WhatsApp messages are valid evidence to demand the repayment of a loan

The Court of 1st Instance No. 6 of Granollers has deemed that WhatsApp messages are valid evidence to demand the repayment of a loan and requires payment of costs and a debt of €5,000, for which there was no written contract.

The ruling resolves the case of a verbal loan in which, after failing to obtain payment, the plaintiff went to court with the bank receipts of the transfers made by Bizum and transfer, as well as the conversations held through WhatsApp in which the former friend recognised the debt.

The defendant, as pointed out by lawyer Mario Rodríguez of Legalion Abogados, “despite having been correctly notified by the court, allowed the deadline to respond to the lawsuit to pass without taking any action.” This resulted in a case of ‘procedural rebellion’, and “this means that the procedure can continue without his presence, as has happened,” clarifies Rodríguez.

The lawyer also highlights that, despite only having the plaintiff’s evidence, “the validity and importance of the WhatsApp conversations without the need for judicial comparison of the mobile device” is key, because “they are equated to an agreement or subsequent recognition of the debt held by the debtor.

“This ruling encourages us to claim all the money lent to anyone, whether it is a family member, friend, acquaintance…, since in the end these loans are made in a circle of trust, trust that is broken when that person we have helped no longer gives us our money back,” remarks Mario Rodríguez.

The case highlights the importance of saving and backing up WhatsApp chats, as either party can delete them, and the situation could be further complicated if disappearing messages are active. WhatsApp messages can be backed up individually.

The post WhatsApp messages are valid evidence to demand the repayment of a loan appeared first on Spain Today – Breaking Spanish News, Sport, and Information.