Low-value civil court cases in England and Wales could be dealt with by an online disputes system similar to that used by eBay, a report recommends. A Civil Justice Council report says settling non-criminal cases of less than £25,000 online would reduce the expenses generated by a court. Principal author Prof Richard Susskind said eBay disputes were "minor", like many civil court cases. Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service says it welcomes the report. The proposed online dispute resolution scheme would be similar to the one used by online marketplace eBay to diagnose and resolve disputes. Online facilitators would be used to help parties reach an agreement, and if that failed, online judges would rule on cases without the need for courts to be booked or for the parties involved to appear in person to give evidence. The report, from the council's online dispute resolution advisory group, suggests conducting a pilot, ahead of an anticipated full roll-out in 2017. The BBC's legal affairs correspondent Clive Coleman says the report is calling for a radical and fundamental change to the way courts deal with smaller claims. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-31483099

I am due in court a week on Thursday for an old credit card debt which was sold to Lowell in June 2013. I received the claim form from Bryan Carter back in September and asked them for a copy of the credit agreement upon which they are relying prior to entering my plea. They refused to do this and I filed a defence on the basis that they could supply no proof of this debt. They then sent me a Tomlin order to sign to avoid court I again asked for a copy of the credit agreement which they again refused. Today, they have filed their witness statement and enclosed the following document which does have my signature on it, however this is all they have supplied together with a bunch of statements and the assignment letter. Please can anyone tell me if this enforceable? I would like to be prepared before I attend court, if I don't have a leg to stand on then could I try the Tomlin order route? Typical that the default is 6 years old in September

Hey all. Im currently on ESA and today I got a lovely early Xmas present in the post from Atos who have made an appointment for my assessment on 7th Jan. I know I will probably be signed off as they sign off people close to death so what chance do I have. Now, if I do indeed get signed off I will go back on the Work Programme. My question is if anyone can help, I was with Learn Direct before I was signed onto ESA in April but moved from the Midlands to Durham where I now reside in June and continued to claim ESA. I was told by Learn Direct before I moved who were pestering me that I will remain with them at their branch in Rugby, just be a telephone client. Is this true? I recently received a redirected mail letter from Learn Direct in Rugby (as I never told them my new address), saying my provider is changing on X date but I cant remember which provider it is changing to as Ive misplaced the latter, will this make any difference? Thanks in advance.

This has been going on since April this year. On examining my monthly bill in April, I found that there were charges for my mobile ringing my landline. Sometimes, the calls were short, sometimes relatively long. I am the only one in my household and there is no one to call. On occasion, the calls were when I was within 3 metres from my land-line and sometimes when I was asleep. There were also call recorded when my phone was turned off. There are no records of calls on my mobile log. BT does not operate a log of calls received - or so they tell me. I have been communicating with Vodafone since then and they have stuck to their chant that their system cannot be wrong. After some months in June, they suggested that I check my handset and my SIM at a Vodafone store. The handset turned out fine and they gave me a new SIM. I also noticed that every phone call from 1 second to 1 minute was being charged at the 1 minute rate and set against the free calls that I receive as part of my Pay Monthly contract. The rep at the store said that it had come in recently but Vodafone never informed me of this change. Anyway, the initial problem continued and in July I managed to get someone who said she was a manager and that this should not be happening and it would be escalated. And I would receive an update in two weeks. There was never any update and always some deviation when by the rep when I queried it by phone or on-line chat. In October, I got charged for data I did not use and for which my phone was not connected or set up. After a long wait and a chat on-line (the phone option did not have anyone free), the sum was credited back but the rep said that it was goodwill on Vodafone's part. I tried twice to say that he had agreed that my phone was not set up to receive these data and that I never received it and was charged incorrectly and so it was not goodwill but actually refunding an incorrect charge for ghost data use. I tried to check on the issue of ghost calls to my landline and the change in my contract regarding charging policy without consulting me. but there was no success. By now i had got fed up of telephone and e-mail communication where I had to request for a transcript and could not verify all of it when I received it. So I emailed the CEO's office via the Vodafone web - I received two phone calls where I said that I wished communication in a hard format so that I could keep a record independent of their storage. They refused and said that as I will not talk the matter on the phone they were taking it that it was solved. I replied that I have been talkng over the phone since April to no avail. I received a text saying that the matter was closed. So I wrote to the CEO using a Google sourced e-mail. I received a reply from the "Director's Office"; that they will need to investigate the matter. I thanked then that this is what I wanted and given the record thus far, to give me an update in 30 days. I immediately got a reply that I had not contacted customer relations, when my first e-mail to the CEO really went to customer relations who telephoned me! I wonder f thy ever intended to investigate the matter. It certainly sound like they are looking to sweep it under the carpet. Indeed, it appears that Vodafone is against a record of communications being kept by the party contacting them, possibly so that there is nothing to be used against them if the matter went to the regulator. I do feel that this is fraudulently charging me for calls I did not make, attempted charging for data I did not use and varying the conditions of my contract without notification and consent (giving me the option to close my contract if I did not agree). I have stated this in my last 3 e-mails to Vodafone. I have also stated that it looks like we have reached an impasse and as the matter has gone on for more than 12 weeks (but I have little record of it because it was in phone communication and Vodafone does not entertain the written word), at the end of the 30 days that I stated, I intend to write to Otelo and BBC Watch dog and Which. Any ideas or comments, people?

Hello everybody, I've googled so much and found your board to be very helpful. Hopefully, you are able to help a friend of mine as well. The issue is the following: My friend was in London in 2009 with his car (German). As there were bikes on the back, the car did not fit in any of the car parks. And as there was no parking on the street, he eventually ended up using a parking lot that was for residents only. Upon his return, he had received a parking ticket for that. After he returned from his vacation, he had also received a further ticket via post. It said that he had a) not paid the London city toll and b) entered the restricted area (environmentally) without the "green sticker". Each would have cost 1,000GBP (or 800?!) but they said one they wouldn't charge as they would accept that a foreigner wasn't aware of that. He doesn't remember which of the two he should have been aware of and was thus fined. So one ticket was 800-1,000GBP, the other one around 240GBP. A google search informed him that it was not possible to execute the fine for a foreigner, so he did not pay. At the beginning, there were a few letters from debt collectors and the amount went up like crazy, but after two or three letters, they stopped trying. He was in London in the summer of 2009. He avoided travelling to the UK as the only info he had found was a summary of statutes of limitation in the EU where the UK was mentioned and it said those fines were expiring after 3-7 years. But he doesn't know which number applies to the UK. The problem is: He will travel via Heathrow soon. On the way back, he had planned a longer stop-over to see a friend (half a day). Could they still make claims for the tickets? For both options, i.e. also just stopping over in Heathrow, or only when leaving the airport on the way back? He had totally forgotten about this. It will have been 5.5 years by then. Would he risk anything if travelling or is he safe? Thank you SO MUCH in advance!

Parents who default on child maintenance payments face being turned down for mortgages and credit cards under new government plans. From March 2015, information from parents' payment records in England, Scotland and Wales could be shared with credit reference agencies. Financial organisations would then use this data to decide whether or not they want to offer someone credit. The record of a missed payment won’t appear on a credit record until a liability order is made against them.

The following story features in today's Daily Mail and quotes comments from Marc Gander (Consumer Action Group) and Martin Lewis (Money Saving Expert) http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2763083/Victory-bank-charges-open-payout-floodgates-Court-backs-customer-hefty-overdraft-fees.html *

It seems there’s an issue for owners of Kindles to be aware of, and take appropriate steps to avoid. A security researcher has discovered that malicious code could potentially be injected – and cookies stolen – via a stored cross site scripting attack on the Manage your Kindle page located on the Amazon website. According to the researcher, malicious code can be injected via e-book metadata such as the book title. Once the book is added to the victim’s library, the rogue code will trigger once they open their Kindle library web page, leading to the cookies being accessed by – and transferred to – the creator of the e-book in question. Here’s a writeup by someone demonstrating the researcher’s proof of concept test on themselves, passing with flying colours. The advice given is to be very wary of pirated e-books and other shady looking downloads – especially if you’re going to make use of the Send to Kindle feature, as this is the most likely way you’ll end up placing an e-book from outside the Kindle store into your Amazon Kindle page. We’ve taken a look at the Kindle before, and here’s some things you should be aware of: * Kindle Apps: Look before you leap Unfortunately apps which aren’t all they claim to be do appear on the Kindle Apps store, and buyers of apps should always check the reviews before committing to a purchase. Here’s some advice from the above blog entry to steer you in the right direction: Tips for Avoiding Kindle App Shenanigans 1) Read the reviews. While these apps are in circulation, the only real chance you have of avoiding a stinker is to see what horrors have befallen those brave souls who have gone before you. 2) Check the developer name. If it’s a horrible mashup of words associated with various titles, there’s a good chance some alarm bells may be ringing. 3) Take a good look at the “screenshots”. The majority of the 100% fake apps – the ones which claim to be amazing, mindblowing games and disclose nowhere that they’re just some terrible tile sliding effort – use lots of pre-renders / promotional art from real games. Google Image Search will probably come in handy here. * Sideloading apps is a dangerous game On a similar note, many titles in the gaming realm tend to show up on the Amazon Kindle store a while after they’ve already appeared on Android (Google Play) and the iOS stores. For many impatient individuals, this means a quick treasure hunt in a search engine for unofficial copies, quickly followed by lots of “Aargh what have I done” type complaints once dubious app x has been installed on unsupported device y. As per the advice in that particular blog: Looking for that Movie you really like but don’t want to pay for? Malware. Looking for an album you really wanted to listen to but out of cash? Malware. Looking for that new game that all your friends are playing but you can’t afford? Malware. It spans from the Desktop to the Mobile space and any device that might fall in between. Misleading E-Book advertisements install PUPs The above blog isn’t so much a threat to your E-Book reader or Amazon account as it is to your PC in general, with popular lists of E-Book titles used as a front for PUP (Potentially Unwanted Program) installs. On the other hand, it is a useful example when talking about how there is no subject a [EDIT] won’t touch to make some money in the side. E-Books? Sure, why not. And you can bet your finest digital copy of 1984 that somebody, somewhere would happily set up a wide range of booby trapped E-Books to swipe some Amazon accounts – or any other accounts they can get their hands on, for that matter. E-Book readers are wonderful things, but as with all the bits and pieces of tech we carry around with us on a daily basis they can provide an inroad for people harbouring bad intentions – and the occasional rogue E-Book. Christopher Boyd

Hi all, Yesterday I was asked if i wanted to apply for a office job I said yes but was never told it was mandatory. But the pay was quite low and I need to pay my parents rent, get food and bus there and back also my fone bill (mobile). I would be worse off with the job to be... but I'm scared they will not understand that as it was my personal adviser who pointed this job out to me and foned for me to go for the interview which is on Friday. I'm worried :/

So obviously you must know by now that I got snapped doing 60 (apparently) on a dual carriageway (50 limit) I saw the van (too late obviously) and thought there was a chance I'd be done... Believe me when I say my 21 year old car was not zipping through the traffic; in fact as I automatically looked down at the speedo (we all do it, don't we?) I read mid 50's and my speedo generally reads higher than my car is going. There were plenty more cars overtaking me during my entire journey, but here were are...The police must have had a good day. Sooo the ticket arrived and unlike any others I've had during my life (14 years ago the last time), I have been offered a £100 fine and 3 points OR £110 fine and a driver awareness course... Soooo what I want to find out is what are the pros and cons, if any, of taking the course, or accepting the points... Over to you boffins

OK so i used to work for bank X on a shift pattern for which I received a %age uplift on my base salary. Bank X was bought by Bank Y. Shortly before the takeover I stopped doing shift work and just did 9-5. When i received my new contract from Bank Y, the same %age allowance was included in my remuneration. Because the allowance was included in my new contract I did not think I was being overpaid. My employer has now asked why i didn't tell them I was being overpaid, and I told them i thought it was part of my contract. I understand an employers right to claim back overpaid wages (as long as it was my mistake, i knew I was being overpaid and i haven't spent it), but as it's in my contract would it even been an overpayment? And could they dismiss me? I didn't fraudulently claim, my pay is automatic each month based on my annual salary+benefits. The contract does not define what the shift allowance is for, or when it would start/stop. I just presumed it was a benefit that had to be carried over by Bank Y when they bought bank X. I am primarily worried about loosing my job, but if i do keep my job they may ask me to payback an amount that is equal to about 60% of my annual salary! Please help

as far as i can recall in 1992. might be a current account or joint account... also i been receiving other letter from them which i do not know for sure what it is. (HBOS)

Hi Friends, These are a few examples of entries in my Barclaycard statements ... And a few from my Visa Debit card ... Please could you tell me which one of these could be unfair and worth claiming? Thanks. Autumn

Hi All, Received my first response to my CCA request from HBOS card services. The card was taken out in July 1999 and was defaulted in 04/2009. I guess this will be removed from my cra file on 14/04/2015...fingers x. Paying them through Blair Oliver & Scott at £60 per month I have received a reconstituted copy of the t+c, apr etc for the card above. The copy simply states my new name and address and the current terms. Apparently this conforms to s78 of the CCA 1974 so as far as they are concerned this is enforceable so this is the end of the story! I was at a different address when taking out the card so surely this isn't a true copy of the original, recon or not?? They did go on to say that they were looking for the signed agreement under s60/61 but apparently this isn't required by law. DJ

I was a PT at FF for 2 weeks! They have not rpovided me with their promised uniforms, business card etc. so I was not able to work and told the manager I am quitting. Now they want a huge sum from me charging me for 2 months of work there! I wrote them a letter which thtey completely ignored and send me to a company that wants the full payment straight away, hwoever, I do not agree with it at all as they did not keep their promise! Is there an organistion, smth like the ombudsman, where I can complain to about them? Or what shall I do if I am in dispute with their demand? Thanks so much!

From This is Money :- http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/redirect.php?x=http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/news/article-2554472/Four-million-savers-short-changed-Aviva-compensation-Insurers-323million-bill-merger-blunder.html

http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/cancelled-car-insurance-could-owed-124427989.html

Hi all. New to the site as I stumbled across looking for advice on the net. I'd be greatful if anyone could offer any advice. I will try be brief on this. I sold an item through the net. It was advertised on a site but was paid through paypal. The fella asked if he could pay as a gift to avoid their charges so I agreed. Naive? honest and genuine as I am, sent the item (sale worth just over 1k) only to have paypal try to claim back the money as the cardholder claimed an unauthorised transaction had taken place. Surely the onus shouldn't be on me? Afterall, the item of mine has gone and the fella clearly has it. It seems very easy for a buyer to [problem] a seller through paypal. All the protection is with the buyer and none with the seller. It was about a year ago now and have no proof I sent the item however this was never claimed nor was there a dispute with the item, simply just the transaction. The alleged debt has now been passed on to a debt recovery company. I have never once acknowleged that I owe such amount and am busy thinking about how to play this. Does the DCA need to provide me with proof of debt and does anyone know where I may find such a template for not acknowledging the debt? Thanks in advance.

I'm looking for some advice, as I'm not sure if I can claim for anything. (don't know if I need separate threads for each). I was looking through mine and DH's old debt info from c1999 - 2008, and found 3 possible things but I'm not sure if we could claim. 1. Baines & Ernst debt management company. We were with them from July 2001 - 2004. We were charged a 'Management fee' of £31 per month. When looking through the papers I came across some info for 'Payment protection plan'. I also found 2 'Agreements' that both myself and DH had signed (one about 1 week after the other). Now, I can't remember actually agreeing to any PPI, and there's no reference to this PPI plan on any of the monthly statements we have, but I was wondering if this PPIi was included in their monthly 'Management fee' of £31?.. or would it be separate on the statement if we'd been paying it? Does anyone have any experience of this? 2. Littlewoods Index store card. DH opened this in June 1999, within the 'Index' store that used to be in our town. I'm not sure, but suspect there may have been PPI on this card, as DH was the type to fall for the hype back then. This account went to a DMC (Baines & Ernst) July 2001 - 2004 then we did it ourselves and the debt went to NDR. (There was probably arrears charges at this time). The debt was 'written off' (balance of £1300 ish) in Oct 2005, and I have a letter stating they are not pursuing the debt. If I send a SAR, I'm guessing I won't get any statements from this far back, so would not be able to see if there's any PPI added, or any charges. As I'm not 100% there was PPI on this, should I just send a 'speculative claim' on the off chance? 3. O2 UK mobile debt. This is in my name, but was for DH's 'contract' phone in approx 2003/4. I'm guessing there may be penalty charges on this, but have no statements. I do have a 'Client Ref' number. The info I have is from when the debt was passed to 'Wescot'. The account was settled in 2006. As above really - may not get any statements from this far back, so would not be able to see if there's any charges.

Hi everybody.. .. Been spending the last few days reading avidly about things I've avoided all my life, after I discovered that we're up the creek, dropped both paddles and there's piranahs in the water... Oh and the boat's sprung a leak...or two. Sadly I'd left all money stuff to my wife who got into a bit of a muddle. The more serious things got the harder it became for her to tell me, while I just carried on in blissful ignorance. However, it's all out in the open now and together we are trying to sort out the mountain of debts and (possible) eviction. I'm doing the research and my wife is sorting through mountains of paperwork. Thankfully she hadn't thrown anything much away. We're looking at PPI, Bank Charges and a missold mortgage...at least! This site is wonderful. I've found out more in the past few days that I had in a month trying to Google things and sift through the irrelevant stuff it throws at you. Thanks everyone for your dilligance and what seems to be good solid advice and plain common sense and reassurance. When I'm totally up to speed with all this I WILL be asking questions.. ..Brace yourselves!

Parking fines could double because they are not enough to stop people parking their cars illegally, it has emerged. Norman Baker, a transport minister, is looking at raising the amount councils can charge for parking illegally - currently capped at £70 outside London. The Liberal Democrat is concerned that the penalty is failing to keep pace with fines in the capital, where the maximum is £130. Councils make £400 million a year in profit on parking fines which they are legally bound to spend on transport projects. More ... Lets put this in the correct wording shall we. First the subject heading - ... to increase profit, Second, a Liberal Democrat, some nobody from a nobody party who should never have been where they are and never will be again. We all know this has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with illegal parking but all about turning big bucks into even bigger bucks. Seeing as the private con brigade base their invoices on council fines, they will no doubt jump at the chance to double theirs as well. [PS. £400 million would easily take care of all the UK potholes, so what are they spending it on?]

Hi all, I will start with saying I have been rather stupid over the years when it comes to debt, With mobile phones, pay day loans, Benefit overpayment, Working tax credit debt, bank debts, You name it. I am 29, and for the past 10 years I have just ignored the lot, told them all where to go, Then just over 18 months ago I met the girlfriend, She has changed my way of thinking, and really got me to see sense and take some action. My situation is. I live with my girlfriend, I do not work, however she does, she works full time in a pretty dam good job, I do not claim JSA either, so really the only income we have is what she earns, So she supports me in every way, I have worked for recruitment agencies but I would say about 6month out of the last 18 months I have worked, but at this moment in time I do not have a job nor do I claim benefit. Well in 3 weeks we are moving to a new home etc, I will then be making a JSA contribution based claim, I can not receive money as I have a partner that works. However I am going to go bankrupt. I have around 10k of debt and I do honestly believe bankruptcy is my only option and I would be happy doing so, just so I can have a fresh start. However I have a few questions that I can not seem to find online anywhere! maybe the answers are there but I am not finding them. 1 - I have been registered with that fraud prevention agency, Cfas or something like that. Would this prevent me in going bankrupt? It was caused by TMOBILE when I got a contract phone and just didn't pay the bill. STUPID I know but hey.. 2 - My partner is awesome in everyway, BUT she has never contributed towards my debts, and never will do, She is cool with paying all the bills and outing food on the table and making sure I have fags but the line is drawn when it comes to paying my debts that was made before we even met. WE have spoken about me going bankrupt, She thinks its a good idea. Would she HAVE to pay towards anything during my bankruptcy? She did make it clear because the debts are not hers and was made before we met she will never pay towards them, But she would be happy in still paying the bills and buying food etc. 3 - Would her credit be affected? The reason I ask this is because her credit is squeaky clean. And her credit being affected would seriously affect her job. So to clarify things up. My partner pays for food, pays the bills, BUT she does not give me cash, she just makes sure I am fed, warm and clothed. Any advice or answers please?

I imagine those in England could also exploit this loophole ! http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/100000-scots-to-cash-in-on-bedroom-tax-loophole.20243112

A NOTORIOUS car clamper who racially abused a man is the boss of a new parking enforcement firm in East Yorkshire. Despite having a criminal conviction, the Mail can reveal Peter Del Grosso could have access to the DVLA database, meaning he can find out the names and addresses of drivers he fines. Del Grosso, who is no longer clamping, became director of a new company, Auto Security Limited, three months ago – around the same time wheel-clamping was outlawed in England. Auto Security Ltd is a member of the British Parking Association (BPA), which would allow Del Grosso access to records kept by the DVLA. http://www.thisishullandeastriding.co.uk/Convicted-clamper-Del-Grosso-access-DVLA-database/story-18076684-detail/story.html

Hello Someone I know sadly does not work in a union he has been employed six years I have been asked to find out, he did not get his basic pay due to being off work sick with stress from personal issues but he did get a bonus and sick pay and they were aware of his depression. He was just wondering as they did not pay his basic pay would that be breach of contract? He made his employer aware he had depression in 2012 the pay was not paid in November 2011 He is asking should he miss employment claim just out of interest, if breach of contract, can he issue six year route at civil court He's hoping he will not but thought he would check if I can for him Thanks