Customer dies and owes me money
Discussion
Ii ve just finished decorating someone's flat, customer and his wife happy with the work and said he will do a bank transfer to me
Finished on Friday la few weeks ago , he text me for my bank details on the Saturday and I forward them to him,
Monday emails me saying he would like some of the paint for touch up and can I drop some off
Wednesday turn up at the flats , no answer, so I go to the reception desk and they said he died on Monday night,
I only had his email and his mobile number, so I printed off the invoice and sent it to his wife,
It's been two weeks now and no payment, what's the next step I can do?
The. Property was a million pound flat ,gated development etc
Finished on Friday la few weeks ago , he text me for my bank details on the Saturday and I forward them to him,
Monday emails me saying he would like some of the paint for touch up and can I drop some off
Wednesday turn up at the flats , no answer, so I go to the reception desk and they said he died on Monday night,
I only had his email and his mobile number, so I printed off the invoice and sent it to his wife,
It's been two weeks now and no payment, what's the next step I can do?
The. Property was a million pound flat ,gated development etc
tricky360 said:
Property was a million pound flat ,gated development etc
Not sure what this has to do with it, but anyhow, put yourself in her shoes, she's probably just got the bill from the funeral home.You lack a little humanity. Pop back if you haven't been paid in 6 months, then it is an issue worthy of advice.
OP, I am sure someone will correct me if I am wrong - but the deceased's estate will be liable for your bill if it has funds available after reasonable expenses [such as his funeral] (and not his wife unless she was also named on the paperwork).
You may well have a fair wait until this is sorted out (for probate or for the will to be executed, from memory - again I'm on the right sort of track but my terminology may not be correct, but you get the idea?).
Regardless of whether I'm factually correct above or if I'm just vaguely along the right lines (
), doing anything to get your money now or in the reasonable near future isn't very tactful or polite, so I'd hold off for the time being (like, weeks at a minimum and preferably until his widow or - more likely - his executors make contact in due course).
If you do need to pursue this, you will need to speak to his executors (assuming he has a will) but will probably have to speak to his widow to establish who they are or who you then need to speak to anyway...
You may well have a fair wait until this is sorted out (for probate or for the will to be executed, from memory - again I'm on the right sort of track but my terminology may not be correct, but you get the idea?).
Regardless of whether I'm factually correct above or if I'm just vaguely along the right lines (
), doing anything to get your money now or in the reasonable near future isn't very tactful or polite, so I'd hold off for the time being (like, weeks at a minimum and preferably until his widow or - more likely - his executors make contact in due course). If you do need to pursue this, you will need to speak to his executors (assuming he has a will) but will probably have to speak to his widow to establish who they are or who you then need to speak to anyway...
gottans said:
Depending upon her circumstances she may not have access to much money until the estate is sorted. Give them some slack as it is a difficult situation and I doubt this is anywhere near the immediate priority list.
Exactly. All his accounts will be frozen and the assets and liabilities etc will need working out and have to go through probate. No idea what a death of an account holder does to a joint account, but I have a sneaky suspicion the account is just as locked up as if he was the sole account holder. It's not unknown for an individual beneficiary to pay a trader's bill of the deceased but my understanding is they certainly don't have to. I paid two bills associated with my fathers death to local traders but I think probate took many months to get, largely as a result of various income tax problems.
tricky360 said:
Ii ve just finished decorating someone's flat, customer and his wife happy with the work and said he will do a bank transfer to me
Finished on Friday la few weeks ago , he text me for my bank details on the Saturday and I forward them to him,
Monday emails me saying he would like some of the paint for touch up and can I drop some off
Wednesday turn up at the flats , no answer, so I go to the reception desk and they said he died on Monday night,
I only had his email and his mobile number, so I printed off the invoice and sent it to his wife,
It's been two weeks now and no payment, what's the next step I can do?
The. Property was a million pound flat ,gated development etc
Are you for fFinished on Friday la few weeks ago , he text me for my bank details on the Saturday and I forward them to him,
Monday emails me saying he would like some of the paint for touch up and can I drop some off
Wednesday turn up at the flats , no answer, so I go to the reception desk and they said he died on Monday night,
I only had his email and his mobile number, so I printed off the invoice and sent it to his wife,
It's been two weeks now and no payment, what's the next step I can do?
The. Property was a million pound flat ,gated development etc
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