locum-motion
Registered User
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- 35
If a debt exists, and the debtor offers cash to the creditor but they refuse to take it, what's the story?
I'm sure I heard sometime, somewhere that you can just walk away, and there's no debt anymore. I realise it's probably just an urban myth, though!
The question arises because of what happened to me recently. I got clamped, and the release fee was €80. Now, as it happens, I don't believe I should have been clamped in the first place, but I understand the procedure in that case is to pay the fee and appeal afterwards, so I fully intended to pay the clamp release fee. So, for the moment, let's just assume that a debt existed. My problem is with methods of payment.
As it happens, my current account was just about tapped out at the time, credit card ditto, and I had €85 in cash on me. So I rang them up and asked for a declamp.
Them: Sure, no problem, just give us your CC or Laser number.
Me: No can do, I'm afraid. I have the cash, I'll give it to the driver.
Them: No, our drivers don't carry cash.
Me: Doesn't matter, I have the right amount, I don't need change.
Them: No, we don't take cash.
Now, as far as I'm concerned, at this point I've made a very reasonable attempt to pay the debt in cash money, all in notes (though it would be fun to give them 8,000 1c coins, wouldn't it?), and I didn't even need change. Is there any form of tender that's more legal than that? If they have refused to accept the payment, offered freely, what moral obligation have I to offer them anything else? As far as I can see, absolutely none. And if, morally, I don't owe them anything, then surely they're just holding my car for ransom, aren't they? I even - briefly - considered walking roung to the Garda Station to report them, but then I thought about how that conversation would go. Just curious as to what the legal position might be.
None of this cogitation on my part was getting my car released, though, so I had to give in to their demands and go pay in a shop and ring them back with a voucher number. Luckily the shop was only about 2/3 of a mile away, but I presume there are parts of Dublin where you'd have to walk much further than that. And to top it all off, they won't even think of dispatching the van to wherever you are until after you've paid. They say they'll try to get them to you within an hour after that!
I ended up leaving an hour after I should have.The (Insert your own choice of abusive expletive here)!!!!!
I'm sure I heard sometime, somewhere that you can just walk away, and there's no debt anymore. I realise it's probably just an urban myth, though!
The question arises because of what happened to me recently. I got clamped, and the release fee was €80. Now, as it happens, I don't believe I should have been clamped in the first place, but I understand the procedure in that case is to pay the fee and appeal afterwards, so I fully intended to pay the clamp release fee. So, for the moment, let's just assume that a debt existed. My problem is with methods of payment.
As it happens, my current account was just about tapped out at the time, credit card ditto, and I had €85 in cash on me. So I rang them up and asked for a declamp.
Them: Sure, no problem, just give us your CC or Laser number.
Me: No can do, I'm afraid. I have the cash, I'll give it to the driver.
Them: No, our drivers don't carry cash.
Me: Doesn't matter, I have the right amount, I don't need change.
Them: No, we don't take cash.
Now, as far as I'm concerned, at this point I've made a very reasonable attempt to pay the debt in cash money, all in notes (though it would be fun to give them 8,000 1c coins, wouldn't it?), and I didn't even need change. Is there any form of tender that's more legal than that? If they have refused to accept the payment, offered freely, what moral obligation have I to offer them anything else? As far as I can see, absolutely none. And if, morally, I don't owe them anything, then surely they're just holding my car for ransom, aren't they? I even - briefly - considered walking roung to the Garda Station to report them, but then I thought about how that conversation would go. Just curious as to what the legal position might be.
None of this cogitation on my part was getting my car released, though, so I had to give in to their demands and go pay in a shop and ring them back with a voucher number. Luckily the shop was only about 2/3 of a mile away, but I presume there are parts of Dublin where you'd have to walk much further than that. And to top it all off, they won't even think of dispatching the van to wherever you are until after you've paid. They say they'll try to get them to you within an hour after that!
I ended up leaving an hour after I should have.The (Insert your own choice of abusive expletive here)!!!!!