Earlier this year, I texted one of my clients telling him that his debtor had finally agreed to our settlement proposal. RM 20,000 payable in 5 monthly installments of RM 4,000 each.
My Client replied "Good job Rudi! Thanks for all the hard work."
I told him "Brother, don't congratulate me yet. This is only half the battle won, the real work is actually in getting the RM 4k per month."
He replied with a "hahaha" but judging from his debtor's earlier tardiness I knew what was coming.
The deadline for the first installment came. As per SOP, I sent the debtor a reminder on the morning itself "Good morning sir, please send us the banking slip for today's payment."
My Client checked in with me at 7pm the same day "Has he transferred the payment?"
"Nope. He is not picking up calls either."
One week later, our patience had run out.
I told my Client that we would need to consider filing a suit against the debtor. We had a Settlement Agreement in place, so the probability of it being contested was low.
I gave the debtor a final warning via Whatsapp: "Mr. XXX, our Client has instructed us to terminate the settlement and commence suit against you for recovery of the total outstanding balance in addition to late interest and costs. Please advise if you will be appointing your own lawyers. Thank you."
5 minutes later I heard a *ding* on my phone - the bugger finally sent us the banking slip for the RM 4,000.
The majority of debtors are of a certain archetype - if you do not chase these people, they drift. Maybe it's how they test you. They wait to see if you will enforce. Most debtors respond only when pressure is applied.
Debt recovery seems simple in theory, but the reality is different. It is a daily grind that requires discipline and persistence. You have to show up every month to chase, document, push, and keep the pressure constant until the last ringgit clears.
That is the part nobody sees.
Rudi Cheu (rudi@rulecolaw.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
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