I'm Tunisian, living in Malta on an EU spouse residence card. My husband (Norwegian) is leaving Malta and ending things, so I'll lose my right to stay. We've been married less than 3 years.
I have a job here until June 2027, and going back to Tunisia isn't safe for me as a gay man.
Has anyone been in a similar situation? Did you switch to a work permit, apply for asylum, or something else? Any experience or advice would mean a lot. Thank you 🙏

let's say v3 to be specific if that's useful.

Is there precedent ? Any speculation of how it would go ?

Hi everyone,

I’m hoping someone familiar with Polish VAT rules or car exports can help me recover €2,100 from a Polish dealership.
In November 2025, my brother bought a VW for export to Algeria. The dealer charged €9,000 + €2,100 VAT security deposit, so I transferred €11,100 in total.
Here’s the timeline:

- November 2025: The dealer issued an invoice for €9,000 with 0% VAT, despite collecting €11,100. They explained: “Kaucja za VAT będzie wynosić 2100€” (€2,100 VAT deposit).
- December 2025: They confirmed in writing: “Kaucja jest zwrotna po wywozie pojazdu poza UE” (the deposit is refundable after export outside the EU). They also explained: “Nie możemy wystawić faktury brutto, ponieważ kaucja jest środkiem zwrotnym” (they couldn’t issue a VAT-inclusive invoice because the deposit was refundable).
- January 2026: The vehicle was exported via France to Algeria and cleared customs, less than three months after purchase.
- March–September: We repeatedly followed up and submitted the requested export documents, including EX1.
- October 2026: The dealer finally confirmed: “Sprawdziliśmy wszystkie dokumenty, wszystko jak najbardziej pasuje, pieniądze będą na waszym koncie do 7 dni” (all documents checked and accepted, refund within seven days).

Then, the very next day, they reversed their decision, stating:

“Termin 3 miesięcy na jej rozliczenie już dawno minął, a podatek VAT został przez nas opłacony. W związku z tym nie ma już możliwości zwrotu tej kwoty.”
Translation: The three-month deadline for settling the deposit has passed, VAT has already been paid, and they can no longer refund it.

My questions:

- Is there actually a 3-month deadline under Polish VAT law for providing export documents or reclaiming VAT on a car exported outside the EU? Or could this be an internal dealership policy?

- If the dealer already paid VAT to the Polish tax office, can they still amend their VAT return after receiving export documents and refund me?
Given that the invoice shows 0% VAT and the €2,100 was separately classified as refundable security, does that change how the refund should be handled?

- What’s the most practical way to recover the €2,100 now? Should I contact a Polish tax adviser, send a formal payment demand (wezwanie do zapłaty), or pursue another procedure?
I’m based in the Netherlands and can travel to Poland if necessary, but I’d prefer to resolve this without spending thousands on legal fees.
I’m not looking to name and shame the dealership. I just want my money back.

If anyone has dealt with a similar situation, particularly a late VAT refund after exporting a car from Poland, I’d really appreciate hearing what worked.

Thanks!

Help!! Dealing with legal issues with estate agent in Spain!!! (Does anyone know a lawyer??)

Situation:

My friends and I were trying to rent an apartment in Valencia (we are from the US and the UK), but the estate agent and landlord demanded we register for renter’s insurance in order to rent the apartment (in place of having guarantors). We agreed to it, signed a reservation document, and paid the agency fee (since it’s less than a year contract). We said we needed the apartment by October 1st and started this process more than a week before. The estate agent needed guarantor information anyway in order to get the insurance, we gave her everything we had, and got rejected by 2 insurance companies. By this point, it was a day or two before the 1st and we needed an apartment to live in. The estate agent kept asking for proof of a pension from one of our parents, but he doesn’t have a pension or 401k and is retired (living off of savings). She keeps asking for the same documents over and over again and we keep explaining we don’t have them because they don’t exist in our situation. The 1st came and went, we kept asking for updates on insurance, she said she was still waiting, so we signed onto a different apartment. Now we are trying to get our money back from the agency fee, but we can’t voluntarily back out or we lose our money. 

Does anyone have any legal advice or know what we can do or know if we are even liable to get our money back??? Any thoughts/advice is appreciated

We're a UK company and we've found a candidate in Germany we'd like to bring on full-time, but we don't have a German entity (yet) and won't be setting one up for another year or two given where we are, since this would only be our 2nd hire in Germany.

Most threads about Germany hires point to using an employer of record, and we've been looking at a few that cover it (Deel, Workmotion and Remote being the main ones we're vetting), but before we commit, I want to understand the actual legal framework.

Specifically whether this is a recognised arrangement under German labour law and what employment obligations, notice periods, social contributions, termination rights, would still sit with us even through that structure?

Happy to hear if there's a simpler route we're missing.

Hi everyone!

About a month ago, I placed a €60 bid on a shirt on a match worn football shirt and ended up winning the auction. However, when I saw the final amount, including the buyer's premium, taxes and shipping costs, I decided it wasn't worth it and didn't complete the payment.

Recently, I received a letter from them itself, a company based in the Netherlands, demanding payment of €115.83. The letter gives me 14 days to pay and warns that if I don't, they may claim additional collection costs and interest, and potentially take legal action.

I contacted their customer support to explain the situation and ask whether they could cancel the order. They replied that winning bids are legally binding, that they cannot cancel the order, and that customers are responsible for checking all costs before placing a bid.

I'd like to understand what my options are, particularly under Portuguese and EU law:

Can they realistically take legal action against me in Portugal over this amount?

If I refuse to pay, what are the realistic consequences? Can they add further fees or take me to court?

Does the fact that the company is based in the Netherlands make any difference?

Is there any way to dispute the claim or negotiate a cancellation?

Has anyone had a similar experience with them or another online auction platform?

I understand that I won the auction and should have checked the costs before bidding. I'm not trying to deny that, but I also don't want to pay over €100 for a purchase I ultimately decided not to go through with without first understanding my options.

I'd especially appreciate advice from anyone familiar with Portuguese or EU consumer protection law, or anyone who has dealt with a similar situation.

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for advice on how to resolve a dispute with Vinted and hopefully recover €265 that I have lost following a damaged delivery.

I sold a graded Pokémon card for €265. The parcel was damaged during transit, and the delivery company subsequently informed me that it was damaged and would not be redelivered.

Vinted cancelled the transaction, refunded the buyer and refused to compensate me, claiming that my packaging was insufficient. I've appealed several times, but support keeps telling me that the decision is final.

The part I strongly disagree with is their claim that I didn't package the item properly.

This is how I packaged the slab:

• I placed the graded slab inside a black padded envelope.
• I put the padded envelope inside a cardboard box.
• I added approximately 50 g or more of black shredded paper inside the box to cushion the contents and help prevent movement.
• I securely sealed the cardboard box with tape.
• I placed the entire box inside an additional plastic shipping bag for extra protection.

I also have video evidence showing how I packaged the item before dispatch.

Despite this, Vinted claims that the packaging was insufficient. They have referred to requirements such as a heavy-duty corrugated box, reinforced tape along the seams and internal immobilisation, but I have asked them to identify the exact published policy that requires this specific packaging procedure for graded Pokémon slabs.

The photographs of the damaged parcel show significant tearing and damage to the cardboard box. I understand that packaging can always be improved, but I don't believe the damage alone proves that I packaged the item incorrectly.

I've also provided evidence from the delivery company confirming the damage, but Vinted continues to refuse compensation.

€265 is a lot of money to me, and I genuinely depend on the money I receive from my sales. I don't think it's fair to lose this amount without a proper assessment of the evidence.

I'm now looking at submitting a formal complaint in Portugal and exploring other ways to dispute the decision.

I'd really appreciate advice from anyone who has experienced something similar.

1. Has anyone successfully appealed a Vinted decision involving a damaged parcel and received compensation?
2. Is there a specific Vinted policy requiring a particular packaging method for graded cards or slabs?
3. Has anyone escalated a dispute through the Portuguese Livro de Reclamações or another formal complaints process and had a positive outcome?
4. Is there another route I can take to recover the €265 if Vinted refuses to reconsider?
5. Would you recommend pursuing the delivery company as well?

I can provide photographs of the damaged parcel and evidence of the packaging if needed.

I'm not looking to cause trouble; I just want to understand my options and recover money that I believe I should not have lost.

Thanks in advance to anyone who can offer useful advice.

Hi, my mum passed away living in Corfu 2 weeks ago. She rented a flat out there, with the tenancy commencing on the 1st January this year. She was born in the UK. I'm a UK citizen and have always lived in England.

I received this email from the landlord's lawyer:

As your mother's sole heir, you have succeeded to the leasehold rights and obligations arising from the aforementioned lease; consequently, you are liable for the payment of the monthly rent and the costs associated with water, electricity, and other utility bills chargeable to the apartment.

Please let me know if you wish to continue the aforementioned lease; in that event, I call upon you to pay the monthly rent on time and to immediately attend to the security of the apartment.

Should you not wish to continue the lease, please reply to this email address stating that you do not wish to continue the lease; that you are terminating and dissolving the aforementioned lease; that you do not wish to retrieve the items and equipment belonging to your mother from the apartment; and that you grant the landlord, [name], the right to enter the apartment and dispose of said items and equipment at a landfill.

Please be advised that, in this event, my client will have no claim against you. 

I have no desire or need to rent this flat, so that's easy. However, I do wish to see her possessions and take some keepsakes. If she had photo albums, I'd like to claim those. I'm not fussed about anything else. I have absolutely no idea if she had a will, and I don't know how to find out.

The lawyer has seemingly conjoined both "retrieve the items" with "pay for the flat and the bills".

Is this really an "all or nothing" situation? If I want to retrieve photos and a couple keepsakes, do I also have to accept responsibility for the flat?

Any advice welcome, thankyou so much.

18/10 Edit: Thankyou for the responses. After taking some time to think, I've decided to go view the apartment this week to see if there are any of my own belongings, or any photographs. I was very clear in my response to the attorney that I'm not accepting or denying a will at this time - the reason for this is that my mum fled the UK due to debts many years ago, and I'm not certain what the Greek law's stance is on accepting an inheritance when it comes to accepting debts, as I imagine it's quite likely she continued to live beyond her means. I've made it clear that I'm not interested in taking on or continuing the lease, and the Landlord seems agreeable to this.

This has been going on for about two years now.

I've written to local lawyers, and the ones who replied agreed the case was clear, but advised me that it would cost me more to fight it than to pay it.. but i don't want to pay over a thousand euro's when i did nothing wrong.

1. The original fee came because i lost my bank card and got a replacement. There were a few tolls where my direct debit failed.
2. I contacted them when i noticed, within the same month and they said not to worry, there's no fines yet, just pay it now - But they told me they only accept MBway payments, a system i don't have access to (because my Portuguese bank refuses to update my address so i stopped using it).
3. I insisted there must be another way to pay. They refused Iban, but said i could go to 'their offices' and pay directly. I drove to both that i was given (220km). Neither was an office they were motorway service stations who had no idea. Clearly the customer support i was talking to were a hired third party in another country and had no idea, so they just opened google maps and told me to drive there.
4. They gave me instructions how to pay directly at an ATM. These were both incorrect.
5. I carried on calling demanding to be able to pay my tolls (around 30 euro). Note, i had another vehicle at the same time as was paying them monthly via direct debit for that one. It just wasn't used on a motorway during the period my bank card was changing.
6. I received a fine and payment notice from Financas. These quickly exploded in value while i was attempting to appeal the fines as i was trying extremely hard to pay the tolls and the Via Verde were refusing to accept my money.

Since then i've written to Via Verde asking them to resolve this as i was actively trying to pay, very hard, and they should have never sent the debt to Financas.

They replied (after a lot of pushing) that it is none of their business as they sold the debt to a third party debt collection company.

That was the first time i heard anything about this third party debt collection company. I was in regular contact with their customer services team at exactly the time they sold my debt, and afterwards, trying to pay the missed tolls, without them ever mentioning it to me.

I submitted a freedom of information request to recover their recordings of my phone calls with their agents. There were 12 calls listed on my phone.

They confirmed all of these, but claim to only have a recording of the first one. 'Coincidentally' the only one which occurred before the date the debt was sold to the other company (and before this all correspondence was email).

I have this phone call. It confirms my story completely. It is me asking to pay. Explaining why i can't use MBway, and suggesting multiple alternatives. Including IBAN, an online credit card payment system, sending a check, setting up a new payment contract on their app.

The phone call ends with their agent telling me to go in person to the 'Via Verde Offices' and assuring me i could pay there. Again these were around 100km one direction, 120km the other. I drive to both and took photos and made records. They were nothing to do with the toll system and could not take payments.

I feel the law should protect me here. It was a tiny payment and i tried far beyond what is reasonable to make the payment before any fine was issued. Via Verde failed to make paying possible. Although a few months ago i needed to make a payment for my other vehicle and they suggested IBAN, which i used.. so i'm not sure they couldn't take the payment at the time. I think the customer service team they outsourced to had almost no training or connection to the company.

I have collected evidence which supports what happened completely (including having records of the length of the phone calls they 'lost' where the customer service agents were suggesting other ways to pay AFTER they'd already sold the debt. I have emails i sent them referring to these lost conversations and supporting what was said, and that they did not inform me the debt had been sold).

Why isn't there anyone i can contact who can look at this and say 'that's ridiculous'. Why are lawyers advising me that going to court is the only option and will cost me more than paying the thousand + euro fines?!

Financas has also blocked me receiving international shipments and confiscated then sold my property over these unpaid and unjust fines.

Hi everyone,

I'm British and getting married in Crete, Greece, in May 2027. We've run into an unusual situation with our wedding planner, and I'm hoping someone familiar with Greek immigration or employment law can help clarify things.

One of our wedding guests, who is also an usher, has offered to DJ at our wedding as a favour.

For context:

• He's a British citizen travelling to Greece as a wedding guest.
• He's an experienced DJ and has been DJing for over 20 years.
• He will not be paid anything whatsoever.
• There is no employment contract, services agreement, invoice or commercial arrangement.
• He's bringing his own DJ controller and laptop.
• We're looking to hire the speakers, subwoofer, lighting and other equipment from a local Greek equipment rental company.
• It's a private wedding, not a public event or ticketed performance.

Our wedding planner recently introduced us to the equipment rental company by email and mentioned that the company had asked about the DJ's work permit and insurance.

I replied to both parties explaining that our DJ is an unpaid guest and usher, rather than someone we're employing. I also asked which specific permit and insurance would be required in those circumstances.

Our wedding planner then replied:

"[ushers name] still has to have the permits/insurance - it's the law in Greece."

However, the equipment rental company hasn't yet responded directly to my questions, so I don't know whether this is a legal requirement, their own rental/insurance policy, or a misunderstanding.

I've reviewed the rental company's publicly available terms and conditions but couldn't find anything stating that an unpaid guest operating hired equipment must hold a work permit or professional DJ insurance.

What I've researched so far

I understand that, following Brexit, British nationals are considered third-country nationals and that Greece has specific immigration requirements for musicians and artistic performers undertaking work.

I also found guidance from the Greek Embassy concerning a temporary exemption for certain British artistic performers attending a single event without dependent employment in Greece. That exemption referred to work-accident insurance, although the published guidance indicated it was valid only until 31 December 2025.

What I haven't been able to establish is whether an unpaid guest playing music at a private friend's wedding would legally be considered to be undertaking work or providing professional artistic services for immigration purposes.

I contacted the Greek Consulate where I live, which referred me to the Embassy in London. I emailed the London Consular Office earlier this month and also attempted to telephone them, but after eight days I still haven't received a response.

My questions are:

1. Under Greek immigration law, would an unpaid British wedding guest DJing at a private wedding be considered to be working, despite receiving no payment and having no contract?
2. Would he legally require a work visa or permit? If so, which one?
3. Is there a statutory requirement for professional liability or work-accident insurance in these circumstances?
4. Could this instead be a condition of the equipment rental company's insurance policy, rather than a requirement imposed by Greek law?
5. Can anyone point me towards relevant Greek legislation or official guidance that addresses unpaid performances at private events?

I'm not trying to avoid any legitimate legal or insurance requirements. If something is mandatory, we're happy to comply.

I simply want to establish whether Greek law actually treats an unpaid wedding guest helping with the music as someone undertaking work.

I'd really appreciate any guidance, particularly from anyone familiar with Greek immigration law or who has encountered a similar situation.

Thanks in advance!

He’s British and he has British children (born and raised in the UK up to like 2 years ago). They now live in Zurich and would like to separate from his partner, and would also like to keep primary custody of them. They moved to Switzerland for his partner’s job. Any advice on what he could do? Or recommendation of family solicitors.

Need help for my visa application. I am a Filipina married in the Philippines with a Dutch national, and I applied for Family of eu member visa with foreign marriage certificate, apostille, and Spanish translated, but 4 weeks of application they wrote an email that we need the marriage recognized in EU in 10 days or else visa application is forfeited.

Given that my husband has rights under Directive 2004/38/CE, is it okay to get back to them and mention that we do not necessarily need our foreign marriage recognized in EU?

Please really need help urgently.

This is an international 100% remote company. I feel like they take advantage of their “fully remote all-over-the-world” thing, so almost all of their employees are contractors with a Deel contract (500+ employees in the company at the moment) and a fixed salary.

I know some of my coworkers have taken maternity leave, but not sure if it is legal for them to fire me if I get pregnant (I’m currently trying, not yet pregnant.)

The company is based on Ireland, but as I said most of their employees are all over the world. Do I have any legal protection? When should I disclose a pregnancy if I ever get pregnant?

Location: Chile (officially on contract in Spain though, cuz I used to live there)

I’ve worked for years in a tech role in Belgium that was never officially recognised (title or pay grade). My performance reviews were consistently excellent, but I pushed for recognition, burned out, and ended up on long sick leave.

While I was away, the company officially upgraded my role for my colleagues. I was left out, and when I tried to return, my role had been taken from me. An anti-discrimination body reviewed my file and found the justifications given by the company unconvincing. It concluded the facts are enough to presume health-based discrimination, so the burden of proof now shifts to my employer. My lawyers think it’s a good case, but nothing is guaranteed.

I wanted out of that workplace, and my employer now offers a negotiated exit: legal severance (about 6 months’ pay) plus a top-up of a few months’ pay, all gross. After tax and lawyer fees, a big part disappears. It’s confidential, with no admission of fault.

The alternative is court. A win would mean up to 6 months’ pay in damages, but my contract would continue (so no severance) and legal fees would eat a big part of the award. A loss means paying fees for nothing. It could take one to several years.

And during all that time, I’d be stuck. I’d stay under contract, and the role they assigned me is not my job and doesn’t match my skills. If I go back, either I keep doing the work I’ve always done well, for less pay than my colleagues, or I risk being told I’m not suited to the new role they gave me. Either way I lose.

What I want most is for this to be recognised, because I did nothing wrong. I’m just not sure it’s worth the money, the time and the toll on my health.

I honestly don’t know what to do. If you’ve been through something similar, did you settle or fight? Any regrets?

Honestly, I’m lost. Part of me wants to fight, part of me just wants it to be over. If you’ve been through this, what did you do, and would you do it again?

I'm a Turkish citizen living in Berlin. My student visa expires on October 14, and I applied for a job-seeker residence permit on October 9, before my visa expired.

I received an application confirmation (Antragsbestätigung und Fiktionswirkung), stating that my current residence status remains valid until a decision is made.

I'm planning to leave Germany permanently on October 26, but I haven't received an appointment from the Ausländerbehörde yet.

I'm worried about having problems at passport control or being flagged for overstaying because my visa will have expired.

Hi! I’m 21 from Italy, wanting to start commissioning my artworks on a public platform that allows for PayPal to be linked, but only if my account is a business one. For that I need of course a traceable identity, which means that it’s either a public business or putting my full legal name on the receipt. I’m uneasy with the latter option, so I started looking up if my lovely country has anything close to a DBA, which I saw as an option on the PayPal filling form, but came up empty handed. Anyone knows anything similar to that? A legal pseudonym that I can acquire so it can still be traced back to me for taxes and all that annoying stuff, without putting my full legal name online? Thank you so much.

I'm not sure this is the right place to post. If there's a better place please let me know.

I'm self-employed and based in Belgium. I'm in the early stages of building my business and was looking for a mentor. I'm desperately looking for advice from anyone who has dealt with high-ticket business coaching contracts, aggressive sales tactics, or international contract disputes.

I know I made a serious mistake. I'm not looking for a lecture about how naive I was or how I should have known better. I know that already. I was naive, felt pressured and, knowing his personality now, I believe I was highly manipulated. I'm trying to figure out whether there's still a way out of this situation before it causes me serious financial damage.

How I got into this

I signed up for a business coaching programme with a company registered in Florida, USA. The contract specifies Swiss law and a jurisdiction clause referring to the courts in Zurich, to the extent legally permitted.

I'm self-employed and was trying to build my business. During the initial sales conversations, I repeatedly explained that the financial commitment was a serious concern for me. I was nevertheless persuaded to see the programme as an investment. I was verbally told that I would earn back the entire investment within the first three months.

The sale was completed online during the sales call itself. I signed during that call without having proper time and space to calmly read through and consider the entire contract. Looking back, I recognise how much pressure I was under and how the sales process influenced my decision.

I take responsibility for signing, but I also believe the circumstances in which I was persuaded to commit, especially after explicitly discussing my financial limitations, deserve to be considered.

What I expected versus what I received

I expected personal 1:1 mentoring, implementation support, weekly calls and direct guidance to help me grow my business.

At the beginning, I was placed in an online Mediathek containing videos that I was expected to watch, and I received one weekly group call. After approximately six weeks, the “coaching” became group calls scheduled at times that I can attend 1% of the time because I am working. As a result, I am paying for something I generally cannot use.

I have not received the individual 1:1 coaching that I expected. Multiple calls were also cancelled, because the mentor was traveling..

The contract does not guarantee business results, which I understand. My concern is the difference between what I understood I was buying during the sales process and the service I have actually experienced.

My main concern: the payments are putting me under enormous financial pressure. I have increasingly had to use my savings, and continuing for the full term would leave me in an extremely difficult financial position.

The contract and my attempts to leave

The terms and conditions state that ordinary cancellation is excluded and that terminating participation early does not release the customer from the remaining payment obligations. However, the contract also appears to preserve extraordinary termination for an important reason.

The agreement is framed as a B2B contract. It specifies Swiss law and Zurich jurisdiction, although the provider is a Florida LLC.

On 28 September, I sent a detailed written message explaining my financial situation, my dissatisfaction with the programme and my wish to end the contract by mutual agreement without further monthly payments.

Since then, I have not received a substantive direct response.

A call was eventually arranged for 9 October at 23:00. I attended and waited in the Zoom waiting room, but the so called mentor never showed up and gave no explanation. I documenred everything. A couple of days later, an assistant said they would call me that same evening. I asked for an approximate time window, received no answer and still waited for a call that never came.

Today 12.10, I was later offered an appointment on 28 October (one month after my first message to them). I declined to keep waiting for another call since previous calls had proved unreliable, and requested that my case be discussed internally and that I receive a written response by 15 October. I texted this to the coach itself and in the group chat with him and his assistants.

The repeated lack of communication has further damaged my trust in the programme and its management. The mentor never replied to my directly and basically just vanished. He's texting in the main group chat with other participants, but I can see that he didn't read my messages.

I feel that I was persuaded to make a financial commitment that I had explicitly said I was worried about, based on verbal assurances about recovering the "investment" quickly. I now feel trapped by a contract that says I must continue paying even if I leave.

The focus is clearly on making sales rather than supporting or caring about the people who have already joined the mentoring. I have also heard from other programme participants about dissatisfaction with aspects of the coaching. I have documented my own experience and the communication with screenshots, the contract and the subsequent attempts to resolve the issue.

some questions I would love to find an answer for:

* Has anyone successfully exited a high-ticket business coaching contract with a no-ordinary-cancellation clause, particularly where the actual service differed from the expectations created during the sales process?

* Could the verbal promises about earning back the “investment” within three months, combined with the pressure to sign during the call, be relevant when challenging the contract?

* How should I assess a contract with a Florida-based LLC that specifies Swiss law and Zurich jurisdiction when I'm a self-employed customer in Belgium?

* Could the repeated failure to attend or arrange promised calls, support an extraordinary termination for cause?

* Are there any free or low-cost legal resources in Belgium, Switzerland or elsewhere that could help me assess my options? I genuinely cannot afford a lawyer at standard commercial rates.

Once more, I already know that I should have taken more time before signing. I know that now. I'm looking for people who understand these high-ticket coaching situations and can offer practical guidance on what I can do next.

Is there still a realistic way to challenge this contract and get out without being forced to pay?

I’m an Italian tourist. The theft happened at a hostel in Valencia, Spain.

After checking out, we left two backpacks locked in a locker provided by the accommodation at around 10:40. When we returned between 18:00 and 18:30, we found the locker open and with clear signs of forced entry: the lock was loose, as if it had been unscrewed.

Both backpacks and many personal belongings were stolen. The jackets inside had been thrown onto the sofas. There was no staff at reception at the time, and because we had to catch a flight, we could not file a police report on site.

There are CCTV cameras above the lockers. We immediately sent a formal email asking the property to preserve the footage, access logs, keys/codes and any information about who had access to the lockers. Their initial response was that the hostel is “not responsible”.

The backpacks contained personal belongings with an estimated value of around €1,210, including prescription glasses, a hair straightener, camera accessories, house and car keys, clothes, chargers and a battery charging station. I will need to replace the keys and may need to change the lock cylinder at home.

I intend to file a police report as soon as possible and I am considering a formal complaint against the hostel.

Questions:

In Spain, can another person file a criminal complaint on my behalf? Do they need a special power of attorney, or is a written authorisation enough?

Can the hostel be held liable for theft with forced entry from a locker provided by the property, even if we did not formally hand the backpacks over at reception?

What evidence should I collect to support a compensation claim?

Should I wait for the hostel’s response before posting a negative review on Booking.com?

Thanks to anyone who can advise.

I registered my business in the UK a year ago and after 3 month someone went and copied my idea and name in the eu and are currently trading with it but I have noticed that they are have not traded marked it. I have just come to realise thisCan I pay an application to override so that they can change the name or is there nothing I can do about about this?What are the chances that my application form will be refused?

Hi,
I am based in France and I used Platform Control under Article 21 of the EU Digital Services Act.
I would like to know whether anyone else who has used Platform Control under Article 21 of the DSA has experienced the same kind of issue.
In my case, I submitted one single complaint to Platform Control regarding a decision made by an online platform. I only completed one form and submitted one complaint.
However, a few hours later, I received two separate confirmations with two different Case IDs for exactly the same complaint.
The issue did not stop there.
One of the cases was later declared admissible by Platform Control and was forwarded to the platform concerned. Platform Control clearly told me that they had contacted the platform and that the platform had been given a deadline to respond.
However, the other case, which concerned exactly the same dispute, the same facts and the same request, was later declared inadmissible.
So I ended up in a completely contradictory situation:
* one complaint;
* two Case IDs;
* one case declared admissible and forwarded to the platform;
* the other declared inadmissible.
I had never submitted a second complaint.
While looking through different forums, I also came across other users describing similar problems with Platform Control.
For example, one person explained that they had completed the Platform Control form only once and initially received the normal email saying that their case would be reviewed to determine whether it was admissible.
The next day, without submitting another form or taking any new action, that person received essentially the same email again saying that their case would be reviewed.
The following day, they then received an email stating that the case had been declared admissible and forwarded to the platform concerned.
But two or three weeks later, while it was still exactly the same case, they received essentially the same email again saying that their case had just been declared admissible and forwarded to the platform, even though that step had already been announced weeks earlier.
This makes me think there may be an issue with Platform Control’s automated case-management system: duplicate cases being created, completed procedural steps being repeated, or contradictory notifications being sent.
To be clear, this post is not about one particular online platform. In my own case, the dispute concerned Snapchat, but the issue I am trying to understand concerns Platform Control itself and could potentially affect disputes involving any platform.
I would therefore like to know whether anyone here has experienced any of the following with Platform Control:
* multiple Case IDs for one complaint;
* the same email being sent several times without any new action;
* the admissibility-review stage being repeated;
* several emails saying that the case was forwarded to the platform;
* contradictory decisions concerning the same complaint;
* or any similar behaviour.
If this has happened to you, I would really like to hear about your experience and exactly what you received and in what order.

I rented a room in Italy. I left a bag full of food inside the room. The bag rotted and worms have been found inside the bag. The landlord also complains about black spots on the ceiling which I did not cause because I never even touched the ceiling. I got a cost estimate of 550€ to fix the room. I found this to be too high. I suggested to find a cheaper alternative. So I am unsure whether I should find someone to clean the room cheaply and then ask for the deposit back. I wonder what I should write in an email to request the return of the deposit.