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Deadbeat customer

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Tomas12

Junior Member
I have a small business. One of my clients only paid (by check) 50% of what was owed on an invoice and does not intend to pay the remainder. I plan to take them to small claims court and believe my case to be pretty solid but need to know whether I should cash the partial payment or hold on to it. I'm afraid that by cashing it I would be giving up my claim on the outstanding balance. On the other hand, I am nervous that if I don't cash it I may never see that money again. The total invoice was $4000, the check is for $2300. Thank you in advance.

Tomas
 


justalayman

justalayman

Senior Member
was there a dispute as to the actual amount owed? Is there any sort of notice on the check regarding payment in full?
 
C

cosine

Senior Member
How did this customer make it known to you that they did not intend to pay the remainder? Are you still communicating with them?

I think you could have a good case, but it will take perhaps good documentation that they are the one, and how much is owed, and the product/service is not faulty. Think of all the possible crazy no-good defenses they might try to use.

As for cashing the check, unless it says "payment in full", I would cash it, and apply the amount to the account. Then wait and see if the check bounces (possible). If it goes through OK, sue for the difference. If it bounces, contact law enforcement.

If the check is written on an account at a local or nearby bank, I'd take it there and cash it directly to cash (they must ask for your ID and may need a fingerprint). This would be to avoid disclosing account info to them.
 
LdiJ

LdiJ

Senior Member
Tomas12 said:
I have a small business. One of my clients only paid (by check) 50% of what was owed on an invoice and does not intend to pay the remainder. I plan to take them to small claims court and believe my case to be pretty solid but need to know whether I should cash the partial payment or hold on to it. I'm afraid that by cashing it I would be giving up my claim on the outstanding balance. On the other hand, I am nervous that if I don't cash it I may never see that money again. The total invoice was $4000, the check is for $2300. Thank you in advance.

Tomas
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It is not unusual for customers to pay partial amounts towards invoices if they are experiencing a temporary cash flow problem. If this is a regular customer of yours you might want to consider talking to them about when they intend to pay the rest of the balance due, prior to jumping into a lawsuit.

In addition, many state statutes require you to bill a customer more than once before actually suing for a debt. As someone else already told you, unless the check says "payment in full" or something similar, you do not give up your claim on the outstanding balance by cashing the check...therefore you should do so, as quickly as possible.
 
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Tomas12

Junior Member
Thank you all for such thorough and prompt responses. I will reply to everyone's questions below.....

The customer made it very clear via text (saved on my phone but not sure how to use this evidence in court setting) as well as by voice conversation that they do not intend to pay over the $2300. Their justification is simply that they "thought it would cost less" and are refusing to pay any more than the $2300 figure they pulled from the air.

The reason I believe my case to be solid is because I have a contract with their signature on it in two places. I had them sign once for the price, terms, delivery dates, etc., and again after completion of the job saying that the job was done to their satisfaction. Technically this should prevent them from saying that something was damaged or whatnot. However, this individual is a hotshot lawyer and could run circles around me in a typical courtroom setting. Again, I am taking him to small claims so I believe that fact should limit his legal maneuvering options. I should also mention that I originally sent this quote via email and can present that email on court day as additional proof that they knew the true cost of the job. Not sure if there's a way to prove that they actually received and read the email but they have no way of proving that their figure is the correct one.

These people are not experiencing cash flow problems. On the contrary, they are loaded. I am not communicating with them at the moment, but the option is available to me.

There is nothing written in the memo line of the check or anywhere else to indicate that it is meant as a full payment.


Tomas
 
P

Proserpina

Senior Member
Tomas12 said:
Thank you all for such thorough and prompt responses. I will reply to everyone's questions below.....

The customer made it very clear via text (saved on my phone but not sure how to use this evidence in court setting) as well as by voice conversation that they do not intend to pay over the $2300. Their justification is simply that they "thought it would cost less" and are refusing to pay any more than the $2300 figure they pulled from the air.

The reason I believe my case to be solid is because I have a contract with their signature on it in two places. I had them sign once for the price, terms, delivery dates, etc., and again after completion of the job saying that the job was done to their satisfaction. Technically this should prevent them from saying that something was damaged or whatnot. However, this individual is a hotshot lawyer and could run circles around me in a typical courtroom setting. Again, I am taking him to small claims so I believe that fact should limit his legal maneuvering options. I should also mention that I originally sent this quote via email and can present that email on court day as additional proof that they knew the true cost of the job. Not sure if there's a way to prove that they actually received and read the email but they have no way of proving that their figure is the correct one.

These people are not experiencing cash flow problems. On the contrary, they are loaded. I am not communicating with them at the moment, but the option is available to me.

There is nothing written in the memo line of the check or anywhere else to indicate that it is meant as a full payment.


Tomas
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Seriously - you have a moral (if not legal) obligation to at least communicate with the debtors. That should be the first, not last, resort.
 
T

Tomas12

Junior Member
I do appreciate the attempt, but it's clear that you didn't read my original post very carefully.


Tomas

Proserpina said:
Seriously - you have a moral (if not legal) obligation to at least communicate with the debtors. That should be the first, not last, resort.
Click to expand...
 
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Tomas12

Junior Member
Let's not go down that road, this just isn't the place for it. Below is what I've already said about communication. As you can see, your assumption was wrong. If you care to give it another shot, I would very much welcome it.

Tomas

Tomas12 said:
The customer made it very clear via text (saved on my phone but not sure how to use this evidence in court setting) as well as by voice conversation that they do not intend to pay over the $2300. Their justification is simply that they "thought it would cost less" and are refusing to pay any more than the $2300 figure they pulled from the air.

I am not communicating with them at the moment, but the option is available to me.
Click to expand...
 
Ohiogal

Ohiogal

Queen Bee
Tomas12 said:
Let's not go down that road, this just isn't the place for it. Below is what I've already said about communication. As you can see, your assumption was wrong. If you care to give it another shot, I would very much welcome it.

Tomas
Click to expand...
If you would lose the attitude and apologize you might get help. However you don't get to be snarky and still expect us to be gracious and sweet. For now the only advice you get is to hire an attorney.
 
T

Tomas12

Junior Member
I genuinely appreciate everyone who has helped. All those who are insane, good luck with that.

Tomas
 
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