Solicitors Letter

Jauzman

Here is a Solicitors Letter that I received;

Here’s a clear summary of the solicitor’s letter:

Summary:
The letter, dated 24 October 2025, is from Solicitors on behalf of Ltd. It is addressed to Name, regarding an outstanding invoice and other related matters.

The solicitors state that their client (Ltd) claims name , abandoned his employment, leaving the company “high and dry.” As a result, the client believes it is entitled, to damages, legal costs, and the return of any company property still in his possession.

The letter demands payment of the enclosed invoice and warns that if it is not settled — and the other issues are not resolved — the solicitors have been instructed to begin legal proceedings to recover all amounts owed, including costs and expenses.

Above is a ChatGPT explanation of a Solicitors Letter that I received.

Basically the Client via the Solicitor, wants me to pay for and return PPE, along with other matters.

My original story relating to this is as follows;

Good day. Yesterday I received a Solicitors letter advising me that their client, was going to instigate court action / legal proceedings against me, if I did not pay an attached invoice and return to the client, items in my possession!

The Story: Around June 2025, I applied for a position with a company. I conducted an interview and was told I was to receive payments @ €200 per day. After a few days I contacted the company to see when I was starting with them and they said soon. To make a long story short, I was led on for months up to September, when I had to do a mandatory course for the position. I completed the course. I enquired if I could be paid weekly and it was confirmed in writing that they would pay me weekly. I drove one and a half hours away to pick up PPE for the position. Feeling suspicious all the time after a week, I asked where I stood with them with regards to my wage when I start working with them and so forth. I was told they were going to pay me €150 per day and paid monthly...also my contract would only be drawn up at the end of the month of starting!! After waiting for three months, being lied to on numerous occasions, every other week they told me they had a vehicle for me and never had! With everything dragging on, I wrote an email, declining the position. I did not want to work for such a company, having been lied to and swapping and changing their minds.I never signed a contract of any kind. Now they want me to pay for the course, return PPE , or they will sue me for everything, including damages etc!! Question: What do I do and where do I stand??

I was not paid to do any training and was told be they company that it was " Complimentary" training!??

I previously told the company that the PPE was available to collect at my address. The only reply I received was the Solicitors letter two months later!

_

Now I originally believed they wanted me to pay for the course, but that was presumption on my behalf as I hadn't received the invoice for PPE, believing it was for the course. I can only believe now, that " other matters", may be the case of having to pay for the course also!??

My Question:

What do I do or what's going on....I just need advice 🙏

Jim_Hodge

Did you not get sufficient replies here…?

Pre-Employment Training Fees and PPE. — boards.ie - Now Ye're Talkin'

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123964445#Comment_123964445

Yeah to be clear, I think the employer is quite disorganised and have obviously screwed up a lot here

The fact that they couldn't even keep track of what PPE they gave you is a pretty bad sign

I think if it came to a court case then it's likely to come down in your favour. However I assume you'd rather just make it go away?

Simplest thing is to return the PPE, contact the company via email and phone and ask where and when it can be returned

I would advise taking pictures of all the PPE, both to demonstrate you returned it in good condition and also that you didn't receive several items they are asking for

As for the solicitors letter, I think CramCycles idea is best but perhaps also note that you are disputing the list of items received

Regarding contracts, I personally have never started a formal employment without a written agreement of some sort. It's just safer for both employee and employer to have everything agreed in writing

I realise there can be urgency around starting and some employers don't want to spend the money getting a solicitors to draw a formal contract, however as an employee I would be very hesitant to start taking on training or equipment until I had all the details hammered out

csirl

This sounds like a scam - report to Gardai.

Incidently, how much is the invoicd for and for what services/goods?

Does the company actually exist (check with CRO)?

Jauzman

It's actually a real Solicitors. The Solicitor that owns the Solicitors office is actually dealing with the case.

I emailed him asking him the following via email:

Good evening, Sir.
I am trying to establish what ' Company Name LTD' are seeking with regards to the initial letter received from your office.I wish to determine what 'other matters' refers to and also damages, legal costs, etc, please.Is your client seeking for me to pay an invoice and return items to them or is your client seeking for me just to return items to them?I truly have no idea what other matters mean or what legal costs and damages that is referred to in the initial letter or what your client is seeking from me.I have also asked if your legal secretary could explain it all to me in layman's terms as I am not adept with legal terms and law.Thank you,Sir.

10-10-20

So you signed no contract and didn't obtain a start-date from this company? Seems simple to me - offer the PPE to the solicitor and ignore any remaining communications. The solicitor knows this.

csirl

But does the company issuing the invoice actually exist - this is the important thing?

The whole thing sounds suspect. You cant issue an invoice if you want goods returned nor can I think of any reason why an invoice would ever issue to an employee in the circumstances. Invoices are for the supply of goods and services!

Jauzman

No reply as of this moment.

Jauzman

Yes, the company exists.

As far as I know, I should not have to pay for PPE and to pay for it and then return it is ludicrous.

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123964350#Comment_123964350

You will have to either return the PPE or reimburse them, asking them to collect it is a bit of an unreasonable expectation on your behalf

As for the training, it is possible for an employer to recoup training costs if an employee leaves

Just because you didn't sign a contract doesn't mean one doesn't exist. The company offered you training in return for your agreement to take up a job, there's agreement and consideration there so a contract can exist

It could be argued that the employer changed the terms of your employment without your agreement in which case any contract could be rendered void. You'll want to seek legal advice on that

I would recommend making a copy of all communications between you and the employer. Be sure to show dates and email addresses and phone numbers to ensure an accurate timeline of events

In general, I would strongly recommend you get the terms of your employment in writing including the official start date and salary. You should not take any training or equipment before this date as you are not an employee

The argument of being "led on" is unlikely to work, there are many good reasons an employer may need to delay your start and without an agreed date then it's hard to argue they broke an agreement

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123964340#Comment_123964340

They gave him training and PPE to do a job which he didn't take up and are now recouping the cost of the equipment.

An invoice is just the mechanism for informing the OP how much they think he owes and how to pay

Mrs OBumble

Are you sure someone hasn't hacked or spoofed the solicitors email?

Was the phrase "high and dry" in the original letter?

Jauzman

They told me a contract would be draw up at the end of the month after starting with them.

• Employer's responsibility: The employer is legally obligated to supply and pay for all necessary PPE.
• Free of charge: PPE must be provided to employees and workers at no cost to them. This includes any costs associated with things like deposits or fees.

• With a written agreement: An employee must agree in writing to repay training costs, and this agreement should be separate from the main contract of employment.
• For specific training: The training should ideally provide a qualification or benefit to the employee beyond their current role, making it more likely to be enforceable.
• With fair and reasonable terms: The amount must be a true reflection of the costs and the repayment terms must be fair, for example, proportional to the time worked since the training, and not an arbitrary or excessive penalty. 

When charging is generally not allowed

• Mandatory training: If the training is legally required for the job or is part of a collective agreement, it must be provided at no cost to the employee and count as working time.

My training was Mandatory.

Jauzman

😆😁

Jauzman

May I add, that the company added other PPE items to the invoice, that I didn't require, request or have in my possession.

csirl

A regular set of PPE for a building site costs €100 to €200 depending on quality. Not something you would pay legal fees to recover. Seems bizarre.

CramCycle

Write back to the solicitor to inform me you are happy to return the PPE, you have offered to have it collected in the past but received no reply. If he could furnish you with an address for return, or you can return to his office directly. You are owed €200/day for X number of days training as agreed but this has not been paid. Due to a lack of payment, proper communication or contract, you have declined to proceed with the position. You expect no further contact unless it is for the remittance of owed wages.

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123964500#Comment_123964500

I assume the idea is to use the solicitors letter as a scare tactic to get the OP to return the PPE or pay for it

Solicitor is probably used by the company a lot and may have done it for a relatively low fee for a long standing customer

I agree it's unlikely to come to court, they'd argue for costs in which case the OP would pay the company's legal fees. However that doesn't mean it will be granted so it's a bit of a gamble

Jauzman

Indeed, yes, I just want it to go away. I really don't need this now coming up to Christmas and Im still unemployed. I drove 3hrs round trip to collect their PPE. If they want it so bad, they can come collect it or I can drop it off nearby for them. They have had 40 days since to contact me or collect it. I stopped looking for work like an idiot for nearly 4 months, because they said I had a position with them.

the_amazing_raisin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123964819#Comment_123964819

Yeah I'm only recently back in the workforce myself, it's definitely a special kind of horror being forced to wait on prospective employers to get their act together

As I said before, treat it like a learning experience. Get the PPE returned, tell them you've fulfilled your obligations and consider the matter closed and then back on the job hunt. You'll know more about how things can go sideways for the next job and be better prepared to deal with it