O2 / Moorcroft Now issuing Court proceedings

[thesecret]

Hi,

This morning I have received a court notification in relation to my O2 phone bill.

I had an arrangement with Moorcroft, however this was beyond my means as I was made unemployed as the company folded.

The debt initially was 163.85 and i have paid 20 per month as arranged.

I called to inform them I could not manage 20 in May but they would not reduce the amount. I have not paid for the last 2 payments.

I have not received any notification from Moorcroft or any other party that this is now going to court or called to ask what the issue is despite myself calling and notifying them.

 

The claim form is for £110

 

The PoC state,

 

THE CLAIMANTS CLAIM IS FOR THE SUM DUE FROM THE DEFENDANT TO THE CLAIMANT UNDER A CONTRACT FOR TELEPHONE SERVICES AND OR EQUIPMENT HIRE

INVOICE REF. 1006954464

BALANCE OUTSTANDING 110.00

 

Nelsons solicitors issued the claim form, again i have no knowledge of who they are or previouis correspondence from them.

 

Can i have some help please, I am getting bogged down with all of this, its hard enough getting back into work let alone dealing with people who refuse to communicate.

[silverfox1961]

Hi,

I don't know enough on court procedures to help but a little bump for you

[thesecret]

bump

[citizenB]

First off, I have moved this thread to the legal issues forums as you have been issued with a claim.. that way people with legal knowledge will be able to see your query.

 

[citizenB]

Aggghh, I have just seen you received this claim form on the 4th July ??.

 

What was the issue date on the claim form ? there is a timescale you MUST stick to.

 

Was this issued out of the Northampton Bulk Processing centre ?

 

If it was, then the time scales are as follows:

 

from date of issue = 5 days = ??

 

Then you have 14 days to acknowledge if you are going to defend. From then you get a further 14 days to defend.

 

What have you done so far, if anything ?

[citizenB]

secret, the comment below has been posted by car2403, site team member.

 

If there was no LBA, they are stuffed. He will need to admit the claim, (or the amount he agrees to) let the Court decide how much he should be paying, then, when Judgment is entered, ask the court to consider the issue of costs against them for not complying with pre-action protocols.

 

Unfortunately, for the DCA and the Solicitor, this means that they won't be able to claim the costs for entering the claim process. Those costs probably outweigh what he owes, so they've shot themselves in the foot - at point blank range. Ouch!

 

You will need to have acknowledge the claim either by admitting the claim in full or that you intend to defend. If you are going to defend then you will have 14 extra days. to submit your defence.

 

To ensure you stick to the timetable, please answer the question re the Issue date I asked in an earlier post.

 

I have just noticed that you say Nelsons solicitors issued the claim form ?. Has this been sent to you directly from the court. Is there any chance you can scan the document in, minus any personal details.

[thesecret]

i aos'd these within the 14 day timescale.

Nelson's have sent the claim via the bulk centre with no other correspondence.

the claim was sent to me and i received it july1

[citizenB]

i aos'd these within the 14 day timescale.

Nelson's have sent the claim via the bulk centre with no other correspondence.

the claim was sent to me and i received it july1

 

Did you see post 6 ? The advice that Car2403 has given ? And, what is the final date you need to have your defence in by.

[thesecret]

Yes i have seen that,

 

The defence is due on 31st July,

I have just received a letter from moorcroft with an increased balance to a total of £200 stating you have been put into court in relation to this debt o2.

Still no notice of asssignment, so the costs will need to be realligned when i ask at court?

[citizenB]

Ummm, if they have issued a POC, I dont think they can increase the amount unless they amend their POC ?

[citizenB]

Ok here are a couple of holding/embarrassed defences you can use.

 

 

 

 

 

IN THE XXXXXXXX COUNTY COURT

CLAIM NUMBER XXXXXXXX

DEFENCE

1. I xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxx of xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxx am the defendant in this action and make the following statement as my defence to the claim made by XXXXX

 

2. Except where otherwise mentioned in this defence, I neither admit nor deny any allegation made in the claimants Particulars of Claim and put the claimant to strict proof thereof.

 

3. The Defendant is embarrassed in pleading to the Particulars of Claim as it stands at present, inter alia: -

 

4. The claimants' particulars of claims disclose no legal cause of action and they are embarrassing to the defendant as the claimant's statement of case is insufficiently particularised and does not comply or even attempt to comply with CPR part 16. In this regard I wish to draw the courts attention to the following matters;

 

a) The Particulars of Claim are vague and insufficient and do not disclose an adequate statement of facts relating to or proceeding the alleged cause of action. No particulars are offered in relation to the nature of the contract referred to, the method the claimant calculated any outstanding sums due, or any default notices issued or any other matters necessary to substantiate the claimant's claim.

 

b) A copy of the purported contract that the claimant cites in the Particulars of Claim, and which appears to form the basis upon which these proceedings have been brought, has not been served attached to the claim form.

 

c) A copy of any evidence of both the scope and nature of any default, and proof of any amount outstanding on the alleged account, has not been served attached to the claim form.

 

d) The claimant did not send a Letter Before Action as required under the Pre-Action Protocols.

 

5. Notwithstanding matters pleaded, it is denied that the Claimant has established a cause of action or that the claimant has a valid claim against the defendant. Consequently, it is proving difficult to plead to the particulars as matters stand.

Send this to the solicitor by special delivery

 

' Herewith copy defence by way of service, the same having been filed with the court.

Please serve amended particulars of claim and plead your client's case in an appropriate manner within 7 days, so that I am aware of the case I will have to meet at trial. I request that you attach to the particulars a copy of the agreement upon which the claimant relies. The matter will be transferred to my home court and the claimant will have to produce the document, in any event. In those circumstances you should plead in accordance with the CPR rather than the Northampton County Court regime.

Failure to provide that requested in the time period provided for will result in application to the court. I confirm a copy of this letter will be produced to the court when the question of costs falls to be decided'.

An alternative short embarrassed defence

 

1. The particulars of claim discloses no cause of action and are self evidently an abuse of process, in that they fail to deal with the basic rules of pleading in accordance with the CPR (even allowing for the constraints of the bulk issue system).

 

2. Further to that above the defendant is unable to plead effectively or at all. The defendant is embarrassed.

 

HTH

[thesecret]

Scratch that the defence is due on 5/8/9

Do i admit to the initial debt 110 and not the costs?

Or defend the full amount?

What would my defence be, other than a prior arrangement and then put directly into court with no notice from them or the issuing solicitors, that would cover the costs

[thesecret]

Thanks CitizenB just seen your post once id submitted mine

[citizenB]

This was Car2403's comments in a previoius post.

 

If there was no LBA, they are stuffed. He will need to admit the claim, (or the amount he agrees to) let the Court decide how much he should be paying, then, when Judgment is entered, ask the court to consider the issue of costs against them for not complying with pre-action protocols.

 

Unfortunately, for the DCA and the Solicitor, this means that they won't be able to claim the costs for entering the claim process. Those costs probably outweigh what he owes, so they've shot themselves in the foot - at point blank range. Ouch!

 

So if you are happy to admit to the amount, scratch the defences I have put above and follow Car's advice. That will at least keep the amount owing down and the court will only order you to pay what you can afford. Especially if you can show that Moorcroft had agreed to an arrangement with you and you were maintaining the payments agreed.