DEBT COLLECTING

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 149, 27 June 1925, Page 11

DEBT COLLECTING

BY BLACK-LISTING

A MODERN METHOD THAT WENT AWRY

GISBOENE RESIDENT SECURES

DAMAGES

, '(HI TELEGRAPH.—PRESS ASSOCIATION.) .-,'.. ;.;; GISBOKNE, 26th June,'■",An interesting: civil; claim came beforp Mr. E. C. Levvey, S.M., in the Magistrate's Court to-day, when Millicent Clarke, a.. married woman, proceeded against the ; Associated; Creditors' League, Auckland, claiming £§0 as damages for alleged unfair blacklisting. Mr. L. T. Burnard appeared for plaintiff, and Mr. J. E. Kirk .for defendants.

■Mr. Burnard said "that, plaintiff; was suffering from pyorrhea "and: some teeth were extracted by" Harold . Cato, tist. As •£ result o£ something -which •.followed -the: .extraction, tho: alleged debt was incurred. 'Plaintiff had no idea_o£ dentures when she went to the dentist.. ; After /the extraction - and while plaintiff -was coming out of the anaesthetic, Cato put a document beIqre _ber and asked. her to sign, which sue did. She was so bad that she collapsed, at the. foot of the stairs. The next day Cato showed .her a copy of what she signed.. Plaintiff did not get her dentures made by Cato, nor did she go to him-again, except: to have her mouth washed out. Months later, Cato wrote to her 'regarding the ■"' dentures, and after that he started to send accounts.. .Plaintiffs husband called oh Cato, .and Cato, told him he had extracted , the cheaply, as he expected to. get the dentures. The husband said lie, would pay. any extra' amount."■ asked tor the extractions, ; but Cato refused tins.' -Cato _sent, a lawyer's letter to li|Vv and this was :fqllbwed by a series ot' bombardments on the part of the Associated. Creditors' League. ■-. - ' ■ :

HA TWENTIETH CENTURY , INVENTION."

■•' C,? nT? e\ confcended that: it was a novel method or making debtors pay, and was a-twentieth centurylinvention, calculated to make .debtors do what the creditors' desired them;: to. do : m a 1 most extra,.MdiHary.iHanner.- The system was that tn.e creditors were supplied with four letters. ■■ ■ . ■ - ■ s . -

_ TKe first notice sent out was as":fol.lows:—.As .-.you. areV 1---aware," your ac-' count with us has now been owinc for ■a considerable time. We hoped this fact,^ combined with the ■.leniency we have, shown you in .the past, 'would have brought about, a .settlement without;puttimj us to farther.trouble. Sure■i? .^'W' recognise how .impossible it, is ior_iis to. conduct business on such toes. ; We: are now. compelled to hand the account to the. Associated Creditors' League for compulsory settlement:■'- We ; w°uW prefer not to take such "drastic measures,, but : will have no alternative .unless ; wo. receive, an; immediate response to this.letter." .. ,: ; : .. ; '- ( The. second communication read--l • >pur failure to acknowledge. mr; notice^ nqw: ."compels us to 'take, the necessary action -_for collecting .the amount 'due ■wthqufc, further .delay. " We "are.Sunder agreement with the Associated Creditors' .League-, to hand:iu :a; full: report of our outstanding; accounts after a certain lapse q£ time:-.-Consequent!v'- your- name -must now-be. forwkrded to'them. This meaw.that;-your, account.will be publiahe.d by them, publicly in your district at an early date, or otherwise displayed for^sale on an : openmarket. This action wijl be tafeen by them with^ .no desire to persecute, you, but simply as a necessary measure, at the presenttime for the protection of air traders." : i

On the reverse side oi /.-the. '.'r letter, under the heading Vwhy judgments and accounts, are offered for sale,": there was the^statement: "The.Associated Creditors League .set out on; a campaign to collect a11..01d outstanding accounts for their- members, this being done not only for protection but also.for the protection of.'.™l"??..people.-..who .either pay- their bills promptly or,, if, faced-with misfortune, are houesfi enough to. explain the circumstances and make arrangements Smclj. people .must not be made to suffer tor: the neglect or- dishonesty of those who do otherwise. ;. You are faced with tlie necessity of doing something at once. .Payment, muit be made direct to your creditor," 1 :■.-.-■■■

; -The third letter read: "We have been instructed by the Associated Creditors' League to sign, and forward a final notice before proceeding to publish this: account tor sale .in. your district, or take' any' action which they deem necessary for' the recovery of ..the amount in settlement of your .-lndebtedriess. You have an~ opportunity, for^neiweek only to save youi^l self. ■cost aml:..unpleasantiiess by comiiie to; an 1 understanding with us " : ,' ••'On receipt of the finar notice after that, ; continued Mr. Burnard, .a ' notice w;is seii^to the league to collect the debt,- While these notices were going on, plaintiff saw Cato, and the notices ceased, for,, a time, but another series came from the local association. She saw the secretary anal explained that she did not owe the money. Then tho account was placed in the hands of their solicitors. ..The peculiar feature of the i black rt.tTOs.ftat it was -.published ilso to debtors, which meant that all Who owed debts knew. of the debts owed 'by plaiui.ifl'. . •■•■.' ■■ ■ , h •> 1.. ■

It. E. Hill, land agent, said he received a copy of the.list. '-. ' :-. -Plaintiff gave evidence-on the lines outlined by counsel. ' : -Roy Crawford^ dentist,, said he- was a member of the defendant league. H^ was to giyo first three letters, and' a fourth was to lie forwarded by tho Auckland office. The object of the pubhcation of the name in the list was not. to. give credit to those whose liames were published. : -,■■-■■.-,.

' l'orthe defence, Mr. Kirk said the contest was between psaintiff and Catu Ho did ;not think anything had been brought out against the Joague, which nact had advico to tho effect that the system was within the law..' Cato woulds;iy. the agreement was signed -'prior to llio extraction. All tho list showed Avas that plain tiff owed a debt to Oato, and ilio league offered (he debt for sale; Miglit li? ( tai were sent to Cato and seven wore still iii his possession. Counsel contended that it was not. defamatory to m;ik c a statement imputing that a nerson l;ad <lebts. : .

Cato gave evidence on the lines of counsel s address. 1.-

■ lii_ -the course of his judgment, the Magistrate said that no doubt the-list wns published 'with'several, intentions, including that of harassing cveditovs, after several straight-out threatening- letters indicating that tho names had to be black-listed, so as to let the people vylio read the list know the . debtors v/ere people to be warned against, His Worship held that' the words Vero defamatory, and'that 'the'claim for damages was. not. unreasonablfi. Judgment fop £50 and costs would not iitidtdy compensate plaintiff. ■■ . " .

Judgment was entered accordingly