The process of debt recovery is unique to each situation and our lawyers will be able to advise you on the appropriate steps as part of your initial consultation. Our goal throughout any engagement is to help you recover the debt. This ideally means we recover early, and without going to court.
IRB Law Partner Jeremy Cheong explains more about the typical debt recovery process in Singapore.
Step 1 – Initial Consultation
The first step is to gain a full understanding of your current situation so we can advise on the appropriate next steps to follow. If you want to get a sense of your options, just give us a call or drop us an email. Initial discussion is free of charge.
Step 2 – Perform Due Diligence
At this stage we review the debtor in detail, primarily we want to understand if they have the financial capability to pay back any debt, particularly if the situation requires court papers to be filed.
Step 3 – Issue a Letter of Demand
This formal document is designed to warn the debtor of potential legal action if the debt is not paid back. It can be a very effective tool in promotion a reaction from the debtor, even if that action is to come to the negotiating table.
The letter of demand can also be submitted in court, and enables us to show that attempts were made to amicably recover the debt prior to any further action being taken.
Step 4 – Await Response & Negotiate
We await a response from the debtor after their receipt of the letter of demand. Usually a time restriction will be applied in the letter of demand, warning the debtor of next steps should they fail to respond. In many cases the debtor will respond, and we will support our clients in any negotiations if the debtor requests a payment plan.
Step 5 – Filing Court Papers
If the letter of demand proves unsuccessful or the parties can not reach a common agreement on payment terms, we can then file a claim with the appropriate court. The amount and type of claim will depend on the route taken.
Step 6 – Enforcement of Court Decision
Post any successful court decision, its possible the debtor may still not pay up. We will advise on the appropriate next steps to enforce the collection.
