Sold fridge for £60 and the buyer now claiming £450 - £500 through courts and now BALIFF!

[stush]

Hi,

 

My brother in law advertised a fridge for sale on a local forum site which was no more than a year old, but he needed a bigger one.

 

There was a couple interested in this, and were messaging him on the site enquiring about it and he sent them photos etc. The lady that was interested sent her husband to buy it for £60.

 

The husband came in a van without his wife, looked at it and was happy with it, so he bought it. My brother in law helped him put it into his van etc..

 

When the husband reached home his wife called saying they are not happy with it and wanted her money back . My brother in law responded, well your husband was happy with it and saw it working etc hence why he bought it? Maybe you should have come to see it with your husband before exchanging the money..The lady wasnt happy about this..My brother in law basically said if you are really unhappy with this then bring it back in the next couple of hours and I will give your money back..The lady responded that my brother in law should pick it up and not them return it....My brother in law said its their responsability to return it, as her husband was happy with it when paid for it..

 

A few hours later the lady calls again stating that the fridge is in horrible condition (although it was cleaned before her husband came to see it), it smells and doesnt work properly...She posted photos of the fridge on the site, but this time with lots of dirt on it?? Dirt that wasnt on there when it was sold ...When calling she was arguing saying you know owe us money for the fridge, petrol spent collecting it and for all the food that they put in that has apparently gone off...(which I am sure was definately a lie)..

 

The lady kept on posting bad things about my brother in law on that site, and eventually the moderators deleted her posts/threads...

 

Since then they didn't recieve any communication and assumed it had gone away...now this week he has recieved a baliffs letter at his family address but he has gone away for a while, so his sister called the baliff asking what this was about. The baliff on the 1st call was quite rude and aggressive but basically stated he had been to the house a few times and initially he thought nobody was living there, and has been to check the property out since and mentioned he notinced changes such as new gates, decor etc and was aware of all the cars registrations and owners details etc..

 

She called him again this time he was more polite, he mentioned that he noticed my brother in laws car which he has left at the property and he'll be calling the couple to see if they want him to recover the car to cover this bill which is now approx £450 to £500 (the car is worth more). He said if the couple give him the go ahead, he would need to goto the courts before he can collect the car.

 

My question is, Is it too late for them to contest this debt, as the husband saw the fridge and was happy with it hence why he bought it?

 

Is there anyway forward with this, as it seems stupid to pay out £450 to £500 for a fridge that was sold for £60, especially when the husband saw what he was buying and checked it, and they were offered refund if they bought it back within a few hours (even though he shouldnt have offered the refund).

Edited August 2, 2009 by stush

[sillygirl1]

If it hasnt been to court then the couple are trying it on. I think you need to get a local solicitor to write them a letter and tell them to bog off. Sounds like a clear cut case of 'pulling a fast one' to me. I don't think we can help much here other than reiterate

 

If a bailiff turns up minus a court order or warrant they have no legal rights whatsoever, they are basically acting as a 'agent' and can be done for trespass and breach of the peace.

[yourbank]

Sillygirl, it looks like it did.

 

"A month later my brother in law recieved a letter to goto court in regards to the fridge...he didnt attend !!"

[Maggie_moo]

I agree, it does sound suspicious to me, surely wouldn't it go to small claims? I think they're trying it on too.

[yourbank]

If they went to court and got a judgement because the OP's brother did not turn up and then went to enforce it then bailiffs would be sent. It might be worth clarifying with the bailiff the claim number and verify it with the court.

I'm not sure, if valid, whether there is a legal reason to have the judgement set aside.

[stush]

From what I remember, I remember my brother in law getting a letter about this and stating he needed to attend court.

 

The couple are trying it on! But as he didnt goto court, the court may have gone in favour of the couple?

 

As it did goto court, any way they can appeal against this now...or could it be too late?

[sillygirl1]

It would be more than 'just a letter asking him to go to court', there would have been the court paperwork AND possibly a solicitors Letter before Action, if none of this has been done then it is a fraud and the couple should be reported to the police.

 

Does the OP's brother have a copy of the letter they can scan in? That would give us something to work on.

[caledfwlch]

It sounds a bit dodgy that this "Bailiff" who would be a court bailiff also, did not levy on the car straight away.

 

It also seems strange that the "Bailiff" would need to go to court to get permission to take the car?

 

Did the Brother recieve official documents from the court stating the buyers had been awarded a CCJ?

 

He might need to hide his car temporarily before this is sorted.

 

Who exactly does the bailiff say he is working for? Has he put a company name down, is he a court bailiff or what?

[caledfwlch]

From what I remember, I remember my brother in law getting a letter about this and stating he needed to attend court.

 

The couple are trying it on! But as he didnt goto court, the court may have gone in favour of the couple?

 

As it did goto court, any way they can appeal against this now...or could it be too late?

 

What letters has he had? If it had been to court, even if he didnt attend, he would have recieved paperwork telling him they had won judgement by default.

 

It sounds like, even if they HAVE gone and managed a CCJ by default, they havent followed any of the rules or procedures... Did your brother get a Letter Before Action etc? What is the extra charges made of? £390 for a small claims seems incredibly expensive.

[stush]

What letters has he had? If it had been to court, even if he didnt attend, he would have recieved paperwork telling him they had won judgement by default.

 

It sounds like, even if they HAVE gone and managed a CCJ by default, they havent followed any of the rules or procedures... Did your brother get a Letter Before Action etc? What is the extra charges made of? £390 for a small claims seems incredibly expensive.

 

I am not sure, i will find out...

 

In regards to the extra charges, I believe they are claiming the petrol costs, food that apparently went off when putting in the fridge (a fridge they didnt like and said was discusting) and probably court & baliff charges maybe?

[caledfwlch]

I am not sure, i will find out...

 

In regards to the extra charges, I believe they are claiming the petrol costs, food that apparently went off when putting in the fridge (a fridge they didnt like and said was discusting) and probably court & baliff charges maybe?

 

Petrol costs for picking up the fridge when everything was fine?

 

What about buyer beware and sold as seen?

[stush]

Petrol costs for picking up the fridge when everything was fine?

 

What about buyer beware and sold as seen?

 

I know, its blatently obvious this couple is trying it!!

 

If buying second hand goods, and the buyer paid for the goods, then doesnt that automtically mean they were happy with the fridge?

[Maggie_moo]

So they were disgusted with the state of the fridge and still they put food in it?? Very odd!

[stush]

So they were disgusted with the state of the fridge and still they put food in it?? Very odd!

 

EXACTLY!!

[gustavius rex]

l am sure your brother in law got a judgement by default against him. This has happened to me where the original documents were sent to a wrong address. The only way to solve this is to go to the relevant court and find out if there is a judgement registred against him. lf that is the case, then he will have to ask to have the judgement set aside by filing a general application form (forgotten the numbe but think it is 244) with the court. The bailiff is really powerless under all circumstances, just make sure he cannot levy on the car.

GR

[stush]

What happens if you have the judgement set aside?

[postggj]

the only way to sort this out is for you to post onto your thread any correspondants from the court

 

i to smell a big rat

[lets fight bailiffs]

anybody can file a claim on the intrnet and it would normaly come from Nottingham county court first and then to your local court if you do not attend 9 times out of ten you will not win.

 

his next step is to go to the court and have it set aside to give him more time the fact is, it was sold as seen and a refund was offered why should he pick it up when they took it, if it was my case i would not worry about it,

[postggj]

if you have any correspondants from the baliff

let us know his name and we will be able to let you know if he is infact a real baliff

[stush]

if you have any correspondants from the baliff

let us know his name and we will be able to let you know if he is infact a real baliff

 

I am waiting for them to send me any correspndances they have from the court etc..and the recent baliff letter etc..will upload as soon as poss..

 

Thanks for everybodys responses so far...keep them coming

[stush]

The baliffs surname is allssop - when they send me the letters etc I'll see if there is 1st name too.

[lets fight bailiffs]

I would also send a letter to the bailiff as the claim would be around £150inc costs so the bailiffs fees also look too high send and ask for a full list of costs you must put COMPLAINT at the top

[tomtubby]

From what I remember, I remember my brother in law getting a letter about this and stating he needed to attend court.

 

The couple are trying it on! But as he didnt goto court, the court may have gone in favour of the couple?

 

As it did goto court, any way they can appeal against this now...or could it be too late?

 

I am HOPING that this is a County Court Bailiff. If so, then he is OK as these bailiff's are very reasonable.

 

Your brother in law COULD apply on a N244 to set aside to Judgement but the Judge will need to be convinced that there is a good reason for doing this !!!

 

The PROBLEM that you have is that you have admitted a few times on this thread that he did receive court papers and failed to attend court. This will NOT help him. This is why people need to so careful what they write on a public forum!! (the EDIT button is helpful)...

 

If the TOTAL debt including court fees is LESS than £600 then the County Court will be dealing with this BUT if the debt reaches £600 then the claimant can apply to have the debt enforced by a High Court Enforcement Officer and this will involve fees of not less than £1,000.

[gustavius rex]

LFB is right. 9 times out of 10 the judge will throw out your application. ln my case l was right, but, despite evidence etc. the judge (a female) denied my application, simply stating that she did not believe l had a case. Now, l could have proceeded up the chain to the circuit judge, but, that would have cost me another £150.00 with even less chance of winning. The judges are not willing to go back on a judgement, even if the original package was sent to an incorrect address. My proposal is that if your brother in law is prepared to bat down and ride the storm out, then just sit tight and wait for the claimant to give up. That's what l did and have to date not paid out a single penny for an unjustified claim.

GR

[Yoshiro]

The thing that gets me, is if the court bailiff arrived then surely he would have a warrant of execution, so why would he need to go to court to ask if he could take the car?