Unknown VCS CCJ - Bristol Airport - Stopping in a zone where stopping is prohibited . Was abroad

[dx100uk]

simple simon for ya!

 

i'd forgotten about asking about vacate the claim as it's now obv unnecessary, might be on to a winner there

shame its the w/end now and courts are closed till monday.

[Zimbird]

I should sign the Consent Order and return it to the Court signed and ask in the same email whether I can be refunded my application fee.  ?

 

Should I copy VCS into the email?

Or should I send two separate emails - one to VCS with signed Consent Order and a different one to the court asking for a refund because the court set aside case will now not need to go ahead.

 

Will VCS contact me and ask again for the amount £257 - what do you think?

 

Thanks

 

[dx100uk]

read what you have been sent by elms and by andy.

 

 

 

[brassnecked]

You have a set aside now do what DX says

[AndyOrch]

Quote

So basically I should sign the Consent Order and return it to the Court signed and ask in the same email whether I can be refunded my application fee.  

 

Yes....explain that the consent order negates the need for a hearing as both parties agree.(refer to CPR 23.8) You therefore wish to amend your application to without a hearing and  vacate any proposed hearing.. You may only get a partial refund but worth a try. There is no need to sign or copy or send anything to VCS.

 

Quote

Aside from the County Court hearing fee, no other fee outlined within the civil fees order is subject to a refund. HM Courts & Tribunals Service typically only refunds fees where the court has made a processing error, i.e. the court have processed a claim or application even though you have requested that it should not be processed. In instances where the court user has made an error no refunds will be approved. Please note the court cannot be held responsible for processing duplicate applications or claims. Should you wish to apply for a fee refund, please write to the relevant County Court hearing centre or business centre (details can be found on Court and Tribunal Finder http://courttribunalfinder.service.gov.uk) outlining the grounds for your refund request within two months of the fee having being paid. Applications outside this timeframe will not be accepted.

https://www.unipol.org.uk/getmedia/586bee25-5217-46b4-9c7e-8e391fb4df5a/EX50.pdf.aspx

 

 

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[Zimbird]

Thank you Andyorch.  That is really helpful.  I have done that and let's see.  I will keep you posted.

[Zimbird]

I have just been rung up by the Court in Bristol and have had the Hearing for the Set Aside.

Sadly the Court receive hundreds of emails and therefore they did not get my signed Consent Order and my email.

Therefore I have lost the chance of reimbursement.

 

The judge told me my case would now go to the Small Claims Court and she suggested I go onto the Judicial website and read "A Guide to bringing and Defending a Small Claim" and prepare my Witness Statement as the Claim still stands at £257.  I will now hear from the Small Claims Court.

 

What do you think I have to do now - just wait until I hear from them again?  Can you give me a rough time frame for what will happen next?

 

[dx100uk]

so you won the set aside then?
 

dx

 

[FTMDave]

But you got your set aside - well done 

 

The CCJ has gone for good.

 

Considering we were very unsure if you would succeed, that is a great result and will help others in the same position.

 

You now have a decision to make.  You don't have to decide within 24 hours like the last time!  Take a couple of days.

 

1.  You can pay the fleecers £257 and the matter ends there.

 

2.  You can defend your claim and after a few months there will be a court hearing, VCS v you.

 

You'll be unsurprised to hear that, as a campaigning consumer advice forum, we would prefer you decided on (2)!   However, there are other good reasons for fighting them.

 

The way costs are decided means you might as well fight.  Their claim already contains costs.  Were you to lose in court it's highly likely that to the £257 the court would add the £25 hearing fee plus some interest and then subtract the £60 Unicorn Food Tax that VCS always add on.

 

Plus if in your defence you mentioned Zimbabwe and the cost of your return ticket for a court case, VCS may well run away.

 

EDIT  The judge will have ordered something.  Please upload the order when you get it.  It'll probably be to file a defence within 14 days.

 

So if you want to continue the fight, there will be the defence to file over the next fortnight, which you have already prepared.

 

Later on some bits and pieces.

 

Then in a few months a court hearing which you will have to file a Witness Statement for a fortnight before the hearing.

Edited November 15, 2021 by FTMDave
Extra info added

[Zimbird]

Yes the CCJ has gone for good and the judge told me to just double check this a bit later on and make sure.

I think I had better go for it and take them on.  It would be against everything I stand for to give VCS £257 - if I loose no probs but not to try, is a cop out.

 

I will rely on your help as we have got this far together.  I am so grateful that I have no more CCJ - but yes lets go for it.

I will enjoy putting a air ticket on my claim!

[FTMDave]

Excellent attitude.

 

Of course we will be here to help you fight Simple Simon.

 

Please upload whatever court order arrives.

[Zimbird]

My only consideration is I am now going to Zimbabwe from mid December to end of April - would I have to actually come back to England and be present at court - if they decide the court case was before end of April?

[FTMDave]

At the moment all hearings are on-line so you could connect in Zimbabwe just as easily as in England.

 

If that changes, as long as you let the court know seven days before the hearing that you won't attend, then the court will considerer your Witness Statement in your absence and you could still win (although you wouldn't be able to challenge the fleecers' lies).

 

You could also write to the court and request, in the interests of justice and to keep costs down, that they fix the hearing date from 1 May onwards.

[AndyOrch]

Quote

1.  You can pay the fleecers £257 and the matter ends there.

 

 

Mmmm you cant Dave.....just because it was set a side does not allow you time to pay and that's the end...that's known as credit washing....the claim will proceed and must be defended as per norm.

 

Andy

[FTMDave]

Thanks Andy.

 

I didn't know defence was obligatory.

 

Something else noted and learnt for the future!

[FruitSalad1010]

1 hour ago, Zimbird said:

My only consideration is I am now going to Zimbabwe from mid December to end of April - would I have to actually come back to England and be present at court - if they decide the court case was before end of April?

 

Once you indicate you will be defending the claim I expect you will be sent a paper copy of a Directions Questionnaire by the court to fill out and return to them, as well as serve a copy to the claimant. Amongst other details it requests dates that you are unavailable to attend a hearing. Simply provide the court with the dates you are unable to attend.

Edited November 15, 2021 by FruitSalad1010

[brassnecked]

You can make sutre the unavailability covers until you are back, the fact you will be coming back from Zimbabwe, will also make Simple Simon stop and think, he might pull out.

[FTMDave]

We have two other Caggers going for set asides Zimbird.  Have you any advice after the hearing?  Was there anything the judge was insistent upon or gave you a hard time about?  Or was it all straightforward?

[FTMDave]

Zimbird, any news from the court about any order?  Usually after set aside the a defence has to be filed within 14 days.

[Zimbird]

I will ask my tenant to check the post again - but she has been fairly good at sending through my mail.

 

However I did ask the court for a refund for the £255 Telephone Hearing and got this response below.  However now I do not think it is worth following this option,  as the Telephone Hearing happened as a result of them not getting my signed Consent Form in time - the Judge says they have too many emails to go through so mine was not discovered before the hearing - not enough time!

Therefore I can hardly now ask for a refund.

 

Will they definitely post my order or like below will they now email me?

 

Good Morning, 

 

Thank you for your email below.

 

As this fee was taken by the County Court Business Centre, they would have to process your request for a refund.

Please see their email address as follows, and direct your query to them -              [email protected]

 

Many thanks,

 

Rachel Wallace Administrative Officer and TRA Team Leader Fees & Support Services   Bristol Civil and Family Justice Centre 2 Redcliff Street, Bristol, BS1 6GR 0117 366 4840 | [email protected]

 

 

Thank you for responding to me so quickly.

 

On 20th September I wrote a cheque out for £255 and submitted it with my N244.  I believed this was payment for a telephone hearing.

 

When I sent the signed Consent Order back to you on Saturday, there was no necessity for the telephone hearing due to be held on Monday 15th, as a Consent Order had been issued by the Claimant.

 

Therefore I was hoping to be refunded the £255 I had paid for the telephone hearing for my Set Aside.

 

[FTMDave]

We don't get set asides here very often, but IIRC when successful the judge orders a defence to be filed by a certain date.  That's logical too, the fleecers have filed their Particulars of Claim so you need to file a defence in response.

 

If you haven't already, register on MCOL today and see the stage the claim is at. 

[Zimbird]

Should you register using your own name?  And then how do I find out whether Vehicle Control Services have a claim against me on that site?

 

BTW nothing received in the post to date.  I have asked my tenant and she knows to check every day.

 

 

On 17/11/2021 at 00:03, FTMDave said:

We have two other Caggers going for set asides Zimbird.  Have you any advice after the hearing?  Was there anything the judge was insistent upon or gave you a hard time about?  Or was it all straightforward?

 

It was so quick because there was a Consent Order in place.  

 

I explained that I had emailed the County Court with my signed Consent Order on Friday and told her I was surprised the telephone hearing was still going ahead.  

 

She explained that there were many emails to get through so my response email with the signed Consent Order had not been received in time, hence the telephone hearing.  Having heard that I had signed it, she just acknowledged that everyone was aware.

 

Then she suggested I went onto the judicial website and read a guide to bringing and defending a small claim https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/JCO/Documents/CJC/Publications/Other+papers/Small+Claims+Guide+for+web+FINAL.pdf

 

[FTMDave]

Yes, you should register with your own name.

 

I've never used MCOL, but I presume if you enter the claim number you should be able to see the status of the claim.

 

Do this tonight/tomorrow, I'm just concerned that you might miss a deadline to file a defence (and then we know what would happen!!!) 

 

Plan B would be to ring the court, but try MCOL first.

 

 

 

 

[dx100uk]

mcol might not work now, too far since the issuance of the original claimform.?

you should have a password on the original claimform?

but if you havent got a copy of that then it wont work.

 

what are you trying to findout?

if you have a CCJ?

 

dx

 

[FTMDave]

Didn't know that dx.

 

The OP has just got a set aside.  Presumably the next step is to defend Simon's claim, right?  Trying to find out what the judge ordered after the set aside hearing.