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Lowell County Court Claim issued for old BT debt

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  • Lowell County Court Claim issued for old BT debt

    Basically back in Aug 2016 my (now wife) had her own flat and ordered BT broadband. It never worked despite multiple requests to BT to get it fixed. Eventually after 2 months of this she stopped paying and BT stopped the contract for non payment in December. My now wife never paid the bill of £200 ish as she'd never had working broadband.

    And thats the last she heard of it to Jan 19 when we get an email from Lowells saying they're issuing small claim court proceedings for £700+. My now wife moved out of her flat in Feb 2017 so I suspect any correspondance might have gone there....although BT did have my wifes email address (as it hasnt changed since then) and there was no chasing via that route.

    Lowells insist they had sent 16 emails but we received none until this small claims court order. They also still have her name wrong as they're using her maiden name and not her married name.

    We've contested the whole claim on non provision of original contract and "where the heck did the £500 extra come from basis" as having received no previous comms we had no idea.

    Any advice welcomed!
    Tags: None

  • #2
    Anyone able to help with this. We've recieved an offer of Mediation and it would be nice to know how to play this. My gut says to agree to mediation but do we admit any liability and if so, how much? My wife should have served notice for non provision of service to BT 3 years ago instead od just stopping paying but does this make her liable?

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by SquareDaff View Post
      Anyone able to help with this. We've recieved an offer of Mediation and it would be nice to know how to play this. My gut says to agree to mediation but do we admit any liability and if so, how much? My wife should have served notice for non provision of service to BT 3 years ago instead od just stopping paying but does this make her liable?
      Hi

      (Apologies for not picking this up sooner.)

      Mediation is usually privileged (ie can't be used in court)
      Do you know who the mediation service provider would be? Court?

      Normally there is a clause in the utility contract, governing how it can be ended, & often the terms/conditions state a 'penalty' (as it were) for early termination.

      You can SAR BT for all the data they hold on file (SARs are now FOC )
      Example- https://legalbeagles.info/library/gu...ccess-request/
      Keep a copy & get proof of posting.

      I'll give slainte caragh a nudge (it might take a wee while for her to respond....if you don't hear from her soon, give us a bump on this thread.)
      CAVEAT LECTOR

      This is only my opinion - "Opinions are made to be changed --or how is truth to be got at?" (Byron)

      You and I do not see things as they are. We see things as we are.
      Cohen, Herb


      There is danger when a man throws his tongue into high gear before he
      gets his brain a-going.
      Phelps, C. C.


      "They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance!"
      The last words of John Sedgwick

      Comment


      • #4
        Thanks for the reply. I'll get that info for you tonight.

        I'd agree re penalty charges if a working fibre service had ever been provided. We have proof that this wasnt the case and from what I've understood of the BT contract T&C's they cant apply a penalty charge in that instance. Having said that...my wife didnt follow proper procedure back then either .... so I have to wonder if that means BT now can. Its a grey area. I've printed off BT's T&X's and will be having a good read tonight.

        Also re: Lowell. I dont know them as a company but the 1st we heard of this was when the County Court letter came through. They swear they have sent 14 different letters through to our current address. I find it hard to believe. Am I being reasonable in expecting some sort of proof of postage/tracking info to prove this. I know if I was chasing someone for a debt I'd have used that method of postage at least once to make sure it was resching its intended destination.

        Comment


        • #5
          [QUOTE=SquareDaff;n1453680]Thanks for the reply. I'll get that info for you tonight.

          I'd agree re penalty charges if a working fibre service had ever been provided. We have proof that this wasnt the case and from what I've understood of the BT contract T&C's they cant apply a penalty charge in that instance. Having said that...my wife didnt follow proper procedure back then either .... so I have to wonder if that means BT now can. Its a grey area. I've printed off BT's T&X's and will be having a good read tonight.[/quote]

          We see this tons of times on LB from most of the mobile 'phone service providers. A customer has shoddy service & cancels, the provider terminates it (breach of contract T&Cs) as a bad debt, then sells it to the likes of Lowell.

          Obviously your particular T&Cs are crucial as to any early termination' charge.
          Unfortunately the provider has now effectively 'washed their hands' of it & Lowell are the new owners of the alleged debt.

          Also re: Lowell. I dont know them as a company but the 1st we heard of this was when the County Court letter came through. They swear they have sent 14 different letters through to our current address. I find it hard to believe. Am I being reasonable in expecting some sort of proof of postage/tracking info to prove this. I know if I was chasing someone for a debt I'd have used that method of postage at least once to make sure it was resching its intended
          destination.
          You can SAR them also.
          Send it to Lowells solicitors with a copy to Lowell the Claimant. (Lowell Portfolio?)
          Cross reference them.
          Keep copies & get proof of posting.
          [QUOTE]





          This should put you in a much stronger position
          You'll have all the info the provider hold & all the info Lowell hold.

          Thinking about it, a CPR 31,14 request to Lowell sols will be needed for obtaining the T&Cs....they are not 'personal data.
          Again, FOC.

          https://legalbeagles.info/library/gu...-of-documents/

          Just scrub out #2 (green) & replace with​​​​​​
          'True copies of all Terms & Conditions s relevant to the alleged agreement'.
          (
          In case they were varied at any time.)
          Post it in the same envelope as th SAR.
          CAVEAT LECTOR

          This is only my opinion - "Opinions are made to be changed --or how is truth to be got at?" (Byron)

          You and I do not see things as they are. We see things as we are.
          Cohen, Herb


          There is danger when a man throws his tongue into high gear before he
          gets his brain a-going.
          Phelps, C. C.


          "They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance!"
          The last words of John Sedgwick

          Comment


          • #6
            Thanks for the reply. It is the court mediation service. I have to provide a copy of that to Lowells anyway so will add the above requests to the correspondence too.

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by SquareDaff View Post
              Thanks for the reply. It is the court mediation service. I have to provide a copy of that to Lowells anyway so will add the above requests to the correspondence too.
              From what I've seen, it is unlikely that this type of case is suitable for mediation (they say you owe the money, you say no), but hey ho, it's free of charge & the courts do like at least a attempt of out-of-court negotiation.

              CAVEAT LECTOR

              This is only my opinion - "Opinions are made to be changed --or how is truth to be got at?" (Byron)

              You and I do not see things as they are. We see things as we are.
              Cohen, Herb


              There is danger when a man throws his tongue into high gear before he
              gets his brain a-going.
              Phelps, C. C.


              "They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance!"
              The last words of John Sedgwick

              Comment


              • #8
                Just to be annoying - https://legalbeagles.info/forums/for...obile-contract
                #staysafestayhome

                Any support I provide is offered without liability, if you are unsure please seek professional legal guidance.

                Received a Court Claim? Read >>>>> First Steps

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by Amethyst View Post
                  See!

                  I do my best & someone has to chuck a spanner in the works!

                  I'd usually say 'yes' to mediation......courts expect it nowadays.
                  CAVEAT LECTOR

                  This is only my opinion - "Opinions are made to be changed --or how is truth to be got at?" (Byron)

                  You and I do not see things as they are. We see things as we are.
                  Cohen, Herb


                  There is danger when a man throws his tongue into high gear before he
                  gets his brain a-going.
                  Phelps, C. C.


                  "They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance!"
                  The last words of John Sedgwick

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    That was going to be the plan. The way I look at it is that if someone wants to help resolve the situation then Im happy to take that help. Plus it shows willing on my wifes behalf.

                    I will get the mediation form filled in and sent registered mail tonight. Will also send a copy to Lowells (required I believe) and add the additional requests you mentioned.

                    Btw....whats a CPR 31,14?

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      CAVEAT LECTOR

                      This is only my opinion - "Opinions are made to be changed --or how is truth to be got at?" (Byron)

                      You and I do not see things as they are. We see things as we are.
                      Cohen, Herb


                      There is danger when a man throws his tongue into high gear before he
                      gets his brain a-going.
                      Phelps, C. C.


                      "They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance!"
                      The last words of John Sedgwick

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Thanks for that. Mediation form has been sent registered post today. Lowells copy will go tomorrow with those 2 requests in.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Quick update on the SARs requests. Lowells have sent paper copies of the letters they allegedly sent to us today as a response to my SARS request on 11th March. Conveniently they all show our current address - even though we have never received a single letter before the County Court letter a couple of months ago.

                          No Digital copy (as I requested - so I could check the last edited date) and no proofs of postage (as requested - so I could confirm actual postage address/delivery attempt).

                          To me, printing off 16 A4 pieces of paper with no verification of editing/actual postage is useless. Am I right in this? If so, how do I proceed?

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            UPDATE. Despite not following my SARS request details and only providing paper copies of the letters (which magically have the correct address on) Lowells also messed up as they provided a copy of the accounts notes. On those notes it clearly shows the address being set to my wifes old flat address 2 days before the 1st letter was sent out (Mar 2018....she move out Feb 2017). No subsequent details change was made until Feb this year. Ive replied to Lowells Data Protection officer asking for confirmation and copies of the letters as they would have been at time of printing as I suspect mail merge is in play on the reprints recently provided so they're not true copies.

                            Our case has always been that we could never address the issue as we never received any comms prior to it being sent to county court. The Sars info seems to confirm this!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Good stuff.

                              That's the point of a SAR....it reveals a lot!

                              Keep digging!
                              CAVEAT LECTOR

                              This is only my opinion - "Opinions are made to be changed --or how is truth to be got at?" (Byron)

                              You and I do not see things as they are. We see things as we are.
                              Cohen, Herb


                              There is danger when a man throws his tongue into high gear before he
                              gets his brain a-going.
                              Phelps, C. C.


                              "They couldn't hit an elephant at this distance!"
                              The last words of John Sedgwick

                              Comment

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