The Voice - Consumer's Voice

Where's my money?

I need your assistance, I engaged a lawyer in 2017 to collect my money from someone who owed me P35,000. I have discovered that this guys have already collected close to P20,0000. The only money I got from them is P5,000. Now they are no longer communicating with me. They are now collecting and keeping it for themselves. They now quiet about they no longer answer my calls.

Please intervene in this issue.

I respect lawyers. Ok, let me correct that. I've had the privilege to know a lot of attorneys over the years and many of them are the most decent, principled, honorable, trustworthy people. Some of them have become good friends. So I respect SOME lawyers.

However, like many professions, there are sometimes people who let their profession down. There are obviously people who don't uphold the highest levels of conduct that we, as their clients, have a right to expect. Just read The Voice over the years and you'll see evidence of lawyers misbehaving.

Maybe we have another here. In theory the best option is to complain to the Law Society of Botswana who regulate attorneys. However, I'm told that they are struggling to manage the number of complaints they have before them and their turnaround times are difficult if you want rapid justice. So let's try the direct approach. I've contacted the attorney and presented your situation and asked him for his reaction to your accusations. Maybe there's an innocent explanation. Maybe there isn't. Either way, let's see how he responds. Or does he want to become famous in The Voice?

What should I do about this loan?

Hi Mr. l was working in government and l was having a case at work and l was dismissed from work. The time l was being dismissed l was having a loan from 2018. In December my loan balance was P15,666. Then I went to the bank to tell them my problem. Since December because I was no longer working l decided to pay 200, 300 or 400 to pay off the loan. l have already paid around P7,000 trying up to pay off my loan. So last week I tried to check my balance and they say it is P17,000. So this is really stressing me please help me.

Unfortunately, banks aren't always as kind, caring and compassionate as we might want. The only reason banks exist is to make money and one of the many ways they do this is by lending money to people like you and me and then charging us interest. They're not likely to change their minds about the interest they want from us, regardless of how desperate we might be.

The most important thing you can do, and this is often something many people avoid when they're in financial difficulties, is to keep talking to the bank. Given that all they want is their money back it IS in their interests to negotiate a repayment plan that satisfies their need for money and your need to continue to pay the rent and buy food.

I suggest that you talk to the bank as soon as possible and have this discussion.

The lesson from all of this is that whenever possible we need to avoid debt. Almost all of us need to borrow money to buy houses and cars but the sad news is that much of the debt we incur isn't as necessary as we think. I've seen people borrowing money to buy household goods when there are plenty of places you can buy such things second hand. I've heard of people borrowing money just to fund a lifestyle they can't afford. I've even encountered people who've taken bank loans in order to join pyramid and Ponzi schemes. That's the height of madness.

The sensible thing to do before you borrow any money is to talk to people you trust. Not the people you know who are already in massive debt but those who've managed to avoid the debt trap. Find out how they live their lives and do your best to copy them!