Or is she being a CF

[nomorepeppax]

So BIL GF fridge broke just before Xmas so partner lent her £500 for the fridge she wanted on the basis she pays back £40 every month. The first 2 months were a nightmare to get money from her and now my BIL and his GF have broke up. He tried calling her a few days ago with no answer so messaged her reminding her that she has to pay for this month. She ignored it for a few days so I messaged her today and she replied saying she can't afford it so we can take the fridge back. No problem, we could do with a new fridge anyway as ours was second hand when we got it. Got someone to come and help us collect it and she's ignoring all our calls and texts. Her mum then phoned me shouting abuse down the phone to me and my partner and we explained that we just want this sorted. She either pays us as agreed or she lets us come and collect it. She hangs up and has either turned her phone off or blocked our numbers. We went to ex GF house and no one is in and can't get hold of either of them. I messaged again tonight explaining that I can get someone to collect it tomorrow but if that's not convenient she'll have to bring it to us as they can't do it any other day.

I'm obviously fuming now because we helped her out when she was in need, but is now doing this. What can we do next? I don't want to keep calling/texting but I'm worried that she's going to keep ignoring us and we'll be out of pocket and won't even have the fridge! If she had replied asking for more time to pay etc then that wouldn't have been a problem, but the fact that she is ignoring us makes me think she's going to avoid us and keep it. Is this a case for a small claims court or would that cost more than it's worth?
TIA

Sorry I didn't mean a lower payment I meant a lower monthly payment

Sorry I didn't mean a lower payment I meant a lower monthly payment

Knucklehead101 Same applies. Again, why should she? The SIL hasn’t paid for months, no use dragging out non-payment for many more months.

She’s proved she’s unreliable and she doesn’t deserve and can’t be trusted with a lower monthly repayment plan.

Just do small claims

Just wanted to update you all. So she told me that I can collect it on Sunday or she will be leaving it outside. I said that I will be able to collect it on Sunday, but it will be just me and my sister as no one else can help so she will need to arrange for it to be brought down the stairs for us and seeing as she would be getting someone to do that anyway if we don't come to collect it, this shouldn't be a problem. She said that she's not doing that, and if we're collecting it Sunday we will have to take her kitchen door off to get it out and take it down the stairs ourselves. I said that won't be possible. She then blocked me after swearing at me and telling me to watch what happens if I don't take it on Sunday.

So I took the letter and posted it through her mums door as I couldn't get to her letterbox and filmed myself posting it so they cannot say they didn't get it.

He mum then texts me and sends me an abusive text ending with she will see me Sunday.

I just replied that there is no need to be nasty, we're all adults and that it is not going to help get this sorted. She ignored me after that.

So me and my sister are going to go there on Sunday and have my phone recording the whole time incase they start getting aggressive and I will inform them that I will call the police if I feel threatened. If they won't bring it down the stairs for us I will inform them that I will continue to pursue this through the small claims court

I wouldn't do that. I'd send her a message saying, "I have tried to sort this out but I am not prepared to take off your door and remove your fridge. You owe me £420 and I'm going to the small claims court on Monday morning unless you pay me beforehand.2

You're just getting yourself in a lot of bother going to her house. She'll be yelling at you and you'll end up with a secondhand fridge for a lot of money. Why do that?

She owes you the money. That's all there is to it. The small claims court exists for this very reason.

Hollowtalk I was just trying to give her ex SIL the benefit of the doubt really - I'm I a difficult financial position myself and I was just trying to see things from her point of view. If the payment is lower monthly then she could keep her fridge and OP still gets her money (albeit a bit more slowly). I think it's a moot point now anyway

Sorry Hollowtalk I didn't mean that for you. Obviously time for me to go to bed

I agree with you and will message her mum tomorrow (as I can no longer contact her due to being blocked) and inform them that I cannot come on Sunday. I will also have my 18 month dd with me as no one to leave her with so won't be able to move the fridge anyway.

I've spent this evening gathering some evidence and I really don't think she has a leg to stand on. A few messages say that her ex partner was going to pay it for her, but that was the agreement between them, not us. There is also multiple messages how she appreciates my partner doing this for her. Also multiple messages saying that we can collect our fridge, she wants it out of her flat and the message saying she is getting her new one delivered on Sunday so needs ours gone by then.

I am sending the message to her mum tomorrow and will put that I expect to hear from Ex SIL within the time frame stated or we will have to go to small claims court.

I will make no further contact after that. I have done all I can to resolve this but there is just excuse after excuse for every solution I've provided

Wow... she’s more than a CF. She’s a batshit crazy arsehole!!!

This is why I will never lend money to anyone unless I can afford to lose it... and unless it’s a tenner, I can’t afford to lose it.

Some people are such cheeky shits, you do something nice that has left you out of pocket and then they tell you to sod off?!?! I’d be dragging her to court! The mum needs to shut up as she wasn’t exactly forthcoming with paying or helping out for this fridge for her daughter but she now wants to throw abuse at the people that did?!?! They sound like the type of people I wouldn’t even want to live next door to, let alone lend money to buy a fridge.

If if your partner lent her the money/she had the agreement with, surely he would be the one to submit the claim etc.

No good deed goes unpunished..I hope you’ve both learned from this.

small claims court - why should you end up with a second hand fridge at the cost of a new one?

Supposing she's telling the truth (!) and had the money to order a new fridge, why didn't she just keep the old one and pay you back instead? Sounds as if BIL is well out of this one.

@vhs95 she's probably ordered a cheaper one from bright house or something

I'd honestly be trying to find someone to come with you tomorrow as it doesn't sound like she's going to be rational.

Not helpful but just why????

@TooTrusting
"Do NOT take a lower sum! Why should you?"

Because the court will only make her pay what she can afford. If a person is struggling the Court allows them to pay priority debts/bills first. A person can be asked to pay as little as £2.50 a week.

We know that the ex is being unreasonable, but from the Courts pov once the OP said that they would accept the fridge back and were coming to collect it, then the ex had no responsibility to get it down the stairs etc.

The OP couldn't even move it, so it would be asked why she made that offer for that day.

But the Court will expect the person who lent the money to be the one in communication.

OP is your Partner in touch with her? Because she owes, you nothing.

Unless it's something tiny like a mini bar fridge, it is going to need a removalist guy to help you anyway, or at least someone with a 2-wheeled trolley to get it on 2. Not sure how you and your sister could even pick up the fridge. Don''t you have any men that can come with you and help you? Because you'd need a truck or someone with a ute at least, because fridges don't exact fit in a car.

It's easy to make a claim in small claims court. If she's not playing ball, print out the forms, fill them in and say she needs to allow you access to collect the fridge within x number of days or you'll lodge the claim - the sight of the form will hopefully be enough to get her to be reasonable

Here's the link to make a claim

www.gov.uk/make-court-claim-for-money

Why should she bring it down the stairs you want it you get it down the stairs you need men to collect a fridge freezer they are heavy

Hang on, she's bought another fridge? Is that right?

Just go round v early morning & surprise her. Shout "delivery". You'll never get it back otherwise. If she slams door on you, fill out small claims court forms, make a copy & put thru letterbox giving her 3days before you file the claim.

So the two offers I made to collect it, we had people that could help and would have been able to get it down the stairs. I informed her that these were the days that they could do. She only gave me the option of today and I explained that only me and my sister are around to get it so will not be able to bring it downstairs.

I've since had three threats of violence so have reported this to the police who also advised that she should bring the fridge down the stairs so that we can collect it from a public place.

There is no way I will be going into her property now that she has threatened me with violence. Looks like we will have to let the court deal with this as it's getting out of hand

In the nicest possible way, it all sounds slightly ridiculous.

A) It's your boyfriends problem not yours.

B) if your boyfriend had £500 to lend her for a fridge then I'm sure he's financially able to write it off. If my brothers girlfriend desperately needed a fridge, I might lend £100 for a second hand one ... I'd have to be loaded to hand over 500 bloody pounds for a top of the range fridge!!

If you must, just go to the SCC ... and stop with all the drama

www.gov.uk/make-court-claim-for-money

It’s like she’s angry at you for her breakup. Totally illogical. Never mind that you helped her out, of course....