Hi All,

I have recieved this today and need some advice on what I need to do.

From Cardiff County court ( I had a letter earlier this week to say my case was being transffered)

"IT IS ORDERED THAT:

1 DIRECTIONS WILL BE GIVEN IN THIS CASE BY THE DESIGNATED CIVIL JUDGE, HIS HONOUR XXXXX AND DATE.

2 THE PARTIES MAY APPEAR IN PERSON OR MAKE WRITTEN REPRESENTATIONS AS TO HOW THE CASE SHOULD PROCEED PROVIDED A COPY OF THE REPRESENTATIONS IS SENT TO THE COURT AND THE OTHER SIDE AT LEAST 7 DAYS PRIOR TO THE HEARING."

I have been in touch with DG solicitors re: settlement cheque and they say HSBC have to credit my account in order to debit it with a cheque. I no longer have a current account with them as it was closed as part of the original agreement. they say that they envisage us recieving a cheque within 7-10 days but I now only have the managed loan account with them and do not want the money to be paid into this where it will be swallowed ( if possible) Could I suggest that they make the payment into my other bank account by transfer? What should I do about the court order. I have told DG that I would not stop proceedings untill money has been recieved.

I may be wrong ( but do'nt worry cos someone cleverer than me will answer as well) but I would have thought that a copy of power of attorney and claiming as your sons representitive would suffice.

I would'nt be in too much of a rush to send the LBA. IF they have said they are looking into it, then by all means sent letters, faxes, make phone calls to hurry them up but let them answer your letter. It will probably say that there is no claim and their charges are justified ( mine did), but later on they will make you an offer, possibly after the LBA, which will show your not satisied with their response. A first refusal letter could give you leverage if they later make an offer. Effectively they are going against their own statments. Take more time to read through as many HSBC threads as you can from start to finish. You will find that most if not all follow the same sort of path. I am awaiting a final payment from DG solicitors and by following the step-by-step guide, its been a bit of a roller coaster ride...but it as all happened as the guide said it would. Keep copies of everything and keep refering back to previous correspondence when you write to them. This shows them that you are in control and aware of whats going on. I would'nt quote too many laws at them unless you have a full understanding yourself. Just refer to that which is mentioned in the template letters. Do not give them the oportunity to bury you in the legal stuff!

What ever you do, don't get flustered! Research all you can and show that you know what you want. And when in doubt.........ask!

Hi Irish red,

I would say beware of MBNA's kindness in providing charges info. They did this to me first offering £300 off the balance ( and only taking off £150 ) and after calculating from the charges sheet they gave me, when I sent a schedule to them they offered a further £500. All goodwill payments. However, out of interest thinking that my claim had been paid in full, I recalulated my charges with contractual interest at a nominal figure just to see and by my reckoning they still owe me a few hundred quid. Push them for the other £300 but bare in mind that without the balance info and interest rates you have been charged you cannot properly assess what they owe.

I think most people who have claimed from HSBC and others have sent a schedule of charges from the prelim stage. It shows them from the start that you mean business and know exactly what you are after. As I see it, they do not want to pay and yes they are already aware of the charges, but you have to let them know what you want. The closer to the maximum claimable your are, the more your first offer will be.

If they file a defence you will recieve a copy of it along with the AQ. Make sure it gets back to the courts in good time. And wait again. You will then get a letter from solicitors.

Hi all,

I hope they're as good as their word and I don't want to speak too soon but DG have offered to pay the rest of my claim........including the interest making a total settlement.

They wrote to ask us to settle for the original £2000 and did'nt even seem to know that the case had passed the AQ stage or that they had a copy of the AQ sitting in the office. They wanted to know why we would no longer settle for the £2000. Sent them copies of letters to show that HSBC had not stuck to the timscales I'd given them and they sent a settlement form for the remaining £1,415. We have sent the form back and added that we would not inform the court until funds have been recieved. They would have had the reply by Thursday but have heared nothing yet. How long do they usually take?

I have asked them for a cheque payment as my HSBC account is now closed but hey! even if they pay it off the managed loan its big victory for me ...........and all thanks to CAG.

Hi all,

does anyone have an email address for Rachel Tomlinson at DG solicitors please?

Do they still owe you much more then? Did they actually pay the two amounts into your account?

hi Bigmama,

Not a great deal more. On my letters to them I have 1st asked them for charges ( £300). Then pointed out that at court the would halso have to pay 8% at court ( £546). the origional claim is all but paid but I have now asked them to tell me whether they are giving me "goodwill" which I understand to be recompence for my disatisfaction. Or whether they are reimbursing me for charges. |i have now pointed out that if I take them to court I could charge a contractual rate @ 15.9% or higher. I have asked them to respond by supplying me with the highest rate of interest I have paid. Or a copy of all the interest and balances ( as they only supplied a list of charges). Or to calculate the amount for me and send me a varifiable copy. I want them to admit they are charges. But if I do have to go to court, I also want them to produce "avoidance letters" to give me some evidence.

Besides..... I'm enjoying winding them up!

I would write to them and thank them for their goodwill payment. and inform them that when you recieve the full info on your accounts you will send them details of what they owe you.

I have had two similar letters from MBNA.

The first time I wrote back they cridited my accound with £300 and the second time I wrote sending the schedule they offered a further £546.00.

I pointed out that I did not ask for "Goodwill" just my charges back.

I am awaiting their 3rd. response.

I would send them an up to date schedule with all the charges on and a letter to tell them that if you have to start a court claim you will request that all charges up to the hearing will be reclaimed. If this is happening regularily, you may wish to open a parachute account so you can stop charges.

It would probably be best to know exactly what you can claim form the outset but if it is the preliminary letter you are refering to then you can add the difference to your LBA and schedule. If you have already sent these, I would write to tell them that now you have recieved the full info the amount has changed to £XXXX and include a schedule of charges.

Yes, I think one by one would be best!

I have just started negotiation with MBNA and already they reduced my card balance by £800. It does get time consuming though if only keeping up with correspondance.

No its only from 2001. I took it to be referring to relief from charges. Incidentally, they have already paid £2000 which I have as a copy of online statement that states "refund of charges". I was hoping that this means they may have shot themselves in the foot!

Hi buba 01,

I'm fairly new too!

Lori1 is right about reading!

I am at the AQ stage now with HSBC and so far everything has happened as this site said it would. I have already got them to pay up part of my claim and I hope to get the rest. It is a busy site. And there are a lot of posts new posts now on a nightly basis. When your are ready to start your claim, your post WILL be answered by somebody with greater knowledge than I, but thats whats great about this site......everyone tries to help where they can!

Welcome.

Thanks again Bong,

I only wondered because it does'nt seem to me like they've put a lot of effort into it! Hope that means they will pay no problem!

Hi Gostew,

Also, start a thread in the forum for the bank/s your claiming from.

And good luck from me too!

Thank you Bong!

1 The Claimant’s account is governed by the Defendants personal and/or business banking terms and conditions.

2 Pursuant to the Defendant’s terms and conditions the Defendant is entitled to make a charge for it’s services as set out in the Defendant’s price list, including an overdraft review fee for considering whether to provide and providing and overdraft.

3 The defendant denies that the charges applied to the Claimants account amount to penalties at common law and /or unfair contract terms for the purposes of the Unfair Terms in Costumer Contracts Regulations 1999 (UTCCRs).

4 The charges applied to the Claimant’s account are reasonable and are properly and fully disclosed in the Defendant’s terms and conditions and published price list. The charges represent the contractually agreed price for the services provided and the UTCCRs are not applicable to them; alternatively, they are not unfair contrary to the UTCCRs. Further, the charges are not default charges and, accordingly, cannot amount to a penalty.

5 Save as set out above, each and every allegation made by the Claimant is denied. For the reasons set out above, it is denied that the Claimant is entitled to the relief claimed or any relief.

Statement of truth

The defendant believes the matters set out in this Defence to be true. I am duly authorised by the defendant to sign this defence on its behalf.

As a matter of interest...Has he kept his side of the bargain?

Any points/damage you have raised with he should have taken care of.

There are statutory regulations which landlords must comply with and he is responsable for regardless of who caused the damage. A damaged fire door for example is ineffective in a fire and it is his responsibility not yours to ensure items such as these are servicable. Wear and tear is to be expected after five years. there would be no need for him to employ cleaning contractors if you clean it yourself to a professional standard. ( take before and after photos). Also photograph all the defects in the property now before he has a chance to fix them and these maybe used to your advantage if needed.

Did he supply any equipment with the property?

You should have had a mutually agreed inventory of the contents and defects of what was there when you moved in ( signed by both of you).

Did he comply with regulations regarding gas/electrical/fire inspections?

If is being unreasonable........ you could report him to the local authority/HSE.

And if justified I guarantee he would'nt want this. But get the evidence before you approach him. HSE website will have all safety regs he should have met and your local authority will be able to telll you about non safety issues aswell.

Here's one that may interest you!

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/general/53084-charges-peeps-benefit.html?highlight=benefits

Good luck!

I agree with Boobaby!

Whether it's worth going to court for depends on how determined you are, but check that these are not the only charges you can claim for...... If you go to court...go for ALL they owe you!

At present though, just don't take no for an answer and keep writing to them!

If you have to stop the charges because the money is covering your living costs or bills and the charge will make it worse for you, then exercise your first right of appropration to your money.

The bank won't like it though! They may threaten you with blacklisting, closing account etc. If they do however, ask them to put it into writing so that you have the evidence when you complain to OFT.

I've learnt to get everything in writing!

I think if you kick up enough fuss they will relent in your case, especially if it is the first time! You are right to fight it though, if they can they will keep charging every month.

I believe there are apropriation letter templates that may be used if you need to go down that route.

Hello,

Any advice please!

Firstly I think that you have taken the right decision to join this site. I have only recently had DMP accepted by the bank but if I hadn't been for this site and being able to take them to court I would still be drowning in thier demands. Credit cards too!

When I asked the same question..........READ! READ! READ! was the general response and I pass the same advise to you. There now seem to be many pages of new posts on this site daily and as I understand it the site helpers and mods can find it hard to keep up sometimes, but you will always get the help you need and often without their intervention because there has been someone on here with the exact circumstances as yourself. After a while this site does give you the knowlege to take control again! Read the FAQs, step by step instructions and all the other info for new members and it will go from there!