Done.

Attempted to negotiate a settlement yesterday by phone. Spoke to Greg Thomas. Told him about the letter I received from Retail Banking part of Barclays. He apologetically told me that offer/goodwill gesture referred to in that letter was not valid, and that they would be applying to the court for an order to stay my action. So, corrected I thanked him for his time. I thought he was ok to talk to. Now at least I no longer have the added pressure of adding up the pro's and con's of either rejecting or accepting the previous goodwill gesture.

Good luck for tomorrow. May the law be with you.

Thanks saintly_1. Received a letter from Barclays today. To summarise, it refers to my complaint about bank charges, informs me of the current test case, and re-instates the previous offer that I had declined which was £220.00 short of what I asked for on 1 account and £105 short on the second account. I have been trying to weigh up the pros and cons of reconsidering the offer. However the problem is that all of that money represents money taken from benefits meant for my kids. Don't know if I'm being greedy, but I want it ALL to back, and not just the"goodwill gesture" the bank is willing to offer to "resolve" the issue asap. I've got 2 months to consider the offer. Hope to God I would have calmed down by then.

Just remembered, I'm not quite finished yet. I need to put in a claim for wasted costs. :-D

Thank-you all, and thank you CAG. Still can't believe it! And it ain't even xmas! Best of luck to all who are still claiming. Don't give up! Come on CAG forums and find the strength to keep going. :D

OMG! Change this thread to won please I just can't believe it! I got a chq through the post this morning for the full amounts plus costs plus 8% interest. :D The letter that came with it was interesting, something about they had decided to settle in my case which was fortuitous, as I'd just faxed across to them the Order of Judgement in my favour ordering payment forthwith. Anyway, awaiting for the chq to clear and once it does I can finally click that donate button. :D Thank you soooo much to all of you who have helped me with my claim, including everybody who has posted their experiences on here for me to learn from. I'll be back. Just dealing with another claim at the moment.

Help needed please! Which Witness statements can I use? There seem to be a few and my eyes are well and truly square now. Suffering from info overload at the moment.

Right then, I have decided not to go down that route as an arguement in my case because I have learnt that it is not that clear cut. I think I need to file an N244 because the last 5 words are missing from my original N1 (Goods and Services Act 1982). I was so cross with myself! I have asked a court clerk if I should fill one in due to this omission but was told it was not necessay and just to let the judge know or something along those lines. (Kids were killing each other in the background so I couldn't hear to well). I've called the litigation team today to see who is dealing with my claim, but just got through to voicemails. However I did leave messages. I am sending Barclays a nudge letter to see if they want to settle b4 my date of 7th Sept. It would really surprise me if they did! Still working on my bundle and must crack on. In case Saintly_1 is reading this, took my eldest to the allotment to harvest our organic courgettes. He's now a convert to fresh veg! (Finally:) )

Same here.

Simply the best news I've read in a long time.. Congratulations and well done!!!! If the small claims book is still going I'll have it. Thanks vincymum:D :D

My sentiments exactly. I'm just asking around on the Barclays forum if there is any way that I can add this bit about taking benefits, to my POC's cos when I issued my N1, I did it using the standard arguments, ie unfair, and that they are unfair penalties.

been thinking of taking similar line in my case, vincymum v barclays post60. I read something similar re POC's on another website. So I'll be watching this thread with great interest. Good luck to your friend. (If only I knew how to post a link!) vincymum

Didn't realise that there was a time factor to take into consideration there, so thanks for the advice oneofakind. Something for me to consider. I'll let you know what I decide. What kind of time frame would we be talking about there? Is the Judge likely to give me another court date then?

Looking for some help please. I'll tell yowz wariz iz. I have followed the steps laid out on this brilliant website, ie Written prelim letter asking for it back. Written LBA asking for it back or else court action Issued court claim on N1 using CAG's POC's Rejected offer of partial settlement.(my personal decision) Waited for communication from the court Filed an allocation questionnaire (using form EX160 for exemption) Waited for communication from the court Received directions from the court (in process of complying) Received news of the test case etc... Now only recently I have read a different set of POC's on another website(penaltycharges.co.uk) which were drafted days ago, and on reflection is more suited to my personal circumstances. I fully understand that this tactic has as yet been untested in the courts. And my question is this: Are there any rules whatsoever that says I cannot replace one set of POC's with another version, because if I can, there are other pieces of legislation that I would like to rely on as evidence, ie Social Security Act 1992 s. 187 in addition to the ones in the original POC's. If it really is not on,/unlawful to take benefits to pay the charges imposed by Barclays, then, over the past 6 years Barclays have taken the following income related benefits from my accounts: Family Tax Credit/Working Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, Maternity Allowance, Child Benefit, and Income Support. I can't believe I'm the only one in this kind of situation. I've also posted the same question on the above mentioned website, and would like to keep everyone updated. My case is early Sept and I would also like to give the Judge something extra to consider. Meanwhile I am collating my evidence for the bundles, and am still reading up as much as possible. Any advice,without liability, and without predjudice greatly accepted. (With postal strikes on, I am fully prepared to hand deliver my bundle upon completion to 1 Churchill Place by hand. At least it will be a day out for the kids). vincymum

Just looked at the penaltycharges.co.uk website and found a list of benefits re the above POC; I can see Child Benefit on there but none of the others. However IMHO Child Benefit is for the kids, so I'd have a go. Looking again at the POC, according to the POC section 1(B) mentions b) any income related benefit, or c) child benefit. WTC, CTC are all income related n'est pas? If it was me I would crack on. (I think I need to adopt these POC's myself!) All advice offered is without predjudice and without liability. If in any doubt, consult a qualified legal practitionner.

YUUUUHOOOOOOOO!!!!! GO Mimi, GO MIMI (doing my little dance with impressive arm and rear end movement even if I do say so myself) :D :D

Just my 2 pennies worth. In the name of justice claimants should be placed as far as possible in the same position as they would have been in had it not been for the extraction of monies by the banks to pay such charges. Please feel free to comment.

Me again, Thanks for your stand-back view on things. It is exactly what I need as I tend to get over emotional at times (combined with late nights) which ain't no good. Very tempted to use your letter, but since my claim, I haven't incurred any other charges. I don't feel your letter is tokenistic. I feel it is honest. On positive note, since joining GAG ....... No Regrets! Thank you all for that.

pjdavies2000, your 3rd para is what I was trying to say in my 4th para. Personally I would like to agree with your conclusion in your 3rd para, but at the moment I am unable to. I like your letter.

Thanks for that calming message pjdavies2000. I agree with alot of what you have to say. I will go ahead anyway, cos at the very start of this I didn't even realise that the charges were disputable so at the very worst I will end up with what I started with.0 I will try my best not to say anything defamatory or liabellous. My own personal opinion is that it is slightly surprising consumer groups trying to claim back charges to my knowledge have not yet been invited to contribute any input so far with ref the the OFT course of action. I admit I may be wrong about this and apologise in advance, and hope to be corrected. What is the role of the OFT? I am always very cynical when one organisation appears to take strong action regarding others. There is always something in it for both parties, especially when there may be an unpallatable compromise to be made somewhere along the line by either party. I very much hope I am mistaken. I shall stop there. Again I hope i haven't said anything stupid, and apologise in advance. vincymum

I need to amend my POC using N244 due to an ommission. Is there anything to stop me replacing the old POC's with the new POC's that I've seen today. T&C's still needed. So, to postal address- originals, or photocopies?

Sort of,yes. It say: "Each party shall deliver to every other party and to the court office copies of all documents (including any experts' report) on which he intends to rely at the hearing no later than 14 days before the hearing". Currently in the process of getting it sorted.

Just a few questions. 1. I have received a notice of allocation to the small claims track (hearing), to take place in Sept. Should I now expect that my case is re-allocated to the fast track? 2. As my date is for a hearing, does the matter have to be concluded by that date, or could I reasonably expect some kind of delay with ref to the OFT announcement.? Can a judge deferr a decison until after the 4th December test case? 3. Can I photocopy and post in my old t&c's blanking out my personal details. I do not have access to a scanner. I have Barclays 2002 (T&C's), and A&L 2001 (contract). Or is it just the originals that can be used. vincymum

Just one more thing, (sorry for hijacking this thread a bit), what does the OFT get out of their proposed course of action?