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elliero

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Everything posted by elliero

  1. PS: Thanks for the advice! Sorry. Rushing through a lot of work and forgot my manners!
  2. I have reviewed the contract again. We had a month-long Tenancy Agreement (Residential). There was no provision in it for the deposit to be kept in escrow by a third party and it clearly states that the deposit would be returned, with interest accrued, on 31 August 2011. The landlady is in breach and any time I try to ask her questions or confirm any details on when the deposit will be returned, how or with interest I get an accusation of harassment and an assertion that 'this matter is now closed'. I will issue a court claim. Seems like a shame to waste their time on this. I booked the accommodation 4 months in advance. There's quite a bit if you book ahead of time. Which is particularly galling - I chose this based on things that she did not provide.
  3. Hey folks, I recently went up to the Edinburgh festival and rented a place to myself for the month. The landlady did not provide the accommodation as agreed. She was there when I first arrived. I was a bit overwhelmed initially by the state of the flat - it was dirty and smelled awful - and the first thing I saw was a large desk blocking the hallway, giving c.1 foot of clearance. She had also promised to clear out all her things but had not done so and the flat was full to bursting with her stuff - I had to live out of my case for the month. The double wardrobe was made a single because she had left some of her clothes in it and locked it. She had also said the property had wireless but it didn't - just regular broadband. It sounds petty but as I had to work remotely while I was at the festival, and also had to study and work on another project I'm involved with, I was going to be attached to my computer for a lot of my time up there. Turns out my computer was attached to the bedroom wall by a 3ft long Ethernet cable and I was to be stuck on an uncomfortable bed in a dark, dank, smelly room for the duration. I should have questioned her about all this right away but I was genuinely overwhelmed by the smell and by disappointment. I was very excited to have my own place and be taking part in my first festival, and have had an awful year before this. After a 5 hour train journey, and lugging my suitcase, laptop and guitar around, I arrived to find a dirty, smelly flat that was not how we had agreed, with the landlady hovering around, making herself a cup of coffee and telling me, without apology, all the things she hadn't done. I know it was naive, but I just wanted to sign the agreement to get her out of there - I didn't want to go off half-cocked but wanted to check my emails and think about it properly rather than get angry based on disappointment alone. However, having sat down and checked that I hadn't misremembered anything we agreed, I wrote an email clearly stating four aspects I wasn't happy about (not mentioning the disgusting, filthy state the flat was in - genuinely revolting; the fridge was dirty, the toilet a rank mess - I made a cup of coffee thinking that the glaze had worn off the earthenware mug to find that it was actually a 5mm thick layer of dirt. Every surface was covered in dust and muck and dusty and mucky ornaments and the floor was dirty. There was also a bizarre standalone bath in the bedroom filled with grubby, stale sheets.) The landlady readily agreed to a discount of 10% via email and I responded via text message as my smartphone had awful signal so I used my work BB with which I had been corresponding with her in general. When it came to getting my deposit + refund back she told me, after she had transferred only £300 of a total £650 I was expecting (£500 deposit plus £150 refund) that she wasn't offering me the discount any more as the property was as advertised, we had a signed agreement and that the rest of the deposit would be with me once the agents had taken an inventory. I asked her why, if the property was as advertised, she had so readily agreed to a discount. I also pointed out that our written agreement to a discount superseded the initial agreement. I asked her to confirm that interest on the £500 deposit from May was going to be paid to me as per our initial agreement. She responded that the matter was closed, that if I continued to harass her in this manner she would hold back the rest of my deposit, and that I should not contact her again. I replied that she could not unilaterally decide that the matter was closed, that I had made some very clear and reasonable requests for information, and could she please respond to those. She then responded that she was forwarding all correspondence to her agents' solicitors and repeated her accusations of harassment. I asked her to send me details of the agents' solicitors forthwith so that I could deal with them in this matter and clear up the confusion. She ignored the email. The next day I asked her again for the agents details. She said that the matter was closed and she couldn't understand why I couldn't understand this. To stop emailing her and that any further correspondence would be considered harassment. I pointed out that she still had not given me any information and that if she could give me details of her letting agents or their solicitors (she had never mentioned letting agents at any point prior to this by the way - I had assumed it was a private deal through Gumtree) then I would happily cease all correspondence with her and deal with them - specifically on how my deposit was to be returned to me, the fact that there was no inventory to check the flat against, and to discuss the question of interest. She has now replied to all of my emails with blank emails after stating that any further correspondence would be returned to me. Is there any way I can get the details from her? This is ridiculous. I am perfectly willing to take it through a small claims court if necessary but it seems utterly facile to have to do so and I'm stunned that she refuses to divulge any information whatsoever. Is there any way I can force her to give me details either of the agents who apparently now have free rein with my deposit or the legal representation she claims to be forwarding her emails to? Thanks!
  4. Just a quick question. if a stay was applied to the case in August, can I still apply to have it removed now? I had thought it was a done deal, and had resigned myself to wait, but didn't realise you could appeal. I think it may be worth it so was wondering if there is any kind of time limitations on appeal? Also,
  5. Just with regards to the telephone conference hearings, we had one for an allocation hearing in July that Barclays' legal rep turned up to. I think any expense from their part comes from paying a barrister to be there (although they paid a junior to be at ours, who had never done one before and was torn apart by the fairly ferocious judge!). It was all very quick. However, the difference there was that the judge had already suggested (read, "decided on") fast track, and Barclays wanted that as well, as they knew it would delay things and they had obviously had a heads up about the OFT case (GRRRR!!). Your hearing sounds like it may be more intricate and they may prepare for it, but all I can say is that the barrister on our call reminded me of someone shoved in front of a camera on the news without their script! Anyway, we had to mess around for ages with Barclays, who ignored all requests for any organisation of the telephone conference. All I can suggest is to make sure you keep in touch with the court and let them know that you are struggling to get any response. They don't get involved, but it is just as well to let them know that you are trying to make sure it's all organised, and they are more than aware of the tactics being used in these cases. Perhaps put on any chasing letters/emails/faxes etc, a cc to the court manager/judge so that the solicitors know the court is fully informed of how much you are having to chase them. That might force their hand a little?
  6. Well it seems that despite Barclays doing as they please, and not even submitting the forms correctly, a stay has been applied to the case. It's even more frustrating as this judge seemed so particular about how things happened in her court that I didn't think she'd let them act like that. But it seems they can do as they please and the courts just roll over - perhaps it's anything for an easier life, or maybe judges have just been briefed to act a certain way now, but it seems amazing that Barclays don't even follow court protocol and still get their desired outcome. Fingers crossed the court case is fairly fast moving (any hope???!) and that justice is served on the banks. I just have a sneaking suspicion there may be some half measures applied rather than any kind of meaningful outcome.
  7. They were meant to provide disclosure by 15 August (i.e. last Tuesday). They haven't provided anything close to it, and haven't requested the stay on the normal form, so if I'm acting as if the case is continuing I presume I should just write to the court asking for a judgment in default? Or with the letter I drafted or something similar?
  8. Absolutely certain. They sent us a covering letter along with a copy of the letter to the court. And in the covering letter they have also (slightly pre-empting the court) told us that they will "ensure that you claim will not be adversely affected by the stay of your court proceedings". I like their ability to tell the future. I can only assume it's because it's a fast track case so there are layers upon layers of paperwork to submit to the court before the court day some time in December, the first court order being disclosure by list. Obviously Barclays don't want to take this step so they have sent the letter to the court instead.
  9. They've sent the letter to the court requesting a stay. It wasn't on any sort of court form - just a letter with a summary of the test case enclosed and them respectfully requesting a stay at the end of the letter outlining to the judge what was going on with the test case, the FOS and the FSA.
  10. OK, so surprise surprise, instead of sending in their disclosure by list, Barclays have sent in a request for a stay, citing the usual - the OFT case, the FOS putting their investigations on hold, etc, etc. I'm thinking of writing to the court as follows: "Please could you draw this letter to the attention of District Judge Willers as a matter of urgency. We note that Barclays have requested the above case be stayed, pending the final determination of the Test Case (The Office of Fair Trading v Abbey National Plc and others). We note that Barclays requested this stay just prior to the deadline set by yourself for disclosure, although they would have been aware of the test case by 27 July 2007 at the latest. We also note that they sent details of the Test Case and a request for stay, in lieu of Disclosure by List for this case. This still does not comply with the order made by the court for Disclosure by List by 15 August 2007. Essentially they seem to have ignored an order made by the court, assuming instead that their last minute application for a stay will be accepted. We would suggest that Barclays have once again shown contempt for court process. This, combined with their unwillingness to come to a settlement out of court, or even to arrange the telephone conference necessary for the Allocation Hearing in good time, suggests that Barclays believes it can treat both consumers and the courts as it desires with no penalty. As such we would respectfully request that they are ordered to provide Disclosure by List within the next 14 days, and that if they are not able to do this then a judgment be made against them. Yours sincerely..." I'm really not sure if this is suitable as a letter to a court, but it seems to me that any self-respecting judge would be pretty fed up by Barclays attitude that they can ignore the court order, and at the last minute chuck in an application for a stay. They even tell the judge that she "should be aware that the FOS has agreed not to proceed with consideration of the merits of relevant complaints" - it seems that their use of language here is designed to almost intimidate the judge, or tell her exactly what she should do in her own court. Anyway, just a draft of a letter, so any suggestions would be very welcome!
  11. Excellent. Off it goes then. Thanks for that - just getting nervous. Want to make sure we have every chance of getting something out of them! Thanks again
  12. I'd really, really appreciate it if someone could check the disclosure list I've put together. Sections 2 & 3 are duplicated from a post by GaryH on another thread so they are fine, but I just wanted to check the wording through the correspondence and whether I should include emails? Thanks, ellliero
  13. Excellent - thanks so much for that GaryH. I had been putting the court bundle together so I'd imagine the judge wouldn't have been too impressed to have 300 pages dumped on her desk! I have put together the following disclosure list now. I'm not sure if I should put in the emails in the general section, but I thought it would demonstrate how many times we tried to get in contact before the allocation hearing either to settle or organise the telephone contract, and also show that Barclays just ignored us throughout. Any comments other than that? Also, does it matter if you don't have exactly how many page numbers certain documents are? Many thanks, elliero
  14. Hi, Here's the court order finally. Sorry for the delay... note about case being allocated to fast track Each party by 14 August give standard disclosure to every other party by list. Any requests for inspection or copies for disclosed documents shall be made within 7 days after service of the list Each party by 11 September by simultaneous exchange serve on every other party the witness statements of the evidence on which that party intends to rely in relation to any issues of fact to be decided at the trial and any notices of intention to rely on hearsay evidence No expert evidence being necessary no party has permission to call or rely on expert evidence Pre-trial check lists to be sent to the parties by 9 October and the completed pre-trial check lists shall be filed by 4pm on 23 October. The claimant must file with the checklists a) copies of all statements of case (including schedules) witness statements and expert reports which have not already been filed; b) a case summary not exceeding 500 words and draft listing directions which must include or attach a proposed trial timetable allowing for all stages of the trial including the judge’s reading time and consideration and delivery of the judgement. These documents must be agreed with the other party or parties if possible. If not agreed the claimant must explain The costs of today are to be in the case The trial shall take place between 18 December and 8 January. The time provisionally allowed will be 1 day So my questions on this are: I'm guessing point 2 means the normal court bundle but I wanted to double check as this is a fast track case and all of the other orders sound fairly different from the norm. I was also a bit thrown by the phrase 'standard disclosure by list'. I'm hoping that Barclays will not submit anything - I doubt they'd provide standard disclosure before an OFT vs banks hearing! I was thinking that if this happens I could contact the court and request a judgement as they will be in breach of the court orders. Does this sound right? If not, is it really likely that we will go through all the points on this order only for Barclays to get to the actual court date some time in Dec/Jan and request a stay? Or can they request a stay before the court date? Any thoughts from you big brained bunch on this? I will be preparing the normal court bundle but obviously if there is anything to add, or any kind of tactics to follow, I'd be grateful for some advice. Many thanks, elliero
  15. sorry - just seen this. Will do as soon as we have received it.
  16. Sorry - just in case it gets lost in the posts afterwards, does anyone have any response to post #10 in this thread? Much appreciated!
  17. The claimant had to be present. Although it might be that you could contact the court tomorrow and check with them on their stance on this. You may be able to stand in as a lay person for someone else (or someone stand in for you). I'm not sure - the court staff seemed a little confused themselves as I don't think these tel conf. hearings are all that usual.
  18. Hi Fellowes, We provided Barclays with a phone number and were available at 2pm to receive a call, and they then linked us up to the conference call. We prepared with: 1. Reasons why it should be kept on the small claims track 2. The basis of the claim 3. Some information on how many times we had tried to call Barclays and that they were incredibly difficult to get hold of, only answering any attempt at contact the day before the hearing 4. The amount of cases they have settled out of court (in line with the idea that they are using the court system as a publicly funded way of intimidating claimants with no real intention to defend) 5. Re-reading the draft order for directions from the AQ and the reasoning behind this in case it came up 6. I also prepared two versions of the schedule of charges. The claim was started in August of last year so some of the charges are now over 6 years and I had wondered if that was why Barclays had decided to attend the hearing, so I had a revised figure prepared in case this was an issue Having said all that, it lasted around 5 minutes maximum and we were asked very little! The judge initially asked whether we had any objections to it going onto the fast track to which we gave brief reasoning. She dismissed them and said the issues are more complicated than that. She then asked Barclays rep whether they had anything to add. They said they wouldn't object to the fast track but would like extended time for disclosure. They asked for two months and she dismissed it saying that the case was standard for them, especially considering all the other cases they are dealing with. They also tried to extend the period for exchange of witness statements I believe. She then asked if we had anything else to add. My brother said that he would suggest that Barclays agreement to allocation to the fast track and the request for an extension was just delaying tactics as they have settled so many cases out of court. She replied that she couldn't use that as a reason to make any other orders as lots of cases get settled out of court and that doesn't mean that she should pre-empt things (at least I think this was the gist of it!). So then she said that she was giving orders for 4 weeks for disclosure and 8 weeks for exchange of witness statements. As I say, this judge was incredibly short with both parties and it seemed no more than a formality to move the case onto the fast track. I didn't really get the impression that we could have argued it back onto small claims, or that Barclays had a chance of getting their extension. I obviously don't know what your judge will be like (this was Hitchin CC) but I'd guess that Barclays may try the same delaying tactics so it might be worth thinking about your case for not allowing them any extra time. It sounded really like they were just chancing their arm. They didn't have any really concrete reasons to extend the disclosure. It sounds like Barclays have taken a new tack. They said to me that they wouldn't settle at allocation as they have a strict rota for when cases get settled (wish I could have recorded it and played it to the judge - that would have been interesting in light of their 'we're going to defend this' attitude in court!). As I said before, I think that Barclays probably won't want to go any further as disclosure means telling the judge how much it actually costs them to process a returned direct debit or standing order for instance. Sorry if that's a bit waffly! I hope it helps. Feel free to ask me anything else and I'll try to help.
  19. OK, well we've just had the allocation hearing. The judge seemed very determined that the case be put onto fast track as the issues were too complex for small claims. Barclays defence barrister attempted to ask for two months just for disclosure, which the judge refused, saying the case is no different for them than many others (adding that it is obviously very important for the Claimant) and doesn't seem to warrant any special treatment. I wondered if they were trying to put it off due to possible OFT hearings? We suggested that Barclays being happy for it to go onto fast track and trying to get longer for the disclosure was just a delaying tactic and that they have settled many other cases out of court. The judge said that this doesn't matter as the case is individual (sort of contradicting the previous point I thought!) and that they couldn't make orders based on what happens with settlement on other cases, which seems fair enough. All in all the judge sounded very impatient with the whole thing, and seemed to have made up their mind that it should be on fast track, and has ordered disclosure in 4 weeks and exchange of witness statements in 8 weeks. So I'm guessing the next move is to send off the bundle to both the court and Barclays? I'm guessing we should do this as soon as possible, and that Barclays won't disclose anything as they can't reasonably explain charging £30 for something that costs them so little? Anyone have any opinion on the Barclays tactics, the judge's tactics, etc, etc? I'm slightly confused that Barclays attended as they have settled other allocation hearings within the past week alone, and there is nothing unusual about the case (i.e. over 6 years, more than 8% interest, huge sums of money). Does it depend on who is dealing with the case at Barclays?
  20. Well, I spoke to the court and they said the arrangement of the telephone conference was between us so they couldn't really do anything. I spoke to Barclays again (finally!), stating that I had tried to get hold of them for ages, both offering settlement and/or trying to make sure the telephone conference is arranged. They said they cannot settle on allocation hearings as they have a strict order within which they are dealing with cases (which seems to go slightly against some of the info I've seen on here, where people with allocation hearings have had settlement). So we're going to go to the court instead of wait at home for a call that probably won't come, and hope that they don't call in and we can ask for a judgement instead. I get the feeling this is all an extraordinary waste of time for all involved. I'd be massively surprised if they do turn up considering they still hadn't arranged any telephone conference as of 30 minutes ago! However, we've got the arguments for keeping it on small claims and we have reviewed the case again in terms of the legal issues so I'm guessing from other posts it will be nice and simple tomorrow.
  21. Hi all, Well, I've just spoken to someone at Barclays (I think his name was Greg Thomas?). He seems to think that Barclays will be attending this hearing although there is no word that they have set up a conference call. He has told me that Paul Quinn will call me this afternoon to discuss the case, but he's working on something that is urgent right now. So, I'm guessing we need to argue for this to go along the small claims track now but would really appreciate confirmation of this.
  22. CONGRATS!! Really pleased for you. Enjoy spending it!
  23. Hi Fellowes, Have you heard anything back yet? My brother's case is meant to be having an allocation hearing by telephone conference on 13 July and I've been trying to get hold of various members of the team for weeks without any answer. Hope you've had some luck.
  24. Hi Hayley, Which court are you at? I'm at Hitchin and have had no luck getting through to Barclays either regarding the settlement or the telephone conference set up. I'm wondering if they know when it's an allocation hearing and just ignore it. I had an email from Dino last Tuesday saying he'd talk to Paul Quinn about it as I'd tried getting in touch for weeks but still nothing, even after another follow up today. Hope it goes OK tomorrow. I'm sure it will. I'm pretty sure the judge will be annoyed that they haven't played their part. Not sure what he'll do about it though I'm afraid. elliero
  25. An update on this - I have been trying to get in touch with Barclays since my last post to no avail (as Paul Quinn is dealing with the case). Dino said last Tuesday he would discuss it with him and still nothing. I'm guessing they are now ignoring it. Should I call the court and see if there is anything arranged regarding the telephone conference they were ordered to set up? And can I stand in for my brother on the day? He has had a very, very bad few weeks and now really has to work on that day. Or should I just keep on pestering Barclays? What happens if they don't turn up? And what do we need to present to the judge? I'm not really sure what is necessary considering I thought the AQ gave my view of what track it should be on? Should we now say that fast track is fine and leave it at that, or try to argue it onto the small claims again? Any help would be really appreciated.
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