We have emailed the dealer informing him that the car will be dropped off tomorrow. We also requested that he provided documentary evidence of any work carried out. He has just replied with the following:- Thank you for your email. I will email you once we are in receipt of your car. I am happy for you to check the vehicle once it has been repaired to ensure the issues that were raised by the garages you quoted have been repaired to a high standard. Please note that when a main dealer looks at a car they will scrutinise the vehicle to pick minor defects that may be present on a 10 year old car with minor defects that are purely age and mileage related. We will not be held responsible for any minor issues that do NOT deem the vehicle fit for purpose. I hope you can understand where we are coming from because it is not a new vehicle that you have purchased. I am happy for you to check the issues that you have raised with us to ensure that they have been rectified correctly. The car has an oil leak, a coolant leak and is misfiring. These are the problems that we have raised with the dealer. Yes I am aware that the car is 10 years old, but surely these will be fixed and not passed off as age/mileage related? The car had done 98000 miles.

We paid by debit card

At the moment we are contacting via email. All the paperwork from the 2 independent garages, that have checked the vehicle, was scanned and emailed to the dealer. The car , now, is being taken back to the dealer tomorrow. Hopefully all will be sorted soon and I won't be without a car for too long.

Hi all I bought a 2004 BMW X5 on 9th Feb 2014. The garage I bought it from was approx 43 miles from my house. The car was fine on the way home and also on the Monday and Tuesday after when I used it for work. The total mileage I did was approx 38 miles. My husband then used the car on Wednesday and thrust any with no problems. He travelled approx 200 miles. On the Friday, my husband went to use it again but decided not to as the engine management light came on and the car was misfiring. The car came with a 6 months warranty with a maximum of £1000 per claim. I called the warranty company on Friday afternoon and informed them that I would take it to our local garage to find out what was wrong with it. The garage did a diagnostic check and confirmed that it was misfiring on 3 of the 8 cylinders. Also noticed was a grey gloopy substance underneath the engine coolant cap. The garage also stated that it could possibly be the he'd gasket had blown. Unfortunately the garage would not doing anything further as they did not do warranty work. This was all done on Tuesday 18th February. I contacted the warranty company again and requested that they recommend a local garage. The car went into the local garage on Thursday 20th February and another diagnostic check was done. Again it came up with the same faults (misfiring on 3 cylinders). Also pointed out to us that there was an oil leak which could possibly a rocker cover gasket. The misfiring could be down to coil packs or head gasket. The car is losing coolant but no sign of water leak. The gloopy stuff on top of the oil filler cap and also in the breather pipes was a sign of a head gasket problem. I was advised by the garage to go back to the dealer to which I bought the car and ask for my money back as contacting the warranty company after just over one week of owning the car, they would probably not be prepared to pay for such a claim due to the potential problems. I emailed the dealer and has replied that as the car was not pressure tested, it might not be the head gasket and could be an easy fix. He stated that we had to get the car back to him for him to use his own BMW specialists to check the vehicle out and he would be prepared to pay for its repair. My dilemma is that the dealer is over 40 miles away and there is no way I am prepared to drive the vehicle in its current state. I have contacted a local breakdown company and it will cost me £140 to get it to the dealer!!!! The dealer has stated that he is not responsible for this cost. The car will be taken back to the dealer on Monday but I am very worried about what will happen next. 2 separate garages have said that it is more than likely that it is the head gasket. I don't want the dealer to try and fob me off with a quick fix and I find I have a broken car again. Do I have the right to ask for a full refund or do I have to accept the fact that the dealer will fix the car at his own cost and let him do it.

My Way - Frank Sinatra Hello all xx

Thanks cb. I'll keep you posted

Thanks for the SOS callout CB Thanks for your reply ims21. I have decided to have one last bash at requesting a repayment of the insurance before I make the decision of whether to go to the FOS for help or making a claim through the courts. I have written up the letter below, and any advice would be gratefully appreciated. Dear Mr Halifax, Mortgage Number:- XXXXXXXXX Your reference: XXXXXXXXXXXX With reference to your letter dated 8th February 2013, and the accompanying documentation, I would advise you that I disagree with your findings for the following reasons:- 1. The policy documentation you provided was not dated and therefore I have no physical evidence of that being the actual policy that was applicable at the time of the Mortgage Repayment Insurance being charged. You have only provided a printout and had you provided the actual booklet, it would have been dated. 2. If this was the actual policy document I received, I was not advised correctly of the conditions set for self employed people. Had I been advised correctly I would have realised that the conditions could not apply to us at all for the following reasons:- a) It states that we would be covered if we did not know of or could not reasonably be expected to know of any unemployment that is likely to happen to us – My husband was self employed and it could be reasonably ascertained that he would be unemployed, e.g period between a contract ending and a new one starting, for periods throughout the term of the policy. b) It states that if my husband was self employed you would pay unemployment benefit if the unemployment starts after a continuous period of 12 months during which he had been self employed – When you are self employed, you do not start and stop being self employed between contracts. Therefore he was continuously self employed, even if he was out of work for any periods of the policy term. This is good news, but unfortunately the policy then carries on to state where we would not be covered. c) We were not covered for unemployment benefit and you would not pay unemployment benefit if my husband had not been working continuously with one or more employer for a period of 12 months before the date of the first claim for unemployment benefit. – This contradicts point 2 above. To me this reads as though my husband would not be covered as he was self employed and does not work continuously for a 12 month period. Sometimes there were breaks in contract work. Sometimes these breaks could be as little as a couple of weeks and other times could stretch to more than a month. d) We would also not be covered if at the start date we knew my husband was going to be made unemployed or we had reason to believe that unemployment was likely to happen. It could be safe to say that the length of the contracts my husband worked on were in the region between 3 months and up to six months long. Therefore he knew he would be unemployed at the end of the contract but could not possibly know when a new one would commence. e) The policy also states that we would not be covered if the work was seasonal and unemployment is a normal part of it or unemployment was a regular feature of the work. That is one of the unfortunate features of a self employed sub contractor. Unemployment is a normal part and is also a regular feature. f) If unemployment is the result of the end of a fixed term contract or contracts which had not been in force with the same employer for at least three years you would not pay unemployment benefit. – Being self employed as a sub contractor in the construction industry it is very rare to work for the same contractor for at least three years. Should this happen, it would probably be deemed as employment t rather than self employment. In my husband’s case, he worked for a variety of contractors. In conclusion, I believe that we were mis-sold the Mortgage Repayment Insurance, as it was not explained fully enough to us, at the time, about the limitations of the policy for self employed people. Had we been made aware of such limitations within the policy, we would certainly not have taken it out. We trusted the advice given by your representative, who was obviously not completely knowledgeable about the rules of self employment, as it is clear that we would not have been covered by the policy let alone be able to make a claim on it. I am now asking you to reconsider our claim for the mis selling of the policy and refund us accordingly. Yours sincerely

Crow

Had a reply today. It was a 'Thank you for your recent request for access to the personal information held about your account' letter. It included a printout of the mortgage repayment insurance booklet. No date on it so I don't know whether it was for the year I requested. In the booklet it states that my husband was covered if he was self employed. Below is some extracts from the booklet printout:- Self employed means you are:- A) assisting with, managing or carrying on a business in the UK, and are liable to pay tax under schedule D or B) a partner in a partnership or C) a person who exercises control over a company or D) working for a company and in any way connected with a person who has control over that company. It then goes on to say:- You have cover if all of the following apply to you:- *. You have a mortgage with the society * you have completed an application form which we or the society have accepted *. You are working *. You do not know of or could not reasonably be expected to know of any unemployment that is likely to happen to you Surely, when you are self-employed it is reasonable to expect periods of unemployment? In point 4.5 it states:- If you are self employed we will pay unemployment benefit if:- * you have stopped trading and your business is being wound up or put into the hands of a liquidator *. Your partnership has been dissolved and *. Your unemployment starts after a continuous period of 12 months during which you have been self-employed. Yep, my husband was continuously self employed but unfortunately he was not working continuously for a 12 month period. They would not pay unemployment benefit if:- * you have not been working continuously with one or more employer for a period of 12 months before the date of your first claim for unemployment benefit * at the start date you knew you were going to be made unemployed or you had reason to believe that it was likely to happen. * your work is seasonal and unemployment is a normal part of it or unemployment is a regular feature of your work. * unemployment is the result of: A) the end of a fixed term contract or contracts which had not been in force with the same employer for at least three years. It also goes to tell you how you can make a claim For unemployment claim you must arrange for your previous employer and a department of employment official to fill in the relevant sections of the form. My husband is a self employed electrician who works on small contracts with various contractors. Surely he would not have been covered by the insurance policy. Any help would be much appreciated. If need be I can scan the whole policy and add it here. Thanks J

Panic

I recently put in a claim against Halifax for MRI. A the time of taking out the mortgage back in 1996, I was a housewife and my husband was self employed. I received a response last week telling me that the policy was not mis-sold and as such they would not uphold my complaint. My mother had recently managed to successfully claim back the MRI from Lloyds for my brother last year and she told me that she received the same response from Lloyds at first. She sent me a copy of the letter and I was surprised that it was more or less word for word the same one I received from Halifax. I have now sent a response to their rejection letter in the hope that I too will be successfull. My response is below:- Further to your letter dated 22nd January 2013 I would like to refer you to the following details that have not been addressed:- 1. The insurance was called Mortgage Repayment Insurance and although prior to 2005, the sale of your insurance was not regulated by the FSA, Halifax was a member of the ABI. Therefore, as a bank, you had a duty of care to sell insurance relevant to the policy holders needs and claim capability. 2. You may well set down rules that must be complied with by your staff in relation to the selling of any insurance policy but obviously errors do occur. 3. I consider this is a case of the person who arranged this loan was not fully trained to be aware of the ‘Self-Employed’ situation. 4. We were ill advised to take out the policy as it would have been impossible to make a claim should there be lack of work for my husband, as he was self employed, and I was not employed at the time. We were also not aware that the policy was an optional thing and assumed that it was a requirement in order to get the mortgage. 5. You state in your letter that the evidence detailing my husband’s status at the time of sale confirms that at the time of the sale he was eligible for the policy we bought. I now realise that it would not have been possible to pursue a claim if my husband was out of work. A self employed person cannot state that he is unemployed just because he has not got any work at the current time. You also state that the policy documentation fully explained the benefits and limitations of the policy. I would therefore be grateful of you could provide me with a copy of the policy booklet relevant to 1997 and also highlight the insurance cover part offered to Self Employed people.

Hells

Hiya caro. I thought that I'd pop in. Just heard the sad news about Martin from Dave Choir

Little

Calculating your score.. Questions correct: 9 / 10 You took 55 seconds to complete this quiz. Total score: 845 You earned 9 FunTrivia Bucks! (will be awarded tonight when final scores are set)

Such sad news. RIP Martin you will be deeply missed.

Just a quick update. I had a meeting with the manager last Tuesday and they offered us the marquee (although the disco would have to be indoors - the disco room being the room that leads into the marquee). We all thought it was a brilliant idea. Unfortunately, they offered it to the wedding party and they decided that they wanted it. So, we now have the original room we booked (the disco, bar and seating area all in one room), with £200 off! Result!!! We are all happy now. The only downside is, we were offered a room at another hotel at a very reduced price where Brad Pitt is currently staying.

Boo!!!!!!!

I'm not too sure how it works. If we do find another venue, of which I have tried, would they have to fork out the additional costs upfront? I don't think any of us can afford to pay any extra to what we have paid already. I know that I can't.

I think I might actually suggest that Sod'em. So that is to put up with the room they have offered would be £150 back on the room we initially booked. We will forgo the £50 behind the bar each of us in order for the first drink free to all our guests. Or even keep the £50 behind the bar for each of us and first drink free for guests. This means they still get £150 room hire from us, £600 for the food from us, £400 for the rooms booked for the night and all the takings from the the booze bought for the rest of the night.

military maneuvers

Train station

The hotel does have a marquee but unfortunately they are not allowed to hold parties in it in the evening due to noise (I think). I will ask again on Tuesday when I see the manager. Looking at the website, it does have a marquee and in one pic there is a disco set up. (oh.....errrrr. your invite is in the post Uk xx)

That's the annoying thing. Neither myself or my friends like the alternative room. As I have said before it is the actual restaurant for the hotel. It has windows on three sides, all of which do not have black out curtains. You can just imagine if, per chance, we have very good weather on that day how light it will be until very late in the evening. You wouldn't even see the disco lights etc I have worked out a rough estimate of costs incurred so far that will be wasted if we were to postpone the event. The total being approx £670.00. Hopefully the hotel will then realise that it would be more beneficial to them to just move the evening reception for the wedding and let us have the room we booked in the first place.

Thanks Locutus and everyone else. I've just had another discussion with my friends and we have decided to listen to what they can offer first. We will obviously try our hardest to get them to swing round to our idea of moving the wedding reception to our offered room. In the end the last resort will be to postpone our party to a later date at a reduced rate (around Halloween time). They will of course have to refund all the costs we have incurred to date eg. Disco deposit, cost of invitations & postage, decorations bought and travel costs incurred for meetings with them. It will be a real shame to do that as all our 40th birthdays fall around the same time. Mine on the 17th, and my friends on the 18th and 21st.