flarmip

Point to point distance, using the Great Circle method directly from the origin to the destination - ignoring any intermediate transfer airports.

What is the journey you're looking at?

corporate-wage-slave

Point to point. So the kilometres associated with NCL-LHR-BHD would be NCL-BHD only.

HarryHolden68

Does anyone know what British Airways E-Mail address should I use for MCOL?

corporate-wage-slave

Usually there is an assumption that with MCOL and related legal documentation that everything is initially done by the Royal Mail, perhaps involving recorded delivery or similar. If this is for LBA, then I'd pop it in the post and get a certificate of posting, that stage is largely for show purposes anyway, it won't prompt BA to do anything.

HarryHolden68

Thanks CWS.

We are way beyond LBA. BA are still maintaining that downgrade compensation only applies to passengers downgraded on the day of the flight and that because they gave me advanced notice (of an aircraft swap), it does not apply.

sayling

If you're taking action under the 'new' money claims service of MCOL, ie under £10k etc, I started similar myself last year.

I ended up putting in Sean Doyle's address [email protected] as I couldn't find any other address to use. Not sure if there's the same requirement under the old MCOL route

flarmip

As you say, emailed documents are only deemed legally served if the other party has consented to service that way. In default of such consent, you need to use a good old fashioned letter.

There's no requirement to obtain proof of delivery, and indeed that can be counterproductive as your letter will not be deemed served until it actually arrives - thus the clock for being able to bring your claim doesn't start ticking. Using regular untracked first class post with proof of postage from a Post Office is the best way of going about things; your letter is then deemed served 2 working days later (provided you post before the last collection time that day).

Nonense of course, but you still need to follow the correct legal procedure to avoid BA having any ability to quibble. That involves sending all correspondence by post, with proof of postage, unless and until they agree to electronic service.

The Civil Procedure Rules are the same in this respect; if you want to serve more detailed Particulars of Claim than the handful of characters you can enter into the MCOL form, you need to effect service by post unless there is prior consent to electronic service.

sayling

This is where I was having trouble last year. I went to https://www.gov.uk/government/public...ine-user-guide which has a paragraph saying . Following that link, you don't really get a chance to sort out an LBA and you end up filing a claim, electronically, before you know it. The service then sends all the necessary emails and paperwork without me having to serve or having served anything by post.

It all seems a tad different from the advice given in this (and last year's) topics about following the MCOL route

JeffBHD

Likewise. Now waiting for a Court date. Interestingly BA, as Defendant, have just been ordered by the District Judge to notify the Court in writing of any other claims relating to the subject downgraded flight.

rjn21

I started mcol in August 2021. Following the directions questionnaire from 18 October 2021 and the re-allocation to my local court on 28 October 2021, silence about an actual court date.

I recall something about if you want to add additional particulars of claim beyond the very limited online form, you had to send it to the defendant but also to the court at a specific email address.

sayling

My case (claim submitted 15/8/2022) got transferred to Uxbridge (really annoyed me, and they don't seem to want to switch it back) and I received a Notice of Allocation to the Small Claims Track (Hearing), dated 11th March. Apparently, "The hearing of the claim will take place on a date to be fixed by the court on the first open date after 15 May 2023 with a time estimate of 90 minutes on a date to be notified." I have to pay a further "£181 to be paid on or before 28 days before the hearing date" (which is bizarre - I can't make payment during the 28 day period before the hearing?).
Apparently, "Pursuant to CPR 3.1(1)(c) unless the court directs otherwise, the hearing shall be conducted by BT Meet Me."
All very new to me, so have some research to carry out - but I want to ask BA for a record of all Avios transactions relating to the case to be presented as evidence, as one of their assertions is false.

SK AAR

Do you seriously expect BA to provide a substantive reply to this? I bet BA will come up with an explanation that such information is not possible to produce, not available etc.

sayling

Ha - missed this one. The Deputy District Judge also ordered the same in my case on 28th January - perhaps you'll receive a similar 'BT Meet Me' order soon!


I now realise that the order was directed at BA. Stupidly, at the time, I thought the order was against me (every other court activity I've been involved in previously has seen me as the Defendant, but that's another story ) and I actually replied. Doh!

corporate-wage-slave

LBA means Letter Before Action, where as that link above is, well, action. I would advocate people to do LBA before starting MCO since I'm aware of one case where the judge indicated that there wasn't a serious attempt by the passenger to resolve this with BA before launching MCOL - we all know why, and it wasn't a point that BA brought up - but from other discussions about MCOL, not airline related, district judges are re-evaluating whether they should be seen as a standard resolution machinery (e.g the utlity meters scandal).

sayling

I may have 'got away with it' by detailing the multitude of interactions I had with BA Customer Services as part of my claim, but you make a good point.