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Gautam Dhawan (CEO)     24 July 2013

Rent not paid for 15 years

Hi !

We are a Limited Company providing Private Locker services like banks.

A customer has a locker with us and has not paid rent for 15 years. We have been regularly sending notices by post asking for our dues, normally rental reminders are sent yearly.

Recently again we sent him a final notice asking for rent, or we would break open the locker as per the terms of the agreement he entered while opening the locker. He refuses to pay the rent saying it is barred by limitation but still wants us to let him operate the locker.

How should we go about this ? Ofcourse there is no question of allowing him to operate the locker till rent is paid.

Thanks in advance !



Learning

 3 Replies

Prashant Agnihotri (Lawyer)     01 August 2013

if you have a registered contract with him, so you can file a civil case for recovery of your charges

Gautam Dhawan (CEO)     01 August 2013

Hi ! Thanks for you reply !

We do not wish to file a case as we know that the Locker Hirer wants to operate to locker, presumably because he still has belongings in the locker. Our problem is that when we ask for rent he says it is time barred and still wants to operate without paying the rent.

If anyone goes to court, it shall be them, to ask for access to the locker. 

Regarding the Contract, it has the requisite stamp fee paid at the courts and is then used to sign the locker rental agreement.

Thanks

sanjay kumar (BE/ LLM in Corporate Laws)     02 August 2013

Since how long he has not operated the Locker?? If he has not operated the locker for 15years, then you can send him a Legal Notice stating that since he has not operated the locker for the past 15 years, it is presumed that he is not interested in the Locker and the Company is recovering it for others use. And since you have been sending him Notices regularly so it is not barred by limitation. As per Lmitation Act, the courts may not entertain the disputes if they are barred by Limittaion. But in your case, you can always plead to the Court that you did not take legal course in good faith and mutual trust. But the client has taken advantage of your good faith and is trying to mislead the law through.

Send him the final notice. But you have to take recourse of the Court to take possession of the court. Otherwise you can just seal the locker and not allow the person to operate the Locker unless all dues are paid by him. In that case, he will take recourse of the Court.


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