knock out johnny Posted June 22, 2016 Share Posted June 22, 2016 I rent a bricks and mortar high street shop I was approached by a company called Brookland Trading who offered to assess the premises to see whether I was due a business rebate. He came round, measured and said in his opinion I was due back a sizeable refund and a lower business rate going forward. Well he would say that (I was wary). He explained the fee, including that there was a fee of circa £800 and they would also take a 25% cut of the final rebate. I said I would only sign if this was due if and when the rebate covered the fee (I envisaged a situation where I could be out of pocket and so spoke to the guy about it who said this would not happen - I also wrote on the agreement that I was committing on this stipulation and their rep was aware of this amendment). They are now saying the Valuation office has agreed that we do have a valid claim, and the fee is due, but the rebate still has to be agreed by the business rates/valuation office Has anyone heard of Brookland Trading and is this some kind of scam or is this normal practice for business rate appeals I'm very reluctant to stump up the £800 up front thanks to all in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CunningPlan Posted June 22, 2016 Share Posted June 22, 2016 Went through this many years ago. Sorry - can't remember the name of the firm but there were no upfront fees, just a % of saving / backsaving. Are there any other shops like yours in the vicinity? What we found is having paid to get a reduction in our rates, every other industrial unit on the estate got the same reduction - but didn't need to pay. You can go online and see everyone else's rateable value and work out if you are overpaying much by yourself. If there are other similar shops, form an alliance, get one of you to challenge the values and then split the bill across everyone that benefits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knock out johnny Posted June 22, 2016 Author Share Posted June 22, 2016 T Went through this many years ago. Sorry - can't remember the name of the firm but there were no upfront fees, just a % of saving / backsaving. Are there any other shops like yours in the vicinity? What we found is having paid to get a reduction in our rates, every other industrial unit on the estate got the same reduction - but didn't need to pay. You can go online and see everyone else's rateable value and work out if you are overpaying much by yourself. If there are other similar shops, form an alliance, get one of you to challenge the values and then split the bill across everyone that benefits. Too late now - they say I've signed and they're expecting payment - but I feel I've been misled which makes me very suspicious that they're scamsters. In which case they can whistle - although if there is a rebate, I'd like it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trampa501 Posted June 22, 2016 Share Posted June 22, 2016 http://www.freeindex.co.uk/business-advice/appealing-my-business-rates-have-i-been-scammed?_14788.htm We went through this. A scammer will state you have to pay a cancellation fee if you back out now. They will also say you have an excellent chance of winning your claim, but first you have to pay them a fee. Not sure if the people you list are legit. But if you do get tangled with a scammer, remember that they won't have money to take the legal route. If you make it clear you will not pay without a win, and will publish on social media any threats, they may judge you not worth the trouble. They are looking for mugs who cave in when the threat of legal action is mentioned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SNACR Posted June 22, 2016 Share Posted June 22, 2016 T Too late now - they say I've signed and they're expecting payment - but I feel I've been misled which makes me very suspicious that they're scamsters. In which case they can whistle - although if there is a rebate, I'd like it! I'd let them county court claim you and see where it goes. They may not be scammers per se but if you want to appeal your rates valuation you are much better off retaining a surveyor of your choosing yourself. Do bear in mind also if there is a risk of rattling the VO's cage to new evidence in the vicinity that may adversely affect your postion in future. In all honesty unless there is some material change to the property, that would have a bearing on the valuation, or a collapse in rents nearby the scope for sizeable payouts or savings often won't live up expectations. If the current rateable value is a reasonably realistic function of the rent on the lease there is probably other areas of business to be focused on that would yield better results. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Battenberg Posted June 22, 2016 Share Posted June 22, 2016 T Too late now - they say I've signed and they're expecting payment - but I feel I've been misled which makes me very suspicious that they're scamsters. In which case they can whistle - although if there is a rebate, I'd like it! I had this call a few weeks back and I kept asking them to confirm who they were and their address. They were in London somewhere. I refused to go further with them, for the simple reason that when I took on my industrial unit the mezzanine had been removed and I asked the council to come out and reassess, and they happily obliged. I also don't hand financial parts of my business out to anyone apart from my accountant and I'm very sceptical about these types of cold calls. Someone's always ringing up to claim they can save you money. Following assessment I don't think it ended up any lower but as someone else suggested I'd also checked online and could see what similar units on my row were paying. I already get some business relief. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
man o' the year Posted June 22, 2016 Share Posted June 22, 2016 Have you signed? If not the way forward seems clear. There are many firms doing these appeals on a no win no fee but percentage of refund basis. We are approached on a regular basis. If you are unsure whether you have signed you probably haven't and just to reassure you make a post on a business legal forum and they will help. I have a link if you need one. Don't let the scammers win. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knock out johnny Posted June 22, 2016 Author Share Posted June 22, 2016 Have you signed? If not the way forward seems clear. There are many firms doing these appeals on a no win no fee but percentage of refund basis. We are approached on a regular basis. If you are unsure whether you have signed you probably haven't and just to reassure you make a post on a business legal forum and they will help. I have a link if you need one. Don't let the scammers win. I have signed. With my own cavaet scribbled on the contract. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trampa501 Posted June 23, 2016 Share Posted June 23, 2016 Don't wory, stick to your guns and repeat what you've been led to believe ie no fee without a win They will eventually get sick of putting pressure on you. They won't risk the cost and publicity of court, but will just move onto the next target. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freeholder Posted June 23, 2016 Share Posted June 23, 2016 You could contact the Valuation Office and check that they have indeed negotiated a reduced assessment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baday Posted December 19, 2016 Share Posted December 19, 2016 hello,i am also a victim,i have been forced to pay £4,900 and they also feature me on a program called cant pay we take away.my shop is called phone station.the only way out is to get a good solicitor or pay them at earlier stage...email me on olasoji_alowounle@yahoo.com if you need for info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geezer466 Posted December 19, 2016 Share Posted December 19, 2016 4 hours ago, baday said: hello,i am also a victim,i have been forced to pay £4,900 and they also feature me on a program called cant pay we take away.my shop is called phone station.the only way out is to get a good solicitor or pay them at earlier stage...email me on olasoji_alowounle@yahoo.com if you need for info. Think I saw that episode.. Didn't they take your Mercedes in the end? And your not a victim you would have had the opportunity to dispute the debt in Court on more than one occasion. It is because you never took these opportunities (probably by not turning up) that the scammer was about to obtain a judgement against you by default, I doubt the judge even looked at it if you were not there. The first and only real rule of business is if you don't understand a contract then do not sign it. Contract law is such that you are expected to understand the terms and so long as it is reasonable and there was no attempt to deceive, the contract terms will ALYWAYS win. If a deal looks too good to be true it always is.... As for the scammers I took several calls from different firms requesting a visit to sell me this service. After gettign rid of the first I did some research and it is easy enough to challenge a ratiing yourself via the Valuations office. In my case I decided it wasn't worth it so didn't bother. I saw the other half dozen scammers of who called after the first. Things are now that I won't be paying business rates from next year anyway. We just come under the radar of the new bandings...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SNACR Posted December 19, 2016 Share Posted December 19, 2016 I wouldn't necessarily say he wasn't a victim. Fairly easy to abuse the county court, then high court, enforcement system to obtain default judgments for dubious debts. All it takes is the original paperwork to either not arrive or not be treated seriously enough by the unsuspecting or inexperienced. Not sure it necessarily follows they're not a victim. It's the sending the judgment to the High Court, that's the problem, often before the defendant has an opportunity to settle the debt. If the county court directly employed bailiff turned up he would have probably given advice on how to have the default judgment set aside quite often if the defendant appeared genuine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 20, 2016 Share Posted December 20, 2016 Employee reviews do not look promising. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baday Posted January 31, 2017 Share Posted January 31, 2017 On 19/12/2016 at 7:43 PM, geezer466 said: Think I saw that episode.. Didn't they take your Mercedes in the end? And your not a victim you would have had the opportunity to dispute the debt in Court on more than one occasion. It is because you never took these opportunities (probably by not turning up) that the scammer was about to obtain a judgement against you by default, I doubt the judge even looked at it if you were not there. The first and only real rule of business is if you don't understand a contract then do not sign it. Contract law is such that you are expected to understand the terms and so long as it is reasonable and there was no attempt to deceive, the contract terms will ALYWAYS win. If a deal looks too good to be true it always is.... As for the scammers I took several calls from different firms requesting a visit to sell me this service. After gettign rid of the first I did some research and it is easy enough to challenge a ratiing yourself via the Valuations office. In my case I decided it wasn't worth it so didn't bother. I saw the other half dozen scammers of who called after the first. Things are now that I won't be paying business rates from next year anyway. We just come under the radar of the new bandings...... I think you are one of them beside,i don't have Mercedes and all this information you are giving is not in that episode so clearly you are connected to brookland trade in one or the other.That is past now and i have moved on from it.I'm a victim and i am just sharing my experience,obviously its not a good experience but brookland trade,has to deal with it . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baday Posted January 31, 2017 Share Posted January 31, 2017 On 19/12/2016 at 11:30 PM, SNACR said: I wouldn't necessarily say he wasn't a victim. Fairly easy to abuse the county court, then high court, enforcement system to obtain default judgments for dubious debts. All it takes is the original paperwork to either not arrive or not be treated seriously enough by the unsuspecting or inexperienced. Not sure it necessarily follows they're not a victim. It's the sending the judgment to the High Court, that's the problem, often before the defendant has an opportunity to settle the debt. If the county court directly employed bailiff turned up he would have probably given advice on how to have the default judgment set aside quite often if the defendant appeared genuine. but you mislead me or you didn't? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gibbon Posted January 31, 2017 Share Posted January 31, 2017 18 minutes ago, baday said: but you mislead me or you didn't? Was it the episode where they started loading the goods from your phone shop onto a van? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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