Internet Media Experts - staffbenefits.co.uk - NHS Intranet Advertising

**Kati** · 17th August 2015, 10:48:AM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

Hi and

to LB

I'm sure you'll get lots of help from the knowledgeable Beagles :nod:

Can you 'name and shame' the company?
Or post up redacted copies of any documentation you have? (it would help get you the right advice)

I very clearly explained to the salesperson that I did not want to automatically renew, I just wanted the two years and that was all (at that point I could decide if it was worth featuring again).

... sounds like you gave them 24 months notice that you wouldn't be renewing the contract to me :tinysmile_twink_t2:

K x

**penguinbars** · 17th August 2015, 11:09:AM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

Hi!

Happily, I'll try and post some links so that they can't find this thread quite as easily.

http://www.tellows.co.uk/num/02034220756

https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/staffbenefits.co.uk

http://www.scamadviser.com/check-web...benefits.co.uk

**penguinbars** · 17th August 2015, 11:21:AM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

I did give them notice, however to the letter of the contract, it needs to be in writing and sent to them by recorded delivery. The only indication that I have is the standing order mandate crossed out of the contract.

Here is a link to my contract

http://postimg.org/image/9ekfnwh3x/

**Kati** · 17th August 2015, 11:34:AM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

OK ... it might be worth posting up the solicitors letter and the companies T&Cs too (if you don't mind)?

**penguinbars** · 17th August 2015, 11:47:AM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

Letter from solicitor

http://postimg.org/image/swtouzpgh/

- - - Updated - - -

TERMS AND CONDITIONS
PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING NOTES AND CONDITIONS CAREFULLY AS THE CONDITIONS WILL FORM THE BASIS OF THE CONTRACT FOR ADVERTISING IN OUR MEDIA SERVICES.

1. Definitions
In these Conditions: “Advertisement” means the advertisements referred to on the Advertisement Order; “Advertisement Order” means a document or electronic communication which you complete and submit to us, under which you offer to purchase one or more Services from us; “Amendment” means a change to the Content of an Advertisement; “Banner” means an online Advertisement linked to a website promoting your goods and/or services as more particularly described on the Rate Card; “Certificate” means a Domain Name registration certificate issued by a Registry; “Charges” means our charges for performing the Services; “Click Through” means for the purpose of this Contract the action of following a hyperlink within a Keyword Advertisement to another web site or another page or frame within that web site; “Conditions” means these contractual conditions; “Confirmation of Order” means a document or electronic communication that we issue to you to confirm acceptance or cancellation of your Advertisement Order; “Content” means any and all of the text, graphics, images, logos, photographs, layout, design, shading and coloration constituting or intended to be in an Advertisement; “Created Material” means any material or item created or provided by us for you as part of the provision of Services, including by way of example and not limitation the HTML code for, or the screen designs of, a web site; "Database" means an electronic database in which details relating to you or Advertisements may be stored for the purposes of our providing the Services; “Domain Name” means an internet domain name as may be registered through a Registry; “Effective Date” means the date on which the Services are first provided by us to you or made available to Users; “Financial Services Regulatory Regime” means the regime (regulated by the Financial Services Authority pursuant to the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and other laws) which governs the conduct of business and the advertising and promotion of financial products and services; “IPRs” means (a) all copyrights, patents, rights in trade marks, design rights, database rights, rights in know-how, trade secrets, rights in confidential information (whether registered or unregistered); (b) applications for registration, and the right to apply for registration, renewal, extension, division or reissue, for any of these rights; (c) and all other intellectual property rights and equivalent or similar forms of protection existing anywhere in the world; “Malware” means any software designed to infiltrate or damage a computer system, without the owner’s informed consent, including but not limited to “trojans”, “worms”, “logic bombs” and “cancelbots” as the same may be generally understood within the computing industry from time to time and any other malicious and unwanted software; “Proprietary Material” means any of your (or a third party’s) copyrighted material, brand names, trade or service marks, devices or logos; “Rate Card” means a price list issued by us from time to time giving the prices of certain Advertisements and other details relating to Internet Media Experts ltd services. You may obtain a copy of the Rate Card from Internet Media Experts ltd or from our sales representative; “Register” means any one of the Domain Name registers, operated and maintained by a Registry, comprising a Domain Name and registrant data; “Registry” means any of the Domain Name registries or registrars operating under the ICANN protocols; “Services” means the services we agree to perform under a Contract; “Third Party Data” means data we obtain for use under licence from third party organisations and which may be used to assist in the provision of Services and which may be displayed to Users in association with other material relating to you including by way of example and not limitation cartographic data used to display location maps; “us” means Internet Media Experts Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales under number 08165625, whose registered office is at No 1 Poultry, London, EC2R 8JR ; and “we” and “our” has a corresponding meaning; “User” means a person who uses staffbenefits.co.uk or any other website to which your Advertisement is syndicated or distributed; “staffbenefits.co.uk” means the internet website currently located at the URL www.staffbenefits.co.uk which is owned and operated by us; and the internet based facility currently located at the URL www.staffbenefits.co.uk, or any such other successor or replacement website, by and through which customers that have registered to use the facility may order, cancel (if applicable), amend and/or pay for products and services and manage their accounts with us; “you” means the person, company or other organisation (named on the Advertisement Order as the customer) who offers to purchase one or more Services or a person, company or other organisation who or which enters into a Contract with us for the provision of Services; and “your" shall have a corresponding meaning.
2. The Contract, Commencement and Duration
2.1. When you order Services from us, you enter into a Contract, with us. The Contract is made up of:these Conditions; the Rate Card;Confirmation of Order; and the Advertisement Order.
2.2. In the case of conflict between any of these documents, priority shall be given in the order in which they appear above. The Contract applies to the exclusion of all other written or verbal representations. Except as expressly provided in these Conditions, none of our employees or agents have authority to agree any change to a Contract, or make representations other than those contained within authorised Internet Media Experts ltd policies or materials.
2.3. The Contract shall not be formed unless and until we send you a Confirmation of Order.
2.4. Unless it is terminated earlier in accordance with these Conditions, the Contract will continue for:in relation to each of the Services, the duration specified in the Rate Card for such Services, such duration commencing on the Effective Date; or where no duration is specified in the Rate Card or as in the case of the Keyword Service, until the provision of the Services has been fulfilled.
3. Our Responsibilities
3.1. Subject to these Conditions, we shall: endeavour to make staffbenefits.co.uk available to Users; and provide or arrange the provision of the Services using the reasonable skill and care of a competent provider of services of the types of Services ordered.
4. Your Responsibilities
4.1. Subject to these Conditions, you shall: pay our Charges for each Service you have ordered in accordance with Condition 7; send to us any Content that we require from you;
where the nature of a Service requires your periodic attention, including without limitation file clearing and maintenance to your own computer hardware or systems to receive or maintain that Service, perform and take such appropriate steps; ensure that all Content provided to us by you is legal, decent, honest and truthful, and complies with: (i) The British Code of Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing; (ii) any and all guidance, codes or other regulations made available by any competent authority having jurisdiction over or responsibility for the regulation of advertising, including, without limitation, Ofcom, the Independent Committee for the Supervision of Telephone Information Services, or the Advertising Standards Authority; and (iii) our advertisement policies, which are available on staffbenefits.co.uk or which can be obtained from our sales representative; ensure that all Content provided to us complies in all respects with the provisions of all statutes and statutory instruments applicable to any Advertisement intended for display on a Service, (including without limitation) the Trade Description Act 1968, the Consumer Credit Act 1974, Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976, the Surrogacy Arrangements Act 1985, Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (“FSMA”), FSMA (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 and the Consumer Credit (Advertisements) Regulations 2004; ensure that all and any requests for Amendments to your Advertisement are made to Internet Media Experts ltd in writing on your own business stationery (communications sent using corporate email accounts are acceptable), or by using staffbenefits.co.uk. Internet Media Experts Ltd does not accept any liability or responsibility for failure to action a request for Amendment where such request is, in Internet Media Experts Ltd’s reasonable opinion, garbled, indecipherable, unclear or has not been received by Internet Media Experts Ltd; supply all Content in a suitable format as specified by Internet Media Experts Ltd; and ensure that all electronic files have been produced using properly licensed software and are free from Malware.
4.2. To the extent that that the provision of Services relates to an Advertisement that is linked to a website designated or used by you, you grant to us the right to fully access, copy, store, compile, recompile and index such website and any data and copyright works comprised therein, or any portion thereof, by automated means including web ‘spiders’ or ‘crawlers’. This grant shall apply notwithstanding any contrary terms and conditions which you may apply to such website from time to time. Your continued use of the Services shall constitute a waiver of any applicable contrary terms and conditions and any other rights you may have, contractual or otherwise, to restrict the rights granted to Internet Media Experts Ltd under this clause 4.2.
4.3. We reserve the right to delete any Proprietary Material from an Advertisement where we have reasonable grounds to believe that the owner or controller of such Proprietary Material has withheld or withdrawn permission for your use of the same. In these circumstances, deletion shall not be deemed to be a breach of our obligations under the Contract.
4.4. You warrant that, where any Advertisement contains indications, offers and promotions that are time sensitive including, by way of example and not by way of limitation, prices, those indications,
offers and promotions will be presented in a way so as not to mislead users of our Services.
5. Payment
5.1. We will send you an invoice for the Charges and (in the absence of any other specific arrangement between you and us in relation to your Advertisement Order) you must pay us the whole amount shown on demand.
5.2. Charges are in Pound Sterling (£) exclusive of VAT which, if payable, will be added to your invoice and which you must pay in addition.
5.3. Payment shall mean the receipt by us at our principal place of business (or elsewhere as we may direct) of cash, or the crediting to our bank account of a cheque or money transferred electronically or through the clearing bank’s BACS system.
5.4. If a reduction is shown in respect of a promotional offer on an Advertisement Order and you continue to meet all the terms of eligibility relating to that promotional offer then the Charges shall be reduced by the amount shown but not otherwise. Terms of eligibility of promotional offers will be made available on request.
5.5. If the Advertiser does not wish for their advertisement to appear after the expiry of the initial advertisement period, the Advertiser must send notice in writing by recorded delivery post to that effect to the Company no later than 12 months after the date on this agreement, failing which this agreement will become a twenty four month rolling contract at the same yearly value as overleaf plus artwork/production charge, which may only be terminated upon 12 months’ written notice, which must be given to the Company in accordance with clause 13.5, which must be expressed to expire on the date twelve months after the last day of the initial advertising period or any anniversary of the date 12 months after the last day of the initial advertising period.
5.6. The Company is irrevocably authorised as agent for the Client to complete any Credit / Debit Card transactions or Direct Debit, as a Direct Debit and/or as a further Direct Debit Mandate with the name and account details of the Client’s bank, and to present any such order for payment to the Client’s bank and in addition to complete all payments, frequency, account and payee details, and any relevant information. The Company may only use such mandates to secure payment of monies that may become due and payable under the terms of this Agreement. If paying by direct debit, please note that Internet Media Experts Ltd has appointed the BACS Approved Direct Debit Bureau, Eazy Collect Services Limited (www.eazycollect.co.uk), to collect your payments.
Internet Media Ltd will be shown on your bank statement for these direct debit payments.
6. Limitation of Liability
6.1. You acknowledge and agree that computer and telecommunications systems are not uninterrupted or fault free and we do not make any representation or warranty in relation to such systems. You further acknowledge and agree that occasional periods of downtime for repair, maintenance and upgrading may be required and we cannot therefore guarantee uninterrupted provision of Services. We will take all commercially reasonable steps to minimise any such periods of interruption or non-availability.
6.2. You acknowledge and agree that we make no warranty and give no representation of any kind in relation to Third Party Data and we accept no responsibility or liability for inaccuracy in or arising out of Third Party Data.
6.3. Nothing in the Contract shall limit or exclude liability in respect of death or personal injury caused by negligence, or fraudulent misrepresentation.
6.4. Save as provided in this Condition 8, we shall not be liable, to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, for any of the following losses or damage (whether arising in contract, tort (including negligence) strict liability, or otherwise, and whether such losses or damage were foreseen, foreseeable, known or otherwise):
6.4.1. loss of revenue;
6.4.2. loss of actual or anticipated profits (including for loss of profits on contracts);
6.4.3. loss of anticipated savings;
6.4.4. loss of business;
6.4.5. loss of opportunity;
6.4.6. loss of goodwill;
6.4.7. loss of reputation;
6.4.8. loss of, damage to or corruption of data or software;
6.4.9. wasted expenditure; or
6.4.10. any indirect or consequential loss or damage (including, for the avoidance of doubt, where such loss or damage is of the type specified in Conditions 6.4.1 to 6.4.9).
6.5. Save as provided in Condition 6.3, our entire liability under the Contract shall not exceed the total Charges paid by you for the Service that is the subject of the claim.
6.6. All conditions and warranties stated in the Contract shall replace all other conditions, warranties or other terms concerning the supply or purported supply of, failure to supply or delay in supplying the Services which but for this Condition 6.6 have effect between us and you or would otherwise be implied into or incorporated into the Contract, whether by statute, common law or otherwise, all of which shall be excluded to the maximum extent permitted by law (including, without limitation, the implied conditions, or warranties).
6.7. Save as provided in Condition 6.3, if we make an error in, or omission of or from an Advertisement (provided that such error or omission does not arise as a result of a failure by you to comply with your obligations under the Contract), we will correct this as soon as reasonably practicable upon receipt of written notification and without charge to you. Further, we may reduce the Charges for such Service as is fair and reasonable having regard to the nature of the error or omission or extend the duration of the Contract without charge to you. Save as provided above, this represents the full extent of our liability to you in respect of errors in or omissions from Advertisements.
6.8. Save as set out in the Contract, if we fail to comply with our obligations under the Contract as a result of an event outside of our reasonable control, we will have no liability to you as a result of such failure. We will promptly notify you as soon as reasonably practicable (and in any case, within fourteen (14) days) and we will take all reasonable steps to eliminate or mitigate the consequences of such an event, and where relevant, resume performance of our obligations affected by that event as soon as practicable.
7. Indemnities
7.1. You will at all times and on demand fully indemnify us and keep us fully indemnified from and against any losses, and/or liabilities in relation to any proceedings, claims, demands, damages, fines, costs, expenses and charges, which are incurred or suffered by us or our employees or agents arising out of your conduct, including, but not limited to, any breach of the Contract claims, threatened or made against us arising as a result of your non-compliance with any of your representations, warranties or obligations set out in the Contract.
8. Changes to the Services
8.1. We are committed to the constant improvement of our products and services. Notwithstanding our right to suspend or terminate the Services in accordance with Conditions 11 and 13, we may modify staffbenefits.co.uk or any of the Services from time to time without prior notice but in so doing we will try not to diminish the value and utility of the Services to any material degree. If we consider, acting reasonably, that such modification is likely to have a serious detrimental effect on your financial position, we will notify you of such modification and you shall have the option to:
agree to the modification and continue to receive the Services; or
terminate the Services and you will be entitled to a refund of that part of any Charges you have already paid to us and which relates to a period after the date that the Services have terminated.
8.2. We may from time to time amend these Conditions. Save where we are acting because of a legal requirement or a court order, the updated version of the Conditions will be made available from Internet Media Experts Ltd, together with their effective date. You agree to visit staffbenefits.co.uk regularly to find out about any changes. If you do not agree with any legal change to these Conditions you may notify us in writing within fourteen (14) days of the date of the notice being posted on staffbenefits.co.uk to terminate the Contract, and thereafter you agree you will not be due for a proportionate refund of the term left under the Contract.
9. Suspension of the Services
9.1. Without prejudice to any other rights we may have, we may suspend the Services in whole or part, and without notice, in circumstances where:
9.1.1. we (in our sole discretion) consider the Advertisement or other material (including without limitation a weblink or your linked website) is unlawful, misleading, offensive, prejudicial
or inflammatory; is likely to expose us to claims or liability, lead us into prosecution, criticism, or disrepute or cause us embarrassment; infringes our rights or the rights of third parties
or does not comply with our then current advertising guidelines and policies, or if the display of an Advertisement or other material does or would, in our reasonable opinion, be likely
to mislead, offend, or disadvantage a User or otherwise misrepresents the nature of the goods or service being advertised or the place or places from which you conduct business; or
9.1.2. you fail to pay our Charges in accordance with Condition 7; or
9.1.3. we have reasonable grounds to believe that the rights’ owner of any IPRs within the Content of your Advertisement or material has withheld, withdrawn or failed to give his permission
for your use of the same.
9.2. You may notify us in writing that you want us to permanently remove your Advertisement from display on staffbenefits.co.uk. We will endeavour to action this request as soon as is reasonably practical. You are not discharged from your obligations to pay the full amount of the Charges contracted for, notwithstanding the removal of an Advertisement.
9.3. Any period during which we may suspend the Services will continue until the circumstances giving rise to our right to suspend the Services ceases to subsist or until the Contract is terminated in accordance with Condition 13.
9.4. In the event we take action under Conditions 9.1.1 to 9.1.3, you will continue to be obliged to pay any Charges owing or that arise during the period when the Service is suspended.
10. General Warranty and Grant of Rights
10.1. Without prejudice to your other rights and obligations, you represent, warrant and undertake throughout the term of the Contract that:
10.1.1. you have and will have the authority to enter into the Contract and to perform your obligations in accordance with it;
10.1.2. you are acting and shall act in a business capacity on behalf of your business and not as an individual or as a consumer;
10.1.3. the Contract is entered into and shall be operated solely for legitimate business activities; and
10.1.4. you have obtained and shall continue to hold all rights, permission and consents to enable Internet Media Experts Ltd to use the Content (including any data or copyright works as referred to in Clause 4.2) and all IPRs in it, in accordance with these Conditions.
10.2. You grant to Internet Media Experts Ltd, its agents and service providers throughout the term of the Contract a worldwide, irrevocable, royalty free, fully paid up, transferable, non-exclusive licence (and right to sublicense) to copy, reproduce, use, communicate to the public, publish, distribute, transmit, stream, download, adapt, modify and reformat all such IPRs and Content (including any data, copyright works and any other materials referred to in Clause 4.2) for the purposes of:
(a) providing the Services to you;
(b) displaying Advertisements (whether in whole or in part) by any means, and across any media whether now known or invented after the date of the Contract on products, services and information provided by Internet Media Experts Ltd which may include the display of your Content and IPRs on third party properties and platforms to whom we syndicate or otherwise distribute Advertisements; and(c) marketing, research and promotional activities.
The rights hereby granted shall also include the right to link your Advertisement to, or present it in conjunction with, other material.
10.3. The continued use of IPRs and Content and any other data and copyright materials referred to in Clause 4.2 in accordance with Clause 10.2 beyond the term of the Contract shall not constitute an infringment or breach of contract where such use arises as a result of our continued use and supply or printed materials bearing the Advertisement.
10.4. Where Content comprises in whole or in part material that has previously been published in other media such as, by way of example and not limitation, printed directories, you warrant that you have all rights, authority, licences and consents necessary to order the reproduction of that material in the media channel that is the subject of the Advertisement Order.
10.5. We may:
10.5.1. disclose to such persons as we reasonably consider to be the owner of IPRs in Content provided by you, your intention to use such IPRs and you give your irrevocable consent to such disclosure;
10.5.2. ask you to provide us with suitable documentary evidence that will reasonably satisfy us of your entitlement to make use of IPRs, and to permit us to make use of IPRs on your behalf, and you agree to provide such evidence upon request.
10.6. Nothing in these Conditions provides for any transfer or assignment of ownership of any IPRs.
10.7. You acknowledge that Internet Media Experts Ltd owns all IPRs in staffbenefits.co.uk and the Database.
10.8. All IPRs in Created Material, shall be owned by us, whether or not the Created Material is derived or developed from Material supplied as Content.
10.9. Ownership of the IPRs in Created Material does not pass on to you and you will not be entitled to use Created Material in any form or in any media unless otherwise provided in this Contract.
10.10. Where you have provided Internet Media Experts Ltd with a brief or instruction for the development of Created Material it is your obligation to ensure that the Advertisement incorporating the Created Material does not and will not during the term infringe, contravene or otherwise impair the rights of any third party.
11. Termination
11.1. Without prejudice to Conditions 8 and 9, we may terminate any or all of the Service or part thereof, at any time by providing you not less than fourteen (14) days notice of such termination. In the event of such termination, you will be entitled to a refund of that part of any Charge you have already paid to us and which relates to a period after the date that the Services or part thereof have terminated.
11.2. We may terminate all or part of the Services with immediate effect by giving written notice to you if:
11.2.1. you commit a material breach of any provision of the Contract, or a series of breaches of the Contract which when taken together amount to a material breach of the Contract, provided that in the case of a breach which is capable of remedy you fail to remedy the breach within fourteen (14) days of receiving a written request to do so;
11.2.2. you cease or threaten to cease to carry on the whole or any part of its business or is unable to pay its debts as they fall due;
11.2.3. if you are a limited company, you convene a meeting of your creditors or a resolution is passed or proposed for your voluntary winding up or a petition for your compulsory winding up is presented or proposed; if you are a person, firm or a partnership, you, or any one of you, convene a meeting of your creditors or a resolution is passed or proposed for an individual voluntary arrangement for you or any one of you, or a petition for your, or any one of your, bankruptcy is presented or proposed;
11.2.4. an administrator, receiver, manager or supervisor of a composition or scheme is appointed or applied for; by you or any one of you;
11.2.5. you undergo a change in control (other than as a result of re-organisation, amalgamation or reconstruction without insolvency);
11.2.6. you are the subject of a receiving order in bankruptcy (or in Scotland are sequestrated or in Northern Ireland are adjudicated bankrupt) or suffer execution, distress, any form of diligence or seizure to be levied or effected on or against your premises, assets or effects; or
11.2.7. we suffer from any event or circumstance which is beyond our reasonable control or which it could not reasonably be expected to have taken into account at the date of the Contract, and which results in or causes our failure to perform any or all of our obligations under the Contract.
11.3. Conditions 2, 4, 6, 7, 10, 11, 13 and 14 survive termination of a Contract.
12. Unsolicited Goods and Services Act 1971
You acknowledge and agree that any Advertisement Orders requiring the inclusion of an Advertisement or other details relating to you in a Database may constitute an entry in a directory within the meaning of Section 3 of the Unsolicited Goods and Services Act 1971 as amended from time to time and that the Advertisement Order shall be construed as the note of agreement required by the same Section 3.
13. General
13.1. You shall not assign or otherwise dispose of all or any of your rights or obligations under the Contract without obtaining our prior written consent.
13.2. Failure of either party to assert its rights in relation to any breach of the Contract shall not constitute a waiver of such rights, nor will any such waiver be implied.
13.3. Each provision of these Conditions shall be construed separately and shall be severable from these Conditions. If any provision of these Conditions (or portion thereof) is invalid illegal or unenforceable, the validity, legality or enforceability of the remainder of these Conditions will not be affected or impaired.
13.4. The headings of these Conditions are for convenience only.
13.5. Any communication to be given in connection with the matters contemplated by the Contract shall, except where expressly provided otherwise, be in writing and shall either be delivered by hand or
sent by first class pre-paid recorded post. Delivery by courier shall be regarded as delivery by hand. Any notices served under the Contract shall be deemed to have been served as follows:
13.5.1. if personally delivered to the registered office of one of the parties, on delivery; and
13.5.2. if sent by first class pre-paid recorded post, 48 hours after the same was delivered to the postal authorities.
13.6. Each party agrees that in entering into the Contract it has not relied on, and shall have no remedy in respect of, any statement, representation, warranty or understanding (whether
negligently or innocently made) of any person (whether party to the Contract or not) other than as expressly set out in the Contract for which its sole remedy shall be for breach of
contract under the terms of the Contract. Nothing in this Condition shall, however, operate to limit or exclude any liability for fraud.
13.7. A person who is not a party to the Contract shall have no right under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any of its terms. We contract in our own name, on our own behalf.
13.8. The Contract constitutes the entire agreement between you and us with respect to the subject matter hereof, and supersedes all prior discussions, agreement or understanding between you and us.
13.9. If payment of an instalment is not made on the due date then the Company have the right to withdraw the advertisement. The client shall still remain fully liable for the contractual value outstanding under this agreement and the Company hold the right to disclose your information to a third party in regards to the collection of the outstanding payments due.
13.10. Any refund due back to you for whatever reason we deem necessary if paid by credit or debit card shall be refunded back to the same credit/debit card.
13.11. At our sole discretion we may accept requests to process Advertisement Orders by electronic means and other technologies (whether now known or invented in future) provided always that you fully comply with our guidance and instructions applicable to those processes. Internet Media Experts Ltd is neither liable to you, nor responsible for: (1) incomplete, lost, garbled, or misdirected Advertisement Orders; or (2) your failure to fully comply with guidance and instructions issued by us.
13.12. It is agreed that monopoly rights are not granted to any business advertised on www.staffbenefits.co.uk.
13.13. You acknowledge and agree that we reserve the right to re-locate at our discretion your advertisment to any other area of the web site www.staffbenefits.co.uk we deem reasonable if for any reason whatsoever, the purchased area becomes unavailable, deleted or is removed from www.staffbenefits.co.uk until the remainder of the advertisment is complete
14. It is agreed that cancellation of any deposit payment to Internet Media Experts Ltd does not constitute a cancellation of the contract. This agreement is not subject to cancellation.
15. Governing Law and Jurisdiction, the Contract is made and shall be subject to the laws of England and the parties submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts of England and Wales.

©2013 Internet Media Experts Ltd. All rights reserved.

**Amethyst** · 17th August 2015, 12:13:PM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

5.5. If the Advertiser does not wish for their advertisement to appear after the expiry of the initial advertisement period, the Advertiser must send notice in writing by recorded delivery post to that effect to the Company no later than 12 months after the date on this agreement, failing which this agreement will become a twenty four month rolling contract at the same yearly value as overleaf plus artwork/production charge, which may only be terminated upon 12 months’ written notice, which must be given to the Company in accordance with clause 13.5, which must be expressed to expire on the date twelve months after the last day of the initial advertising period or any anniversary of the date 12 months after the last day of the initial advertising period.

2.2. In the case of conflict between any of these documents, priority shall be given in the order in which they appear above. The Contract applies to the exclusion of all other written or verbal representations. Except as expressly provided in these Conditions, none of our employees or agents have authority to agree any change to a Contract, or make representations other than those contained within authorised Internet Media Experts ltd policies or materials.

The salesrep misrepresented your contractual obligations to you - regardless of their terms and conditions the company are responsible for that - else their salesreps could say any old thing to get you to sign up and then give you something completely different.

The contract is a twentyfour month contract - I can't see any mention on the agreement that it will auto renew and you will be tied to a further year/two years. It may be buried in the terms and conditions but I don't think that is good enough.

Yes you should inform Trading Standards, they may not be able to help directly but it helps if everyone affected does make a complaint.

Has your advertisement generated any business for you over the two years ?

**penguinbars** · 17th August 2015, 12:38:PM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

There has been no business from the advert, and the sales rep lied about where the advert would be seen. He said that the advert would feature on the NHS trusts intranet - actually, there is just a link to the staffbenefits website on their intranet, not even a link to my advert.

to my laymans eye, it looks like contractually I am obligated to pay, however I just don't think that is right as:
1) I was very clear with the salesman that I would not be continuing after 24 months (which is why he crossed out the standing order mandate)
2) there has been absolutely no contact in the 24 month period - no reminders, not contact to inform me of the assignment, nothing!
3) the advert does not feature where I was told it was featured - on the NHS intranet
4) It has generated no business
5) It seems that many other people have had the same experience.

Surely the job of a judge (if it was to ever to go that far) is not just to make people pay up where they have to, but also to make sure that unfair contracts like this do not exist!

I was willing to write off the money I paid for the advert initially as a bad decision, but to do it again now that I know the advert does not do what I was told is ludicrous!

**Kati** · 17th August 2015, 12:41:PM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

Originally posted by Amethyst View Post

Has your advertisement generated any business for you over the two years ?

nope

Originally posted by penguinbars View Post

Well surprise, surprise here we are 2 years later and the company have sent me an invoice for the same amount again. I replied to them and explained what the salesman had told me, said I did not want to be on the site any more, and that I would not be paying again (not the only thing the salesman lied about as featuring on the site brought me exactly zero new customers).

**Amethyst** · 17th August 2015, 13:00:PM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

It may be worth writing/calling the people who manage the NHS intranet and get something in writing regarding their relationship with staffbenefits. Gather evidence in the event that they do chose to take you to court (unlikely).

The contract isn't the be all and end all, if you were misled into the contract initially, were not told it would automatically renew (in fact were told the complete opposite) and have received no benefit from the contract then a judge would see it as unfair IMO. Just because it is a business to business contract doesn't mean they get away with anything - the fact that the contract actually states its terms are completely non negotiable really puts it in the position of being a business to consumer contract.

Have you drafted a response to the solicitors / debt collection firm ?

**Kati** · 17th August 2015, 13:02:PM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

[MENTION=6]Amethyst[/MENTION] ... would the solicitors letter be classed as a LBA? and if so, aren't there set rules about how long they have to give for the person to respond (14 days)?

as in section 7 of the pre-action protocols here - http://www.google.co.uk/url?url=http...QN_MeGTLtei82A

- - - Updated - - -

The solicitors have only given 7 days (not even allowing for postal time) as their letter is dated August 14th.

Attached Files

**Amethyst** · 17th August 2015, 13:05:PM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

7 days is perfectly acceptable annoyingly. BC get away quite happily with 48 hours so I wouldn't put much reliance on it as an argument. It can help sway the judge your way as to their behaviour later though - the pre-action protocols are https://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/pr...action_conduct . Best thing when receiving a LBA is to respond. Little info for ref http://www.legalbeagles.info/forums/...any-solciitors

b) the defendant responding within a reasonable time - 14 days in a straight forward case and no more than 3 months in a very complex one. The reply should include confirmation as to whether the claim is accepted and, if it is not accepted, the reasons why, together with an explanation as to which facts and parts of the claim are disputed and whether the defendant is making a counterclaim as well as providing details of any counterclaim; and

**dan_1207** · 17th August 2015, 13:07:PM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

14 days in only a general guide. 7 is fine.

**Kati** · 17th August 2015, 13:09:PM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

Originally posted by Amethyst View Post

7 days is perfectly acceptable annoyingly.

Originally posted by dan_1207 View Post

14 days in only a general guide. 7 is fine.

pity :tinysmile_hmm_t2:

**penguinbars** · 17th August 2015, 13:18:PM

Re: Help Please! B2B very questionable company are claiming money from me!

So as there is now a solicitor involved, should I reply to them and not be in any more contact with the company?

Relevant dates are as follows:

21st July 2015 - received invoice
31st July - received a copy of the contract with this e-mail

"Mr XXXXXXX,

Without prejudice, save as to costs.

We recently sent you out an invoice on the 12.07.15, for the outstanding bill of £1074.00 (please find attached).
The invoice is to be paid immediately as it is now overdue.

In relation to your email (below), you have never given us written notice to cancel, which is required as per your terms and conditions, which i have attached. Please refer to clause 5.5, for your ease of reference.

Although we cannot rely on any conversation had between yourself and the representative that came to see you, in accordance with clause 13.6, we can assure you your advert has been advertised upon www.staffbenefits.co.uk under the Oxon University Trust, as discussed and agreed at the point of sale.

You have signed a legally binding contract, agreeing to the terms and conditions of which you are bound by. Please see your contract attached, 3/4 of the way down to which it states I/WE THE CLIENT HAVE FULLY READ AND UNDERSTAND THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THIS AGREEMENT, A COPY OF WHICH HAS BEEN RECEIVED."

If we do not receive payment on the invoice we shall pass your account over to our solicitors who shall then issue court proceedings in order to recover all cost, including but not limited to late payment charges and solicitor fees."

14th August - letter from solicitor dated
17th August - letter from solicitor received.

Internet Media Experts - staffbenefits.co.uk - NHS Intranet Advertising