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    • He was one of four former top executives from Sam Bankman-Fried's firms to plead guilty to charges.View the full article
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    • further polished WS using above suggestions and also included couple of more modifications highlighted in orange are those ok to include?   Background   1.1  The Defendant received the Parking Charge Notice (PCN) on the 06th of January 2020 following the vehicle being parked at Arla Old Dairy, South Ruislip on the 05th of December 2019.   Unfair PCN   2.1  On 19th December 2023 the Defendant sent the Claimant's solicitors a CPR request.  As shown in Exhibit 1 (pages 7-13) sent by the solicitors the signage displayed in their evidence clearly shows a £60.00 parking charge notice (which will be reduced to £30 if paid within 14 days of issue).  2.2  Yet the PCN sent by the Claimant is for a £100.00 parking charge notice (reduced to £60 if paid within 30 days of issue).   2.3        The Claimant relies on signage to create a contract.  It is unlawful for the Claimant to write that the charge is £60 on their signs and then send demands for £100.    2.4        The unlawful £100 charge is also the basis for the Claimant's Particulars of Claim.  No Locus Standi  3.1  I do not believe a contract with the landowner, that is provided following the defendant’s CPR request, gives MET Parking Services a right to bring claims in their own name. Definition of “Relevant contract” from the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, Schedule 4,  2 [1] means a contract Including a contract arising only when the vehicle was parked on the relevant land between the driver and a person who is-   (a) the owner or occupier of the land; or   (b) Authorised, under or by virtue of arrangements made by the owner or occupier of the land, to enter into a contract with the driver requiring the payment of parking charges in respect of the parking of the vehicle on the land. According to https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2006/46/section/44   For a contract to be valid, it requires a director from each company to sign and then two independent witnesses must confirm those signatures.   3.2  The Defendant requested to see such a contract in the CPR request.  The fact that no contract has been produced with the witness signatures present means the contract has not been validly executed. Therefore, there can be no contract established between MET Parking Services and the motorist. Even if “Parking in Electric Bay” could form a contract (which it cannot), it is immaterial. There is no valid contract.  Illegal Conduct – No Contract Formed   4.1 At the time of writing, the Claimant has failed to provide the following, in response to the CPR request from myself.   4.2        The legal contract between the Claimant and the landowner (which in this case is Standard Life Investments UK) to provide evidence that there is an agreement in place with landowner with the necessary authority to issue parking charge notices and to pursue payment by means of litigation.   4.3 Proof of planning permission granted for signage etc under the Town and country Planning Act 1990. Lack of planning permission is a criminal offence under this Act and no contract can be formed where criminality is involved.   4.4        I also do not believe the claimant possesses these documents.   No Keeper Liability   5.1        The defendant was not the driver at the time and date mentioned in the PCN and the claimant has not established keeper liability under schedule 4 of the PoFA 2012. In this matter, the defendant puts it to the claimant to produce strict proof as to who was driving at the time.   5.2 The claimant in their Notice To Keeper also failed to comply with PoFA 2012 Schedule 4 section 9[2][f] while mentioning “the right to recover from the keeper so much of that parking charge as remains unpaid” where they did not include statement “(if all the applicable conditions under this Schedule are met)”.     5.3         The claimant did not mention parking period, times on the photographs are separate from the PCN and in any case are that arrival and departure times not the parking period since their times include driving to and from the parking space as a minimum and can include extra time to allow pedestrians and other vehicles to pass in front.    Protection of Freedoms Act 2012   The notice must -   (a) specify the vehicle, the relevant land on which it was parked and the period of parking to which the notice relates;  22. In the persuasive judgement K4GF167G - Premier Park Ltd v Mr Mathur - Horsham County Court – 5 January 2024 it was on this very point that the judge dismissed this claim.  5.4  A the PCN does not comply with the Act the Defendant as keeper is not liable.  No Breach of Contract   6.1       No breach of contract occurred because the PCN and contract provided as part of the defendant’s CPR request shows different post code, PCN shows HA4 0EY while contract shows HA4 0FY. According to PCN defendant parked on HA4 0EY which does not appear to be subject to the postcode covered by the contract.  6.2         The entrance sign does not mention anything about there being other terms inside the car park so does not offer a contract which makes it only an offer to treat,  Interest  7.1  It is unreasonable for the Claimant to delay litigation for  Double Recovery   7.2  The claim is littered with made-up charges.  7.3  As noted above, the Claimant's signs state a £60 charge yet their PCN is for £100.  7.4  As well as the £100 parking charge, the Claimant seeks recovery of an additional £70.  This is simply a poor attempt to circumvent the legal costs cap at small claims.  7.5 Since 2019, many County Courts have considered claims in excess of £100 to be an abuse of process leading to them being struck out ab initio. An example, in the Caernarfon Court in VCS v Davies, case No. FTQZ4W28 on 4th September 2019, District Judge Jones-Evans stated “Upon it being recorded that District Judge Jones- Evans has over a very significant period of time warned advocates (...) in many cases of this nature before this court that their claim for £60 is unenforceable in law and is an abuse of process and is nothing more than a poor attempt to go behind the decision of the Supreme Court v Beavis which inter alia decided that a figure of £160 as a global sum claimed in this case would be a penalty and not a genuine pre-estimate of loss and therefore unenforceable in law and if the practice continued, he would treat all cases as a claim for £160 and therefore a penalty and unenforceable in law it is hereby declared (…) the claim is struck out and declared to be wholly without merit and an abuse of process.”  7.6 In Claim Nos. F0DP806M and F0DP201T, District Judge Taylor echoed earlier General Judgment or Orders of District Judge Grand, stating ''It is ordered that the claim is struck out as an abuse of process. The claim contains a substantial charge additional to the parking charge which it is alleged the Defendant contracted to pay. This additional charge is not recoverabl15e under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, Schedule 4 nor with reference to the judgment in Parking Eye v Beavis. It is an abuse of process from the Claimant to issue a knowingly inflated claim for an additional sum which it is not entitled to recover. This order has been made by the court of its own initiative without a hearing pursuant to CPR Rule 3.3(4)) of the Civil Procedure Rules 1998...''  7.7 In the persuasive case of G4QZ465V - Excel Parking Services Ltd v Wilkinson – Bradford County Court -2 July 2020 (Exhibit 4) the judge had decided that Excel had won. However, due to Excel adding on the £60 the Judge dismissed the case.  7.8        The addition of costs not previously specified on signage are also in breach of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, Schedule 2, specifically paras 6, 10 and 14.   7.9        It is the Defendant’s position that the Claimant in this case has knowingly submitted inflated costs and thus the entire claim should be similarly struck out in accordance with Civil Procedure Rule 3.3(4).   In Conclusion   8.1        I invite the court to dismiss the claim.  Statement of Truth  I believe that the facts stated in this witness statement are true. I understand that proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against anyone who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth without an honest belief in its truth.   
    • Well the difference is that in all our other cases It was Kev who was trying to entrap the motorist so sticking two fingers up to him and daring him to try court was from a position of strength. In your case, sorry, you made a mistake so you're not in the position of strength.  I've looked on Google Maps and the signs are few & far between as per Kev's MO, but there is an entrance sign saying "Pay & Display" (and you've admitted in writing that you knew you had to pay) and the signs by the payment machines do say "Sea View Car Park" (and you've admitted in writing you paid the wrong car park ... and maybe outed yourself as the driver). Something I missed in my previous post is that the LoC is only for one ticket, not two. Sorry, but it's impossible to definitively advise what to so. Personally I'd probably gamble on Kev being a serial bottler of court and reply with a snotty letter ridiculing the signage (given you mentioned the signage in your appeal) - but it is a gamble.  
    • No! What has happened is that your pix were up-to-date: 5 hours' maximum stay and £100 PCN. The lazy solicitors have sent ancient pictures: 4 hours' maximum stay and £60 PCN. Don't let on!  Let them be hoisted by their own lazy petard in the court hearing (if they don't bottle before).
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    • We have finally managed to obtain the transcript of this case.

      The judge's reasoning is very useful and will certainly be helpful in any other cases relating to third-party rights where the customer has contracted with the courier company by using a broker.
      This is generally speaking the problem with using PackLink who are domiciled in Spain and very conveniently out of reach of the British justice system.

      Frankly I don't think that is any accident.

      One of the points that the judge made was that the customers contract with the broker specifically refers to the courier – and it is clear that the courier knows that they are acting for a third party. There is no need to name the third party. They just have to be recognisably part of a class of person – such as a sender or a recipient of the parcel.

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Vodafone Incorrect Default *WON-out of court settlement*


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Yes one part of the account history specifically says "DCA1 Default Notice DCA"

 

Interesting. :roll: mine says nothing

Do you know what the following codes mean then? "CTN, BAN, WAS, BDR, ADDACS, CDTN,"

 

Ahh-no, can't help there. I got a code form with numbers such as 0001-8013 then they follow the alphabet with letters and numbers to denote what was what. The CTN/BAN and the others appear in the notes side. I did ask for the meanings in a letter that 'allegedly' got lost

 

Would be a great help for my de-coding :-)

 

I would be writing back telling them that they haven't complied as they haven't included a code sheet for you to be able to work out the meanings but I would also ask for the meanings of CTN/BAN and the others

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I would be writing back telling them that they haven't complied as they haven't included a code sheet for you to be able to work out the meanings but I would also ask for the meanings of CTN/BAN and the others

Absolutely correct. They are required by the statute to include explanations of all codes. They are clearly very casual about their statutory duties.

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What is the difference between a BAN and a CTN?

 

Monthly / Business

 

BAN and CTN are both abbreviations which refer to your account.

 

BAN stands for your Billing Account Number. It is at the top of your invoice.

 

CTN stands for Customer Telephone Number - and is simply your mobile phone number.

Have a happy and prosperous 2013 by avoiiding Payday loans. If you are sent a private message directing you for advice or support with your issues to another website,this is your choice.Before you decide,consider the users here who have already offered help and support.

Advice offered by Martin3030 is not supported by any legal training or qualification.Members are advised to use the services of fully insured legal professionals when needed.

 

 

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this is not a true assessment of UK law in relation to damages - and in particular in relation to compensation for breaches of statutory duty under the DPA. I suggest that you back to your in-house lawyers for clarification. They may well end up getting involved anyway.

 

As it happens, there was a case in 2008 or 2009 - possibly in Scotland in which the court awarded a claimant £116,000 for exactly the kind of DPA errors which Phil has experienced here and the award included sums for loss of opportunity on the housing market.

 

Nice one. More dodgy lawyers.

 

I'd try a maximum small claim along the damages without proof route. It's far too much of a ball ache to prove stuff that VF already know to be true.

 

It's quite easy to fill in the form and should cost less than £40. Let the court do it's job. It'll probably be quicker. VF have already removed the default so I suspect they'll not be too keen to force you into the higher courts.

 

I was maliciously defaulted preventing me from a family home to this day and beyond.

 

Good luck with getting compensation. I believe this is your easiest route. Just remember that the courts cannot replace the time you've used stressing over this.

 

Lee seems to have done an excellent job for you but VF's lawyers are a different breed.

 

Durkin.

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Nice one. More dodgy lawyers.

 

I'd try a maximum small claim along the damages without proof route. It's far too much of a ball ache to prove stuff that VF already know to be true.

 

It's quite easy to fill in the form and should cost less than £40. Let the court do it's job. It'll probably be quicker. VF have already removed the default so I suspect they'll not be too keen to force you into the higher courts.

 

I was maliciously defaulted preventing me from a family home to this day and beyond.

 

Good luck with getting compensation. I believe this is your easiest route. Just remember that the courts cannot replace the time you've used stressing over this.

 

Lee seems to have done an excellent job for you but VF's lawyers are a different breed.

 

Durkin.

 

 

Thanks for this.

 

In case anyone has any doubt, this is the Durkin who was the claimant in the Scottish case.

 

Also, I have to add that it is not the function of any customer representative to attempt to give legal advice to customers - and especially when that advice is ostensibly given in private.

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Also, I have to add that it is not the function of any customer representative to attempt to give legal advice to customers - and especially when that advice is ostensibly given in private.

 

I heartily agree. Lee (while he has been very useful with many members) is an employee of Vodafone and as such, has to follow company procedure. I don't know whether Lee has any legal training or not but if not, I don't think he should be passing on any legal 'opinion'. That's what the lawyers are for.

If you are asked to deal with any matter via private message, PLEASE report it.

Everything I say is opinion only. If you are unsure on any comment made, you should see a qualified solicitor

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Hi philharg and all,

 

Following receipt of your email from Saturday I'll consult with our Privacy and Legal Teams again and will come back to you as soon as I can.

 

In the meantime, it wouldn't be appropriate for me to comment any further on any disclosed specifics of this case but I would like to provide some clarity on a couple of points raised during the weekend.

 

I understand that Vodafone prefers its email to its customers to remain private but when that privacy is used to hide this kind of misinformation then I think that it is better for all of us if the material is put out in public.

 

If Vodafone believes that its best interests lie with the best interests of its customers then I expect that you will agree.

 

From time to time we may ask that specific details of a resolution not be disclosed so as not to potentially prejudice any other cases we handle. As you can appreciate, all cases are reviewed on their individual merits and so outcomes may differ from case to case.

 

This said, in the event that our conclusion isn't in the customer's favour we've never dissuaded any customer from seeking further advice should they remain unhappy and wish to pursue matters further.

Yes one part of the account history specifically says "DCA1 Default Notice DCA"

 

Do you know what the following codes mean then? "CTN, BAN, WAS, BDR, ADDACS, CDTN,"

 

Would be a great help for my de-coding :-)

 

Whilst I raise the absence of a coding glossary I can confirm that Martin has correctly confirmed the meaning of CTN and BAN and I can confirm that although I'm not sure on the others ADDACS stands for Automated Direct Debit Amendment and Cancellation Service.

 

Also, I have to add that it is not the function of any customer representative to attempt to give legal advice to customers ...

 

I entirely agree. My remit here is to represent Vodafone and assist those we are experiencing difficulties with us as much as possible.

 

Like a lot of people who contribute to consumer forums most of what I know has been picked up through the experience of dealing with a wide variety of situations.

 

While I'm here I feel that it's important to clarify that my last email to philharg did follow consultation with our legal areas and is certainly not intended to come across as my own personal opinion.

 

Kind regards,

 

Lee

 

Web Relations Team

 

Vodafone UK

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To respond in particular to your point about the legal advice which you present to the OP in this case. It is not Vodafone's place to offer legal advice either. I cannot accept that Vodafone does not have a conflict of interest when it comes to trying to deal with errors which have been caused by Vodafone. If your advice was really after consultation with your legal department then I can only say that whoever gave you the advice is not operating according to professional standards and that the advice was calculated to persuade your customer to give up his complaint and to allow Vodafone to get off lightly. Why Vodafone employees at any level feel that they are doing their company a favour by saving them an insignificant sum of money really beats me.

 

As for not disclosing settlement discussions, I'm sorry but I don't see that anyone can possibly suffer by open, honest discussion - anyone other than Vodafone, or course. It is in Vodafone's interest that no one else sees what other people are getting when Vodafone does a bad job. This is effectively depriving people of market information and it is not acceptable.

We will always encourage people to disclose everything that is going on in the background to us. One thing that you can be certain is that the CAG has your interests at heart and it is the sharing of information which gives you as part of a consumer community the power to deal with the Vodafones and other of this world.

The suppression of information seems not to be limited to Vodafone. I have noticed in it Libya and Syria as well.

 

If Vodafone wants to re-assess whether they want a rep on this forum, that is up to them. However if they withdrew their web-rep, I think that we could all take it as evidence of bad faith.

 

Finally, Vodafone's internal filing and communication structure worries me. We are getting quite a few instances of people reporting that Vodafone is failing to keep proper records and improper or abusive use of the Credit Reference Agencies.

Another example as just cropped up here: - http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?310006-VODAFONE-Account-settled-according-to-agent-now-debt-collection-agency-sent-out

 

I expect that there are lots more that never get here at all. I think that Vodafone should have a serious look at the way that it handles people's accounts and how it handles people's data in relation to the CRAs.

Also, I think that Vodafone has a serious structural problem as to how it listens to problems which are reported to it by its customers. It seems to me that Vodafone suffers from a culture of suspicion and disbelief. This really needs to be addressed. I am sure that Vodafone has the resources to do this but do they have the will?

 

In the meantime, Lee, I can tell you that we will be suggesting to the OP that he gives you a very short time to make a sensible settlement failing which the matter is likely to be put before a County Court.

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Hi philharg and all,

 

Following receipt of your email from Saturday I'll consult with our Privacy and Legal Teams again and will come back to you as soon as I can.

 

 

Obviously we haven't provided any new evidence on the forum. We have merely pointed out information which is publicly available to all including your Legal Team. Hopefully on the third occasion of being presented to your Legal team the results of similar court cases are taken into account.

 

I am sure you feel as frustrated as us at times Lee with the clear lack of coherent procedures in place at Vodafone as you are the one picking up the fallout. Please feel free to pass on the general feelings on this forum to your most senior management for you own benefit.

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For the sake of keeping everything transparent and recorded for all those who could require help in a similar situation:

 

"Dear Sir,

 

This letter is firstly to again address the £100 goodwill gesture offer from Vodafone which I received via Lee from your web relations team. As already stated via email I am writing to formally reject this offer of £100. I do not feel it does my case any justice and is an incredibly insulting offer given the damage, stress, time and money your inaccuracies have caused me for the past 20 months.

Via email I had previously suggested a figure of £500 may have been adequate to cover damages caused. In light of recent evidence I no longer feel this is actually adequate to cover the loss and damage caused to my good name. I will be coming back to you shortly when I have a better picture of the situation. A full review of all information contained in the SAR and further information which I am still awaiting is needed first.

In the meantime I would like to know what steps Vodafone is proposing to completely clean up my credit file. I require you to address ;

1. In particular the credit search by O2 which produced a rejected application. This was caused completely by the negligence of Vodafone. Had Vodafone not processed an untrue and unauthorised personal data file onto my credit file this rejected application would not have occurred. How do you propose to correct this inaccuracy as it may well have a negative effect on my future credit applications.

2. I would also like to know what action you have taken to ensure that all data held about me by your debt collection agencies has been destroyed? I could not see any communication with these agencies in particular “Arvato Agency” post the removal of the airtime balance due from my account in the SAR information. If no action has been taken then why not? If not when do you propose to do so? This also applies to my parents XXXX address which became registered with the Arvato Agency.

3. If Vodafone do not take satisfactory action undo every trace of the damage caused to my credit history then I will have no other option than to ask a court to order it and also compensate myself.

4. I will also be requiring a certificate of destruction from your data controller and from the data controller of every organisation which you have unlawfully involved. This includes O2 and Arvato Agency.

I require a specific answer to all of the above questions raised within 7 days of delivery of this letter.

I look forward to your proposals and evidence.

Yours sincerely"

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SAR's sent to Experian, O2 and Phones4u to accumulate all evidence required.

 

Vodafone also sent a request to give more in depth information from SAR and a rosseta stone to understand all their abbreviations.

 

To anyone in a similar situation I suggest you send off any SAR's you may require immediatly because of the potential 40 days wait.

 

philharg

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To respond in particular to your point about the legal advice which you present to the OP in this case. It is not Vodafone's place to offer legal advice either. I cannot accept that Vodafone does not have a conflict of interest when it comes to trying to deal with errors which have been caused by Vodafone. If your advice was really after consultation with your legal department then I can only say that whoever gave you the advice is not operating according to professional standards and that the advice was calculated to persuade your customer to give up his complaint and to allow Vodafone to get off lightly. Why Vodafone employees at any level feel that they are doing their company a favour by saving them an insignificant sum of money really beats me.

 

As for not disclosing settlement discussions, I'm sorry but I don't see that anyone can possibly suffer by open, honest discussion - anyone other than Vodafone, or course. It is in Vodafone's interest that no one else sees what other people are getting when Vodafone does a bad job. This is effectively depriving people of market information and it is not acceptable.

We will always encourage people to disclose everything that is going on in the background to us. One thing that you can be certain is that the CAG has your interests at heart and it is the sharing of information which gives you as part of a consumer community the power to deal with the Vodafones and other of this world.

The suppression of information seems not to be limited to Vodafone. I have noticed in it Libya and Syria as well.

 

If Vodafone wants to re-assess whether they want a rep on this forum, that is up to them. However if they withdrew their web-rep, I think that we could all take it as evidence of bad faith.

 

Finally, Vodafone's internal filing and communication structure worries me. We are getting quite a few instances of people reporting that Vodafone is failing to keep proper records and improper or abusive use of the Credit Reference Agencies.

Another example as just cropped up here: - http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?310006-VODAFONE-Account-settled-according-to-agent-now-debt-collection-agency-sent-out

 

I expect that there are lots more that never get here at all. I think that Vodafone should have a serious look at the way that it handles people's accounts and how it handles people's data in relation to the CRAs.

Also, I think that Vodafone has a serious structural problem as to how it listens to problems which are reported to it by its customers. It seems to me that Vodafone suffers from a culture of suspicion and disbelief. This really needs to be addressed. I am sure that Vodafone has the resources to do this but do they have the will?

 

In the meantime, Lee, I can tell you that we will be suggesting to the OP that he gives you a very short time to make a sensible settlement failing which the matter is likely to be put before a County Court.

 

Hi BankFodder,

 

I feel that there's been a misunderstanding in regard to the context of my email of 13th June 2011. Rather than actual advice my email to philharg was in reply to his email of 9th June 2011 at 09:26 and was intended to set out our position in regard to his claim.

 

I appreciate that there is disagreement over our proposal, and the case overall, but we do of course remain in dialogue with philharg in order to attempt to agree upon a satisfactory conclusion.

 

In regard to my comments on Monday concerning the non-disclosure of specific details of agreed resolutions I would like to clarify that I can only recall one case where we asked the customer to only confirm that a resolution had been agreed upon and that they were happy with this. In this instance we took a discretionary decision on a goodwill gesture basis in order to assist a customer with a difficult matter which involved another party.

 

It's also worth noting that the case I recall was completely unrelated to debt recovery or credit file reporting matters and I can confirm that there had been no wrong doing on our part.

 

Additionally, I would say that we have never asked a customer to not update their thread on the progress being made with their case. In fact, I wish more would take the time to do this as I know many cases have either been resolved or are in progress without updates having been provided. In addition, we have never asked that our email contact with customers remain private - if a customer wishes to disclose contact they've had with us then this would be at their discretion.

 

In terms of our internal processes I would point out that where I see instances where these have failed, and these are very few, these are raised with the relevant areas for further review. From what has been posted about the case you've linked to it would appear that human error has occurred there rather than an actual process breakdown; however, I'll reply in that thread later this afternoon as well as hopefully getting the opportunity to take a look at what has happened before going back to the customer.

 

On the topic of our presence on CAG we have always sought to be as helpful as possible and hopefully you'll agree that many of your members have benefited from our involvement with their cases and have been happy with the outcomes reached and I sincerely hope that this continues to be the case in the future.

For the sake of keeping everything transparent and recorded for all those who could require help in a similar situation:

 

"Dear Sir,

 

This letter is firstly to again address the £100 goodwill gesture offer from Vodafone which I received via Lee from your web relations team. As already stated via emailI am writing to formally reject this offer of £100. I do not feel it does my case any justice and is an incredibly insulting offer given the damage, stress, time and money your inaccuracies have caused me for the past 20 months.

 

Via email I had previously suggested a figure of £500 may have been adequate to cover damages caused. In light of recent evidence I no longer feel this is actually adequate to cover the loss and damage caused to my good name. I will be coming back to you shortly when I have a better picture of the situation. A full review of all information contained in the SAR and further information which I am still awaiting is needed first.

 

In the meantime I would like to know what steps Vodafone is proposing to completely clean up my credit file. I require you to address ;

 

1. In particular the credit search by O2 which produced a rejected application. This was caused completely by the negligence of Vodafone. Had Vodafone not processed an untrue and unauthorised personal data file onto my credit file this rejected application would not have occurred. How do you propose to correct this inaccuracy as it may well have a negative effect on my future credit applications.

2. I would also like to know what action you have taken to ensure that all data held about me by your debt collection agencies has been destroyed? I could not see any communication with these agencies in particular “Arvato Agency” post the removal of the airtime balance due from my account in the SAR information. If no action has been taken then why not? If not when do you propose to do so? This also applies to my parents XXXX address which became registered with the Arvato Agency.

3. If Vodafone do not take satisfactory action undo every trace of the damage caused to my credit history then I will have no other option than to ask a court to order it and also compensate myself.

4. I will also be requiring a certificate of destruction from your data controller and from the data controller of every organisation which you have unlawfully involved. This includes O2 and Arvato Agency.

 

I require a specific answer to all of the above questions raised within 7 days of delivery of this letter.

 

I look forward to your proposals and evidence.

 

Yours sincerely"

 

Hi philharg,

 

Thanks for updating us on the correspondence you've sent.

 

You can be sure that I'll get points one to four addressed and get back to you as soon as possible.

 

Kind regards to you both.

 

Lee

 

Web Relations Team

 

Vodafone UK

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Hi BankFodder,

 

I feel that there's been a misunderstanding in regard to the context of my email of 13th June 2011. Rather than actual advice my email to philharg was in reply to his email of 9th June 2011 at 09:26 and was intended to set out our position in regard to his claim.

 

I appreciate that there is disagreement over our proposal, and the case overall, but we do of course remain in dialogue with philharg in order to attempt to agree upon a satisfactory conclusion.

 

I am certain many would argue it is misleading advice rather than a misunderstanding. It is clear to all to see VF's interpretation of the law is (£100) and what a court's view of the breaking of this law is (closer to £10,000). We all know who's viewpoint has the greater presedence now as well thanks to advice given by those outside of Vodafone.

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Sorry but these were your very words:-

 

As a matter of law, an individual is not entitled to compensation for a breach of the Data Protection Act unless they have suffered damage as a result of the breach. In this context, 'damage' has a specific legal meaning and refers to a direct financial loss (for example, any bank fees associated with closing a bank account in the case of bank details having been disclosed) and not to a loss of opportunity. Further, English law on damages requires that you quantify your losses i.e. if you were to take legal action you would have to demonstrate to the court what financial losses you had suffered as a result of this matter. As you have not yet provided evidence of direct financial loss, we are not prepared to offer you compensation in the amount of £500 as you have requested. If you are able to provide evidence of direct financial loss, we will be happy to reconsider our position.

Nonetheless, Vodafone understands that this has not been a positive customer experience for you and that this matter has naturally caused you much concern. In recognition of this, we are happy to offer you a gesture of goodwilllink18.gif to bring this matter to a close. Consequently, our offer of £100 compensation still stands, should you wish to accept it.

I don't think that there is anyway to describe this other than to say that you advised your customer that the law was xxx and therefore completely against him but because Vodafone are good chaps and you didn't want him to feel too bad you were prepared to offer him a hundred quids worth of bonbons despite the fact that

 

Vodafone accessed his credit file without any contractual authorisation

Recorded false information against him which remained there unsuspected for 2 years

Blighted his perfect record

Caused him to receive more expensive quotes for insurance premium instalments than he would otherwise have had

Caused him to be refused a mobile phone service from another provider because of his poor credit rating

Caused the rejected credit application in respect of the above phone refusal also to be recorded on his hitherto unblemished credit file

Caused the above rejected application to remain on his previously perfect credit record and to serve as a warning to others for 6 years

Caused O2 ( the other provider) to carry a data file containing details of the refusal and marking him out as a poor risk as a customer in the future.

Shared his personal data with at least one firm of debt collectors without any authority to do so.

Passed untrue personal data to at least one debt collection agency

Caused him to receive threats from a debt collection agency in relation to a on-existent debt

Caused his parents without authority to receive contacts from a debt collection agency about a non-existent debt

Caused stress and distrust between himself and his parents

Caused him to be refused a mobile phone contract with Vodafone themselves because they were still holding untrue personal data about him - and without any authority to do so.

Caused his parents address to be stored as part of a debt collection file by a debt collection agency and without any authority.

Caused him stress, time and inconvenience having to try and force Vodafone to accept that they had made serious errors and then to correct them.

Have to re-visit the problem on two subsequent occasions when the negative credit file entry was restored with no proper explanation

Forced him to remain as a customer of Orange on disadvantageous terms as he is unable to benefit from competition and developments in the mobile phone market.

At least that lot.

 

And now we discover that an attempt is being made to deprive him of his rights by providing him with advice which is clearly incorrect but which you say is some misunderstanding or some mis-communication - I'm not sure which.

 

You say that you are merely stating Vodafone's position. Well Vodafone's position is wrong and as you have decided to state Vodafone's wrong position, I think that it is reasonable to suggest that you restate Vodafone's correct position.

I think that in respect of legal advice which Vodafone attempts to give to its customers, Vodafone is in a position of trust and this means that you have a duty to get it right - or else to stay well-clear.

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If the damage which I have listed above is all of it, then Vodafone have offered the victim about £6 per head of damage. This doesn't even take into account the money which has been spent - the SAR's run into £10 each and that is just for starters.

 

I think that the way forward here is for Vodafone to start cleaning up their mess as far as they can and then see what is left. Then compensation can be decided.

 

If Vodafone won't do it, the courts will. I would get a move on if I were you

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If the damage which I have listed above is all of it, then Vodafone have offered the victim about £6 per head of damage. This doesn't even take into account the money which has been spent - the SAR's run into £10 each and that is just for starters.

 

 

4 months of Experian subcription to keep a close eye on when the Vodafone default was going to coming off, then when it went off, then when it went back on again. £14.99 a month is £60 now nearly.

 

Vodafone also requested that I provided them with an Equifax report... they still haven't offered to give me the money back for this even though tI had to pay for it:

 

"In regard to your claim for compensation I can confirm that in order for us to review this further we would require a copy of your credit file, by return of this email, from both Experian and Equifax and would also be grateful if you could elaborate on what monetary value this matter has had?"

So plus £12 onto the £60 Experian costs. Then £40 of SAR requests to help check all Vodafone's mess and thats £112 pound costs. This doesn't take into account phone calls to lots companies on their premium rate lines. Plus probably at least 20 hours of solid work chasing things up, writing letters/emails/phone calls, absolutely minimum 20 hours in fact.

 

So even with their £100 goodwill gesture they haven't covered my outlay yet. Think they need a big kick up the bum.

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A maximum small claim for £5K is the answer. I'm aware the small claim limit is to be increased to £15K. When this happens one can claim £8K for this kind of cock up. Until people start claiming, the likes of VF will have little incentive to tidy up their act.

Phil you can also ask the court to order all your points in the small claim.

An £8K award for this kind of cock up was confirmed in my case "Durkin v DSG & HFC" by Scotland's highest court. It was based on an amount received by Kpohraror in his claim against Woolwich in 1996. He was only screwed for a few hours though, as opposed to years. The justiciary currently don't recognise the difference.

Still, £5K is £5K and you'll get the £40ish fee back. Higher courts really are something to avoid if you can.

With the default already removed, I'd imagine your credit report should be OK now to do as you wish. I'd let the courts get the cash for you while you crack on with life the way it should be lived. This route will also benefit others.

Cheers,

Richard.

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Re PM asking if I could give any further advice. If you've read my thread then you know everything I do (or did - it was a little while ago now and I'm not exactly in the first flush of youth!).

 

I think you doing fine with the help you already have but I will follow your thread now and contribute if I can.

 

The reason I didn't claim very much in compensation was because I couldn't name never mind prove any actual loss other than experian membership etc. I hadn't applied for anything or been turned down for anything since I knew the default was on there and it was only there for a relatively short period.

RMW

"If you want my parking space, please take my disability" Common car park sign in France.

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Thanks firstly to both Durkin and reallymadwoman coming in and posting.

 

Just to update: Phones4u have been very helpful taking the time to call and discuss both on Thursday and Friday my case after the received my SAR on Wednesday. They have agreed to send me the details which show the purchase of the phone and the return of it on their system within 24 hours (of a 14 day limit). They are also providing evidence of the automated cancellation notification sent through to Vodafone which Vodafone failed to act upon until the 6/11/09. More than three months late.

 

O2 have told me they do not hold any records about the credit search taken place in my name. They have said that if I should wish to have a written reason for the decline of credit to send them my credit report. This will be emailed to them tomorrow so they can come back with a written reason for my decline (fairly obvious reason). Still no reply from Vodafone but their 7 days are up on Wednesday 29th June in line with when they received the later.

 

philharg

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A thought that occurred to me - my claim was based on negligence as well as breach of the data protection act.

 

So far as I can remember under the DPA you can only claim general damages (e.g. damage to credit status) if you can also prove an actual loss (e.g. being charged a higher interest rate), but this doesn't apply to a claim for negligence.

 

Also I suspect a lot of judges will be rather more familiar with negligence than the data protection act and making life easier for the judge can only help your case.

RMW

"If you want my parking space, please take my disability" Common car park sign in France.

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Well Vodafone have 50 mins before they shut for the day to get back to me with answers. Have received no correspondence to the above later which was delivered a week ago.

 

Their data team as also not got back to me with my request for more information about accounts held.

 

Vodafone are still clearly not taking the case seriously.

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Fine, send them a 7 day LBA.

 

Lay out again your chronology of what has happened and also a detailed list of your losses. Tell them that if they don't respond in 7 days you will issue a County Court claim.

 

We'll help you draft the claim.

 

It will be very straighforward and actually, they have no defence. They will only be able to argue the amount of the claim

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