Hi im looking for some assistance please. I have an ebay buyer threatening me with the small claims court for an item they say they returned but we havent received. To cut a long story short they were not happy with the item they purchased so we asked them to return it. A few weeks have now passed and we have not received the item back and they cannot provide any proof that they returned the item. Can any one help me where I may stand if they were to take me to the small claims court? Thanks

Please can somebody advise? Friend was employed by Company A from November 2010 till November 2012. Employment contract said company had right to take back any overpaid wages. Company A has now written to friend saying that they want overpaid wages back - they aren't saying which hours were overpaid merely giving a lump sum amount to be in full settlement. They have said that if friend does not pay up soon they will go to the small claims court - and bankrupt friend if necessary. We know that Company A is of the opinion that friend claimed meal breaks and travelling time when he shouldn't have done. Apparently, they think, he was entitled to claim this ONLY for the first few weeks that he worked there but he was not told this and claimed all the time he was there. His timesheets were seen by the MD (small company) and approved by him before being passed to outside payroll bureau. The timesheets quite clearly show that meal breaks and travel time were being claimed, it is not just buried in the figures but separately shown. As the timesheets do not give a total number of hours - or allow you to show the overtime rate (time and a half or double time) the MD would have had no choice but to read what was on the timesheet. Friend's previous job and current job are in the same industry as Company A and they both paid meal breaks and travel time. Assuming that Company A does go to the Small Claims Court and they ask for a lump sum rather than an amount linked to specific hours that they identify, will the Court allow this? If the Court requires them to identify specific hours then how far can they go back? All the way to November 2010? Lastly, what happens to the amount they ask for as it has already been subjected to PAYE and NI and presumably one cannot get this back from HMRC. Does the Net amount get worked out? Obviously, all this is a bit of a new experience for us. If anybody notices anything that we have missed I would appreciate it if you assume its because I don't understand what goes on. Thanks