I leased a new till/point of sale system bar/restaurant,

In the circumstances you can argue that the goods you were provided with did not match the discussions and requirements which were agreed at the outset. Therefore, they would amount to a potential breach of contract (even if no written contract was agreed, a verbal contract can be just as legally binding). In addition, you could also argue that under the Sale of Goods Act 1979 the goods are not as described of satisfactory quality or fit for purpose. This would allow you to reject them and ask for a refund (or just return them if nothing has been paid). They may try and say that this law is for private consumers only, but it also covers business to business contracts if the law was not specifically contracted out of in writing under the contract you had with them. As no contract existed they would not have disapplied it and you can rely on it. At this stage it is best if you simply return the system to them, using a trackable method of postage. Once it is in their hands the only matter left outstanding is the money they are after. Yu cannot be forced to pay them, unless they take you to court and win. However, if they go that far you will be able to defend any claim by arguing the system did not meet the criteria as set out above and you exercised your right to reject it and cancel the contract. This is your basic legal position. I have more detailed advice for you in terms of what you may expect should they decide to issue a claim in court, which I wish to discuss so please take a second to leave a positive rating for the service so far (by selecting 3, 4 or 5 stars) and I can continue with that and answer any further questions you may have. Don’t worry, leaving a rating will not close the question and we can continue this discussion. Thank you

Thank you. There is nothing stopping them from going to court over this if they really wanted to, however as mentioned you have grounds to defend a claim. A claim for the amount stated would go to the small claims court which is a relatively low risk venue for a claim - if you lose you do not have to pay their legal fees. So all you would be liable for would be the amount the court believes you should owe them, plus court fees which will only be a few hundred pounds. So you are not looking at a huge legal bill for example. All of this depends on them actually making a claim in the first place, which they may never do