Owed Money

[jennyjoan]

I am owed about £70 due to a mistake I made in paying it in the first place. However the person has acknowledged he owes it to me. He emailed to say that within the next few days he will sort the matter. That was last week and I am still waiting on the money.

I don't have receipt etc - can this person get out of paying me my owed money?

[Ken4155]

You have his email admitting he owes you the money.

[jennyjoan]

that's right Ken, I have sent him another email so perhaps I will hear from him today.

[barry1010]

Is this a business or a friend/acquaintance?

[davebro]

//I don't have receipt etc - can this person get out of paying me my owed money?//

Yes he can. It's not worth the bother of taking legal action to recover such a small sum so if the debtor is unscrupulous he'll just ignore you.

[dannyk13]

Did you pay by cash or cheque?

[piggynose]

verbal agreements always dodgy imho. ah well you live and learn.

[Buenchico]

>>> can this person get out of paying me my owed money?

Legally, 'No'. Practically (possibly), 'Yes'.

If someone owes you money and won't pay up, all you can do (that doesn't involve employing a couple of big guys with baseball bats) is to take the matter to court. As that involves paying a fee to start the process rolling, it can be be somewhat impractical where the amount owed is relatively small. So, in practice, it's far easier for someone to get away with not paying £70 than it is to not pay £700 or £7000.

However the threat of court action can often be enough to jolt people into action. So hinting that you're prepared to go to court to get your money (even if you're not) might be worth a try.

[ladybirder]

Piggy it's not a verbal agreement she has it in writing.

[piggynose]

So LB is an email sufficient evidence for a court case? Maybe it is. But it shouldn´t come to this due to the cost incurred. I´d go along with chris´s suggestion "threatening court action" or a solicitors letter?

[davebro]

//or a solicitors letter//

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! avoid the vultures like the plague (or covid)!

[Ken4155]

I do think we need a tad more context before advising JJ on the pros and cons of any court action. Was it money she paid for goods, or work done by a tradesman, for example.

[satprof]

> 10:01
My understanding of the rules of evidence is that courts will consider any evidence that is put forward. Deals worth many millions are done over the phone with just telephone recordings to back them up.

As for going to court, for fixed sums such as this, in England or Wales there is an online service at www.gov.uk/make-money-claim where you don’t need a solicitor. (Similar systems are available in Scotland & NI.)
If you go this route you should first try to come to some agreement even if it means being paid in installments. If this doesn’t work, make sure you add the Court fee to the amount claimed.

[Canary42]

/// make sure you add the Court fee to the amount claimed.///

Yes, this is essential, and making this point to the person when "threatening" Court Action is often enough to persuade them to stump up the debt.

[jennyjoan]

thanks all for your answers, he has emailed me to say to pick it up this afternoon guess I've been lucky.

[Ken4155]

He must have logged on to AB, JJ, and read all the advice about courts :-))

[piggynose]

He must be a busy man, because you´d think he´d have the decency to go to your home and pay you in person.

[jennyjoan]

wowee Piggy - I am grateful to get it every which way I can LOL

I actually would not have bothered to retrieve it only for a friend's advice to even "try".

[barry1010]

You haven't said if this is a business or an acquaintance, JJ.

[bednobs]

I presumed it was accidentally paid into the wrong account

[Canary42]

/// I am grateful to get it every which way I can ///


Oooh, Matron !