# Day 6



## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Sent out some past due bills with a threat of taking them to small claims court if not pd in 10 days.I'm getting fed up with these kind of people and it's realy starting to tick me off.They have money for other stuff.Beer,cigs and one guy just got back from a boar hunting trip to Texas.He owes me $60 for 1 bale of hay from 4 yrs ago.









Another owes $240 for some beef from 4 yrs ago.He prly bought $2000 worth of beef before that then just quit paying when he got a DWI and lost his job.









And another owes $80 for some hay from a couple months ago check came back account closed.


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## cwright (Oct 19, 2011)

Thats the current trend these days. Fun first and basic needs last. Then blame their problems on someone else.


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## Nitram (Apr 2, 2011)

I believe that most on here have a big heart and perhaps thats the trouble. If we behaved like the stores do and nothing leaves without prior payment...but that is what separates us from them. I think we need atms at the door of our barns! Your horses are hungry? Well hell hit that account of yours and we will get you fixed right up! Thank you and have a great day!!!! Martin


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Well no checks in mail box today.Not surprised.

I wonder if I can tax on interest if it goes to small claims court or collectons??


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## urednecku (Oct 18, 2010)

Should be able to at least get legal fees back, but who knows.

GOOD LUCK!!


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## OK Wheat farmer (Aug 30, 2011)

We have added hefty finance charges in the past. On one occasion the check came within a week. Of course he didn't pay the charge but we were happy enough. It's a shame so many people make you be a jerk.


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## haybaler101 (Nov 30, 2008)

swmnhay said:


> Well no checks in mail box today.Not surprised.
> 
> I wonder if I can tax on interest if it goes to small claims court or collectons??


I have taken two guys to court this past winter, both with accounts over 3 years old. Guy #1 owed me $1500 for custom baling plus 21% interest and court fees. He never showed up, so ended up with a body attachment and a wage garnishment on him to cover everything. Haven't received a dime yet because apparently I am second in line on the garnishment and the clerk said the first one was large.

Guy #2 owed me $2800 for silage bags plus 21% interest and court costs. He showed up to 4 different hearings (he drove 2 hours each way) and the judge finally ruled that he owed the $2800 and court costs but no interest. Still haven't gotten a dime out of him yet either and it has been over a month.


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## rjmoses (Apr 4, 2010)

haybaler101 said:


> I have taken two guys to court this past winter, both with accounts over 3 years old. Guy #1 owed me $1500 for custom baling plus 21% interest and court fees. He never showed up, so ended up with a body attachment and a wage garnishment on him to cover everything. Haven't received a dime yet because apparently I am second in line on the garnishment and the clerk said the first one was large.
> 
> Guy #2 owed me $2800 for silage bags plus 21% interest and court costs. He showed up to 4 different hearings (he drove 2 hours each way) and the judge finally ruled that he owed the $2800 and court costs but no interest. Still haven't gotten a dime out of him yet either and it has been over a month.


One of the things I learned working in the commodities industry in Chicago was to never let anyone get too deep into my pocket! Got burned one time for $250,000 by a firm that was slow to pay then went belly up. That's a LOT of money for a small business! Took me five years to get my money out of them--but I did. (The chairman of the board of this company was also the chairman of the board at the CBOT.)

After that experience, I refused to do business with Refco (belly'd up), MF Global (formerly known as EDF Mann) (belly'd up) and any government body.

So now it's cash on the barrelhead!

Ralph


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## Bob M (Feb 11, 2012)

Here in Maryland, the court told me I could not add interest or legal fees unless that was stated on the invoice. I had a customer that owed my $7000 from 3years back, got a judgement and then a garnishment. Did the work myself on the judgement he lived in Pa. but worked in Maryland. Had to do garnishment in Md. did it myself the first time and all was approved until his lawyer figued out we are Incorporated and I did not us a lawyer. Judge then canceled it. Lawyer took 4x times as long to do it and charged me $750 to do the work that had already had done. Could not past a dime of this expense on to customer or interest in our great state of Maryland. I did finally get my $7000.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Friend of mine that owns gas station and he said just turn it into collection agency.They will hound these people otherwise they don't get pd.They work on a percentage.He said 50% is better then nothing.And you don't have to go to court,etc.

He has gone small claims route in the past but as all you get is a judgemant from the court and they still don't pay.


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## OK Wheat farmer (Aug 30, 2011)

swmnhay said:


> Friend of mine that owns gas station and he said just turn it into collection agency.They will hound these people otherwise they don't get pd.They work on a percentage.He said 50% is better then nothing.And you don't have to go to court,etc.
> 
> He has gone small claims route in the past but as all you get is a judgemant from the court and they still don't pay.


I've seen that happen as well. A few years back, I was working as a Co-op branch manager. We took a guy to court over his four year old feed bill that was around $5000. After court, right on the front steps of the courthouse, the guy told our GM "there was no need in all this. I know I owe the money. I still don't have any". That guy delivered thousands of bushels of wheat to my branch that year. Not one bushel was in his name.


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## blueriver (Oct 19, 2009)

Friends always seem to be the worst ... or should I say so called friends. I got tired of checks and promise's, so I went cash and got a credit card machine. The machine cost me $50 ... I'm charged $10 a month "Account Fee" (whatever that is) and the company gets 1.79% ... I charge a fee to use the CC ... I know some of you think they can stop a CC payment ... I was concerned about that and they programed my machine that the printed receipt states "As-Is" "How-Is" and "Where-Is" "This a non-refundable purchase" ... so far no problems ... takes about 48 hrs for the money to reach my bank account. The other good thing is I advertise that and I get more sales ... alot of folks live with their CC's


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## Mike120 (May 4, 2009)

I agree with Blueriver! I got a Merchant Services account as well and it's one of the best things I've done. Some of the younger folks pay by CC, auto-debit, or on-line and have never written a check in their lives. A lot of older folks (me included) know how to write checks, carry little cash, and operate the same way. My terminal is in my office away from the barn so I've also got a manual imprinter that we can use anyplace. I was told the terminal may or may not work on a wireless phone (barn) so I've never tried it. The terminal is only a short golf cart ride away and we've never needed to use the imprinter.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Day 9 and no checks in the mail yet.No response what so ever.The part that realy irks me is it doesn't even bother these people.


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## Mike120 (May 4, 2009)

swmnhay said:


> Day 9 and no checks in the mail yet.No response what so ever.The part that realy irks me is it doesn't even bother these people.


Hopefully they'll still respect you in the morning..........


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Mike120 said:


> Hopefully they'll still respect you in the morning..........


I don't respect them!!!


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## steve IN (Jan 13, 2010)

Blueriver and Mike where do you go for the card machines? I have had alot of people ask but a good chunk of my business is done in the field.


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## Mike120 (May 4, 2009)

Originally I was going to go through my bank who wanted to lease me a terminal....then I added up the payments and said "nope". I bought a First Data FD100ti terminal from Home page with a FD10C Debit Card keypad. It cost about 20% of what I would have paid for a lease. I bought the Imprinter (Adressograph Bartizan 2010) from Credit Card Imprinters | Credit Card Imprint Machines They included 100 slips.

If you want to do it, start with your bank. It's a moneymaker for them so they'll be happy to answer all your questions. Then you can shop around for a merchant services account provider. Be prepared for lots of smoke up your backside. In the end, I went with my bank (Wells Fargo) because everytime someone touches the transaction you get charged a fee (Visa, MC charges, your bank charges, etc) I got mine to waive some fees so although I pay a slightly higher percentage, it's cheaper in the long run........I think.....I'll reevaluate at the end of the year. However, what it saves me in agravation and improved cash-flow, I certainly think it's worth it.

On the terminals....check what your Merchant Services Provider will support. I bought mine UNLOCKED and they (and me) programmed it over the phone. Because it's unlocked, I'm free to move to another provider if I choose. They are usually pretty picky about encryption so they will typically only support a few. Also, if you can talk to your provider's programmers (the set up folks) they'll usually be happy to tell you which terminals give them the least trouble.

On the imprint machines. Talk to your bank about an ARU merchant account....this will allow manual keyed entry and authorization of a credit card over a cell or land-line phone. You would process the transaction instantaneously over the phone, then imprint the customer's card with an imprinter to create a customer receipt and your copy. This might be the best solution for most hay suppliers. I've heard that you can run a credit card with an iPhone and I know they make mobile terminals, but I haven't looked into it. My main driver was our horsey business, so most transactions are from my office.

It's pretty confusing when you start looking in to it, but after a while it starts to make sense. The main thing is that you know immediately when a card is declined. They can call the bank, straighten it out, and you get an approved transaction before you load the hay. It's convenient for you and the customer, so everyone wins. There is a small cost, but like I said before, I wish I had done it a long time ago. Good Luck!


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Mike 120 said,"I've heard that you can run a credit card with an iPhone and I know they make mobile terminals, but I haven't looked into it."

https://www.iphonemerchants.com/

This is just one of many and I am sure their rates will come down as more players come into it. But like Mike alluded to, it would certainly be worth $5 on a $200 sale to know 100% that you were getting your money in about 24 hours.

Regards, Mike


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

Mike120 said:


> A lot of older folks (me included) know how to write checks, carry little cash, and operate the same way.


Yes, that is how I operate and I can get some irritable looks when I whip out the 'ol checkbook.....I can read their 3rd grade minds when their thinking "how long will it take the old dinosaur to write that check".......I scribble it so fast that there is not a pharmacist in the country could read anything but the numbers...they kinda giggle alittle then.

Regards, Mike


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## Bob M (Feb 11, 2012)

We just started taking credit cards also, for all the same reasons. Ours is through Quickbooks and we can also use a smart phone to slide card. I have only run 1 transaction so far, and that was entering the info in my quickbooks. I think we are paying 4% on non qualifying cards. Sales person told me most cards will qualify, later found out that cards that have rewards are not qualifying cards. Alot of our sales are deliveries and many times we do not see anyone at the barns, wanted to be able to run card before delivery to make sure we get paid


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Day 10.I got a check in the mail and a apology from 1 guy for $250

Guy #2 I called and he said he had been meening to take care of it.Give me a break it is 3 yrs old.

Guy #3 I haven't heard from at all.(closed account)

Talked to collection agency this morning they don't do this small of bad accounts.NO money in it for them.They recomended small claims court.

Small Clains Court has a $76 filing fee.which you have to pay but add it to the bill.But then you have to collect it even after the judge rules in your favor.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Day 11.

Got a check from Guy #2.And he said thanks for my patience.LOL.My patience ran out.I was willing to spend $76 to collect 60 if he didn't pay up.









Well 2 out of 3 ain't bad.


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## country boy (May 27, 2010)

in texas if you can get a judgment against them you can pay another small fee and exercise it which means a deputy will go to there house with a list of registered property and seize enough to cover court cost and the amount owed , they usually pay up because they get enough to auction off to collect the cost.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

country boy said:


> in texas if you can get a judgment against them you can pay another small fee and exercise it which means a deputy will go to there house with a list of registered property and seize enough to cover court cost and the amount owed , they usually pay up because they get enough to auction off to collect the cost.


That would be nice that they would colllect it for you.But here in Mn they will not collect for you.So when the judge rules in your favor you still might not get pd.BUT it goes on their credit report and it is on public record which you can look up online.AND if it is a larger amount you can get a wage garnishment or place a lien on their property.IF they have anything or have a job.LOL

Friend of mine did a property lien on a guy after all else failed.Guy was a ass and just said he wasn't going to pay it.A few yrs later the guy tryed selling his property and had to pay it to get a clear title.


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Well....I haven't had too many bad checks, the few I have had were from horsey folks. In over 20 years of making hay, we've never been stiffed by a dairy guy, beef guy and even the lady that was buying hay for her camels always wrote good checks. I get a bad check from a horsey person I simply pass the cost on thru raising the price slightly on other horsey people.


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## Mike120 (May 4, 2009)

Feed store down the road from me is now listing the hot check passers on a marquee sign.


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## shortrow (Feb 21, 2012)

Mike120 said:


> Feed store down the road from me is now listing the hot check passers on a marquee sign.


There's a few places around here that do this as well. I wonder if it works.


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

shortrow said:


> There's a few places around here that do this as well. I wonder if it works.


I stoped in a bar in Chaska,Mn one time."Cy's Bar"

For some reason I just had to stop.LOL

Anyway,they had a 4 x 8' board on cieling above the bar with names on it with amounts for any bad checks or bar bills.Took their name off when they pd.

A little public humiliation might help to get pd,and then some don't care at all??


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## mlappin (Jun 25, 2009)

Our local bar does that as well, but they just use a thumbtack to hang the check right above the register, a person with good eyes and still read em though.


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## Vol (Jul 5, 2009)

swmnhay said:


> I stoped in a bar in Chaska,Mn one time."Cy's Bar"
> 
> For some reason I just had to stop.LOL
> 
> ...


Yea, some are from the Bill Clinton school of total shamelessness......they just seem to not let it bother them.....just like slick willy.

Regards, Mike


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