Admitting a Claim and Requesting Instalments in Tasmania

When Admitting Makes Sense

Sometimes you owe the money and you know it. The contractor finished the job, the invoice is accurate, and the dispute is really about whether you can pay it all at once. In that situation, disputing the claim wastes everyone's time and a Magistrate will likely order you to pay anyway.

Admitting the claim ends the matter faster, avoids the stress of a hearing, and — critically — can open the door to paying in instalments rather than one lump sum.

Option 1: Pay in Full

If you can afford it, pay the claimant directly. The payment should cover the full amount claimed plus their court filing fee. Once the claimant confirms they have been paid, they file a Notice of Discontinuance with the registry and the case closes.

Get written confirmation of payment — a signed receipt, a bank transfer record, or a text/email acknowledgement. If the claimant does not file the discontinuance themselves, you may need this proof to show the court the debt is satisfied.

Option 2: Formal Admission

File Form 35 (Admission of Facts) at the court registry. This formally concedes liability — you accept you owe the money as claimed. Form 35 does not by itself arrange how you pay. It simply removes the dispute over whether you owe the amount.

Option 3: Instalment Arrangement

This is the path most defendants looking at this article actually need. You accept you owe the money but cannot pay it all at once. Here is how it works:

1. Contact the claimant with a written instalment proposal. Be specific: "I propose to pay A$200 per fortnight by direct deposit starting [date], with the final payment on [date]."
2. If the claimant agrees, both parties sign a Consent Order (Form 10) recording the payment schedule. File Form 10 at the registry and it becomes a legally binding, enforceable court order.
3. If the claimant refuses, you still need to file your defence (Form 4) within the 21-day deadline to prevent default judgment. At the conciliation conference that follows, the conciliator can help negotiate a payment schedule.

The critical point: an informal request for time to pay — a phone call, an email, a text — does not stop the 21-day clock. Until a Consent Order is filed or a defence is lodged, the claimant can apply for default judgment the moment the deadline passes.

Partial Admission

You might accept you owe part of the claim but dispute the rest. A contractor invoiced A$12,000 but you believe A$3,000 of that was for work outside the agreed scope. In this case, file Form 4 (Defence) and specify which portions you admit and which you dispute. The admitted portion may be dealt with by consent while the disputed portion proceeds to conciliation or a hearing.

What Happens After a Consent Order

A filed Consent Order is enforceable like any court judgment. If you miss an instalment, the claimant can apply to enforce the order — including garnishee orders on your bank account or wages. Keep up with the agreed schedule.

If your financial circumstances change and you genuinely cannot maintain the payments, contact the claimant early and propose a variation. If they agree, record the new schedule in a further Consent Order filed with the registry. If they refuse, continue to follow the existing order and seek legal advice about the process for varying it.

Our Responding to a Minor Civil Claim in Tasmania guide covers all four response pathways — including admission with instalment arrangements — with templates for structuring your payment proposal.

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