A man who says he made over $92,000 last year can't afford to

[Ilsa]

pay his wife's rental fee on her durable medical equipment. I rented them the equipment last year, and they never wrote me another check.

In fact, they also moved (to his parents' land) without notifying me, and they took the equipment with them. I was able to reach them, though, and they had stopped using it, but couldn't return it because he is working out of town. So I spent the gas money to go retrieve it (30 miles away). The wife wrote me for a check for a lower amount, less than $100 (I could see they didn't appear to be doing that well). They owed me about $190.

But as soon as I got home, he asked me to hold it for two weeks. I held it for over three weeks. I called and let them know I was depositing the check, and to please call me if I needed to hold it longer. No one called so I deposited it. Bad check. And they didn't get my message because his parents his parents sent them to the freaking Carribean! So I'm hosed for the check, the rest of the rent I was entitled to, my gas, and now a damn bank nsf fee. Fortunately, I didn't write any checks against that one.

He said he hopes to have some money in the bank by next month. He'll get a bill from me.

I hate it when people say they can pay, and they can't, or say they will pay, when they know they won't. Some people should just go get on WIC and Medicaid if they have income problems. My business suffers when people do this crap.

[DemocratInSoCal]

1. You'll Be Out Postage On Any Bill You Send

What makes you think he's going to pay you next month?

And how will you feel, when you have to pay another bank fee when That check bounces?

[Ilsa]

3. I would only accept cash. This is the first time this has

happened to me in 7 years. Most people around here are good for their word. Yeah, I might be out the stamp.

[Ian David]

2. Be nice if his parents paid his medical equipment bill instead of sending im to the Carribean. nt

[Ilsa]

4. I'm suggesting it the next time we speak if he doesn't pay his bill. nt

[Ian David]

5. Can you legally contact his parents directly?

On second thought, what if he was in the carribean for a funeral?

[Ilsa]

8. It was a vacation. Big company collection rules don't apply.

I'm a single proprietor of a very small business. I can take a freaking ad out in the paper about his bad debt if I want to, as long as I don't lie. His parents are on the land. The road is named after them. Yeah, I can reach them with just a little more research.

[rfranklin]

6. Go to the police station and sign a complaint...

for writing bad checks or for theft of services. They are usually crimes in any state. Skip artists know that they can ignore polite requests and even bill collectors but when they have warrants for their arrest out they may pay attention.

[Ilsa]

7. Good idea. I'll probably do that. nt

[dysfunctional press]

9. i would make one more try for the money first, and tell him what the next step is- filing charges.

once the charges are filed, you might have an even bigger fight on your hands to get anything more.

just a thought.

[Ilsa]

11. Yeah, but the threat of that or small claims court may help. Too many broken

promises about not calling when he was supposed to, etc.

[rfranklin]

13. It can be really hard to collect anything even if you win...

a judgment against this guy. The savvy deadbeats now they can avoid paying. If you file a criminal complaint it is much more serious. You will have more leverage.

[panAmerican]

10. This is unconscionable. Vacation when you've written a bad check?

[backscatter712]

12. Hire a collection agency.

I'm not sure what it takes to hire one - I don't know if they take a cut of what they recover, or if you just sell them the debt, or pay them a fee or how it works, but you might have some luck going that route.