I've decided to post this in the Homelessness section, despite there being several issues at once and I need your advice, but mods, feel free to move this to a different section if necessary. My situation: - Just about to become 50 - Have lived in a terrible and dodgy guest house for 2.5 years. It wasn't dodgy and terrible when I went there - When I went there I had a job and a single room. Now I've been on the dole for some time (on and off) and I am forced to share a room with other people. - New people and new staff have come through the years and they have brought... how can I say.. dirtbags! Dodgy and abusive gits, people with a hefty criminal record, etc. - The owners are the same but have given up on patrolling the place. They only come every now and again. - Over the months I've been verbally abused by both staff and guests, mainly because I'm not in their circle of booze and drugs and what have you. This afternoon I was threatened by a fellow guest for petty reasons. I managed to speak to the owners. One of them says he'll do what he can but I can't trust him anymore. - I'm struggle to find a job and leaving the place immediately is not an option. Virtually no landlord would rent to a 50yo unemployed, at least not in my area. So, in other owrds, I'm stuck here. - Part of the staff (the dodgy ones) hate me and they told me straight in my face that they'll do what they can to convince the landlords to kick me out (I have no formal rental contract. I pay month to month) and I think they are very close to their goal. So my questions are: 1) In the immediate what can I do? I was thinking of calling the police but what can they do? And the landlords have already hinted that if I call the police, my future at the place is at stake. 2) If they do kick me out, can I receive help as homeless? I'm on benefits, but I have some savings (under £6k). Please I beg you not to think I'm just an intentional bum. I was in IT circa 10-15 years ago but my career is finished and I have nowhere to go. Thanks for reading.

Hello I wonder if anyone could help please? We purchased a 4 year old dog from a private seller and had her for a total of two and a half weeks. She was sold as being friendly and gentle and the owners assured us that, "She doesn't have a bad bone in her body and wouldn't hurt a fly". Since purchasing Lola, she was always very vocal when out on a lead and barked and pulled strongly towards other animals and at times also towards people, especially so when out with my girlfriend. We were in daily contact with the previous owners via text with regular updates on Lola and we twice raised concerns about her seemingly aggressive behaviour towards other animals/people - we were assured that she would never do anything. I forgot to mention that the previous owners had the dog since she was a puppy for all of her four years prior to selling her to us, so in my view, they will have known her much better than we did! During the first week of her being with us, our neighbours were away on holiday, but upon their return, their dog was picked up from the boarding kennels and was subsequently out in the garden a lot - this caused Lola to run to the fence and attempt to almost burrow underneath it whilst barking at Bella. We also raised this with the previous owners, who assured us that she used to do this with their neighbour's dog, but would never hurt her. The neighbours suggested we introduce both dogs, as it was most probably 'barrier frustration' causing them both to bark at each other. I put Lola on her lead on Sunday evening and the lady next door did the same with Bella. Lola pulled towards the dog, whilst not showing any signs of aggression and sniffed her. Bella was lying down at this point totally submissive. Out of nowhere, our dog launched at Bella's head and bit down on her ear and wouldn't let go. The only way I can describe it is she was in 'kill mode'. All of the neighbours on the street came out and nobody could do anything either. I did my utmost to try and shock Lola into letting go, but she had no intention of doing so. I had to put my fingers into her mouth and prise her jaws apart - I am a 6ft man and pretty strong and had to use all of my strength to release her grip. Bella needed an emergency operation and we contacted the previous owners about this incident and also asked if they would take her back, as she wasn't as we had been led to believe. Within three minutes of my partner's text, she replied and said that her partner and her were both of the view that Lola is clearly unsafe and should be put to sleep! We were so shocked. My partner asked why they wouldn't take her as they had her for four years and if she hadn't been previously aggressive, why not, but their response was they had their child to think about and would no longer trust the dog. We also have children I hasten to add. We approached various kennels during the following days and nowhere would take her. We also visited the vets to get her checked for any medical reasons as to why she had acted in the way she did and she received a clean bill of health. We were advised to speak to the Dog Warden, which we did, and it was his view that she was dangerous and a 'ticking time bomb' and needed to be put to sleep. This whole experience has been devastating for us all and we have had no further responses from the previous owners regarding this matter. We had to take her to a vet to carry out this awful deed and she also said that she was an aggressive animal and this had to happen. We also discovered whilst Lola was in our care that she had a dog walker who used to take her out every day and upon checking his website, he was one who specialised in dogs with 'issues'. Sorry for the lengthy message, I just wondered whether you felt there would be any redress in terms of compensation from the previous owners please? Many thanks Paul

Good Evening Folks, Looking for some advice about whether or not I can actually get anything back from Samsung for their totally unacceptable customer service. To save me re-explaining to you guys, here is a copy of the email I have just sent to their complaints department. See what you think: Good Evening, I would like to make a formal complaint against the terrible customer service I have received. Around a month ago I contacted Samsung regarding a fault with my Galaxy Note 4 and the camera. The person I spoke to arranged for my phone to be picked up and repaired, I expressed concern that I wanted my phone for a holiday I was going on and the person promised me that the phone would be repaired and returned to me within 5 days. I have this in writing. I had not received my phone back, nor had any contact from anyone at Samsung or the repair centre. All correspondence up until this moment had been via email so I assumed it would remain like this. I contacted Samsung using the online live chat option. Session ID:- 6033078. In which the representative Taj told me that my phone had been repaired, was fully functioning and awaiting shipment back to me. To confirm the date I would receive the device he advised me to contact the repair centre directly. I then proceeded to ring the repair centre, who then informed me that my phone actually had not been repaired, and could not be repaired. So I was misinformed by your online chat representative. There was also no contact from anyone at Samsung regarding the fact my phone could not be repaired. The repair centre claimed they tried to contact me, however they said they tried to contact me on my own personal number, how could I answer this, when my phone was at their repair centre. I provided no other number to contact me on because I was never asked to do so. All previous communication had been via email, so I assumed that is how they would contact me again, they did not. Had I not been constantly pestering for information it could’ve been even longer before I eventually found out my phone was unfixable. The repair centre said they then contacted Samsung and advised to get in touch with me for an Alternative Resolution, which again, they did not. I had to contact the alternative resolution team. They provided me with a list of resolutions that were not acceptable. They would not provide me with a replacement of a galaxy note 4 again, the phone I had purchased and want. They offered me, an S6 edge, a phone over a year old or a refund of the current market value of the phone, which would leave me losing money and paying for a phone I did not have, so this was not an acceptable resolution either. They then proceeded to offer me a Samsung S7, an offer I reluctantly accepted as I felt I had no other choice. I wanted a Note 4 again. I asked for the S7 in Black, something again they refused to provide me with. They told me that the replacement would be with me within 7 days. It has not arrived. I also asked that they put all of this information in an email to me so I had proof and so I knew what was going on. They promised they would do this after the phone conversation. Again. This was not the case, I have received no email, and no confirmation that my phone was unrepairable so Samsung were sending me an S7. As a result I have tonight contacted Samsung through the online chat option again, Session ID:- 6161560 asking for information on what was actually going on. The same representative from the first time was on the other line and apologised for what had happened, but it was still unacceptable. He advised me that the phone had been issued on the 20th July and yet I still haven’t received it. Considering my phone was picked up at the beginning of July and I was promised it back WITHIN 5 days, this is completely unacceptable that Samsung have taken this long to provide me with a replacement phone. Especially as it was a manufacturers fault with the camera in the first place and not my own. Considering how much of a prestigious company Samsung is I am disgusted at the level of service I have received, which is very unfortunate because until now, I have loved and purchased many Samsung Products over the last 9 years. In light of the fact that: - The phone broke through a manufacturers fault - I was promised my phone (or a direct replacement) back within 5 days and did not receive this - Was contacted through no means, at all to be given information from Samsung regarding my repair - When I contacted Samsung I was given misinformation and told my phone had been repaired, despite the fact it hadn’t - When I tried to come to an alternative resolution, I was basically forced into a resolution I wasn’t happy with because it was the “best of a bad bunch” of options. - They couldn’t provide me with the phone I wanted - They couldn’t even provide me with the COLOUR I wanted, something that surely makes no difference to Samsung whether it’s black or not, why is this not an option - This has been going on for almost a month - I still haven’t received the phone (S7) that was supposed to have arrived already I am deeply saddened that this has been the outcome, as previously mentioned I was in love with Samsung products and often promoted them to friends and family, but as a result of this customer service I have received I do not think I will be buying Samsung products again. If you search the internet for Samsung customer service reviews it amazed me to find that this was the case an awful lot. Such a prestigious company, should have a far better customer service. I believe Samsung should provide me with some sort of compensation, or offer to “make it up to me” for this terrible customer service and the multiple issues mentioned throughout this email. This is not what I expected from one of the biggest phone manufacturers in the world. To say I am disappointed is an understatement. I look forward to your response Regards Do you guys think I was cheeky asking for anything, and do you know of anyone ever receiving anything for the terrible customer service they have received? Thanks in advance Kind Regards V

The ABLE GROUP provide property maintenance services, ie glaziers, locksmiths, plumbers, electricians, drainage, gas, heating, pest control, etc. Please note however: If you need any such services, I suggest you look elsewhere. I have had the most horrendous experience with them and I hope my post helps others avoid going through the same horror story. Booked them to clear my house external drains, was quoted £114 to have them 4 drains unblocked. On the 7th of April, their Eng. came out, informed that the drains were now in good working order. My other half took his word for it and why not... They are supposed to be the specialists. After weeks of rain, I took time during last sunny weekend to clear the garden in prep. for the Summer and noticed that two drains had not been touched at all and were still blocked. Called their Customer Service, a few days ago, no reply. Called today and they refuse point blank to rectify the issue unless I pay again £114.00. What an outrage this company is really. I am absolutely furious with this disgusting bunch of dodgy people, taking the mickey. My advice to anyone is very simple: Learn from my experience and definitely engage an alternative company.

hi there, I need some advice as I am now going out of my mind. On Thursday 14th January 2016 I took out a contract with Vodafone pay monthly for an iPhone 6s in Rose Gold 16gb I received an order acknowledgement but no further information. I then called on 15th January 2016 to find out what was going on with the order. After being passed around at least 6 different departments and often without being told and just being put on hold I got through to a very helpful sales advisor. This advisor took it upon himself to cancel my original order placed on the 14th and place a new order with himself which was a much higher tariff and quoted exclusive of VAT. He also took £29 for the phone cost upfront and £9.95 for it to be delivered the next day before 1pm. I was promised a text message and email of this order in the morning for delivery which NEVER arrived. Neither did an email confirmation of the order. On Saturday 16th 2016 by 10am I had not received any email nor any text. Thinking this suspicious I called Vodafone to find out where the order was. I was hung up on 4 times, passed to 3 different departments and in the end my husband had to talk to them as I couldn't handle the stress ( I suffer from a depressive illness and anxiety disorder). I broke down in tears from the stress of it all. I was shown no empathy, no friendliness nothing over the phone. Just spoken to like I was an inconvenience My husband was told by their customer service person (as not one of them will give their names willingly) that the phone would not be here until the Saturday 23rd January 2016. She was adamant and all we could do is take her word for it, as she was at least the 7th advisor we had spoken to and despite having paid £9.95 for the next day delivery. That same customer service agent advised to go into a shop and sort out the contract there as it had already passed credit checks. My husband told her not to cancel the contract in case we weren't able to get it sorted in the store to which she agreed over the phone. I was listening to the whole conversation on loud speaker. Being the gullible/trusting people we are we went to the Vodafone Store to get this contract sorted out. They looked into the order to discover the last advisor who promised they were going to leave the account alone had taken it upon herself to cancel the contract, which she had promised she would not do. So the store set up a new contract for the iPhone 6s in Rose Gold, 64gb. I was also told I would need to pay £69 up front for this phone also. At this point in time Vodafone had taken £136.95 whether in debits or reserve payments. Just to get this contract sorted out I conceded even though that is a lot of money. All was fine until we got home after having to drive 30 minutes back from the most local Store and then a knock on the door came. It was the first mobile, iPhone 6s in Rose Gold 16gb. The very phone that we were told would not be delivered until the following Saturday and which the advisor had cancelled . This arrived at 3.38pm. So I was charged for £9.95 next day delivery before 1pm via Royal Mail which ended up with a cheaper courier not wearing a Royal Mail uniform. On both occasions I was misled by the tariff with the advisor's so I decided to cancel the contracts and instead use the business tariff. Since that day I have been on the phone countless number of times trying to cancel both these contracts within the 14 days cooling off period and return the phones for a full refund of the upfront costs. This has proved stressful, difficult and impossible. The first phone that arrived through the post has been returned and received but has still not been refunded. I am having to take time out of my business to get this sorted out and it's not forthcoming. The other phone that I purchased from the shop has proved near impossible. I tried to return it to the shop but they wouldn't accept it as the customer service team had already cancelled it. To this day I have not received the returns bag and have called every few days to chase a new one. I am always told it will arrive but has not till this day. I'm now out of the cooling off period and received a letter dated 4th Feb stating I now owe over £800 as am out of my cooling off period. The line was cancelled over the telephone well before 21st January and by recorded letter which I have proof of. I have also kept every online chat with service advisor's. I have tried numerous attempts to get through to a resolution or complaints team only to be told they don't exist. Their very own website points you back at customer services - no dedicated complaints service. Today I asked for a deadlock letter so I could see resolution through the ombudsman quicker to be told I couldn't have one as the resolution team have not dealt with it. So I asked to be put through to them. I was told that no I couldn't be as their is a process. I asked what their process was to be told they couldn't deal with it. WTF?!!? I'm at the point where it is now affecting my mental health. I get extremely stressed and anxious at the thought of contacting them to only suffer the same treatment each time. What can I do? I haven't received a refund for the first phone and the second phone has still not been returned due to not receiving the returns bag. Even when that is returned the process for getting my money back is really going to affect my health. I have filed a complaint with the trading standards team but too early for the Ombudsman to get involved (shy of 4 weeks). I have never in my life experienced anything like this. I just want these phone lines cancelled and my up front costs return with no further hassle. Why is it so hard? Any advice would be greatly appreciate, this is the worst experience of customer services I have ever experienced and I will be moving my business mobiles as soon as the contracts on them run out. Jody

I had a breakdown in May 2014 after working for 12 years without a break I am sufferring from severe anxiety disorder, have panic attacks, at times agraphobia. I also suffer from back problems after a double slipped disc some time ago. I have received CBT, Intensive CBT and been referred to a psycologist as i have intense problems sleeping and had a number of suicide attempts which I am glad wernt successful. (although at times i wish they were) I was signed on to ESA by my doctor in May 2014 and as of yet, even tho i have telephoned, i have not had my WCA from ATOS 13 months later. Today I received a letter from the jobcentre asking me to attend a work focussed interview to discuss the possibility of me going into paid work. I dont know what to do. I am terrified to attend as i cant cope with face to face situations and the thought of going to work and letting people down or finding out my secret is mortifying. I go out, by cab to help my daughter who is 19 and suffers from severe mental illness, my breakdown was due initially to her illness and trying to support her whilst working. I was sacked from my job after making an error which cost them thousands of pounds on the day my daughter tried to throw herself under a train. I was a pub manager so my work was also my home and we lost that too and was homeless for 9 months 1 month of that my daughter being in a coma. My doctor is supportive but my world is filled with fear and now im terrified i will lose the small amount of benefit i receive if i dont go to an appointment to find work which my doctor and no esa doctor has deemed me capable of doing. I dont know how to handle this and writing this in the vain attempt to get some advice as google searches are coming up with nothing:-( Can anyone help me?

Okay, for about 6 months or so there is constantly maintenance work happening with the service and the 3G service is usually about 0.2mbps which is terrible. I was on the webchat again today for what is about the millionth time since joining in January (exaggeration maybe but you get the point ) Today, the advisor actually admitted there is a network problem with half of my postcode ; actually confused how half the postcode can get coverage yet the other half have issues. Nevertheless the advisor then offered a penalty free cancellation if I returned the device to them. The problem here being I changed my handset on my own accord and the one I actually have is not the one I got through the deal. I was therefore offered £5 off my deal because of the lack of internet services being available. I've been promised many phonecalls from a manager to discuss this however none of these calls have materialised! Do you think this is an acceptable offer? I'm not an unreasonable person ; I just want a service that works and is reflective of the level of service they advertise on their website

For the past 2 weeks the 3G on my phone has been way below 1mbps which is unacceptable. I've been on to vodafone several times who blamed the phone despite the 3G speeds being good elsewhere, the sim card to which they replaced it, then numerous masts not working correctly despite their live coverage checker saying everything was fine. Now I have been back on today and the advisor tried to sell me a Sure Signal box for £75 which I wasn't prepared to pay. The advisor later stated that " We can confirm that it is not fault at all, and there are no faults or anything reported in the area as we got the confirmation from the team it might get updated more in the future and you have a service working Ryan yes it could be slow but at the end of the day you are able to use your service for calls, texts and internet " They are now basically trying to say they have too many customers in my area so that's the reason the service is poor. I pay a great deal of money to them every month for them to take this shocking unhelpful stance. It was basically there is nothing we can do. Absolutely frustrated!

i have currently been insured with hastings direct,i am in my second year with them and up until now never had a problem.... my issue has now come from me adding my partner to my insurance as a named driver,i did this in november last year. anyway on friday the 4th april,her car wouldnt start so she used mine,i must stipulate that it is very rare she uses mine,its only for emergencys,so on the m62/m60 to manchester in the smog/fog pollution that was around she lightly bumped a van in front in the fast lane but in very slow moving traffic,the highways agency came to move the car to the hard shoulder but said she couldnt drive it due to the sides of the bumper sticking out over 2 inch. my car was then taken to bury,not sure where and by who, my partner tried dealing with the issue the best she could but she was stuck 50miles from home so a tad upset. later that day i got a call from hastings total loss who told my my car was a write off,i told them it wasnt and at most would need a new bumper and very most a slam panel,no airbags had gone off,no damage to lights or bonnet or suspension. anyway the weekend passes and im thinking its fine,il just get the car back from hastings and fit a new bumper,i am a mk4 golf enthusiast and a member of all the forums,so i could prob get the parts free yesterday morning tuesday i call the number to see whats happening,i get told the car is now at a salvage place in wigan,even further from where i live,i tell them i havnt even taken my stuff from the car and they tell me to contact the salvage place directly,i do,so am now going over to collect my stuff. what bothers me is the car hasnt been assesed so dont know what cat it is or there class of damage,if when i get there to remove my stuff, there is stuff missing i will be getting the police involved as the car is legally still mine. i also asked about getting my car back from them,it is a mk4 golf gt tdi pd130,it has high milage but i also know these cars will do 2 to 3 times round the clock,1 owner from new and full service history,i just know when they have deducted my excess and the rest of the years premium i will be lucky to get £100!!!!!!! i want my car back,i am happy to pay the excess and not have hastings deal with my car,just give me it back, it concerns me they told me it was a total loss before even anybody had seen the damage,they obviously know how much money can be made from these cars in parts. i am not going to send in any documents as they will just sell the car with all my personal stuff in it. i have read other peoples dealings with them but untill you have an accident with hastings you really dont know how bad they are,i also need an explanation why the car didnt go to nationwide to see about repairs.. help needed before i contact the insurance ombudsman.. regards justin

I have recently published a blog post about a terrible experience endured by Amy Kewell at her local Sainsburys in Tonbridge. The fundamental issue with her experience is that it is very difficult to shop in a supermarket with children in a buggy. We are very keen to find a supermarket who are willing to develop a simple solution to make it easier for mums and dads with buggies. [weblink removed for consideration by site team]

Default Terrible Teen Debt Hi Guys, Need some help and guidance, I will be the first to admit I was stupid for doing this but I got involved with a bad circle of friends and ran up some debt with loans and credit cards. I buried my head in the sand and decided to stop paying these off. It all got a bit too much so I decided the best way out would be to start fresh and change my name which I did successfully via deedpol. I have recently received a CCJ on my old name for this debt it's been a long time since I stopped paying this off. I do not have a clue who I owe this money to it has been that long. I can no longer access my credit file for my old name as I don't have any ID what so ever to verift this. I am aware of the statute barred rule and I am sure it has been longer than 6 years since I stopped responding and acknowledging this debt but inhale no way of checking. The pursuers are a well known collections agency in Yorkshire and looking into their reports on various forums s have a habit of chasing post 6 year debts. Any help or guidance would be appreciated. Thanks

I am sure this has been said before, but am now in a bit of a battle with customer services. I will not bore everyone with the specifics (there are many pages of those), however I sold a phone for spares which was defective. The symptoms were explained extremely clearly in the description. A case was raised against me for an additional symptom one that was connected to the one I posted in the description that I was unaware of, however was, in my mind, directly connected (I stated the SIM was not being recognised, but 1 reboot of the phone in 50 odd would see the SIM, the buyer stated the IMEI code was missing from the phones firmware). After much to-ing and fro-ing of emails, I raised the issue for a resolution as my paypal account was in debt and I could not pull down my funds for my other sold items. Ebay found in favour for the buyer for a reason that was not even mentioned in any of the case notes by either myself of the buyer (and I quote "The IMEI sticker was removed from the phone"). This is not the case, I even have a photo of the sticker on the phone before I sent it off, this has been supplied to customer services. After many more emails between myself and Ebay they still insist this is the "fairiest" solution. I am now winding down my ebay activity, there are other places to buy and sell stuff, the good news is that I seem to be making more, selling for less but not getting hit for commission so in my mind its Ebays loss. I am not sure what is going to happen next, I have asked for new cards and stopped direct debits so Ebay cannot take any more of my money and written a letter to their complaints department. I am considering taking them to the small claims court as I am definitely out of pocket by about £100 for a decision that I cannot appeal and is simply ignored. There, vented my spleen, advice to anyone else who Ebay ignore then vote with your feet!!! Before I get trolled by buyers who have been stung by buying mis-described goods, I had 2 last lots I have sold which I cannot get to the funds for, there were only a few quid and I have sent those off today as its not those buyers fault so am even more out of pocket. I have 100% feedback of around 310 odd and have sold broken phones and laptops before with some very happy customers who love rubbing it in that they got something working, I am not a techy so just get shot of the stuff.

Hey everyone! Really need your help! Last Thursday 6th June, I lostmy phone walking near my house and back. I immediately phoned Vodafoneinsurance to report the loss and make a claim. I rely heavily on my iPhone forwork so it’s a real struggle without it. I was told it would take 1 to 5working days to assess the claim but every time I call I’m advised they areawaiting third party info, however, nobody knows who from or how long it willtake. Vodafone are really unhelpful, and theymake you feel like a criminal when you call. One guy asked me what I waswearing so that he can check CCTV with police and when I find my phone I shouldcall back. They are unsympathetic and unhelpful and would not give me atimescale as to when I should be receiving a new handset. I’m leaving to go away next week and Ineed my phone desperately. I had previously lost my phone about 3 months agoand the guy mentioned that on the phone. Could this be an issue? Am I beingpunished and made to wait? I’m on a £50 a month tariff and paying £13.99 on topfor insurance. I pay insurance so that accidents like these can be covered andI have peace of mind. Now it’s just stressing me out. Can anyone please help in anyway?

Have been trying to deal with Vodafone over the last few weeks on two issues and their customer service has hit new lows. I work in London and Brighton - first issue is for the last month there's been no vodafone coverage in the bn1 area of brighton due to a fault that has no time scale to be fixed. When you start looking into it, VF customer service send you round the departments, each one making you carry out pointless and time consuming diy tech support. Eventually you find everyone else on a network forum with the same problem, then on going back to VF they say they can't fix it, they won't offer a discount and you can't get out of your contract, despite the service not working. Issue 2: they have no coverage at one of the London sites, where I've been using a suresignal - good when it works, but it is intermittent, problematic and very user-unfriendly. To set it up you need to be able to open ports on router etc etc) - plug and play it isn't. Cut a long story etc mine died, hours on the phone having to convince vodafone tech support it wasn't working, they finally agree to send a new one, then nothing. Delivery date passes, no text, no call, can't track it down, nada. More calls to customer services - the usual rudeness, passing around and hanging up etc More than a week later I finally get a call back, but on the brighton network issue - Davey the vodafone rep proceeds to withdraw a previous £10 goodwill payment (which was laughable to start with, on a spend of £80k to date) and say the suresignal that had been ordered for me had also been withdrawn (without letting me know!) as their policy is now to charge £65 for any fault on one (above package and call costs). Remember, this is a device supplied by vodafone to allow the phone to work at all! Being as I now get no coverage in two out of my three workplaces with vodafone being so spectacularly unhelpful I have to make other arrangements with a telecom that works. Do I press vodafone for compensation to pay for this or do I just quit the contract and stop paying them? any advice welcome

I purchased a cooker from Currys online and received 2 emails confirming the delivery date as 15/3. My o/h rang them in the week, to confirm time of delivery, and was told they would contact us nearer the time, or we could track it online. I dutifully booked the day off of work and arranged for a qualified gas fitter to come out. At 4.30 14/3 I got a phone call from a really rude woman at the manufacturers telling me that the cooker was out of stock, they didn't know when it would be back in, and it was all my fault because I didn't ring her to check!!! I rang Currys and asked what was going on, explaining that I had made all these plans, and had emails proving the supposed delivery date, and the answer was "oh yeah, you should have rung the manufacturer!!" By this stage I was starting to loose the plot, and explained that when I order a bottle of milk from my milkman, i dont ring the farmer to check he has milked his cows that day, thats his job!! I also asked them to explain why nobody had told me to ring the manufacturer, and why I had been promised delivery on Friday on 3 separate occasions? All he could say was there must have been a lack of communication!!!! I cancelled the order, and was given another number to ring to complain, they just put me on hold for 12 minuets and then cut me off!! SO this morning i decided to give them a call as still no sign of the promised refund in my bank.Did the usual waiting on hold for 10 mins, and first spoke to a blatantly rude girl, she said that the order wasn't cancelled so I cant have my money back, I asked to speak to a Manager, she refused. I said I would hold and wait for a manager to come free, and she said she was nor prepared to do that. I gave up and called back to speak to someone else. He advised me, that they wont refund my money cos the order wasnt cancelled even though I had the name of the man that I had cancelled it with, AND he admitted it said as much on the system,he said he had to speak to the manufacturer as they couldnt be sure it hadnt been delivered!!!!!! this is the same manufacturer who told me the cooker was out of stock for the forseeable future the day before it was due to be delivered!! So there's £400 sitting in these shysters bank account that is legally mine!!!! seriously do not touch these lot folks, they need to go the same way as Comet!!

I wanted to purchase an Apple laptop and the sales person sold the benefits of the apple warranty and after care so I agreed to purchase that along with a dslr camera,total cost £1700. This took far to long to process for a start only to get all the way through for their till to take the money from my account and then reverse the payment because the serial number didn't match Apples records. The assistant tried again, this time the payment was declined because they had already taken the money which takes between 7-10 working days to go back on my card. A further hour talking to my bank explaining we hadn't purchased anything and the only way we could reverse the payment quicker is if they fax them explaining the situation. Currys don't have a fax but could email, we ended up leaving having purchased nothing and having spent £1700 and as of yet still have no refund 24hrs later. Whilst waiting I also watched as customer after customer walked out because they could find any staff to serve them and the staff member serving us was rude to more than customer telling one guy he was unable to clone himself, and when I asked if he was going to keep a copy of our refund in case I need to come back he explained he doesn't keep a draw at home especially for refunds, Comet have just gone bust I don't think its long before we see Currys and Pc world in a similar position. Avoid like the plague I know I will never shop there again.

Hi, My mother has been having trouble with Talk Talk and just want to see if there are any grounds to claim back what she has paid. About a year ago, we signed up for a year membership for phone and it included free broadband. My mother admittedly got in to a bit of trouble and got behind on her payments and since around March earlier this year they have been less than helpful. They have basically made her pay the arrears but have not provided the service. She basically has paid them a few hundred pounds and we have not had a phone or internet service since March 2012. She tried to sort it and has been paying arrears of 50 a month for at least 5 months now and her last payment is due end of December. I called in September saying this was ridiculous that she had willingly entered in to an agreement to pay off what she owed at 50 a month and they still would not reconnect the service. They basically said this was tough so I said fine, I wanted to cancel and just pay her arrears and any cancellation charge, since this would be cheaper than paying the arrears and they continue to keep adding on the monthly charge/line rental (she would never have paid it off that way). Arrears were around 200 and cancellation was around 50. They cleverly said they would stop the charges/line rental for the next three months then back in September for her to get back on track and then cancel if she wanted when contract ended in January 2013 and not pay any charge. I agreed and now we have one more payment and then I am going to cancel. They actually sent her a bill last month adding on one more payment actually since the three month suspension had 'expired' for which I promptly rang up refusing to do this and they again wiped this and she again has 50 left to pay. They asked if there was anything they could do to keep us in an unbothered tone for which I obviously refused. Surely she should not have had to pay basically a year for nothing even if she did get in to trouble she willing agreed to sort it and by cancellation which I will shortly be commencing she will have had 9 months of no service. any advice gratefully received. Vicky

Hi all and I am sorry if I am posting in the wrong place I will try to condense the information has not to ramble. I worked in an admin post that was well paid and a decent pension for 12 years. My mother had set up her own business with her partner a couple of years earlier. In 2010 her partner left her and she begged me to leave my job and work for her doing the admin has she could not do the work. In July 2011 she met another bloke, moved him in and went on holiday with him leaving me in charge to run the business for two weeks. I worked long hours but I did very well doing her work also. She came back and told me she was making me redundant in a weeks time and then she too him on to do my job! Heart broken and angry I left. How could a mother do that to her daughter? She refused to pay me my last months pay and also refused my unspent holiday pay. I took her to an employment tribunial and she ended up paying me a month before it went to court. I put the heart break behind me and set upon finding myself a new job. I applied for around 200 jobs but with no reply even with jobs I was over qualified for. I went self employed for a year has a gardener but has winter set in I did not have enough work so I began applying for jobs again. I have applied for over 100 jobs and still nothing. I took a part time waitressing job to get me and my kids by (I am a single parent) 6 weeks ago. My boss is really impressed with me but I love admin so I have still been applying for other jobs. My boss called me into the office today and said they have checked my references out and my mothers boyfriend has given me a shocking reference. I told my boss everything and she told me not to worry has I am one of the best staff there. Is there anything I can to to stop anymore bad references from him? I only met him once and I have never worked with him. I do want to further my career but he has been putting a stop to that for the last 17 months!! Please can someone help me Thanks in advance to you world wise people