Small claims court and Jersey HSBC

[mailmannz]

Guys,

 

Some advice please.

 

A couple weeks ago a group I am with was engage to do some work for HSBC in Jersey. Part of the terms and conditions was 50% non-refundable deposit up front on booking confirmation as well as covering all reasonable expenses related in getting the group to and from Gatwick as well as to and from the airport in Jersey.

 

Long story short, Mann Made Gobal Warming ™ conspired to stop the group from getting to Jersey after a 16 hour wait at the airport. So after cancelling the gig in agreement with HSBC everyone went home after spening 16 hours in the airport!

 

The following day I sent an email off to HSBC, with an invoice for the expenses (the biggest being petrol and parking, coming in at £80) I got a reply back saying HSBC wouldnt be paying the expenses as we had their deposit. Of course they completly ignore the fact that the group members still had to be paid after spending a day at the airport AND the terms and conditions were very clear in that all travel related costs were to be covered by the customer (above the fee charged).

 

Of course they have ignored this email, which I gave them 7 days to make payment.

 

Also, earlier in the week before we travelled I called HSBC to offer them the chance to cancel the booking because of the snow around Gatwick, and that I would be happy to refund their deposit as we had not incurred any expenses at that point (ie. people didnt lose a days pay etc). However they wanted the performance to go ahead, which I was ok with, but I did offer them the chance to cancel with no financial penalty.

 

So the question is, these guys havent bothered to reply, can I take them to the small claims court here in the UK? If so, I guess I would use their Canary Wharf HO address? Also, one of the other terms and conditions was that if the gig was cancelled on the day then the entire fee would be due. If I can use the small claims court I think I will claim for the full fee as well as expenses on top.

 

Anyway, any help/advice would be most appreciated.

 

Regards

 

Mailman

[mailmannz]

Anyone...anyone got any ideas?

 

Regards

 

Mailman

[buzby]

If it was HSBC Jersey, then as an offshore bank, you cannot simply pick the nearest associated company using the brand in order to raise an action. I would assume the booking was made by the Channel Islands company, therefore, any formal recovery would be through THEIR CI courts.

 

However, before you get to that, I would abandon email, but send your invoice for the expenses you incurred (copies of any receipts would be a nice touch) and post this to whoever contracted you. If there was a purchase order number opened, quote this too so it can be correctly applied.

 

Only when this is not paid can you reasonably pursue this - but it is better to keep things amicable, as the event may be re-run, and you can be in pole position to try again, IF you take thigs easy.

[mailmannz]

Buzby,

 

Thanks for the reply. Ill photocopy the receipts and fire off on Friday (as Im not back in the office until then). Im just a bit peed off with HSBC's behaviour on this... I mean there would be no way in hell those guys would accept anything less than any debt owed to them being paid in full. So why these guys think they can turn around and tell us to eff off is nothing short of arrogance!

 

Regards

 

Mailman

[buzby]

I don't think it is 'the bank' per se - just some local jobsworth who feels over protective, in that as the service wasn't provided, they shouldn't have to pay. I think you should find out who is in their marketing/PR department in Jersey and copy them in.

 

They will know of their obligations, and I'm only surprised they themselves didn't take full control of the event.

 

Hope you get it sorted!

[Yorky2008]

Mannz,

 

What does your contract say exactly regarding travel arrangements and is there a specific clause in relation to cancelled trips?

Did you also get the details of who from HSBC agreed to cancel the trip and was any mention of costs made then?

 

 

Yorky.

[mailmannz]

Mannz,

 

What does your contract say exactly regarding travel arrangements and is there a specific clause in relation to cancelled trips?

Did you also get the details of who from HSBC agreed to cancel the trip and was any mention of costs made then?

 

 

Yorky.

 

Hi Yorky,

 

Yes there is a specific clause in the terms and conditions in regards to the gig being cancelled, if its cancelled on the day by the customer then the full amount is due for the gig.

 

I had also offered them the chance to cancel the gig earlier in the week (and offered to refund the deposit) when it was clear that travelling from Gatwick was going to be an issue. They declined to cancel, and at that point the only cost incurred by then would have been the £700 for the airfares, which I assume they could have recovered through insurance.

 

When the gig was finally cancelled, I advised the client that Id be sending through the final paper work, which includes costs associated with our day spent in lovely Gatwick and also receipts for their deposit. There was no push back when this was raised.

 

As mentioned earlier, we appear to have suffered at the hands of a jobs worth! As I pointed out, the terms and conditions were very clear, all costs will be covered by the client (HSBC). Naturally, when I sent the email requesting payment the guy hasnt had to good manners to even acknowledge the email.

 

What really gets my goat about this is that there is no way in HELL that HSBC would just accept a credit card holder saying they arent going to pay their bill because they dont want to!

 

Anyway, Ive put my letter in the post today with a copy of the receipts and another invoice for payment. So Ill see if that gets acknowledged by HSBC (I suspect it wont).

 

If my letter does get ignored, does anyone know if Jersey even has a small claims court?

 

Regards

 

Mailman