent Assessment Committee (known as an "RAC"), not by the Court.

 

If the tenant does not want to pay the increase, he must apply to the Rent Assessment Committee. The application is only valid if it is received by the Committee before the date on which the new rent is payable under the section 13 rules.

 

The application MUST be made on the statutory form called "Application Referring a Notice Proposing a New Rent Under an Assured Periodic Tenancy or Agricultural Occupancy to a Rent Assessment Committee". This form is available from any Rent Assessment Committee (consult the Telephone Directory for the address of your local one).

 

The tenant cannot apply to a Rent Assessment Committee if he has already agreed to pay the increased rent.

 

The tenant can only challenge a rent increase, not a service charge increase, unless the service charge is included in the rent.

 

 

Landlord does not follow the correct procedure

 

If the landlord does not follow the correct procedure, the rent increase is invalid. The tenant is entitled to continue to pay the old rent. Rent arrears will only count as a ground for possession if the rent increase is lawful.

 

It is important to bear in mind, however, that shorthold tenants have no real security of occupation; so antagonising the landlord may lead him to start eviction proceedings.

 

If the tenant starts to pay the increased rent, he is deemed to have agreed the increase. The increased rent is then lawful, regardless of any procedural errors the landlord may have made.

 

A dispute about whether a rent increase is valid can be heard by the County Court.

 

A dispute about the validity of a notice under section 13 or section 6 of the Housing Act 1988 will normally be heard by a Rent Assessment Committee.

 

 

Warning: The rules about rent increases under section 13 are more complicated than can be dealt with in this brief outline, which deals only with the situations most commonly encountered. A tenant who receives a rent increase notice MUST consult a specialist adviser.

 

It should also be borne in mind that a Shorthold tenant occupying premises under a periodic tenancy can be evicted very easily, so these rights are illusory, because if the tenant opposes the rent increase the landlord can evict.

 

 

 

Advice & opinions on this forum are offered informally, without any assumption of liability. Use your own judgment. Seek advice of a qualified and insured professional if you have any doubts.

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