I'm currently 6 months pregnant and was hospitalised last week for a few days. I've been diagnosed with a pregnancy related illness that puts me and baby at risk. I've been advised that I shouldn't go back to work and should rest to prevent further risk and early labour. I am worried about where I stand with regards to being forced onto Maternity Leave early. from what I've read and understood so far, they can make me go on Mat Leave 4 weeks before my due date...is this correct? To prevent this, as it will make me financially worse off, can I take the 4 weeks prior to my due date as annual leave, as I have some left? Do I have any other options or anything else I need to know? I would like to know where I stand before I go to a meeting to advise my employer that I am unlikely to return to work prior to baby arrival. Any help/advice greatly appreciated. Thanks BEARMAGGIE

Hi, I'd been working for my employer for 7 years when I decided to go part-time in work so that i could do a uni course. They happily let me do this and have been excellent in letting me arrange my work hours around my uni timetable. I'm now coming to the end of uni and have asked to come back full time. They are saying that this change of hours back to full-time constitutes a change of contract, and therefore want to put me on the new contracts, which means evening and weekend work. My argument to them is that when I originally changed to part-time hours, I was never given a new contract. I have said that despite changing the number of hours worked within the week, I am still working within my original contracted hours (8am to 5pm), therefore no contract change ever occurred, and this shows as they never sent me a new contract when i went part-time. I'm loathed to start working evening and the odd weekend, as this is something that i did years ago and I am quite happy having a 9-5 job, which is why I took the job in the first place. These new contracts have been in for a few years now, and anyone new starting gets put on these new contracts, but they have left those on the old contracts alone. Where do I stand? Is a change of hours deemed a change of contract? Can they make me go on one of these new contracts? Any advice greatly received. Bearmaggie :-?

My dad is currently claiming JSA after being made redundant after his employer went into liquidation. He has made a claim to JSA and after looking at what is out there job wise, has decided to re-train, as his current occupation industry is disappearing in the UK. In order to get new qualifications quickly, in order to get back into work quickly, he is paying to attend one of these quick training courses. The Jobcentre don't recognise this course, due to it being a sandwich type course, so are unwilling to pay towards it, which is fine. But can he still claim JSA whilst he is attending this course?? Without the Jobseekers he will have no other form of income and isn't entitle to tax credits because he isn't working at the moment. Any advice greatly appreciated.

Can an employer change your terms and conditions without having to amend / give you a new contract? For example, when I started working for my current employer in December 2005 and as far as I was aware I am entitled to 6 months full pay should I go off work sick. Due to an un-related work accident I now need time off work, but my manager has informed me that I am entitled to 3 months full pay. When I queried this with my manager, he informed me that depending on when you started working for the company, will depend on the length of sick pay you are entitled to. He has stated that my start date suggests that i only receive 3 months sick pay. But when i started working for the company I was given an induction book that stated 6 months (haven't got this now!) and also our HR intranet sites holds our terms and conditions and the only one that i can find also states 6 months. I have never been informed of the 3 months and nothing I have found or have access to states 3 months. All documents and advice on the company HR site state 6 months full pay. Where do I stand with regards to this? What should i go back and say to my manager?

It actually depends if you are on the 'new system' or 'old system'. On the old system, partner income can be taken into account. Under the new system, no partner income is taken into account whatsoever. The new system is based soley on income and the number of children you are paying for. If you're not sure which system you are on, you should be able to check on their website, or by looking at your reference number. 10 digit number for old system and 12 digit number for new system.

The job role is fixing things in customers houses. Generally they give you a postcode area to deal with. This means that you get all jobs in that area, but according to someone i know who already does this job with this company, they tend to deal with a larger area i.e. postcodes xx01, xx02, xx03 - in other words all postcodes within the xx area and you could go to any jobs in these postcode areas in a day, so i know the company doesn't restrict you to just one postcode area. Any advice on what i should say to them??

My dad found out about a job that was advertising for a traineeship based in a certain postcode area, (as an example xx01 postcode area), I live one mile away from this postcode area, so applied for the job. I know the company and how the company works and the job is on the road repairing in peoples houses. I've now received an email from the company advising that i my application has not been accepted due to me not living in the postcode area. I had stated on the online application form that i only lived a mile away from the postcode area that they were advertising for. Can they legally refuse my application because my home postcode is one mile away from their advertised postcode?? I'd like to challenge them on their refusal but would like to know where i stand before i do this. Any advice would be gratefully appreciated. Bearmaggie

My partner and I currently have a credit card with Capital One. The reason we chose this credit card a few years ago was due to the interest rate and the fact that they stated you would get that interest rate for the life of the card. They've now sent out a standard letter advising that they are increasing the interest rate from 5.6% to 9%. On the back of the letter are your options if you don't want to go on the new interest rate: Option 1 - Pay off full balance and close account Option 2 - Pay off balance monthly, but cut up card. Once balance paid off, close account. So not many options really if you don't want to go on the new credit card. Can they legally do this, as the offer on the credit card when we signed up guaranteed that interest rate for the life of the account. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Bearmaggie

I've checked the contract. It does not mention anything about renewal, or having to renew. The only thing it does mention is: "Renewal at the current club fee rate will be available to all customers rejoining prior to expiration of the membership'. The rest is all amount payments and late payments. It seems to be more like a credit agreement rather than a contract. So would i have to sign a new contract? Or just request that i pay on a monthly basis without signing anything?

I've been a member of a small gym for over a year now. I haven't managed to attend for a few weeks but when i returned this week and asked for an additional car pass (partner shares care, so sometimes have to use work car) i was advised that until i sign a new 12 month contract, that they will not give me a car pass. The thing is, they'd introduced new parking passes and they had advised me to bring my old one in and they would give me a new one plus an additional one that i needed. They have refused to give me a parking pass until i sign a new contract. The price has gone up slightly (by about £1.50 per month). My question is: I've still got a standing order set up, which continues to come out of my bank account, and they've not written to me or tried to amend/stop payments, or let me know that my contract has expired. Do i have to sign up to a new contract, or can i continue to just pay my subscription monthly without signing a contract? Where do i stand? Surely they can't force me to sign a contract? Or can they by saying i wouldn't be allowed to attend they gym?

Numerous colleagues in work, including myself have recently been told that we'll have to start working one Saturday in 4 (currently only work mon-fri). They advised that it is in our contract. We've checked our contracts and there is no mention of Saturday. Actually the opposite - it actually states our working days are mon-fri. Management are now saying that when the jobs were advertised it stated that Saturday working would be involved, therefore by accepting the job we have accepted that we might have to work on Saturdays. Can they do this, even though Saturday working is not metioned in our contracts? I've worked their 8 years, and the person with the least amount of service is 2 1/2 years. Hopefully someone will be able to help! Bearmaggie

Does anyone know of any legal forums were i might find some advice and guidance about a recall notice to prison. My friend is getting a recall notice to prison, unfairly. He was attacked in by 3 people in front of his pregnant girlfriend. His girlfriend rang the police as he was getting seriously hurt by these 3 men and a metal bar. My friend managed to escape but they ran after him. They threw the metal bar at him, which he picked up. At this point the police arrived and arrested my friend for having an offensive weapon. He was arrested and told he will be recalled to prison. So what i'm basically after is somewhere we can go for advice about this recall notice. My friends solicitor states basically tough there is nothing we can do. Any links or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Just to update everyone who replied to my post. I rang them back up requesting a copy of my contract, which they said they would send to me. I then rang again a day later, to clarify how much it would cost to cancel my contract. I was all of a sudden told that i wasnt tied into a contract, as the person who upgraded me at the time had failed to inform me that i was starting a new contract and had failed to then send the details of the contract and my cancellations right out in the post to me. So it seems that by ringing up and asking for a copy of my contract has made them realise that they had never sent me one! So now cancelled Virgin media and saved £250. Thanks everyone who responded. Bearmaggie

Unfortunately, under CSA law, it is your responsiblity to pay. The deduction from your wages would have been put on as you were not paying, even though they would have given you ample opportunity to do so. It is up to the customer to ensure that the payments are being made to the CSA, even though your employer is/was deducting them from your wages. The CSA say that you are liable for all payments, the fact that your employer deducted the money and then failed to forward them on is irrelevant to the CSA. Advice in the past has been to take your employer to the small claims court, or report them to the police for theft, cause that's exactly what they have done - taken YOUR money. Unfortunately, in your case, you do not know were your employer is. From your original post, it would seem that your employer was in financial difficulties (company closed), so was probably keeping hold of your money in the hope of keeping the company afloat.

CSA can take action if the father is failing to respond to their letters and/or is failing to pay. Under child support law it is a criminal offence to fail to provide information, as per Section 14A(3) of the child support act 1991. if a customer fails to provide information when requested to do so by the CSA, then criminal proceedings can be taken against him. I recommend your friend contacts the CSA and asks that a compliance inspector visit him if he is failing to provide information. if he is failing to make payments, then i suggest your friend ask the CSA to make a deduction from his earnings, or start enforcement action. Hope this helps

Can anyone help or provide advice. We've been with virgin media for the last 5 years (formerly NTL world). In January 2008 we changed our package. At the time we did this we were informed that the new package was for 12 months and we couldn't change our package again in those 12 months. We've now decided to sell our house and I've rang Virgin Media with the moving date, saying I want to cancel, as the area I am moving to is a non-cable area, therefore Virgin Media cannot provide digital TV. They've told me that i cannot cancel my "contract" as it is for 12 months, and it is not their problem that i am moving to a non-cabled area. I advised that they cannot supply me with the goods stated in the contract. They stated that they can provided me with "freeview" through a BT phoneline and broadband through a BT phoneline. I stated I didn't want freeview, but wanted a full TV package, which they can't provide. They have now stated that if i don't stay with them, i have to pay for the remainder of the "contract". Has anyone else had this problem? Can anyone advise me were i stand with this. Thanks in advance. Bearmaggie

Can anyone help with this. My parents are going to Syndey their route is - Manchester to Heathrow, Heathrow to Sydney via Singapore. They arrived at Manchester Airport and were told a few hours before their flight that it had been cancelled (no reasons given). They were told that a bus had been put on for them to take them to Heathrow. Because they were concerned about missing connecting flight they asked us to check if they would be put on a later flight to Sydney. After checking, it turns out that their flight from Manchester to Heathrow was NOT cancelled after all, but delayed by 4 hours, so according to flight times the plane will land BEFORE they arrive by coach. BA are now saying the flight was never cancelled, only delayed. So why put 30 odd people on a coach to Heathrow? Can anyone help with were my parents stand. They would have preferred to have a mooch round the airport for a few hours than sit on a coach. Plus the connection they missed has been replaced for them but this now means they have to sit in Heathrow for an extra 11 hours. Are they entitled to refunds, compensation, or anything else. What can we do about BA saying they never said it was cancelled only delayed. Quick responses would be great, as they are still on their way to Heathrow as i write!! Thanks Bearmaggie

Thanks for your responses. I've been in touch with Abbey, who state that Dyno Rod know full well that they won't accept a third party informing them of a claim, and Abbey are currently in the process of seeking legal advice. Abbey want to send out their own "approved" contractor to do CCTV survey, which i have agreed to, but advised that once this is done and they confirm what Dyno Rod said, that i then want Dyno Rod to do the work. They said they'll see what the results say. Thanks

Hi, this is my first posting, so go easy on me! We've had problems with our drains, as have next door. Our neighbour called our Dyno Rod, who put a camera down our man hole cover and next doors man hole cover. Dyno Rod have advised that the pipes have dropped, which means all waste is backing up (which it has been). Dyno Rod have advised that due to it being a shared drain, we are both liable for the cost of repairs. In order to ensure one company completed the work, Dyno Rod operate a system where you fill in an authority form and they have all the dealing with the insurance company on our behalf. It now turns out that our insurance company - Abbey are refusing to have anything to do with Dyno Rods claims handling dept - who are a branch of solicitors. Abbey are saying to the solicitors that we have to contact Abbey ourselves and inform them we want to make a claim and they will then get one of their "approved" contractors to do the work. The problem is that works needs to be done on both sides, so surely it would be best to have one company do all the work! Anyway, do i have to go with one of Abbey's "approved" contractors, or am i within my rights to say i want Dyno Rod to do the work? This claims handling solicitors have wrote to Abbey quoting case law - Davies v National Fire and Marine Insurance Co of New Zealand [1891] AC 485, PC Lord Hobhouse and also Barrett Bros (Taxis) Ltd v Davies [1996] WLR 1334. Abbey are now refusing to have any correspondence or accept any calls from the solicitors. The solicitors are now saying we should get the work done by Dyno Rod and they will claim the costs back via court! Anyone have any similar problems, or anyone able to help before i ring Abbey. Thanks.