pjdudley69 v Yorkshire Bank **SETTLED**

[pjdudley69]

only just bet her tho lol it's the same branch too, so they're being hit with both barrels at the same time lol

[pjdudley69]

who do I pm details of my claim to? I pm'd the admin@pantwhateveritsaid, but I've checked the litigation list and I'm not on

[pjdudley69]

Thanks Trunny, done - I should be there with the best of em soon

[pjdudley69]

OMG, just had a thought [no, it didn't hurt [much] before anyone asks ], I didn't have to provide the spreadsheet with the breakdown of my charges with my claim did I? I'm really hoping I haven't dropped a b*ll*ck with this!!!

[pjdudley69]

Letter received from court advising that YB filed Acknowledgement of Service on 14 June and intend to defend all of the claim.

[pjdudley69]

Thanks Caro. Me n Trunny have already had the discussion about scare tactics - we reckon they'll cough up at the 11th hour. We're meeting up on Wednesday to try and come up with something in case we both end up having to go to court. Don't know what we'll achieve tho' cos we're meeting at the pub lol

[pjdudley69]

Are battle plans in place? Are you keeping it all on a need to know basis, and we don't need to know. Top secret until mission accomplished. Whatever the reason for the quietness at the mo, I'm thinking of you.

 

Battle plans in place? lol, me and Trunny met up and discussed meeting up when we've got our court dates lol

 

It was great meeting her though, before we go to battle [so to speak] lol She really is as nice as she appears and, thankfully, I didn't walk in the pub looking like she expected lol [do you wanna tell em what you were expecting Trunny hun, or shall I?? lol]

[pjdudley69]

Not yet Hilary - they've got until 12 July to file their defence. I can't imagine it'll be a very good one though lol

[pjdudley69]

I think there might be a compliment in there somewhere if you look hard enought PJ.lol:p

 

Well I've looked really really hard and I'm still not sure I see it lol

[pjdudley69]

no they dont, they have until 6th

 

28 days from date of service if im not mistaken, it doesnt matter if they leave it 13 days to acknowledge, the clock on the 28 days to file a defence starts running from when they are deemed to have recieved it - 2 days after issue

 

Thanks for that Dan - I thought it was 28 days from acknowledgement of service!! Oooh, I'll know even sooner then - can't wait!

[pjdudley69]

You mean you'll have your money lawfully returned even sooner hun

 

Course thats what I mean - I'm skinter than skint at the moment!!! lol

[pjdudley69]

Received YBs defence today. I'm going to have to go back through all my statements again, and double check my figures. I'm certain I've got the right amount at £498 [i've claimed for £517.91 tho' because I've added the debit interest when they've made charges] but in their defence YB have attached a schedule of charges totalling £453, so I want to try and figure out how they've come to that figure. They've broken it down as:

 

Unauthorised Fees = £8.00

Monthly Charges = £40.00

Unpaid Cheque Fees = £10.00

Unauthorised Overdraft Fees = £185.00

Monthly Fees = £210.00

 

I know for a fact that I had an Unpaid Cheque Charge of £33 back in June 2002, and 2 x £8.00 and 1 x £4.00 unauthorised o/d charges, but there is nothing in there schedule which could possibly account for the odd figure! Unless I've made a complete balls up of it, which I don't believe I have.

 

I'll try and post the major points of their defence later, when/if I get my head round it!!

[pjdudley69]

I've had a read through the defence, and it's still don't make a lot of sense, but basically it's saying that I knew the standard terms & conditions for the account, and had been informed of charges etc etc. The major points are:

 

"It is denied that the Charges or any of them were a disproportionate penalty and unenforceable as alleged in the Particulars of Claim. The Charges were a genuine pre-estimate of damage resulting from the Customers' failure to keep within the agreed overdraft limit on the account."

 

"It is further denied that the Charges were levied pursuant to a contract term requiring the Customers to indemnify the Bank within the meaning of Section 4 of the UCTA 1977. In the premises Section 5 of that Act has no application in these proceedings."

 

"It is further denied that by virtue of Section 15 of the Supply of Good and Services Act 1982 the amount of the charges falls to be determined by reference to what is reasonable."

 

It also goes on to say that it's further denied that the T&Cs requiring the Claimant to pay the charges were unfair terms within the meaning of the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contract Regulations 1999, S.I 1999 No 2083. Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing: [1] the terms conditions were fair having regard to the following matters: [a] the cost to the Bank of maintaining administrative systems relating to unauthorised overdrafts, unpaid cheques and dds and abuse of chq & debit cards for the purpose of keeping the level of overdrawing under review & controlled as far as possible; the increased risk of loss to the Bank arising from such unauthorised transactions & the associated cost of the enforcenment & recovery systems; [c] the need to operate standard procedures & to set standard charges in order to avoid the substantial costs of individual assessment in relation to each particular case.

 

In the premises, the Claimant is not entitled to the relief sought or to any relief.

 

Sorry bout the long post - I'm just confused now. I haven't got a clue what any of the above means really and I'm not sure about my arguments back for if it gets to court.

 

If anyone could explain it to me in laymans terms, it'd be great.

[pjdudley69]

Thanks for that Alan, I can breathe and relax again now

[pjdudley69]

Thanks for that Caro, hun. I have printed out the bits relating to my claim, but I've got to admit that it's not a whole lot clearer lol [might be having a blonde moment - no offence intended! lol] Hopefully, they'll be like the rest and back out before it goes the whole way and I make a fool of myself lol

[pjdudley69]

Thanks for the invite hun but I can't make it this weekend. Off to sunny Ingoldmells for mums b/day party on Sat morning. Another weekend getting legless for a change

[pjdudley69]

Hiya Stef, thanks for the support, it's greatly appreciated/needed

Any questions/advice feel free to holler, we'll do our best to give you a hand.

 

N Trunny, if they decide to be pigheaded and go all the way to court, do you reckon they'd let us both prove our cases at the same time? U know, kill 2 birds with one stone so to speak [it'd save them travel costs in the long run]? lol

[pjdudley69]

We need em to be seperate PJ so we can take it in turns to stand at the back of the court & then outside the court to heckle & gesture rudely

 

I've got a really unhealthy association with YB workers/representatives & primates going on in my head. I just can't shake the images. If I do get to court I think I'll be totally shocked if a human being turns up lol.

 

I'll bring the tomatoes, you can bring the bananas then

[pjdudley69]

Allocation questionnaire came yesterday. Haven't had a chance to look at it yet cos been away [n I'm too tired now!]. I'll have a look at it tomorrow and fill it in and send it back. Just a quick question, which it doesn't state on the notes page. I didn't have to pay any fees when I filed my claim, cos I get tax credits, so does that mean that I won't have to send a fee with my AQ?

[pjdudley69]

I hope that the fact that you are "tired" means the weekend was a good one.

 

It was a fantastic weekend - from Thurs to last nite - got a wee bit tipsy saturday tho lol

[pjdudley69]

Was it this one Dan? The Sun Online - Cashflow: Meet Bob the Bank Buster

 

Quick update - my Allocation Questionnaire's gone off 1st class today, with a breakdown of my charges. My schedule adds up to £63 more than the schedule YB sent with the defence, but Spiceskull kindly had a look at it for me and it appears the YB have gone wrong somewhere lol [or calculate it completely differently to how it shows on my statements!]

[pjdudley69]

I'm absolutely fuming today!! Things have been a bit tight over the last few months, and I've only just been staying within my overdraft [and the £25 buffer] limit. I received a letter today from internet banking to say that there wasn't enough in my account to pay a £20 s/o [this was due on Weds], so I phoned the company I owed it to and paid by switch today [payday]. I also had a couple of other dd's due on wed. These went out, but it must have took me beyond my buffer zone. I only realised when I've checked my internet banking today.

 

What's got me really angry though is the fact that they've slapped a £25 'unauthorised o/d fee' on yesterday. The following points are what's really got me annoyed:

a] According to my statements unauthorised o/d fees are £8 per day, and £25 just shows as charges.

b] I can't find the terms and conditions, but I'm sure I've seen it somewhere in the bumph I've had that they write and give you advance notice when a charge [other than the daily charge] is going to be slapped on!

 

Any advice on this? And, how do I go about adding this to my claim now that my AQ's been submitted with my schedule of charges?

 

Cheers PJ x

[pjdudley69]

Thanks for that Blueskies - they've obviously changed it since I last had charges! Am I able to add it to my claim now that my AQ has gone in, or would it be simpler to keep a note of it in case I occur more charges and claim again in future?

[pjdudley69]

Righteo, YB have sent me a copy of their AQ today. They've said that they wish further action to be postponed for a month so that we can attempt to settle - I take it I just sit back and wait to see if they contact me know to pay me my dosh?? They've also said that are intending to call 2 witnesses to give evidence at the hearing - who on earth could they possibly be??

 

Have any other banks called witnesses? and if so, in what capacity?

 

Any thoughts appreciated

 

Cheers PJ x

[pjdudley69]

That's my opinion too Rob. Am I right in assuming that if the judge agrees the stay, then after that one month it's a case of waiting for a court date and the end is nigh? [i really really don't think it will get that far now - I can't believe I even felt remotely worried the other week Caro!] If they don't contact me to resolve this, I can't imagine the judge would be too impressed would he? And would it be too cheeky of me to ask them to throw the £25 they charged me last week in? or shall I just save that for if I have to claim again?

 

I know, I know, too many questions - my head's running away with me now and I might be getting a bit too giddy a bit too soon lol