Lending money advice

solman30

Hi guys, im looking for some advice basically my situation is I have a joint loan with a ex-partner, the loan was for her and she has always paid it, I have never had anything to do with it....but here's the problem - recently she'e got into a few financial problem and the account is one month in arrears, this looks like its going to be a ongoing issue she cant afford the full payment. Im am obviously legally linked to this loan so my credit file is effected also.
Ive asked her if she could take me off the loan (but its a legal minefield) Ive asked her if she can get another loan to pay it off and reduce her payments (but she cant get a loan because of her credit).

Bearing this in mind I feel I have no other option than to pay it off or I will receive adverse credit.

So my questions are if i paid the loan of £6000 off should I get it in writing from her that she agrees to pay me every month for X amount of time?....how legally binding is this?

If I have a signed agreement from her and she can't pay what options do i have. Small claims court etc?

Any help would be appreciated - sorry if this is already on the forum.
Tom

poppasmurf_bewdley

You can get it in writing from your ex that she will pay you back. And it will be legally binding.

But the rub comes when she can't afford to pay you back. You can take her to court and get a judgement against her. But remember the old adage - you can't get blood from a stone. If she hasn't got the money, no amount of court action, etc, etc. can make her pay what she hasn't got.

Best advice I can give is to pay off the loan, get yourself financially dis-associated with her, and then move on with your life.

I'm speaking from experience.

solman30

Thanks thats pretty much what I thought!

Just one more thing though, if I get a agreement written does this need to be done by a solicitor or can I do It myself?

poppasmurf_bewdley

You can do it yourself, but get two people to witness both signatures if possible. All you need is the confirmation of the debt.

And don't forget, after six years the debt will become statute barred unless you get a CCJ.

Apples2

solman30 wrote: »

Thanks thats pretty much what I thought!

Just one more thing though, if I get a agreement written does this need to be done by a solicitor or can I do It myself?

Bear in mind this was a Joint Loan. You may feel as if it has little to do with you as she had the money but the lender doesn't care what you decided to splash it on.

As it is Joint, the whole debt is both hers and yours, you both owe the whole amount. The lender simply has two avenues to recover the funds.

There is no justification in getting her to sign an agreement she owes anything. The debt is yours, not hers (and vice versa for her).

If she does agree to repay, it will only be a goodwill gesture. If she can't make the repayments and is falling behind, how can she all of a sudden make those repayments to you?

Money and debt bring stress, I'm sure things are bad enough already. If you can afford it, clear the stupid thing off and move on. If she repays you anything at all...bonus.

Learn the lesson about taking out a Joint loan (or acting as a guarantor for someone else).

solman30

Yeah i know the situation inside out with the credit agreement, joint responsibility etc.
My plan is to clear it myself and have her pay me back a more affordable rate. Thats why I was asking about the legal implications of a having a written agreement that she owes me £6000 etc.

R_P_W

Thats the thing though, she doesnt owe you £6000. You jointly owe the lender the £6000. One of you will need to pay it off to avoid future credit issues.

If you can get her to sign something then by all means do, but its probably not worth the paper its written on in real terms.

Apples2

Agreed, if she were to post on here, We'd all tell her not to sign anything. She doesn't owe you anything, she owes the lender of the loan.

Her credit file is going down the pan as is yours, if it continues, you will both suffer even more damage.

Take it on the chin and suck it up, ask nicely to see if she feels morally obligated to help pay it off.

She'd be daft to sign anything, you'd be daft not to try it on.

Good luck.