ex GF owes me money

[AnotherSucker12]

What is the name of your state (Illinois)

So I dated this girl for approximately 2 years and loaned her money a few times and was wondering if I would win the case if I took her to small claims court…heres my story.
So the first time she owed me money was because I loaned her $1600 to bail her brother out of jail around October 2010. When it happend she promised to pay me back and obviously at the time I believed her. Around 6 months later she paid me back $1100 of it which left her balance at $500. She basically told me she would pay me back when she had the money (which I obviously believed at the time because she had already given me $1100 of it back). In March of 2011 her and her friend were trying to get this apartment together, because of their bad credit the landlord said they would have to put down a $6,000 security deposit on the place. They only had a combined $4,000 between the 2 of them so I loaned them an additional $2k so they could get the place, she promised to pay me back in increments every month but never had the money to start (I got a copy of the check I wrote her from my bank) so basically at this time she owes me a total of $2500. Around June/July time frame we decide to go on vacation to Cancun in August. I told her that I’ll pay for the flights (which was $800), and then we could split the hotel cost since she wanted to stay somewhere super nice. Well the hotel price was $1200 for 4 nights so we agreed to split it $600 each. She forgot her money during the trip so she said she’ll give it to me when we get back. During the trip I paid for everything (which I expect none of the drinking or gift money back). When we came back she asked me how much she owed me for everything and I said only the $600 for the hotel and that I would take care of everything else, basically bringing her balance up to $3100. Well a couple weeks after that (Beginning of september 2011) she started seeing some other guy and broke up with me. 2 weeks after that I sent her a message on facebook (cause her phone had been broken) saying look all I want back is the money I loaned you. She responded and said “look I plan on giving you back the money because it was a loan but you know I don’t have that kind of money“. She said she would give me $600 in a couple weeks. Couple weeks go by and I send her a message, no response. Then I send her another message and she asks for a couple more days but then doesn’t respond when I contact her. Finally I send her a message which said „“look this situation is getting too hillbilly for me, just borrow the money from one of your friends so we can cut the cord already“. I was basically super irritated that she kept asking for more time and then ignoring me when I sent her a message. After that we basically got into a big shouting match (not about the money at all) about relationship stuff and why we broke up blah blah blah. At the end she was like just give me 4 weeks so I can figure this out. 8 weeks go by (it’s January of 2012 now) and I finally send her a message on facebook (all of our conversations were through facebook) asking if she figured out the money situation. She didn’t respond so I sent her a text, she responded to the text and said if I could wait until they resign the lease because she gets $2k back from the security deposit then (which is 3/1 I believe). I said fine but I want $1100 before that because she owe’s me $3100. She agreed that she would give me $600 the following week. Well same thing again, I contact her and she doesnt respond, and then asks for a couple more days. But now the issue is that I contacted her via text 3 or 4 times in a row and she hasn’t responded. At this point I just want my money back, if I took her to small claims court would I win based on the facts I presented? I have all the facebook conversations and text messages saved (none of this was via phone). Also what happens if she doesn’t show to court? I think I read online that I win by default but what if she doesn’t pay when she gets the notice for $3100?

Any insight is much appreciated. Lesson learned.

 

[Banned_Princess]

What is the name of your state (Illinois)

So I dated this girl for approximately 2 years and loaned her money a few times and was wondering if I would win the case if I took her to small claims court…heres my story.

ok... http://illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/consumers/smlclaims.html

So the first time she owed me money was because I loaned her $1600 to bail her brother out of jail around October 2010. When it happend she promised to pay me back and obviously at the time I believed her. Around 6 months later she paid me back $1100 of it which left her balance at $500

.

why wasn't the bail returned to her? did her brother skip out on the bail? if you are using your money to bail someone out, you should post it yourself so the check will come back to you wen the case concludes.

She basically told me she would pay me back when she had the money (which I obviously believed at the time because she had already given me $1100 of it back).

the sticky thing about that is, its not a definitive date, and for all you know she will never have the money.

In March of 2011 her and her friend were trying to get this apartment together, because of their bad credit the landlord said they would have to put down a $6,000 security deposit on the place. They only had a combined $4,000 between the 2 of them so I loaned them an additional $2k so they could get the place, she promised to pay me back in increments every month but never had the money to start (I got a copy of the check I wrote her from my bank) so basically at this time she owes me a total of $2500.

how much per week was she supposed to pay you. ?

Around June/July time frame we decide to go on vacation to Cancun in August. I told her that I’ll pay for the flights (which was $800), and then we could split the hotel cost since she wanted to stay somewhere super nice. Well the hotel price was $1200 for 4 nights so we agreed to split it $600 each. She forgot her money during the trip so she said she’ll give it to me when we get back

.


she "forgot" her money? what a sucker.

During the trip I paid for everything (which I expect none of the drinking or gift money back). When we came back she asked me how much she owed me for everything and I said only the $600 for the hotel and that I would take care of everything else, basically bringing her balance up to $3100. Well a couple weeks after that (Beginning of september 2011) she started seeing some other guy and broke up with me.

so owing you money didnt become a problem until she broke up with you.

2 weeks after that I sent her a message on facebook (cause her phone had been broken) saying look all I want back is the money I loaned you. She responded and said “look I plan on giving you back the money because it was a loan but you know I don’t have that kind of money“.

good, follow the link http://illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/consumers/smlclaims.html

She said she would give me $600 in a couple weeks. Couple weeks go by and I send her a message, no response. Then I send her another message and she asks for a couple more days but then doesn’t respond when I contact her. Finally I send her a message which said „“look this situation is getting too hillbilly for me, just borrow the money from one of your friends so we can cut the cord already“. I was basically super irritated that she kept asking for more time and then ignoring me when I sent her a message. After that we basically got into a big shouting match (not about the money at all) about relationship stuff and why we broke up blah blah blah. At the end she was like just give me 4 weeks so I can figure this out. 8 weeks go by (it’s January of 2012 now) and I finally send her a message on facebook (all of our conversations were through facebook) asking if she figured out the money situation. She didn’t respond so I sent her a text, she responded to the text and said if I could wait until they resign the lease because she gets $2k back from the security deposit then (which is 3/1 I believe). I said fine but I want $1100 before that because she owe’s me $3100. She agreed that she would give me $600 the following week. Well same thing again, I contact her and she doesnt respond, and then asks for a couple more days. But now the issue is that I contacted her via text 3 or 4 times in a row and she hasn’t responded. At this point I just want my money back, if I took her to small claims court would I win based on the facts I presented?

you may win, but that doesn't guarantee you will get paid back once you get a judgment. plus you should wait until 3/1 to see if she will return 2k. (which she wont, but at least you gave her every opportunity. )

I have all the facebook conversations and text messages saved (none of this was via phone). Also what happens if she doesn’t show to court? I think I read online that I win by default but what if she doesn’t pay when she gets the notice for $3100?

she probably wont show up or pay on the judgment, then you have to hire a professional to do things like put the judgment on her credit report, lien on property she owns, garnish anything...

I doubt she will pay you on the judgment, and the courts cant MAKE her pay it, just award you a paper making it official she owes you. how much is that paper worth to you.

 

[sandyclaus]

Lesson #1 - NEVER loan your girlfriend/boyfriend/significant other money that you can't afford to never have paid back. Unless you have some kind of agreement in writing, those kinds of loans RARELY, if ever, get paid back.

You can sue in Small Claims, but you can only win what you can prove. If it ain't in writing, it never happened. Verbal agreements are enforceable in most jurisdictions, but extremely difficult to prove what the terms are. Plus, a lot of gifts to girlfriend/boyfriend/significant others magically turn into loans or vice versa, and judges really detest having to hash out all the personal stuff in court.

If you do decide to sue, and she doesn't show up for court, you still have to present your case. If your claim is found to be valid, then the judge can enter a default judgment in your favor. However, your G/F still would be able to appeal if it didn't go her way, or try to vacate the default judgment if entered against her.

Even if you do sue and win, that just gets you the judgment. It's still up to you to collect the money. You should be aware that about 55% of judgments never get paid because they can be notoriously difficult to collect.