andrealh1975 Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 Have any of you ever taken someone to small claims court? If so, how'd it work out?I have a situation where a vendor paid for space in a show and her check bounced. It caused my account to be overdrawn and I've been charged additional fees by the bank. I contacted the vendor via voicemail, e-mail and certified letter, she refuses to pay as she doesn't think she has to pay anything. I do have a statement on the registration form that vendors are required to pay fees stemming from any returned checks. It also states that by sending in their form and payment they agree to all rules/regulations on the form. I'm filing the paperwork tomorrow and paying a little extra to have the sherrif deliver the summons to the lady at home. Let's hope it works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
royster13 Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I hope there is "value" in what you are trying to do.....Rather than doing it for "principal".....How much money are you talking about?....Is the time you are going spend on it worth it or would it be better spent growing your business (testing, marketing, etc.)?....And if you "win" will you actually see your money?...Does your vendor have assets you can attach?.....If you are doing this for "business" reasons please proceed.....If you are doing this for "emotional" reasons it is time to move on........RCS... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CountryGal Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I think you are doing the right thing, you can also ask that if you prevail that she has to pay your court filing fees and service fees. Make sure you bring ALL of your documentation to court with you. EVERYTHING!!! Copies of bank statements, statement from bank if you need to, copies of contract, copies of all attempts to contact her, receipt for the certified mail....everything. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sudsnwicks Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 Good luck! I hope it works. Even if you didn't end up overdrawn, the NSF fee can be quite a lot in itself and you shouldn't have to eat that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrealh1975 Posted October 19, 2006 Author Share Posted October 19, 2006 I hope there is "value" in what you are trying to do.....Rather than doing it for "principal".....How much money are you talking about?....Is the time you are going spend on it worth it or would it be better spent growing your business (testing, marketing, etc.)?....And if you "win" will you actually see your money?...Does your vendor have assets you can attach?.....If you are doing this for "business" reasons please proceed.....If you are doing this for "emotional" reasons it is time to move on........RCS...Believe me, I wouldn't do it if she only owed $5. We're talking more than $250, it has nothing to do with being emotional. This is about business and principal. Especially when something was submitted in writing and she agreed to all of the conditions. You don't screw someone, especially when you, "really want to be in the show" as she stated and then expect there not to be consequences. Make sure you bring ALL of your documentation to court with you. EVERYTHING!!! Copies of bank statements, statement from bank if you need to, copies of contract, copies of all attempts to contact her, receipt for the certified mail....everything.I have several copies of everything, one of which is being submitted with the claim form. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Funky Monkey Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I'm having a similar problem in my design business. I'm about to file papers for a $300 bill that a client is refusing to pay. The only problem is that even if you get a judgement, the court CANNOT make her pay. You'll have to do that in a seperate action by attaching a lien against something she owns. (Keep in mind this is Kentucky law and your laws could be different.)Good luck!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
royster13 Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 "Business" means there will be a return on your investment (in this case time)...."Principal" is an emotional response....For that amount I would just let it go....You may recover the dollars but you can get back the time you expended to get it....Put that time to a better use and it will have a long term return......Use that time to build your business...RCS... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CountryGal Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I think if you file the judgment with the county, it can be garnished from any state tax refund if your state has state income tax. You might want to check with the clerk of court about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monica Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 On a smaller note($50 bounced check from a show) the lady refused contact..didnt return messages, letters ect. I did a little research and learned that many banks now do not stamp it do not present again. So I redeposited the check(knowing that if it bounced the bank would only charge me $5). I waited until the first of the month..it cleared this time...most likely to the surprise of the lady. Alot less hassle..and I was out product..it seems that you are only out the NSF fee..you can deny her the space(I am assuming the show hasnt occured yet??) Judgements are only as good as the people you have them against..and if they are unwilling to make it right before it gets this far..my bet is they wont and it will be a waste of time and money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sockmonkey Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 Does this person have a business license/tax ID? What explanation has she offered for why she will not make the check good? Is she disputing the whole thing, or the extra NSF fees?In my state, people who bounce checks can be liable for paying 18% interest on the amount of the check from the date it was written until the date it is made good, can be forced to pay three times the amount of the check plus attorney fees and additional fees incurred as a result of the insufficiency.I see you are in Maryland and I found this link:http://198.187.128.12/maryland/lpext.dll/Infobase/9c1b/a6fa/a79f/a7ce?f=templates&fn=document-frame.htm&2.0#JD_cl4-207Look under "d". You might do some further research or call the Prosecutor's office, or even your local bank to find out exactly what penalties can be levied against someone being sued for NSF checks. A bank's Return Dept., or Bad Debt Dept. should be able to help you.You might let her know by a certified letter that if she does not resolve this matter immediately you intend to forward the matter to the County Prosecutor's office for action. Make sure the letter to her looks official, and lists her full name, address, and business license or tax ID. Include a copy of her contract, a photocopy of the front and back of her check, and notification from your bank regarding NSF fees you have been charged as a result. Then give her the grand total that is owed. State the times you have contacted her about the matter in the past. Tell her she has 10 days to pay the amount in full (by cash only). Then list any possible penalties or fines (if you know the state's code for that it would be great to list it) that the bank or Prosecutor's office told you about. Tell her failure to pay for the check within 10 days will result in the matter being forwarded to the Prosecutors office.You should follow through with your actions. The Prosecutor might not take the case if they don't think "criminal intent" was her motive. They will then tell you to go to small claims court if they won't handle it. If you have to go to small claims court you will already be prepared for it.Good luck to you. I've got a similar issue I'm trying to deal with myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debscent Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I would do more research on your state laws before moving forward. You mention $250, is that the amount of the check, or the total with fees incurred? Because your claim should be for the bad check, and "damages" are the incurred fees, filing fees, etc. I doubt your prosecutor's office will touch something so small, they usually maximize their time & effort on felony level charges and bad check rings. Good luck in court, it's a big hassle and alot of frustration. (I worked for the court system for 13 years). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sockmonkey Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 She should forward the info to the prosecutor's office at the appropriate time because for all we know, this lady might have $50,000 worth of bad checks floating around there. If they see a pattern they'll jump on it, but if not they'll recommend small claims court. She could be the one who makes a difference in shutting this lady down. You never know. It doesn't hurt to try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sudsnwicks Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I just remembered that the restaurants here will report to the police if they receive a bad check. I think some of them did get their money back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lorrie Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I just remembered that the restaurants here will report to the police if they receive a bad check. I think some of them did get their money back.This is exactly what we do at work. We turn it over to the State Police. And in our state you can get up to three times the amount of the check.Good Luck and I hope you get your money.But I do want to know, was this lady at the show or is the show coming up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrealh1975 Posted October 19, 2006 Author Share Posted October 19, 2006 ..it seems that you are only out the NSF fee..you can deny her the space(I am assuming the show hasnt occured yet??) When her check bounced I was charged $5 and the amount of the check was taken from my account. That $5 charge caused my account to be overdrawn and my bank usually charges a fee per day for your account being overdrawn. So I got charged fees for that too. The lady has been denied space, the show is next month.When I got the bounced check and fee charge notification from the bank, I called the lady and asked her to call me back. After a week of no call back I e-mailed her, no response. I then sent her a certified letter explaining what happened, what the charges were, a copy of what the bank sent me and a copy of the registration form hilighting the area that talks about vendors paying fees because of returned checks. She then called on Tuesday ranting and raving for 5 minutes on my voice mail saying she wasn't going to pay me anything. That she's talked to a lawyer and the lawyer said don't pay it and yadda, yadda, yadda.I've called and spoken to different people in the clerks office and they told me what procedure needs to be followed. So, I'm doing what I'm supposed to do to work on getting my money back. The total I've incurred from all of this is $290 which includes the amount of her check. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sockmonkey Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 That lady is a liar and a thief. No lawyer would have told her not to pay it.It would be sweet to have a giant photocopy of her check made and placed where her booth would have been for all of the world to see.Do you keep calling the bank to see if funds are in her account? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrealh1975 Posted October 19, 2006 Author Share Posted October 19, 2006 Do you keep calling the bank to see if funds are in her account?I've called about 4 times and it's still not there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bev Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 Next time you receive a personal check, you'd be better off waiting until the check clears the bank before you write out any checks against it. I had this happen to me ONCE (and the check was from my sister-in-law) and it will never happen to me again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrealh1975 Posted October 19, 2006 Author Share Posted October 19, 2006 Next time you receive a personal check, you'd be better off waiting until the check clears the bank before you write out any checks against it. I had this happen to me ONCE (and the check was from my sister-in-law) and it will never happen to me again!The bank first took back the amount of the check, then they took out the $5 fee. The fee was what caused the account to be overdrawn and the bank started adding fees each day the account was overdrawn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
awickedscent Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I have delt with small claims and know how this works. She is responsible for all fees caused by her bounced check. You can even get up to three time the check amount in some states. If you file the small claims paperwork she will also be responsible for the filing fees as well. Dont let her get away with this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sudsnwicks Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 Next time you receive a personal check, you'd be better off waiting until the check clears the bank before you write out any checks against it. How long do you wait before you know for sure? Whenever I deposit a personal check the money shows up in my account right away, but I don't know if it's really cleared at that point as it seems too fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mizbizzyb Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 How long do you wait before you know for sure? Whenever I deposit a personal check the money shows up in my account right away, but I don't know if it's really cleared at that point as it seems too fast.At least 7-10 days is my standard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrealh1975 Posted October 19, 2006 Author Share Posted October 19, 2006 At least 7-10 days is my standardSame here, most times I wait 10 days to be on the safe side...In some cases if the check is local you'll know if it bounced really fast. This particular check was deposited on a Monday morning, "available" on Tuesday at 12:01am and "taken back" because the check had bounced on Wednesday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwinMom Posted October 19, 2006 Share Posted October 19, 2006 I agree with you making a point about it. What he/she is doing is wrong and should be made accountable. You shouldnt have to be out the money at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeavenScentU Posted October 20, 2006 Share Posted October 20, 2006 That's too bad, I hope it works out for you. Why don't you try and go on Judge Mathis or Judge Joe Brown that would be interesting too see... Do you have service fees for a bad check for the show? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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