Defence to claim

[cogsy1976]

Hi

 

I have recently submitted an mcol for a claim with Citi, which ends any day now I had a letter to say that they were going to refund me the difference between the £12 and the £25 that they were charging me each time (which to be honest I am happy with as I have had debt cleared and also have some money left).

 

I have also now received a copy of the defence to the claim from Brian Smith is there really anypoint me continuing with the claim and going to court? as previously mentioned I have got what I wanted obviously I had to pay out the mcol fee but am not too bothered about that.

 

Some advice would be very much appreciated!

[Guest ian cognito]

Cogsy

 

Citicards are good at this, they do it all the time, but the £12 does not refelct their costs and they have now been told they must disclose their true costs in here http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/citicards/18681-gizmo111-citicards.html.

 

Whether you take the partial settlement is entirely up to you of course but you should also be considering your expense and the interest you are now due.

[Enron]

Yep, I was in court with Gizmo111 for her case.

 

The judge was disatisfied that Citi did not include any figures to support their £12.88 calculation and as such orderred full disclosure.

 

The ball is now in Citi's court, though from previous experience when orderred to supply figures they have either settled or defaulted on the issued order.

 

Citi are taking all claims as far as court however we are beginning to edge in the right direction so I would encourage you to continue - there are plenty of people here who will help you out, and it keeps pressure up on Citi.

 

From what I here (not the solicitor in Gizmo's case) Citi are struggling with the amount of cases they are having to deal with.

[cogsy1976]

Thanks for the advice.

 

For the good of everyone who has claimed and others who are in process of claiming I will continue, quite fancy a day in court lol.

 

Seriously though if I need help with AQ etc.. is there help available as it seems a bit daunting!

[Enron]

There's a guide to filing in the AQ which shows you how to fill it out.

 

In addition to the AQ you will have to include a copy of the schedule of charges you are claiming.

 

And there is a draft order which you can include for the courts consideration when sending it back.

[cogsy1976]

Can anyone help me completing my allocation questionnaire?

 

I have completed the form but am unsure of what to put into section G (other information) dont want to mess it up

[gizmo111]

AQ Questionnaire

 

You will need to add this to what Enron has advised above - suggest you do the letter below as an attachement - obviously adapt to suit your claim.

 

It has come to my attention that the defendant is routinely asking in their allocation questionnaires for hearings relating to penalty charges to be transferred to Salford and heard in secret. In the likely scenario that the defendant asks for this in my case, I respectfully request that the following is taken into account prior to allocation.

I wish to object to any application for transfer on the following grounds.

 

1. The defendant’s application was made without notice to myself and I have not been given the opportunity to make representations.

 

2. I am an individual of limited means. I am a litigant in person and I am suing the defendant on my own account.

 

3. The defendant is a multi national company with access to huge financial resources whilst my finances are strictly limited.

 

4. Although the place of trial is at the discretion of the Court the normal and established practice is for the claims in which one of the parties is an individual, be transferred to that individual’s home court. In this case my home court is xxxxxxx County Court.

 

5. The defendant, in their defence paragraph 10, had already admitted part of my claim and have now acknowledged the amount in issue is only £588.16

 

 

I am also requesting Judgement in request of the admitted sum. The defendants have made reference to the fact of the sum that they admit has been sold onto a third party agency, however, this is not relevant to my claim. My account contract was with Citi Cards, my claim is against them, and if they have seen fit to pass money to a third party then that is matter for them to reconcile.

 

Order 26 to which the defendant refers to in thier application, normally is applied for the benefit of a claimant who is claiming as an individual.

 

The defendant refers to recent findings by the Office of Fair Trading, however it is clear that the Office of Fair Trading conclusions indicate very strongly that companies such as the defendant are acting in violation of the unfair terms in consumer contracts regulations. And therefore as the defendant continues its system of penalty charges in the face of the Office of Fair Trading report it is they who should justly face the burden of costs and not claimants in person who are merely seeking to enforce the law.

 

The defendant argues the virtue of having all cases transferred to the same court. There are presently at least sixteen cases, which have been transferred to the Mercantile Court in London so that the bank charges issue can be tested once and for all. The claimant respectfully suggests that if the Salford County Court will not return my case to the Bristol County Court that in the alternative this case should be transferred to the Mercantile Court in London to be heard before the designated Judge there along side all the other penalty charges test cases.

It is not in the interest Overriding Objective for my case to be tried in a court other than my home court of Bristol County Court.

 

I also understand that the defendants had asked that their evidence be received in secret without any opportunity for myself or any other person to have an opportunity to examine it in advance of the hearing. Furthermore I understand that it would not be possible to carry out any cross-examination in respect of that evidence and that I would have no opportunity to have the evidence scrutinised by my own expert or an independent expert, despite the fact that the defendant's evidence is likely to be of a technical nature.

 

I wish to object to the defendant’s request. It cannot be in the interests of the Overriding Objective to allow secret evidence to be taken during a small claim. Furthermore the question we are deciding is the lawfulness of the defendant's penalty charge system. The defendant claims that their evidence is" commercially sensitive". However the question of the defendant's penalty charge regime does not refer to their core business. Whilst it could well be the case that information relating to the defendants core business could indeed be commercially sensitive, the question of penalty charges relates to an incidental aspect of the defendant's business -- and which if the defendant is to be believed, produces no profit at all as according to the defendant, their penalty charges merely cover their administrative costs. It is also true to say that the defendant has in the past claimed that their costs are merely in line with those of other similar organisations. Clearly then, the defendant's penalty charge regime is not a competitive matter, according to the defendant it brings them no profit and therefore there can be no grounds for saying that the information is commercially sensitive.

 

If the defendant is insistent that his evidence is commercially sensitive then I would respectfully suggest that maybe this entire matter is better suited for a higher court such as the mercantile court in London or Bristol.

 

Yours faithfully

[cogsy1976]

Thanks Gizmo I have completed the rest of the AQ but didnt know what to put in the last bit, it needs to be returned by 14th so I will get on and do today, thanks for your help.