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My Revenue cheque was stolen after I had asked to be paid direct
I had a letter from HM Revenue & Customs saying I was due a £3,000 tax rebate and should contact the Revenue if I wanted to be sent the money. I did this on 19 September.
I asked if it might be safer to have the money deposited directly into my bank account, but was told this would take longer as I would have to send a letter requesting it. No money arrived.
After three weeks, I received a letter welcoming me to The Money Shop, a cheque-cashing establishment. Attached was an account card with my name on it but a picture and date of birth that were not mine. I phoned The Money Shop, which confirmed that a woman had gone into a Basildon branch to cash a cheque, along with a fake passport. I told the Revenue and the police. But I still don't have my money and am dismayed at the way the Revenue brushes me aside.
NR, London
Margaret: Taxpayers receiving such notifications should be cautious. HMRC warns that a large number of authentic-looking emails are being sent out with the promise of tax refunds. These are no more than phishing exercises - villains asking for your bank account details so they can raid your account.
In your case, the refund was genuine, but a thief intercepted the cheque and tried to cash it. The Money Shop says this person was registered with them but had produced insufficient ID so staff refused to activate the account, which now has a security alert placed on it. The cheque was never cashed.
The Revenue jumped into action when I produced your problem. Within three days of your confirming the crime reference number, the money was in your bank account. HMRC followed this up with a letter apologising for not sorting it out sooner.
The survey was wrong but I came up against a brick wall
A year ago, we purchased a house with a homebuyer's survey arranged through our lender, Britannia building society. The survey clearly stated that it is a traditional brick-built house. Since moving in we have discovered that it is in fact timber framed, so even the outside walls are hollow.
I complained to the surveyor who basically said 'tough luck'. I complained to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, but it says it can't confirm if a firm has been negligent in carrying out a survey, nor has it powers to intervene or resolve a dispute.
PR, West Wickham
Margaret: Britannia is aware of your complaint but says the survey was conducted by a third party which had been sub-contracted by its main valuer, Connells. As far as Britannia is concerned, the survey showed that your property was structurally sound, which is all it wanted to know. Connells says your contract is not with it but with the sub-contractor.
The surveyor returned to your house but still would not state that it was timber-framed until you showed her the plans. Three months later, she claimed it was a typing error and that her original site notes had said your house was timber-framed.
The RICS complaints scheme clicks in only when firms have failed to comply with its code of conduct. But all estate agents must now belong to a redress scheme, either the Ombudsman for Estate Agents or the Surveyors Ombudsman Service. Someone along the way should have pointed out that you can complain to the Surveyors Ombudsman Service to which this valuer belongs. Phone 0845 050 8181, 0330 440 1634 or 01925 530270 or visit www.surveyors-ombudsman.org.uk.
Get proof of theft abroad or your insurer won't pay up
I have held an annual travel policy with Columbus for two years. This year, for the first time, I claimed for loss of cash while travelling through Milan station, but Columbus has refused my claim because I could not produce a written incident form from the police.
I explained that I was travelling with my daughter and did not discover the theft until I went to buy a bottle of water. My purse had disappeared from my bag but we had just a few minutes to catch our connecting train to Lake Garda. We had no time to find a policeman and complete a form. I did not consider it of any use to report it to the train authorities as I had not lost the money on the train. I lost €250 but, even if the policy paid out, it would be only £100 for cash, minus a £20 excess.
JE, Camberley, Surrey
Margaret: Claims handlers look neither to right nor left. The rule book says they won't pay up without a police report and as far as they are concerned, that is all there is to it. As Columbus points out, there is no proof that you lost €250. But it understood your predicament and says you are a valued customer. It has sent you a cheque for £200, even though the policy maximum is £80.
Car cash claim reaches a dead end
I had a £5,000 personal loan from HFS in June 2000 to buy a car and paid £750 for repayment insurance. It came with an interest-back scheme but, after five years, I have been unable to recover the money because I missed a 21-day window, something I learnt about only subsequently. HFS also said I failed to register for the interest back. When I took the loan, they said the registration form would be sent on completion of the loan, which I took to mean at the end of the five years. Nothing ever arrived in the post to suggest any other interpretation.
SB, Stoke-on-Trent
Capital One, which now owns HFC, apologises for the delay in replying to your complaint but says it was entirely your responsibility to remember to claim in the time frame, and produced a signed confirmation to show you understood. Unfortunately, that means Capital One is in the clear. It also says it sent you a registration form three times, once by recorded delivery. We will never now get to the bottom of why you didn't receive them. As you point out, you wouldn't ignore such an important document. You have lost £1,715.
• Email Margaret Dibben at money.writes@observer.co.uk or write to Margaret Dibben, Money Writes, The Observer, 3-7 Herbal Hill, London EC1R 5EJ and include a telephone number. Do not enclose SAEs nor original documents. Letters are selected for publication and we cannot give personal replies. The newspaper accepts no legal responsibility for advice.
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