QLD Should Creditor Supply the Invoice for Debt?

[patrik6]

This may be old, but I have not found anything quite like this.

A big company alleges I have unpaid debt and sends an invoice copy. I provided payment details twice. They then claim they allocated my payment to another invoice (6 months earlier), so the invoice is still owing. I say no - the debts is $223.

They then give me a date to pay by and then, as it is only $100, I say no and I request a list of all invoices and payments and how the payments were allocated. They cannot provide it but still insist the invoice is owing. My final stance is, well let's go to court/arbitration.

So my question is, if a debt is owing, does the creditor have to supply the invoice that is not paid or, as in my case, because they have an amount, they pluck an invoice out of the air?

This smacks of coercion. I'm not paying anyway as I have paid it.

Any help would be most welcome

 

[Rod]

Best to send them your statement covering the relevant period showing all their invoices and your payments and them tell them to go away. Assuming you are 100% confident you are right, in your letter to them point out they will hereafter be responsible for all your direct costs at x rate (eg $100/hr) and any legal costs you incur in defending yourself against their baseless claim.

 

[patrik6]

Thanks Rod.

I was sure that is the right answer. What concerns me is despite the fact I have supplied the payment info, they maintain they have the right to allocate any payment to any prior outstanding invoice, so in reality, if you pay by invoice and not a statement, you can get sued. And credit history marked as a non-payer, there are several possibilities as to why an amount may be owing but I'm just staggered by the arrogance - "We are right, you are wrong."

So my question, is if they cannot provide a specific invoice that is owing but just an amount of money after deem poor reconciliation practices what would be the outcome of legal proceedings like your honour he owes 220 but we r unsure of which invoice it is he claims to have paid it of course im the one making the payment

 

[Rod]

They would need to prove their debt at court before you have to prove you have paid. If they can't prove the debt (ie outstanding invoice), you have no case to answer.