Nice People Thread No. 14, all Nice and Proper

silvercar

zagubov wrote: »

How on earth can the vendor's solicitors pursue this further once it's admitted it's their error that they mistakenly involved debt collectors?
How on earth does their mistake concern you (SC) in any way?

It is the freeholder's agents that are chasing, even though the debtt was cleared from the completion money. So they debt collectors are coming after us as new owners.

chewmylegoff

silvercar wrote: »

It is the freeholder's agents that are chasing, even though the debtt was cleared from the completion money. So they debt collectors are coming after us as new owners.

I think in this situation I would be minded to invite them to sue me. I can't imagine a judge is going to look kindly on a claim from the freeholder that you should compensate them for fees they have incurred as a result of an error they made and I cannot see how the debt collector is going to be able to demonstrate that you are liable for their fees to their client in respect of a debt you paid on time. it sounds like such a stupid claim that you don't really need to pay a solicitor to defend it.

silvercar

Generali wrote: »

I'd post it here:

http://boards.fool.co.uk/legal-issues-practical-51110.aspx?mid=13285617

and hope that one of the legal eagles like IoWPete or Clitheroe Kid pick up on it.

How much is the debt? If it's a few hundred or less I'd be inclined to pay, perhaps negotiating with the debt collection company to see if they'll meet you part of the way.

£200. That is what is so annoying, it is more than the vendor owed in outstanding ground rent. A sum that my solicitor made a big fuss of the vendor's settling from the proceeds of the sale.

zagubov

You can't go round paying debt collectors fees for random idiots who imagine you owe them dosh.

If we did, we might as well switch the whole country over to a litigation-based economy where we sue a living out of our neighbours instead of working to earn it. Like the US is close to becoming.

chewmylegoff

On reflection I think You should vigorously defend their claim, run up solicitors fees of £10,000 in the process and then pursue them for the costs you have incurred in defending their vexatious claim.

Generali

zagubov wrote: »

You can't go round paying debt collectors fees for random idiots who imagine you owe them dosh.

If we did, we might as well switch the whole country over to a litigation-based economy where we sue a living out of our neighbours instead of working to earn it. Like the US is close to becoming.

chewmylegoff wrote: »

On reflection I think You should vigorously defend their claim, run up solicitors fees of £10,000 in the process and then pursue them for the costs you have incurred in defending their vexatious claim.

I get your point absolutely but sometimes life is just too short.

Doozergirl

silvercar wrote: »

£200. That is what is so annoying, it is more than the vendor owed in outstanding ground rent. A sum that my solicitor made a big fuss of the vendor's settling from the proceeds of the sale.

That's about an hour of a litigation solicitor's time, then.

Your other option is to pursue it yourself. Is it worth it?

I don't think you can ask friend to do it for free. I don't know what you paid them, but if the goodwill has run out, you can't question it if you value the friendship. You can't ask other solicitors to work for free and arguably you shouldn't ask friends to sacrifice salary either, especially when it's a deductable allowance.

GDB2222

chewmylegoff wrote: »

On reflection I think You should vigorously defend their claim, run up solicitors fees of £10,000 in the process and then pursue them for the costs you have incurred in defending their vexatious claim.

For the small claims track, which this would be, you can't claim your expenses.

silvercar

Generali wrote: »

I get your point absolutely but sometimes life is just too short.

Very apt.

A friend has just dropped dead. Literally had a heart attack. First of my friends to go. Aged 54. He has had a heart condition for years, never done much about it. Suddenly gone. 4 kids aged 16-26, all estranged from their divorced mother at various times, held together by their father. Now gone.

Generali

silvercar wrote: »

Very apt.

A friend has just dropped dead. Literally had a heart attack. First of my friends to go. Aged 54. He has had a heart condition for years, never done much about it. Suddenly gone. 4 kids aged 16-26, all estranged from their divorced mother at various times, held together by their father. Now gone.

I'm sorry to hear that silvercar.

It comes to us all one day and, at the risk of sounding flippant, the only thing worse than getting old is not getting old.