brand new flat not so brand new

tus100

Errata wrote: »

They don't, but if you have recorded telephone conversations without the other person's permission they may be viewed as having been illegally obtained.

as i was a party to the conversation it was not illegal for me to tape the conversation however if I wish for these to be made public I would have to inform them I intend to use them as evidence.....i think and hope!

Amie_J

The best thing you can do is to document everything you have in a chronologiocal order and take everything to a solicitor so that it can be delt with properly. I have to agree with Errata - if you have obtained copies of recorded conversations without the permission of the poeple on the tape then it would be viewed that you have obtained them illegally and without permission, so they could not be used in any case you may build against the other parties involved.

I wouldn't accept their offer to deep clean the flat just yet as that may be viewed as you accepting some sort of "compensation" to bring the matter to a close and could come back at you further down the line. Put it in the hands of somebody who knows what they are doing and has been professionally trained!

Amie_J

It was not illegal for you to tape the conversation as long as you informed the other people involved that it was being recorded prior to the conversation starting - this declaration would also need to be on the recording.

mufi

ILW wrote: »

What are you hoping to achieve.

Well, what the OP needs to aim at is diminution in value, settled out of court - that's what a court is likely to award in a case like this.

I would stay away from litigation if humanly possible - this will cost time and money (usually, both parties are liable for some of the costs, regardless of who wins, and the costs can be horrendous...). Plus bear in mind that the builder may either lie or put a different perspective on the whole sorry tale.

Good luck - I feel great sympathy for you.

chris_m

Amie_J wrote: »

It was not illegal for you to tape the conversation as long as you informed the other people involved that it was being recorded prior to the conversation starting - this declaration would also need to be on the recording.

It's not illegal to record it without telling them, for your own personal use/notes/etc.

However, without their knowledge (and the declaration as you state) the recording cannot be used as any form of evidence since it is illegal to make the recording available to a third party without both parties having been aware of the recording prior to the conversation taking place.

Amie_J

That's exactly what I meant Chris_m - you just said it in a better way! hehe.

BargainMad_3

Speaking of telephones, was the landline working in the flat ?

Of course all the phone boxes and stuff are built into the flat by the builders but it is usually the first person living there that has to get it connected.

So if it was already connected that would kind of imply someone was staying more than a few days.

If you had to get it connected, that might imply whoever was there wasn't there long.

It might help you determine just how long the stayer was in for.

tus100

BargainMad wrote: »

Speaking of telephones, was the landline working in the flat ?

QUOTE]

excellent point and my husband said the same time. apparently talk talk confirmed on the phone that there was a line already in but they have to actually come and confirm this before we use that.

tus100

Amie_J wrote: »

That's exactly what I meant Chris_m - you just said it in a better way! hehe.

apparently there are different laws governing recording of telephone calls and face to face conversations

Errata

tus100 wrote: »

apparently there are different laws governing recording of telephone calls and face to face conversations

Indeed there are. You should familiarise yourself with them.