What to do if a friend won’t pay for half the expenses of a trip that we took?
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What to do if a friend won’t pay for half the expenses of a trip that we took?
A “friend” and I went to Europe. I made all arrangements per his request. There were reservations made, changed, discussed, changed, made, etc. All that goes along with determining where we would stay, when fly, where visit, etc. The booking company had me utilize an on-line option that put the payment for most of the trip out 6 months. So I told him that he could pay me when we returned. There were several charges that I had to pay immediately. He said he would pay his 1/2 when we got back. He is now trying to pick and choose which charges he pays. What do I do?
Asked on October 5, 2011 under Bankruptcy Law, Utah
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
If there was an agreement between you and the friend that you would advance him money (basically, loan him money), then he would repay you, that agreement is enforceable. It's even enforceable if it was an oral agreement (not written), though oral agreements can be problematic in that it can be difficult to prove exactly what the agreement was--or even that there was an agreement (and not, for example, that the money you advanced him was, in fact, a gift). However, that's a matter of what evidence or testimony you can muster, how credible you and he are, respectively, etc.; legally, an oral agreement would be enforceable. Regardless of whether it was an oral or a written agreement, again, you could bring a lawsuit for your money, and probably should consider representing yourself in small claims court to minimize costs.
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