JMS Rogers was approached by an elderly lady who had loaned a large sum of money to her friend over 2 years. Every month, her friend would give her a reason as to why she needed more money.

Our client is a kind-hearted lady and loaned it every time she was asked. The reasons for the loan were for medical expenses each time. It varied across payments for doctor visits, hospital expenses, medication purchases, and more.

Our client loaned the money because she felt sorry for her friend. She felt that she should help her friend with medical expenses as they were both elderly. She was also confident that her friend would pay back, as the friend had told her that her son would return from overseas and make the repayment.

Unfortunately, the money was never returned. The amount came up to about SGD$15,000 over the years. Our client kept on asking for the money to be returned, as she knew the son had come back. She kept asking but to no avail.

Our client then engaged JMS Rogers to pursue the debt. In the course of engagement and investigations with the debtor, it was discovered that the money was not used for medical expenses at all, and everything that was told to our client were lies.

The debtor was warned to make the payment or the matter would be escalated for cheating and over 2 months, the debt was paid in full.

What can we learn from this:

1. If you want to loan money to a friend, do a due diligence check if necessary to ensure that the money is being used for the reason it was borrowed.

2. If someone has lied to you about the reason why they needed the money, there is legal recourse that can be accessed.

3. Ensure that you have property documentation and proof if the loan is not repaid and you want to take legal action.