What to do when you can't get supplierto accept money owed?

[mikehende]

Hey guys, the electronics supplier we started with ended up being a flake, unprofessional, unreliable, non-responsive you name it so we've moved on to different suppliers. 2 weeks ago I had emailed that supplier for the 3rd time asking for instructions to send her the $1400 we have had sitting in our account for over one month now. I am thinking of sending her an email tomorrow telling her if she does not respond by this Friday we will do with her funds whatever we please, maybe use it to build our new website or something. Before I should send that final email I would like to know what liability we may have if we go this route? Or any other ideas please?

[Harold Mansfield]

I'd send a money order, or cashier's check registered mail and be done with it. They have to sign for it, and when they cash it you're done and have 2 records that they both accepted it and deposited into their account.

Or if it's really burning a hole in your pocket you can donate it to my happy hour charity for thirsty web designers :).

[mikehende]

That's a great idea, we'll do just that, cashier's check, thank you very much!

[Paul]

I disagree a bit. Once you make a cashiers check the money is gone. If for some reason they don't cash it it will just sit in limbo forever. I'd send a regular check and if its not cashed in 6 months the heck with them.

[Harold Mansfield]

Whichever works, just make sure you make them sign for it. Even better if you can address it to someone specific.

[mikehende]

Wait a minute, if they don't cash the check then it's the same deal, the money will still be sitting in out account? We don't want to hold their money for 6 more months, that's too long, we want to move on and not have any ties with them anymore.

[Harold Mansfield]

Wait a minute, if they don't cash the check then it's the same deal, the money will still be sitting in out account? We don't want to hold their money for 6 more months, that's too long, we want to move on and not have any ties with them anymore.

Cashier's check made out to them, make them sign for it. Money is gone and you have records.
It's strange that they are resiting getting paid. Maybe something is going on. Shutting down? Bankruptcy? Divorce of one of the owners?

Guess it doesn't matter. In a perfect world you could just walk over to their office Godfather style, toss the money at someone's desk, and stamp your cigar out on the floor as you walk away.

[Paul]

Like Harold said make sure they sign for something acknowledging payment received. I'm not sure if you get a cashiers check back as "cashed". They sound so confused I'd want to make sure of that.

[Harold Mansfield]

I'm not sure if you get a cashiers check back as "cashed".
You get a stub or receipt with the numbers on it. You can check with the bank that it was drawn from and check and see if it was cashed. But if someone signs for it it's not your problem anymore what they do with it. I think you can pay a little extra for ID verification, rather than just letting any one in the building sign for it.

I may not have the terminology right, but I know you can send to a specific person, and only they can sign for it. Like getting served.

[turboguy]

Why not just send a business check by certified mail, return receipt requested. Once they sign the receipt saying they received it, if they don't cash the check you have done your part and they would have no claim on you.

[Paul]

Have you ever paid these people before, or is this the first invoice?

[Freelancier]

I would do a regular business check as well, but send it with a return receipt so that I had a record of having sent it. They'll cash it eventually, I wouldn't worry about that part.

[mikehende]

Yes guys but it will all go back to the same ordeal which is if they don't cash the cashier's check, the money will still be sitting there in our account.

[tallen]

If you send them a bank cashier's check, the money will leave your account as soon as the check is written. You won't have to worry about it sitting in your account. If you get a signed, ID-verified receipt of delivery from your courier/USPS/whatever then you have proof (in combination with your receipt from the bank) to show them that payment was delivered if there is ever a question. What they do with the check once they have received it is between them and the issuing bank, not your problem.

[mikehende]

Sorry I should have mentioned that we don't have their banking info, we had made one purchase from them and had paid via credit card and when we sent our second purchase order they started becoming non-responsive and unreliable until we finally found out that they got one big buyer to purchase all of their stock so they dropped us and all of the the other small buyers they had started with.

[Harold Mansfield]

Sorry I should have mentioned that we don't have their banking info, we had made one purchase from them and had paid via credit card and when we sent our second purchase order they started becoming non-responsive and unreliable until we finally found out that they got one big buyer to purchase all of their stock so they dropped us and all of the the other small buyers they had started with.

You don't need their banking info. You just need their address. Or just don't pay them. This conversation about it is already longer than the time it would have taken to send the check :)

[tallen]

OK, Let me get this straight...

You sent them an order (your second order).

They filled that order and shipped you the product.

Presumably they have sent you an invoice for that shipment/order fulfillment?

And you are stuck because you have asked them how they would like to be paid, and they haven't responded?

What are the terms given on the invoice (assuming you've received an invoice)? Something like Net 30 would be typical.

If that's the case, mail them a check so that they receive it within 30 days (or whatever) of the date of the invoice. That's the way business is done.

Is the problem that you don't want to mail a check, you would rather pay by credit card or by bank transfer or some other means of payment but they haven't supplied the information you need to do so?

Probably because their expectation is that you will just mail them a check.

So do that, and if you want it to be final final with no question that you have paid, make it a bank cashier's check and get a signed, ID verified receipt of delivery, as discussed earlier in the thread.

[Freelancier]

it does seem like a lot of effort to pay an invoice.

[mikehende]

All went well with our first order, the payment was deducted from our credit card and we received the products. Then upon sending them our second PO, we noticed that they had undercharged themselves by a few hundred dollars on the first transaction plus they had dropshipped 2 products for us on Amazon and the payment came and is sitting in our banking account, I had kept asking them for instructions to send them these outstanding funds but they never answered us so we are stuck with their money in our account, that is the summary of everything.

[billbenson]

I'd send them a certified letter requesting an invoice. Why give away money they don't want.

[mikehende]

I'd send them a certified letter requesting an invoice. Why give away money they don't want.

Sorry bill, not understanding the purpose of "requesting an invoice"? As for why give away money they don't want, we don't want to do with it what we will then at any time in the future they contact us requesting the funds which is why I am looking into the "legal" implications of this, I mean just what is our obligation to hold on to these funds?

[Freelancier]

So you're just trying to clear up an underbill? Perhaps THEY don't consider it an issue and are fine without the money since they sold their entire inventory to another business.

I'd send them a certified letter explaining their mistake, offering to pay by check, with a 30-day window for them to accept, and see if they respond. Or just send them a business check and after 6 months, let the check expire if they don't cash it. I do not understand the worry about a check that hasn't been cashed.

[Paul]

You don't need their banking info. You just need their address. Or just don't pay them. This conversation about it is already longer than the time it would have taken to send the check :)

Exactly, just send them a check. Having some “extra” money in your account for awhile isn’t that much of a problem. If they never cash the check eventually it can be “written off” your payables just like uncollected is written off your receivables, except you have the money.

You may find that the check gets cashed. Just because they don’t answer phones doesn’t mean somebody isn’t receiving mail and doing the banking. On the other hand they may be out of business and don’t care.

I’ve seen businesses sell or go out of business that don’t worry about a few leftover receivables. But, they still cash checks that do come in.

[mikehende]

I just tried emailing them this first to see if it will bring a response:

Hello, this is our 4th and final attempt to try to transfer the funds to you as we do not wish to hold onto anyone's funds forever and without any response from them so we are willing to give you until this coming Friday [July 24th, 2015] to inform us of what to do with the funds otherwise we will dispose of it as we see fit.

[mikehende]

Lo and behold, I just got a call from the person telling me I can send them a check.