VIC Friend owes money to multiple people

[MyNameisDani]

Hi,
I have a friend who is living in Sweden at the moment and is due back to Australia hopefully soon. I loaned her just over $9000 which was sent to her by western union and bank transfer so I have the proof. As well as FB messages confirming the loan. She has also done this to 5 other people that are willing to come forward. She was outed on FB but has since blocked her profile. The other people I believe are in QLD and NSW. What can we do?

 

[Rob Legat - SBPL]

There's not a lot you can do to enforce the loan while your friend is overseas.

Consider what the terms of repayment were that you agreed on. Send her a letter of demand if she has defaulted on those terms. The letter should be specific, stating:

- What happened (you loaned $X on Y date);
- That your friend has not repaid the loan as agreed, (eg you haven't paid it back by the due date of X; or you failed to make monthly repayments of $Y commencing on Z);
- What your friend needs to do to fix the default - which is usually to pay the amount outstanding to date;
- That you give her a reasonable time to fix the default, say 30 days; and
- What will happen if she doesn't do so, such as taking her to court. Don't state you're going to do something unless you actually intend to do it.

If she doesn't pay up, you can continue to chase her for the money or take her to court. Generally, you have 6 years from the later of the date of (a) the date you gave her the loan, (b) her last payment, or (c) the last time she acknowledged that she owed you the money.