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Vodafone Violation of Data Protection Act***Claim Partially Successful***


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  • 3 weeks later...
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I have a preliminary hearing (15 minutes) with my local court on the 17th March 2014. Vodafone have asked if I would consent to making this a phone conversation, so they do not have to attend.

 

Personally, I'd rather talk to someone face-to-face about this, and I don't see why I should make life convenient for Vodafone given everything outlined above.

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Vodafone have sent me another letter:

 

"We write further to your letter dated 20th December 2013. Please can you provide us with a copy of the letter from your mortgage adviser dated 19th July 2013 and a copy of the letter from the ICO dated 16th December 2013 as referred to in your letter. We would also be grateful if you could provide us with a colour copy of your credit report. In relation to your question regarding Vodafone’s reimbursements, our client has accepted that you gave notice to cancel your account on 20th December 2009. As per our client’s terms and conditions, customers must provide 30 days’ notice of termination. Therefore the date your account should have been cancelled was 19th January 2010. Vodafone admit that you were charged after this point, however all further charges were refunded to you."

 

 

Am I obliged to help them with any of this? To be it seems like they have not been properly filing my former correspondence (all sent via recorded delivery), and they now feel this is becoming urgent because of the Tomlin Order and preliminary court hearing.

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Hi

Is there a court date yet?

 

Why they want a 'colour' copy of your credit report is beyond my wit. If you have previously sent these, why do it again!

 

It would be worth getting copies anyway just in case. If it costs to do this, add it to the bill.

 

Hopefully the legal minds will spot this and make comment. BF is busy but I hope he will pop in too.

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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 Silverfox - yes, the preliminary court hearing is scheduled for the 17th of March. I've got copies of everything from me and them. Thanks for keeping tabs on this - you guys have been so supportive - I don't know how I would have got his far without CAG.

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Well hopefully this case will go the same way as Phihargs case did with an out of court settlement. (best for you) but if not then (for CAG and the wider community) they should get a spanking at court.

 

I would send the documents as (in my thinking) they could say you were being obstructive (even though it is they that are doing so)

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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Got it - I will do. But the phone conversation in place of attending the preliminary court hearing? I would like to speak with the court representative or judge face-to-face, and I think they should do also.

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Got it - I will do. But the phone conversation in place of attending the preliminary court hearing? I would like to speak with the court representative or judge face-to-face, and I think they should do also.

No idea on that. Waaay out of my comfort zone :|

 

Is this something like a mediation phone call?

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

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I know that this is a bit late in the day but I am going to ask for the site teams opinion of whether to move this thread (with a link) to the Legal Issues forum.

 

There are some quite good minds on that forum who don't even look at this forum.

 

Bear with me

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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Normally when listing a preliminary hearing the order will state exactly what the issues to be discussed are, is that apparent from the order?

 

As for doing it by phone that's a perfectly acceptable thing to do but obviously both parties, and the court, have to agree. Bear in mind that for a short preliminary hearing the court won't usually be assessing any oral evidence so there's no real need for the judge to see people in person. If you don't want to agree then don't but beware that Vodaphone could try to get their costs of attendance on the basis of unreasonable behaviour if you don't have any real reason for forcing a hearing in person.

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Responding to the request for help - I do not think there is any need to consent to a telephone hearing. If you would rather address the judge in person you are entitled to do so, especially as a litigant in person. In my view telephone hearings are inappropriate, except for very simple hearings where both parties are legally represented. Just explain this in your written response to them.

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Am I obliged to help them with any of this? To be it seems like they have not been properly filing my former correspondence (all sent via recorded delivery), and they now feel this is becoming urgent because of the Tomlin Order and preliminary court hearing.

 

You are not obliged to provide them with these. But you should provide them. It will look very unreasonable and greatly increase the risk of being ordered to pay legal costs if you don't.

 

If you have already provided, you should mention this in a covering letter and ask that they put appropriate arrangements in place to prevent you from repeatedly having to provide multiple copies of the same documents in future.

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"Your time spent preparing and researching are claimable - but not in a small claim. had the claim been for a figure in excess of £10k then you could have added this to your claim for costs after you won"

 

I kept the whole claim under 10K which falls within the small claims court scope - the money claimed for researching the matter was £152 (8 hours x £19). I am not sure why this is non-claimable.

 

 

There is generally no award of costs in small claims track. The main exception is where the court feels one party has behaved unreasonably. If Vodafone continue to act in the arrogant and complacent way they have acted so far and you win at the hearing, and you are successful, then have a go at claiming costs on the basis of their unreasonable conduct.

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Normally when listing a preliminary hearing the order will state exactly what the issues to be discussed are, is that apparent from the order?

 

As for doing it by phone that's a perfectly acceptable thing to do but obviously both parties, and the court, have to agree. Bear in mind that for a short preliminary hearing the court won't usually be assessing any oral evidence so there's no real need for the judge to see people in person. If you don't want to agree then don't but beware that Vodaphone could try to get their costs of attendance on the basis of unreasonable behaviour if you don't have any real reason for forcing a hearing in person.

 

Thanks - no, the issues to be discussed are not apparent yet. I only know the date.

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I will resupply them with everything they asked for, except a colour copy of the report - that would involve taking out a new Equifax account. I'll make them aware of the documents already supplied and ask that they take measures to prevent me having to do this again. Thank you again.

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There is generally no award of costs in small claims track. The main exception is where the court feels one party has behaved unreasonably. If Vodafone continue to act in the arrogant and complacent way they have acted so far and you win at the hearing, and you are successful, then have a go at claiming costs on the basis of their unreasonable conduct.

 

Thank you. VF continue to act unreasonably so this is a likely option.

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Hi CAG. Here is a draft letter to VF. I am asking for a transcript of our phone conversation where a VF rep felt put out by having to read my Equifax Credit Report. I think this is important evidence to show that my correspondence to VF by letter and phone had been futile and that they only took the matter seriously when it got published on the internet (information contrary to the professionalism they maintain they have always shown). I am also not sure if I should give VF the ICO response to me as the ICO said in this letter that they had looked into the matter and chosen not to take any further action - this would suggest that the ICO had already communicated their assessment of my complaint to VF in which case there is no need to send this information. Thank you as always.

 

In response to your last letter, I am resupplying you with the following documents: my Equifax credit report and the statement from my mortgage advisor. I am also supplying you with the Commissioner’s Office letter of assessment (Case Reference Number XXX – letter dated 16th of December 2013) – where they state that your client breached the first and fourth DPA principles.

I do not feel it necessary to supply you with a colour copy of my Equifax credit report as this would involve taking out a new account with them. When your client first received this credit report in May 2013, they had ample opportunity to request a colour version whilst my Equifax account remained open, but as stated in previous correspondence, your client’s customer service representative made it clear that she may not have time to read the contents of the report, hence this is where we find ourselves now.

Since I have duly provided your client with the requested information, I would like you to provide me with a transcript of the phone conversation mentioned above where the initial figure of compensation was discussed. I feel that this is important evidence for the court to highlight the manner in which my claim had been repeatedly assessed and what prompted me to seek legal advice. I would also like you to put appropriate arrangements in place to prevent me from having to provide multiple copies of the same documents in the future.

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Instead of saying "I do not feel it necessary to supply", I would say that a copy has already been provided and that a further copy is not available as the account has expired. You could offer to obtain a copy if Vodafone will undertake to pay the necessary subscription charge.

 

Needless to say, if you go anywhere near a court room for a claim based on your credit file you will need a copy of said credit file.

 

A transcript of the calls might not exist, ask for a recording/transcript. I agree with jfhall82 that a SAR is a good idea.

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  • 1 month later...

Hello everyone - I had the preliminary hearing on Monday in my local court and thought I'd give you an update. I am not sure how much I can divulge here about what the judge said, but it is clear that VF have admitted negligence, their Defence had been very poorly written (parts have now been struck out), and there is definitely going to be some kind of compensation in terms of Actual Losses. I have been instructed to now make a witness statement of the whole affair. To do this, I think I need to summarize everything and provide the relevant evidence for the court. There are, however, some sticking points which I was hoping you could shed some light on:

 

1. The harassment from the Debt Collection Agency does not appear to be relevant to the Small Claims Court. I can't really understand why, but I think I have to adjust my overall claim for distress. At the hearing, it was insinuated that I could link this harassment to my ability to enjoy a peaceful home life. It also seems that my loss of time researching the matter is irrelevant to the Small Claims court - but I am under the impression that this could be done after the court's decision.

 

2. I think I also may need to provide some kind of psychological assessment from a doctor to show that myself and my partner suffered during the period of trying to clean up the bad credit. Can I do this retrospectively or will my partner's word in her statement (already provided) suffice? I think the long list of phone calls (65 in total) during that frantic period trying to get the bad credit removed corroborates the feelings of desperation in her statement. I have yet to make a statement of my own explaining my feelings of humiliation and desperation; I thought this would be obvious from all of the letters I have sent to VF. Could I still write and submit this for the court's attention?

 

3. I was advised by the Defence lawyer that any award for distress would probably be quite low - perhaps only £1000 as opposed to the £7000 claim I am seeking. Could VF's continual arrogance in the matter, e.g. the minimal increase on their £100 goodwill gesture (£350) and the way in which they handled my complaint, further justify my claim for distress? Our brief spell in mediation was a waste of time and only added to my sense of hopelessness in this affair. It is not possible to draw a line where the distress ends.

 

4. I have agreed to listen to any offers they now come up with, but I cannot see how they are going to meet me near my claim; therefore, I think this case would have a wider impact if it actually went to a 2 hour hearing. There is so much more I want to tell the court - for example, they are still not in receipt of all the evidence that VF and I have (it was strange how the instructions from the court never requested it) - and I am happy to take the case further with the media. Could you advise me on the impact a Tomlin Order would have?

 

5. VF have ignored my request to have a transcript of the phone call where my claim was first discussed. I think I should issue a SAR as you helpfully suggested - if I could prove VF's laissez faire attitude in this transcript, could I use it as further evidence for the distress we continue to face? It certainly exacerbates the situation. On a similar note, my credit report to my knowledge simply has Q in the month boxes where I missed payments (meaning queried). In my last letter, I asked VF to confirm whether my report was completely cleaned, but I don't think they have any idea. They affected the report, amended it somehow, but have not answered my question as to whether it was completely cleaned. Is the onus on them to clarify this?

 

6. Whatever happens, because of the admitted negligence and the rewriting of the Defence, should I insist on VF paying all of the court fees.

 

Many thanks as always.

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1. Its not a good idea to refer to right to enjoy a peaceful home life. This is Human Rights Act stuff which is just not relevant to a claim like this. Vodafone are not a public authority and consequently are not subject to the HRA. You need to have a clear legal basis for claiming damages for harassment, either this would be linked to the DPA or this would be under the Protection From Harassment Act 1977 or both. You need to read and cite the exact provision of the legislation you are using.

 

2. Time spent on the case is not part of the claim. If you can claim anything it would be treated as costs, which are awarded separately. You can only get costs on small claims track if the other side has acted unreasonably with a few exceptions - refer to http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/rules/part27#27.14. If you want to claim costs for your time you need to follow the proper approach (i.e. creating a schedule of costs - there is some information about this if you search through CAG).

 

It doesn't sound like a psychological assessment is necessary or proportionate for a case of this value.

 

3. No, none of this would increase your claim for distress. Settlement offers and mediation are covered by 'without prejudice' privilege which means you can't use them as evidence.

 

4. A Tomlin order is just a court sanctioned settlement agreement. It would settle the claim on the terms set out in the order.

 

5. No you can't use this as distress I don't think. Its part of the court process rather than part of the distress you are claiming for. They should clarify about the credit report.

 

 

6. Yes.

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Thank you. That's clear. I have already calculated a schedule of costs researching the matter before VF amended the credit report - this included a breakdown of the time of each phone call. Both the judge and VF have this document.

 

It's very difficult to quantify the distress other than conveying in words the various low points on and off for 4 years - it was 2010 when they first made the mistake with my address. Anyway, there will be 3 statements and the phone call log to support the claim. As always I appreciate your help - CAG gave me a lot of confidence at the preliminary hearing.

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