Q: Yes, can a restaurant place collections on me
In June 2024 I had a baby shower and placed the catering order at a company. I thought I paid online but when my fiancé got to the location, he asked if I if he needed to pay they said no he want to make sure that he didn’t need to pay and they said no in January I get a call stating that the bill was never paid and I need to I then call the management of that location asking what I need to do and he asked me if I had the funds which I do not and he said it’s fine if you can’t pay then I get a call today stating if I do not pay today Then my bill will be sent to collections
A:
The restaurant can sell the unpaid account to a collection agency, or retain a collection agency for a fee, to try and collect the past due amount owed. If you do not work something out with either the restaurant or the collection agency that takes over collection of the debt, then eventually they will file a civil suit for breach of contract and try to obtain a judgment for the amount against you.
Depending on the written terms of any payment agreement you entered into when arranging the catering event, you may also have agreed to be responsible for the attorney’s fees incurred in the event of a lawsuit, as well as interest on the past due amount.
It’s not really that complicated, as you knew you needed to pay for this event, you knew you didn’t pay, and despite the conflicting statements about when and how to pay, you still haven’t paid. Now you say you don’t have the money. Did you never have the money? If you had the money, and then just spent it on other things rather than set it aside to cover this known obligation, then you need to own up to your poor financial management behavior.
Reach back out and work out a payment plan, or borrow the money from someone else who will be more flexible with your ability to pay them back when you can. Otherwise, your credit will take a hit and you may end up with a lawsuit and eventual judgment against you, with interest, court costs and maybe attorney fees tacked on. Then they can start garnishing your paycheck from work or attaching your bank account to collect the judgment. This won’t just go away by doing nothing.
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