A1 National Van Hire - no deposit return

trickys77

Scammers, do not touch.

Exactly the same issue & still fighting to get my £500 deposit back 1 month later. I've already contacted barclaycard under C75 who are not interested in helping as there is "insufficient evidence" that the refund is due!

mikeeech

We have been having similar issues.
Paid for the van hire on the 1st may (the £250 deposit was taken at this point)
Van hire was for the 8th may - returned on the 9th.
Delivered late but in good nick and returned in good condition.
deposit was due to be refunded on the 18th.
no refund so called on 23rd and was told that the deposit would be refunded and was given a ref number!
Now on the 2nd... still no money.

We paid with a debit card. We can raise a visa dispute however they were late picking the van up and had agreed with my wife that she would leave the keys in a secure location for them to collect. We have no return documentation and hence no proof that the deposit is refundable. With Hertz or Avis this sort of thing would not even have been an issue!

In my opinion this is a very disreputable company - which is a pity since it could have a good business model.

We will report them to trading standards, for what it's worth, and anyone else who will listen and will be seeking legal advise but my advise to anyone else is DON'T DEAL WITH THIS COMPANY

darkoak

i hope i am as lucky as you because i am trying to get my £500.00 deposit back by visa dispute as i payed these crooks with visa debit card too. i just do'nt understand how thay can do it to so many people and get away with it.

scriv

To both last posters, I hope you are successful with your claim via Visa Dispute. We were, so don't lose hope. It takes quite a time, but it worked.
Mikeeeech, I would still try to claim via Visa even though you have no documentation of proof of return. Send your bank all the documentation you have and record of your calls etc. I seem to think that there is a burden of proof on the merchant to prove that they have returned the deposit to you or prove why not, and obviously these crooks cannot do that. Also, Visa are surely aware by now of this company, so must understand your situation.Good luck.

MonsieurJour

I really wish I'd read this forum before booking with A1. Can only add my voice to those who urge you NOT TO DO BUSINESS WITH THEM. Van didn't turn up, and they took my fee and deposit, and weren't going to give it back. I did however raise a dispute from in Santander branch on one of their phones with Visa, who sent me some forms in the post to sign and dealt with it all for me. Really impressed with the service and outcome.

geoff1954

I also am struggling to get my deposit back. I've taken several actions:
1. Claimed it via Money Claim Online (an online 'court', run by the government. It has cost me £25 but this should be paid by A1 eventually.
2. Reported it to the 'actionfraud' website This seems to be a major fraud. At any time they are holding on to many thousands of pounds. Some victims will give up claiming. Also, in what other ways are A1 breaking the law? If they are prepared to hold on to deposits in such a blatant way, are they paying NI and income tax correctly? Are their vans safe? In what state are their accounts?
3. I've reported it to Watchdog.
4. I will write to Trading Standards, once I can find the right address.

Khakiman

Having had various conversations with A1 National Van Hire (and their sister company UK Van and Minibus Hire - they share Hammond Kumar as Director) over the last 7 months I eventually took action via the Money Claim Online website. I was outside the 120 days during which the bank can dispute the payment. Using MCOL is a simple process taking about 20 minutes and costs £25. Although someone from A1 called in a flap having received the initial Court papers no money turned up. However, having just taken the second step of gaining a joint Count Court Judgement against Mr Kumar and A1 National Van Hire, I have just got all my money back; including interest and Court fees. A small success but at least their shady activities have been formally recorded in the Court records. I urge all those trying to get their money back to follow this route. The MCOL site is pretty straight forward.

geoff1954

Like the previous poster I 'persuaded' A1 return my deposit by following the online court route. However the court judgement page says that A1 have changed their address. There could be many reasons for this, most of them deeply suspicious.

Stephank

CAUTION: DO NOT USE A1 National Van Hire!

I rented a van from them to move house on June 1st. Van arrived ok but they didn't refund me my £250 deposit. Many calls were made over the next two months chasing for the refund, each call more frustrating than the last. Eventually on call 10 the un-named individual on the phone told me to go away and that they were not going to refund me and that I should contact my credit card company.

I raised the dispute with American Express who were amazingly helpful (and knew about this merchant as had received several charge back requests for them like mine). So I eventually got my £250 deposit money back through Amex, however two days ago (and 3.5 months after initial payment/booking) they have charged my card again £95.99!! Does this indicate that they have kept my payment details all this time?

I have just logged the fraud complaint with action fraud and raised another dispute with Amex.

In my online research I found an article about Hammond Kumar (the company director) and how he was convicted a couple of years ago by a Leicesteshire court for not disposing of customer payment details correctly. From what I can remember about the article, someone from A1 had illegally dumped a bin bag full of customer card details into an alleyway near their premises.

This company should be avoided at all costs. They are fraudsters and you will regret it.

Stephank

I have been able to find hundreds of online complaints and allegations of fraud against A1 National Van Hire.
I can't put links in my post so please search websites like complaints board, measured up etc in cobination with "A1 National van hire" to read more.
There are also many angry customers seemingly reporting this company to Action Fraud (as I have) and still they seem to be able to continue trading.
What actually needs to happen for the police to step in and put an end to the scam? Is it a case of being too far down the priority list to see any action?

To follow my original post above, here's the article from systontownnews.co.uk about the way they handled their customers' "Personally Identifiable Information" & card payment details from March 2011.

A vehicle rental firm has been ordered by magistrates to pay more than £1,000 after failing to ensure the waste it generated was properly disposed of.
A1 National Car and Van Rental Ltd, of Braemar Court, Melton Road, Syston, was fined at Loughborough Magistrates’ Court after admitting failing to make adequate provision for the removal, collection or disposal of waste produced at its premises.
The court heard how seven black bin liners were dumped in an alleyway between Northfields and Melton Road in Syston in October 2010.
Charnwood Borough Council’s environmental crime team investigated after a tip off from the public and discovered the bags. The waste contained confidential items, including credit card information, names and addresses, and officers were able to trace it back to the rental firm.
Councillor Hilary Fryer, Charnwood Borough Council’s cabinet member for the environment, said: “Businesses should be especially aware of their legal obligations surrounding the disposal of waste, especially when it involves such sensitive information. We take crimes against the environment very seriously and will always seek to take action when waste has been dumped illegally.”
A1’s business director, Hammond Kumar, told the council he usually takes home waste from the premises and has it collected with his household waste.
He said he was not aware that the company had a duty to implement a process to correctly dispose of business waste.
On this occasion, however, he said an employee had been asked to take the bin liners home but had instead dumped them in the alleyway.
Councillor Fryer added: “This is yet another reminder to everyone to check with the authorities if they are unsure about how to dispose of waste.”
The company was fined £600 for the offence and was ordered to pay the council’s costs of £476.37 and a £15 victim surcharge.
Section 34 (1)(a) of the Environmental protection Act 1990 places a duty on all businesses to make adequate provision for the disposal, removal or collection of waste produced by them.

Like everyone else, I wish I had read all this before I booked. :mad: