Well no big suprise... my case has been stayed until September... Surely just putting off these cases until a future date is just storing up a bigger workload for the future, as the number of cases is not likely to decrease. Maybe they're hoping that there will soon be a test case and judgement or something concrete that they can use to give a blanket response???

Hi all, I've not had anything through from the courts yet... which is so frustrating as I'm dashing to get the post when I get home each evening! Disappointment every day Emma

Hi everyone, Can whoever is first of us 'Southend' lot to hear from the courts please report back, as I suspect we may all get the same treatment - surely each case won't be given 100% individual attention? Thanks! Emma

Just looking elsewhere and found the following post... (hope this pastes ok?) 7th June 2007, 14:24 #1 puzz1ed1 Basic Account Customer Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 16 Courts can't cope with volume of claims Had a notice from Basildon County Court this morning to say the case was being transferred to Southend County Court - so phoned both to see what was going on. Basildon have transferred all their bank charge related cases to Southend as they are not a big enough court to handle them. Southend are holding all claims until 27 June as there as so many and "the District Judge would never get anything else done if he looked at them as they came in, so is leaving them all to one side and will spend the day looking at them all". The Clerk I spoke to also suggested that the Judge is hoping one of the banks might defend a claim as this will change how they are all handled, yet admitted it is unlikely. So back to the waiting game. Wonder where it'll be transferred to next? When Abbey filed it was for Hull CC and then moved to Basildon when I challenged it. Won't be able to get to Southend due to disability anyway, so that could be interesting....

Hi Carolyn, Mine's still quite new compared to yours, I filed with MCOL 24th April. I'd love to know what the outcome has been on cases that the 'expert' judge has previously dealt with? Presumably he must have to be considered an expert. And his he really going to read through all 400 and deal with each individually, or will he take the basic principle and judge on the shared argument - ruling the same for all cases? Good luck back to you!! Em

Hi, As a lot of cases have been, my claim has also been transferred to Southend. So what are the thoughts on this...? I'm just not sure what I think about 400+ cases dealt with in bulk - is this a good thing (i.e. sympathetic judge, wants to see justice for us ) or a bad thing (judge feels we're wasting court time and sides with the banks )??? Hmmnnn.... Also, I've not filed any AQ or bundle, as the court direction stated that the judge has ordered not required... Emma

Right, Abbey have now filed a defence and posted me a copy. Should I type it up and post it here or not? I did previously contact the Northampton / MCOL courts as you suggested Lula and they said... "If the defendant in your claim files a defence, it will be transferred to your local court to be listed for a hearing. At this point you would receive correspondence with the court of transfer details, you can then send your supporting documentation to them." The following is from my MCOL, so I think I should prepare my court bundle ready for my local court... again, will they ask for it or do I just send everything, as soon I know where it's been allocated? Do I send copies to the Abbey too - I think I'm supposed to? Lastly, and sorry for stupid q's, is the court bundle everything listed within the court zip file available within this site (obviously amended with my details) or is it only certain things, peculiar to each case? You are unable to take any further action online on this claim. The Defendant disputes the whole amount you have claimed. Your claim cannot proceed online and will be transferred to the appropriate court for continuation. You will receive confirmation to where the claim has been transferred to shortly.

Quick update... Abbey have now acknowledged my claim, so buying themselves a bit longer to respond. Their deadline to defend or admit is now 21st May 2007. Should I expect a defence then - from what I've seen this seems to be their usual practise. I take it that when they submit a defence I'll be contacted and advised the case has been sent to my local court and that is where I should send my supporting evidence i.e. schedule of charges? Thanks, Emma

Hi all, Well my claim has now been accepted and officially issued . My next question is... when and where do I send my schedule of charges and interest? Will I recieve a request for it from someone or should I send it to the court address on the Claim Form? Or is it too early and will someone ask for it later? I can't find the answer to this - am probably looking in the wrong places Many Thanks, Emma

Hi Everyone, I've just submitted my MCOL (FINALLY!! had personal problems, so this got put on the back burner) which is being reviewed before being accepted. The details are: £ 2,572.00 charges (Oct-2001 to May-2005) £ 871.46 interest at 8% from date of charge £ 120.00 court fees £ 0.76 interest per day from date of MCOL claim This is for 2 Abbey accounts (1 joint, 1 in my name only) that were held by me and my husband, but which are both now closed. Wish me luck... Emma

Hi bill-k, No I don't mind at all. It's my understanding that they are not allowed to hold personal information about you after this time because they hold no interest and therefore no right or reason (i.e. you don't have any agreement with them). This is to regulate against organisations accumulating huge great databases of information about anyone who has ever come into contact with them. No-one has the right to hold personal info about you (dob, addresses, bank details) without your consent - that consent being given when you sign up for credit. So it's my interpretation that if they still have details of your transactions 7 years after the account was closed then they have broken data protection legislation and that should also be addressed. Now I think I'm right on this, but if anyone wants to correct me please do. HTH Emma

Hi Bankfodder, I've just been flicking through this lengthy thread and you probably know this already or it may not be of any interest, but under data protection / data retention law once a financial agreement has closed, the lender can only hold records (in any media, hardcopy or softcopy, incl. backups) of the account for between 5 to 7 years (depending on the type of account). I only know this because my occupation is in doc management and one of our customers is a finance provider. So I think anyone who's account was closed pre-1999 would not be able to get copies of their statements anyway... As I said, you probably know this already, but I thought I'd let you know. Cheers

Hi Zootscoot, I don't know the breakdown yet. I've sent them my new address details and included a request for a breakdown, keeping the request very simple and sweet at the moment - maybe they will not know what I want it for yet and perhaps give it to me. However, I am poised to write the next request far more sternly. I was reading through their loan literature and it included a table showing the early repayment calculations; I'm sure it was about £1k per month for a loan of my size and repayment this early. That is sickening, however until I know what this is for I cannot know whether it is reasonable. I will check this table again, wait for their reply and come back to you. Thanks... Emma

Hi, Thanks for your reply. Does anyone else have any thought's on this scenario? Cheers, Emma

Hi All, This is my first post, so thought I'd say a hello and big thank you to everyone that contributes to the site. Today I've been reading through posts from people who are trying to contest ERC's, as I've just sold my house and so cleared by FirstPlus loan which was secured against it. Now I knew that settling this loan always going to be a difficult pill to swallow - handing over all that money, but I took out the loan when I was desperate. Anyway, I'm now wondering whether there is any case to be brought to claim that their fees are exorbitant??? The details of my loan are as follows: Loan Amount - £30,000 Term - 25 years / 300 months APR - 8.9% PPI - None Monthly Payment - £243.00 Total Monthly Payments Made - £5,346 Estimated Interest Accrued - £4,895 (this is my guess-timate) Start Date - 01/02/2005 Account Settled - 17/11/2006 Settlement Amount - £30,433.23 As set out in their settlement letter: Total amount payable under the Agreement £48373.48 Less our rebate on early settlement -£18090.25 Plus administration charge £150 Total amount payable by you to settle £30433.23 So, does anyone have any thoughts or wisdom they can offer me? Am I just stupid for having taken out that loan, or can I recoup any of my losses? Have they been unfair...? Any advice gratefully received!

I can't believe that I might be able to claim my bank charges back! This is amazing and definately worth a try. You're all so impressive and knowing what might happen is really reassuring . I want to move soon and need to reduce my debt quickly and this would really help, plus I'm really annoyed at my bank (First Direct) for the last charge - £25 for being over my overdraft limit for approximately 18 hours by £9!!! I think they;re taking advantage I will report back when I've sent my first letter...