If you are owed money by a person or a company, you are a creditor (they are called the debtor). The process of collecting money owed to you varies depending on whether you are a secured creditor or an unsecured creditor.

This section explains the claims process if you are owed money.

If you are owed money by a bankrupt, a person in a Debt Repayment Order, or a company in liquidation, you need to file a claim otherwise you will not receive any payments that may be made from the estate.

If you are an unsecured creditor owed more than NZ$1,000, you can apply to the High Court for a person to be made bankrupt.

Creditors meetings may be held in complex bankruptcies or liquidations. They are not common and are only worthwhile if the meeting is likely to assist in the administration of the estate.