Rent arrears - debt collection agencies?

clutton_2

"" If they don't pay, does that mean it's a criminal rather than civil offence?""

no

its a civil matter. an attachment of earnings means that money gets taken from his money before he gets it - but he can put in a "how much i need to live my life" document and offer you £2 a month - then the j udge will decide how much

missile

Fat_Debtor wrote: »

Thanks for that.

I didn't actually take any references out as he was a colleague and supposed mate. I know how much he earns and it was about the same as me, maybe a bit more. I seemed to manage to live on it, so am not sure how he doesn't

The worst tennats I ever had were my sister in law and her friends. Never paid the rent on time, always on the phone about problems, like "I broke the bed can we have a new one". They left the property in a right state. Repainted the walls (including light switches) in red and ceiling dark brown. I was so relieved when she passed her final exams and moved on.
I guess you might think twice about renting to "friends" in the future?

anniecave

I presume you've tried contacting this ex-tennant already, putting it in writing what he owes etc? You could also point out that if you did go via small claims court then he would have to pay costs on top of the debt he owes.

Fat_Debtor

missile wrote: »

The worst tennats I ever had were my sister in law and her friends. Never paid the rent on time, always on the phone about problems, like "I broke the bed can we have a new one". They left the property in a right state. Repainted the walls (including light switches) in red and ceiling dark brown. I was so relieved when she passed her final exams and moved on.
I guess you might think twice about renting to "friends" in the future?

Definitely. Lesson learned.

tbs624

Fat_Debtor wrote: »

Thanks for that. If I take them to court and win, are they required to pay by law? If they don't pay, does that mean it's a criminal rather than civil offence?

Civil - but what it does mean is that they will have a CCJ against their name, which will affect their ability to get tenancies, credit etc in the future. Sometimes if this is pointed out to a tenant debtor they are willing to sort out payment with you before it reaches court. Once you get a judgement you then need to get it enforced if the tenant doesn't pay up - which ,as Clutton says ,could be at 2 or 3 quid a week ( and some people take the attitude that even if they don't get all their money back the fact is that the CCJ shows on the debtor's record rather than them simply "getting away with it".)


You do not need a solicitor to go via the County Court's small claims track but you do need to get all your paperwork in order and start by writing a formal letter requesting repayment within 7/10 days.

http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/infoabout/claims/index.htm
http://www.justclaim.co.uk/index.php
Also have a look here:
http://www.ashfords.co.uk/media/pdf/j/i/Small_Claims_Pack.pdf
(Bear in mind that this from solicitors firms so you may want to ignore the " why not save yourself the hassle & use us" advert bits.)

The court staff are also generally very helpful