Help with 2nd response to letter befor claim

[lostitagain]

Hello


So the background to this situation. I was employed just over 3 years ago until I was medically retired from the NHS in march 2019 im partially sighted now and a guide dog user. I was told when they retired me that i would get 3 months pay and i did not get anything i writing or a last pay slips ( i was off sick at the time) later that year i think about 3 or 4 months they rang me said there had been a mistake and that they had overpaid me 887.99£.


I survive now on Universal credit and have 3 kids. My position then as it is that I did not believe I owed the money because. This defense is that of estoppel, and if it does end up in court I think I have a good chance. I really did not know they had overpaid me in error. It was their error and they have manufactured this debt for me, I don't think these facts are in dispute as they are self evident and confirmed by them (letter 2).


I told them the above 3 years ago and it all went quiet until last month when I got the first letter before claim (letter 1). I responded (response 1) as I thought it may have been a generic automated letter but was surprised to find they actually read it and responded.


I need help with my second letter im happy to go to court but would rather not. How to compose a good response. My main question is should i explain my defense in the response to deter them from taking me to court or would that just prepare them if they do decide to take me to court. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

IT wont let me post attachments ..... i will try again with the attachments

[lostitagain]

attachments

[jaguarsuk]

Your problem is going to be that their client wrote to you with a detailed breakdown and that on your termination form it stated that 4 weeks notice was to be paid, you must have known the amount was more than 4 weeks because you were due a single months salary.

I understand the point about the lack of a final payslip, but that isn't as helpful as you think. Had you had one you would be able to assert you were expecting that amount and therefore why would you think anything was wrong, so spent the money.

You're going to have a pretty difficult time persuading a judge that you didn't know what your monthly salary was and upon receiving 3 times it you did realise something was wrong given you'd had a termination notice saying you were only owed a months salary.

Their claim is going to be for 'Unjust Enrichment' and unless you can provide some evidence that you were expecting that amount or one close to it you really don't have a defence.

As for estoppel, if you think that is a defence you are going to have to evidence what they have said or agreed to in law previously that would prevent them from now arguing you owe this. And if you have something you really ought to redact and share it here to allow us full overview of all the facts of your predicament.

From what they have presented to you they have consistently said you have been overpaid both directly and via solicitors.

[lostitagain]

Hey thanks for the response. just to clarify when i was retired i spoke to the finance department who said they were going to pay me 3 months salary ...they then did exactly that and i thought no more about it until they said there had been an error. The letter from the healthboard i have never seen before it came with the 2nd letter before claim.

any ideas about

"My main question is should i explain my defense in the response to deter them from taking me to court or would that just prepare them if they do decide to take me to court. Any help would be greatly appreciated. "

i still intend to fight it out in court because that really is what happened if i lose well then they will hvae to take it out of my meager disbility payments

[jaguarsuk]

Okay, so you need to do a Subject Access Request Letter requesting all personal data they have, but specifically your payslips including final payslip.

Hopefully the final payslip will backup what you say the finance department told you and if they provide all others except the final one it will add weight that you were told you'd be paid 12 weeks, that the payslip will show that and you were expecting the amount paid, so spent it in good faith.

You can't write back with your defence because you don't know what it is yet.

If there could be more than one defence to a matter one doesn't just rely on the one, we dig to try to add the others and that might take time.

I would write back stating:

The finance department told you to expect 12 weeks pay after the termination notice had been issued
You received an amount that would be likely to be 12 weeks pay
Consequently you spent it as you had no reason to believe you shouldn't
And enclose a copy of the SAR stating you have never been provided a final payslip because you aver that it will show that you ought to have expected 12 weeks pay.

That should sufficiently move them into an awkward position to hold off doing anything until they have completed your SAR.

Once you have received the SAR you can review your position at that point.

It is going to be difficult to argue estoppel based on a conversation with the finance department three years ago without having something else in play to back it up. That being either a payslip showing the amount or the lack of a payslip combined with the introduction of that being because it would be detrimental to their case.

Regardless it is not going to be your only defence, you'll need to present a defence of change of position as well.

[lostitagain]

Thanks for your help You have given me some good advice im going to read up on things this weekend an then get a response in the post on monday i will keep this thread updated.

should i send the SAR to the company thats sending me the letter befor claims there a credit managment company acting on behalf of the client ?