Thank you so much, I needed a little confidence to send this letter and you have helped me. It's very hard sitting on my own trying to work all this out, an extra opinion has been very welcome . I have sent the letter this afternoon, who knows if it will work!! But at least I've tried x

I have been in contact with the Citizens Advice Bureau they have advised me that I should write and quote 'Breach of Contract' and 'Conditions of Sale', also that I can claim damages. He may just say bog off, but I can take it to the court and let a judge decide, these were the advisor's words. The damages I want to add on to the amount are 8% interest and 29% restitution charge, but I cannot find a spreadsheet that will calculate this for me. Any ideas were I can look for this? Thankyou

Hi Dx, Yes it is outside twelve years, although I did write to them in March 2011 about the charges and they replied by stating 'it is now statute barred' and 'however, clearly you remain at liberty to take whatever action you feel appropriate'. Also, i have looked at the Limitations Act and it could fall under the Part II 32. Postponement of Limitation Period in case of Fraud, Concealment or Mistake. Or am I just being a complete fool?

Hi Dx Yes I have SARed them, I have calculated all returned direct debit charges, I haven't added the extra 2% interest, I would like to though. I think I should add the legal charges, just to see what they say, really. Thanks.

I know this is an old subject that I am still going on about. But as my husband has been diagnosed with cancer and we are in desperate need for money, I thought I would revisit these old charges and try to get some justice. I hope that this letter I want to send to NHL is correct and really need some constructive advice. Lack of confidence has prevented me from sending this before, now I feel I have nothing to lose. Please can someone help. Dear Sirs, ACCOUNT NUMBER: XXXXXXXXXX I am writing to ask you to refund the charges which you charged to my account in respect of returned direct debit fees to the sum of £. I did not administer the account as I would have liked to, this was due in part to the very high interest rates at the time and that National Home Loans was adding an extra 2% to these high rates of interest. Which resulted in a 15.45% interest rate charged to me. I now understand that such fees are unlawful as I was unaware that these charges were paid in the mistaken belief that I was under a contractual obligation to pay. These charges were over and above the actual cost of a administering a returned direct debit. In addition your charges appear to represent an unfair term of contract which is contrary to the Consumer Credit Act 1974. 140A Unfair relationships between creditors and debtors. When these charges were applied to my mortgage I was mistaken as to a material fact, consequently I am entitled to claim restitution of those monies where the payment would not have been made but for my mistaken understanding. As in theKleinwort Benson Ltd v Lincoln CC [1998] 3 WLR 1095. The amount that was charged to me is not subject to the Limitations Act. I believe that the charges you have levied of £XXXX far exceed any true cost to yourself as a result of our breaches and any genuine pre-estimate you could conceivably reach. If you disagree, then will you please demonstrate this by letting me have a full breakdown of the costs to which you have been put to as a result of my breaches, in order to reassure me that your charges really do reflect your costs. Thus, I am asking that you refund the charges and other fees which have been levied on my account. If you do not respond, or you do not respond positively, within the time limits set out in your official complaints procedure I will enter a formal complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service. I believe that these targets are more than sufficient for a large company such as yours with dedicated staff and departments. I hope that you will enter into a sincere dialogue with me about this matter and I am writing this letter to you on the assumption that you will prefer to do this than merely respond with standard letters and leaflets. Yours faithfully,

Hi Andydd, I have written this letter to the Overcharger, little bit unsure of my facts regarding the Unfair Contracts Act and the wording of letter. I would really appreciate your thoughts. I have left the amounts and some details out, to protect the innocent:oops: Dear xxx,On examining some invoices that relate to 2008, I have discovered some overcharges and an underpayment to me by yourselves. My boat XX arrived at XXXX Marina on X April 2008. An accident occurred on April 2008 and boat was towed to hard standing. It was repaired by XXXX Marina, this repair was completed June 2008. Boat was put on sale through XXXX Brokerage on June 2008. Boat was sold October 2008 The invoices and statement that I have do not correspond with the actual costs and also I have been charged for services I was not expected to pay. I should have been charged, these figures are inclusive of VAT; (I have listed charges) The bills clearly state that I was charged for berthing and for haul out when this amount was paid for with the bill for repairs, £XX. Also, when the boat was for sale with XXXX Brokerage, included in the fee was six months berth. The actual amount that should have been deducted totals £XX, consequently the amount that should have been paid to me was £XX. Not £X the amount that you decided to give me from the sale of my boat, this is an underpayment of £XX A 10% Credit Charge was added to the invoices, this penalty is contrary to the terms set out in the Unfair Contract Terms Act Group 5: Financial penalties – paragraph 1(e) of Schedule 2 (Not sure whether to actually quote the UFTA or just refer to the relevant part) As I am sure you are no doubt aware of the circumstances, that you had some part in creating, when I collected the cheque. Which you had already made all of the deductions, were extremely distressing. It appears that you took full advantage of my vulnerability and naivety at the time and overcharged me quite considerably. If, this was an error on your part, when you completed your financial accounts, surely it would have been discovered. I can only conclude that you were fully aware of the unfairness and that I was significantly overcharged. I expect a cheque to be forwarded to me within fourteen days to rectify this, if I do not receive the amount I shall pursue this through the County Court, where a statutory 8% will be added to the amount and my costs and fees. I intend to forward a copy of this letter to the Trading Standards Office.

I have done some research and it seems that the 'Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977' has not been followed. There appears to be no time limit, but the earliest it is challenged the better. And ultimately, the court can decide what is an 'Unfair Term'. So I think I will refer to this Act in my letter. Thanks for your views on my letter I really appreciate it.

Thanks Ethel Street, I will leave that out, also thinking about it the Citizens Advice Bureau, this will have no impact or relevance for them. But all in all, is there enough clout(?) in the letter, do you think?

Sorry haven't finished yet. Overcharging is not permitted and is covered by the Unfair Trading Regulations. I intend to forward a copy of this letter to the Trading Standards Office and Citizens Advice Bureau. Just a rough outline, no figures yet, what do you think, please?

I have had a try at writing a letter, here it is; Dear Mrs. Greedy, I have recently unearthed some invoices and bills from your company and scrutinising them closely I have discovered that an error was made with the charges. The bills clearly state that I was charged for berthing and for haul out when this amount was paid for with the bill for repairs, which was covered by the insurance claim. Also, when the boat was for sale through the broker, included in the fee was six months berth. As I am sure you are no doubt aware of the circumstances, that you had some part in creating, when I collected the cheque which you had already made all of the deductions, were extremely distressing. It appears that you took full advantage of my vulnerability and naivety at the time and overcharged me quite considerably. I have calculated the overcharge and it amounts to [haven't got this figure yet] plus 8%, which is normal practice in this circumstance.

I would just like to add my thanks to all the marvellous people who give advice on this forum. There are some heart rending stories of people losing their homes, then going through divorce and all the problems associated with bad debt and bad lenders, and just trying to survive. Thank you for all your wonderful support.

Thanks reallymadwoman, I think that will be the best way forward. Worth a try!!

Yes ' with diligence', would have been more intelligent of me. Feel a complete fool. Thanks anyway

Here goes, Boat arrives at marina, two weeks later had an accident which the boatyard repaired. (This was paid for with an insurance claim). The repair took two months to complete, the cost of the parking (?) was included in insurance claim. Once the boat was repaired we decided to sell through marina's brokers. Part of the deal was free parking for six months or until boat was sold. Boat took four months to sell. When the boat sold, the marina took from the price the cost of the repair and some small bills we had accumulated over the time of being in marina. The insurance paid me, so I was happy for them to take it off the sale of the boat. There was lots of trouble with the repair and some other problems, not financial, but difficulties we had at the time. Very upsetting and difficult. Recently when I went over the papers and invoices for this, I discovered that the marina had deducted five months of parking charges, also charging me for some of the work that had already been included in repair costs. Hope this makes some sense, please ask me if anything doesn't, this is just an outline of the situation. Many thanks, F

Thanks HB I will. Let me work out how to say it x

The documents did detail the deductions, but it needed close scrutiny be me, and I did not scrutinise them properly. As I said the money was taken from the proceeds of the sale. It was a complicated situation, with regard to an insurance claim and various other things, which I do not want to go into.

Thanks for your replies. The amount was taken from the sale of my property (boat) as I sold it through them. So it was taken without my knowledge. It was such a distressing time for me, I put the documents away and have only just looked at them carefully. I understand that I can quote the Fair Trading Act and use the Trading Standards to back up my claim, also the S32 perhaps would be useful to quote in the letter. Do you think this would be a suitable way to write the initial letter? Thanks, F

Debt Collector!!! Good idea though, I would love to see his face when a debt collector arrives. Worth a look into, of course it depends on fees etc. As far as I am concerned the amount is substantial it amounts to approximately £4,000.

Just a thought, this is not a debt. I paid the amount in November 2008. Does Statute Barred still apply?

Thought it may be so. This character is particularly nasty and I don't think a letter (without any reference to legislation to back it up) would be any good.

Not sure if I am posting in correct forum. But here's my question. In 2008 we were charged twice for renting a space from a private landlord. (details little too complex to explain quickly). I have only just examined the documents I have kept since then and realised quite how much I overpaid. Is it too late to try and get this money back? I have invoices, but not original contract. Can anyone please direct me to the relevant legislation, I have tried to search but nothing seems to match my problem.

Thanks dx. List of documents should be; Underwriting Sheet, breakdown of charges, interest calculations, Early Repayment Charge calculation, anything else you can think of? F

Hello, me again. Thanks for that reference to Wp3's thread. I have read the thread through again very carefully. I have been doing loads of research and think that I have a case for unfair treatment by Blemain during the course of the loan. When I sent the SAR, they did not send all the documents regarding the loan. My question is, shall I write again to them and ask for the rest of the documents, including the Underwriting Sheet? And if so, will I need to include another £10, as it was in 2012 when I did apply. I want the first letter I send to them to be extremely accurate and there is a lot of complaints I want to include. Just a little unsure of my first move, shall I lay out all my complaints or go softly softly? Many thanks, F

A year is a long time, especially when it is a waste of time. Still interest on the charges is accruing! ! Thinking of going for mis selling on my claim to. Is self certification enough grounds?

Ok. That sounds like a good plan. Thank you for your advice and time, I'll update when I send the letter