New Rules for Cross-Border Judgments
New EU rules came into force on 10th January that are designed to help businesses and consumers resolve cross-border legal disputes more easily and save an expected €48 million each year across the EU. The new rules abolish the previous procedure, which could be costly and lengthy but was apparently still used around 10,000 times […]
Government Consults Over New Tenancy Proposals
The Scottish Government has launched a new consultation over plans to give tenants more security of tenure. The New Tenancy for the Private Sector consultation aims to give tenants a greater sense of security, and provides appropriate safeguards for landlords, lenders and investors. Through the proposals landlords must offer a minimum tenancy of six months, […]
New Rights for Consumers
New rights came into force on 1st October 2014 that give consumers greater powers to challenge rogue traders and get their money back. Under the changes, consumers who are bullied or misled into buying services or goods they neither need nor want will now have a period of up to 90 days to take legal […]
Arguing Neighbours Top Nuisance List
As many as a quarter (27%) of people have had a problem with nuisance neighbours in the past year, according to new research from consumer rights organisation Which?. Loud voices and arguing (41%) top the list of annoyances caused by problem neighbours, followed by loud music and noisy TVs (29%), doors slamming (27%), people stomping […]
Contractual Rights and Doorstep Traders
In a decision that has been welcomed by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the Supreme Court has recently ruled that a consumer who entered into a doorstep selling contract was entitled to cancel his contract and get his money back when a trader failed to tell him about his legal right to cancel. The […]
Failure to Check can Cause Problems for Landlords
The failure to carry out basic checks on prospective tenants is leaving many UK landlords exposed to potential risks and problems, according to insurance company AXA. AXA’s research found that almost 60% of tenants admit to breaking the terms of their rental agreement, and a third had broken the law in relation to their rental. […]
Official Opening of Aberdeen’s New Court
Last week saw the official opening of Aberdeen’s Civil Justice Centre and Commercial Court, in a ceremony that was attended by Scotland’s most senior judge, the Lord President and the Cabinet Secretary of Justice Kenny MacAskill MSP. The new court is located in the building previously occupied by the Justice of the Peace Court. According […]
Reforming Insurance Contract Law
A bill has been introduced to the UK Parliament that will update the 100-year-old rules governing contracts between businesses and insurers. According to the UK Government, the Insurance Bill will introduce a more modern legal regime that will benefit both insurers and their business customers by increasing transparency and certainty over the rules that govern […]
Increase in Private Sector Evictions
There has been a 38% increase in issues caused by people without rent arrears being threatened with eviction from a private sector rented home, the Citizens Advice has said. If they are evicted, tenants have no choice but to find hundreds of pounds for a deposit and advance rent plus an average of £350 in […]
Consumer Protection Guidance for Lettings Industry
In a move that could help to reduce the number of disputes in the property letting sector, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has published guidance for lettings professionals to help improve their understanding of, and compliance with, consumer protection law. The guidance follows the publication last year of a wide-ranging report into the lettings […]
