Q: “I had an interview arranged by an employment agency and received a verbal job offer for a temporary post. Some time later I discovered the vacancy had been filled by another candidate but I am out of pocket as I had signed off my Jobseekers’ Allowance. Do I have any scope to take the matter further? Was a verbal offer binding?”

William O’Neil, Partner and Head of the Employment Department at Rowlands Solicitors: “Simply put, an offer of employment does not have to be in writing and a verbal offer, and acceptance, will be binding. Obviously, there may be difficulties in proving that a verbal offer was made or what the terms were and it is therefore always advisable to get confirmation of any offer in writing, if possible. The only way this would not be accepted as binding is if the offer was withdrawn before you accepted it.

“However, there is not much scope for taking the matter any further as it would be argued that all employment contracts, whether verbal or written, are subject to termination provisions, either in the terms of the contract itself or implied by law. This means that the prospective employer is able to terminate any contract on reasonable notice, in the absence of anything agreed to the contrary. In your case this would likely be one week’s notice taking into account what your length of service would be, although a longer notice period could be implied if reasonable.

“Nonetheless, there is no reason as to why you should not claim one week’s notice pay (and any benefits you would have obtained during your first week of employment), and the monies you have lost as a consequence of not receiving your Job Seekers’ Allowance, although, of course, you should take steps to ensure your allowance is re-instated and backdated if possible. You should perhaps write to the prospective employer to see if this can be resolved amicably as any legal costs could be disproportionate to what you are seeking to recover.”