I've submitted a sig...but seems to me we need wider publicity for this campaign. Can we put it on our facebook pages for all to sign (or is that a breach of some law given how little our rights seem to count these days??)

ok to update quickly, I have sent a letter to the Financial Ombudsman who agreed that if the £85 charge was not given then they will take it up as a case. Also have sent the 1st instalment to the HIP company involved stating in my letter that I will pay the £25 fee on top of the HIP costs and as it wasn't mentioned in their contract then clearly I must have been misinformed by their advisor Will have to wait and see now I guess.

Hi Conniff Apologies been away for a while and have just returned to the thread. I think we need to clarify what the terminology 'government departments' covers. My comments are purely based on Local Government authoritys, who by the whole are at the mercy of Central Government too. LA's receive a pot of money - for all their services which then has to be divided up amongst the different departments and the expenditure spent/accounted for. I can't comment on DVLA as have no knowledge on that. However, LA's should not make a profit, they are spending tax payers money on services, and are not a commercial business per se making profit. However as per my previous post - they do this un-officially by making 'efficiency savings' ie awardinbg contracts to cheaper contractors which have been put through the tendering process. I'm saying that as a result of that, costs are less....therefore a saving is made (blurry fudged way of them saying..profit). However their remit is to be non profit making ie...not to use public funding to make profit. Subtle difference in spin...same bloomin outcome....but if you are to ask any local authority, they will inform you they are non profit making as a result ....wheels within wheels

Hi again Chanduck Firstly don't panic, always remember that they are employed with public funding..ie taxpayers money (yours and mine!) I can understand your concerns wholly but I would definately get in touch with your local MP straight away and highlight your parents plight to him/her. These people are paid to represent the local constituents..and believe me, they can certainly be a pain in the backside for local authoritys when they get involved. Most local authoritys know that Joe Public just usually accepts their word as god....so they can adopt the 'well thats the way it is - like it or lump it tactic'. However, if local Mp's get involved, particluarly in a case such as yours where payment wasn't refused - just not on the day that they wanted - then please be assured any local MP worth their salt will love to get their teeth into this one to help their constituent out....let's face it...they are all about good local PR...thats what gets them votes...so they want to help you...because...yes you guessed it .....it gets them extra votes!!LOL! Now on the other side of the fence...local government usually has the opinion that local MP's are busy body meddlers who are just put on the face of this earth to make the councils life difficult.....so any involvement of a local MP will ensure that: a) The councils methodolody is under scrutiny..ie if they have behaved inapproriately then they will be in the poo! b) You get a fair hearing of your complaint with the back up of someone who can make waves, take you case up and give your folks the support they need...and who won't be bullied So all in all, this in the first instance would definately be your best option. I suspect once the revenues team receive a call/letter from the local MP then they will swiftly rethink their stance and become more ameniable. And one final thing....I know this because as I mentioned previously...I have been on the receiving end.....and I have knowledge of how LA's operate and their inefficiency and inconsistency... IMHO -Go do it - you really have nothing to lose but will have a valuable ally on your side - also if your parents are elderly and therefore vulnerable...all the better...just give the Local MP the bit to chomp on and stand back, watch and enjoy Hope this has helped to reassure -Good Luck and let us know how this progresses SP

On another note also - Can anyone tell me please how to subscribe to my thread here as I'm currently scrolling back pages to find it? (oh dear!) Thanks so much All

Hi Coniff/Chanduck Just to clarify, whilst I do agree totally that the above is awful and I myself have had the pleasure of a liability order (following nervous breakdown!!) I can confirm that central government do not ask councils to be 'profit making'. It is public service funding and any local authority has to be seen to be 'non profit making' - That said, if they make 'efficiency savings' then all be it saving money that doesn't count as 'profit'.....just 'savings'....laughable I know! I whole heartedly agree, there should be tighter monitoring controls on different local authoritys as I'm sure there are lots of inconsistencies, depending who you talk to and which LA is involved. In this case I would argue that tax payers money has been wasted by the local authority in bringing this case to court.....therefore they are misusing public funds for people who DO pay, just not on the given date the council have decided they should...which is a terrible abuse of their powers. I would also consider going to your local MP - local councils hate ANY interference by local MP's....and local press highlighting your poor parents plight. Believe me, these will be THE most effective route for you to take to create 'waves' in that departmentment and get someone to accept responsibility there for this appalling situation. I hope the above helps in some small way, please keep us updated of your progress. Take Care PS

Hi kregrs, I had a recent experience with council tax arrears too and would suggest you either write or arrange to go and meet the revenues section at your local council asap. If the debt gets to the stage where it's passed to a bailiff then it is very difficult then to negotiate a reduced/staged payment whereas the council may be able to offer say a £1 a month repayment plan. Hope this helps PS

Another thought I just had was - would it be wise to involve perhaps the Financial Ombudsman Service to see if they can offer any assistance with the charges?

Righto, I have the paperwork infront of me now and it is very interesting to say the least - amount for HIP £446.50 (agreed). However, it then goes on to say the following: Please be aware that in the event you cancel your direct debit mandate before the funding has been repaid in full that the total amount of funding outstanding including a default fee of £25 will become immediately due. The following fees may apply: Late payment/default fee of £25 A Mid term adjustment fee of £10 (should additional funding be required) So, it would seem if I am correct that their £85 fee isn't in line with what they are quoting. I am more than happy to pay the £25 as I believe that to be fair. Thoughts anyone please?

Hi All Thanks for that advice which I hadn't considered about replacing my bank card. I'll also dig out the agreement as I'm sure it doesn't mention anything about £85 there. To be honest if they said it was for example £20 to £25 I would have thought well fair enough, but the £85 just seems so excessive. Plus he was quite menacing on the phone saying they will take the money anyway, I felt very vulnerable and then upset. I'll dig the HIP details out now and report back later. Thanks again to everyone for lending their thoughts and support, PS

Well I'm not sure where to begin with this so here goes.... August last year (2008) I decided to put my house on the market, was given all the spiel by estate agent ---oh yes we know the market is slow but we think we can achieve a sale and in a reasonable amount of time... So they recommended a HIP through a company they use....which I agreed to on a deferred payment basis ie the charges becoming due 12 months later (which would be end of August 2009). Since taking this out my relationship has ended so I am now a one income household, have fought off repossession, repaid council tax arrears and suffered severe financial hardship as a result. I have written to the HIP company stating that I am unable to pay the £430 in one go and offering £100 per month starting August (which is leaving me broke but I considered this debt a higher priority than credit card debts). Yesterday I received a telephone call from a very rude man at the said company saying they have received my letter - and would agree to the £100 per month but to do this there would be an additional charge of £85!! When I explained that this additional charge wouldn't help as I was already experiencing financial hardship he basically said well tough - if you dont agree to that then we will debit the full amount anyway from the debit card you gave us when you took out the HIP. I'm wondering what my rights are if any on this, I'm not refusing to pay, naturally if I had the money I would but feel that both his attitude and the additional £85 charge are unfair and disproportionate. Help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated - I just dont see how the £85 additional charge can be justified? Thanks so much PS

Hi again, I'm back in the land of the semi living (piggy flu) and ready to do battle again with these people who are making my life a misery. Does anyone please have a suggestion of what my defence letter to the court should contain? I'm so new at this I'm worried I will completely say the wrong thing in it without some help. Also, suggestions on what I should send the DCA in response to the agreement would be greatly appreciated - sorry I feel so daft as have spent since 5.00am lost on other threads looking for the information. Thanks so much -any advice is greatly appreciated as I'm tearing my hair out now here

polite bump

Hello again, I've been given the following information re the Particulars of Claim: The Claimants claim is for the sum of XXX being monies due from the Defendant to the Claimant under a regulated credit agreement between MBNA Europe Bank Limited under ref no XXXXXX and assigned to the Claimant on the 22nd January 2009 notice of which has been given to the defendant. The defendant has failed to make payment in accordance with the terms of the agreement and a default notice has been served upon the defendant pursuant to Section 87 (1) of the Consumer Credit act 1974. The claimant claims the sum of xxx. In addition to this there are £55 court fees and £70 solicitor costs.... My first CCA request to MBNA was back on 18th November 2008 (which they ignored) then the subsequent one was on 10th March - follow on letter advising them they were in breach of request sent -no response. Then on 16th July received from Lewis Group illegible CCA and unenforceable as does not contain prescribed terms..... Clearly now I am aware of the court claim I need to respond to them - but am also needing to respond to Lewis. At the point where I'm wondering whether a solicitors letter from myself may be worth considering?? Thank you for you advice and time again - only thingkeeping me sane at the minute with this darned flu PS

Hello, Well I've grabbed the bull by the horns and telephoned CL and Lewis -they have confirmed they have issued a claim against me and given me the claim details. Have also just telephoned the court and advised them that I had not received any notification of the claim, and that the account was in dispute awaiting a complete CCA. The court have suggested I should file a defence letter to them stating this - they have also confirmed that CL have not taken the claim any further at this point?? Does this mean a judgement has been made (sorry but my knowledge of court processes is limited) or just that they have issued a claim? Either way I need to prepare a defence letter for the court - and also yet another request for a complete CCA showing full terms, credit limit and interest to CL. Does anyone have any useful pointers for templates they can recommend please? Cheers and thanks again PS