Excuse me??? embarrassing??? you find paying in advance instead of getting on credit embarrassing?/ ive had pre payment meters in my house for both gas and electric for about 15 years since the old days of the 50p pieces and let me tell you I dont feel embarrassed at all - what I do feel is absolutely fantastic when I hear people moaning about their HIGH direct debit payments even in summer or hearing them say they cant sleep for worrying abou tthe fuel bills coming in,. I dont and havent owed a penny for gas or electric and have no such worrries so no actually I dont feel embarrassed at all when charging my keys up imm quite proud of the fact that I dont owe a penny! and Id also like to say that these prepayment meters are getting more and more popular - and the people getting them are not the 'lowest of the low' as soemone else described them - they are people who want to pay in advance - they dont ALL owe money and find this is the only way to pay it back - im sick and tired of people looking down their noses atthose who prefer to pay their fuel bills in this way describing them as the poorest and the most needy - we are mainly just ordinary people trying to pay in advance for something!

Does that mean we might get a refund backdated some years? then? Its a disgrace that peopl who pay in advance for what they are going to use are penalised by being charged more - yet those who get their gas and electric on 'credit' so to speak - pay less - where else would this happen? its absolutely disgraceful - Im changing to EBICO this month - I just found out they dont charge for paying in advance! Megan

Has anyone seen this: Millions 'to sue energy firms for overcharging' Ten million energy customers could have grounds to sue gas and electricity companies for overcharging them. By James Kirkup, Political Correspondent Last Updated: 8:41PM BST 03 Aug 2008 People who pay for gas and electricity by cash, cheque or by pre-payment meters are being charged hundreds of millions of pounds more than they should be, a parliamentary inquiry found last week. That could put the energy firms in breach of European Union rules on price-setting. MPs on the Industry Committee estimate the scale of the over-charging at more than £1 billion a year. The MPs found that bills for "standard credit" customers using cash or cheques were on average 11 per cent higher than for those on direct debit worth £89 a year. The gap was only £37 in 2004 Customers using pre-payment meters are paying £144 more a year. Energy companies insist that the higher prices paid by cash and meter customers simply reflects the higher costs the firms pay to process such payments. But Ofgem, the energy regulator, says the cost to firms of processing standard credit payments is just £20, meaning customers are being overcharged by £69 a year. For meter payments, it was £85, an excess charge of £59. Ofgem is also scrutinising the extra charge made to some customers, and has the power to cap the excess charges. The regulator will publish a major report on the energy sector next month, which is expected to severely criticise the firms over the practice and encourage customers to apply for refunds. According to Tom Brennan, the public law barrister who brought a test case against a high street bank for charges applied to customers' accounts, customers may ultimately be able to use a 2003 EU directive on fair pricing to sue for their money back. He said: "It would suggest the consumer could and should bring these claims to a court if they cannot obtain a refund from their supplier." The prospect of mass action against the energy firms emerged as Government ministers consider some form of windfall tax on them. Labour backbenchers and trade unions want to see a punitive tax applied to firms like British Gas, which last week announced a 35 per cent rise in gas prices. Gordon Brown is considering the plan, but it is strongly opposed by ministers including John Hutton, the Business Secretary, who argue it would undermine any Labour claim to be pro-business. As as result of that opposition, the Government is unlikely to impose a simple tax on the companies. Instead, officials are looking at options for charging the firms more for the pollution they cause. Ofgem has claimed that energy firms were handed £9 billion in "free money" when they were given emissions trading permits free of charge. Some of the permits are now auctioned, and one option ministers are studying is increasing the number of permits put up for sale, a move that could cost the industry £500 million over the next 12 months. Malcolm Wicks, the energy minister, refused to comment on a windfall tax, but he said that firms will be required to contribute more to "social tariff" schemes that cut prices for the poorest and most vulnerable customers. "Supply companies like British Gas and EDF do have a social obligation, they are not mere private companies," he told Sky News. Millions 'to sue energy firms for overcharging' - Telegraph Anyone any idea where we start to sue for our money back?

I have a friend who has taken a man to the small claims court because he took £900 to fit a new boiler but never did. The court date is set for January and both my friend and this man have sent their paperwork into the court - however we hear now that he has sold his house - (which had been up for sale)and has moved to australia. My querstion is how does my friend stand legally? would this guy be allowed to move to australia with a court case pending? and how does my friend go about telling the court? and does immigration have any authority to do something? or is it a lost cause?

Just found out the house hasnt actually been sold yet- its still up for sale , so Id assume he needs the money first before he emigrates. Is it worth ringing the court to tell them that hes got the house up for sale and planning to emigrate?

7th October - and still no cheque - they seem to have ignored the email aswell - will try phoning again tomorrow to see what they say this time - then Im writing to the court to tell the judge that they are ignoring the court order - I faxed a copy over so they cant say they havent had it!.:-|They might use the postal strike as an excuse - but I have a fax machine so they cant get out of that one!

yep - and now with the post strike the next few days - theyll probably blame that for everyhting not getting to them in the next few months!!

UPDATE: 2ND OCTOBER - still no sign of the cheque:( so hubby phoned CITI a few days ago - they apparently havent received the order fromt he court yet - (theres a surprise!) they do seem to have a lot of trouble receiving things from courts! - anyway he said - no problem I'll fax it over to you and please acknowledge that you have received the fax - as yet stilll nothing - I dont thinkt he judge is going to be too impressed with CITI when we go back to court - I think there only answers will be - we didnt receive it - we didnt receive it - we didnt receive it - ...... Anyway we are keeping notes of the calls and letters and faxes we send asking for the cheque until we go back to court - weill keep you updated...

Not having to decorate your house as often - I used to blame the cream coloured ceilings on the steam from the cooker!!

You can go places now like cafes - bars - restaurants etc and know that you wont be tempted to start again because of others around you smoking - cos theyre all outside now!

thats actually a good tip - I hate water but at work we have a water cooler and ive tried now and then having a drink when im hungry and it sometimes does surpress not only the desire for food but also for a cigarrette , also eating aniseed balls was recommended to a friend of mine when he stopped smoking.

Id find it hard to give up cooking - thats what I do best! I make wedding cakes and christmas cakes etc - I love baking. Funny enough when Im int he kitchen cooking - I rarely eat meals - I just pick now and then cos I'm busy - its when I am not doing anuything that I go looking for somethin gt o eat - so if I dont take the stuff into work that i v e cooked - I eat it!. Ive tried weightwatchers - I think its expensive especially if you cant make it some nights and I only lost half an pound! - than started putting more on and this has never happened to me before - its only since I stopped smoking - I used to be able to eat what I liked and always stayed under 9 - 9.5 stone, so I tried swimmming and walking -but still put weight on. Now im trying the paul mckenna method which I have to say makes sense - its basically chew every mouthful of food about 20 times that way you feel fuller on less food and never let yourself go hungry - eat little and often when you are hungry. Thats the trouble - we wait until meal times by which time we are starving and its too much to expect anyone to then eat slowly so im doing it his way - the golden rule he says is - if youre hungry - eat:) and I have to say I like his style:) :)Ive known others go back to smoking because of the weight gain - its like your battling 2 things at the same time and its very hard - do you stop smoking and stay the same weight or give up and pile on the pounds ( or stones ).for some the weight thing is mnore important than stopping smoking, with me its not - Ive stuck it out 7 months so im not going back now but I only wish there was some pill or something you could take when you first stop to stopt he weight gain then more people would give up I think. Telling people to exercise is pointless if they dont like exercising , we all know we should exercise more but if you dont like it then its just no good is it ? Myself I prefert o try and eat healthy foods(well most of the time) - no greasy fry ups etc and I cant stand ready made foods from supermarkets I like to bake my meals at the weekends and then eat them through the week - that way I know what im eating - so lets see if all this works - ! i'll keep you informed.

I havent heard anyone mention that since giving up theyve put on weight - am I the only one? I dont smoke now but I cant stop thinking about food and cooking it! - yesterday made a chocolate cake covered in flake and buttons, and a sticky toffee pudding with toffee sauce and topped with double cream!,hungarian goulash and 3 more xmas cakes!! - I love food!!!! - I wasnt like this when I smoked though:( its like I have gained this tremendous appetite - but ive just bought paul mckennas ' I can make you thin' book - I'll let you know if it works............but he has a hell of a job on his hands:)

Im not really bothered if they dont send the money because we are back in court soon for the set aside of the rest and if we havent got the cheque by then and its the same judge - he aint gonna be best pleased with citi again:o

Dont let them scare you - theyre 'good case' is probably theyre 'citi v potter' one - the one and only that they keep waving . The one thing I would advise - as I had seen on here so m any times - be PREPARED - get your file in order - have answers ready if asked - the judge went through all of our papers int he file - and it was only a set aside hearing.- but he did remark on us having a lot more case notes to look at than citi - they only had there potter case! - so go looking as though you mean business - with all your paperwork in a big file! http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/citicards/114452-megans-other-half-citicards.html

Citicards - £ 790.00p – MCOL - 15th June - WON!! Citicards (OH) £941.56? – asked for judgement - CITI requesting set aside - court sept. ............ Quick update : Citi sent a cheque to me in full settlement when I asked for judgement by default. When hubby asked for judgement by defaul they say they never received the original claim and ask for judgement to be set aside. Court hearing for set aside was today............. Citi sent along a lady barrister from a local firm to the hearing on their behalf. Judge asks for their paper work - she has the famous citi v potter case which she says they will be relying on to win, and a copy of the hearing times and date for today and a law book with post it notes stuck all over . Judge reads potter case and says this case has nothing to do with todays case as they were given the difference between the bank charge and the £12 charge recommendation. Barrister looks embarrassed and says thats all she was given. Judge then asks to see our paperwork - at this point citi barrister says the only problem there is that the judge might see some letters headed 'without prejudice' which should not be viewed to which he replied well you have nothing for me to read and at least they appear to have a lot more paperwork handy than you have. He then read through the papers we handed him , hubby explained that they he has tried on many occasions to settle out of court but they wont. He also says that he finds it incredible that letters to and from citi that we have brought along use the address po box 54 salford,manchester - the address which apparently they didnt receive the claim at. Judge states that it can be reasonably assumed that the claim should be sent there if it is the last known address. He asks to see the total of the costs - which hubby hands him - done on the calculater on moneysaving expert.com - stating the dates,amounts and the 8% stat.interest. Citi barrister states she hasnt seen this - citi havent sent it to her - so judge lets her see it!. He then makes a decision - he awards us the difference between the higher figures and the £12 charge plus court fee of £80 plus one years interest.total - £430 citi to pay us - he then asks if we would like him to set aside the remainde rof the judgement and give directions - we ask for a 10 min.adjournemnt so that we may take legal advice on this. ( didnt know what he meant so quickly wanted to phone Gizmo!!) After talking to Gizmo we decided that we'd thanks the judge for the £430 order now but we would like the other part of the judgemet set aside (£500) for a further hearing . We found it incredible that the barrister from citi asked 2 guys who seemed to be barristers also in the lobby - for some advice - I heard one say to her no the judge is wrong in law - just go in and tell him hes wrong! - (oops this should be interesting me thinks:) ) So in we go - the judge ask citi if they have anything to say - barrister says yes I have to ask for leave to appeal the decision you made earlier - he then looks up at her from his writing and says 'and I have to refuse!' you could have heard a pin drop!! - so she dosent look happy at all by now , he then ask us for our decision and we tell him - thank you for the order for £430 now and could we also ask that you give directions for full disclosure ont he rest of the judgement that is to be set aside. He then tells the citi lady on what dates he wants things - something about october 22nd and then a hearing in november sometime - we'll have to wait until we get notification from the court. So we leave the court happy - Just have to wait for a cheque to arrive - but not sure how long to give them - city barrister seems far from happy - seems a bit humiliated actually, now if citi are going to defend the set aside part they need to first - send us a cheque for the £430 and secondly disclose their breakdown of costs and then pay yet another barrister to defend them! - we will see what happens next........

Isnt it a pity we didny have an insider who we could pm with our court ref numbers and get them to tell us whats on our files:) that would be good!

I think it might be worth putting a list on here of their tactics and have people say which one was applied to their claim - that way we an show the court exactly what they do and how often they do it.

It was a mistake alright - brian says that they got mixed up - the cheque should have been sent to another person wiyth the same name as my hubby and would we send it back please:eek: and hubby is still going to court - they are defending still:)

yeah I know - but im gonna give them the benefit of the doubt , maybe they are so busy that it was just a genuine mistake - we'll see - if not they will have their cheque back at the end of the week:)Im not worried about taking this to court now - im quite looking forward to bringing all this up and asking them to explain their actions.

well my hubbys case gets more confusing! - - they decided to ask for a setaside hearing cos they think they can win, so we get court date for september. They then settle in full with my claim - ( same situation as hubby so cant understand this at all) a cheque just arrived out if the blue and a letter saying settlement in full please inform the court - and the court was copied into the letter. Then..... I write and ask why the 2 cases are being treat entirely different and how can they explain defending one and settling in full with another - (Hubbys claim was for over £900 and we have a court date for sept for set aside )and would they not prefer to settle in full for the £900 to save a court case - they then sent back a cheque for £399 - and a letter saying they have sent the cheque in full and final settlement! - its over £500 short!! and would I please inform the court that its been paid in full:eek: - I informed the court alright:) - told them that we will still be going to court in september as citi obviously cant make their mind up what they are doing.told citi - either send another cheque or have this one back and see you in september where you can explain all this to the judge. just waiting for reply now....

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/general/110070-wasted-costs-order-isnt.html I havent had anyone answer my question yet about wasted costs - how come some people can submit them free of charge as it says in the template section and yet I had a letter informing me that I have to pay a £35 fee?

Does no-one know if they have just started charging or not? I think the wording in the template forum on wasted costs needs changing if they are now charging.

Yes but the point i'm making i that it was supposed to cost nothing to ask for wasted costs - it says so in the template forum - but they are charging - thats the point - I just wanted to know if this is something they just started doing.

In the template library under wasted costs order- Bankfodder says: This application can be made by letter without a fee and there is no risk involved. You should keep your estimate of the time which you have spent moderate and convincing. You must lay out the work you have done and the expenses you have covered systematically in a spreadsheet. To make a wasted costs order you must supply:- Application letter Draft order Schedule of costs incurred and time spent list of settled cases for your bank taken from our litigation section (best entered into a spreadsheet) - just list the claim number and the bank and amount settled. ......................... .................... I submitted one for £47 , today it came back from the court with a letter stating that I can apply on an N244 application form together with a draft order but the fee for the application is £35. cheque or postal order to be made payable to 'HMCS'. They have returned all my forms I sent them - the ones I was told on the forum to send - and it was supposed to not cost anything to do this - how come they are now charging? it isnt worth taking a gamble and paying out £35 to claim back £47. Has anyone had their papers returned and asking for a fee?