I meet all the criteria for financial hardship (checked the Moneysavingexpert advice on this) and have been absolutely crippled by Barclays charging me £3 a day or nearly £100 a month on my account since they changed the rules. I have also suffered from charges piling up on my account to form the overdraft that is the basis for those £3 a day charges. I sent them an SAR, got my documents and duly sent off an email to Barclays Head Office following personalized templates from here asking them to stop all further charges and refund me those for the past four and a half years I have been in hardship. They turned me down flat, stating: Under the Lending Code (section 9) and Banking Conduct of Business Sourcebook (Section 5.1.4), Barclays does have a duty to treat customers in financial difficulties positively and sympathetically. Any such obligations on Barclays where financial hardship has been shown are guided by these codes and rules. However, I would advise that neither of these, nor the Banking Code which proceeded them require Barclays to refund charges or suspend the application of them when someone is suffering from financial difficulties. Having reviewed your account I can see that all charges have been applied correctly in accordance with the terms and conditions of your account therefore I would be unable to offer a refund. However, I have arranged for our Financial Assistance team to review your account and they are keen to have a full discussion with you to ascertain you current position including your current income and expenditure. The Financial Assistance would then be in a better position to look at more permanent solutions to your current position and they have several potential solutions that may assist you ; if agreeable I can arrange for a member of our Financial Assistance team to call you at a time which is convenient to you. I'm sure the 'Financial Assistance team' are no such thing... Where do I go from here?

http://m.bbc.com/news/uk-31545417 If the forthcoming Court of Appeal case goes against the Bounty Hunting industry then people should start getting their claims in fast. If the Bounty Hunters are obliged to start refunding all of their victims, then they won't have enough money to do it. The result could be that they start closing themselves down pre-emptively. People should consider issuing small claims for refunds without hanging around too long

Is "Universal Jobmatch" DOWN ? I've been trying to log-in all day, as I have to give account of what I've been doing to find work, but everytime I try to log-in it comes up with a blank page.

I used to be a sole trader selling music by mail order lists, vinyl and compact discs. My business closed down nine years ago due to me having severe debts, personal problems and so on. I suffer from severe mental health problems after several breakdowns and more problems that I won't go into here. I still have a business bank account that I never closed down due to hoping that one day I may get better and then just forgetting more recently after further health setbacks. I've been getting Income Support with disability additional money and then ESA after it changed paid into this bank account all that time. My Dad died in September 2013 and left me £15,000, my share of his will after it had all been divided up. I got this money in the autumn just gone and declared it to the DWP. I sent them bank statements showing that I'd used most of the money bar for a few thousand on things like new furniture, clothing, a holiday and paying for my Dad's funeral costs. I sent them receipts for everything and bank statements and they were satisfied that I hadn't spent the money frivolously and the little bit that I had spent on personal items to enjoy such as DVDs and days out, I have been getting a small amount taken off my fortnightly payments to cover that. Anyway to get to the point, today I got a B16 form in the post with no explanation as to why, the only thing I can think of is that because I never closed my business account they assume I'm still in business. I have no records of my old business, just a name on a bank account. How do I prove that I'm not trading to them? It's messing my head up even worse, I could do without all this. Thanks for any help.

Hi, I'm new to the site but I'm hoping that somebody has the insight and generosity to reply to my quandary: I was recently contacted by a claims management company. They think I am owed PPI reimbursement on a 60 month car loan agreement taken out with Lombard Direct in Nov. 2007 (the outstanding balance of which was paid off in April 2011). I have no idea if this is true as I binned the documents after selling the car in 2011. I would like to claim the PPI myself but I'm finding it impossible to contact Lombard Direct on 0800 215 000 (the number provided by RBS and through separate means). I have seen other CAG members state that RBS are now handling Lombard claims - I contacted RBS but they can find no details of any loan agreement (though they did say that this does not mean one never existed). I do not want to return to the CMC or let this one lie as the loan was for over £12, 000! Can anybody please suggest a course of action? Thanks Daniel

Virgin Media Internet access is down for the whole area I live in, spoke to them a few hours on the phone, they said they are 'aware of the problem' and it should be fixed soon, this was over 5 hours ago! I'm at my sisters using her internet to post this on here, what can be done for Virgin Media to get off their backsides and fix it?

Hello Everyone Please accept my apology if this post is a bit lengthy. I'm on Credits Only JSA as I'm working part-time Mon to Fri. Recently, my JSA advisor had sent me to Mandatory Work Activity(MWA) when she learnt I was having holidays from work. She did that although she knew I did not fit the MWA selection criteria. The advisor, despite my objection, just handed me the referral letter to the MWA and said if I don't do it my NI credits will be stopped. Due to her pressure I complied and went and did the MWA for 4 weeks. When I completed the MWA and on my first meeting with my advisor, she handed me another letter for the work programme (WP) personal advisor interview. At that point I protested and said I already have a part-time Job which was staring again in 2 days and I'm not interested in going into the Work Programme. I also said that as far as I know the Work Programme is not mandatory for people on Credits only JSA. All that was ignored and the letter was handed to me. On further research, I was able to confirm that indeed I was exempted from the Work Programme. I have then lodged a formal complaint in which I questioned the reason for setting up a work programme advisor interview for me from the first place without my consent or even discussing it with me. I also indicated that as it was voluntary I had no legal obligation to attend that interview. However, after the interview date (which I did not attend) , I was called by the Jobcentre and told that they have now made another appointment for the Work Programme Interview and if I don't attend it then they will close my claim. I replied that I did explain to them in my complaint letter why I did not agree with being sent to that work programme interview and it was now more than 4 weeks without receiving any reply for that complaint from them. I asked the person on the phone how come it is mandatory to attend that interview while at the same time the law states clearly that the work programme is voluntarily for people on Credits Only JSA? The person replied that all advisor’s interviews are mandatory and if I don't attend then they will close my claim without even taking it to a decision maker. I'm not sure about the motives behind insisting on forcing me into that interview but given previous experiences with my advisor I really do not want to go there. Now today, the jobcentre has sent me another letter stating that if I do not contact them to arrange for another interview within 5 days then they will close my claim. I have already contacted my MP regarding this matter as this is getting too much but can someone please advise me on these points: 1. How valid is the claim that all Advisor’s interviews are mandatory (i.e. normal bi-weekly advisor interview versus a specific Work Programme interview)? 2. Why would they insist and try to force me using threats to attend the work programme interview even although I'm not required by law and I have made it abundantly clear verbally and in writing (more than once) that I had no intention of following that programme? Is it possible that they had already sent my details ,without my knowledge or consent, to the work programme providers? 3. Can they just close my claim just like that for not attending the work programme interview without even considering the compliant that I have raised or even involving a decision maker? Please your advice is appreciated! Thanks for your help. Lucy

I appealed to Ilford council I was parking in a loading bay on Aug bank holiday Mon , I have just got a knock back about the appeal they said they are sending a notice to owner but I am no longer the owner , they took 50 plus days to get back in touch to say I have to pay is this reasonable ? I thought they had only so long to get back in touch? can anyone help

This bloke was rubbish as a Prime Minister, and now he is telling the rest of us what to do. He has hit out at David Cameron and accused him of being ‘unstatesmanlike’ in attempting to stop Scottish MPs voting at Westminster, on only English issues, but he is happy with the extra powers Scotland will receive to make their own laws without hindrance from the Parliament at Westminster. (English MPs will not be able to vote on laws in Scotland that do not affect the rest of the UK). The former Prime Minister said the move could drive a ‘wedge’ between England and Scotland. (I thought Salmonde and the referendum had already done that?) He says the Tory plan for ‘English votes for English laws’ would turn the Scots into second-class citizens because their Westminster MPs would be downgraded. (you could say the same about Scottish MPs voting on Scottish only laws as downgrading the rest of the UK MPs, what is good for one is good for another). The three Westminster leaders promised to devolve more power to the Scottish parliament. This anomaly whereby Scottish MPs can vote on English matters but English MPs have little or no say north of the border is wrong. Brown criticised this approach. He said I fear for the health and unity of our country, (make of that what you will, it just makes me laugh words are cheap). He said Mr Cameron made an unstatesmanlike error when, he tried to rewrite his vow with a proposal for restricting the rights of Scottish MPs to vote at Westminster’. (He wants his cake and eat it). He adds: the morning after the referendum, allegations of foul play, broken promises and bad faith began, with a wedge being driven between Scotland and England. (I am still of the opinion that it would have been better for us all if they had got their independence, this cr*p is going to carry on until they do). Link

hi. ineed some advice on a ppi claim i had 2 loans with lloyds bank 1. for £11959 taken out in 2006 defaulted 2009 still oustanding 2 for £7459 taken out in 2005 settled 2006 as far as i know they both had ppi lloyds havent hastled me about the 1 st loan alhough i is still outstanding what i want to know is it worth trying to claim the ppi on both or leave well enough alone and if i claim and am ssucsessfull will lloyds take any payment to settle the first loan. on the fisrt loan lloyds refused to pay the ppi insurance when i claimed as id left it longer than 120 days to claim on disabiity i haven't paid the olan since

Mine have gone down in the last 3 weeks by almost £50 a week. I assumed it was because of teens ages, it happened last year too, but only for a couple of weeks. Can be something to do with admin adjusting from school leaver to college. I assumed it's the same this year, although I did let them know earlier in the year that both my 2 are at college another year. Son turns 20 in March, daughter is 18 in January. I will try & ring them monday. But is it possibly that? As I say it didn't go on this long last year & having checked my online banking, they don't backdate the payments when they sort it either do they! Why is that?

Please help through a builder carrying out an extension we purchased on his recommendation French window door approx. £4000, 2 years ago, we gave him the money to purchase these, 3 weeks ago doors came of their runners we tried to contact company they had closed, builder says it is not his responsibility and that's that, double glazing company installed door/windows. Is this true? is there anything we can do or approach, any advice greatly appreciated as I am severely disabled and have limited income.

Good Evening, I am having a few issues with a car I bought on the 26th August It is a 2009 Vauxhall Insignia 2.0t 4x4 SRI Picked up the vehicle from the trader at approx 5.30pm on the Tuesday evening, drove it 75 miles home and all seemed well Wednesday evening on the way home from work in it a message appeared on the dash stating "service charging system" and illuminated the battery icon Arrived home and turned off and then back on and the message had gone - oh well I thought, will check that later Thursday morning and evening on way to and from work the same thing - message appeared - Decided would look at the battery at the weekend as possible worn as per other cars I have owned Friday Morning same thing again, except this time it started throwing all other error messages and illuminating all other lights as it steadily shut down all non essential systems - pulled over and turned off - car dead, no attempt to crank, nothing RAC called and got car started via boost pack and attached multimeter to battery and diagnosed possible alternator fault as reading were 11.3 -11.6 volts - keeping the booster on the car managed to get it to local mechanic Mechanic tested the alternator which seemed fine and was outputting the correct amp on the bench, but will not charge battery in car. Took it to another mechanic who has better diagnostic kit and will run some tests on it tomorrow to try determine what the fault is Car came with a 3 month RAC warranty, to which I say isnt worth the paper its printed on! There is a £300 limit on the repair, including parts/labour & VAT! The alternator is dealer only and costs £523.81 inc VAT! I rang the dealer to tell them about the breakdown to which they said I have to deal with warranty - I stated the warranty is not sufficient and they are required to put it right. After days of chasing them they are saying they can supply the part, should it be the alternator cheaper than I have been quoted, to which I stated they must be quoted for the wrong part as I have been quoted the same from 3 different dealers and told the same amount by all three! They said they will check and let me know - that was Tuesday evening. No word today. I am now waiting for the diagnostic report - if it is something simple and cheap I dont mind paying to get the car on the road again, but £540 + labour is too much after just 170 miles!! I just want advice on how I can approach this with the trader - they seem adamant I have to use the warranty, which I dont want to as they will not cover the whole amount. Dependant upon the outcome of the diagnostic I will be taking it back up there on Saturday morning, and demanding they fix it. Should I take a formal letter with me stating they must repair or refund me? Not sure how to tackle this one to be honest! Sorry for the long post, just wanted to get as much info out so can get the best advice possible

We own a small business that has ISDN lines installed for a number of years - our account is a business account. We use ISDN for clarity because standard PSTN line quality is extremely poor where we are and we often struggle to hear people on the other end. Our ISDN lines are essential for us. 36 days ago our ISDN lines went down. We've had several dates given to us when work will take place only for the work not to happen. We've been given excuse after excuse, promised things will "be escalated", but nothing makes any difference. We've been "looked after" by their so-called "Distressed Customer Team" for 3 weeks now but they are generally ineffective as they have no real power to make things happen. An email to the Chairman of BT on day 21 asking him to please help get our lines back up was just as useless as it elicited a response but no repair so far. We're told there is a major issue with the fibre between our local exchange and that in a larger town where the ISDN service is ultimately supplied from. We're several miles on the other side of our local exchange from the mail fibre line, yet 1 mile down the road from us - still on "this side" of the exchange - another company with ISDN supplied by BT have lines that are still working. Since our lines went down we haven't had a single order, but last year our turnover increased by over £350,000. Almost all our orders come on the back of customer recommendations, and incoming telephone enquiries from these recommendations are usually converted to customers. Our telephone lines being down are affecting us badly, and on a day-by-day growth comparison it has lost us over £34K of potential additional turnover this year so far. Redirecting our lines to standard telephone lines won't work because of quality issues, and redirecting to mobiles won't work due to poor reception where we are (we're in the countryside). We're pretty much at the end of our rope with this problem. We have no idea where to turn to, or what we can do to fix or problem. We hear lots of platitudes and "we agree this isn't acceptable" but no actual action. Is anyone aware of anything we can do to accelerate the repair, or any action we can take against BT for their appalling service and the affect it is having on our small business?

I am new on this forum and hope to get some advise from you. My regular laundry shop seems to have ceased business and I still have clothes with them (sadly also my most expensive winter coat). Wooden panels have been placed on the display window to block any access or letters. It displays a message with the contact details and advises the laundry has ended the tenancy. They have contacted me to arrange for delivery at my home however they have failed delivery twice and I am now not getting any responses on my emails, texts and calls since 2 weeks. I have checked creditsafe and can see they are still an active company. The mobile phone is still working as well. I have traced the director address details. What is the next step I can take to get my clothes back?

Those who follow Scoop will like this story here http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/Exmouth-bailiff-admits-selling-dangerous-fake/story-21159613-detail/story.html Obviously the EA's are NOT making enough money to live on with their high fees This is a nice story so enjoy Mike

Hi, I have bought Toyota Corolla Verso, 54 plate on last week of Decemeber 2013. Within Feb 2014 first week it broke down. AA recovered it. (Air Con compressor Pulley fallen off and with it Belt came off) Spoken to the seller, he asked me to tow to his Garage, Spent £60 to tow it next day... Seller calls me back saying it's not covered on Warranty., He's looking for second hand replacement kind of.. from then on I was spending on public transport around £40 a week for family and by this weekend it costed me £160... However whichever email I send him to know update he does not reply., from last week he stopped answering my phone calls.. So After spending £2800 on a car and traded in my 51 plate Suzuki Liana (Which was still good runner for £300).. I'm now left with no car no information. Not sure what to do., As seller agreed to repair but making me at his mercy!! I need car desperately. Any suggestions how to approach? Anvesh.

Silly question really. But has anyone ever received their water/sewerage bill which has shown a reduction on the previous year ? Why do these water companies believe they can increase the bill above the rate of inflation, when I expect that their costs of operation have not increased. It is not as if, they will be giving their staff a decent pay rise. In most areas of the country you are stuck with one company. You cannot shop around. The government should be looking into the water industry and doing what they can to ensure that no excess profits are being made. It was silly to privatise the water industry in the first place, as most are now foreign owned.

I am a gold member of the AA and I have been with them for 23 years and they have never let me down until now. As extra cover for myself and my son I took ot the AA Repair Plan 3 years ago. I am retired and on a limited income so I thought it would be sensible to have this extra cover. My son's car broke down last week The pipe which takes the coolant to the engine broke and his engine was damaged to the tune of about £800. the AA who initially said they would pay me up to £500 are now refusing to pay as I did not have the car serviced exactly twelve months after the previous service in 2012. My stupid fault I know as I should have read the small print of the policy much more carefully. I have appealed to the AA and Vauxhall have supported me, as this fault could not have been predicted and could have happened at any time even an hour after servicing. I know I have made a mistake but I feel the decision by the AA is very harsh in not offering me anything at all after all the years I have been with them. How stupid of me to think that loyalty counted for something. I am a single parent so this bill is down to me and I don't have the money to pay for it. Thanks AA and a happy Christmas to you too.

Hi This is probably a long shot. I have only just remembered I had PPI on some car finance I took out with a Ford Dealership in the year 1999 (I think). I have no paperwork at all left and the dealership is no longer at the same premises. I'm thinking it was probably Evans Halshaw, but not even sure of that. The dealership was on Station Brow or Stanifield Lane (part of same road) in Leyland, Lancashire. I have looked on google and it isn't bringing up a thing (even in images). 1. Would this dealership have been a franchise? 2. Am I flogging a dead horse? Thanks, as always.

We took a loan out with RBS in 2008 and the rate was at 1.5% above base rate. I think the LIBOR rate was about 4.5- 5% then. Since the base rate has fallen to .5%. We had a poor start to 2013 trading wise. RBS state that they were not happy with the current account and sent one of their special relationship managers around who tried to bully us into selling. Since then our trading has improved, business is good, current account is good. We have decided not to renew the overdraft which we felt that they would pull out from under us during the winter months when trading is slow. RBS is now looking at the loan agreement and would appear to be trying to see if they can make us default. We have never missed a payment. They are looking at our business plan from 2008. We think that RBS is not happy that we are only paying at 1.5% above base and want to get rid of us. They did offer to do a new loan, but at current rates and costs. Has anyone else had this problem. Should we go to the Financial Ombudsman?

About a year ago, Ms First Class received a letter from Lowell about an telephone contract "debt" for about £500. She remembers taking out the contract about 3 years ago, and admitted that she probably defaulted on payment and just forgot about it until that letter arrived at her new address. Lowell produced a vague statement of charges for the mobile phone account, i.e. "January 2008 - £67", "February 2008 - £71" etc, with the final payment saying "Termination Fee £xxx". No breakdown of what the amounts related to. in November just gone, I discover these letters she has and decided to try and sort the issue out. I wrote to them asking them to prove the debt existed and to provide sufficient evidence to support their demands. Statements turn up with more detail, as well as information that the CCA doesn't apply to such accounts, which is correct. Before Christmas I write a very simple and short letter, again on her behalf, effectively saying I was still not satisfied with the "evidence" produced and that should they proceed to court, their claim would be fully contested, with costs, as well as detailing my own legal qualifications, stated I would be advising my partner accordingly. just read their reply, which states: "In respect of account XXXXXXXXX, whilst we believe this to be due and valid, I have taken the decision to close this with immediate effect. This is done in the interests of arriving at a swift and amicable conclusion and is not done as an admission of any wrongdoing on our part. You will hear no further from us or any organisation connected with this matter as the account will not be sold or passed on". Anyone who knows the DCA field a bit better care to take a punt at why they've backed down without even trying to push it a little bit further? Lack of evidence on their part/problem with the "account" or were they concerned I might well give them a headache in court?

Firstly, thank you for reading my post.... Secondly, I'd like to ask everyone who can help for a post on my thread. I sold a car which, few weeks earlier had a new campbelt and a water pump done. The car was driving well and was in constant use. I sold the car as I don't need it anymore due to a job change. A couple who decided to buy it traveled about 120 miles to get it (on a train). They had a test drive, we agreed a sale price and they ended up paying via internet transfer. They left with the car and over an hour later they called to say they cannot drive faster than 40mph, one more hour later they called to say the car broke down completely and there is plenty of smoke coming from underneath the car. As I agreed to keep the insurance until end of the day for them, I rang the breakdown cover who attended to the vehicle, took them to a nearest safe place and left them. I found out from the insurance company that the recovery team suggested a broken campbelt (!?!) and that the car has been left on a petrol station and the couple rushed to the nearest train station to get back home which was 30 miles away! I texted the couple in the morning urging them to ensure they take responsibility for the car as it's their own property now and they should move it asap to not be issued with parking charges etc. They texted back saying they are giving me 2 options - 1 to take the car and give them the money back, 2 to deal with the dad of the girl who is a lawyer. I texted back saying that as far as I'm aware I have fulfilled my legal obligations as a seller and from now on would like to be contacted in writing. So, I have now received two emails asking to provide 'honest description of sale activities' and was given a deadline of 24 hours to do so. Everything I put in the ad was truth, at the moment of sale I was sure the car is in a good state and was absolutely shocked with what happened. I replied to the email with a very brief description of the events from that day stating that my knowledge as to what happened after the buyers drove away in the car is limited and I requested a full explanation as to why they want to take the case to court. I now have to deal with the person who claims to be a lawyer... Although I think I have done nothing wrong, and what happened is just a pure bad luck, I am afraid that there is a chance for the buyer to force me to take the car and give the money back! I actually don't know what happened with the car, I only know what was suggested by the recovery team.... I'd appreciate help and suggested course of actions as I am 100% sure the case will end up in court, with the difference that I don't have a dad - lawyer who can defend me for free...

closed for christmas - or gone4good ?

A husband and wife are shopping in their local supermarket. The husband picks up a case of Budweiser and puts it in their cart. "What do you think you're doing?" asks the wife. "They're on sale, only £10 for 24 cans" he replies. "Put them back, we can't afford them" demands the wife, and they carry on shopping. A few aisles farther on, the woman picks up a £20 jar of face cream and puts it in the basket. "What do you think you're doing?" asks the husband. "It's my face cream. It makes me look beautiful," replies the wife. Her husband retorts: "So does 24 cans of Budweiser and it's half the price." That's him on Aisle 5. [ATTACH=CONFIG]47444[/ATTACH]