Court Claim advice

MrPez

Hi all

I've been trying to get a refund from SeeTickets for a cancelled event. I've tried loads of times to ask for a refund and have been told I would get it but I haven't. In my last communication I said I would initiate a claim through the small claims court (which I now know is known as a Cout Claim) if I wasn't refunded. I did get a reply saying I would be refunded within 7 days but I haven't so I intend to start a claim.

The Gov.uk website says there is a different process in Scotland to England. When I bought the tickets I lived in England. However, I now live in Scotland so I'm not sure which process I need to follow. I suspect that my change of address (and also change of credit card) is part of the issue preventing payment, but I have explained the situation in every correspondence so I don't know what more I can do.

Also, I noted that it said I 'may' be able to claim the £35 fee from the other party. Any idea how this works?

Thanks in advance.

Sandtree

Clause 48 of their terms and conditions state that the contract is governed by English Law and under the jurisdiction of the courts of England (and Wales) and so that answers your question of which court system to use. 

Neither change of address nor change of card will make any difference, they will refund the monies back to the card you paid with in line with anti-money laundering guidelines. Banks are used to this and if its a new card on the same account its no issue, if its a new account then you'll need to get in contact with the original account bank and they will refund it. If you issue proceedings and the courts award you the case then that AML aspect goes away.

When you fill in the MCOL form it'll ask you if you want to include the fees and statutory interest in your claim... the former is almost always awarded to a successful claimant and only tends  not to be when due process hasn't been followed (ie you go straight to court without a meaningful attempt to resolve before hand etc)

MSE_Laura_F

Hello @MrPez,

Sorry to hear about this drawn-out battle for your refund.

I see you're already getting some useful comments which is grand, but I wanted to check if you've tried some other routes first.

Depending on the circumstances (cost of tickets, time since purchase), you might be able to get your money back through one of these schemes:

Chargeback (see the MSE guide)
Ask your bank to "reverse the transaction" and get your money back via chargeback. This can only be used if it's within 120 days of your purchase or payment for the service. Be aware that, if the chargeback is awarded in your favour, the company can dispute it and, if it successfully appeals, can get the money back within a certain timeframe. 

Section 75 (see the MSE guide)
If you paid on a credit card and spent more than £100, you may be able to get it back under UK consumer protection law. HOWEVER, it WON'T usually work if you paid an intermediary/third party, so it might not be valid for your See Tickets purchase. But the Financial Ombudsman isn't the clearest on where the line is, so Martin Lewis says it's always worth trying.

Good luck,

MSE Laura F

Sandtree

MSE_Laura_F said:

Section 75 (see the MSE guide)
If you paid on a credit card and spent more than £100

Probably worth noting @MSE_Laura_F that its £100 per item (or ticket in this case) not just a total of more than £100

MSE_Laura_F

Sandtree said:

Probably worth noting @MSE_Laura_F that its £100 per item (or ticket in this case) not just a total of more than £100

Great shout, thank you @Sandtree, I'd not picked up on that.

There's a bit in the guide about this:
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/section75-protect-your-purchases/#singleitem

It sounds like there are some odd caveats that may be useful, eg, if the tickets were bought as a special offer together and therefore the company linked the transaction, it could still apply.

MrPez

Thanks for all the info, very helpful.

The credit card I originally used was a tandem credit card but I closed the account when they started charging. I did contact them to ask for a section 75 claim but never heard back. I assumed that was because each ticket was under 100 quid. Tandem also told me that any money returned to them would be bounced because it was a long time ago that I closed the account.

Re chargeback, I bought the tickets in 2019 so outside the 120 days.

I'll confirm with tandem that they haven't got the money but I'll guess they haven't. 

MrPez

So I confirmed with Tandem that they didn't receive the refund and I tried again with SeeTickets. They ignored me again.
I then raised a court claim and they ignored that too. I have now issued a CCJ against the company but I'm sure a company that size with customer service that poor will have loads already.
I'm now wondering what (if anything?) I do next? What if they ignore the CCJ?

macman

If they ignore the CCJ then you can instruct bailiffs to collect the debt, or seize assets to cover it.  There is of course no guarantee of success via this route.
You can't issue the CCJ, only the court can do that.