Also would someone let me know if I have to pay costs, if I loose the case? Thanks for your help, George

Hello All, I was called by the retailer today and they offerred me a rebate on the motherboard reducing 50£ . I have a query here - I wish to get an entire repayment of the amount of money I paid for the laptop in return for giving the laptop back to the retailer. 1) Would the judge issue a judgement that I get a full refund of the price I paid 2) Would the retailer offering me a further reduced amount for repair affect my claim in any way? (Only becuase I wish to have nothing to do with them and I dont want the laptop repaired by them only to break down again). 3)The retailer has informed me that they would not be reducing the cost of repairs any more, is it ok now to file the case, even before the stipulated time as mentioned in the "letter before action" has lapsed? Please help.. Thanks, a lot, Warm Regards, George.

Hi, Thanks a lot for the reply. Also, do I need to get an independent verification from a 3rd party to re-verify that the laptop's motherboard is faulty. Would I be able to claim damages for the inconvinence caused to me due to this laptop not working for 4 months in the 27 months I owned this product - specifically my wife used this laptop to talk to her parents daily and now she hasnt been able to talk to them over the last 2.5 months - any ideas? I specifically ask this because, the retailer is aware of the SOGA and has lost county court cases for non working laptop motherboards , yet they persist to state "age of the laptop" as a significant reason to charge me for the replacement of the motherboard. Thanks, George.

Hello All, I bought a laptop from a retailer for £500 2 years ago. In the very first week it had issues with the cooler fan making sounds and I went back to the store to return it. I was told to pay a stocking charge - I disgareed and the manager assured me that it would replaced if an issue did occur. I had also paid £120 for a 2 year extended warranty.( on top of the acer warranty i,e; the total warranty would be 2 years anyways). In the 2 year warranty period the laptop was fixed twice for overheating issues - once by Acer (when in fact it was supposed to be fixed by the retailer). Anyways, in 3 weeks after the warranty expired, the laptop's motherboard failed. I send it to the retailer Head office quoting the SOGA and they asked me to pay £130 to replace the motherboard, since it was of age - They have said they know of the SOGA, but since I have had the laptop for some time they cany repair it for free. Today I took it to an independent PC repair shop and he said he can write down on paper what has failed , but cant say if it is a manufacturing fault or not( The retailer too has written that the motherboard has failed. In their report they have not mentioned anything about misuse as the cause of failure ). My question is : Since an independent PC repair specialist cannot comment if the motherboard failed due to a manufacturing defect(and obviously the retailer too does not think that the manner in which the laptop was used is cause of the failure) - would I have a chance if I took it to county court - stating that the retailer has agreed that the motherboard has failed and that it is not due to user negligence(which is implied by them not stating it). Would the judge be able to agree with what I say? Would I be awarded the total cost of the laptop? Thanks in Advance... George.

The response I have received from the retailer is from the managing directors office.

Hello All, I wish to write to a newspaper editor regarding a laptop a high street retailer sold to me 2 years ago, including an extended warranty for 2 years. Long story short, the laptop sufferred from overheating issues and was returned back for service twice within 2 years. 3 weeks after the extended warranty expired, the laptop failed completely and obviously the retailer needed money to get it fixed. I quoted the sales of goods act stating it should be of good quality for considerable period of time(5-6 years as per consumer direct). Anyways, they said they wanted 130£ to fix this after a a rebate of 35% - since the age of the laptop had to be considered(2 years) - I have this statement on paper from the retailer. I would like to know whether it is in my right to write a letter to the editor of a newspaper ( for publishing in the letter to editor column) and if I could be sued for representing my own facts and experience with the retailer. Has anyone done this before? Thanks, George.

My insurers refuse to talk to me, they have asked me to talk to my broker, who seem to be lying

Hello All, I have a insurance policy with KGM motors, through a broker called InsureYourMotor.com. I recently changed my car and asked them(InsureYorMotor) to change my insurance to reflect this car - which was done last month(they took 158£ for this adjustment). I have the cover note from Insure Your motor . The 27th of last month, I called them and asked how much it would cost to add commuting to the insurance. They said the cost would be the same - I asked them to verify which car I was insured on and the customer service rep quoted my older car's reg number. Anyways, she said later that I was now insured on my current car. I told her not to make any changes to the policy. I later got the cover note quoting 30 days of insurance , till I get my insurance certificate. I called again to verify that I would get the certificate in 30 days, which is when they again mentioned that I had re-added my old car to my insurance with commuting(when I had clearly told the lady I do not want any changes). Thing is my new car is not on the Motor Insurance Database(askMID). My old car is on the M ID(I sold the car and the new owner possibly has insurance on it or it could be me who paid for it!!!). Thing is I am not really sure if I am really insured or not and It is a concern to me that I have paid to be insured, but am possibly not insured. Any thoughts welcome.. thanks, George.

Hello , If the role your OH is being made redundant and a new bit more senior role is being advertised, she should be considered for that role . As a step of redundancy, she should raise this, the company should interview her and if no one else has applied for the job,take her for that job. The company has to try all possible steps to avert a redundancy. It is also good to get a copy of the job spec of this newly created job and ask the comapny why she is not being considered for it.

Hello, What they have stated is correct. They do not accept anyone else other than a work colleague or a trade union rep

Hello Gordon, You have not mentioned how many employees are being redundant - if there are more than 20 employees being redundant there has to be a consultation period of atleast a month. Now since there are voluntary redundancies, I am thinking that there are no options to redeploy you, usually when redundancies are in small numbers it is a possibilty that the company tries to put you elsewhere - I cant comment where your company possibly stands with redeployment , possibly to the new orgranisation you referred to. I also feel you should not attend the 24th July meeting unless it is in person, because you are aware of the pitfalls of the last meeting( when done over the phone) and the fact that your manager has decided to proceed is bad - If he does know about your hearing disability, then he is infact being discriminatory( based on disability) - because obviously a person with proper hearing would be able to fend their case better( since they would have been less stressed picking up his words in the first place). I am not very well versed with TUPE, read this thread about a not too similar case but a TUPE transfer: http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/employment-problems/207890-possible-violation-tupe-laws.html Also , is everyone on your team being made redundant? Regarding not having an appraisal and being given a matrix - there is no validity in it - because if your boss felt that your communication skills needed to be improved he/she could have send you to an appropriate training course to correct those issues . They also need to reveal what other employees in the redundancy pool got and how many total redundancies they are considering. One thing to bear in mind is that once all the above information is spoken to your manager, he might get irritated as well..so what might finally happen is speculative. But, I would suggest presenting the information in as soft a manner as possible, being to the point and precise and not being rude or harsh - but it might not work with all managers. All the best, G.

Hi, The letter looks fine. I dont think you should give them 7 days waiting period that is just prolonging the process 3-4 days also might be fine. I also think that the HR lady and all the bosses should be informed or given copies with proof of delivery collected.

Hello , Sorry I forgot to respond to that query. I think there is a confusion which you seem to have between the laws applicable in the UK and the different locations your company operates from. The fact is that once the greivance is raised and the company agrees that the cause of grievance is valid, it needs to effect changes so that the cause of grievance is addressed (changing managers or moving you to a different team etc) - this is irrespective of the fact that the manager you refer to works from the dutch premises or UK premises of the company. If the case goes to court, the case is filed against the company not the manager and the company is ultimately held responsible .

Hi Kurvaface and Azer, The Race Relations Act of 1976 and all other ammendments does not take into account whether discrimination happenned knowingly or unknowingly on the part of the employer - i,e; it is an offence in itself that discrimination did happen. Regarding the situations Azer has brought to light, if the employer is in fact not very straight forward, raising a grievance might be of no help - At the end of the day tribunal action will not provide patch up hurt feelings. Cheers, G. Cheers, G.

Hello there, From the looks of what you mention the company does not seem to care about employees' emotions as much as it cares about employees' productivity. If the HR head personally witnessed the bullying and did not comment, its goes without saying that the company is not going to appreciate the grievance and the endpoint of the grievance might just be that the alleged harassment did not happen or that it was not meant to be harassment. I believe a grievance should be a last resort option before exiting from a company - since 95% of the times, I have heard people passing grievances being put on fast track exits from their companies - unless ofcourse the company is that sincere to employees. Just my suggestion/thoughts.

Hi Ruby, The legal option is the only one left. Did your OH mention the legal route to them in the discussion? Regs, George.

Hi Azer, Am very sorry about the situation you are going through. At the end of the day, the question you need to answer is how do you expect this story to end - there are 2 possible endings - one end would be to go to a tribunal and irrespective of the tribunal's outtcome( and an uphill one at that) you continue to work, after which your employer will definitely have a black mark against you which may or may not create issues in the future - the other option is to actively seek employement outside and prove to your current employer your worth when you get another offer - that is possibly the best negotiation option you would get - if your MD values your services he will retain you else you have another job in hand anyways. Whether the MD follows discriminatory practices , he/she would have to put all that aside when trying to retain an employee who will leave if not treated equally - since at the end of the day its his business..if other employees are not as competitive and agressive the final loss is the MDs. Hope this helps. There rarely exists a perfect company where a person can effect perfect employement. Just My thoughts, George.

Well then they have no rights to the software. Continuing to use the software in their premises would mean them paying you licensing fees atleast for the parts you wrote during your free time and when the company didnot expect you to write it. Also , they can never claim to have instructed you to write it, since from the looks of it , you are an overall IT admin and as such the skills you needed for the job might not require programming experience(just my assumption, I might be wrong). The skills you built up for the reason of writing the new web system was your own decision and an investment from your side. You should possibly evaluate the saleability of the software outside the company and if you do get a good deal for licensing of the software - you should inform that to the company so that they can decide what to do next . They cannot enforce any laws of IP protection on you, since you do not have a contract itself. All IP related discussions/emails should be recorded & preserved.

Could a senior member here pass inform their thoughts about what I have mentioned in quotes. Cheers, G.

Hello Ruby, Its good to know they have decided to accept the appeal - that just means someone in the company has started reading the law regarding redudnancies and found out that the process they followed was possibly the most flawed approach possible - did this all happen while a HR department existed within the company? He needs to really tell them that the process followed is not in line with any ACAS directives. He can claim for unfair dismissal and the maximum possible compensation. Also , if they do decide to follow a full & fair formal redundacy process again and he is made reduandant , I am unsure whether that will stand up in court - since both ways he was issued notice and told to pack his bags - I am unsure if a court would honour a re-redundancy procedure - since the company has proven that they dont like to follwo the law and also have not proven that they have made the turn .... which would first require that they admit they have done a mistake first to you OH. Senior members in here should be able to advice if a tribunal would find a re-redudnancy situation valid or not.

Hi, You are definitely on a permanent contract and you are permanent staff. A fixed term contract will have the subject line "Fixed Term Contract" and also in the note it should mention that .A contract without an end date is a permanent contract.

Yes they can revoke his notice period and hence end his termination process . Your husband should try to go to work till his last day unless ofcourse a constructive dismissal happens - which is not the case here. They can start the process again - but I am unsure how valid a tribunal would find it - if the redundancy consultation yields the same candidates for redundancy - specially when the company broke almost all processes in the book to get it done.

Guess they have directly fallen onto the emotional side now!. They must have thought that your OH would not pursue the redundancy and would just accept it . I am sure the company is now looking out for what to do next. Its good to know that they are now aware that the law does apply to them as well All the best. George.

Hi Ruby, Its good you contacted the solicitor, you also need to check your home insurance or contents cover - most of the time legal insurance is provided with these insurance products and can be used in a case of unfair dismissal. The catch is that these companies will not pay for using your own solicitor and they appoint their own solicitors. Its good if the your OHs company has a feeling that there is pending legal action and they might be in a mess. Also, keep a copy of all emails detailing his performance and all other paperwork with you, before he leaves. He can claim for unfair dismissal and also the protective award . A solicitor will be able to give you the numbers better in case you take them to a tribunal. Let us know of the outcomes. Best Regs, George.

Hi Ruby, Sorry about what has happenned. He needs to act fast by sending the Grievance and also giving an appeal. Do contact the ACAS and see what they have to say. Do you feel the sick leave he took could have caused the problem? Did they reveal anything else. I think you should jsut see lawyer or a no win no fee lawyer and see what they have to say, in any case he is entitled to a protective award, since the consultation itself has not happenned and you can legally prove that. If they are not paying him for his notice period, they are in breach of contract and that is a straight 25k fine in a tribunal.