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

[LastKingOfNorwich]

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

We are a Ltd company. Yes CAB gave a template which we used and sent last week. No reply from the company only CDR. They are trying to get me to pay £1000 today to make the whole thing go away. The actual debt is for £1248 which seems odd. They have said that if this goes to court it will cost an extra £500 and we'll have no chance of winning.

Just spoke to CAB who told me to pay nothing and tell CDR that the matter is in dispute.

I'm so scared and angry at the same time!!! What do I do??

[Amethyst]

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

Of course they will say that. I agree completely with CAB. They CAN send you a statutory demand (Ltd company and debt over £750) which looks very scary, but you can defend it - a stat demand isn't an appropriate way to try and claim on a disputed debt and you should have no issue having it set aside - IF they do it and aren't just threatening to try and intimidate you.

Do you have an email address for CDR ? You can email them and tell them the matter is in dispute and any statutory demand or court claim will be strongly contested. If you can pop up the letter CAB had you send to IME we can help you draft something around that.

Did you have a written contract with IME at all ?

[Openlaw15]

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

Sadly the protections in this country at the moment for small businesses is extremely lacking. There are (and should be) arguments for small businesses and sole traders to have the same protections as Consumers.

Are you a sole trader or Ltd company ?

If you hear anything else from them let us know.

You could respond to that letter if you wanted to just spelling out to them that you are aware it is complete tosh ?

Sharon, but if sole traders had the same status and therein legal protection as legal personalities, ie incorporated/ legal companies (inc. LTD), there would be no difference between company property and personal property, and problems with protection in terms of liability for damages. In short, there would be no benefit to creditors where a company has been wound up. i just cannot see the law doing that ...as big business would be affected and big business contributes to the economy.

[Amethyst]

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

I wasn't thinking in terms of winding up etc, only in terms of contract terms etc.

eg. http://competitionpolicy.ac.uk/docum...8-ff76a0781def

[LastKingOfNorwich]

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

Here is the letter I sent to IME which was based on a template from CAB

[LastKingOfNorwich]

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

Sorry here it is

nternet Media Experts (UK) Ltd Centurion House,
129 Deansgate,
Manchester,
M3 3WR
22 March 2016
Dear Internet Media Experts (UK) Ltd,
Misrepresentation Act 1967
I entered into an agreement with your company on 18/02/2014 at a cost of £1040.00 via credit card.
At the time of purchase, it was indicated by a representative of your company, Paul Barrett, that the service/goods would include:
1 - Our advert appearing directly on our local NHS Trust website. Upon investigation we can not find any evidence of our advert ever having appeared on any NHS Trust website in either Norfolk or Suffolk. To this date we have found no NHS Trust in either Norfolk or Suffolk that even has a link to your "website". Furthermore we are informed by our local NHS Trust websites that to advertise on their staff intranet site would actually be completely free.
2 - The payment would be a one off payment for a single, 2 year contract and that there would be no automatic rollover contract or get-out penalties.
I have since discovered that this is not the case, therefore I feel the contract was misrepresented to me. As such, I will have no option but to cancel the contract without penalty in accordance with the Misrepresentation Act 1967.
I look forward to your response within 14 days so we can resolve this matter amicably. Yours sincerely


We did have a contract with IME which unfortunately does contain that it would be a rolling contract and would involve a direct advert on the NHS - this was completely against what was told to my girlfriend (English not her first language!) by the salesman. The direct debit but was even crossed out.

One other massive sticking point. On the contract it says there will be a link on the "Norfolk and Norwich Trust" - there is actually I such thing. Our local trust is called The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital Trust. Could this be used to get out of the contract? They seem to be bending us over as to the specifics of the fine print....

As always your help is the only thing keeping me sane at the moment!!

[LastKingOfNorwich]

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

Any news or advice on the letter? I am emailing CDR as I type.

I'm particularly interested on your opinion regarding the name written on the contract not tallying up with the name of our local Norfolk NHS Trust.

Many thanks

[Certified]

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

Hi All,
You can add me to the list of small business owners being scammed by this company. They have just tried to auto-renew my contract after 24 months. I originally paid £3,700 for several districts and they are demanding the same again.
When I signed up in February 2014 the salesman was very pushy and told me he had several other meetings to get to. He effectively rushed me into signing and made no mention of the auto-renew.
I haven't had a single enquiry over the 2 years and I do not want to pay them another penny. I had no idea this was an automatically renewing agreement and have refused to pay telling them the cancellation policy is at best opaque and that makes it an unfair contract term. They have told me I do not understand the law and sent a letter demanding payment and also stating that interest is accruing. I also know of another business in my town (a solicitor in fact) who has received exactly the same.
My inclination is to ignore them as, I would hope, they would lose if it went to court. I would sooner not have to engage a solicitor but may consider contacting the other companies in my town who are listed on the site to see if we can support each other. If it does go to court maybe we can each be witnesses for each other as to the deceitful salesman we all encountered.
I would appreciate any comments

[Amethyst]

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

Can someone post up a copy of the IME contract signed pls.

[Amethyst]

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

Sorry here it is

nternet Media Experts (UK) Ltd Centurion House,
129 Deansgate,
Manchester,
M3 3WR
22 March 2016
Dear Internet Media Experts (UK) Ltd,
Misrepresentation Act 1967
I entered into an agreement with your company on 18/02/2014 at a cost of £1040.00 via credit card.
At the time of purchase, it was indicated by a representative of your company, Paul Barrett, that the service/goods would include:
1 - Our advert appearing directly on our local NHS Trust website. Upon investigation we can not find any evidence of our advert ever having appeared on any NHS Trust website in either Norfolk or Suffolk. To this date we have found no NHS Trust in either Norfolk or Suffolk that even has a link to your "website". Furthermore we are informed by our local NHS Trust websites that to advertise on their staff intranet site would actually be completely free.
2 - The payment would be a one off payment for a single, 2 year contract and that there would be no automatic rollover contract or get-out penalties.
I have since discovered that this is not the case, therefore I feel the contract was misrepresented to me. As such, I will have no option but to cancel the contract without penalty in accordance with the Misrepresentation Act 1967.
I look forward to your response within 14 days so we can resolve this matter amicably. Yours sincerely

That sound absolutely fine

I presume you haven't had bailiffs on your doorstep nor a winding up order from this bunch as yet then ? xxx Really don't worry.

TBH I think that you should go further and ask for the last years fee back as you were not provided with the service that you paid for.

I'm particularly interested on your opinion regarding the name written on the contract not tallying up with the name of our local Norfolk NHS Trust.

I don't think that carries much weight and really could mean anything - the Norwich and Norfolk Trust for Windmills - for example.

I would like to see the contract.

[Amethyst]

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

I also know of another business in my town (a solicitor in fact) who has received exactly the same.
s

One would hope that the Solicitor who is dealing with this lot will have better luck extricating himself from the contract.

may consider contacting the other companies in my town who are listed on the site to see if we can support each other.

Can you log in to their website then ? Be interested to see what the inside looks like ( as it seems only advertisers ever see it ).

[Certified]

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

Yes, I can. Would you like me to send a screen shot?

One would hope that the Solicitor who is dealing with this lot will have better luck extricating himself from the contract.



Can you log in to their website then ? Be interested to see what the inside looks like ( as it seems only advertisers ever see it ).

[Amethyst]

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

Please. admin@legalbeagles.info

Marvellous thankyou x

[Certified]

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

I'm struggling to post the screenshot but will do so when my far more IT literate son visits tomorrow

[LastKingOfNorwich]

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

Have they followed up on their threats?? All of ours have been unofficial bluster trying to scare us into paying up over the phone. If you look into the "debt collection" company that all looks pretty shady too. Not an official company but owned by a recycling company.

- - - Updated - - -

Did you get my email sent last week?

- - - Updated - - -

Whereabouts are you based? We've been scammed in Norfolk like a couple of others!! Have they threatened you with a stat notice yet? I consulted a solicitor who told me to tell them to sod off and we'll see you in court. He said he'd dealt with them before.