April 2024 – Judicial annulment of Payment Order

With decision no. 217/2024 of the Athens Peace Court (Property Disputes Procedure – Bankruptcy Department), payment order no. 8797/2023 issued by the above-mentioned court was annuled due to the lack of the claim for which the disputed payment order was issued. Specifically, with the aforementioned Payment Order issued against our client – a taxi leasing company, at the request of the lessor, owner of the taxi license, our client was instructed to pay the lessor the amount of 10,000.00 euros for outstanding rents (for 19 months).

The Court accepted our objection regarding the absence of the claim for which the payment order was issued, as it was verbally agreed between the parties to suspend the lease agreement for the taxi license for the disputed period of 19 months due to the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences. Specifically, after the first lockdown, the taxi vehicle to which the disputed license was registered was immobilized, and it was agreed between the parties that no rent would be owed for the use of the license for as long as it remained immobilized. Additionally, it was proven that during the subsequent months, our legal representative and his associate were informed that the vehicle remained immobilized without ever raising objections, and despite their repeated requests for written documentation of the suspension agreement, the lessor refused to come to our company’s offices for personal reasons. Just before the contractual expiration of the agreement (and after 18 months had passed), the lessor, contrary to the agreements, submitted an extrajudicial declaration requesting the payment of rents and then proceeded to file an application for the issuance of a payment order. Shortly before the contractual expiration of the agreement (and after 18 months had elapsed), the lessor, contrary to the agreements, submitted an extrajudicial declaration requesting the payment of rents and then proceeded with the submission of an application for the issuance of a payment order.

Thus, the Court, taking into account our documentary evidence, accepted that the lease agreement was suspended throughout the disputed period and therefore, the lessor did not maintain a claim for rent against our client and rejected the lessor’s claims of lack of suspension agreement and verbal harassment for the payment of rent as unsubstantiated.