Disputing a rather strange small claim
Discussion
I'm asking on behalf of a legally illiterate friend.
So, my friend owns a flat. Well, him and his kids. There are three names on the title deeds.
One of the kids actually lives in the flat. The neighbour wanted to replace the roof of the flat. They agreed. Neighbour replaced the roof at cost of something like £11,000. My friend's kid signed a quote, but after that nothing more happened until work commenced. The cost for each flat was £1040. There was not attempt to get this money off my friend (which they'd have paid!) but now they got a small court claim summons and a solicitors letter. The solicitor's letter asks for £1040. My friend would've just paid that and sorted it out with the kids, but in no time at all a small claims summons then came through. The summons is only in the name of the kid in the flat.
The small claims summons asks for £1040, but then - in BLUE pen - written under the claims detail box someone has written in "total claim = £2080". This has just been written in the box in blue pen afterwards, which we thought was a bit weird? Another guy in the block has said the reason he'll be wanting more is that he paid for the roof with a loan that had a stupid interest rate.
The short of it is, my friend just wants to pay the £1040. But now they don't know if they can just do that, or if they need to go through the whole court process.
Ideas?
So, my friend owns a flat. Well, him and his kids. There are three names on the title deeds.
One of the kids actually lives in the flat. The neighbour wanted to replace the roof of the flat. They agreed. Neighbour replaced the roof at cost of something like £11,000. My friend's kid signed a quote, but after that nothing more happened until work commenced. The cost for each flat was £1040. There was not attempt to get this money off my friend (which they'd have paid!) but now they got a small court claim summons and a solicitors letter. The solicitor's letter asks for £1040. My friend would've just paid that and sorted it out with the kids, but in no time at all a small claims summons then came through. The summons is only in the name of the kid in the flat.
The small claims summons asks for £1040, but then - in BLUE pen - written under the claims detail box someone has written in "total claim = £2080". This has just been written in the box in blue pen afterwards, which we thought was a bit weird? Another guy in the block has said the reason he'll be wanting more is that he paid for the roof with a loan that had a stupid interest rate.
The short of it is, my friend just wants to pay the £1040. But now they don't know if they can just do that, or if they need to go through the whole court process.
Ideas?
PurpleMoonlight said:
Two comments.
1. Is the claim genuine. Is it direct from a County Court, usually Northampton if filed online.
2. Did the person arranging for the new roof have the authority to do so? What does the Lease say, is there a management company in place?
1. It's in Scotland. And yes, it appears to be from Edinburgh Sheriff Court. 1. Is the claim genuine. Is it direct from a County Court, usually Northampton if filed online.
2. Did the person arranging for the new roof have the authority to do so? What does the Lease say, is there a management company in place?
2. Under the title deeds they can make repairs of this sort and then recover costs from the tenants. No management company. This kind of shocked me, because he could have just sorted the roof out with a friend, they went up and chucked some bitumen on it and now they're wanting £11,000. Good wee scam.
I guess we're not sure if we should respond to the court summons, or ignore it and just send a letter to the solicitor for the £1040 that was originally asked for. I'm just baffled by the idiocy of my friend and this other guy that gets work done without really asking people if they agree.
First,if its a genuine summons, put in a defence asap.
Its been a while since I did civil stuff, but I'm sure the civil procedure rules say you MUST write and claim first.
Either make an offer of £1040, or make a payment into court of that sum.
The stupid interest rate is not your mate's problem, court rates only and not even then if no money requested
Oh,IANAL etc
Its been a while since I did civil stuff, but I'm sure the civil procedure rules say you MUST write and claim first.
Either make an offer of £1040, or make a payment into court of that sum.
The stupid interest rate is not your mate's problem, court rates only and not even then if no money requested
Oh,IANAL etc
Summons is genuine, it has the stamps and stuff. I just thought it was odd that in the box which has the details of the claim it is typed in that the claim is £1040. This is all good. It's only the additional writing in blue pen that says beneath: total claim = £2080 that is confusing us. Who wrote that on the letter? Weird...
KevinCamaroSS said:
Personally I would be disputing the whole claim as you have had no invoice requesting the money in the first place.
I must admit I think it is the perfect situation for a scam if you can just arrange any repair to the flat and then all tenants are then forced to pay up for their proportion of the the repair. What was to stop him getting a friend in, massively inflating the cost and then splitting the rewards? Yet, the solicitor's letter say he is allowed to do this as per the title deeds. I'm starting to think I should consider him to dispute the entire claim also.
As I have just said in another thread
Get proper legal advice.
Depending upon the Title Deeds/Legislation/Case Law they may
1 Not be liable.
2 Liable but only if the person carrying out the works follows a process. That person may have to provide 3 quotes and a budget for the year to be able to pursue a claim.
Get proper legal advice.
Depending upon the Title Deeds/Legislation/Case Law they may
1 Not be liable.
2 Liable but only if the person carrying out the works follows a process. That person may have to provide 3 quotes and a budget for the year to be able to pursue a claim.
Phone up the court and ask how much the claim is for as registered wth them. One of the lines on the summons used to be along the lines of "the defender refuses or delays to pay". I'm pretty sure if it came to a proof the Sheriff would take a dim view of a case being started when the defender hadn't been given a chance to pay.
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