Judgment made against my company but I never received notification until 12 days after payment due.

[terracotta4]

I run a small online Garden goods company mainly online -

 

this year I sent 2 large ornaments to a customer who had bought them online.

 

Our Terms and Conditions state that goods must be inspected before signing and we also pay an insurance premium to the pallet delivery company to cover breakages.

 

The delivery was made the goods were photographed on buyers drive and they were signed for by the customer in good order - 25 days later I received a call from customer to say that they were damaged when unwrapped the previous day.

 

I checked all details with courier and Paypal our card processing company and we all agreed there was nothing we could do. She then started contradicting her own story regarding how the ornaments arrived - I sent images of the planters packed and delivered.

 

I then received a claim from the County Court..

I defended the claim in writing with evidence from the carrier and the actual driver - in the images she sent it was clear that the damaged large ornament had been hit with a car possibly as the impact point was clear to see. 

 

All documents were submitted to the court - she sent me copies of everything she was presenting and I heard no more.

 

I have never had to deal with anything like this before and didn't know the time frames involved.

 

In the last 4 weeks I have tried to contact the County Court in question but they never answer a call. 

 

On Saturday (Feb 25th) I went to my shop and found a letter from the court stating that judgement had been made against us and that I had to pay this opportunist a sum by the 14th February.

 

I have tried to call the court all day today but still no answer.

 

Question is

what can we do about this and I also want the damaged ornament returned as it can be repaired.

 

 

[dx100uk]

you should have informed the court and use your home address? are you a ltd co.  or a sole trader and are the addresses the same ?

 

dx

 

[terracotta4]

Limited Company and everything addressed to my shop which is below a flat which is where a lot of our mail gets sent.

 

.I didn't give the court my home address as their initial contact was by email and as this has never happened to us in 35 years

 

we assumed all further communication would be by this route... 

 

I'm also at a loss as to why they do not answer any phone calls so that the issue can be tracked..

[dx100uk]

you mean the county court not northants bulk?

 

you should never just use email ....always..always back everything up by royal mail letter.

 

so you had the notice of allocation, the N157?, from the claimants selected court and that came by email,? and you exchanged witness statements by email with the claimant too? never once sent anything by surface mail?

 

were you not notified of any hearing date?

 

dx

 

 

 

[terracotta4]

First notification was by email - this was followed by hard copy

- then submitted all supporting evidence by mail

- this was acknowledged

- then more evidence requested which was submitted by recorded mail again

- later received Claimants guff by mail ..

 

then waited to hear what would happen

- heard nothing until Judgement received on Saturday 25th

- apparently hearing was on January 31st

- but I received no notice ..

 

I was calling to find out what was happening but calls never picked up

- it was Swindon County Court..

[dx100uk]

9 minutes ago, terracotta4 said:

First notification was by email - this was followed by hard copy

of what and from who?

 

9 minutes ago, terracotta4 said:

- then submitted all supporting evidence by mail

you mean you filed your defence on MCOL after doing the acknowledgement of service their earlier too.? (you can't file separate evidence with a defence)

you then have an N180 Directions Questionnaire from northants bulk. what address was that sent too for you?

once a court is allocated you get an N157 and directions to exchangewitness statements by a date poss 14 days before the hearing?

 

unless ofcourse the claimant is using the new MCOL system whereby everything is done online?

 

[terracotta4]

This is all alien to me - I will check all of the paperwork and revert with details - but I believe it was a new system..