Debt Recovery Lawyers NSW

The debt recovery process in New South Wales (NSW) is very similar to the debt recovery processes followed by all other Australian states.

The process almost always begins in the same way:

  1. The debtor fails to pay the creditor on time
  2. The creditor attempts to recover the debt by communicating with the debtor (phone calls, emails, etc), in an attempt to understand why the debt has not been paid on time
  3. The creditor sends the debtor a formal letter (or email) threatening “legal action” if the debt is not paid within a given time limit
  4. The creditor takes “legal action” by contacting a debt recovery specialist law firm, like Turnbull Hill Lawyers, and instructs us to proceed
  5. We send our own ‘letter of demand’ advising the debtor that legal proceedings will commence if the debt is not paid in full within a given time limit (7, 14 or 21 days)
  6. The debt enforcement process begins…

The best and most cost-effective outcome for the creditor is for the debt to be paid, in full, at any point during the first 5 steps above (i.e. before the debt enforcement process begins).

The Debt Enforcement Process in NSW

The debt enforcement process is a legal process that attempts to recover the debt. If the debtor fails to pay the debt during this process it can lead to the debtor being forced into bankruptcy or, if the debtor is a company, into liquidation.

The debt enforcement process follows a different path depending on the size of the debt (including the number of debts, if there is more than one), whether the debt is personal or business-related and whether the debtor decides to file a defence (i.e. dispute the debt).

To help you understand the debt enforcement process we have created a concise 1-page flow chart, which clearly shows you all the paths the process could potentially take.

The Letter of Demand

As mentioned above, we send the letter of demand (LOD) to the debtor to notify them that:

  • The creditor has escalated the situation by instructing us to proceed;
  • We are going to commence legal proceedings if the debt is not paid in full; and
  • They have a further extension of 7, 14 or 21 days to pay the debt in full

A LOD can be quite effective if it is sent by a law firm that has:

  • extensive experience in debt recovery;
  • a strong reputation in the industry; and
  • a proven track record of success (see our Testimonials page for more information)

It is important to note that no actual ‘legal proceedings’ have commenced until the ‘Statement of Claim’ is filed with the Court (see next step).

If you are a creditor and you’d like us to send a LOD today, you can instruct us to do this online, in a matter of minutes.

The Statement of Claim (SoC)

The SoC signifies the start of the legal ‘debt enforcement process’.

The cost of proceeding depends on a number of factors related to your debt (size, available evidence, etc). It is impossible to accurately predict the cost until you have instructed us to proceed. After we send a letter of demand to your debtor, we will email you a copy of our client services agreement, which includes detailed information about the costs involved in every step of the legal process.

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