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JimLawyer
JimLawyer, Solicitor
Category: Law
Satisfied Customers: 17416
Experience:  Senior Associate Solicitor
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In April, I ordered a delivery of logs from A&R Logs,

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In April, I ordered a delivery of logs from A&R Logs, through their website, and paid immediately by transfer, as I had done this a few times before, and was happy with their service. The amount was £130. Unfortunately I paid before reading the email acknowledging the order. On thos ot said that they had changed their banking details and could not retrieve any payment made into the old account. I consulted the Nationwide Recovery team, who said if the account had been closed I should be repaid, as it was no longer active. After a month with no action, I talked to N'Wide again, and they told me that the other bank had refused to repay the money. Since then the A&R website has clearly stated, in red, on the initial page to be aware that the bank details had changed. This was NOT evident when I put in my order. I have spoken to the owner Reece Newman a couple of times, initially a couple of days after I put in the order, and he said "I'll see what I can do, I may be able to drop the logs in next week,. as I was good customer. The second time I rang him, he repeated this. I asked him why the money could not be refunded, and he sai that he previously had an account with NatWest, but had moved, as he wanted to change to internet banking. I got the feeling that there had been some conflict. Since then, I have neither received the logs, or heard from him or Nationwide. I'm a 77yr old on a basic pension, and £130 is a lot of money for me to write off. I really don't know what to do next, or what my rights are, and would be very grateful for your advice. My apologies for such a long email! Yours hopefully, Penny Haselfoot
JA: Have you talked to a lawyer about this? In which country do you live? If different, which country is your legal question related to?
Customer: .I have not talked to a lawyer, I live in Eadt Sussex, UK, and A&R Logs are also based in East Sussex.
JA: What steps have you taken so far?
Customer: Spoken to my bank, Nationwide, and to Reece Newman. I assumed this would contravene Trading Standards, which is why I contacted you.
JA: Is there anything else the Lawyer should know before I connect you? Rest assured that they'll be able to help you.
Customer: I cannot afford to pay a lawyer, and this would probably cost mire than losing the money. I basically just want to know my legal postion
JimLawyer

Hello, this is Jim and welcome to JustAnswer.

I am one of the legal experts on the site and I am a dual-qualified solicitor (UK & Republic of Ireland)

Thank you for the question, I am reviewing the details now and I will aim to resolve it as quickly as possible for you.

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Sorry to hear of the issue.

The company should have made it clear to you before you placed the order their bank details had changed - they clearly updated their website after this.

My view is that this infringes your consumer rights and you should send A&R a letter before action to see if this prompts them to refund you.

The letter would look like the following :

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(insert their name and address)          (insert date)

LETTER BEFORE ACTION

Dear Sirs,

Re: Claim for (insert sum)

I refer to the above matter.

On (insert date) I placed an order for delivery of logs from your company for £130.00. I paid in the usual way to the usual bank account. Since then, you informed me that your bank details had changed and this was not evident at the time I placed my order. I have not received the order nor any refund. Accordingly, I hold you in breach of contract and breach of my statutory consumer rights.

This letter is being sent to you in accordance with the Pre-Action Protocol (“the Protocol”) contained within the Civil Procedure Rules (“CPR”). In particular, I refer you to paragraphs 13 to 16 of the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols regarding the Court’s powers to impose sanctions for failing to comply with the provisions of the Protocol.

I therefore put you on notice of my intention to issue county court proceedings against your company should I not receive payment in full by 4 pm on (insert date 14 calendar days).

Should court proceedings be necessary I will claim the court issue fee and statutory interest.

I trust the above will not be necessary and I therefore look forward to hearing from you as a matter of urgency.

Yours sincerely,

(insert name)


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If you send them the letter, give them 14 days and all being well they will refund you. If they don't then you can consider a small claims case - if you are on a low income then you may qualify for a court fee exemption (the court fee is usually £35 for a claim under £300 in value).

Perhaps revisit the site if you would like further details and assuming the letter has no effect. I would say the letter will work as they will not want to face a potential claim.

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I hope this helps

JimLawyer and 2 other Law Specialists are ready to help you
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It was a pleasure to assist you today and I hope this answers the question.

If you have any follow up questions or if you would like me to clarify anything I have said, please let me know and I will be happy to help.

Many thanks,

Jim



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Just a final note that if you would like to reconnect with me at a later date, simply add me as a favourite expert and you can then tag me in a question starting off with @JimLawyer.

I look forward to helping you again soon.

Thanks again,

Jim



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Customer: replied 1 month ago.
Thankyou so much for your advice, I will send the letter, as you suggested.
I might ring him first, and say that I do not wish to give him a bad review, but would feel I had to do so if he does not co-operate. P.Haselfoot

My pleasure and yes, that sounds fine to me.

Thanks, ***** ***** good day.

Jim

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