Bassano v Toft & Ors
2014
QUEEN’S BENCH DIVISION
United Kingdom
CORAM
- THE HON. MR JUSTICE POPPLEWELL
Areas of Law
- Contract Law
- Consumer Law
- Property and Real Estate Law
2014
QUEEN’S BENCH DIVISION
United Kingdom
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
Mrs. Bassano, a professional musician, used a valuable viola as security to obtain loans totaling £280,000 from three different lenders over a span of three years. Due to financial struggles, she did not repay the loans, leading the lenders to seek enforcement against the proceeds from the viola's sale. The court upheld Mr. Toft's and Borro's claims for loan repayments with interest and ruled that Borro holds the priority security interest in the proceeds. The judgment clarifies legal principles related to the Consumer Credit Act, electronic signatures, and the preservation of a pledgee's interest despite parting with possession.
Judgment
The Hon. Mr Justice Popplewell :
Introduction
The Claimant, Mrs Bassano, is a professional musician. For many years she owned a valuable viola, whose manufacture is attributed to Ceruti in Cremona in 1803. In 2009 she and her husband were experiencing financial difficulties. Between 2009 and 2011, she used the viola to raise finance by way of successive loans from the Defendants. In these proceedings the Defendants seek to enforce repayment of the loans, in part against the proceeds of sale of the viola.
The first loan in time was made by the Second Defendants, who are Peter Biddulph and Peter Biddulph Limited, the company through which Mr Biddulph deals in fine instruments. Nothing now turns on any distinction between Mr Biddulph and his company and I shall refer to both simply as Peter Biddulph. Peter Biddulph lent Mrs Bassano £50,000, interest free, in the summer of 2009, to be repaid from the proceeds of a sale of the viola which he was to seek to achieve. No part of that sum was repaid by Mrs Bassano.
The second lender was the First Defendant, Mr Toft, who is also by profession a dealer in fine stringed instruments. In February 2010 he lent Mrs Bassano £100,000 for 12 months with interest payable monthly. Mrs Bassano paid interest for the first 10 months, but has not thereafter paid any further instalments of interest or repaid the capital.
The last lender was the Third Defendant, which is named as Borro Loan Limited and Borro Loan 2 Limited, who are members of the same corporate group. I shall refer to both as “Borro” save where it is necessary to distinguish between the two. Borro carries on business as a pawnbroker. In July 2011, Borro lent Mrs Bassano £130,000 on the security of the viola by way of pledge. The loan carried interest. No part of the capital or interest has been repaid.
The issues in the action have become simplified as a result of an agreement reached between the Defendants inter se shortly before the trial, and two orders I made at the beginning of the trial to give effect to their agreement (to which Mrs Bassano did not consent). The effect of those orders was as follows:
The viola was sold to Peter Biddulph for £230,000, being the best price reasonably obtainable in the light of unsuccessful attempts to sell the viola at an acceptable price for the previous 4 years.
The proceeds of the sale were paid into court to abide the outcome of the proceedings.
The issues between Peter Biddulph and Mrs Bassano fell away.