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Country-specific forums » Translation in Canada »
Collecting Debt in Canada
Thread poster: Talyb Samedov
Talyb Samedov
Talyb Samedov  Identity Verified
Canada
Local time: 21:44
English to Russian
+ ...
Nov 21, 2009

I have a client that owes me about $1500. I contacted them in a formal letter and later personally, the client said that they had financial difficulties and promised to pay later. Almost a year has passed since the due date.

As far as I know there are 3 options:

1) Collecting agancy
2) Court of Small Claims
3) Lawyer

I've tried the Lawyer option few years ago in a similar situation for a smaller amount. The client finally paid but I ended up pay... See more
I have a client that owes me about $1500. I contacted them in a formal letter and later personally, the client said that they had financial difficulties and promised to pay later. Almost a year has passed since the due date.

As far as I know there are 3 options:

1) Collecting agancy
2) Court of Small Claims
3) Lawyer

I've tried the Lawyer option few years ago in a similar situation for a smaller amount. The client finally paid but I ended up paying the lawyer more than what was owed to me.

Are there any other ways? What would you recommend in this situatation?
If anybody could share their experiences with collecting debts, I'd really appreciate it.

Thank you! ▲ Collapse
 
Suzanne Deliscar
Suzanne Deliscar  Identity Verified
Canada
Local time: 23:44
Member (2009)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Try Small Claims Court Nov 21, 2009

Dear Talyb,

You can represent yourself in Small Claims Court, as you are not required to have legal representation to bring a claim in Small Claims Court. See this link for the court forms: http://www.attorneygeneral.jus.gov.on.ca/english/courts/scc/

If you need some assistance in completing forms, you can go to any court office in Ontario to make inq... See more
Dear Talyb,

You can represent yourself in Small Claims Court, as you are not required to have legal representation to bring a claim in Small Claims Court. See this link for the court forms: http://www.attorneygeneral.jus.gov.on.ca/english/courts/scc/

If you need some assistance in completing forms, you can go to any court office in Ontario to make inquiries. There are also helpful guides at the link above.

If you have already tried sending demand letters yourself, and you do not want to use the services of the lawyer to send out a demand letter on your behalf or take carriage of the Small Claims matter, I would recommend going to Small Claims Court on your own.

Suzanne ▲ Collapse
 
Arianne Farah
Arianne Farah  Identity Verified
Canada
Local time: 23:44
Member (2008)
English to French
Good experience with collections Nov 21, 2009

I'v had to use a Collection's agency once in Canada and it went smoothly. The fee was 15% of the collected amount. However, most agencies' fees are substantially higher if the debt is over a year old so you might want to consider that now before you hit the one year milestone. Also, no collection means that you do not pay so you're not out of pocket if they don't collect

[Edited at 2009-11-21 03:54 GMT]
 
Yasutomo Kanazawa
Yasutomo Kanazawa  Identity Verified
Japan
Local time: 12:44
Member (2005)
English to Japanese
+ ...
Depends on the collection agency Nov 21, 2009

Arianne Farah wrote:

I'v had to use a Collection's agency once in Canada and it went smoothly. The fee was 15% of the collected amount. However, most agencies' fees are substantially higher if the debt is over a year old so you might want to consider that now before you hit the one year milestone. Also, no collection means that you do not pay so you're not out of pocket if they don't collect

[Edited at 2009-11-21 03:54 GMT]


Not all collection agencies are like the one you mentioned above. I know some debt collection agencies charge you a payment of certain amount whether you (and the collection agency) succeed in collecting the debt or not. So, if you are planning to use a collection agency, you should check out that point out before asking them for collection.
 


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Collecting Debt in Canada


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