Many Hands Make…

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As you may, or may not, be aware myself, Pat and my thirteen year old daughter are walking 10k for Cancer Research in the Race for Life in Leicester on the 10th July 2010.  To raise extra donations we are holding a coffee morning at Barking House on the 25th June 2010 between 10am and 12pm.  Everyone is welcome to come and have a cup of tea or coffee and biscuits with us and in return all we ask is that you make a minimum donation of £1 to our fundraising efforts.

Come and join us!!

Many Hands Make – Your Virtual Office in Market Harborough has again been investigating ways to keep their clients organised.  A missed appointment with a friend, business colleague or more importantly a new customer can be devastating.  One way to avoid this is to get yourself a Google Calendar which is absolutely FREE!  All you need is a Google account.

• Quick and easy to add events
• Schedule reminders by email, text or pop up
• Share your calendar with friends, family or colleagues
• You can also sync events with your Microsoft Outlook

If you would like a virtual assistant to help you with your Diary Management just give us a call on 01858 465376 or alternatively you can email us on enquiry@manyhandsmake.co.uk

I attended our usual Friday MHBC breakfast meeting this morning and thoroughly enjoyed it. It got me thinking about networking and what it means to me personally and to Many Hands Make - your virtual office in Market Harborough which is run by me and Rachel. I enjoy the interaction with other small business people, the friendships that have formed and of course the support, advice and work that passes between the members of MHBC. I have often been surprised at remarks by others that I must know all local businesses. Of course I don’t but "knowing of" and "can recommend" builds over time of links with other businesses and the confidence to put others forward.

So thanks to all other members of MHBC, other businesses I have met through networking and our clients who through their requirements for help with order fulfillment, admin, book-keeping and payroll keep Many Hands Make - your virtual office in gainful employment.

If you have a small business in Market Harborough, need a laugh over breakfast on a Friday morning and would like to make new friends bring your sense of humour to The Angel Hotel, Market Harborough. If you need help with order fulfillment, admin, accounts, Sage products or payroll even better! Or if you think we may be able to offer just the help you need and can,t wait contact us via our website, by e-mail to enquiry@manyhandsmake.co.uk or just phone Pat or Rachel on Market Harborough 01858 465376.

As your virtual office, Many Hands make keeps an eye on the news both for business and the individual. This recent BBC article may be of interest to many of us consumers.

Cross-border shopping: Your rights
Money Talk
By Jade Ahmed
UK European Consumer Centre

The popularity of internet shopping is increasing and bargains can be found on our
holidays.
So with cross-border shopping at an all-time high, it is important for consumers to know that
they have as many rights when buying in the European Union as they do when shopping at
home in the UK.
The UK’s small claims court is already widely known and used by consumers, but the
common perception of pursuing cross-border claims is that it is time consuming and costly.
However, the new European Small Claims Court procedure was launched at the beginning of
the year, and is available across 26 member states in the EU.
With this procedure in place, consumers are able to enforce their rights and take court action.

Rules
The procedure allows consumers to pursue claims against traders in 26 of the 27 member
states in the EU (Denmark is excluded) quickly and cheaply.
“ Claims can be made for a variety of reasons, ranging from non-delivery
of goods to the failure to complete refunds of faulty or
damaged goods ”
The new European Small Claims Court effectively strengthens consumers’ rights across the
EU, because it eliminates the consumers’ need for legal representation in the court and the
costs are transparent from the start.
Consumers are often unaware of their rights when shopping in another EU country, and
consequently how to pursue claims if things go wrong, but the procedure is not as
complicated as it might seem and can be pursued through local county courts.
It is often advisable, prior to taking any matter to court, that consumers attempt all other
avenues to settle the dispute, including meditation and Alternative Dispute Resolution
services (ADR) where possible.
However, with the European Small Claims Procedure in place it does not mean the end of the
road when all other attempts have failed.
Claims can be made for a variety of reasons, ranging from non-delivery of goods to failure to
provide refunds for faulty or damaged goods.
Consumers should be confident that the procedure can be used to resolve all types of
complaints that they may make about cross-border contracts.

Making a claim
Should a UK consumer purchase goods from a trader elsewhere in the EU and the trader fails
to deliver or refund the money paid, the consumer can now take this to the European Small
Claims Court to claim back the costs.
In order to place a claim, the relevant forms are readily available through both the European
Commission’s web site -
- or through local county courts.
There are four separate forms to be completed, the primary concern being form A, which is
the claim form. The form requires details of the local county court, details of both the
claimant and the defendant and the jurisdiction under which the claim is being made.
The procedure does require a fee, expected to be between £30 and £85, which the claimant
must pay in advance.
The service enables consumers to make both monetary and non-monetary claims. As one of
the frequent problems is the replacement or repair of faulty goods, this could be a tool for
consumers’ claims.
Consumers should ensure that the claim is concise and reasonable, and includes details of
how the situation has come to court and other supporting evidence.
Owing to the cross-border nature of the procedure, a certificate of judgement is essential
when pursuing recognition and enforcement of the judgement in a different member state.
Once a judgement has been made, a certificate should be requested.
For the claim to be enforced, both the certificate and judgement will need to be sent to the
enforcement authorities overseas.
Although the parties being in different counties might at first appear daunting, the process is
not as complex as it may seem. One of the problems might be that few people are aware of
it.
Although claimants can only pursue sums of up to 2,000 euros ($3,000;£1,800), this is an
extremely positive step for the internal market.
The more people become aware of their rights, the more confidence they will have when
purchasing overseas. Knowing that redress is readily available in the form of the European
Small Claims Court can only help in promoting that.
The UK European Consumer Centre (UK ECC), a consumer advice service hosted by the
Trading Standards Institute, has launched a step-by-step guide to making a claim.
The

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