What should you do before sending out a letter of demand?

By the time it gets to the stage where you’re sending out a letter of demand in Singapore, things are more than likely to be a little strained between the parties involved. As most letters of demand sent out by lawyers on behalf of their clients involve the threat of legal action if the demands of the letter are not fulfilled within a strict time frame, it’s usually not something to pursue if you still wish to maintain an amicable relationship with the party that refuses to pay.

This party could be a client who is otherwise decent, and usually good for the money, but just a habitually late payer. You’ve completed the work and you deserve to be paid. You’ve tried sending that client an email twice and calling him once, and all these efforts have been ignored.

So what now? Should you hire a lawyer to send a letter of demand?

Well, we suggest that you don’t. At least not yet. Short of padlocking doors and pouring paint all over the apartment unit, hiring a lawyer to send a letter of demand is probably the most drastic step you can take in the commercial debt collection process.

It should also be the last step in the commercial debt collection process. When your lawyer sends out the letter of demand, there’s no turning back. Even if you think it’s “not personal and just business”, the most probable result is that bridges will be burned and the commercial relationship will be stained.

Unfortunately, in the commercial world, time is also of the essence as you have to consider whether there are other creditors chasing after your client. You don’t want to be in a situation where your client winds up his company and you’re one of numerous unsecured creditors fighting over the scraps of what’s left of the company.

Many freelancers and small-medium businesses face this dilemma. Send out a letter of demand or continue bugging the client incessantly in the hopes that the client will finally deign to pay you for the work you’ve long completed.

Without specific details, it’s difficult to answer the question of when you should send a demand letter.

Generally though, it’s a good idea to exhaust every other option you have before resorting to sending a letter of demand in Singapore. If you’ve been ignored for weeks after sending multiple emails and calling numerous times, then it’s probably a good time to start thinking about sending out that demand letter.