Sued for a bad Trustpilot review???

fez said:
I think that its the public supporting someones desire to have a grumble against what is from my albeit limited experience, a ******, money grabbing industry. I don't agree with what the guy did but I agree far less with suing him for £25k. There is no a popsicles chance in hell that a single ridiculous review could lose them £25k in business and I am astonished that they "proved" that loss.

Responding to a ****** review can be beneficial for a business because it shows they listen to their customers and it allows them to give their side of the story which is quite often far more credible than the disgruntled reviewer.

You also have to understand that this has made national newspapers and will have been seen by millions. The number of negative reviews they have had is actually tiny considering how badly this could have gone. I'm sure TP will take them all down at some point as well as they all clearly reference the court case and not actual business they have conducted with the solicitors.
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Pretty much my thoughts too.

I just can't wrap my head around this.

Without actually sitting there in court i can only presume the judge took the stance of, "don't turn up for to my court, i will bend you over".

I think highly on those companies who respond to reviews with thought out responses. Companies who ignore reviews or give copy/paste responses are equally as bad in my eyes.
 
fez said:
I think that its the public supporting someones desire to have a grumble against what is from my albeit limited experience, a ******, money grabbing industry.
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As I see it, this case is highlighting the difference between merely 'having a grumble' and making unsubstantiated accusations of illegal behaviour.

No issue with having a grumble in a review - as long as you keep it honest and factual. Other clients of theirs have managed this and the company have responded with their side of the story with (seemingly) no further issues.

People keep trying to paint this as 'being sued for a bad review' but that's very misleading, it was a very specific comment within that review that has caused the problem.
 
I once paid £20 for a phone unlock code from a website. In their terms and conditions there was a small section which stated that the £20 was only to see if the phone could be unlocked. I was then sent a £80 bill to actually unlock the phone. Technically it wasn't a scam as it was hidden in the terms and conditions but i think most people here would class it as a scam.
 
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Stumble Bum said:
If I'd paid £200 to a law firm just for them to resend me my own work reworded and not added any value for that £200, I think most people would call that a scam.
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I am minded to go along with this judgement.

However, without knowing the full story it is difficult to say; perhaps the gentleman wanted to sue someone for not wearing a face mask and for not stepping aside on the footpath and needed advice on whether to proceed :confused:

In my experience, many (local) lawyers will give you an initial overview and advice for nothing - probably not the case for a monolithic law firm who have to cover the cost of comfy leather sofas, giant potted Swiss cheese plants, up-to-date periodicals and newspapers and a free hot or cold beverage in the lobby.
 
Kenai said:
As I see it, this case is highlighting the difference between merely 'having a grumble' and making unsubstantiated accusations of illegal behaviour.

No issue with having a grumble in a review - as long as you keep it honest and factual. Other clients of theirs have managed this and the company have responded with their side of the story with (seemingly) no further issues.

People keep trying to paint this as 'being sued for a bad review' but that's very misleading, it was a very specific comment within that review that has caused the problem.
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I hear what you are saying but most people are not legal eagles and don't make any distinction between libel and having a whinge. They don't read a review that says "this company was rubbish, took ages to response to any queries, treated me like an idiot and didn't explain the charges they would be levying properly" and think "hmm, sounds like the company for me". They don't then see a review saying "bunch of scammers and cheats" and think, "whoa whoa whoa, hold the phone, I had better not use these guys".

Legally speaking, one is fine and the other isn't but that doesn't mean you shouldn't use common sense as a law firm and just respond to the complaint maturely.

This is how every company works. The phrase "the customer is always right" is entirely due to this. The customer is not always right but you stand to lose a lot more by arguing the toss than you do by sucking it up and taking the higher ground.

Just because I understand and know the law doesn't mean I have to agree with it or the way its implemented.

That being said, trying to ruin a company over a single incident of a customer being a bit of a ***** and the company massively overreacting is just as silly. A company is 99% worker drones and 1% management ******* when it comes to these decisions. I doubt they took a all hands on deck meeting to decide what to do. People will probably lose jobs over this.
 
They should have seen this coming really. Equal and opposite reaction.

They are unlikely to ever get the money out of him, but have cost themselves more in lost business.
 
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