This topic was closed on 10 March 2019. If you have a problem which is similar to the issues raised in this topic, then please start a new thread and you will get help and support there. If you would like to post up some information which is relevant to this particular topic then please flag the issue up to the site team and the thread will be reopened. - Consumer Action Group

This topic was closed on 10 March 2019. If you have a problem which is similar to the issues raised in this topic, then please start a new thread and you will get help and support there. If you would like to post up some information which is relevant to this particular topic then please flag the issue up to the site team and the thread will be reopened. - Consumer Action Group

This topic was closed on 09 March 2019. If you have a problem which is similar to the issues raised in this topic, then please start a new thread and you will get help and support there. If you would like to post up some information which is relevant to this particular topic then please flag the issue up to the site team and the thread will be reopened. - Consumer Action Group

This topic was closed on 09 March 2019. If you have a problem which is similar to the issues raised in this topic, then please start a new thread and you will get help and support there. If you would like to post up some information which is relevant to this particular topic then please flag the issue up to the site team and the thread will be reopened. - Consumer Action Group

This topic was closed on 03/06/19. If you have a problem which is similar to the issues raised in this topic, then please start a new thread and you will get help and support there. If you would like to post up some information which is relevant to this particular topic then please flag the issue up to the site team and the thread will be reopened. - Consumer Action Group

This topic was closed on 03/06/19. If you have a problem which is similar to the issues raised in this topic, then please start a new thread and you will get help and support their. If you would like to post up some information which is relevant to this particular topic then please flag the issue up to the site team and the thread will be reopened. - Consumer Action Group

Hi all. Really could do with some good advice please. I will try and sum up concisely... A friend and I went through the process of booking an apartment in Brighton with Airbnb. We are both new to Airbnb. We found an apartment and communicated with the 'owner' through the Airbnb site system. When it came to booking we received an Airbnb branded html email. With payment details. I forwarded the email to my friend who made payment... before i could stop him as I realised it was bank transfer details which seemed wrong to me. Long story short... as soon as payment was made the Airbnb user disappeared from the Airbnb site. Removed his apartment and profile. We felt so stupid. The email was so convincing. Fully branded and all links correctly heading back to the airbnb site. I immediately contacted Airbnb and my friend contacted his bank to see if he could halt the payment. This was two weeks ago and all I have had from Airbnb is apologies over the phone and referral to the appropriate team who deal with situations like this... but ONLY communicate via email. These emails have offered nothing more than an apology for my experience and then a referral to their terms and conditions, pointing out they state not to make offsite payments. Then a paragraph informing me this will be their last communication with the matter. When someone signs up to put their property on Airbnb... there must be checks? They must have to give property details, addresses, ID, contact numbers? Airbnb have provided me with none of this! They have washed their hands of the whole affair. As for my friend... his bank are still 'seeing' what they can do' and have stated it maybe too late. Even though my friend contacted them within 12 hours. I do realise we may have been naive. But Airbnb must take some responsibility? New users of their site could easily fall into this trap and the user has been allowed to advertise falls without proper investigation. Does anyone know what rights I have or who i should complain to regarding Airbnb or my friend's bank? Airbnb did say i should inform local authorities. But who? The police cannot do anything! Help please!

Hi all. I've just started up my own company and am gradually getting to grips with all the perks and pitfalls of running a business. I have a good accountant who advised me to use the company to pay for my mobile contract. (To be fair business does make up about 80% of its usage.) But do i go for an O2 or EE business contract or personal contract? The only real advantage i can see is shorter contracts. 12 months or so. I noticed O2 lease. Looked into it but am concerned about the chances of being penalised for returning a phone not in great shape. Anyone have experience of this and can put the pros and cons in layman's terms? Cheers.

Hi all. Motor insurance claim question for ya! I drive a mini Cooper S in a special limited edition colour. Someone scraped along the side of it whilst i was parked. It was a neighbour and they owned up. Set the ball rolling with my insurers. M&S on behalf of Minster Law. I asked them to use my certified Mini Garage if possible due to the nature of the ltd edition paintwork. Insurers got back stating they could not agree a fee. So they would like to proceed through their preferred repairer. I've contacted this repairer and made them aware of my concerns over the colour. They are getting back to me as to whether it is an issue. But seemed wary. Where do I stand? Can I insist my insurer uses certain garages? I have legal cover (gotta check what up to) so could i get it dome myself and claim it back? Sorry I have no idea about insurance. Any advice would be most helpful. Thanks in advance!

I have been with Orange for 12 (nearly 13 years). I tried to commit to another 24 months with them at Christmas by buying an iPhone 5S 64gb. To cut a long story about unbelievably horrific customer service short... I never received the phone, it took three months for refund in which time I was cut off twice (due to them thinking i had switched to EE), I was charged rental for a contract I never had, my roaming was cut off whilst abroad and here I am three months later and I still have no voicemail service restored. I have followed procedures of complaint to head office via recorded delivery and only received an apology. I called today to cancel my contract (I am out of contract now). So I was put through to 'retention'. I was asked why i wanted to leave in a sympathetic voice... I explained the above in more detail. The lady apologised... gave me the PAC code and said goodbye. Now... I know they are not obligated to offer me anything, but i was rather shocked. I feel ringing back seems a little desperate. Maybe they thought... "don't blame him" Anything I can do to seek compensation? I made so many calls to them which cost me an arm and a leg. Plus some loss of business.

I called my local council and explained. They don't seem to know what they are doing either as they told me not to worry as i'm allowed £16,000. When i said i'm not sure that is right now i've done a bit of worried research... they said to email a different department. I did this and will just wait and see i guess. I've declared the savings... so not a great deal I can do.

Ok... Very worried now. So the best thing to do, is what I was going to do, and just go to the jobcentre and declare it? I have been having nightmares about being prosecuted. It was an honest and stupid mistake.

I'm hoping someone can help me as i'm worried sick. Back in August I was suddenly made redundant after 11 years within a company. It happened very quickly. I was fortunate that a couple of weeks before I was made redundant my parents had given me £10,000 to assist me for the future. (This is the only money I will ever get from them as they sadly don't own a house and have struggled for years... but a friend of my mother passed away leaving them a sum and they decided to help me also - anyway that's another story.) When I was suddenly made redundant it was a very worrying time. But i had no intention of signing on for JSA. I have never claimed it and just didn't want to. I was being all too proud. I was told by various people that I should do as I am entitled to it after paying all my NI contributions and they will assume that i should have claimed it anyway when it comes to my 'payment in lieu of notice'. Reluctantly applied for JSA around a couple of weeks later I believe. By this time the money I had left was £8100 after buying a new computer and paying off a student loan. When filling in the form i left the savings field blank. Not ever having had that amount of money ever i was still thinking in terms of my earnings and didn't think of it. When i realised later and wanted to correct it i was incredibly confused as I had been told my savings were completely irrelevant when it came to contributions based jobseekers allowance. So i did my own research and low and behold on the government website it also states savings are irrelevant when it comes to contribution based JSA. So i left it. I signed off at the end of October as I went to travelling for a month to decide what to do with my life. Came back and signed on again in December and just didn't mention it again as i was still claiming contribution based JSA. However... A friend told me recently that as I was claiming housing & council tax benefit also savings do count. I had no idea of this i thought it all fell under the one application for JSA. I am now very worried. I am a very honest person and have informed the job centre of all the little cash in hand jobs i have done whilst signed on (i'm a graphic designer and get the occasional private work), however small, and told them when my redundancy came through (statutory so not much). I keep seeing the benefit fraud ads and read stories of people getting a criminal record and it scares me to the point of feeling ill as this is if i have done wrong it is a genuine error but i still don't understand as i thought whilst on contribution based savings are irrelevant. Do i go into the job centre and tell them of my error 6 months ago (having signed off and back on twice) or is it ok for me to just leave it as i am still on contribution based? This is all so confusing for me. I've never claimed before... i've always just worked and had a salary. I've only now started to learn about tax as i have to declare all the little freelance jobs to the tax man of course (even though it is way under what is needed to be earn to be taxed. Please someone give me some advice. Sooo worried.

OK so in hindsight i should've written. But i didn't and called for two weeks and attempted to use support email. But it was down at the end of the month... surprise surprise. I've just got in contact via email and they aren't budging. What's my next move? How do i take em to court?

I'll cut to the chase... I joined the dating agency Plenty More Fish. A 3 month deal for £49 or something. I found it pretty lame. As the end of the 3 months approached. I decided to cancel. As they take another £49 for 3 months if you don't ring a certain telephone number 72 hours before next installment. You apparently cannot cancel by email. I called this number two weeks prior to next installment and have been nearly everyday since. It is impossible to get through!!! Sometimes the line just transfers to a voicemail which does not allow messages. I even asked my bank for a new card to stop the payment. Alas this didn't work. Low and behold money has now been taken for another 3 months membership... despite my constant phone calls & new card. Any advice? I apparently am not allowed a refund in the T&Cs.