A friend of mine that I’ve known for a couple years is in a situation where they need to pay a large sum of money (200万円) to their work for a mistake they made with a customer’s contract. They’re expected to have the money paid back to them by their work over the course of 2 months (100万円) per month, but they need to provide the initial payment to cover damages for the mistake. I’ve reviewed the documents they were given and they look legit, but I’ve had situations in the past where I’ve lent people money and was never paid back. My question is if they don’t pay back the money do I have any legal recourse? I have all of their private information (full name, address, phone number), and a message that states the conditions of our deal (amount of money to be borrowed, repaid, date by which they will repay, etc.). I’m expecting my friend to pay back the money, but in the off chance they don’t and I go to the police with the information I mentioned, is there anything they can do?
30 comments
This is a civil issue not a criminal one. The police can’t do anything.
In this situation my concern would be if their work can pay them back why can’t their work pay them up front? Or if cashflow is the problem why can’t they pay in installments? This sounds janky as a wife with a “lawyer” demanding compensation for an accident you had nothing to do with. In other words this isn’t how any of this works.
I’d walk away from this. If you loan this person money you’re going to lose one of 3 things, your money, your friend, or both.
Advice? Sure!
Don’t.
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Loans are for banks. Also, the company is responsible for mistakes, not individual employees. Their company probably has insurance for this sort of thing, or at least it should.
I know you said you reviewed the documents but this has to be a scam. The whole situation makes zero sense. Even if it was legit it means both your friend and your friend’s company are so unimaginably fiscally irresponsible that they will never have enough money to pay you back.
So expect them to never pay it back, scam or not. And police won’t care. It’d essentially be a gift.
I don’t think I could even ask a friend for that kind of loan.
God their sounds like a ore ore sagi
This is a scam.
The best advice I ever received was don’t lend money to anyone unless you are okay with never getting it back.
There are people I’d lend money to friends and family but I always do so knowing I may not get it back… I wouldn’t want that to come between us and I just don’t think contracts work. I doubt police anywhere want to be involved with petty money disputes. Contracts are better left for banks etc.
Life is short – compassion to those you love is key. You have every right to not help your friend but if you do do it with that mentality and you will be fine.
200man is a lot of money for many people. I can say I’d lend 2man or 20man to a friend or family member without much thought but anything higher would be a reasonable chunk of savings and really depends on how much money you have saved 😆
If you cannot afford to lose that much money, then I’d question whether you should do it.
Realistically only you know your true financial position, relationship and trustworthiness of your friend.
Scam. It doesn’t make sense that he has to pay their work for a mistake with a customer’s contract. This is why companies have insurance: to mitigate risks such as this.
Don’t lend him any money.
Loan and friend is not something that should be mixed.
Don’t lend anything you’re not prepared to lose. Friend or not people suck at paying things back. Especially when it’s freely given.
when friend is asking for money, he is no longer one. Your friend already lost you, so why bother losing money in extra
Unless the employer can prove that employee was having an intention to make the company losing money or not following company procedures, otherwise I cannot imagine why someone needs to payback company like this.
Name/Phone/Address? Come on, the second day they got the money from you phone/address won’t be true anymore. Japan is not a small country, police can’t even find some lost people and you expect that you can do better than them??
I lent a childhood friend I have known for 10+ years 20万円 and he disappeared from my life.
This makes no sense, why would someone have to pay a large amount of money to their employer, who will then pay it back over two months?
Anyway sounds like a version of the old people scam where someone pretending to be the old person’s grandchild announces they fished up at work (left the case with the cash on the metro, accidently gambled it all away at the pachinko or whatever) and needs to pay it back *right now*.
How well do you know this “friend”, actually?
That money will be gone and the friend won’t be your friend anymore.
Obvious scam. Employers can’t make employees pay cash for mistakes.
Seems like a version of the ore ore scam. Having to repay the company for a mistake is one of the very common stories they use to scam the elderly.
A friend would not put you in this position.
Just say no.
You say this is not the first time this has happened to you. Friend – please, a word of advice – you are a sucker. People are taking advantage of you. Grow a backbone:
Learn how to say NO. Please, you must learn how to say NO.
Police won’t do anything.
You will have to go to court to sue them.
I beg you, internet stranger, not to do this.
You will never get that money back. No matter what is said or how foolproof it seems, it will be gone and you will be poorer.
DON’T ! If it’s returnable after two months let them borrow from other financial institutions. I have very bad experience lending money to friends ! Don’t do that mistake !
So it looks like there’s 100% agreement in the comments, let us know what you end up doing OP!
Don’t.
why don’t you suggest your friend to find another job instead? 
Ive lent money to Japanese people here in Japan. And have got all all of it back. 1 million here 2 million there. Usually get contracts and their home town address….
However, in this case…. there are other places in Japan where the that person SHOULD be able to borrow that kind of money, whether its a credit agency or bank. There is a HUGE reason why they cant or wont. This could be that it is a fraudulent request; or they don’t have the capability or capacity to pay such a loan off; or the possibility that they may just disappear (depending on visa status/ nationality).
Furthermore, you mentioned it was for a company they worked for… Usually a company would have to take the blow for a financial mistake of an employee, the ability to pass that on directly in the form of paying back the company is… unusual? A company could garnish wages every month and still get their money back… but still… unusual.
If they were to disappear, you would have almost no way of finding them, without using a private investigator- and Im not sure what the police could do… A private investigator would cost a good chuck of the original loan, and you may not have the right to get that back (depending on original contract..) A private debt collector would be expensive, too.
Id make an excuse that a family member needs money for something unexpected…. and apologize for getting their hopes up.
That’s not your “friend” lmao
It is illegal in Japan to make employees use their own money for any mistakes made by a corporation. Even if they are the one that made the mistake.
This is a scam.
Don’t do it.
This is not a friend.
To keep things safe, lend it to me first, and I’ll lend it to the friend.
Unfortunately, I am a rather well-known figure and can’t be associated with under-the-table money lending, so please place the money in a plain Adidas carrier bag under the park bench I’ll PM you the location of, then walk away. My people will be watching. When you are observed to board a train leaving the area, the money will be picked up and delivered to your friend.
The money will be returned to you in full in only six weeks. I will PM you with the details.
Don’t loan money to friends and expect it to be paid back. You’ll probably lose the money and the friend. If you’re okay with the money being a gift, then give it freely, accept their assurance that you’ll be paid back, but don’t expect it.
Is that friend a love interest? Then even greater chance to be a scam.
Police can’t do anything about it. You have to sue them in a civil court.