Thanks for the cautionary tale, Mr P – hopefully not going to have those sorts of issues, but who knows? Pays to know the downsides as well as the ups. jmg

Thanks for the advice - very much appreciated and I will start making enquiries on Monday. jmg

Not yet – didn't want to ask a question which someone on here might know is pointless and save me some brief embarrassment, tbh.

Hi - thanks for the response. They're still in business (although the company name changed a few years ago) but I've never had annual statements from them – I was made redundant with others who worked on a trade magazine & haven't had any contact with them since.

Apologies in advance if this is a dumb question. I worked for a company from approximately May/June 1990 to around March 1992, during which time I had contributions into their pension scheme deducted from my pay. I've just reached 65 and am now receiving my state pension and idly wondered what happened to those contributions, whether it would be possible to get those back, or if I could now legitimately claim a pension (however tiny) from that company? Or is it the case that I've effectively kissed that money goodbye? Any assistance or pointers in the right direction would be gratefully received.

Have just received an interesting letter, with something enclosed;) - trouble is, the something enclosed has my name on it followed by the account number of my (no longer functioning) Natwest account. Not sure whether to send it back and ask for one without the number, or just pay it into my bank account...

Hi - the first stage is definitely to send off the £10 and the SAR request letter to get them to send your statements back - see other postings on the site re Amex - you'll see that the letter is pretty much standard whether it's a bank or a building society, credit card or storecard operator. I've used the same basic letters/templates for NatWest, Halifax, Amex, Goldfish and Debenhams storecard amended as necessary. In a lot of other postings here you'll see that the advice is always read the FAQs first, use the standard letters and documents in the order that is suggested and I can't do better than repeat that message - if you have a look round you'll find that your problems are almost certainly the same as someone else's who has already been down the road and successfully got their cash back. Good luck and keep us posted on how you do.

Another letter this morning, this time from Southend County Court: "Upon reading the Court file and of the Court's own initiative It is ordered that the claim be stayed until 27 June 2007. To be referred to District Judge Dudley in paperwork on 27 June 2007." Bit of a pain having to wait another 2 months, but once again, is this normal practice folks, and is there anything I need to do? (insert reassuring statement here...)

Will do, thanks hon!

Letter from Colchester Court arrived this morning headed Notice of Transfer of Proceedings. Apparently on the 27th March Districrt Judge Mitchell considered the papers in the case and has ordered it to be transferred to Southend County Court and to District Judge Dudley for allocation and case management with other similar cases proceeding in Essex. It goes on to say that as the Order has been made by the Court without considering representations from the parties, the parties have the right to apply to have the order set aside, varied or stayed. A party wishing to make an application must send or deliver the application to the court within 7 days. Not sure I like the sound of this - anyone else had a similar experience and is this anything to be concerned about? I'm not sure whether I ought to do anything or not.

Thanks for that, pretty much what I expected. I'd put a note in the diary for two days ago that marked the deadline by which I'd start an MCOL - my problem is that being self-employed my "paydays" are sporadic and ponying up the £120 each time for an MCOL isn't always easy, but it looks like I might have to. In any case I'll send them something based on the above and make it clear that MCOL comes next. Thanks for your support & advice & well done on getting your cash back.

Letter (without prejudice!) arrived from Amex this morning enclosing a letter and a cheque. Now a cheque of any kind is always welcome, but of course it wasn't for the full amount - £515 rather than the £875 I reckon they owe me. Usual waffle in the letter about the OFT's statement re default charges, but my understanding is that since the OFT's pronouncement on bank charges generally, the banks have responded with the threat of charging people to have accounts - in other words, if they have to scale their charges back to a reasonable level for defaults etc, then they're going to make damn sure that they get it back another way. In view of this I believe (someone correct me if I'm wrong) that OFT has delayed making a final statement on the charges issue. On a more immediate note, I shall be writing back to Amex saying thanks for the cheque which I will accept in partial settlement, and will reserve the right to pursue the remaining £360 through the small claims court if necessary. I assume that others have experienced this approach by them and taken the same action? What's the word with you papadak and ManSizedRooster on your claims?

Just wondering - does anyone have any idea of how long it usually takes for the court to set a date for the hearing once the AQ has gone in? Hopefully it won't come to that in any case, but I'd be interested to know.

Thanks hedgey & sif - I guess if the court wants something they'll ask for it, but it's just a major pain that Cobbetts seem to be dragging the chain all the way down to the wire, but so long as they pay up in the end, I don't giver a monkey's. Good luck both and keep us posted

Took my £100 fee and my AQ (completed as suggested elsewhere) to Colchester County Court on Friday 23rd March, and yesterday (24th) received copy of Cobbett's AQ. Section G, other info: Case management directions cannot be proposed until the Claimant serves a Reply to the Request for Further Information which was due on 19 March 2007. In light of this, the Defendant may amend its Defence or apply to strike out. I understand this may be standard Cobbett's tactic on behalf of NatWest, but I've sent back a breakdown of the claim details to them pointing out that their client has already received this. Should I be pointing this out again and copying in the Court on this letter, or just ignoring it and waiting for them to come up with an offer? Assistance/guidance appreciated. TIA.

How right you are chorlton - sent them the LBA on 19th giving them 14 days to pay up, and received a reply this morning (21st) saying that in view of my dissatisfaction with their initial response, they were escalating the matter and I would hear back from them shortly. The 14-day deadline is in the diary, however, and if I don't hear back from them then it's off down the MCOL route once again.

Had a letter from Amex this morning from someone called Cilla Adcock, Executive Customer Relations Manager. The usual disclaimers - "Amex maintains that our charges are fair and reasonable and are avoidable by complying with the Terms and Conditions of our agreement with you." In the light of the OFT recommendation, Amex has changed its charging policy re default payments - with effect from 1st July 2006 and "our previous charges will not be amended". They've apparently told the OFT that default charges on credit cards will be £8. She then closes by saying that she trusts "this clarifies the matter for you". So I think I can safely take that as them saying that they don't intend to hand back the charges, so we will proceed to next stage.

Just realised that it isn't two copies of the same document, it's a defence document and a "Request for further information and clarification", served "pursuant to CPR Part 18 alternatively with regard to CPR Rule 27.2(3). I apparently have until 19th March to respond to this, assuming that I'm required to do legally, or are they just trying to blind me with science?

Sent a letter based on the one above on 27th Feb respectfully declining their offer and asking for the amount they'd offered plus the court fee and the interest as I'd started the court proceedings as they'd missed my deadline. Today I have a thumping great package of legalese from Cobbetts - two copies of 6 pages of impenetrable stuff headed DEFENCE. I am slightly scared, I'll be honest, and somewhat concerned in case I've done something wrong and haven't realised it. For example, Item 3 on the songsheet says: In the Particulars the Claimant states "I am claiming the return of money taken by the Defendant by way of charges" 3.1 If the Claimant is to bring such a claim against the Defendant then the Claimant must (among other things) plead the account(s) (giving details of the name and number of the account(s)) to which the charges have been applied. Item 5 says that I need to identify for each charge the date, amount and description applied to the charge. When I sent in my original letter after the SAR I enclosed a breakdown of the charges with the account number on the top, dates for each charge and the amount, but instead of identifying them as (say) Unpaid DD fee, I labelled each one as "charge". Clearly the document is designed to intimidate and so far it's working - I'm sure I'm not the only person to have received something like this and would really, really appreciate some assurance that I haven't f***ed up big-time. Reassurance and assistance urgently appreciated, please.

Interested to see this as I received a letter from Goldfish on Saturday offering me the full amount of my claim (but no interest, obv) and with a series of conditions to which I'd have to agree, including a confidentiality clause (ie I couldn't post on here that I'd got my cash back from them and if there was a breach of this confidentiality, the settlement would become returnable to them on demand. If anyone else has had a similar approach from a bank, building society or credit card, I'd be interested to see the letter they sent back. I'm prepared to write back to them accepting the figure they've offered in full settlement but don't wish to be bound by this clause.

Hi Cornucopia, thanks for that. I suspect you're right - reading between the lines of millymoolymoo's last post I guess that's the story there too. My feeling is that I'll tell them they've got a deal but I'm not accepting the conditions, and if they don't like it they can see me in court. I think I had about 3 offers from Halifax before they coughed up, so I'm not bothered if this takes a little longer, although it would be good to get it sorted quickly if possible. I'll keep you posted.

Thanks for the heads-up on the advanced spreadsheet, will dig that out. Find myself in a minor quandary here - had a letter from Goldfish yesterday offering the full amount (but no interest) but there were 5 conditions attached to the offer: 1. this offer is accepted in full and final settlement of your Claim and the subject matter (including any future claim against Morgan Stanley in relation to default charges applied in accordance with the Terms and Conditions) costs and expenses (Morgan Stanley Bank International Limited, its trading names and any of its affiliates) 2. to withdraw in writing any Court proceedings you may have issued within two days of accepting this offer informing the Court that you have reached a settlement with us and that you wish to withdraw, in its entirety, the claim you have brought 3. at the same time, you will send a copy of the above letter to the Court to us (attention Senior Counsel (CBGI), Law Division, 25 Cabot Square, Canary Wharf, London, E14 4QA) 4. you acknowledge that failure to write to the Court and us as described above will not invalidate this agreement but may mean that the settlement amount is not paid to you until the condition is met; and 5. the detail and terms of this offer together with any prior discussions or correspondence relating to your claim will remain confidential between yourself and Goldfish (acting for an on behalf of itself and as agent for any of its affiliates) and any breach of this confidentiality by you will result in the settlement amount becoming returnable to us on demand and without reduction or set-off Sorry to quote in full, but it concerns me for a number of reasons. 1. I don't know which other credit cards, storecards, whatever are owned by Morgan Stanley, and I feel that the first point, if agreed to, would indemnify them against any other claim I might have for another card and they could then refuse to settle 2. as I no longer have an account with Goldfish I don't intend to seek any futher settlement from them and could do without the both of the MCOL thing, extra time, expense, blah blah - I'd quite happily settle for the money and leave it at that 3.clearly the last point is intended to prevent me from making any reference to the claim in this forum, so I've possibly already screwed myself on that one. I'd be interested to know if anyone thinks it's possible to just write back to them and say yes, I'll accept the settlement, but I give no such undertakings (or in my case, I have no further claims on Goldfish but might have against Morgan Stanley). Confused, I am. Any thoughts, suggestions appreciated.

Sent request for repayment of charges letter to Amex on 22nd February. This morning's post brought a letter from Elaine Hayward (Executive Customer Relations Administrator) thanking me "for the opportunity to deal with my complaint." My letter had the usual 14 day requirement stipulated in it, but I see that she's assured me that I will have "a response within 28 days of receipt of your contact". I have a date in my diary and will send them a letter before action if they haven't responded by MY deadline, not theirs.

Interested to read this - good luck with your claim. I received the same kind of offer from Goldfish with the parcel of statements, and have written back to them yesterday accepting the offer as a partial settlement but reserving the right to pursue a claim for the rest. Is there another spreadsheet apart from the 8% auto-calc one that applies to the banks to use for credit card claims?

I too received an offer from Goldish for the difference between what they'd actually charged me and the OFT recommended £12 that they're now conveniently using. I'd imagined that this would run the full course (as with previous claims) and that I'd use the 8% spreadsheet, but does this only apply to the banks and should I be using something different for Goldfish? Any assistance gratefully received. Thanks in advance.