I own a long leasehold flat in a building containing 15 flats. My lease (and the lease of 13 other flat owners) states that we are each responsible for 7.1% of the service charge costs. We queried with our managing agent whether this made our leases defective since 15 x 7.1% would come to 106.5% and we are aware that if the total service charges collected at a development is greater than or less than 100%, this renders the leases defective. To our surprise, our managing agent informed us that one flat owner had noticed this anomaly a few years ago and had approached the freeholder to agree a lease variation which reduced his own service charge percentage to 0.6% - thereby reducing the total service charge collection to 100%. The annual service charges for our building are roughly 25K per annum. This means that 14 of us are having to pay £1775.00 each and one (sneaky) flat owner only pays £150.00! My questions are these: Is it legal for one flat owner’s service charge percentage to be so much lower than the rest of the flat owners? Should the freeholder have re-distributed the service charge percentages evenly so all 15 flats would pay the same service charge percentage?

Booked one night in the Ibis Hotel at London Docklands, £75 for two of us, no problems booking online was very easy. The other half went into crisis the evening before the trip to London, cancelled it on the day, early hours of the morning in fact, and expected to pay a small 'penalty' for the lateness of cancellation, sent them an email to that effect, and quick as a flash, the response was one of; ''Sorry, as you paid in advance there is no refund as stated in our T&C's....blah blah blah..'' OK it's not the end of the world, but their T&C's refer to French laws, and by any standards, would surely be an unfair term of contract? I'm wondering whether anyone has a view, or would like say whether they would fancy my chances on a visa debit chargeback?

Hi Despite notifying Lloyds that I was experiencing financial hardship they keep applying charges upon charges. Two months ago they charged o/d interest from the previous month which resulted in my account being 38pence o/d. Now its £174.00 o/d solely from charges and interest from the 38p. At the time I contacted Lloyds to explain that I wouldn't be able to credit the account until payday almost 3 weeks later and by then i would have accrued more charges so please could the 38pence be voided leaving my balance at nil but they replied that due to a previous good will gesture/charge being reversed they couln't do anything. Where do I go from here? Do I just accrue hundreds of pounds of charges on charges originating from -38p which was from a charge thanks

Hello all, I just joined this forum and I'm looking for advice on an issue where I really feel hard done by. Let me explain. Back in September 2014 my ex wanted a phone. We were out and at Carphone Warehouse she said she wanted a phone. However, at the time she didn't have her bank card with her, because the old one had expired and she was waiting for a replacement to come. Me being the gent I am decided to take out a contract in my name and gave my direct debit details. It wasa Vodafone contract. The man at the shop said that after 3 months, we can call Vodaphone and do a 1) transfer of direct debit and 2) transfer of account ownership. I said okay. Sadly the relationship ended pretty soon after that but for the first three month the direct debit was coming out of my account and she was putting money in my account. After three months there was a forced meeting where we called Vodafone at the same time and requested a complete transfer. Both direct debit and account were transferred from mine into her name (or so I thought). Fast forward to September 2016 and I got rejected for a mortage by a lender. I was a little baffled as to why so I logged onto creditscore and to my shock, it shows the Vodafone account from 2014 more than £800 in arrears. I called up Vodafone. I was angry. The account should never have been in my name. They told me that at time of transfer of account ownership they did a credit check on my ex and she failed it. So, the account bouced back to me. I was shocked. I was never told about this at all. As it turns out, my ex then cancelled the direct debit and didn't make any more payments. Problem is that account was in my name and I didn't even know. I wasn't called, e-mailed, written to. I thought after three months that account was no longer in my name. I wasn't using the phone, my ex was. The problem now is that my credit history shows major telecom arrears which I feel is really unfair. I disputed it and Vodafone told equifax that the account remained in my names so the credit history is correct. I'm livid because I feel this is not an accurate reflection of my payment history. I am struggling to buy a house now. Can you help?

I joined this forum after googling "parking disputes at Brockholes" (nr Preston.) I am not the first to raise this issue. Today (2nd September 2016) I have received a letter from Park with Ease (dated 24th August 2016 , Envelope unfranked so I cannot prove posting date) claiming I didn't pay my parking fees at Brockholes Country park on 9th August 2016 and demanding £50 fine (or £25 if I pay up quickly!!) Try googling 'disputes with carparking at Brockholes' and it is amazing how often this situation comes up. Brockholes don't accept responsibility for any of this - as they state on their web site... Brockholes have a vehicle recognition system in place. A sign advised you to pay on leaving the car park. I did so - paid the maximum £6 and had a conversation with strangers at the payment machine as to the expense of the fees. I have no evidence or proof that I paid. Parked on 9th August. - I don't dispute that I parked but I know I paid the maximum amount. .. what to do if I cannot prove I paid almost a month later? Park with Ease is apparetly registered with IPC and hence have the right to get my personal details from DVLA. Furious as I really cannot prove I paid -- what can I do?

Hi CAGGERS, please could someone give some advice for a friend (really!). He was travelling from Clapton to Liverpool Street. Used his contactless card to tap in, which worked (this was later verified with his bank; the amount was allocated/ringfenced). Tried to tap out at Liverpool Street, and his card wouldn't work. It isn't in pristine condition, is a bit scratched, but generally works, worked on the tap in, worked on a bus afterwards. He tried every single exit point in that array (?) of platforms 1-8, but none would register his card. The staff told him he would have to pay a penalty fare. They would not accept payment for the £2.30 fare. My friend became indignant, not aggressive, and argued the point; he showed them the cash in his wallet (not in a "look at me I'm rich" way, he's a working class lad) and asked if they really thought he would try to bunk a £2.30 fare. They asked him to pay the penalty fare, he refused and said he would contest it. He was sent a demand for payment, with a fee, which went into his "spam" folder; he replied with the circumstances and the information from his bank, which supported his story. A paper letter (the first) has arrived by post today, dated a week ago, and they are now demanding £135. An observation: Since the East London Lines to Chingford and others have come under London Overground, they have become extremely aggressive with penalty fares; it was possible, before, to pay the fare retrospectively if you genuinely hadn't tried to evade. I was given a penalty fare when I tapped in but didn't notice that it bleeped twice (I only had 1.70 on my oyster), not only that but the officer was very aggressive with me (I'm a woman) and threatened to call the police and have me arrested when I protested, without being rude, insulting etc. They seem to have the bar for the "attitude test" set very low indeed, we are paying customers when it comes to it, and difficulties with payment cards and Oyster cards could be sorted out in a non-punitive way. please could we have some advice on how to appeal the penalty fare and fees? Should he go to court, as he did tap in, and tried to tap out, several times, as witnessed by staff and caught on camera?

Good morning, I have found that my wife has taken two loans out with Car Cashpoint, one in 2012 and the second last year 2014. I have checked the agreements and Bill of sales and they appear all correct and registered. I have seen on here that the issuing of 2 bill of sales is legally not correct and maybe fraudulent. Can I ask why please? They did not clear the first account with the second loan just gave a top up.

A few days ago, I checked my credit file with Experian.co.uk and found out a CCJ filed against me by a company called Davinci Virtual UK Ltd (for £184). I used to live at a different address from 1st April 2010 to 3rd August 2011. From 4th August 2011 to now I have moved. I have not received any communication from Davinci Virtual UK Ltd or aware I had used their services. The CCJ relates to services used to May 2011 I was told. I wish to apply to set aside the judgement as I believe the company did not exist. I have checked with the Companies House records; there was no company named Davinci Virtual UK Ltd (address: 1 Lyric Square London WD6 0NB). I believe it is a [problem], a fraudulent way to extract money from the unaware public. The information from Google gave the impression that Davinci Virtual UK Ltd is affiliated with Davincivirtual.com. I checked with the latter and they deny they had any dealing with the UK company. I was told I have to pay the court fee of £255 to set aside the judgement. Is there another way round it without paying the £255? If I can find the company I would just pay the £184; but it does not appear to exist anymore. I just want to get rid of the CCJ on my credit file in the shortest possible time. It is affecting my credit worthiness.

Below is my letter of complaint to Hastingsdirect; ''Dear Customer Relations Department, I am writing to advise you of changes to my details. To explain in more detail I telephoned Hastingsdirect today with regards to a change of address. I was not informed by the call centre operator that it would incur a fee. I was only informed at the end of the call that I would be charged £42.88 for it. I immediately told him to cancel it as I wouldn't be able to afford the change for now, my car insurance is due for renewal next month. He refused and said I must pay the charge. He told me that a Manager will be in touch within 30mins, I waited for an hour and no one rang me. My complaint is about lack of information and misinformation. I would like you to Refund the charge of £42.88 due to be deducted from my account. If the change of address will incur additional charges or affect my policy in any way, I would appreciate it if you would let me know as soon as possible.'' I have just done some research online about Hastingsdirect and I am inundated with a host of complaints about them on this issue. I have tried to resolve it with the complaints department to no avail. I will be contacting the Ombudsman if this complaint is not amicably resolved. I will also be posting this to as many forums as possible. My main question is this: Is it fair to charge £42.88 for just a change of address?!

Foxtons is facing an £80m “class action” lawsuit that if successful could force the giant estate agency to pay back hundreds of pounds in fees and charges to every tenant who has rented a property from them. Michael Green, whose law firm CaseHub is behind the group action, has obtained legal opinions from senior barristers that Foxtons’ fees – such as a £420 adminstration charge, £300 for name changes and £165 for checking out a property – could be illegal under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999, and its successor the 2015 Consumer Rights Act. Green estimates that the real cost for administration and references should be around £55, and a renewal fee should be no more than £10. But if the claim is successful, Green says it will not just be tenants of Foxtons that will benefit, but millions more people as all letting agency fees charged to tenants could be challenged. In total, he estimates that tenants in England and Wales pay moe than £300m a year in fees to letting agents and could potentially claw back £2bn paid over the previous six years. https://www.theguardian.com/money/2016/jun/25/foxtons-fees-80m-lawsuit-tenants-legal-fight

Hi there I currently have an outstanding debt of £1889 on a vanquis credit card I thought there was a default registered to this card but my credit file shows not I have an arrangement to pay in place since July 2013 and have paid £40 on Time each month I have recently requested a F&F SETTLEMENT and they will accept £1000 but only on a partial basis which is no good to man nor beast as the debt will then be re sold They say it isn't possible but I have explained that if they write of the difference the account can be fully settled at £1000 I have had the card since 2005/6 and can't remember the last time I used it- the credit limit is 3k and ive no doubt the balance is made up of interest and charges Can someone give me any tips on leverage. I have other debts which I need to settle this year as I need to re mortgage Thanks in anticipation

Hi, I have a Home insurance policy with Premium Credit and the monthly premium is £21.12. This year there have been a number of failed direct debits on my account. Not all my fault as some were caused by Bank errors. For each failed direct debit £20.00 has been charged to my account plus a 'default notice'. This action is becoming expensive and has ruined my credit history. After reading the Consumer Rights Act 2015 Sections 61 to 76, I consider the £20 charge to be unfair for the late payment of an amount of £21.12 Is it worth an attempt to reclaim these unfair charges ? Thanks, JustRaider

Hi guys, I am posting today because, like Mike Parry, I wish to claim back unfair charges from Close Brothers Premium Finance. Mike in his case was dealing with them under their old trading name of Close Premium Finance. I have read the UTCCR regulations and I have also asked the defendant in several letters to provide a genuine pre-estimate of loss to which they have not; carving around this with all sorts of information about the terms of the contract in place. I am no stranger to small claims, having one recently for a reasonable sum of money, so I'm quite happy to pursue this. I am just wondering what ammo and resources I can gain from here. There are a series of charges dating back to I beleive May 14, so I know I am within the time-frame to claim. Also, any interest due, would it be applicable to each and every charge (i.e. Claimable from the date it was applied) or would it be applied to the total of all the charges. I know I need to represent this figure to the court Any other help, relating to or not to that of the case of Mike Parry, is heavily appreciated. Many thanks

Hi! I've just received a rejection letter from Santander, apropos a Principles store card dating back to the 1990s. I'm adamant the PPI attatched to this was mis-sold on a number of levels and have every intention of pursuing this – as far as court should it prove necessary. In the meantime, with it being some time since I've made any PPI claims I'm a little bit out of the loop and would appreciate any more information on where, exactly, we're at with regard to the Financial Conduct Authority's investigation into undisclosed commissions. I've done a good bit of Googling but can't find anything to suggest the FCA is set to reveal its position any time soon and, this being the case, hoped a fellow CAGer might be able to shed some more light on this - in particular, how the FCA's decision might potentially advantage my claim and when we might expect some kind of announcement from the FCA. Thanks in anticipation Fred_Funk

I may or may not be receiving an NIP in the post soon. But I wish to vent my spleen somewhat over the circumstances of two incidents within the last few days involving traffic lights. The first was at a flyover with a roundabout underneath. There were three sets of lights to pass through in order for me to proceed onto a slip road where traffic merges from a 30 MPH zone to a 50 MPH portion of the motorway. I passed through the first set of lights on green at 20-25 MPH. The second set of lights changed to amber as I was crossing from one side of the road onto the slip road only for me to be met by the red lights of a pedestrian crossing. Which turned from amber to red at the same time as the second (previous) set of lights. There was no delay between them. There was a small space before the third set of lights for approximately one car length to stop. Because I was in the process of accelerating onto the slip road I would have had to slam on the brakes to avoid passing through the lights on red. This seemed counter intuitive to what I would expect when driving onto a slip road. Regardless of what the law says regarding driving through red lights. I felt it was not a fair system and in fact dangerous. I reported this to TFL on their website (without giving them my details of course). I have been beating myself up about it since. I am not sure if there were cameras there or not and it caused me considerable anxiety. The second time was only yesterday. There is a dual carriageway with a 40 MPH limit. This particular set of lights is quite odious. It has a red light camera (I assume) and speed camera lines on the junction. It is a major road junction that allows turning of traffic onto a minor road. I approached it with some trepidation wondering what the best plan of attack was. Begin to slow in preparation for a red light or continue at just under 38 MPH. I made the decision to continue at speed and that was when the lights turned amber. I decided to continue at speed and accelerated ever so slightly. I do not believe I broke the speed limit. However I am unsure if I made it through in time for the light turning red. From my understanding there is no requirement to slow down when approaching traffic lights unless they have already begun changing to amber and you do not think you will be able to cross the junction in time. But I may need my mind refreshing on if the highway code says otherwise. Especially since this was a dual carriageway with a 'continuous' 40 MPH limit. Because this is faster than 30 MPH it requires more stopping distance and this concerns me. Especially since they appear to have placed a speed trap on the junction as well. If you are getting close to the lights at speed (remember I have not broken the speed limit) then it leaves you very little room to stop without slamming on the brakes. But if you are pushed to accelerate through the lights at amber this could place you at risk of being snapped on a speeding charge or possibly being hit on both a red light and a speeding charge. The whole thing appears a bit catch 22 and very suspect IMHO. I have been VERY aware of my driving with regards to traffic lights of late and every time I approach a set I get more cautious and 'driven' to distraction with regards to how they operate and how I should deal with them. I have been driving for over 30 years now and it's only in the last few years I have noticed these issues. I never used to have issue with passing through lights but in recent times it appears the odds are being ever more stacked against drivers to be pushed into 'breaking the law' so to speak. Despite what they keep telling us about it being in order to make things safer for both drivers and pedestrians. The odds are you will make that 'mistake' sooner or later. To me it smacks of both incompetence and a cash grab.

Over 180,000 customers of credit card firm NewDay, will be refunded over £4 million after the firm admitted it unfairly charged customers. NewDay provides a mixture of store cards and credit cards for the likes of Debenhams, House of Fraser, Topshop and Topman, as well as credit cards for the likes of Aqua and Marbles, which are typically used by those with a poor credit score. About 3% of customers are due redress of £20 each on average after the company found that default fees and other charges triggered additional charges If you're due a refund you don't need to take any action, as New Day will be writing to you directly over the next two to three months. http://www.moneywise.co.uk/news/2016-03-24/provider-behind-debenhams-and-topshop-store-cards-to-refund-180000-customers

Hi quick query. been looking at the unfair terms in consumer contracts regulations 1999 to see if it will help me. my daughter cancelled her wedding, there are still over 8 months till the date, its peak wedding season so i have no doubt the venue can get a new booking. her total cost was £3200 she had to pay a deposit when booking of £1000 which is non refundable. true the terms do state it is not refundable however the Act says the contract may be unfair if irrevocably binding the consumer to terms with which he had no real opportunity of becoming acquainted before the conclusion of the contract; unfair if requiring any consumer who fails to fulfil his obligation to pay a disproportionately high sum in compensation; also i think there is a 1977 law that states it is unfair to retain a large sum if the losses incurred by a company are not proportionate to what they keep? I've written briefly to the company and their response is sorry, you signed, tough luck (not quite so blunt) I wonder should I just cut my losses or write a sterner letter? I appreciate they may have incurred some costs, but no food bought etc, plenty of time to rent out the venue again etc... thoughts anyone? thank you x

Hi. Just looking for advice on the state of play over unfair charges applied to my accounts. Still got 12 years to run on a mortgage with SPML. if i send an SAR letter is it like poking a sleeping bear. I have £1400 in arrears with them and on a repayment plan which i am keeping up with. Can they put the strong arm on me to pay all the arrears and when i can't start proceedings. What are the chances of success of getting back any charges or should i accept my fate and carry on paying till the end and stay quiet. My Kensington remortgage was finished in Jan 16(woohoo!!!). There are charges that have been applied to this account so what ,again, are the chances of success with this company with it being a closed account. My Welcome loan is due to finish in May 16. There are charges and maybe PPI with these people. Again is the a chance of success of getting these charges back in full or as they say " Keep Calm and Carry on" 7 years ago i was in such a financial mess even i wasn't sure what I owed to who. Today the only outstanding debt is the mortgage and 4 payments to welcome. Paid off credit cards, Remortgage, and car. Light at the end of the tunnel. Any advice would be most welcome, Tommy

Hi, I am new to the forum and to parking tickets. Today after calling into a shopping centre and parking in a disabled bay with a blue badge displayed. I came out to find a ticket on my window screen from UKPC stating the reason as "Parked in a disabled person's space without clearly displaying a valid disabled persons badge". The blue badge has slipped down the dash board, this is the picture they took Can someone please advise do I contact them and appeal, or do I ignore this parking fine. Thanks in advance.

Hi Every one I had received a parking ticket for allegedly parking in a restricted area (client permit area) from High view parking. to further explain, we wanted some new carpets and went in a shop in hillsborough in sheffield which allows free customer parking. We parked in an area where there was a board of customer parking on the wall that i parked against, on the adjacent wall there was permit parking board. I genuinely thought it was customer parking, parked only to get a notice that i had parked in restricted area which was for clients only from high view parking. I stayed there for 17 mins. they had camera to prove i entered and stayed in what they say was a restricted area. i appealed to them initially really not understanding difference between client & customer saying my visit was for a genuine reason and they could cross check it with carpet shop. (my stupidity) and it got rejected , no surprise. I wrote to popla and giving them the explanation that the signage suggested customer parking, and there was ambuiguity and had it been more clear i would have not parked in the area. Popla has replied back saying it was still my fault to park there. I tried uploading my evidence but the website would not allow (technical problem) and than popla would not accept my pictures as case was submitted. What do i do now. ? As submission to popla, highview parking submitted a document delineating the various signage they have, but not mentioning that they have a misleading sign board in the restricted client area. Feel the decision is unfair, as i feel there should never be misleading signs. i dont know the laws regarding misleading signs in a private parking. I have now received a notice to pay £125 in 14 days. Should i take them to court ? because i still feel my case was not fully heard by POPLA. i have emails from POPLA where i have tried to convince them on allowing me to give them picture evidence but they have rejected it. ANy advice or help will be useful. attached is the picture of the area and signage

Hello folks. I'm hoping for some advice on tenancy agreements please? Sorry for the long read, but I think I need to be as clear as I can. My son is at Uni and he and 9 friends decided they wanted to share a house. Being young and foolish, they all got pressured into signing the tenancy agreement, as they were assured they would lose it if they didn't sign quickly. None of them clearly understood the agreement and all of them required guarantors. I am currently guarantor for my son in his present, single accommodation, absolutely no problems there, but when I read the new tenancy agreement for the proposed new house, I raised numerous concerns and refused to sign as guarantor. Like many such, it is a joint and several tenancy agreement, but how any guarantor would ever sign one of those is a mystery to me. I am perfectly happy to take responsibility for my son's rent and actions, he's a great kid, but I would never agree to take joint responsibility for 9 total strangers. The guarantor agreement also stipulated a joint and several responsibility. I also noticed a number of clauses, in the main tenancy agreement, that caused me concern, and looking at the OFT site, there is a large section there, on this very subject, that seemed to bear that out, if I am understanding correctly? EG. There is a clause that insists (Not advises) that each tenant must take out insurance to cover contents and accidental damage to the property. There is a somewhat hidden clause, by way of a reference to a paragraph in a chapter of the 1988 Housing Act, that, once I'd managed to hunt it down, gives the landlord the right to give 2 months notice to the tenants to quit the property, but there is no such option for the tenants to do the same. There are 2 conflicting access clauses, one that states the tenants are entitled to peace and quiet and to not be disturbed by the landlord, and further down states that the landlord/agents can demand access at any reasonable time of day. There are others that I think are dubious too, but I'm rambling enough as it is, so those are the main ones. It appears to me as if the landlord has added amendments to a standard agreement to suit his needs. None of the other guarantors agreed to sign either, and based on that, all of the tenants decided it was a bad move, and wish to pull out, but they have already signed the agreement and the landlord is trying to force them to fulfill that agreement. I realise that they were foolish to sign the agreement in the first place, and that they should have ensured that they, or someone they could trust, had thoroughly read and understood it first, but are they now stuffed and liable? My thought is that the agreement is unfair and could be challenged if it comes to that, but how many unfair clauses would it take for the contract to be deemed unfair? We have spoken to the landlord to try and come to an amicable agreement, but he is now saying he cannot find anyone who will pay full rent (So much for the queue of potential tenants that forced a quick signature initially!!) and the signed tenants would have to make up the shortfall in the rent from the proposed replacement tenants in order to be released from the agreement. I'm also wondering, if it did go to court, would the students be eligible for legal aid in a civil case, as none of them are employed, but living on their loans. I hope someone can advise, and apologies again for the length of this question. Thanks for reading, those of you who have struggled to the end of this.

Hi there I would like to ask for advice re unfair parking charges at Lidl / Athena car park in Eltham SE9 Thanks Ross

A little backstory I left my previous tenancy in November of last year. The agency didn’t put in a repayment request for my deposit until January; too late for me to use the ADR. The landlord wants to deduct £160.00 from the original amount of £325.00. I immediately clicked “dispute”, of course this was ignored and the request for £160 was resubmitted. Now: The following “reasons” for the deduction are as follows (quoted directly from an email sent by an agency representative): 2 x Walls required re-painting, appeared you had attempted this and check out was done when paint was wet, on drying the quality was not in keeping with the condition of the walls when the room was let.* This is considered tenant damage/tenant repairable/chargeable. The mattress and bed base required replacement – this is considered a landlord expense, fair wear and tear. A hole was found in the wardrobe – this was not noted on the original inventory so considered tenant damage/chargeable. Room and windows required re-cleaning. Are these legitimate reasons to charge £160? The agency hasn’t provided any itemised invoices, reciepts or quotes, something I think they’re required to do? Are they essentially trying to charge me for redecoration? Also, can they assume that I was responsible for the hole in the wardrobe door?* I’m not, but I don’t think I have any evidence to dispute that, unfortunately, however the inventory at check-in made no mention of any damage to any part of the room. I think the only thing they can charge me for is cleaning costs, but I’m not sure. Incidentally, I think it’s worth noting that the deposit paid is actually for a different property. When I first moved to Nottingham I rented a property, through the same lettings agent, at 160 Burford road, under one landlord. A month later I moved to 44 Maples street, again with the same agency, but under a different landlord. Can the deposit be transferred between properties? The rent was different for both properties so should I have had part of the deposit returned? Not sure if that makes any difference. Apologies for the long post; I tried to cram in as much relevant info as possible. Any help/advice would be hugely appreciated. Thank you.

Hi Everyone, this is my first post and I hope I can get some help to step out of this quagmire of negative discriminatory and unfair practices that I am subject to at the hands of the nefarious Nationwide Bank. My issues began in 2014, when I had just over eighty-thousand-pounds+ (80.000.00 +) taken out of my account. It was an unauthorised transaction. I was abroad, I'd used my card three times with the same vendor to buy some tickets to watch some football matches.Three different games. The vendor said, he'd give us some tickets the next day, and other tickets would follow a few days later as the games had not yet began. The following morning, I notice that a large amount had gone from my account, I rang the bank immediately on noticing the unauthorised withdrawal, Nationwide visa disputes team assured me they'd return the monies. About 14 days later Nationwide returned just under fourteen-thousand-pounds (14.000.00). they said, they were dealing with the other transaction of the larger amount and it could take unto 40 days, yet to this day two years later I Nationwide bank has not returned the sixty-seven-plus thousand. They returned the first monies as a cash-back, and said the other transaction, all with the same company could not be returned as a cash-back . I complained to them about this and asked why it had taken them 7 months to decide against their first decision. They gave various reasons for this at different times throughout the first year. I called and wrote to the Financial Ombudsman(FOS) who, lo and behold, after a year found in favour of Nationwide . The FOS and Nationwide said, I'd called the bank while abroad and told them to release this money. I did not, I asked them to prove this by citing the Freedom Of Information Act, (FOI) neither the bank nor FOS came up with any prove, i.e. -voice recording- saying anything of the sort. after a year disputing this situation the bank and FOS, a n FOS employee who is part of the Ombudsman's team said, I should resend in my complaint as an unauthorised transaction and not as a cash-back complaint . again I duly went through the complaint process with the bank who then asked me, why did I ask for a cash-back in the first instance, I replied that it was Nationwide's visa dispute team who advise me that this was a cash-back situation, but now wiser I know that this £60K+ comes under the regulations for an unauthorised transaction. Thereafter Nationwide CEO's executive assistant replied and stated in writing via email, that Nationwide would not open this as a fresh claim and would NOT read any more correspondence from myself nor discuss this matter any further. I discussed this with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) who informed me that I was being treated unfairly and that the bank was in breach on around 5 of their regulations. I returned to the bank with this information and they just reiterated what they previously said, that, they would not discuss my account with me any further. again returned to FOS, with this new complaint and brought in the issues about unfair practices as per FCA regulations. The people I spoke with including an ombudsman at first didn't know and could not tell me the difference between a cash-back (which comes under the Consumer Credit Act 1974) and an unauthorised transaction (which is covered in the FCA handbook as BCOBS 5.1.11). I asked this particular ombudsperson to look it up then come back to me so we can have a proper discussion. She called me back four days later, admitting there where differences between a cash-back and an unauthorised transaction. I have this in writing too. This woman ombudsman said, in the first now closed complaint, the ombudsman had thought about the unauthorised transaction aspect of this case, - though he did not refer to it in anyway in his final decision letter - I asked her, is this some Orwellian double-speak, how can he say he thought about a transaction that comes under different rules and regulations, yet makes no mention of it in his final decision letter? I said again, this is a new complaint . When the ombudsperson kept on referring to the old cash-back complaint. I pointed out to this ombudsperson, that it is written on the final decision letter, that FOS will no longer discuss this case again with me as I now have received the final decision letter. Yet again this ombudsperson referred back to that closed case -see how they change the goal posts when it suits them- and said, I'd called the bank, which I did not, I asked them to show me the prove or get the bank to show the prove that this fact is so . I stated if this alleged conversation was a true fact this situation would not be into year 2 of it's investigation. FOS, did not show me proof of this conversation I allegedly had with Nationwide bank and even though they had advised me to return with this new complaint, they decided that the first decision on the cash-back was enough and the rules applied were the same for a cash-back as for an unauthorised transaction. The FCA said this is not so.... Note, neither the bank nor FOS addressed the complaint(s) I had written to them about where they ARE in breach the FCA rules. With all this ongoing stressful situation the bank decided to play nasty with me. now, next they offered me a credit card, so I filled in the application, passed the criteria, they sent the pin and card, Then they called me and asked me to go to the bank with ID to verify myself. I went in gave them my bank card told the branch staff member why I was there I had on me my UK passport and utility bills, the staff member said they had to call head office, I waited and waited after sitting in the bank for an hour, note: they didn't ask to look at my ID or anything else, they said, the card was revoked. They gave no explanation for this even though i called the next day, they said they would not discuss this. three weeks later, I called and wrote to them asking them to explain why? Nationwide then said, there was no problem with the card, just come into branch again to verify myself with a picture ID and utility bills, I did this again, and again after sitting in the bank for an hour they said, the card was blocked because I'd ask for a loan in 2007. I did not do this and at that time, I was working for a government in another country which is easily proved. , after leaving the bank, I called and asked what is this problem? Nationwide said just reapply and everything should go through okay. I tried to reapply numerous times - called the bank in between times to make sure everything was okay on their end, Nationwide gave an affirmative answer - yet, always after completing the application the bank say's I have a card already. I haven't a card as the card they issued they blocked it with no valid explanation to why. I called again last week Now, they are again refusing to discuss my account and again asked me to go to branch. This time I told them, I know you are acting in a very malicious and nefarious manner and I will not go for a third time to the branch as this is just a nasty game Nationwide are playing. I have written to the CEO about both these matters and I received an email from the CEO's executive assistant who stated that, on answering my complaint about 1 of the regulations of the FCA, saying Nationwide do not think they are being unfair, that they will NOT discuss my account with me and any other letters I write will be left unopened . Remember, I wrote to Nationwide and FOS about them breaching 6 of the FCA's regulations. How's that for dystopia bank style. I really need some advice, and I really need some people who have know they have been unfairly treated by Nationwide bank to join me in a Class Action against them or if there is a class action happening, let me know how to join. My apologies that this is such a long post, but this is a summary of a two year plus, ongoing battle with this unfair uncaring not on anyones side Nationwide bank. , please if anyone has any ideas of how I can get my monies returned and how to deal with Nationwide, a bank that has shown me how vindictive, discriminatory and unhelpful they can be, I would be really grateful for workable advice.

I have recently moved out of my first rental property after living at the address for over two years and I have recived a email from my landlord looking to claim £400 from my deposit of £700 for cleaning. I thought this was a unreasonable amount as I spent a lot of time cleaning the property prior to leaving and got it to a higher standard in places than when we moved in. Here is a breakdown of the invoice: Item Description Unit Price Quantity Amount Hours Work carried out at xxxxxxxxxxxxx. 1/ Cleaning inside oven/top of electric oven and completely stripped down gas hob controls and burners to clean hob top. 2/ Clean all kitchen cupboards inside and out. 3/ Clean fridge freezer and kitchen sink . 4/ Scrub all bathroom tiles and grouting, sink and toilet. 5/ Mop bathroom kitchen and entrance hall floors. 6/ Vacuum throughout all property wash down all doors and skirting's. 7/ Clean down stairs toilet sink and door. Overall cleaning cost £300.00 MILEAGE Travel to and from xxxxxxx. £117.00 Total cost £417 Foolishly I did not take pictures of the property prior to leaving but I did have a look at the check in book we received when moving in and most of the areas listed on the invoice were listed as dirty prior to us moving in. Any advice on what we should do would be much appreciated.