Hi all Unfortunately, last sunday I had my first ever car accident and I accept that it was my fault. My car sustained some damage on the front i.e. bonnet, bumper and atleast a headlight. I have claimed on my policy. The insurance company have arranged their car repair partners to pick up the car for repairs. I wonder if I can get advice for following questions please?. 1. How do I know if the insurance company will repair the car or write it off? 2. If the insurance company decides to repair the car, do I have the right to ask for the cash in lieu settlement? I would prefer cash in lieu settlement so either I can just sell my car and top up the settlement cash with my own money and get a new car. Alternatively, i can get it repaired at a lower cost and then keep the remainder of the settlement money for next years increased insurance premium. Thanks

Hi there. I was involved in an accident that wasn't my fault last night. They reversed their car into their drive and didn't see me as I was driving past and swung out into my car. There was a witness who saw it all. I haven't informed my insurer yet but have already received a text message from the other party's insurer: 'Admiral ref.******* - We are sorry to hear you have been involved in an accident with our insured. We would like to help with any damage caused to save you claiming with your insurers, paying an excess and we will also supply a free replacement vehicle to suit your needs - Please call 03303335531 ext 25256. Please note SMS responses are unmonitored' Does this mean he has already admitted liability to his insurer? Is it safe to settle with his insurer and not inform mine so that I don't get stung with increased premiums? I have protected NCD. Do I HAVE to inform my insurer? Any help greatly apreciated

Hi all, This is my first post on the consumer forum. The error that Vodafone is continuously failing to correct causes me great distress and badly affects my health. I have tried to sort this issue personally through Vodafone Customer Service making endless phone calls but it got nowhere. I was going to take the mortgage in March but Vodafone INCORRECTLY has placed a Default Account on my Credit Rating which prevents me from getting a mortgage. I have written formal complaint to Vodafone Customer Service that was posted to them on 14/10/2015 but the letter was never acknowledged and I have never received a response from Vodafone. To cut the long story short: I had Vodafone account opened in September 2013. I have systematically paid monthly payments of £39.50 up until December 2014 (shown on my bank statements). I then accidentally stopped the Direct Debit to Vodafone and I had accumulated some unpaid months to them. I have paid all those unpaid months on 29.05.2015 plus all the future monthly payments up until September 2015 (I had minimum 2 years contract) in one payment of £380.40. The reason I paid all the future payments on that day is because I asked the Vodafone Customer Service to close my account during the same phone call on the 29.05.2015. 1. Vodafone has failed to acknowledge internally in their automated system my payment to them on 29.05.2015 of £380.40 2. Due to Vodafone failing to acknowledge my payment they employed the Debt Collection Agency to retrieve the payment from me and more importantly they incorrectly put a default account on my Credit File in August 2015. I'm in the process of applying for the mortgage and imagine what impact this incorrect Vodafone default account has on my chances of being approved. 3. After the Debt Agency started to chase me for the payment I have brought a proof of the missing payment to the Vodafone store first in August 2015 and then I was asked to do that again in September 2015 and the store manager made a note on my Vodafone account about witnessing the payment. I then had spoken straight away to Vodafone customer service on the phone and they said that they will be processing a Missing Payment Form and once done the information of payment clearance will be passed on to the Debt Agency and my Credit File will be cleared. I note that this was done in September 2015. 4. After giving 7 working days (in September 2015) for the Missing Payment Form being processed I have spoken to Debt Collection agency and they said that they still haven't received any instructions from Vodafone to close the issue. I have spoken to Vodafone Customer Service again and they again confirmed that they have submitted Missing Payment Form. I have spoken to the Debt Collection agency a week later and they said the issue has been put on hold for further clarification. I think they realised that I don't owe the money to Vodafone because I've sent to them the copy of my bank statement but they were not receiving instructions from Vodafone to close the issue of this debt. 5. I now checked my Credit File for the first time on 23.02.2016 as I'm just about to apply for the mortgage and it still shows Default Vodafone Account! Bearing in mind that Vodafone confirmed processing Missing Payment Form back in September 2015 they had 4 months to clear my Credit File from the default account, however, this still hasn't been done. 6. I have called to Vodafone again yesterday (23.02.2016) about the issue. Vodafone Customer Service yet again acknowledged over the phone the note from Vodafone store manager on my file made in September 2015 about witnessing the evidence of payment. They said that they had submitted the Missing Payment Form AGAIN and he said it will take 3 (three) months! to clear my Credit File from default. But I was reassured previously by Vodafone Customer Service that the Missing Payment Form on that payment was processed back in September 2015 and they had 4 months since then to clear the Credit File but this hasn't been done! (I mentioned this to Customer Service). How can I allow another 3 months of empty promises to find out in May 2016 that nothing has been done. I have read on the Internet an Experian expert saying that changes to the Credit File can be done overnight. The house prices are rising every month and I have been waiting since September 2015 for Vodafone to clear my Credit File from the default account that they had put in their error. I have no idea what to do anymore and who to speak to about resolving the issue and clearing my Credit File from the wrong default. Vodafone is promising to clear the error since September 2015. Since September 2015 they endlessly saying to me that the Missing Payment Form has been submitted and that I should wait for the Credit File to be cleared of the default. I'm worried that Vodafone will incorrectly make changes to the Credit File simply by showing that I have paid the default money. But I need the fact of default removed from my Credit File because all of the due payments were made by me in May 2015. The default was put incorrectly in August 2015 when I in fact didn't owe any money to Vodafone by then. I'm also worried that Vodafone will reactivate my account once they acknowledge the missing payment when in fact I have asked to close my account in May 2015 and paid all the due payments then. I've asked the Vodafone Customer Service many times to send me the letter confirming that my account has been closed in May 2015 but they have never sent it to me. Any advice on how to resolve the issue with removing the Default Account History from my Credit File and getting the Vodafone to confirm that my account has been closed in May 2015 would be greatly appreciated. Kind regards, Natalya

Hi, just looking for a view from an outsider! Purchased a used renault megane cabriolet on a 56 plate in april 12. Within days it was obvious there was an entry point for water getting in from roof. Informed retailer, eventually got it booked in for repair after much wrangling, to replace the seals at their cost. Car came back to us with 3 points of entry water so we deemed a failed repair. Also reported to retailer within a few weeks of purchase there was a knocking noise from the steering when on full lock/going round tight corners, again it was looked at by their service department and deemed to be 'nothing wrong with it' and their mechanic accused us of driving the car without the key in the ignition was the reason for the noise, just for the record we dont drive without the key card in anyway. No repairs/action by them. The car has been back and forth to the garage trying to rectify these matters with no success. We are pushing they are just pushing back. It was also very inconvenient to have to keep taking the car in when they could never tell us how long they would have the car for (I am a support worker and my husband works in sales and travels alot, we also car share this vehicle so time is always tight) So eventually this April it was MOT time, and lo and behold it failed and we are told its the strut top mounts (also told this is probably what the knocking noise has been) which as i said earlier has been there since day one. Took the failed mot and the car and parked it on the retailers forecourt, asked them what they intended to do to rectify faults, they said they would give it an MOT - it failed on CV joints, and denied anything wrong with strut top mount from independant MOT garage. The retailer offered to investigate(in my book an admission of guilt they knew it was goosed when they sold it) but after saying we also wanted the roof repaired (again) and that we wanted the warranty money back in full (seperate payment) as we would never entrust them to make use of it therefore rendering it useless, they withdrew their offer to fix the car at all and told us to come and remove it from their premises. We have contacted trading standards and have a case open with them, we also contacted barclay partner finance that financed the car and told them we are holding them jointly responsible for the car faults. The retailer told Barclays a pack of lies in their response back to them saying they had carried out work for the knocking noise, news to us! Anyway, I know we are going to have to pull out the cash for the strut top, and take that on the chin, also 4 new tyres as a result of uneven wear due to the fault. But we are going to press ahead for the roof repair and the warranty money back with small claims if need be as negotiations have now broken down with the retailer. Oh forgot to mention the retailer offered us 500 cash, surrender the warranty and not have the car fixed with them - which we declined to accept. Any advice please, i fear we are flogging a dead horse and am not well versed with county court etc, but the retailers actions seem very shady indeed and give me a glimmer of hope they are guilty! We really cant afford to have the roof repaired ourselves after paying for the other repairs (650 coins) and would need the warranty money back to get it done. The retailer is citing time lapsed to wriggle out of liability, and i have to admit it has dragged out, but not just down to us not being able to take time off work, also with them arguing over everything and having to fight tooth and nail just to get them to check stuff, then another trip back to get the so called reapir done!Thanks in advance

I purchased a £400 tablet in November. And it's since developed several faults. They are. Tablet Screen is becoming unresponsive for 20-30 minute's at a time. The tablet is becoming incredibly hot. A system is popping up when the tablet is not in use (I only notice the error when i go to unlock it sometimes) The error is ''Unfortunately the UI has stopped working'' - Causing the tablet to crash. I have the receipt. Can i take this product back to Argos? And if so what can they do for me? As I'm a student this is what i use to make note's and research with whilst in class. So i can't really be without it. I don't want another one as I did some research last night when the screen stopped working , and it seems other people are having the same problems.

I was given an iPhone as a present at Christmas, it was not new it was first bought in Oct 2013. It has developed a fault, and Apple have checked it and I have a written report from them stating it has an inherent fault, but they are refusing to replace it under consumer law (6 years from new) because they say as manufacturer they are not liable to replace the phone, as the contract is with the original retailer (Vodafone) I have contacted Vodafone and because I was not the original purchaser their contract is with them not me, and they too will not repair or replace my phone. Is my claim dead in the water or am I being fobbed off??????

I received an unexpected later from my insurance telling me I should pay £525.23 (after my policy had been cancelled). I rang them up to ask what this figure was for, being told that my claim I had put before was because I was at fault. ??!! I had not been made aware of this before, neither is this in the handbook policy. Please help!!!! I thought insurance is there so it covers you up in case of an accident, whether your fault or not!! I am with only young drivers. thank you.

Hello all. I bought a refurbished Panasonic plasma direct from Panasonic ebay with 12mths warranty. 16 mths in it has developed a fault I've sent it to a Pansonic approved repair centre at a cost of £300. The set was also calibrated and this will now have to be repeated as the main board has been replaced and all setting lost. Then I wondered what my SOGA rights were and found this: http://www.theguardian.com/money/2006/mar/25/consumernews.howtocomplain Which states "The act says goods must last a reasonable time - and that can be anything up to six years from the date of purchase." I don't consider 16 mths reasonable for a flagship TV - however I'd like a 2nd opinion? and does it matter it's a refurb? I plan to write to Panasonic and ask for a refund of the repair plus cost of calibration - are there any templates you guys could suggest using? Thanks as always, Dunnie1

Hi all, I got hit from behind and was without a Taxi for a week before a rental was supplied. I am trying to claim for what I have lost. Initially I was told that the previous 13 weeks earnings from the company sheets would be sufficient. I gave them those and now they want tax returns and bank statements. I have explained that two taxi companies merged a year ago and the earnings have increased and the figures on previous tax returns would leave me out of pocket and the bank statements do not reflect any earnings. This is because a lot of the income is cash and doesn`t reach the bank(used for bills etc) Only the account work which is paid by cheque goes into the account. I am simply trying to claim the actual loss at the time of the accident. Being a 3 month old car, I wasn`t happy at it being smashed but certainly don`t want to lose out over it. The taxi company is the only real proof of earnings and those sheets I have already sent them. Where do I stand please? With thanks in advance.

Hello, I may need some guidance please. Last Wednesday I was travelling home from work, came off an A road onto a slip road which leads to a roundabout. There was a queue of traffic waiting to enter the roundabout. I joined the queue and was stationary when a vehicle behind me failed to stop and ran into the back of my car with quite some speed. I was propelled forward and almost hit the car in front of me., luckily there was no impact as my car came to a stop before hitting them. The guy who hit me got out of his car and stated he was sorry and accepts full responsibility. He gave me his name and an insurance company but stated he had no ID and no insurance documents on him, he said he didn't need any details from me as he accepted full responsibility. I took a photo of his car and registration plate with my mobile. He apologized and drove off, almost causing a second accident by nearly missing a van that came travelling up the slip road. My car has considerable damage to the back, the bumper is cracked, the rear passenger side wing is coming off, the number plate and number plate light are broken, the boot hatch is dented and I cannot open the boot anymore. I have neck and shoulder injuries and now have got a tinnitus in both ears, the doctor hopes it should settle again over time and is a whiplash type neck injury which can also cause the ringing in both ears. I have TPFT cover on my car and phoned my insurers to start the claim, when I gave them the details of the other car it came back as uninsured, the details he gave me were false. They said they couldn't help me any further but going by the damages described they thought for insurance purpose my car would be a total loss. (10 year old Ford KA). I since got an estimate from a local repair garage for £300.- to fix it though (the same garage I originally bought the car from and the guy said he would do me a deal as I think he felt sorry for me to be honest, so he said he'd do it for £300.-) I also reported it to the police who gave me details of the MIB, I spoke to them and downloaded a claim form which I have filed out and returned today. Ha anybody got some experience what is happening next and what I can expect to be the outcome ?

Ok, so first of all please feel free to re-direct this post of in the wrong place. I am relating this to the new consumer rights acts 2015 and how this may be used We bought a new car in a private sale at the weekend, the car was described though an advert we still have a copy of. We took the vehicle for a test drive, though very busy so only had a chance to drove a few miles and all appeared in order, we paid cash for the purchase £7500 and the we have a receipt, which just states for the sale of x registration etc. Once we got the vehicle to a garage for a fuel, it would not restart and then did with a big judder, but seemed ok, we got home dropped in the shopping when to move the car same problem. After speaking to the local toyota garage they believe without doing a full diagnostics which I will arrange for later this week that it likely to be a fuel pump problem, as hot starting only,and the cost is £1000s. So we emailed the seller, who said yes it did have a problem but never bother them, they also said took to local garage who said might be this or that (did not mention what a main dealer has said to us) but never got sorted. In any event it has a problem that was known to the seller that they did not disclose. Of course if this was a garage sale I would have more rights, but my question is, as the private seller has confirmed that there was a known fault but did not disclose this, I have challenged this my email but no response, do I have any protection at all. my email seIf so what are the next steps, what are the options?

Hi all I would welcome some advice on this please. In September, I upgraded my phone with T Mobile and entered into another 18 month contract. Had a nightmare with the first handset that 2 T Mobile stores were not interested in despite quoting the usual sale of goods act etc. and me taking the handset back on the 10th day after having received it. Eventually, Customer Services on 150 relented and replaced it as a swap out the next day. I got round to reading the manual last weekend to see what exciting things I was missing out on and I decided to download some new screensavers to make the phone a bit more "funky." I then discovered that despite changing all the settings that the screensaver would never activate. The phone display switches over to power save mode, i.e. goes blank instead of displaying the screensaver. I undertook some research into the issue on both T-Mobile's user forums and Nokia's own support discussion forums and it turns out that this is a known software bug in the N79 handset. It also appears that the manufacturer knows about it but has failed to fix it in subsequent firmware releases. It is also unlikely that Nokia will now release any further firmware for the handset as technically, or rather in the technical world, it is now quite an "outdated model." I have emailed T Mobile Customer Relations about this and they have contacted me to say that if the manufacturer is not going to fix it there is nothing that can be done. I however am not happy with this. Surely the goods are not functioning "as described," i.e. the manual states that you can change the screensaver and although you can, the end result is that it doesn't work. I know that a non-functioning screensaver is not a life or death situation i.e. the phone makes calls, sends texts, browses the web but am I the only consumer that is getting a bit sick and tired of companies that earn millions of pounds from their customers getting away with everything? At the end of the day, my contract is subsidising the cost of the handset in a large capacity. If I had purchased this phone directly, it would have cost me a few hundred pounds at least. The crux of it is that I used Nokia phones for years previously and every handset I have had has always had "some problem" of one thing or another. Back around 2003, I had Orange replace 15 handsets, one after the other and each one exhibited the same problem as the last. It was a nightmare. I thought that 6 or so years later, with the advancement in technology that Nokia may have improved it's standards and the first phone I pick up in this 7 year period manufactured by them exhibits yet another fault. I have contacted Nokia, although I am under the impression that it is not down to them to sort the problem out and they have suggested that I send the phone "for repair," which judging by other users on their support forums, does not resolve the problem anyway and just leaves you without a phone for 2 weeks. I was wondering if I could glean some opinions please ? Am I right that the phone is not "functioning as described" and therefore breaches the sale goods act ? Thanks very much J

I bought a TV 12 months and 3 weeks ago. Since buying it I had an intermittent problem with the screen going off for about 10 seconds then on again. I eliminated various other pieces of equipment over time then reported it to the manufacturer about 4 months into their warranty. After following their trouble shooting procedure they accepted it was faulty and arranged an engineer repair. When the engineer rang to arrange repair and get details I was away (this was around Christmas). During the discussion I told him I was unsure how to reproduce the issue since it happened intermittently. He said he would leave the case open for the time being. The TV is not my main set so I use it very occasionally. I forgot about the problem until more recently when I was trying to use it again and the same fault occurred. I emailed the manufacturer back with my reference number but they now refuse to repair because it is 3 weeks out of warranty. I realise I could approach the retailer but I feel like the manufacturer is using a technicality to escape from an issue they have already accepted as theirs and promised to repair onsite. It is a lot of hassle for me to transport the TV back to the retailer for a repair and they do not have the original report logged, which the manufacturer does. Can anyone please advise or tell me where I stand legally?

late last year I won on the wheel of fortune in the life of leisure game at mecca bingo.com it came up congratulations you have won £10.000 a month for 12 months and your first instalment has been paid into your account ! I was gob smacked and thought I was seeing things , but there in my account was £10,000. I rang mecca bingo to see how my other payments would be made , immediately the game was removed from the site and they were confused by what I was telling them as they stated "they do not pay prizes in instalments". after several phone calls , they even asked me what I wanted to resolve ? I obviously said my £110,000 and they had to speak with the game makers Ash Gaming who are American based I believe and who it seemed had given Mecca a version of the game with this instalment prize , after a few days of phone calls they came back stating technical error and added another £1000 to my account for the inconvenience and phone calls, I explained I was not happy with their response and was referred to alder hay gaming commission who just sent me an email saying I was lucky to get the £1000 as all they needed to pay me was the cost of my bet back as technical error ! I argued again this was not a technical error this was purely a part of the game Mecca had on their website. Due to financial problems , my gambling etc being a huge problem for my family I never took this any further or told anyone till recently and have been advised that I should have challenged Mecca bingo.com and Ash gaming as the game has never been put back on the site and clearly was not a technical error please can someone help and advise if and how I would go about challenging this , do I need a solicitor , I cannot really afford one unless had a good chance of getting the money I won .

Hi All, On monday i was on the way to work and i was hit by another car from behind. I was following a car down the highstreet that stopped at a zebra crossing. I pulled up behind it waiting for people to cross. All of a sudden i didnt know what hit me! I was hit very violently from behind. Not sure if i blacked out but felt very disorientated. Got out of the car in shock and legs gave way. I think i hit my head on the steering wheel quite hard- airbag didnt go off. A girl rushed over to me very apologetic, saying that she was adjusting her glasses and hadnt seen me. She said it was all her fault and had hit me at full speed not breaking at all. She had hit me so hard i was pushed into the car in front. The car in front appeared to have no damage, but my car looks like a writeoff with extensive damage to the back and front. A passerby called an ambulance and the police arrived. I was checked over by the paramedics and despite developing aches and pains was deemed to be ok and told to see a doctor. I was interviewed by the police that confirmed the girl had already admitted liabilty and was probably speeding. I gave a statement and recovered my car and went into work. Now, i called my insurance company who were very unhelpful. |The first call the girl answering the phone told me she was passing me over to her colleague (that turned out to be an accident management company). The second call i was told that if i claimed i would have to pay my excess (£500), my car would be valued at trade (£600) and my premiums would go up. I need a hire car to get into work, cant afford to rent one myself, but dont want to end up in the accident management company trap of being given a credit hire car at a ridiculous daily rate that the third company isurance wont pay for. And a settlement cheque that is way below the market value of my car. Any advice?

Hi everyone, my dad recently had a problem with his Toyota Urban Cruiser 4WD Diesel. The vehicle is four years old has been serviced all its life (He bought it from new) at a Toyota garage. The vehicle has only done just over 20K He has recently had problems getting the vehicle into gear so he took it to our local Wolverhampton Toyota Dealer Charles Clark Toyota. They diagnosed the problem to be the clutch. They quoted £1000 to replace the clutch (Original) or approx £800 for a none Toyota one I find this rather odd a Toyota dealer offering none Toyota parts. The clutch on the vehicle was previously replaced at about 10K due to a major problem with the vehicle apparently Toyota only cover the clutches for 2 year so my Dad had only done 10k miles on this one. This one was just over the 2 year mark. My dad mentioned that he was getting a bit tired of the vehicle to which the dealer suddenly stated that a Hybrid would be a good idea as no clutch. My Dad and myself find this attitude rather bad basically it was your car is buggered tell you what we can sell you a new Priusfor £22K. They introduced him to the sales manager gave some story about how parents have them and love them etc. To cut a long story short my Dad left it and contacted A1 Clutches in Wolverhampton. When he took it to A1 Clutches the said that it might be the clutch but it could be the flywheel this part would have been covered under the Toyota warranty. Unfortunately my dad went ahead with the repair and it did turn out to be the flywheel. He contacted Charles Clark who were basically not interested they said that they needed to do the work and replace it with a proper Toyota part apparently A1 did replace it with a clutch from the same manufacturer. They stated that the teeth were worn on the fly wheel. He went to A1 as they quoted £650 for the clutch. The repair has now cost him over £1k. My Dad has trouble walking a heart condition and is undergoing treatment for cancer at the moment his vehicle is absolutely vital to get him to the hospital hence his haste at getting the vehicle sorted out. I find Charles Clark Wolverhampton attitude to be disgusting, the vehicle obviously had serious design/manufacturing faults a clutch does not fail after 10k and a fly wheel after 20k. The vehicle has a dual Mass flywheel which causes real issues I believe. How can a Toyota dealer offer none Toyota parts on a vehicle that is still under a Toyota Warranty also??? There attitude by trying to wash their hands of the problem and sell my dad another vehicle is also very bad. Should we contact Toyota and state our displeasure with the dealer or just go for the dealer with the sale of good act? Thanks

Hi All My partner was involved in a road traffic accident in March 2013. It seems an obvious case where the other driver was at fault, yet the insurers have just decided that liability cannot be proved so have recommended a 50/50 settlement. These photos that show the approach to the junction where the accident happened: http://s511.photobucket.com/user/rk1974/library/Road%20Photographs pictures 1-3 show my partner's approach to the junction (heading north), picture 4 shows the other driver's approach (heading south). Here's what happended: My partner was driving on the road shown above, on the right hand (inside) lane, driving northbound. She noticed the light was green so proceeded throught the junction. In a split second she noticed another car pulling in front of her, but it was too late, the next thing she remembers is her head hitting the air bag. The other driver was coming from the other direction (southbound) and had made a right turn attempting to cut across two lanes of oncoming traffic. She hit the right-side of my partner's car at the front, the other driver suffered damage to the front of her car. The cars rested on the road and blocked the northbound traffic (in photos 1-3, on the left side of the road). Given the damage caused to both vehicles, where they ended up on the road and the laws of motion, this situation could only have been caused by the other driver driving into my partner's car. Now I thought in these cases the standard response was to find the other driver at fault since she caused the accident by driving into a flow of oncoming traffic? The police were called to the scene and the drivers were helped from their cars. My partner remembers a bus was in the left lane travelling in the same direction as she was when the accident happened. She was told by the police the bus driver reported the accident. My partner also remembers an off duty police officer arrived at the scene immediately and checked her condition. The police later contacted my partner to say the other driver was given a formal warning about her driving. The other driver claimed she was not liable and claimed she was stationary when the accident happened. We thought this was laughable and simply a standard case of not admitting liability until all the facts were evident. If you look at photo 4: http://s511.photobucket.com/user/rk1974/media/Road%20Photographs/road4_reverse_zpsb820d3a9.png.html?sort=4&o=3 the other driver could not have been stationary. To be in a safe position she would have to be in the right lane on her side of the road waiting for the filter light to turn green. Even if she had pulled out ready to turn you can see that there is plenty of space just left of the box junction for her to have been in a safe position that does not obstruct the oncoming traffic. Given the positions the cars rested in, if she was actually stationary her car would have to be positioned sideways (she would have had to been static in the box junction with cars oncoming!) and my partner would have had to swerved left then back to the right to cause the damage to the cars! The insurance companies have determined as the police warned rather than prosecuted the other driver liability is not certain. My partner was asked by the police what course of action she recommended. As she thought the other driver would suffer enough financially if she was found liable, she recommended a warning. If my partner recommended a prosecution would this have influenced the police's decision? The insurance company are also claiming there were no witnesses. This is something we will investigate further by contacting the police for copies of statements and Transport for London for the bus driver's testimony. CCTV cameras were also not in use at the time of the accident. Can we also request a detailed breakdown of the other driver's counter-claim as what we have been told so far seems frivolous? And a full breakdown of how the insurers reached their decision (Data Protection Act - Subject Access Request)? My partner's insurance company wrote to her to say that liability cannot be determined. It could be in court, but they recommend against that. So they've decided it's a 50/50. Thanks if you've taken the time to read all of this, any help in this matter would be greatly appreciated. Cheers, P.

Hi all, I recently gained employment with SKY in a retail store position, part of the application process was to give my consent, to what i thought was basic disclosure (disclosure Scotland) I was sucessful with my job applicatrion and was offered a formal contract of employement, wich i accepted. I had to travel to luton for a 2 week residential induction course, fully paid and my official start date of my employment was 08/06/2015. I was 3 days into my course and on the afternoon of of the 10/06/2015, just before the class of 11 were leaving for lunch i was pulled aside and asked to come into the office. In the office i was summarily dismissed for a couple of convictions that happened in 1993 showing on my CRB, im 40 years old, these happened when i was a foolish 18 year old, i got caught in a stolen car and got 6 months imprisonment for theft and taking vehicle without owners consent. This was the last time i got into any kind of trouble and i like to see myself as a conributing member of sociaty with a family and even a full clean driving license. Ive held previous posts that required a CRB, ive worked for Virgin Media, British Gas and as a load engineer, british gas and Virgin were sales roles, all the Basdic disclosures came back clear. so i only asume Sky performed a Standard or enhanced disclosure. I tried to explain to the Manager of Sky that i believed it was my right not to disclose this conviction as it was spent for a number of years, i was just dismissed out right and wasnt even given the opurtunity to appeal. Of course i was very upset, i felt humilited, ashamed and has left me in deep financial crisis. I contacted My area manager, i also phoned the HR department voicing my concerns. Sky admitted fault once there legal team looked at it and offered my position back. I told them i didnt want to work for them and refused, as i felt it could harm future prospects of promotion and left doubts in my mind, i wouldnt feel comfortable, i felt ashamed and embarrased that my employers knew and it just wouldnt feel right to work for them. My question is this, my understanding is, is that they broke the law by performing a Standard or enhanced disclosure as its just a retail job and doesnt come under the exempt list according to the rehabilitation act 1974, it also invaded my privacy, and its also left me up the creek with no paddle financially aswel as the emotional impact. It was a long winded requiment process and all in all it was 2 months from applying to starting, during that time i declined other offers of employment as i wanted to work for Sky for ages and was really exited about the job. I contacted ACAS but they cant do anything, does anybody know who i can go to, as i would really like to claim compensation, like ive said, me and my family are really struggling financially at the moment so i cant afford a solicitor, i was only working there for about 3 days so have no rights concerning employment laws, is there anything i can do? Please Help! Thank you.

Through no fault of my own a lorry drove into me on a roundabout tearing off half my back bumper, the asssesor came round and stated that considering the age of my peugeot 206 it would most likely be irrepairable, yet i know the only thing wrong with the car is the damage caused by the accident as have spent time and money making it a decent car. I was shocked when ringing up hastings to hear that when the report from the assessor does come back and if it is deemed a right off i will be offered money for the value of my car but not be allowed the car back? In no writing in the policy does it say this, i also asked if id be allowed the money for repairs from the market value-scrap value (cash in lieu) and was told this was also not an option! What is the point in insurance when the only money i can get is by letting them take my car away or voiding the claim totally, recovering my car and paying for my own repairs even though the accident was entirely not my fault! James

Hi all, and I thank you in advance of all advice given to me with a problem I have had with a repair I had done at a local Citroen Main Dealer Garage. I owned a Citroen C4 (59 plate), bought in August 2013. 3 month warranty as it was 2nd hand, even thought I thought I had 3 year cover - that's another story. I developed a faul with the car in late April 2014 and on th 7th of May took the Car to my local Citroen garage to sort out. They did a VHC - Vehicle Health Check/Diagnostics, and informed me that I needed a new EGR valve. I asked if it was a straightforward job, and the reply I received was that I'd be "in and out" within 2 hours. Turned up the next day at 8 am, and was to to come back at 10am. The car was operational, and drive-able at this point. I took it in as the Engine Management light came on and, it sometimes would "miss". I was quoted £305.48 for parts and labour (£146.65 in the end). I came back at 10am, and waited, and waited, and waited. 2pm. I get asked to have a chat with the Manager. They said that after installing the EGR valve, they took it on a test run, and, for some reason, the car developed a mind of its own and continued accelerating by itself. They advised me that they needed some more time to find out what had happened. They offered me a courtesy car, which I had no choice but to take. Almost daily for almost a week I had to phone for an update. At no point did they bother try calling myself. Then they asked if I could come down to the garage on the 14th of May. The manager said that they weren't too sure what was wrong with the car, it could be an ECU replacement, but they weren't sure or the complete wiring loom. I asked if they could try the ECU? He stated, that they wouldnt be able to do so unless they charged me £450-£650 plus vat and labour. I said that was unfair, as the problem wasn't the ECU when I brought it in. He said, he couldn't guarantee that it even was the ECU and it was a chance I would have to take. If that didn't work, then the wiring loom would have to be replaced, and I was lookng at anything between £2300 to £4500 for that job. The car cost me £6k and had only done less thatn 50,000 miles. He said I could leave the car in their storage yard until I could get the money together, I told him I was exceptionally unhappy with the service and believed that this had arisen from whatever work they had carried out. I had no choice but to take the car home. It limped home and became unroadworthy or safe to drive since that date. Move forward a few months later, the manager never got back to me. I made a complain in writing. No response. I become ill, lose my job, miss payments on the car, and it gets repossessed. In the meantime I speak to their Head office, who said the new Manager would get in touch. I speak to him and he stated his boss is away for 2 weeks and he will get back to me as soon as he gets back with a resolution. 1 month goes by and I try calling again. Left a message with their reception. I miss his call, but he leaves a voicemail, which I still have a recording of. In the voicemail it states how apologetic he is for not getting back to me etc. I have a phone call the next day from him. He says that the only thing they could do was to bring the car in and "have another look at it maybe" - I explained to him the situation, he said that there was nothing he could really do then. I asked for a full refund, he said that he wasn't in a position to give me a refund. And here I am. I believe that under Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 I have a good case of getting a refund from Citroen. But I have no idea how to go about it correctly. I am happy to take this all the way if I have to, and I am even contemplating contacting the car dealer who sole me the car under the the same Act maybe? I now owe a nightmare Motorfinance company thousands, completely out of pocket, had no car, and am beyond stressed, which doesn't help my illness. Can you please assist? I want to put up a fight and get my money back from these pariahs. Thanks

Hi guys, 14 months ago I was involved in an accident. Brief details are these - I was driving along a 30mph road at 30mph. Ahead of me was a car parked half-on, half-off the pavement, Directly in front of this car was the entrance to the other drivers driveway. As I passed the parked car, the other driver pulled out of his driveway. Actually he didnt just pull out but more flew out and hit the side of my vehicle with such force that it pushed me to the other side of the road and totally wrecked the front of his car ( bits all over the road). He came out so fast that once he had hit me it took him around 50yds to stop his car. Everyone stayed at the scene for approximately an hour. I phoned the police but as no-one was injured they wouldnt attend. The other driver and his partner (who was in the car with him) initially were quite apologetic and offered to go back into their home and get his insurance details. This offer lasted around 10 minutes until they had a change of heart and became hostile, accusing me of speeding, possible drink driving, and then pulling into the side of the road too quickly, this last accusation being a bit foolhardy as it was obvious I was in the middle of the road overtaking the parked car! A week or so later I received the claim pack from my insurers and sent them back with relevant statements, drawings etc. I should also add that I phoned them on the day of the accident, explained how the accident occured and was given a courtesy car the very next day. Ive since learned that the other driver was refused one. A year or so later, having heard nothing else from my insurer, I rang them to discover that they had considered the accident to be 100% no fault in my favour, BUT there was an outstanding personal injury claim from the other parties. Not bad seeing as they spent around 1 hour after the accident walking up and down the street between their car and home, making the above speculative accusations, and phoning their friends who then kept arriving and offering moral support to them! So can anyone tell me could my insurers pay this claim out seeing as they have already decided I was totally blameless? I ask because Ive read quite a few post on CAG about how innocent parties have discovered that claims have been paid out well after an event and that they didnt know about it and that this could affect their future premiums. I should also add that my car was repaired even though it was substantially side-damaged as it was a one year old DS3 and carried some value. The other car was a 51 plate Polo and was written off. Ive also since learned that the other driver considered this to be a "rare" and "classic" car. Apparently his insurers have told my insurers this! Stretching the imagination a bit!! Sorry for the long post guys, but best to give you everything I can. Thanks all.

I normally lurk around the debt forums and so not sure if this is to place to post, if not my apologies and perhaps a mod could move. Would like some advice about my rights in connection with a fault with an Audi A6 2006 I have recently purchased from Quicks (now Evans Halshaw) When I test drove the vehicle I noticed the radio would not switch off or mute and had to be silenced using the rotary volume control, however, given the dash of the car is like an aeroplane cockpit I assumed I was doing something wrong and been otherwise happy with the vehicle I purchased it for cash price near enough £7,000. Having used the car for 3 or 4 days and reading the handbook it became obvious that the on/off/mute button for the radio was in fact not working, I telephoned the dealer and made arrangements to return the vehicle for them to look at. Having checked the vehicle over I was informed that a) the radio fitted to the car does not turn off and the fact that the mute function does not work is irrelevant as the sound can be turned down using the rotary control! Now I have a problem with this on 2 counts firstly having taken the vehicle to an Audi main dealer the claim that the radio does not switch off is a lie and secondly having just handed over 7 grand of my hard earned for a car if it is fitted with a mute switch I expect it to work. Additionally I am annoyed by the attitude of the dealer which has changed from this vehicle is an outstanding example hence the top end asking price to more or less what do you expect from a 2006 car. I would be grateful for any advice for instance if I pursue this further is it possible that a court would consider the dealers claim correct i.e. it is a relatively minor fault which I should expect on a car of that age? Many thanks Nosnibor

I have just found this website while browsing, so I have signed up. This, my first post, is both to seek advice and, perhaps, to alert others to the problem I am facing. It does not concern a utility company as such, but the manufacturer/supplier of energy equipment - in this case Viessmann, a well-respected company who make gas, solar and other systems for domestic hot water (DHW) and central heating (CH). Having looked through the forums I am hoping that this is the right sub-forum in which to post: it seems that there are quite a few plumbing and heating experts who contribute to the discussions here. The essential details are as follows: In October 2010 (ie just over three years ago) we had our old, traditional system renewed/replaced. We had a Viessmann 343-F "tower unit" installed. This is a gas-fired condensing boiler, integrated with cylinder, pumps and solar water-heating circuit and controls, all packaged into one single box about the size of a domestic fridge. So as well as the mains gas, we have a panel of solar tubes on the roof which helps to heat the water. This tower unit stands on the floor of our utility room, in the corner, with all pipe-connections at the top. The system works superbly, is very efficient and has cut down our gas bills (since especially in sunny weather, the solar circuit heats most of our DHW needs). However...... several weeks ago we noticed a puddle (indeed a pool) of water on the floor around, beside and behind the boiler - or rather the tower unit. As it is located against the walls in the corner of the utility room there is very little visibility and vitrually no access beside or behind the unit - and of course it is immovable as it is plumbed-in and very heavy. We mopped up the apparent leak: it wasn't a pouring flood. But the puddle soon reappeared. There was much more liquid when the CH was on. With DHW only, there was still a leak, but noticeably less. There is no local Viessmann agent in our area, and the firm which installed our system had ceased trading and no longer exists. To cut a long story short, telephone discussion with Viessmann UK customer services and tech helpline, and eventually a call-out to a local plumber, suggested that our initial fear - that one of the CH pipes or joints behind the boiler unit leading to and from the radiators had sprung a leak - was mistaken. Rather the suspicion was that there was a condensate leak. This tallied with the evidence that there was more of a puddle when the CH was on (boiler running long and often) than when DHW only (boiler running much less). Now here is the problem.... and the warning. Further checking with the help of a friendly local plumber revealed (a) that there was no flow at all out of the condensate drain pipe, which was normally plumbed in to the waste outflow pipe under the sink, and which we disconnected to check. Also (b) so far as we could see by tracing that drain pipe back, it had not become disconnected from the boiler, and the joints and connections (with jubilee clips) along its length inside the tower unit were all sound. BUT.... more checking eventually turned up the cause of the problem. The condensate drain pipe is a flexible ribbed plastic tube, like a thin vacuum cleaner hose or some washing machine outflows. This tube had been wedged, or crushed, beween a internal copper pipe and the casing panel inside the tower unit, just under the boiler components and above the HW cylinder. When we removed it and looked closely, we discovered a small but significant split on the underside (invisible until the tube had been removed). The good news is that - having found the source of the leak - the immediate solution is to replace the tube. Simples! There is however some bad news. It is obvious that this split was not sudden or recent. The tube had evidently been wedged and squashed under the other pipe when the unit was originally assembled. The tube was actually held inplace by cable-ties. So the split had been there for many months, indeed possibly years. The really bad news is that all the components inside this tower unit casing are very tightly packed-in, so inspection is difficult; but we established that the condensate seeping from the split plastic tube had flowed down through a gap in the panels on to, and into, the spongy insulation jacket which completely encases the HW cylinder. This means two things. First, that the leak had been there for so long that the condensate had eventually saturated the whole of the insulation jacket, and then soaked into the floor immediately below the unit, the skirting boards and the base of the walls below. Only then, and when the flow was substantial, did it begin to "puddle" on the floor-tiles under and behind the unit. Second, (and any plumber reading this will be ahead of me!) the fact is that condensate is highly corrosive. So.... we have had a boiler/cylinder assembly inside this tower unit casing where for many months, and possibly years ever since the new unit was first installed, the cylinder and all its pipe-connections have been sitting (so to speak) immersed and saturated completely in corrosive acidic condensate which was being constantly replenished. It is of course impossible to inspect, as all this is inside the moulded insulation jacket. Although condensate only flows when the boiler is running, I had assumed the discharge would only be a matter of a few cupfuls. Since the immediate short term repair of fitting a new drain tube, I have been staggered to observe that the boiler discharges around 5-6 litres per 24 hours. And the boiler has been running for over three years! I have reported all this (complete with photos) to Viessmann's service department, and made clear that I am looking to them to come up with an appropriate response - which to me means complete inspection, overhaul and replacement of all affected parts or (probably easier) replacement of the entire unit. Notwithstanding the fact that the unit was installed just over 3 years ago (the warranty is for 3 yrs) the evidence points clearly to a manufacturing/assembly fault or error, possibly a design flaw, and certainly a problem and a leak which has been present for many months at least (ie it arose well within the warranty period). I now await Viessmann's response. So in a way I am jumping the gun by posting this now in a forum. If Viessmann accepts responsibility and undertakes to replace the unit and make good the damage I shall be the first to applaud them. If however they don't, we could be in for a serious fight over liability and compensation. I, and I hope Viessmann, do not see that as in either of our interests. But on a contingency basis I am having to think about what that might involve. So, for anyone else who has or works on similar Viessmann units - check the condensate drain hose immediately and very carefully! For anyone who is a plumber - any comments on the nature and consequences of this problem? For anyone who has experience of claiming for a fault of this kind - any advice to offer if I have to go down that road?

Hi all - I'm in a bit of bind with my car so thought I'd ask your advice. Apologies if this isn't the right place to post this I haven't been here for a while! Basically a dealer had an ebay auction for a car and I won it. As the place was a 6 hour round trip I made the mistake of not viewing the car before hand. I also paid for it to be delivered so I didn't have to give up a precious weekend day with the kids to go and pick it up. It was delivered after a week, then the problems started... I noticed a crunch when putting the car into first gear. Being handy with a set of spanners decided I would replace everything possible to do with the clutch without removing the gearbox. Basically replacing the easy/minor bits (clutch master and slave cylinders) with genuine parts - to rule them out as being the cause of the problem. Unfortunately that didn't solve it and now by process of elimination it's looking like a major expense to fix it - most likely replacing the gearbox. As it was bought from a dealer over ebay do I have any options to return the car for a refund? Or have a shot myself in the foot by replacing parts (albeit with new genuine ones)? I paid for the car at the end of Feb, almost a calendar month ago. As an aside the car is covered in rust, far more than would be thought consistent with age. This wasn't mentioned either. The perils of buying anything unseen from ebay! Lesson learnt... if anyone can offer me some advice I'd really appreciate it. Thank you, Matt

Hi all. Back in December I moved house, our water supplier was Severn Trent. When we moved we retained Severn Trent as our supplier. A couple of days ago I checked my credit file, as I do once a month (checking for fraud etc...). When I did I found that there was now a CCJ on there from the start of March. After some investigating and calling the court I found that the claimant was Severn Trent and the amount was approx £350. I thought this was odd given that we're up to date with them (or so I though). I rang them to find out what on earth was going on and found out that when they were informed of my new address they set up a new account in my name for the new address whilst leaving the old account active at the old address. I set up a direct debit when we moved (cancelled the old one as I switched banks) and just assumed that the final bill for the old house would be taken care of by dd. as the old account was left active at the old address all the bills, reminders court papers blah blah blah was sent there, the bill covers the period up until the end of Feb, so at least 2 months until after I moved house and all the while I'm getting the bills for the new place thinking everything is hunky dory. because the court papers were never returned judgement has been issued in default and installments set at 50 a month staring in April. They say that something appears to have gone wrong (duh) and that they're investigating. I should apparently have a response this time next week. I would say this is down to them and would expect that they remove the ccj and let me clear a recalculated balance (minus court fees and charges for the period after I moved) ideally in reasonable instalments. The worst outcome I will accept is that the CCJ stands and I pay a recalculated balance (as above) immediately to have the CCJ set aside. I'm just wondering if anyone has ever been in a similar position and has any advice on dealing with them or could advise what a likely outcome of this whole mess would be. It all seems ridiculous to me and I quite frankly dont trust Severn Trent to behave reasonably or fairly in this scenario. thanks in advance for your advice