I must have misunderstood the directions then. I really didn't think there was anything more I had to add apart from what was already in my defence anyway. Still, when I hadn't received anything from BW Legal/Lowell two weeks before the hearing, I started to suspect I had nothing to worry about. Lo and behold, this morning I received a Notice of Discontinuance. Yaaaaaaaaay! So it looks like it's all over (for now). You were right all along, they had nothing. Thank you so much for all your help, guidance and support guys! In hindsight, I think it was a bit out of order of that mediator to indicate that claimants tend to be successful in these cases and that they have the necessary paperwork. I felt like I was being bullied into co-operating. I thought they were supposed to be neutral and he sounded quite biased to me. I'm glad I stuck to my guns and refused to do it on the basis of no evidence. the outcome is a happy one for me and I hope it can serve as some encouragement to other forum users who are facing a similar conundrum. Thanks again!

My defence was submitted months ago. I didn't really have anything else to submit so, no, I haven't sent anything further.

Well, the directions state that documents that will be relied on at the hearing need to be submitted fourteen days prior. The hearing is on Friday 28 November and I still haven't received anything. As far as I'm concerned, they have not followed the directions so if they submit anything between now and then and the hearing still goes ahead, I'll have to request an adjournment as I have not had sufficient time to peruse the documents (if they have anything at all, that is).

Latest update: Notice of Allocation to the Small Claims Track (Hearing) dated 17 September 2014 received from the Court. The hearing will take place at 2:00 pm on 28 November 2014. If this really does go to court, I take it I just stick to my original defence. If EE Ltd doesn't even have a copy of an agreement then I doubt very much Lowell will have one. At any rate, they have to disclose soon anyway. I'm trying to find success stories on this forum about cases like mine (i.e. mobile phone debt) actually going to court but I must say, they seem pretty thin on the ground. It tends to be credit debt or the claimant has actually withdrawn before it goes to court, which I don't expect Lowell will do.

I had the mediation earlier this month and as expected, it was a complete waste of time. I can't possibly negotiate anything without knowing what evidence they have so it was a very short session. The mediator said that, in his experience, claimants will very rarely back down once they have paid their court fees and also that Lowell tends to have the necessary paperwork and are often able to prove that there is a debt due. I guess they would do that on the strength that bill payments were made and that there clearly was some agreement in force, even if it wasn't a credit agreement. That doesn't sound very promising. But still, if they have the evidence, why couldn't they just have sent it to me when I asked for it in my CPR request? It leads me to believe they could just be bluffing but after what the mediator said, I'm not so sure... It seems that for most people on this forum who have the same issue, the claimant has discontinued but, knowing my luck, I bet it will go all the way to court.

I have just picked up a voicemail from the mediation service people. They want to book a one hour slot for mediation some time next month. I know the aim of mediation is to come to a mutual agreement but I fail to see how this can be possible if Lowell/BW Legal can't produce the necessary paperwork. Until they do, mediation seems a bit pointless. During mediation, am I still OK to insist that they prove the debt is due? I don't want to come across as willfully contrary and agreeing to mediation under false pretences but as far as I'm concerned, it's all based on their say-so and that's not good enough.

Yes, you were right, I have now received a small claims directions questionnaire and also BW Legal's filled in questionnaire. They have ticked 'yes' to small claims mediation service. I'm guessing I'm supposed to say 'no' to this? If mediation is conducted over the phone, that would be a perfect opportunity for them to avoid disclosing any evidence so I don't think I'd want to go down that route.

Latest update on this case: 6.6.14 - Defence submitted on MCOL 10.6.14 - Letter from the Court acknowledging receipt of my defence 20.6.14 - Letter from BWLegal stating their client (Lowell) intends to continue with the claim 21.6.14 - undated letter received from EE Limited in response to my S.A.R. It consists of a bunch of bills, a discription of exhibit (customer account notes) and a letter confirming they do not hold copies of credit agreements or customer contracts. Nor do they have recordings of telephone conversations and they do not send default notices. they don't really have anything. BWLegal/Lowell may of course just be bluffing and hoping I will fold. Surely they must disclose whatever evidence they have of any debt due prior to a hearing. If this really ends up going to court and they disclose it all then, I'd have to ask for an adjournement as I haven't had a chance to peruse any of it. If they DO have the required documentation, would it really have been so hard to just send it when I asked for it in my CPR request? It kind of leads me to suspect they, like EE Ltd, don't really have anything either.

Ok, I guess it won't make any difference whether I mention it more than once in the defence, then. For the sake of simplicity, I may just let point 2 do the talking on that score and leave it as it is. But the bit about the consumer credit act in point 4 can be removed, right?

You mean in point 4 of the defence, right? To be honest, I was a bit dubious about that one and wondered why it was in there but thought maybe this is a defence that can be used for credit debt, too. I'll remove that bit before I submit it.

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. It certainly won't do any harm mentioning it.

I just find it a bit odd that they haven't replied. I know they have received my cpr request. Other people have received at least a standard template reply.

Thanks, andyorch, I will leave it out, then. There's still nothing in the post from BW Legal. I'm inclined to believe this means that they don't have anything and that's good, right? The date of the claim is 6.5.14 so by my reckoning, the defence needs to be filed by end of 7.6.14. Is this correct? Well, I'm going on holiday then anyway, so will probably do it on 6.6.14

I posted the CPR and S.A.R to the solicitors and original creditor, respectively, on 22.5.14. Electronic proof of receipt of both was available on 27.5.14. I would say the seven days are up for the CPR. I have had no reply whatsoever, not even a standard template letter. Still, I need to submit my defence soon. I have found one on another thread I think I can use, although our particulars of claim were slightly different. You've probably seen this a few times by now: 1. Paragraph 1 is neither admitted or denied with regards to the defendant entering into an agreement referred to in the Particulars of Claim (‘the Agreement’) the Claimant has yet to disclose any such agreement. 2. Paragraph 1 is denied with regards to the Defendant owing any monies to the Claimant the claimant has failed to provide any evidence of assignment/balance/breach as requested by CPR 31. 14 and the Claimant is put to strict proof to: (a) show how the Defendant has entered into an agreement with the Claimant; and (b) show how the Defendant has reached the amount claimed for; and © show how the Claimant has the legal right, either under statute or equity to issue a claim; 3. As per Civil Procedure Rule 16.5(4), it is expected that the Claimant prove the allegation that the money is owed. 4. On the alternative, if the Claimant is an assignee of a debt, it is denied that the Claimant has the right to lay a claim due to contraventions of Section 136 of the Law of Property Act and Section 82A of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. 5.Notwithstanding the above should the alleged amount claimed include an early termination charge(s) amounting to the entire balance of the remaining contract, OFCOM guidance states that any Early Termination Charge that is made up of the entire balance of the remaining contract is unlikely to be fair as it fails to take into account the fact that the provider no longer has to provide and pay for their service. 6. By reason of the facts and matters set out above, it is denied that the Claimant is entitled to the relief claimed or any relief. I believe that the facts stated in this claim are true. What do you think? Would it be OK to use this? I think the very last sentence implies that I think the claim is correct and I do NOT want to give that impression.

Okidoki, to the solicitors it goes, then. And the S.A.R to EE Limited. The defence is a different story, though, and by my reckoning it needs to be filed with the court by 7 June 2014. Many of these mobile phone threads here have many things in common so I think I'll end up using applicable aspects from other defendants' defences. Thanks for all your help so far!

Thanks for your replies, guys. DX, I might be misunderstanding you here but why would I send an S.A.R or CPR request to the court? Surely they should go to the original creditor/claimant/solicitor? Yes, the bill was disputed and relevant documents requested back in 2009. The request was acknowledged but never fulfilled. I believe the last bill that was paid was April 2009. Ford, I already found the template for the CPR 31.14 request, thank you. I've already edited it to suit my case so should be ready to go tomorrow or Friday. I will send it to the claimant rather than the claimant's solicitors. Should I not bother with an S.A.R. to EE Limited (formerly T-Mobile) then?

Hi, it's been a few years since I was on this forum and with your help successfully contested a Statutory Notice (I think that's what it was called). This time, I've received a court claim from Lowell Portfolio 1 Ltd (BW Legal is the agent acting on their behalf and to whom documents etc should be sent) regarding an old T-Mobile bill (from around May/June 2009). The bill contains ridiculously high roaming charges and an early redemption fee. The account was actually used by my husband but we never bothered changing the names over so I'm the one stuck with it:-x. We did dispute the bill back in 2009 and were promised all relevant paperwork to be sent to us but this never transpired (I still have proof of posting these letters and proof of receipt of some of them as they were sent Recorded Delivery). Since then there have been numerous letters and phone calls from various agencies (some letters I even binned or returned to sender) and now they've finally issued a claim against me. I have already registered with MCOL and acknowledged the claim online. The particulars of claim are as follows: Date of issue: 6 May 2014 (Northampton County Court Business Centre) The claimant's claim is for the sum of £831.14 being monies due from the defendant to the claimant under a non-regulated communications agreement between the defendant and EE Limited (formerly T-Mobile UK Ltd) under account xxxxxxxx and assigned to the claimant on 8/11/2013 notice of which has been given to the defendant. The defendant failed to maintain the contractual payment under the terms of the agreement and a default notice has been served and not complied with. The claim also includes statutory interest pursuant to section 69 of the County Courts Act 1984 at a rate of 8.00% per annum (a daily rate of 0.18 from the date of assignment of the agreement to the date of issue () being an amount of £31.86 Added to this amount are £60 court fee and £70 solicitor's fee so total amount is £961.14. I'm guessing my next step should be to send an S.A.R to EE Limited and a CPR 14.31(?) to BW Legal? I still have the template for the S.A.R so will use that but could someone please help me with the template for the CPR? I'll have a look around the forum for it but, you know, just in case I can't find it. Do I need to include payment for that one as well? Then I'll need to formulate my defence, which doesn't give me a lot of time. I guess I could check out the defence of similar cases on here and, if it applies, use it myself. The only other thread I have found on the forum so far, with the same particulars of claim as me, stopped dead before the defence was posted so I've no idea what happened in the end. I would be eternally grateful if anyone has any further advice to offer on this.

Still, you did way better than I did! I couldn't find ANY! I think it's worth a try, although I'm sure I'll just get some bog standard automated reply saying their charges are totally fair.

Thanks for posting that letter, Landy. I've been asking on the forum if there is a template letter I can send re reclaiming mortgage charges but haven't really got a definite answer. I think I might give it a go using your letter as a template. Thanks again!

Just an update; last week I sent letters (Recorded Delivery) to both BCW and T-Mobile, disputing the amount. BCW clearly seem unaware of the fact that their pursuit of the debt needs to stop while the matter is being investigated as they have now, as expected, sent a "Legal Notification" letter threatening with court action and then, if there is continuing non-payment, an attachment of earnings or bailiffs seizing my assets. Should this actually go to court, my counter argument would have to be that I'm disputing the amount. Oh, and they're still harassing me at work. Does anyone know which bodies I can complain to regarding BCW's conduct?

Thanks again Buzby! My husband, who is the one who has been using the account, did query it back in May/early June on a few occasions (by phone) and they said they would send a breakdown explaining the charges. We never received a thing and now they say they have no record of him ever contacting them about this. I'll send the request in writing this time. I don't feel too hopeful about it. I can but try. And I'll write to BCW and let them know that the amount is in dispute. Doubt it'll do any good though, I know they will still keep harassing me at work. Then they'll grow tired of that tactic and probably send a court summons.

There's no ongoing arrangement in place(apart from the usual mortgage payments), the arrears were cleared about 3 years ago. However, the resulting charges have just been sitting there since, festering. I don't think any more charges have been added to this. Does anyone know how to go about claiming back these charges? CanI use the same template as the one for claiming back bank charges?

Thanks very much for the reply, Buzby. OK, so we've established that they don't need to provide an enforceable agreement or a default notice but what about a notice of assignment? I've no idea if this company ligitimately owns this debt and they have been unwilling to prove it so far. Actually, it's not really the agreement I'm disputing, it's the amount. I should be very interested to know how it could have mysteriously grown by several hundred pounds in just a couple of months (the account was suspended in July 09) even if the phone wasn't being used. I think I will still ask T-Mobile for a breakdown and an explanation to these excessively high charges. Do you think it would be a good idea, while I'm waiting for T-Mobile's answer (if I ever get it:rolleyes:), to write to BCW with an income and expenditure form and make an offer of monthly repayments?

After reading this thread, I'm still not clear on how to go about reclaiming the charges on my mortgage. Can I just use the same template letter as with bank charges, just making certain adjustments? Just for the record, I am no longer in arrears but the charges that were applied during the time I was in arrears are substantial and in my (and probably most people's) opinion they are highly excessive and disproportionate. Also, the mortgage company keeps calling and writing, chasing me to clear the charges.

I had an account with T-Mobile which my husband took over a few years ago (although the account stayed in my name, unfortunately). We went abroad in May this year and got quite a shock when we saw the May phone bill. The roaming charges were highly excessive and my husband challenged T-Mobile about them, although they claim they have no record whatsoever of him doing this. Before we know it, they have passed the (now even bigger) debt to Buchanan Clark & Wells who have been quite unpleasant in their pursuit. So far they have sent: 1. Formal Demand 2. Final Notice 3. A letter saying a copy of the documentation will be sent to me directly by the client (although I had not yet asked for anything) 4. A letter addressed to me (using a wrong initial) saying I need to give written consent that this person with the wrong initial can discuss the account on my behalf. (I presume the wrong initial is a typo and what they really mean is that I need to give written permission if I want my husband to duscuss the account with them). 5. They have called me at work on at least five occasions, being very argumentative. I have written to them since (sent recorded) and asked for a copy of the original agreement, a valid Notice of assignment and a valid Default Notice. They were adamant that they needed no such thing. I was quite surprised at this. Can this be right? Do they not need ANY of the above? Don't they need any proof of any kind? From what I read on some of these threads, I get the impression that these kinds of contracts are governed by different rules than your bog standard credit debt. They also claimed that they could not discuss my account in writing due to the Data Protection Act, it all had to be conducted via telephone. I find this absolutely shocking! I made it quite clear that I was not willing to discuss ANYTHING over the phone and that I found it highly inappropriate that they contacted me at work. Surely it is not unreasonable to expect that any correspondence regarding this should be in writing? I'm really unsure what to do next. Does anyone have any ideas? Would a complaint to T-Mobile be the best solution or should I just offer a repayment plan to Buchanan to stop their harassment?