Credit Card Debt

[sammy84]

My friend has just split with her partner, when they moved in together he owed �5000 on his credit card which was high interest, so she put it on a new card in her name. When they were together he just paid a bit off each month.

Now they have seperated he is refusing to pay the money back. Where does she stand legally, I know the credit card is in her name, but surely she can prove it's his debt by the fact it paid the other credit card off. Also the payments he has made monthly. Would this be something the small claims court would deal with?

[themas]

She should never have done this! She is legally liable for the card in her name. The credit card company will not be the slightest bit intereste in the acttha she got it to pay off her partner's card.

Her only recourse against him would be to take him to Court with a claim for what he owes her. But if he is genuinely without money, this would be unlikely to help her.

[Ethel]

Even if he has money, she would have to prove in court that it was a loan and not a gift - that it was agreed from the outset that he would repay the money.

Unless she has something in writing then it will be his word against hers.
If she won in court, she may still have a problem enforcing the debt. She may have to get the bailiffs in, or an attachment of earnings...

And she would still be liable to the credit card company - even with a CCJ against the ex, the credit card company will chase her for the money, and she will always be liable.

[Whoever]

I'm afraid your friend has seen the last of her money. Unless they had a written agreement about it being a loan, the fact that he made payments to the other credit card is irrelevant.
She will alas have to learn the hard way that you can't take people on trust when you loan them money or do them financial favours, even when you think you know them well enough to move in together.