Wife buisness partner stolen money owed to customers

[BigRooster]

My wife and her friend run a caravan rental buisness. these caravans belong to private owners.
Now the season is over money which is owed to the owners is now being payed out but the wife has noticed that there's not anothe money to pay out.
we beleave her friend hasn't payed any money in from bookings she has taken and is refusing to take phone calls reply to text and e-mails about paying it ink
Because my wife has done her job right and banked all money taken she has nothing to hide and is speaking to the owner's but some are talking about going to the police .
Is there something she can do to protect herself from what her friend has done as i don't fancy paying out for something her friend has done.

[ummmm]

Let them go to the police. I presume your wife can prove where the money she took went?

[madmaggot]

Bit late I know but the answer is to be more careful about who one enters into partnership with. Choose your business partner more carefully than you choose your bed partner!
If you do go into partnership take advice on making the procedures watertight to prevent just such an occurance as this.
All documents should require both signatures as should bank transactions.
It should be easy enough to match incoming monies with the rental documents.

[BigRooster]

Yes there no problem proveing she put all the money in but im worried if her friend has no money to pay back what she owes will they look at us because they were buisness partners.

[bednobs]

well yes, you are probably right

[BigRooster]

maybe i should start putting everything in my name just safe guard what we owe .... am i aloud to swear really feel like it.

[Buenchico]

Your wife and her partner have 'joint and several' liability to their creditors. That means that anyone who is owed money can jointly sue both of them or simply 'go for the easiest target' on her own (which appears to be your wife).

So your wife might well be forced to pay out because of her partner's failures. If so, all she can (under civil law) is to sue her partner to get back the money. So she might need this link:
http://www.hmcourts-s...bout/claims/index.htm

In practice your wife's best option might be to go to the police herself and then to write to the caravan owners, explaining the situation and assuring them that she will seek to get her partner to pay up. Doing so (and thus showing that she's on the side of the caravan owners) might reduce the chances of her facing aggressive legal action from them.

Chris