Marston Fees - does this sound right?

[bluebottle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

Don't follow what you mean.

As VAT on Fines & Penalties is not reclaimable there is no need for the Bailiff to produce a VAT receipt in the manner we are accustomed to seeing.

My understanding of VAT regulations is that fines and court costs are exempt from VAT.

[ploddertom]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

I'm still at a loss to see where the Bailiff has charged VAT on the original "fine/costs". Mind I've had a not very good last 24hours so could be looking at the wrong thing.

[bluebottle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

As far as I am aware, PT, fines and court costs are exempt from VAT. However, they cannot be claimed against Income Tax. The VAT applicable to lawful bailiff fees is Standard Rate, currently 20%, and not recoverable.

[jtwinkle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

Today I received this in the post, in response to my email on Monday (they wouldn't reply to my email due to data protection as it's in my husband's name, which is fair enough) I am still awaiting a response to the letter I sent on Tuesday (which they received yesterday) which was a copy of Letter 1 from here, including a bit asking for an explanation of the Attendance to Remove fee, and how they decided on that amount. Hopefully I will receive that soon.

[ploddertom]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

There are no dates on the letter advising when each charge was made. Can they prove the Letter was actually sent? Ask them which Rule/Regulation allows them to charge a Card Fee?

My comment on the Attendance/Levy Charge is unprintable and I would be asking how many others the same Bailiff served an Attending to Remove Fee on the same day and did he have the correct transport etc to remove all the said items and did he have correctly levied items.

[bizzybob]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

I would ask him if his Berlingo is a TARDIS, or does he regularly call with a hired pantechnicon and porters to remove goods, in order to claim the fee.

[bluebottle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

My understanding of the term "Attend to Remove" is to remove lawfully seized goods, not remove a wheelclamp. Marstons are seriously taking the p*ss. Overcharging to the tune of £303.85, IMHO, comes close to bringing into question the fitness of the bailiff involved to continue to act as a bailiff.

Has any communication been sent to Gareth Hughes yet?

[jtwinkle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

Not yet Bluebottle, wasn't sure what to say! Also the ICO asked me to email Marston asking why they felt it was acceptable to leave the Notice of Seizure on the windscreen in a public car park (breach of data protection), but wasn't sure how to word it.

[bluebottle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

I'll draft something to send to Gareth Hughes in the morning.

[jtwinkle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

You're a star, thank you so much for all of your help

[bluebottle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

As Ploddertom has pointed out, there are no dates for each fee. So this brings into question the veracity and validity of each fee for starters. This needs to be addressed first before anything else is tackled.

Something along the lines of -

"Dear Mr Hughes,

Reference: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I refer to your company's letter dated [date] in connection with the matter at reference.

It is noted that your company has not quoted relevant dates for any of the fees listed, bringing into question the veracity of the fees. I would, therefore, be obliged if you would provide relevant dates for each fee within 10 calendar days of your receipt of this letter.

Yours sincerely,

..................."

See what comes back and then we can start to pick their fees apart and challenge them.

[jtwinkle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

As I have already requested that via letter should I wait for a response to that? The one I received yesterday was just a reply to my initial email request for a breakdown of fees (in the email I didn't ask for dates etc) just a breakdown of fees as advised by Marston over the phone.

[bluebottle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

As I have already requested that via letter should I wait for a response to that? The one I received yesterday was just a reply to my initial email request for a breakdown of fees (in the email I didn't ask for dates etc) just a breakdown of fees as advised by Marston over the phone.

If you have already requested relevant dates, wait for that to arrive and then post up. As Ploddertom has said, the Attend to Remove fee is highly-suspect. The credit card fee is "not in accordance with legislation".

[jtwinkle]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

Marston's received my letter (letter 1) on 20th Feb, I requested a response within 14 days, but nothing has arrived yet! Shall I give them a call and ask them to hurry up?!

[wales01man]

Re: Marston Fees - does this sound right?

Worth a phone call. Will be a good excuse