We had a bit of a result with my son 'Long Lex' and HSBC a few months ago. This never got beyond sub-branch and branch level. Although it was obviously being discussed eles where. We had a 2000 page plus SAR back from HSBC, Crusher and Bookworm will support this as they have both seen it, in fact Crush and I had it spread all over the pavement at one of our 'Pasty Meets' !! We argued that they (HSBC) were in breach of UTCCs by :- Not allowing him to pay his loan by standing order, insisting that the DD stayed in place. ( He is payed weekly) Not allowing him to pay his loan back from another bank account (parachute) There by denying him the right to any competition as far as which bank he went with for the duration of the loan (3 years) That the loan had been mis-sold as it was unreasonable to expect a 20 year old to turn down a loan offer of £3,500 when the request was for just £1,000, particularly as his salary was tight. We supported this with a complaint to BACS and the OFT. HSBC were in receipt of both complaints before we had a meeting at main branch level. Their first offer was to refund sufficient funds to place the OD back within it's limit. This was refused. They then offered to up the anti and repay some of the charges to repay the out standing arrears on the loan, the 3 months he was getting in trouble with, this was also refused. We left the office at this stage and said we would continue to court as we thought the case had merit. 48 hours later we had a letter from the local head office offering all the above, plus an addition £200 as a 'GWG' I discussed this with my son at length and he decided to accept this, before we could put this in writing, the money was back in his account. Therefore, I do not consider this a F and F, as nothing is in writing. So at some point we could go back for the rest. He had £700 back out of a £1,100 claim. I await the result of the GLC case and others before I'll pursue it further. I have gone along with my sons decision as it was not my motorbike that was in danger of being repossessed, in fact, if I had known what he was doing, I would have nailed his hide to the back door. !! However, it is one of the best results I have seen since the OFT case. Lex

Yes BB, indeed they made my all time favorite airplane. The ''Lighting'' !! The aircraft side was taken over by BAC if I remember rightly.

As of today, April the first, 2011. The Commission for Rural Communities has become part of the DEFRA umbrella. The new website is here :- http://www.defra.gov.uk/crc/ Although some may ask why DEFRA should be in charge of it's own 'critical friend'I can assure you this is not an April Fool stunt !! Lex

Your welcome Abner A big welcome to the Consumer Action Group. Lex

Martin, if you have no use for her, we could sell her in Cornwall for you !!!!!!!! She'd make a great cousin for someone !! :-D

Happy Birthday Martin !! Thank you for all your help over the years. (Now I'm sounding old )

Read about it here http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?300437-High-Speed-Two-%28HS2-Ltd%29-For-or-Against&p=3353484#post3353484

Do you have any strong points of veiw or will the route will affect you, have your say here. Did your MP go to the debate about High Speed Rail in March ? It was held in Westminster Hall at the Houses of Parliament, on Thursday 31st March between 2.30 and 5.30 It’s was arranged by MPs Andrea Leadsom, Geoffrey Robinson, Dan Byles and Peter Bone. Geoffrey Robinson has come out against HS2 already – even though it does not pass through his constituency. See the proposed route here :- http://highspeedrail.dft.gov.uk/in-your-area The Consultaion Document on HS2 is here :- http://highspeedrail.dft.gov.uk/ Exceptional Hardship Scheme opens for applications The Exceptional Hardship Scheme (EHS) for property owners affected by the proposed high speed rail line from London to Birmingham is open for applications Property owners on, or in the vicinity of, HS2 Ltd’s recommended route - Route 3 - who urgently need to move, and would suffer exceptional hardship if they are unable to do so, can apply for the Government to buy their property at its full unblighted value. For full details and application forms :- http://www.hs2.org.uk/assets/x/64304 If you want to say 'NO' to HS2 http://stophs2.org/ If you support HS2 http://yestohs2.blogspot.com/2010/10/case-for-high-speed-2-hs2-answering.html http://www.yestohs2.co.uk/

That seems to be the Tories answer to most things, Thatcher and the miners for example. (Gets off his soapbox quick )

I think they must all be marching Caro !!

This type of Wreckin'

Minein' Gone scat Fishin' Gone scat Farmin' Gone scat It's back to Wreckin' then me 'andsomes

Oh Jesus DG, I am so sorry if this has brought all of this back to you. Thinking of you Alex

I am very sorry to hear of your loss also DG. I'm sure these kids are being well looked after. No parent should see the loss of their children, my hart goes with you. Alex

RIP Kieron Horn, 11 years old is to young to be taken as the 500 people at the service showed. God bless young man. There won't be a pony in heaven you can't ride, no doubt St Peter will have you on the team by tomorrow !!

Oh, there is far to much fun to be had here !!!! On a job application you would never be expected to answer half of these. I'm thinking I might reply in 'Song Titles'

:!: !!

The man needs his head testing, which we will all be able to do all over the pavement soon I reckon

Morrison-Low v Paterson, Scottish Land Court, 2010. The main case. This case has created lots of news, particularly due to the decision that the income derived by a tenant from Single Farm Payment is not an item from which the Landlord may derive rent. The Court allowed a modest rental element to reflect the opportunity offered by the land to claim the single payment, relying on the relatively low payment figures for naked (unused) acres readily available in the Scottish market. Other headlines were: The Court allowed limited duration tenancies and short limited duration tenancies to be used as comparable evidence for a 1991 Act tenancy The court applied the same approach to marriage value as Childers v Anker i.e., that it should be excluded when considering comparables but included in respect of the subject holding The general consensus on its applicability to English and Welsh rent reviews appears to be that it should not affect them but this needs to be tested in an arbitration or through the courts. In England, single payment income is usually not considered part of the earning capacity but is a relevant factor, so was added in below the bottom line. This does not seem to have been upset by this case. With thanks to SG Landscope.

Can you get free school, invalidity or elderly transport if you live in a remote area ?? The tools on 'magic.gov website can help. Please remember to click on the 'accept terms' button to enter the site On the bottom of the page, Use the + & - buttons to zoom in and out and the 'hand' to center the map. At the top of the page , use the 'Ruler' button to measure distance. http://magic.defra.gov.uk/website/magic/viewer.htm?startTopic=maggb

Out of interest to those thinking of buying an eReader. My local branch of Waterstones has a display of eReaders in store including the Kindle. They were quite happy to demonstrate them to me, but did make the point of saying 'We couldn't do this on a Sat. afternoon Sir !!!' So if you want to have a look before you buy, pick your time. Lex

It was last updated on the 28th of Dec 2010. It appears to updated every two months or so, so watch this space !!! Lex

Hi Cazfin, thank you for the PM I think it would be a good idea to post your letter to the college on the forum, removing any personal details !! I hope you layed out all the reasons for your complaint. Do you still have any contacts with any of the others that left the course?? I feel they have been very heavy handed in their responce 'We now consider this matter to be closed and therefore are not prepared to enter into any further communication with you." After all, thats for you to decide. Do let us know what OFSTED think of this........ Regards, Lex