Asked by Nikki G on 29-03-2023 12:49:03
Question posted in the Landlord Tenant Law category relating to Gauteng

Hi. I require assitance with the drafting of a  Letter of Demand to be sent to my tenant who has defaulted on payment as per a signed Acknowledgment of Debt. Also, please advise the method of delivery for the AOD. Can it be sent via email or what are the preferred methods. Must the letter be acknowledged by  the tenant? Thank you.

Posted by Att. Patrick on 29-03-2023 13:03:06

Hi again, 

The letter of demand can be sent via email (as long as you keep proof of the sent item) although I always suggest to people that they hand deliver a copy to the tenant and ask the tenant to sign a "keep copy" of the letter of demand. If the tenant refuses to sign it, that's fine. Just make a note of the date & time that you delivered it. If you can only drop it off at the premises, then do that, and again, make a note of the date & time. 

If you would like, I could type out a short template letter of demand for you to amend and complete. You can then send it off to your tenant whenever you want. 

Hi. Please go ahead with the drafting of the letter of demand and advise the cost. Thank you.

Posted by Att. Patrick on 29-03-2023 13:25:45

Dear tenant,

On _____ you signed a written acknowledgement of debt in terms whereof you admitted and confirmed that you were liable in an amount of ____ for arrear, unpaid rental, which is due, owing, and payable to me in respect of the lease agreement concluded for ________ premises dated _____, and in terms whereof you undertook to make payment to me of the outstanding amount. 

You have since breached the terms of the acknowledgement of debt in that you failed, refused, and/or neglected to make payment of the amount of ____ to me on _______.

Your non-payment constitutes a material breach of the acknowledgement of debt.

The purpose of this letter of demand is to formally demand that you remedy your breach of the terms of the acknowledgement of debt and make payment of the amount of ___ to me within the next 5 days of this letter, failing which I reserve my rights to institute legal proceedings out of the magistrates court and to apply for summary judgment against you for the full amount. 

In the event that I institute legal proceedings against you, you will be held liable for the legal costs incurred by me, plus interest, sheriff's charges, and the like. 

I urge you to comply with the terms of the acknowledgement of debt and make payment to me of all amounts on the due date. 

Posted by Att. Patrick on 29-03-2023 13:27:45

You don't really need to do much more than this. Copy/paste, fill in the blanks, and send. 

There is nothing wrong with referring to certain sections of the acknowledgement of debt if you would like in the letter.

You could also put your bank details in the letter of demand, and say that all payments need to be made into your account. 

All the law requires is that you make a demand for payment. The only reason one provides details as to the AOD or the clause numbers is so that the tenant can't say "But I don't know what you're talking about."

Hi. Thnak you for yoru assistance. You have been very helpful.