Leslie Higgs (Plaintiff Respondent) v Hodge Industrial Securities Ltd (Defendants Appellants)
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Judge | THE MASTER OF THE ROLLS,LORD JUSTICE DANCKWERTS,LORD JUSTICE WINN |
| Judgment Date | 09 December 1966 |
| Judgment citation (vLex) | [1966] EWCA Civ J1209-2 |
| Court | Court of Appeal |
| Date | 09 December 1966 |
[1966] EWCA Civ J1209-2
In The Supreme Court of Judicature
Court of Appeal
(Civil Division)
From His Honour Judge Cunliffe
Birkenhead County Court
The Master of the Rolls
(Lord Denning)
Lord Justice Danckwerts and
Lord Justice Winn
MR D. McNEILL, Q. C. and MR F. D. PATERSON (instructed by Messrs William Easton & Sons, Agents for Messrs Graeme Kemp & Son, Cardiff) appeared as Counsel for the Appellants.
MR R. BINGHAM, Q. C. and MR J. R. PICKERING (instructed by Messrs Black Davidson & Co., Liverpool) appeared as Counsel for the Respondent.
This case raises a very short point on facts which have been agreed. On the 10th November, 1964, Mr Higgs entered into a hire purchase agreement with Hodge Industrial Securities Limited., whereby he got a car on hire purchase terms. It was a Morris 1100. Mr Higgs duly paid the instalments as they fell due. In August 1965 he wanted to get a new car. He went to dealers called Atlantic Garages Limited. and arranged to trade in the Morris and get a new car through them. Atlantic Garages telephoned to the Finance Company and asked for the "settlement figure". The Finance Company said the total amount required to discharge everything would be £474 (that is the rest of the hire purchase price) "but if you introduce new business, it will be £406". They sent a printed slip to the dealers in confirmation of those figures. It said: "Further to your enquiry, the settlement figure we require to complete our interest in this case is: Ordinary £474: New business. £406". Then there is this important sentence at the end: "If remittance in respect of new business is rendered, the new hire purchase document must be submitted within seven days, otherwise we will he unable to pass title of the vehicle". That is plainly a condition.
Some weeks later, on the 20th October, 1965, the solicitors for the dealers wrote this letter to the Finance Company: "On the instructions of and on behalf of our clients, we tender herewith the sum of £406". That sum of £406 is the very figure stated in the confirmation slip for "New business". In response, the Finance Company sent a formal receipt for the £406. But the dealers did not forward the new business. They did not tender any hire purchase documents for a new car.
On the 1st December, 1965, the Finance Company wrote to the solicitors saying: "We have received the sum of £406 and we have banked same; this represents a new business settlement figure for the above account. We would, therefore, point out that to date we have not received any new business and wemust request balance of settlement for the sum of £68 within the next seven days. We therefore presume you will pass this information to your clients, Messrs Atlantic Garages Limited., as naturally until we receive this balance, or new business, we are unable to release title of the vehicle concerned". In that letter the Finance Company made it quite clear that they were relying on...
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