Small Claims Help

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Good evening,

My wife has a small business and has a customer who hasn't paid his invoices and now owes around £500. He's admitted via numerous messages that he hasn't paid but will and then never does, money is owning from March this year.

He's always paid via bank transfer, she's got the messages as evidence. She's today written a final letter/invoice with 7 days to pay. 

Would she have a chance via the small claims court to get her money? Is it an easy process?

Thanks you.

DullGreyGuy

Can't say if she has a chance based on what you've said... do you have a contract? have you followed the terms of the contract? Do you have evidence that the works done/goods sent?

Making a claim in the small track is simple, you can file the claim online in most cases under £10,000 using "money claim online"(MCOL) and track its progress via the website.

The most common mistake people make... not accurately naming the two parties in the litigation. If there is an error (you issue against the customer personally when the contract was with their company) or its just too vague (eg issue against "Tescos" so could be Tesco PLC, Tesco Retail Ltd, Tesco Services Ltd. Tesco Mobile Ltd or one of the other 6,919 companies in the Tesco group). In both cases it's easy to get the case thrown out. 

Khaderbhai

Get a small claim submitted if they don’t stump up. Yes its fairly straightforward to do, but as above, make sure the details are accurate.

Mistral001

No offence, but it is a bit late to think about whether litigation will be sucessful now that you have issued a final demand with seven days to pay.  Anyway, that is water under the bridge and you are where you are.  I have taken three clients to to the small claims court for late payment (late over six months to a year late if i remember correctly). None paid when they got the summons from the court, all were found against by the court, two paid after they got the court's verdict and one never paid.  The sum they owed was less than £100 so it was not worth my while to send in the bailiffs.  Best wishes with your court case.  It will be a learning experience.