Loans between friends? Ever statute barred?

antrobus

Realworld wrote: »

...
Said friend is refusing to pay or acknowledge the debt, but as nearly 7 years have passed would this debt be statute barred, I'm hoping not obviously as I would like my money back! I live in Scotland also, so not sure if that changes things...

In Scotland debts become statute barred after five years, not six years, and what's more, if I remember it correctly, the Scottish limitation act cancels the liability.

Yup, s6 Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973 states that at the expiration of the period of five years "the obligation shall be extinguished". So this loan doesn't exist any more.

Realworld

I initially asked for the money back after a year. She didn't have it and now won't pay at all.
This is a nightmare
I can't afford to lose this money. Solicitor will be my next port of call I think.
Thanks for all the help / replies

DCFC79

Realworld wrote: »

I initially asked for the money back after a year. She didn't have it and now won't pay at all.
This is a nightmare
I can't afford to lose this money. Solicitor will be my next port of call I think.
Thanks for all the help / replies

Do you have any proof you gave them the money ?

collywollys

Sorry to hear of your plight.

Family, friends & loans don't mix very well, i know that doesn't help yuou now. Hopefully karma will come back and bit them in the a r s e sometime in the future !!

I was livid when I only got half of £140 back of a now ex friend of my partner so I can imagine how angry it must be for you !!!

Good luck !!

Realworld

DCFC79 wrote: »

Do you have any proof you gave them the money ?

Yes I paid by bank transfer. But she's claiming it was part gift and part payment or a car I bought on her cc years before, which she was paid back for. Of course paid her back monthly in cash, so have no proof.
This isn't looking good

DCFC79

Realworld wrote: »

Yes I paid by bank transfer. But she's claiming it was part gift and part payment or a car I bought on her cc years before, which she was paid back for. Of course paid her back monthly in cash, so have no proof.
This isn't looking good

Ok but do you have any proof it was a loan and not a gift ? as it could hinge on that.

Realworld

DCFC79 wrote: »

Ok but do you have any proof it was a loan and not a gift ? as it could hinge on that.

Nothing written down no, she asked for a loan until she sold her house, I gave her that loan and she never paid a penny.

DCFC79

Realworld wrote: »

Nothing written down no, she asked for a loan until she sold her house, I gave her that loan and she never paid a penny.

I cant see you getting anywhere as you have no proof that you lent the money except " bank transfer on a statement" and nothing to say it was a loan and not a gift. Im not an expert mind but my opinion is you wouldnt get far.

You could maybe try sending a mock up letter to them saying you owe Realworld x amount of money by a certain date but that could be a waste.

eddddy

A lot of the replies on this thread talk about the absence of "proof".

In reality, if you decided to take this to court, it would be decided on "the balance of probabilities". So you would give your version of the story, and the family member would give theirs (i.e. you would say it was a loan, and the family member would say it was a gift). The court would then decide which version of the story sounds most credible - taking into account any supporting evidence such as bank statements.

Some years back, I knew somebody in a similar position to you - they lent an acquaintance a few thousand, and the acquaintance claimed it was a gift. It ended up in court and the lender won - mainly on the basis that the judge agreed it was unlikely that lender would just give away a few thousand pounds to an acquaintance. (It was a bit more complicated than that, but that's the gist.)

tell_it_how_it_is

With respect, it seems you've been somewhat foolish throughout this episode, but what I'd be trying now is telling her, either face-to-face or via letter, that she needs to come to an agreement with you to organise repayment, otherwise you'll be putting it in the hands of a solicitor.

You never know, the mere mention of that may provoke a positive response. If not however, that is indeed where you need to go with all the evidence you can muster - though there's far from any guarantee you'll get a positive response.