Wedding Honeymoon one problem after another

[sexyfufu]

Hi. I am not home till tomorrow night so I will do my best here

 

the 1st page is the witness statement. VH are relying on the following evidence.

 

1. Copy of defence - same asbefore dated 16 feb

2. Copy of invoice and itinerary

3. Useful information andbooking conditions - already posted up

4.extracts frombrochure - same as my evidence.

5. Report from virgin holidays rep - already posted

6. Report from manager at Bahamas hotel - already posted

7. Report from Disney already posted

 

Sorry I am doing this of my phone - struggling to get Internet access.

 

I will send u some links tomorrow afternoon about bad reviews. There is also a video on you tube of someones room with mould every where

 

 

Im really sorry if my posts don't make sense.

[sexyfufu]

My mom also wrote about the work at Disney. They accepted a 75Percent refund. I sent the letter to the court and vh. Again I canattach that when I get home it all helps.

[legalpickle]

Hi. I am not home till tomorrow night so I will do my best here

 

the 1st page is the witness statement. VH are relying on the following evidence.

 

1. Copy of defence - same asbefore dated 16 feb

2. Copy of invoice and itinerary

3. Useful information andbooking conditions - already posted up

4.extracts frombrochure - same as my evidence.

5. Report from virgin holidays rep - already posted

6. Report from manager at Bahamas hotel - already posted

7. Report from Disney already posted

 

Sorry I am doing this of my phone - struggling to get Internet access.

 

I will send u some links tomorrow afternoon about bad reviews. There is also a video on you tube of someones room with mould every where

 

 

Im really sorry if my posts don't make sense.

Sorry, I don't understand what you mean by "witness statement" - which one?

 

My mom also wrote about the work at Disney. They accepted a 75Percent refund. I sent the letter to the court and vh. Again I canattach that when I get home it all helps.

Please do. It should have been sent to MBNA too.

 

Ok. Please be in touch when you get home.

[sexyfufu]

Please find attached the witness statement.

 

Also i did have a cover page stating this.

 

We refer to the hearing and accordingly enclose our list of documents. We confirm that a copy has been forwarded to the court.

 

This Person was not the person who did the mediation, which i find a little strange.

Doc1.pdf

[legalpickle]

Please find attached the witness statement.

 

Also i did have a cover page stating this.

 

We refer to the hearing and accordingly enclose our list of documents. We confirm that a copy has been forwarded to the court.

 

This Person was not the person who did the mediation, which i find a little strange.

I don't.

 

1) I suggest you call VH tomorrow (today) just to see if they will settle at 50% (incl. interest to date - calculate it before you call them) plus the court fees. Give it a last shot to save you the hearing.

 

2) Prepare a breakdown of everything that happened in short format for the hearing. Go through it with your husband. Both of you should attend. Post it up here.

 

3) The letter from your mother is not attached. Please post it up here.

 

I'll do my best to prep you on the hearing tomorrow. I've been mad busy since I got back, barely had a minute to think! I'm also suffering from ATD (After-Trip Depression)!

[sexyfufu]

I Rang Virgin Holidays like you asked and asked for 50% plus costs.

 

They will not accept that but they have proposed the same offer thats always been on the table with costs.

Edited June 7, 2010 by sexyfufu

[sexyfufu]

Please find attached the letter from my mother, I will post up the breakdown shortly too.

Doc1.doc

[sexyfufu]

Short Breakdown

 

1. Suitcase with wedding dress in Damaged.

2. Incorrect name on all wedding documentation.

3. Major renovation works at Disney.

4. Tickets issued from VH to the Bahamas had incorrect information and incorrect airline. And incorrect price to what was on the invoice.

5. Bahamas Air aircraft, wires by feet and felt very unsafe.

6. Charged for Transfers yet transfers were free still have the transfer voucher.

7. Room In Breeze Bahamas – Dirty curtains didn’t close

8. Pool area – Filthy with **** marks, Shower didn’t work, Jacuzzi not work. Light floating in the pool, Metal Stairs broken.

9. Towel staffs were rude.

10. Found it very difficult to make a reservation at the speciality restaurants.

11. Didn’t receive Honeymoon wine and fruit until 3rd day after complaining.

[legalpickle]

Needs to be longer than that. Please go through each of the Particulars of Claim and break them down here, in short format, trying to spell correctly - and verbalise it as best as possible in your own words.

 

Next, please go through their letters, concisely breaking their defences down here, and then respond after each one.

 

I'll be back much later. Gotta take a break - not stopped since 6am!

 

What times the hearing tomorrow?

[sexyfufu]

Hearing is 10am

[sexyfufu]

Is that better, i have used the Particulars but changed the words a little.

 

My Claim

 

1. I booked my wedding and honeymoon with Virgin Holidays on 26th December 2008 and booked a 3 centre holiday. The total charge for this was £5855.40.

2. I received 2 letters from Virgin Weddings; the first in May and the second in July. These letters were addressed to “Donna & Derek”. I called Virgin and advised them that my husband to be’s name was in fact Darren, not Derek.

3. I received the flight tickets 7 days before departure. The tickets to The Bahamas clearly displayed the price of £444.60, despite being charged £530 each on the invoice; I rang Virgin regarding this prior to travelling and was told the price paid was correct.

4. Upon arriving in Orlando airport and collecting our luggage, I noticed that the suitcase that contained my wedding dress had a hole and a crack. This made me very upset, distraught and annoyed because this case was clearly marked with a fragile label.

5. In the airport at the Virgin information desk there was a letter waiting for me addressed to Donna and Derek.

6. When we arrived at the hotel ‘Marriott Suites’ there was a sweet little keepsake card again addressed to Donna and Derek from Virgin Holidays.

7. On 2nd August 2009 we drove from Clearwater to Orlando and checked into Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort.

8. On the 2nd morning of our stay at Disney, we were woken at approximately 8am to the sound of drilling and banging. We discovered there were major renovation works going on in the room 3 doors from our room. The workmen were refitting a bathroom suite, fixing mirrors and shelves to the room. Outside of the room on the landing there was lots of tools, these included drills, planers, saws and various other electrical equipment. There was also an electrical lead running along the floor which we had to walk over.

9. On the 5th August 2009 we checked out of Disney and drove to terminal A of Orlando Airport to check in for our flight to The Bahamas.

10. The tickets issued from Virgin for the flight to The Bahamas stated the flight number and airline ‘US Airways’. We queued up for over 30 minutes to be told that we were not flying with US Airways and were in fact on a code share.

11. We then made our way from terminal one to terminal two, which was on the other side of the airport to check in for our flight to The Bahamas with Bahamas Air.

12. When we boarded the Aircraft for our flight, we noticed some loose wires to the left of out feet. The aircraft was 27 years old and the cabin was very dirty, the aircraft also seemed to fly right, then straight, then left, then straight; constantly for the whole flight; which terrified us completely,

13. Upon checking in at the hotel ‘Super Clubs Breeze Bahamas’ we were given the keys and a map to our room. We went to our room and changed into our swim wear and went to the swimming pool.

14. When we got to the pool we found brown **** on the surface of the water. The shower did not work and the Jacuzzi only worked in one area where there was only sufficient room for one person to sit.

15. We witnessed 2 people hurt their feet on the metal stairs leading to the pool; the stairs had a protruding sharp metal edge. There was also a light in the pool floating on the surface with a wire connected to it. We were extremely worried for their safety.

16. The towel staff were very rude and unaccommodating when giving out towels.

17. Our room was on the ground floor and the curtains didn’t seem to close properly, so on the 1st night we had to use our suitcase to keep the curtains together so no one could look in.

18. In the holiday brochure provided by Virgin Holidays there was a special offer that honeymooners receive fruit and champagne. I enquired at the hotel reception about this and they had never heard of it.

19. To make a reservation for a restaurant we had to ring at 8am and it took about 20 minutes to get through, and even then found it very difficult to get a reservation.

Edited June 7, 2010 by sexyfufu

[sexyfufu]

Defence

 

Doc 1 - Virgins Defence.

 

Claim 2 - Defendant does not offer flights from Manchester to Miami,

we would of travelled from London.

 

Claim 3 - Transfers from Bahamas.

If i would of known at time of booking free transfers were avaliable i would never of paid for them.

 

Claim 4 - overcharge on tickets.

This is clearly visible from what we paid on the invoice to what was displayed on the tickets.

 

Claim 5 and 6- Nightmare at Disney

 

Please see photographs of building work

 

Claim 7 Bahamas Hotel

 

Pool was never cleaned properly

Hotel was dirty

we did get our Wine and Fruit on the 4th day of our stay.

Please see photos provided.

 

Claim 8 - Bahamas Air Flight

 

The flight was a nightmare, please see photos.

 

Document 2

 

Invoice and Itinerary

 

Invoice clearly showing the fuel tax and resort tax which is different on the tickets

Invoice showing the Flight from Bahamas different price than what is on the ticket.

 

Itinerary clearly showing the flight from Orlando to the Bahamas is on flight USAIR and the flight number is US 8694

 

Document 3 - Terms and Conditions

 

Building Work - We will notify you as soon as possible if we consider that building work will have a significant effect on the enjoyment of your holiday.

 

Flights - number 11 never informed of the change in identity of the carrier.

 

Document 4

 

Honeymooners get free bottle of Wine and fruit

 

Hotel had never heard of this and we had to ask.

 

Eat and drink - Found it very difficult to get a booking at any of the dining restaurants.

 

Document 5

 

Report from Virgin rep at Breeze Bahamas

 

Issues were not resolved within 24 hours of them been raised.

Champagne was not waiting in the new room we had it on day 3

I never admitted that i had settled into the Bahamas.

 

Document 6

 

pool was dirty all the time we were there, i can not confirm or deny if a new filter was fitted. The metal steps were never repaired and the jacuzzi was never fixed.

 

Amenities were not sent to our room on August the 6th but in fact August 7th.

 

Document 7

 

Report from Disney.

 

The work was not minor please see photographs of the work.

 

I did ring Disney customer service on the number in the room requested a manager call me but no manager rang.

[sexyfufu]

Is this okay, Is there anything i have missed or need to do ?

[legalpickle]

Is this okay, Is there anything i have missed or need to do ?

I need to go through it all. Please stay online till midnight.

[legalpickle]

Is that better, i have used the Particulars but changed the words a little.

 

My Claim

 

1. I booked my wedding and honeymoon with Virgin Holidays on 26th December 2008 and booked a 3 centre holiday. The total charge for this was £5855.40.

2. I received 2 letters from Virgin Weddings; the first in May and the second in July. These letters were addressed to “Donna & Derek”. I called Virgin and advised them that my husband to be’s name was in fact Darren, not Derek.

3. I received the flight tickets 7 days before departure. The tickets to The Bahamas clearly displayed the price of £444.60, despite being charged £530 each on the invoice; I rang Virgin regarding this prior to travelling and was told the price paid was correct.

4. Upon arriving in Orlando airport and collecting our luggage, I noticed that the suitcase that contained my wedding dress had a hole and a crack. This made me very upset, distraught and annoyed because this case was clearly marked with a fragile label.

5. In the airport at the Virgin information desk there was a letter waiting for me addressed to Donna and Derek.

6. When we arrived at the hotel ‘Marriott Suites’ there was a sweet little keepsake card again addressed to Donna and Derek from Virgin Holidays.

7. On 2nd August 2009 we drove from Clearwater to Orlando and checked into Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort.

8. On the 2nd morning of our stay at Disney, we were woken at approximately 8am to the sound of drilling and banging. We discovered there were major renovation works going on in the room 3 doors from our room. The workmen were refitting a bathroom suite, fixing mirrors and shelves to the room. Outside of the room on the landing there was lots of tools, these included drills, planers, saws and various other electrical equipment. There was also an electrical lead running along the floor which we had to walk over.

9. On the 5th August 2009 we checked out of Disney and drove to terminal A of Orlando Airport to check in for our flight to The Bahamas.

10. The tickets issued from Virgin for the flight to The Bahamas stated the flight number and airline ‘US Airways’. We queued up for over 30 minutes to be told that we were not flying with US Airways and were in fact on a code share.

11. We then made our way from terminal one to terminal two, which was on the other side of the airport to check in for our flight to The Bahamas with Bahamas Air.

12. When we boarded the Aircraft for our flight, we noticed some loose wires to the left of out feet. The aircraft was 27 years old and the cabin was very dirty, the aircraft also seemed to fly right, then straight, then left, then straight; constantly for the whole flight; which terrified us completely,

13. Upon checking in at the hotel ‘Super Clubs Breeze Bahamas’ we were given the keys and a map to our room. We went to our room and changed into our swim wear and went to the swimming pool.

14. When we got to the pool we found brown **** on the surface of the water. The shower did not work and the Jacuzzi only worked in one area where there was only sufficient room for one person to sit.

15. We witnessed 2 people hurt their feet on the metal stairs leading to the pool; the stairs had a protruding sharp metal edge. There was also a light in the pool floating on the surface with a wire connected to it. We were extremely worried for their safety.

16. The towel staff were very rude and unaccommodating when giving out towels.

17. Our room was on the ground floor and the curtains didn’t seem to close properly, so on the 1st night we had to use our suitcase to keep the curtains together so no one could look in.

18. In the holiday brochure provided by Virgin Holidays there was a special offer that honeymooners receive fruit and champagne. I enquired at the hotel reception about this and they had never heard of it.

19. To make a reservation for a restaurant we had to ring at 8am and it took about 20 minutes to get through, and even then found it very difficult to get a reservation.

NO! By Particulars I mean the section dealing with the monies you are claiming. You need to break down what you are claiming IN YOUR OWN WORDS!

 

What I mean is this. Take Section 4 and merge it with Section 1, putting the relevant details of Section 1 into each claim of Section 4, breaking it down in your own words.

[sexyfufu]

Is this better ?

 

1. I am claiming for a new suitcase has mine got damaged by the airline. I was very upset because this contained my wedding dress.

 

2. Had we known that the time in the Disney “Conorado Springs resort would of been like”, we would have never booked it. Because of this we flew into Orlando airport, rather than Miami airport; and spent approximately £40 in the fuel for the vehicle travelling between Orlando and Clearwater; and vice-versa.

 

3. We were told by the “hotel” in the Bahamas that they do not charge for transferring passengers from the airport to their “hotel yet we were charged a transfer charge.

 

4. According to the tickets for the flights from Manchester to Orlando return, the charge of the ticket comes to £125.30 each [£40 + £13.40 + £71.90]; but we were charged £147.30 per person, we were overcharged a total sum of £44.

 

5. We rented a vehicle from Virgin Holidays for 10 days – whilst we were in the USA –Had we have known of the building works in Disney we would not of gone there. . As such we claim a refund of the 3 days that the vehicle would not have been used.

 

6. I claim the full amount £312 we paid for the Disney “hotel”, due to the nightmare of the building works. - we were woken at approximately 8am to the sound of drilling and banging. We discovered there were major renovation works going on in the room 3 doors from our room. The workmen were refitting a bathroom suite, fixing mirrors and shelves to the room. Outside of the room on the landing there was lots of tools, these included drills, planers, saws and various other electrical equipment. There was also an electrical lead running along the floor which we had to walk over.

 

7. If we had known before what Breeze Bahamas would of been like I would not of booked it. - the pool we found brown **** on the surface of the water. The shower did not work and the Jacuzzi only worked in one area where there was only sufficient room for one person to sit. We witnessed 2 people hurt their feet on the metal stairs leading to the pool; the stairs had a protruding sharp metal edge. There was also a light in the pool floating on the surface with a wire connected to it. We were extremely worried for their safety.

The towel staff were very rude and unaccommodating when giving out towels.

Our room was on the ground floor and the curtains didn’t seem to close properly, so on the 1st night we had to use our suitcase to keep the curtains together so no one could look in.

 

8. If we known how much of a scary hell the flight would have been to the Bahamas we would not of booked to go there. When we boarded the Aircraft for our flight, we noticed some loose wires to the left of out feet. The aircraft was 27 years old and the cabin was very dirty, the aircraft also seemed to fly right, then straight, then left, then straight; constantly for the whole flight; which terrified us completely,

The tickets for this flight stated an amount of £444.15 each [£888.30], but we were actually charged the sum of £530 each [£1,060]; hence we were overcharged by the sum of £171.70

 

I also claim the sum of 25% of the monetary value of the stress, aggravation, hassle, lack of enjoyment, distress and upset caused to both myself and my husband.

[legalpickle]

What I mean by the response is this.

 

1) Go through the response to defence document that we attached to the AQ. Make sure you understand each part of it, and prepare the document so that the response document is easy to place in front of you - when you get to the hearing next to the defence.

 

When I refer to the defence I mean the defence of VH. The defence of MBNA is simple to respond to, and I will deal with at the end of this.

 

Make sure you understand each and every response, and have it clear in your head, in case you need to say anything at the hearing.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

You will need to have everything clear in your head and on paper at the hearing. You need to be prepared to answer questions, and should not recite from the pages, but be able to verbalise statements using your own words! Go through it properly till you have everything clear, preferably with your husband as well.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

2) We have already responded to VH's defence. The additional notes you have written above should be worded - and spelt correctly - and put together with your response to defence that has already been worded. Preferably you should make a table with 3 columns (print it in landscape) - Column 1: Your Claim. Column 2: Their Defence. Column 3: Your responses. Where they haven't responded to it, mark it as such. You can do this in Word.

 

This response is to their further documents.

 

Doc 2) No further response. (If you want add your notes to the response sheet, but you haven't really added anything and aren't disputing these documents).

 

Doc 3)

1. Under Building Work is stated that they will let the customer know if such work is likely to have material impact on the holiday.

2. Change of identity of carrier should have been advised, but was not, which is contrary to terms & conditions.

3. Terms & conditions were advised in writing after booking which is contrary to Thornton v. Shoe Lane Parking as they were not provided before contract entered into. Furthermore they are long, and unclear, hence contrary to the Plain English Requirement in the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999. It cannot be reasonably expected that each and every consumer will read them in depth.

 

Thornton v. Shoe Lane Parking Ltd [1971] QB 163 & Interfoto Picture Library Ltd v. Stiletto Visual Programs Ltd [1989] QB 433 combined form principles of Contract Law and oblige the provider to make any serious terms crystal clear to the customer prior to entry into the contract. Indeed in Thornton, Lord Denning MR stated that such limiting terms must be pointed out clearly to the customer in a way such as using red ink with a red arrow pointing to such terms. Virgin has clearly failed in these obligations.

 

Doc 5)

 

1. Issues were not resolved within 24 hours.

2. Honeymoon champagne was not waiting in the new room, but took till day 3.

3. We never stated that we had settled into the hotel. The reason no alternative hotel was taken was due to the fact that the Virgin representative stated that we would have to pay extra to move. We felt this unfair, and refused to incur further expenses.

4. Pool was dirty all the time we were there. The metal steps were never fixed whilst we were there & neither was the jacuzzi repaired whilst we were lodging in the "hotel".

5. It is vigorously denied that the Bahamas issues were resolved.

6. The issues in Orlando were not raised in detail with the rep in the Bahamas as they were none of his business. There were only raised in passing, and at no time was it stated that the main issues were with Orlando.

7. Amenities were not sent to our room till 7th August, rather than 6th August as claimed.

8. Staff were rude and not on hand to fix any problem that arose. The pool was consistently disgusting whilst we were there.

9. It should be noted that Breezes Bahamas claims to have "no reports" regarding rude staff and no longer has logs of the calls for restaurant reservations. These do not amount to denials, but failure to admit or deny.

10. Re: Disney: The work was far from minor, the pictures show this beyond reasonable doubt. It should be noted that the hotel does not admit nor deny whether equipment was blocking our room.

[legalpickle]

Is this better ?

 

1. I am claiming for a new suitcase has mine got damaged by the airline. I was very upset because this contained my wedding dress.

 

2. Had we known that the time in the Disney “Conorado Springs resort would of been like”, we would have never booked it. Because of this we flew into Orlando airport, rather than Miami airport; and spent approximately £40 in the fuel for the vehicle travelling between Orlando and Clearwater; and vice-versa.

 

3. We were told by the “hotel” in the Bahamas that they do not charge for transferring passengers from the airport to their “hotel yet we were charged a transfer charge.

 

4. According to the tickets for the flights from Manchester to Orlando return, the charge of the ticket comes to £125.30 each [£40 + £13.40 + £71.90]; but we were charged £147.30 per person, we were overcharged a total sum of £44.

 

5. We rented a vehicle from Virgin Holidays for 10 days – whilst we were in the USA –Had we have known of the building works in Disney we would not of gone there. . As such we claim a refund of the 3 days that the vehicle would not have been used.

 

6. I claim the full amount £312 we paid for the Disney “hotel”, due to the nightmare of the building works. - we were woken at approximately 8am to the sound of drilling and banging. We discovered there were major renovation works going on in the room 3 doors from our room. The workmen were refitting a bathroom suite, fixing mirrors and shelves to the room. Outside of the room on the landing there was lots of tools, these included drills, planers, saws and various other electrical equipment. There was also an electrical lead running along the floor which we had to walk over.

 

7. If we had known before what Breeze Bahamas would of been like I would not of booked it. - the pool we found brown **** on the surface of the water. The shower did not work and the Jacuzzi only worked in one area where there was only sufficient room for one person to sit. We witnessed 2 people hurt their feet on the metal stairs leading to the pool; the stairs had a protruding sharp metal edge. There was also a light in the pool floating on the surface with a wire connected to it. We were extremely worried for their safety.

The towel staff were very rude and unaccommodating when giving out towels.

Our room was on the ground floor and the curtains didn’t seem to close properly, so on the 1st night we had to use our suitcase to keep the curtains together so no one could look in.

 

8. If we known how much of a scary hell the flight would have been to the Bahamas we would not of booked to go there. When we boarded the Aircraft for our flight, we noticed some loose wires to the left of out feet. The aircraft was 27 years old and the cabin was very dirty, the aircraft also seemed to fly right, then straight, then left, then straight; constantly for the whole flight; which terrified us completely,

The tickets for this flight stated an amount of £444.15 each [£888.30], but we were actually charged the sum of £530 each [£1,060]; hence we were overcharged by the sum of £171.70

 

I also claim the sum of 25% of the monetary value of the stress, aggravation, hassle, lack of enjoyment, distress and upset caused to both myself and my husband.

Almost there. I specifically stated that you should merge the parts of Section 1 - i.e. paragraphs in Section 1 relevant to parts of Section 4 should be merged together.

 

I am advising you to do this so that when you go to the hearing you won't need to go back and forth between diferent sections and will have everything crystal clear and there in front of you.

 

Everything that's relevant to each part of the claim should be together to avoid you hunting around each document.

[legalpickle]

Above posts of mine: http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/holiday-companies/224145-wedding-honeymoon-one-problem-23.html#post2967555 & http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/holiday-companies/224145-wedding-honeymoon-one-problem-23.html#post2967551 need dealing with by you.

 

Next: An imperatively important part of this claim is the legal background. This is Section 3 in the Particulars of Claim. You MUST have this crystal clear in your head, and should have this on the first page of the documents that you will use to talk in the hearing (i.e. notes).

 

The basis is as follows:

 

It is an integral part of contracts such as this one that enjoyment and satisfaction be provided. This is based on Farley v. Skinner [2001] UKHL 49 & Watts v. Morrow [1991] EWCA Civ 9. It must be noted that Virgin have not defended against the basis of the law upon which my claim is centred, only the facts of my claim. It must therefore be concluded that the basis of my claim is undisputed and the court is asked to decide on whether the compensation I am claiming is fair & reasonable.

 

My claim against MBNA is based upon s75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. MBNA as the credit provider for part of the monies are jointly and severally liable. From their defence it seems clear that they seek to rely upon the defence to the facts of my claim submitted by Virgin.

 

 

YOU SHOULD COPY TO THE SAME PAGE THE DETAILED LEGAL BASIS IN SECTION 4 OF THE PARTICULARS OF CLAIM WHICH BREAKS THIS DOWN IN MORE DETAIL.

[legalpickle]

Please confirm you have understood all the above, and constructed the documents so that you understand what needs to be said and gone through before I prep you for the actual hearing.

[sexyfufu]

ok I understand the above.

[legalpickle]

ok I understand the above.

Great. You can't go through the documents enough. You can write notes on the pictures, make sure you know what is where so you aren't caught off guard. Make as many clear and concise notes as you will need and go through them with your husband.

 

Will write prep for hearing later on.

 

Please come back first thing in the morning to see it.

 

You will need to make sure you & your husband are at the court 15 minutes before the hearing.

 

Don't worry, if you have everything prepared it can only go well.

 

GOOD LUCK!

[sexyfufu]

Thanks for your help.

 

I will go through it all again in the morning, So its clear in my head.

[sailor sam]

Can I say good luck also. I'm sure we are all very interested in how this works out and that we are keen to see that justice is done!

 

__________________

Please Note

 

The advice I offer will be based on the information given by the person needing it. All my advice is based on my experiences and knowledge gained in working in the motor and passenger transport industries in various capacities. Although my advice will always be sincere, it should be used as guidence only.

 

I would always urge to seek professional advice for clarification prior to taking any action.

 

Please click my scales at the bottom of my profile window on the left if you found my advice usefull.

[legalpickle]

Thanks for your help.

 

I will go through it all again in the morning, So its clear in my head.

No problemo. The ball's now in your court - pun intended:D!

 

Prep for hearing:

 

Your case is on the small claims track, which is meant to be informal. It depends on the judge you get, as different judges work in different ways. You will be before a District Judge ("DJ") or Deputy District Judge ("DDJ").

 

A DDJ is a Solicitor or Barrister who has gone through training and stands in for a DJ. A DJ normally goes through being a DDJ before going onto the bench in a permanent position as a DJ.

 

If the DJ/DDJ is a male, you address him as 'Sir', and if a female either 'Madam' or 'Ma'am'.

 

The different ways the hearing can go usually go approximately like this:

 

You present your case. Defendant presents defence. You respond with submissions. Either party asks queries of the other party. DJ asks queries to clarify everything needed. DJ sends you both out to wait whilst reaching a verdict. DJ calls you all back in and recites judgment.

 

Some DJ/DDJ's use a different order, or limit the amount of submissions or statements a party may make.

 

Try and be as clear and concise as possible.

 

The hearing is informal, unlike a fast track or multi track case. There are two types of hearing rooms for such cases. The first one is a Judge's chambers - which is more common except in the newest court buildings - the DJ/DDJ is sat at the top end of the 'T' table. The claimant should normally sit to the right, and the defendant to the left.

 

Some courts - like Manchester County Court - have the newer hearing rooms, and no hearings - except the most confidential, generally family ones - are in chambers.

 

In such a case each side takes their space at the tables, like in the courtrooms you see in the movies, but you don't go to the side table to speak.

 

In the chambers you always sit when talking, but in the courtrooms you should stand unless the DJ tells you to sit (which as it's more informal being small claims, some DJ's do say you should sit).

 

Whilst the other side is talking do NOT interrupt. This will only antagonise the DJ and work against you. I say this as they are likely to spew lies and nonsense which will frustrate even the most patient amongst us. When the other side is speaking take notes of what is said, and what you want to respond, if necessary.

 

When the other side has finished talking, if the DJ does not offer you the chance to respond, then respectfully ask if you can.

 

Be respectful at all times, however frustrating it can get! Don't make statements like "what a bunch of lies" or "what a bunch of nonsense" as they will only work against you. If the DJ insults you then take it as constructive criticism and apologise if necessary, or just don't respond.

 

A good DJ will be politer and more welcoming of you as a Litigant in Person, explaining the procedure in more detail than necessary. Accept this, and be polite & respectful. Even if you know what the DJ is saying already, don't interrupt, and don't act smart. The less knowledgeable of court procedure the DJ thinks you are the more likely you are to be able to get away with slight mistakes.

 

Different judges require different things, and it is quite often impossible to know what to submit & when. Some judges expect even Claimant Litigants-in-Person to prepare witness statements recounting everything written to date. Others by default accept that the Particulars of Claim and other documents are akin to Witness Statements, as they are signed by a Statement of Truth by you. According to the strict rules of procedure, this is actually the way it is supposed to be - and is the way I do things, unless I am told in advance to do differently.

 

If the DJ criticises you for this then apologise, stating that you understood that you documents - as signed by you with a Statement of Truth - are akin to Witness Statements, and would respectfully request of the court to accept them as such.

 

It is a shame that your mothers letter is not written in the format of a Witness Statement with a Statement of Truth at the end, but not the end of the world, as you have photographic evidence and they have done worse, and should know better.

 

It is worth raising that their letters should be taken with a pinch of salt as none of the documents bar a statement advising what is included are Witness Statements or signed with a statement of truth, and for obvious reasons none of the people are at the hearing to be challenged on their statements.

 

Cross-examination is limited. The chances are that you and your husband will be asked more questions than you can ask the other side, as the other side will be somebody who was not at any of the occurences giving rise to the claim, but you and your husband were.

 

Answer any questions concisely, clearly and in a composed manner. If you need to take 2 seconds to compose yourself, that's better than tripping yourself up.

 

I've attached an interest breakdown that's updated with tomorrow's date in. Print this off beforehand. Make sure that you have all the figures in front of you, as when judgment is granted you may be asked for the interest amounts on each and every claim.

 

I would recommend making an offer in the courtroom at the very beginning of about 65% plus court fees. I would say something like this:

 

Sir, Before the hearing commences I would like to make a final settlement offer to the Defendant, in the interest of concluding this matter quickly, by consent and saving valuable court time. My offer is: £.... which is ...% of the total claim, plus court fees totalling £443. I would respectfully state that this in no way represents the chances I believe I have of success but is solely in the interests of concluding this matter immediately for the mutual benefit of all involved.

 

Don't necessarily state the above word for word, but that's the gist of it. This is more likely to work in your favour making you seem more reasonable.

 

Try and use different words wherever possible - except where quoting legal precedents - so that it is clear you understand everything and so that you don't sound boring and repetitive.

 

That's all for now. I'll deal with costs first thing in the am all being well.

 

BEST OF LUCK!

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