Please help needed Urgent

[incemusti]

Hello,

I am living in a leasehold property and I have received a letter from the management company on the 29th april 2008 demanding payment and i need to contact them within 7 days otherwise they will take court action. I called them next day on 30/04/2008 and explained my situation (I am unemployed and on jobseekers allowence) and asked them to give me some time to make another payment and the lady told me it is fine and advise me not to squeeze myself.After that I have send them another payment of £200 on 19/05/2008 and same day I have received court summon and I have called them back and talked to the same lady i have talked before and she denies talking to me and theatining me to make me bankrupt if i dont pay full amount but i can prove that i have called them and explained the situation because i am holding call logs from my telephone company and shows I called them on 30/04/2008. Could you please advise me what to do i have even asked them not necessary to go to court i will make payment but i dont want to pay court fee which is £70 because it was not necessary to go to court.

Could you please advise me what to do now.

Best regards,

M.Ince

 

[maidofkent]

I can't advise you on the legal aspects of your situation, but I would first suggest that any future dealings are always in writing, and sent by Recorded/Signed for post. Always keep yourself a copy.

You may be able to prove you phoned the company, but there will be no evidence of what the conversation was.

I presume you paid your £200 by cheque? If so, you'll at least be able to prove you made that payment.

Write to the company, explain what you've said here, and make them a realistic payment offer - and stick to it. If you can only afford £5 a week, make that offer. Don't forget to send your letter by Recorded/Signed for, and keep a copy.

I don't believe they can take you to court if you have made an offer, then you stick to it. (Someone correct me if I'm wrong).

If you keep all the correspondence both ways you can use it if it does end up in court.

MoK

 

[.Spiralling.]

I don't believe they can take you to court if you have made an offer, then you stick to it. (Someone correct me if I'm wrong).

They can still take you to court if you've made an offer and are sticking to it, but a judge is likely to take a dim view of a company which does so, especially since they are unlikely to get the payments any quicker by going to court, as you're on benefits.

 

[incemusti]

Thanks for your advise but they have already took me to the court they have sent me court summon but i dont know what to defend i never told them i am not going to pay there was no reason to take me to court i told them i will pay the money but the thing is i dont want to pay £70 court fee that is the only amount i feel that i defend.

 

[maidofkent]

It's not clear whether you've already been to court, or they've sent you a summons. You haven't actually been to court yet, have you?

Write to them, as I suggested below, make them an offer based on what you earn and what your outgoings are.

A member of my family was in exactly your position a year or so ago, and finally his creditor accepted an offer (for a bill of £1,900) of £6 per month). It didn't go to court, so he didn't have to pay the court fee.

Ignore what the letter says - you will only pay the court fee if you actually get to court.

MoK

 

[incemusti]

Thanks for your reply no i have not been in court yet i have just received a court summon but management company already charged me £70 court fee on top of what i owe them i did not know i dont have to pay the court fee if i dont go to court yesterday logged court website online and sent them acknowledment of receiving paperwork and i need to file the paperwork in 28 days but the management company wants to go to court they may not accept the offer the only things i worry about i i lose the case is there any problem in the future i mean does it effect my credit situation.

Regards,

 

[maidofkent]

I guess (and this is not legal advice I'm giving you here), the most you can do is set out your income and outgoings, decide how much you can pay.

Set it out for a court to see. If your offer is reasonable in your circumstances, they will accept it, even if the management company don't want to - they won't make you pay £200 per month if your income is only £44 per week, for instance, and you have other bills to pay too.

Explain also, in writing, what you have told the forum, about the phone call, etc, then submit that information to the court. (I haven't seen one of those 28-day letters for a while, and can't remember what they say, but I think you may be able to submit this before the court hearing).

You have to hope for the best. You may win, you may lose, I can't say, and you may have to pay the £70. In future, though, if you get into debt and you get a 7-day letter, DON'T PHONE anyone. It's vital you deal with these things in writing - and within the 7 days, too.

MoK

 

[incemusti]

Thank you very much all the information you have given me you have been so helpfull anyway i will get some legal advice before going to court.

Regards,

 

[.Spiralling.]

Even though they seem hell bent on going to court, still write to them with your offer. If they still go to court, the judge will not be pleased that they have refused a reasonable offer - the law requires both parties to do all they can to avoid court. By making them an offer in writing before the court date you are doing your part.

They should not have added the court fee to your account already - you are not liable for that until it is awarded to them by the judge.

 

[obscure]

..... but management company already charged me £70 court fee on top of what i owe them....

This £70 court fee, is this being charged by the Court or is the an administration fee being charged by the company for taking you to court?

 

[incemusti]

The court fee is on the court summon i do not know who charge this on the summon it says,

Amount claimed:£1023.86

Court fee :£70

Solicitor cost: £0.00

total Amount: £1093.86

I think it is being charged by court but i am not sure

Thank you

 

[maidofkent]

Without seeing the paperwork, it looks as if the company might have put that charge in.

Take the good advice of spiralling, and still make your offer to them. It may not yet have to go to court.

MoK

 

[Antonia @limeone.com]

If the document has a court seal on it ( a stamp) and come from them then you need to attend the hearing. The court fee will be added to the debt and it may be they will get a suspended possession notice on the property subject to your paying the arrears. All landlords ( and their agents) have the legal right after serving the correct notice on you to take the matter to court.

This is serious so you should phone the court and see if they have a housing advisor ( lawyer) available to seek advice from. Many have advisors permanently in court on these matters to provide free help. If not then seek advice now from your local CAB. Do not be tempted to avoid court attendance as it really does make a difference to the court order if you turn up.

 

[incemusti]

First of all thank you for your reply and yes there is a court stamp on the forms coming from northampton ccbc county court I wanted to pay all amount to avoid the court but yesterday i have filed acknowledment service online and admit only the part of the claim which is £70 court fee but as far as i know because i am on jobseekers allowance i dont pay the £70 court charge is it true? my other question is when ccj happens I dont want my credit effected by this situation that is the most important please tell me about ccj, is it happens if i dont pay the amount they want me to pay.

Thanks,

 

[happyflash]

hope you can solve everything

 

[Antonia @limeone.com]

Is the summons just a debt action or a claim for possession?

 

[incemusti]

it is a just a dept action not for possesion.

 

[.Spiralling.]

A CCJ only affects your credit rating if you fail to pay the amount awarded in the judgement. If, for instance, they are awarded everything they ask for and they agree to you paying in installments, it won't affect your rating, provided you keep up with the payments. If you miss one, or are late, then it can affect your rating.