Invoiced for an email - Help please!

CalumHeath

Presuming you've read his website or any other of his advertisements does not form a contract between you and he. Sending him an email and him just giving you the information you need does not form a contract.

He clearly doesn't understand contract law: ignore him - he's a lost cause.

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Edit:
Play him at his own game; send an email telling him if he emails you again you will be charging him £100.00 to respond and that at least you've had the decency of telling him in advance - something he didn't do.

Seriously, the best thing you can do is ignore him

persa

UnderThe_Cosh wrote: »

1. We are not a free information service.

2. We take every measure necessary in our advertisements, our website and otherwise to make it clear what we charge. You were aware of that, your email of 29 March was a clear request for assistance, which we provided and charged for.

3. Our invoice of 4 May is not negotiable and all we might negotiate is an extension of the 28 days in which it is required to be paid due to your worklessness.

Well, if he's not a free information service, more fool him for giving you information before signing a contract with you. We're giving him the benefit of the doubt that the information he gave you was correct - may not have been.

No contract, nothing to enforce. He would be stupid to take this further as he has no evidence you entered into an engagement with him, but if he does, the people here are old hands at defending unenforceable debts and making them go away.

You are in the right - and this man really needs to get reported. He's doing the entire profession a disservice by treating you (and presumably others) in such a fashion.

Pollygarter

What a chancer! A very odd way for an accountant to behave. All the best with getting shot of this.

UnderThe_Cosh

Hi folks,

Alot of things have happened on this. I phoned the AIA and the Secretary of Disciplinary Something or another and he pretty much totally agreed with me. So I emailed the "accountant" on Friday saying he had 7days to furnish me with acredit note or I would submit a complaint.

This morning I get this reply...

"
1. We are sorry that your "work fell through" and taking that into consideration we would agree to extending credit re the payment of our invoice until you confirm you have found work and can pay. We cannot be any more generous than that.

2. Should your disposition be that you refuse to pay our invoice our usual terms of payment within 28 days of the date of invoice will apply.

3. Should your disposition be that you refuse to pay you should know we cannot issue a summons to pursue a debt unless we have an address. We will not have your address unless you supply it.

4. Should you refuse to both pay our invoice and to supply your address there is nothing we can do.beyond writing it off as not recoverable
"

So he is showing me a way out but not admitting any fault and still in my eyes making me a sort of criminal. My wife is saying forget it but I am in two minds. I hate confrontation and this is not sitting well with me. But what a nasty piece of work.

nidO

Delete all emails, move on with life.

Idiot is an idiot, but he's plainly admitted he has no way to pursue you for the debt.

Alternatively if you have a lot of time on your hands and want to screw with the guy a bit:

Knock up a website and some advertising offering email reading services at £200 per hour to read emails people send you.

Wait for him to contact you again demanding payment.

Reply back with an invoice for your time reading their email, point out to him that your advertising makes this charge clear as day (the fact that the advertising merely exists, regardless of whether you see or agree to it appears to be the absurd point he's relying on with you, so no harm you doing the same) and that unlike him, you do know where he is, and that an LBA will be landing on his doorstep if the invoice isn't paid within 28 days.

bebewoo

Time to submit a complaint then.

CalumHeath

You've really got to let this go. You don't owe him the money but you keep engaging him in conversation. He's even admitted there's nothing he can do if you don't pay.

Seriously, put it behind you - people are going to get bored of continuously giving you the same correct advice.

SeduLOUs

CalumHeath wrote: »

You've really got to let this go. You don't owe him the money but you keep engaging him in conversation. He's even admitted there's nothing he can do if you don't pay.

Seriously, put it behind you - people are going to get bored of continuously giving you the same correct advice.

I'm with him on this though. Somebody (aka OP) needs to teach this guy a lesson.

If OP just ignores it then the next person who contacts for advice might not be as savvy as us forum lot and might pay the invoice out of fear.

If you're in a position to make a complaint about him that might just stop him trying to rip other people off, then if it were me I'd take that opportunity.