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Rip off Britain - Season 18 Episode 12 - Bank devalued our house after approving our mortgage
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00:00Today, the couple whose bank told them that their house was unmortgageable because of
00:06the way it was built. So the question is, why didn't that stop the same bank giving
00:10them a mortgage to buy the house just a few years earlier?
00:13It just seems just so wrong and such a little mistake like that has made such a big impact
00:19on our life. Plus perilous potholes, the cause of countless costly bumps and scrapes. We've
00:26got the ultimate guide on how you can claim costs back if your vehicle comes a cropper.
00:31When you've got nowhere else to turn, we step in, because this is Rip Off Britain.
00:43Hello and welcome to Rip Off Britain HQ here in the heart of Salford. And it's here that
00:49all these lovely people are working tirelessly to fight for your rights.
00:53Today, the mysterious phone contract that resulted in debt collection letters from one woman who
00:59thought that she'd cancelled the contract years earlier. Now, when she came to our advice
01:03clinic in Mansfield, Jill had no idea how to unravel the mess and to call off the bailiffs.
01:10I'm not sleeping now because, you know, it's really frightening, isn't it?
01:15Plus, the Hajj pilgrims driven into the open arms of scammers because of high prices and limits
01:22on visa numbers. We're asking if the system that's supposed to protect against fraud is
01:27actually having the opposite effect. But first, one of the biggest names in banking,
01:33Nutwest. It says that it builds enduring trusted relationships with its customers. But I'm afraid
01:39the couple in this next story would definitely take issue with that. They're flummoxed thanks to this,
01:45a mortgage valuation. This one for their house, issued by Nat West in 2021, said it was suitable for a
01:53mortgage.
01:53But fast forward five years, same property, same bank, and it's a different story.
02:01I've got a maths lesson, first thing, on Monday. Teachers John and Ali Byrne both love their jobs.
02:09How do you approach that? Going first by seeing how they would approach it.
02:12But it's a bit of a squeeze at their kitchen table in this two-bedroom end of
02:17terrace house in Starbridge, which they share with their teenage son Jack. They downsized to this place
02:23back in 2021, when John was faced with the prospect of losing a job that he loved.
02:28The school that I had been working in for the past 15 years was set to close. And so through
02:35quite
02:36a lot of uncertainty our way, wasn't sure which direction I wanted my career to take, whether
02:41I could work in the school again, whether I made my own business, tutoring. So there's a lot of uncertainty.
02:48And obviously you worry that you're going to be able to pay the bills, that you're going to be able
02:53to
02:53give the kids everything they need. To help steer them through these choppy waters,
02:59the couple decided to make a big change to their finances.
03:02We were living in a four-bedroom detached, and we thought we would future-proof ourselves a
03:09little bit, and we were going to downsize. We just thought, if we move somewhere small,
03:14I can afford to pay all the bills, take some pressure off. And this place ticked all the
03:19right boxes at the time. John and Ali bought it for £157,500, arranging a mortgage with Nat West.
03:29It instructed a surveyor called SDL Surveying to complete a mortgage valuation, which confirmed
03:36the purchase price was a fair value for the two-bedroom house. I think if there would have
03:41anything been questionable on the mortgage survey, then we would have proceeded and got our own survey
03:47done. But because that came back all fine, we didn't feel the need to do that. That would be a
03:54choice
03:55that John and Ali would come to regret. But at the time, their thoughts were on how to navigate living
04:00on just one salary. The purchase went through, and John and Ali settled into their new home.
04:06It took a lot of the stress and a lot of the strain away, and then John was able to
04:12kind of
04:13figure out what his next move was. Fast forward two years, and with John settled in a new job as
04:20a
04:20secondary school teacher and more financially secure, the couple decided to put the house on
04:25the market and find something a little bigger. And they fell in love with a new four-bedroom home.
04:31Things started to look up. We were really excited. The house that we had found was a beautiful house.
04:39And what could have been a really, really stressful, horrible time of life, we'd managed to flip.
04:45And it was really quite positive. The couple quickly found a buyer for their house.
04:52But the sale fell through. The estate agent called us and said that there'd been a problem
05:00with their mortgage. So they had had to pull out. But they didn't actually give us any other detail
05:07as to what the problem was. But when the same thing happened with their next buyer,
05:12and the next, it was clear that there was a major issue. So the couple contacted one of the prospective
05:19buyers who'd pulled the plug to find out just what was wrong. She messaged me and said,
05:25there's a problem with the mortgage. They're saying that the property is single-skinned.
05:31The buyer's mortgage was rejected because the house was classed
05:34as a non-standard construction, since part or all of the property has just one layer of brick
05:41with no insulation, something that can increase the risk of damp and raises possible structural
05:47concerns. Many lenders won't offer a loan on this type of property. But NatWest had given John
05:54and Ali a mortgage two years earlier. And when they went back to look at the paperwork,
05:58they could find no mention of non-standard construction. It says here, it's standard
06:05construction. I've never heard of the term single-skin. I have no idea what it is. And as far as
06:12we're
06:12aware, the house isn't single-skin. We couldn't understand why they were saying it's a single-skin,
06:19so we weren't sure whether it ever laid at that point. The prospective buyer's own survey had flagged
06:25the non-standard construction, and it quickly became clear that the NatWest mortgage valuation
06:30the couple had relied on when they bought the house was incorrect. It was a huge blow.
06:37Basically, you trust these people. We're not surveyors. We don't know what we're looking for.
06:42So we just kind of blindly gone along and believed what they had said. And then we found ourselves
06:48just stuck. With lenders refusing three mortgages on the property, they knew their choices were either
06:56to find a cash buyer or stay put and find ways to create the extra space that they needed.
07:02So they drew up plans for an extension. To finance the £23,000 build, they approached NatWest.
07:10After all, it had lent them the money to buy the property in the first place. But now it was
07:16a
07:16different story. The NatWest said, we're not going to lend you any money because your property is
07:21single-skin. To which we said, but we've already got a mortgage with you because the last time we
07:26sent a surveyor around, they said it was standard construction. And they went, we're not going to
07:29lend you any more money. And when John and Ali complained to the surveyor about the report,
07:35it referred the couple to the terms and conditions of the original mortgage valuation,
07:40which say,
07:42the report is not a building survey and may not mention defects that may be important to you.
07:49And recommends buyers should get their own survey to satisfy yourself to the property's conditions
07:55and value. Otherwise, you will proceed entirely at your own risk. But for John and Ali, that's not the point.
08:04We did read the terms and conditions, and it's something like, we use that survey for mortgage
08:10purposes only. We weren't asking about the condition of the property. We just wanted to know if it was a
08:16mortgageable property. The couple cannot understand how the issue wasn't spotted. So we asked Hugh
08:24Phillips, a local building surveyor with over 20 years' experience, to visit the property and give
08:30the couple a second opinion. Hello there. Hi there, I'm Hugh. Hi Hugh. And straight off,
08:36he's got his tape measure out. So let's have a look. What we've got here. So normally on a survey,
08:45we would
08:46check the depth of the reveals to the door openings, the windows, and we'd consider the brick pattern to
08:54determine if the property has single skin walls, solid nine inch walls or cavity wall construction. So this
09:02is an opening, your front door on the gable. So the thickness of this wall is measuring approximately
09:10five inches, a hundred and sort of 25 millimetres. This obviously indicates that it is not a nine inch wall,
09:17but it is more likely to be a single skin, uh, gable end wall on here. Next, Hugh heads up
09:25into the loft.
09:26From what I've seen so far, definitely would be a single skin external wall to the gable.
09:31I'm speechless. It's just a beggar's belief that the first time it was done, these were missed.
09:37Back downstairs, Hugh is ready to deliver his opinion. We've, um, had a look around the property
09:43and we've determined that the front and rear walls are solid nine inch construction,
09:48and the gable wall is a single skin construction. For Ali and John, it's a brutal reality check.
09:56The problem was always there. It just wasn't picked up on the initial mortgage valuation.
10:01If it had been, John and Ali would never have been able to buy it in the first place and
10:06wouldn't now
10:07be in this position. But when the couple took their complaint to the surveyors' ombudsman,
10:12the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution, it found that SDL wasn't accountable for their
10:18reliance on the report as John and Ali weren't SDL's customer, whilst a complaint submitted to the
10:24Financial Ombudsman Service has yet to be considered. So, the couple are stuck in a house they cannot sell
10:32or afford to extend. They've also been rejected for a mortgage with a different provider,
10:38and fear switching is likely to prove costly. After seeing how easy it is to check whether it's
10:45single skin, it just seems just so wrong. My mind is blown completely by how simple that is,
10:53and such a little mistake like that has made such a big impact on our life.
11:01If all of this has left you wondering how to ensure that you get the correct advice when buying a
11:06home,
11:06I'm joined by solicitor Gary Rycroft and mortgage expert Adam French from comparison site MoneyFacts to
11:14talk surveys. Gary, I don't know how many house sales and purchases you've been involved with over
11:19the years. Based on what we've just seen, it's a shocker, isn't it? Well, it is, and over my 30
11:25years
11:25as a lawyer, I've probably been involved in hundreds of property sales and purchases. What's common,
11:32of course, is that most people involved in those transactions, the people buying and selling,
11:37aren't experts. They rely on the professionals, they rely on the banks, they rely on the surveyors,
11:43they rely on the lawyers. So it really is an enormous pity when things go wrong and people,
11:49innocent people, are left feeling, well, why should we pay the cost of this? Adam, talking more broadly,
11:55a lot of people, I think, are confused by surveys, what type they need and what should be covered.
12:01And I imagine that's something that you see a lot of. Well, absolutely. I mean, it's terribly
12:06confusing. And actually, when it comes to a building survey and a mortgage valuation,
12:10these are two very different things. A mortgage valuation is really just there for the lender to
12:15make sure they're getting back the money that they're lending to you. That could be done remotely,
12:20it could be done just on the basis of a drive-by, it could be a quick look in the
12:24front door to make
12:25sure the property all looks okay. It won't be to the same level of detail as a proper building survey,
12:30which you are paying often hundreds, if not over a thousand pounds for in some instances.
12:35So it's really important that you do make sure you're getting the right survey for the property.
12:39So you're going into that transaction with your eyes open exactly what's going on with that property.
12:43Now, as Adam's saying, I think it is a very good idea to have a surveyor and there are different
12:48types of survey report. There's the level one report, which is just a very simple
12:53condition survey, which is suitable for perhaps very newly built properties. There's the level
12:59two report, which used to be called the home buyer survey, which is suitable for lots of properties.
13:05But then you do go for the building survey if there has been structural work done, if it's older,
13:10if it's larger, if it's more expensive. If you employ a surveyor, then they are working for you and they
13:16are therefore carrying the risk if there are any physical defects to that property. So it's a really
13:22good investment to have a survey. The mortgage valuation report is done for the bank. You as
13:27the buyer have no contractual relationship with the surveyor that carries that out. If you commission
13:33your own survey, you're paying for it. They owe you a duty of care. You have a contract with them.
13:38So if it goes wrong, you can sue them. Adam, when people discover issues with their property,
13:43is there anything they can do to still secure a mortgage, even though things have gone wrong?
13:48Well, actually, what you can look to as a mortgage broker is something I'd recommend people look at
13:53in these instances where they're struggling to remortgage, particularly in issues around
13:57non-standard construction. You do not have to stick with the same lender when you remortgage. You can
14:02shop around. Going to a broker who has a whole of market view can often find that lenders have very
14:08different lending criteria from one to the other. And then there are alternative financing models as
14:13well. So it could be you just need to get that remedial work done. And then you could look at
14:16something
14:16called a bridging loan, for example, to tide you over financially, get that work done and then pay
14:21it back when you can remortgage. The key thing here is trusted independent advice that a broker can
14:26provide. Well, thank you, Gary and Adam, for giving us the lowdown on the financial and the legal side
14:30of things. When we spoke to Nat West about Ali and John's case, it told us that it recognises the
14:37impact of the uncertainty they're facing about their home, but that it must rely on the findings of
14:43qualified independent surveyors when making lending decisions. And that while an independent review of
14:50the matter arising from the valuation has concluded, it would be open to considering any new information
14:56that Ali and John may be willing to share. Meanwhile, SDL surveying stressed that its mortgage valuation
15:03was produced for the lender to ascertain approval for the loan, and was not a building survey,
15:09nor any form of commentary on a property's condition. SDL said the report contained clear
15:15and unequivocal advice that buyers obtain their own report on the property's condition and value,
15:22and anyone not doing so would continue at their own risk. SDL added that while it sympathises with
15:29Ali and John's situation, its obligations are to its client, Nat West, rather than the couple,
15:36who have never been its clients or received advice from the firm on their property purchase.
15:42And SDL pointed out that when Ali and John raised a complaint with its ombudsman,
15:46the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution, it found that SDL could not be held accountable for
15:52the couple's reliance on the report when they were not SDL's clients.
16:00Time now to put more of our experts to work solving your problems.
16:06The advice clinic is on the road, bringing the best consumer advice. The service that you bought
16:12was not fit for purpose. Think about going through the small claims court to get your money back to you.
16:21Today we're in Mansfield in Nottinghamshire with solicitor Aaron Chohan and personal finance expert Amy Knight.
16:31Welcome to Mansfield U2. We're in Market Square. A lot of history around here. It was given its market
16:36charter in 1227. But today we are going to hear from the people who live around here. We're going to
16:42help them with their problems. But biggest one right now? It's get warm, isn't it? Let's go.
16:51Jill Drain from Spalding has asked for our help after receiving letters from debt collectors demanding
16:57payment for a bill she doesn't owe. Hi, Jill. How are you? Hello, Louise. Nice to meet you. Come
17:04and join me. We're going to try and help you. Jill says her problem goes all the way back to
17:08November
17:082023 when she switched mobile phone providers from O2, taking her old number with her to a different
17:16network. But O2 continued to charge her account for a completely different mobile number.
17:22Unfortunately, Jill didn't spot the £7 monthly payments for more than two years, by which point
17:29O2 had taken over £180. I explained to the bank and they stopped it for me and I went back
17:37to the O2
17:37shop and explained and she phoned customer services for me. So I said I wasn't happy. So they then
17:46said they'd give me £28 and I refused that. Yeah, yeah. And they said they would be in touch.
17:54When O2 did get in touch, it wasn't with an apology, but a demand for payment. The company said
18:01Jill owed £18.88 for the period after she'd cancelled the monthly payments and wanted it
18:08settled. Jill wrote a formal letter of complaint to O2, but a week later she discovered the matter
18:14had been referred to debt collectors.
18:17When you get the letter from the debt collectors, how did you feel about that?
18:20Worried. Worried. Yeah. Because they, you know, send bailiffs in. I'm not sleeping now because,
18:29you know, it's really frightening, isn't it? Yeah. OK, I'm sorry that it's causing you that level
18:36of stress. Just to reassure you, debt collection agencies, they can't force their way into your
18:42home or not in this instance. And then they shouldn't be harassing you. So if it gets to the
18:50point where these letters are causing you, you know, really high levels of anxiety, then we absolutely
18:58need to tackle that. And where a debt is disputed, then it's completely reasonable that you can ask them
19:06to halt their collection procedures. And there's really no need for them to continue contacting you
19:11because you have a formal dispute in progress with O2. Amy says that the onus is on O2 to prove
19:20Jill owes money rather than Jill to prove she doesn't. And the formal complaint she's raised means
19:26O2 should now be paying attention. The next step is to deal with the debt collectors.
19:32We're going to call the debt collection agency, an organisation called Moorcroft. The points that we
19:37need to include are that you dispute the liability for this 180, whatever it is, in full. And that you
19:45believe you had cancelled your contract with O2 in person. And that should then give us enough power
19:54to say you need to cease the collection activity until this dispute has reached a resolution or at least
20:00until O2 have conducted their internal investigation. Thank you for calling the Moorcroft Group.
20:08So I'm here with the account holder, my friend, Mrs. Jill Drain. There's actually a formal complaint in
20:16progress with O2 and I've got a complaint reference number to give you. We're now in the period that
20:23they're carrying out their internal investigation. We believe that it's an administrative error on O2's
20:29part. The call handler promises to freeze the account, stop adding interest and take the matter
20:35up with O2. In the meantime, Jill will receive no more letters or calls from Moorcroft.
20:41Hey! Wow! Wow! So, no more of these. No, no more money added. And a bit more pressure on O2,
20:49because now the debt collector's going back to them, saying we've got a dispute on our hands. Amy,
20:55I need you on every single call that I do. You're so, she's so brilliant and so calm. Did you
21:01feel
21:01like, like, it looks to me like there's a weight lifting a little bit from your shoulders at least.
21:05Definitely. Definitely. I can breathe easy now. It's hard to know what to do, isn't it? Because you
21:10get these letters and you don't, you know, I wouldn't know exactly all the right things to say. And then,
21:14they are not friendly looking letters. No, they're not. Not at all. No. And over such a small amount of
21:20money,
21:21it just seems so stressful. Yeah, I think a lot of people, when they receive one of these
21:26letters, which are quite intimidating, might feel a bit nervous to pick up the phone, but hopefully
21:32this experience will show other people at home that there is a real person on the other end,
21:37and that when you can provide the right information, they've got to do their bit and they've got to back
21:44off. Yes. But this isn't the end of it. Even though the debt collectors won't be calling,
21:50there could still be further fallout for Jill. There's another issue to consider,
21:56which is when you get in arrears with a provider, even if it's an error and it's not your debt,
22:02your credit record could be impacted. Yes. I'm interested, have you ever checked your
22:08credit score or had a credit report before? No, never. And is that an important thing for us to be
22:14doing? Well, it can be if you're going to need to borrow money and it only comes to light that
22:19there's a problem on your credit file when you're rejected from an application with a provider.
22:25Checking your credit file for any errors is quite straightforward if you're online,
22:30but Jill isn't very confident with the internet. Good news though, Amy's prepared everything she
22:36needs to request a copy of her credit file by post. There are three credit reference agencies in the UK,
22:43so we've got TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. Unfortunately, it's not a very joined up system
22:49and they don't talk to each other. So we are going to need to contact all three of them separately.
22:55They should then return a report showing whether there's a mark on your file to do with this debt and
23:02you can have it removed once it all gets resolved with O2. So before she leaves the advice clinic,
23:10Jill and her daughter, Tony, fill in the forms and pop them in the post. A few weeks later, Amy's
23:16catching up with Jill. How are you, Jill? I'm not so bad, thank you. So your credit report arrived
23:23and you sent it over to us. We've had a good look and they are not indicating any arrears to
23:28O2.
23:29Nothing's shown up on the report, so there should be no impact on your credit history, which is great.
23:34Lovely. I do think it's worth writing to the credit reference agencies again
23:38in a couple of months, just to check. Right. What's going on with Moorcroft? Have they been
23:44in touch with you again at all? No, I haven't heard anything from them. That's exactly as it should
23:49be. Once we told Moorcroft that the debt was being disputed, they stopped all correspondence with you.
23:55When we got in touch with Moorcroft, it told us its role was to contact Jill on behalf of its
24:00client O2
24:01and it wanted to reassure her that as soon as it was made aware the balance was disputed,
24:06it suspended all further contact and referred the details to O2 to investigate.
24:13Moorcroft also said that the account is now closed on its systems and it will not contact Jill again.
24:20But what about O2? Amy's got the latest on its investigation.
24:26O2 thinks this all dates back to 2022. It says a SIM-only plan was taken out using all of
24:33your details
24:34and that you were sent information regularly, so the contract, the monthly bills, the reminders,
24:40everything was made on your account using your details. Has that rung any bells for you when you
24:45think back to 2022? Well, I did have an account with them and I do have the phone number from
24:52that account,
24:53but the phone numbers O2 are disputing are two different phone numbers, so O2 must be able to see
25:02that I've never used these other two numbers. When we went back to O2 to explain this, it insisted the
25:09account was Jill's and that it had followed all processes correctly. Nevertheless, O2 said it could see
25:16Jill was acting in good faith and as a gesture of goodwill, it refunded all the payments.
25:22So that's great news. No debt collectors are chasing after you. Your credit file looks absolutely A-OK.
25:29How do you feel? Well relieved and I have to thank you all so much for all your work in
25:36helping us do this,
25:37because I don't think the way things were going we would ever have had any success. So it's a relief
25:45to have it all done and dusted, but I still think they were in the wrong.
25:51Well, it's our absolute pleasure to help you out with this, Jill, and it's been lovely to talk to you.
25:57And you. Thank you all again.
26:00Well, if like Jill, you've got a problem you think our advice clinic experts can help with,
26:06drop us a line, ripoffbritain at bbc.co.uk.
26:12Well, I have to say, what a great, great result in the end for Jill. But my word,
26:16what a palaver to get there. But well done you, Jill, for sticking with it.
26:20Yeah, persistence pays off. Well, time now to answer some of your questions that you've sent
26:24into the bulging Ripoff Britain mailbag. And we've got two titans of consumer rights here for you,
26:31Adam French and Martin James, to do just that. And the first one is for you, Adam.
26:37Samasundaram Anandaraja from Kingston upon Thames says he's been sent a penalty charge notice
26:41for a car that isn't his, because the number plate appears to have been cloned. He appealed
26:47straight away and sent evidence showing it wasn't his vehicle, along with a police crime reference.
26:52But the council hasn't responded properly and keeps demanding payment, which is really stressful.
26:58What can you do? It does sound horribly stressful. He's done everything right in this instance.
27:02Gather your evidence together. Prove that the car wasn't yours and get that appeal across to the
27:06council. Now, clearly, if it continues to dig its heels in, not take that appeal seriously.
27:11It should be clear that you can appeal to an independent appeals body, which the council will
27:16be signed up to. It should signpost which one it's signed up to really clearly from all of the paperwork
27:20you get as part of that parking ticket you've been issued. And if it continues to not deal with your
27:25complaint properly, appeal it to that body. Very good. And Martin, please, can you tackle this?
27:30Because Noreen Nolan in West Yorkshire says she ordered a jumper online for 54 quid.
27:36When it arrived, it wasn't the material advertised. The label inside showed a completely different
27:40fabric mix. So Noreen asked for full refund, understandably, and even offered to return
27:46it at her own expense. But they keep refusing. How couldn't she get her money back, please?
27:50She said. Well, this is incredibly frustrating, isn't it, Gloria? This is one of those things where
27:55it's a company not following the letter of the law. And the law in question is the Consumer Rights
28:00Act. It states there very clearly that if goods aren't fit for purpose, as clearly we're seeing
28:07here, or as described, as in false advertising, then you are entitled to a full refund, including
28:13the cost of returning the item. Now, I would cover my back here, take some photographs just to prove
28:19that the advert is different to what's actually arrived. You can always ask your bank or car provider
28:24to charge back the money if they aren't listening. Or, best of all, go onto the Rip Off Britain website,
28:30where you'll find our shopping guide, and send that to the company.
28:33Now, that's a good tip. Now, next up, this one is from Stanley Thomas. Stanley says he damaged his car
28:39after hitting a pothole, but it took more than two years before the council finally paid out. He asked,
28:46why is it so hard to claim compensation for pothole damage, and what road users can do to improve their
28:51chances? Well, actually, Stan, lots of people tell us about their battles with potholes. So to answer all
28:58your questions, we asked Harry Kind to put together a step-by-step guide on exactly how to make
29:03a claim and what evidence you're going to need.
29:08Rip Off Britain expert, Harry Kind, is on a mission to keep more money in your pocket,
29:13and these are his handy how-to guides. You shouldn't have to shell out for a new set of rims
29:19just because a pothole broke your last ones. New AA figures show over 600,000 pothole-related
29:25call-outs in 2025. That's about 1,680 every single day. I'm Harry Kind, the Everyday Expert,
29:33and this is how to get the compensation your road.
29:37Firstly, the rules of the road. Most roads are the responsibility of your local authority.
29:43They have a legal obligation to keep them in good condition. Now, with over 260,000 miles
29:49of roads across the country, councils can't be expected to know about and fix every pothole
29:53within hours. However, if the council was aware of a dangerous pothole and they didn't fix it,
29:59then you may be able to get compensation for any damage caused. So, if you do hit a pothole and
30:04hear
30:04an expensive clunk, the first thing to do is to pull over safely because potholes, they can cause
30:09accidents. Now, most insurance companies require you to immediately report any pothole damage,
30:15even if you don't later make a claim with them. Next, you'll need to collect as much evidence as
30:20possible if it is safe to do so. Take photos of the damage, the street, the conditions, and most
30:27importantly, the pothole in question. In order to qualify for compensation, a pothole must be at least
30:34four centimeters deep. That's an upright AAA battery, two 20 pence coins stacked on top of each other,
30:40or the head of a teaspoon. Take a photo with one of these items in the hole, or say, a
30:46ruler,
30:47to show scale. Don't be deterred if it's not quite as deep as four centimeters though.
30:52It might still be worth making a claim, it would probably just be a bit tougher.
30:56Finally, take a note of the exact location where you hit the pothole. You can just zoom in on your
31:00Maps app and take a screenshot, or if you want to be really specific, you can use a website called
31:06what3words.com. It will hone in on your location and transform your coordinates into a simple three-word
31:12phrase. That's specific to the three square meters on earth. So, crunchy orange vegetable.
31:20Now that's accurate.
31:23Next, you'll need to take your car to a mechanic. You'll want to shop around for a few prices first,
31:28but when you get a quote or a repair, ask the mechanic to put in writing that the damage was
31:33caused by a pothole. Now take all of this information to the council. They should have an
31:39online form that requires all of the details that you've collected already. If in doubt,
31:44go to gov.uk and search for damage to your vehicle and that will guide you to the right place.
31:50Fill that all in and cross your fingers. You should either get a full payout,
31:55a partial compensation or be rejected.
32:00If that's the case, don't give up. It gets a bit complicated, but you should ask for the road repair
32:05policy and the inspection history for the area where you hit the pothole. That might require a
32:11freedom of information request. With this information, you can see whether the council
32:15failed to follow its own repair policy with regards to your pothole. Often the authority will pay up if
32:21you've proved its negligence. Even if you don't qualify for compensation, by reporting the pothole,
32:27you make it more likely that it'll be fixed, or for the next person who hits it, they'll get
32:32compensation. Either way, next time, I'll get the bus.
32:36Driver!
32:41I certainly hope he caught it. Thanks, Harry, for all that detailed advice.
32:45Next, we turn to a story we've looked into previously on the programme,
32:49and how when it comes to major life events, planning is everything. That was certainly the
32:55case for Zeeshan Sawah from Leeds, whom he met back in 2022. He'd booked a trip to Mecca for Hatch.
33:02It's a hugely important pilgrimage for Muslims. But because of a new booking system introduced by
33:08the government of Saudi Arabia before Zeeshan and his wife, Anna, were due to travel, the family's
33:14plans were thrown into chaos. In the years since then, a new system has been introduced. But as I'll be
33:20finding out shortly, rather than making things easier for pilgrims, it's driving some into the
33:26open arms of fraudsters. First though, here's a reminder of our original film.
33:35Every year, up to two and a half million people travel to Mecca and Saudi Arabia for Hajj.
33:42The trip to the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad is Islam's holiest pilgrimage,
33:48and one that Zeeshan is looking forward to back in 2022. For him, life revolves around three things,
33:55football, family and faith.
33:59I've been born into the faith, and it has become increasingly more important as I've matured,
34:05become a father. It's how we live our lives, a guideline for the way to live.
34:11Like many British Muslims, Zeeshan booked a trip with a UK-based tour agency,
34:15where a guide would accompany him and his wife, Anna, to focus on their spiritual journey.
34:20It cost £24,000.
34:23Yeah, then we're starting to get a little bit excited. Once we got that confirmed and got that
34:27paid, it started to feel a bit more like it was happening.
34:31But just a few weeks later, the trip was thrown into jeopardy, when the Saudi government introduced
34:36a new booking system called Mutawith, which would run a lottery for places and would handle all visas,
34:43flight tickets and hotel bookings. Even if, like Zeeshan and Annan, you'd already booked and paid for your trip.
34:49We were pretty devastated at that point. Everything was as we could hope for it to have been.
34:56And then for that to be snatched away, yeah, it was pretty, it was pretty gutting.
35:02The travel agent refunded their money, and the couple faced a anxious two-week wait,
35:07before they finally learned that the Mutawith lottery had given them a place.
35:12It was exciting, but at the same time, you know, it was difficult to get too excited
35:17through the whole process, because you just, you don't know what was going to come next.
35:23What did come next was chaotic. Not just for Zeeshan and Annan, but thousands of pilgrims from all
35:29over the world, including hundreds who missed their flights after their bookings failed.
35:35Zeeshan and Annan did make it to Mecca, but since they were no longer part of a guided UK tour
35:40group,
35:40they say it all felt very disorganised.
35:43There's just a sea of people. No one there to say this is what's happening.
35:48People are waiting for hours and hours and hours. People are getting on the wrong buses,
35:53ending up in a completely wrong place, having to walk. For me, it was wasting time
35:59thinking about the logistics. When I shouldn't have had to do that, I should have been focusing
36:04and concentrating on why I'm there.
36:07Professor Sean McLaughlin, a specialist in Islam at the University of Leeds, told us that the Saudi
36:12Arabian government's determination to change the booking system for Hajj in 2022 was because it
36:19was seeking to make things more efficient and accessible to visitors. But he believed that
36:24ambition crumbled when it made contact with reality.
36:27I've described the launch of the Mutawif portal as an epic fail. It's failed at every stage from its launch
36:38and registration through to the ability of people to pay for packages. Communication was perhaps the
36:49single most concerning issue that people fed back about. They didn't seem to understand the need of
36:59pilgrims to know what was happening.
37:02Well, since then, the Mutawif booking site has been canned and a new system called
37:07Noosuk Hajj has been introduced. But while it solved many problems, there are more on the horizon.
37:13Under Noosuk Hajj, just 12 travel companies are licensed to sell Hajj packages. And while back in
37:202019, up to 25,000 British Muslims would go for Hajj every year, new coders mean that only 3,500
37:28visas
37:29were issued in 2026, all of which sold out within an hour of becoming available in February. But the
37:36clamor for tickets is also driving some people into the open arms of fraudsters. To talk me through what
37:42this all means for Hajj pilgrims, I'm pleased to say that Professor Sean McLaughlin is back with us.
37:48And he's joining me in HQ with BBC journalist Kush Shemeja.
37:54So Kush, obviously, having reported on the new system, what is the change?
37:58Originally, it was like a lottery system. You registered your details and then you hoped for the best. And if
38:04your
38:04name came up, you were lucky enough to go. The new system is more of a first-come, first-served
38:10basis.
38:11And so I've known people that have taken days off work just to sit on their computers
38:15or their mobile phones to try and get a spot or a place. It can be quite a stressful period
38:21for people
38:21because, you know, this is something that they've saved up to do. A lot of people usually save up a
38:26lifetime to go on this pilgrimage because they're not cheap.
38:29There were great hopes that this new system might break down the cost. Has that happened?
38:33It was promised initially, but it doesn't seem to have happened, unfortunately, because
38:38prices are increasing as they have done over the years. But even though the prices have increased,
38:45there have been improvements in services as well. And that is because the Saudi authorities are
38:50modernising. They are improving the Hajj facilities. They're building new hotels and improving communications.
38:56Sean, new statistics from the City of London Police say that victims have lost nearly £200,000
39:04to Hajj fraud in 2025. You know, so the new system would appear to have created new opportunities.
39:11Well, I suppose, Gloria, that scammers and fraudsters adapt with the times too.
39:19So although there are lots of protections within the Nusuk Hajj system, we're still finding that people
39:26outside the system are preying on pilgrims. There are accounts of false websites being set up.
39:34Many websites promise to circumvent the official system, slash the cost and secure visas for those
39:41who didn't get one before they sold out. It's very important to understand that pilgrims don't
39:47just log on and it's over within an hour. People were registering from November. There are lots of
39:54WhatsApp and other groups that provide lots of support to pilgrims, trying to coach them through some
40:01of the glitches of the system. But we now find ourselves with many disappointed pilgrims. And of course,
40:09it could be people like that that scamsters are trying to prey upon.
40:15But despite this, Sean believes the new system is far better than the old one,
40:20in part because just 12 companies handle bookings for every pilgrim from around the world.
40:26You have to go through the app, you have to go through these companies,
40:31and all of these companies, or 12 of them, are Saudi companies.
40:35And do you think so far it's working?
40:36I think that there are some glitches still, but it is beginning to smooth out. People are
40:43beginning to have more confidence in the system. Not everybody understands how it works because,
40:49of course, Muslims don't go for Hajj every day, or every year, or every week. They might pray every
40:56day, but they go for Hajj once in a lifetime. What's the advice then, Kush, if anybody watching
41:02that's planning or would like to plan a pilgrimage, what do you advise?
41:06Well, I mean, booking the Hajj pilgrimage, the only way in is through Nusup. So familiarise
41:12yourself with it and work out how to navigate it, first of all. Be aware of the Saudi visa waiver,
41:18because this is something that you need. So if you're going for Hajj, you need the right visa.
41:22You need the Hajj visa, not an Umar visa or a tourist visa. Otherwise, the Saudi authorities
41:27won't let you in. And don't be pressured by last minute deals at all. Real Hajj packages at the
41:33moment, on average, are pricing between £11,000 and £13,000, depending on what sort of package
41:38you choose. So if somebody offers you a package for £3,000 or £4,000, it's a scam. Don't be
41:44fooled.
41:45Thank you both very much for explaining it. Thank you. And by the way, we're going to put all
41:49that advice on our website. It is bbc.co.uk slash ripoffbritain.
41:56When we contacted Nusup Hajj, a spokesperson told us it is the only platform approved to provide
42:02Hajj services and guarantees a unique experience to perform the Hajj.
42:10If you've got a problem and you think our team might be able to help, there are lots of ways
42:15you
42:15can get in touch. You can email us at ripoffbritain at bbc.co.uk or send us a WhatsApp message
42:22to
42:23033 0678 1321. We're also on Facebook. Just search for BBC Ripoff Britain.
42:31Or write us a letter. The address is Ripoff Britain, BBC Media City UK, Salford, M50 2LH. Please include
42:41your phone number if you can, and don't send us any original documents as we won't be able to return
42:46them.
42:50Well, I'm sad to say that we're coming to the end of this episode of Ripoff Britain, but
42:54just before we leave you, don't forget that you can catch up on anything new to miss today,
42:59from how to make sure your house survey is worth the papers written on,
43:03to how to get your money back if your car comes off badly from a pothole.
43:07You'll find it all on BBC iPlayer. But for today, I'm afraid we're out of time.
43:12Thank you so much for joining us. And from all of us on the Ripoff team here in Salford,
43:16it's goodbye. Bye-bye.
43:26We'll see you next time.
43:27Bye-bye.
43:27Bye-bye.
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