Full and Final Salay Letter

A question about : Full and Final Salay Letter

Hi, I was made redundant in February of this year and was given a very fair redundancy package. Part of my final salary agreement was made up of a commission (Ј11k) that I had earned due to a contract I'd won in December 2013. The company doesn't have to pay out the commission until the month after the contract goes live, which is expected in December 2014, meaning I would get paid in January 2015. When I chased the company, they said they had re-calculated my commission and they would be paying me Ј3k less than what was agreed. Can they change the terms of the final salary agreement, even though there was nothing in the agreement that says they can? Also, if they send out a cheque and with it the stipulation that says cashing this cheque absolves the Company of any further payments (or something to that effect) can I go after them for the remaining money that they owe me? I would rather have the Ј8k and fight for the Ј3k than to have to fight for the whole Ј11k, but am I hurting myself if I cash the cheque? Any thoughts/advice on this would be appreciated.

Best answers:

• There are two options for the creditor with the main lesson to be learned from case law is clarity. If you are explicitly clear (when banking the cheque) with your intentions of non acceptance, don't dilly or dally, do nothing that could be construed as acceptance and notify the debtor straight away of your disagreement to the lesser amount - do this and the courts will likely look upon this favourably on the basis that there has been no consensus in idem to constitute a binding agreement.
  At the very least immediately write to the other party that you are rejecting the cheque as full and final settlement but will be cashing the cheque as part payment.
  Be sure to keep a copy of this letter and send by reliable source to the correct address.
  The temptation is, understandably, high to bank the cheque and pursue for the remaining balance but alongside the requirement of clarity; it may be that the best solution would be to reject the cheque altogether and advise the debtor that full payment is to be made within a short period of time, failing which will result in court proceedings. This way, the debtor has no claim against you.
• Thank you so much for your help. I'm hoping that they make the payment by BACS so that I don't have to do anything that would suggest I have accepted their new terms. Once it is securely in my account, I will then contact them and give them a short window in which to settle the account. If further payment isn't received, which I'm certain it won't, I will contact ACAS.