Someone owes me money and is avoiding me, what can I do? If you are faced with someone refusing to repay your money back, that can be challenging. Fortunately, you have many legal options to help you out.
Generally, the first step often involves an informal settlement. A simple reminder to your debtor about the owed amount should be enough for them to repay the debt or fix a repayment date. However, if the repayment continues to be denied, then you want to maintain composure and use legal routes, depending on the amount of money you are owed. These can include filing a County Court claim – or a simple mediation.
Someone Owes Me Money and is Avoiding Me
Consider any or a combination of the following if someone owes you money and is avoiding you:
1. Send the Person a Gentle Reminder
Begin by sending a polite reminder. Often, the person might have simply forgotten about repaying your debt. When you reach out, it can help jog their memory. Consider a friendly text message or a call to rekindle the promise. Remember to be respectful because a heated confrontation seldom yields fruitful results.
2. Hold an Open Communication
If the first reminder does not work, it’s time to initiate a dialogue. Choose an appropriate time and setting to discuss the matter.
Approach this person with empathy and express your concerns clearly. This conversation might provide you insight into their situation and open avenues for repayment that you hadn’t considered before, such as a payment plan.
3. Consider Bankruptcy Proceedings
If someone owes you money, like a friend or boss, you can use bankruptcy as a way to get them to pay back. But it can be emotional, especially if the person is close to you.
When someone is declared bankrupt, they have to reveal their money situation, including what they own and earn, to an official. They must also tell about their bankruptcy if they’re trying to borrow more than £500, and they’ll have to go to court to explain why they haven’t paid their debt.
With a bankruptcy order, the person’s money and things can be taken to pay the debt. But sometimes, there might not be enough to cover what they owe. Plus, if they owe money to lots of people, your debt might not be the first to be paid.
4. Seek Mediation
If you’re having trouble getting your money back, or if the person isn’t responding, mediation might help. This isn’t free, but it’s usually quicker and cheaper than going to court. In mediation, everyone involved meets up and tries to agree on what to do next. Lawyers can be there too, to help understand the rules and suggest what might work best, like paying all or some of the money back right away or making a plan for payments.
If a company owes you more than £750 and can’t pay it back, you can ask the court to wind them up. If this works, the company’s stuff will be sold to pay the debts. But, just like with bankruptcy, you might not get all your money back, and other debts might get paid before yours.
When you lend money, it’s good to have a written agreement about how much is owed and when it will be paid back. But even if you don’t, you can still show things like bounced checks, unpaid bills, messages about trying to collect the debt, bank payment records, account history, evidence that the money wasn’t a gift, or even people who saw it happen, to prove your case in court.
5. Use County’s Court Services
Depending on how much money is owed to you, you might want to use the County Court to make a claim. You can claim any amount, but the court fees start at £35. So, if you’re claiming less than this, you’ll actually lose money.
Going to court can cost anywhere from £35 to a whopping £10,000. So, it’s important to think about other options, like mediation or sending a formal demand for payment, before going to court. The government’s website can tell you more about how much court fees might be.
6. Take Court Action
If the money owed is a lot and the person who owes you won’t or can’t pay back, you might think about taking them to court. Before you do this, send them a serious letter asking for the money again and letting them know you might go to court next.
You can use a small claims court to get your money. Just make sure you have all the papers you need like any contracts or proof of the loan and the times you’ve tried to get your money back. You don’t have to, but having a lawyer might help you win.
7. Use a Collection Agency to Get Your Money Back
You could also hire a company to collect the money for you. These companies are experts in getting unpaid money, but they usually want a fee or a part of the money they collect. Be sure to look into the company carefully to make sure they are honest and legal.
8. Consider Credit Reporting
If the person who owes you won’t answer or pay, you could tell a credit bureau about the money they owe. This could hurt their credit score and make it harder for them to borrow money later. But be careful with this step, as it might make the situation worse.
Avoid Problems from the Start
While these steps might help you get your money back, the best way to handle this is to not let it happen at all. Always have a written record of loans, even with friends or family. Don’t let your feelings make your decisions, and always be ready for the chance that the loan might not be paid back.
Getting money back that you’re owed can be tricky, especially if the person who owes you is hard to find. You might feel mad or frustrated, but remember to stay calm, keep trying, and be respectful. Get legal help if you need it, and try to keep things friendly if you can. Your goal is to get your money, not to make an enemy. With the right tools and approach, you can make it through the tough job of getting your money back.
To prove someone should pay you back, you usually need a signed agreement. It should show how much they owe and when they should pay it back.
But sometimes, there isn’t a formal contract. Even without one, you can still prove they owe you money in court. You can use things like:
- Checks that bounced
- Unpaid bills
- Messages where you asked them to pay you back
- Records of payments from your bank
- Records showing a history of them owing you money
- Proof that the money you gave them wasn’t a gift
- People who can say they saw the money being lent
Conclusion
If someone refuses to pay back money, you should know that the police usually don’t get involved. This is a matter for the courts, not for the police. The police might tell you to go to Citizens Advice. But if the person who owes you money is threatening you or stealing from you, you should tell the police about that.
Usually, you have about 6 years to ask for your money back. But it could be different for things like home loans. If you don’t ask for your money back at this time, the debt could be cancelled. That means the person or company wouldn’t have to pay you back anymore.
Read also: Bad credit personal loans guaranteed approval 5000
