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Housemate refusing to pay bills

Just wondering if Anyone has been in a similar situation.
Basically there are 4 of us, and we've all just moved out for the summer. I pay the Internet bill as direct debit from my account, the 3 of them pay me monthly. However one girl got behind with the payments and it has all added up. Any time I asked her/message her Shed avoid it or make excuses etc. now she's moved home for summer and we won't be living together anymore she is totally ignoring messages for her to pay the bill and she owes me money from throughout the year. Uni have fobbed me off and the landlord said its not their problem. I don't need this stress at the start of summer!!

Any suggestions/similar experience?

Cheers!

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I'm not surprised that the uni and landlord have refused to get involved.

Unfortunately, if her name isn't on the bill, there's very little that you can do to make her pay from a legal perspective, though it's sad that she's willing to spoil a friendship for the sake of not a lot of money.
Tell her that you are going to get the law involved, that might scare her into paying you.
Threaten her with the law/taking it to court, threaten her with contacting her parents and maybe actually do contact them.
She's not liable to pay. Sorry.
You can threaten to take her to court, but she's not actually liable. Legally, there's not much you can do. This is probably why the Landlord and University have avoided getting involved. If it's just an informal agreement, no-one can make her pay up. Can you even prove what she has/hasn't paid you?

I agree, writing to her parents as a last resort might help you get some of the cash back.

Alternatively, if your deposit is shared and is going to be returned to someone other than her, you could take it out of that- but you would need the agreement of whoever it was returned to.

Was she not responsible for any bills? If so, you could have withheld money from her until she paid up.
Could you mention it to the other people you live with and ask them if they can talk to her as well? It's really not fair that the full burden of her not paying her share of the bills should fall solely on you.
If you have it written then you can get every penny otherwise learn from this experience and have a proper written and signed agreement.
Reply 8
Avatar for David B
David B
20
I can't believe nobody has asked how much she owes you. By the way how much does she owe you?
Reply 9
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JG1233
10
Although you couldn't really take her to court because her name isn't on the bill, you could threaten her with it and hope that scares her into paying up.

Other than that i can only suggest to just ask her if its worth your friendship, i presume if you lived together you were at least fairly close and would she want to spoil that for an internet bill?
Original post by TheBigJosh
She's not liable to pay. Sorry.


http://www.tenancyagreementservice.co.uk/verbal-tenancy-agreements.htm
A verbal contract is still a contract, and she's definitely liable. Whether that can be proven/enforced is another issue.
Original post by joker12345
http://www.tenancyagreementservice.co.uk/verbal-tenancy-agreements.htm
A verbal contract is still a contract, and she's definitely liable. Whether that can be proven/enforced is another issue.


Oh I don't don't she should pay. But the bill isn't in her name so she's not liable just from a moral standpoint.
As wonderful as you are researching links to try and engage in a pointless argument. You're wrong :smile:
Original post by TheBigJosh
Oh I don't don't she should pay. But the bill isn't in her name so she's not liable just from a moral standpoint.
As wonderful as you are researching links to try and engage in a pointless argument. You're wrong :smile:


As I said, a verbal contract is still a contract so from a moral standpoint, she is very liable. She is also liable from a legal standpoint, if the verbal contract cant be proven, so I'm right. :smile:
Original post by joker12345
As I said, a verbal contract is still a contract so from a moral standpoint, she is very liable. She is also liable from a legal standpoint, if the verbal contract cant be proven, so I'm right. :smile:



No Hahaahaha! She can just deny it :smile:
Her name must be part of the bill. I do agree she should pay. But she can just say that there was no agreement. Verbal contracts cannot proven, and morals will not count for anything when she is in a court.
And your sentences above made no sense, it's okay you're not right. Honestly. But you can't bulldoze me into passing off your 'knowledge' as gospel.

Edit. Your link is useless as it is discussing landlord-tenant relationship. Not inter-tenants. This essentially is girls that are having a disagreement.
(edited 9 years ago)
Original post by TheBigJosh
No Hahaahaha! She can just deny it :smile:
Her name must be part of the bill. I do agree she should pay. But she can just say that there was no agreement. Verbal contracts cannot proven, and morals will not count for anything when she is in a court.
And your sentences above made no sense, it's okay you're not right. Honestly. But you can't bulldoze me into passing off your 'knowledge' as gospel.

Edit. Your link is useless as it is discussing landlord-tenant relationship. Not inter-tenants. This essentially is girls that are having a disagreement.



That is what I am saying. She can deny it, but she's certainly liable, as there was a verbal agreement. So to say she's not liable is incorrect - you could say it would hard, near impossible to prove that she's actually liable.
They made perfect sense, and it's okay you're not right, Honestly. But you can't bulldoze me into passing off your 'knowledge' as gospel.
It was just to illustrate the principle, that a verbal agreement is an agreement but here http://www.contractsandagreements.co.uk/law-and-verbal-agreements.html
I do agree that a court wouldn't find evidence to enforce it, I disagree that she's not liable to pay
Original post by joker12345
That is what I am saying. She can deny it, but she's certainly liable, as there was a verbal agreement. So to say she's not liable is incorrect - you could say it would hard, near impossible to prove that she's actually liable.
They made perfect sense, and it's okay you're not right, Honestly. But you can't bulldoze me into passing off your 'knowledge' as gospel.
It was just to illustrate the principle, that a verbal agreement is an agreement but here http://www.contractsandagreements.co.uk/law-and-verbal-agreements.html
I do agree that a court wouldn't find evidence to enforce it, I disagree that she's not liable to pay


If being right means that much to you then okay :smile:
Original post by TheBigJosh
If being right means that much to you then okay :smile:


No need to get all sarcy because you're wrong, Big Josh :smile:
Original post by joker12345
No need to get all sarcy because you're wrong, Big Josh :smile:[/
I just like to take the moral high ground and give petulant children the approval they so desperately need. Yes you're right I was wrong. I hope that makes you feel better.
Please stop quoting me now.
Original post by joker12345
That is what I am saying. She can deny it, but she's certainly liable, as there was a verbal agreement. So to say she's not liable is incorrect - you could say it would hard, near impossible to prove that she's actually liable.
They made perfect sense, and it's okay you're not right, Honestly. But you can't bulldoze me into passing off your 'knowledge' as gospel.
It was just to illustrate the principle, that a verbal agreement is an agreement but here http://www.contractsandagreements.co.uk/law-and-verbal-agreements.html
I do agree that a court wouldn't find evidence to enforce it, I disagree that she's not liable to pay


How is she certainly liable? We have no way to know whether the OP is telling the truth or not.
Original post by Doctor_Einstein
How is she certainly liable? We have no way to know whether the OP is telling the truth or not.


Obviously I'm taking OP's thread at face value and advising her on the basis that what she's saying is true. If she's lying she may as well disregard the whole thread!

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