Are you or your business owed money? Is your cashflow being affected by debt which is harming you or your business?

Debt recovery does not need to begin (or end) in stressful Court litigation or debt collection agencies. The cost and time of Court litigation may be avoided if you take the following 3 simple steps:

1. Contact the debtor by phone or in writing and remind them of the monies owed. Provide a further deadline for the payment of the debt and let them know that interest and fees will be payable if the deadline is not met. In most cases, a debt can be recovered by a friendly reminder about the debt which may have been forgotten.
    

2. If step 1 does not recover the debt, we recommend you engage the services of a lawyer who practices in debt recovery. A lawyer can provide you with legal advice about your particular circumstances and issue a "Letter of Demand" on the debtor which will let the debtor know that you are serious about recovering the debt. A "Letter of Demand" will give the debtor information including the due date, any fees or interest payable and the consequences of what will occur if the debt remains unpaid (usually Court litigation).
   
   More often than not step 2 will encourage a debtor to pay the debt that is owed. This is because a Letter of Demand will demonstrate the increasing costs involved if the debt (with the newly accrued fees and interest) is not repaid. If the debtor contacts you in dispute about the monies owed or a reason as to why the debt has not yet been paid, an attempt by the parties to resolve the dispute should be made prior to moving on to step 3.
    

3. If the debt is not recovered via step 2, or an agreement cannot be reached with the debtor about a dispute that may exist, the next step which should be considered is Court litigation.
   
   Whilst Court litigation can be stressful and costly, a good lawyer will take the burden off your shoulders and manage the process on your behalf; leaving you to return your focus back to other areas of your business or life.
   
   Often just commencing proceedings in Court to recover your debt can result in a settlement between the parties as the debtor may not wish to incur any further expenses including increasing legal costs or interest. 

If you or your business are having trouble recovering money that is owed to you, contact our law firm on (02) 4444 6808 or contact@ardentlawyers.com.au for an obligation free discussion about your particular circumstances to see if we can assist you in returning to you what is owed.