Hi All,
In my business we get these clowns occassionally. It's amazing that somebody who is NOT Limited tries this on, but they stop or bounce the cheque (we are a trade mail order business and don't normally wait for them to clear) and then hope we won't pursue this.
I would just love to bankrupt one of these crooks.
Is there a simple way to do it?
Thank you for any suggestions.
You could complete the relevant Court paperwork, send a copy to the debtor, stating you will file in (say) 14 days unless cleared funds received?
I understand that knowingly issuing a cheque without funds to cover it or stopping a cheque in the circumstances you describe is fraud. Might be worth checking on. If so you could threaten to report it to the police.
Expect them to say "its a civil matter, sir"
Sue on the cheque, not the goods. They have no defence
Brian
The other point is that to prosecute, the prosecutor has to prove 'beyond reasonable doubt' that the guy intended to defraud. The 'civil' path tends to be easier as a lesser standard of proof will do.
To give an example (although I do not know actual local practice) it is easier for a power company to clobber a meter fiddler by 'civil' means than via a criminal prosecution. All the company has to do is estimate (rather generously) the cost of the power stolen, the cost of investigation and estimating, the cost of a site visit, cost of a new meter etc and threaten to turn off the juice within 48 hours if this is not all paid. The onus is on the customer to screaming off to the regulator or the court - in reality it is cheaper and easier to pay up.
In your case the least overall hassle way is to give it to a debt collector / debt information agency. OK you may not get the full amount back, but you have better things to do with your time. Tell the clown that is what you plan to do and if he does not pay up, just do it.
In future when doing business, make it clear in all cases at the onset that the customer is liable for interest and the cost of debt collecting action on overdue accounts. IMO it is not sufficient to state this on an invoice, it needs to be done at an earlier stage such as a notice in the shop etc or included in any written estimate or quotation. BTW say that the goods remain in your ownership until full payment is made.
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