Partial payment

Partial payment refers to the offering of a payment by check for less than the full amount claimed by the creditor. Such an offer for debt discharge by tender of a "payment-in-full" check is a common practice. If the amount tendered is not grossly insufficient, it presents the creditor with a tough business decision: Will I accept the $9,000 and forfeit the other $1,000 that he really owes me or do I refuse it all in the hope I can collect $10,000 later? Traditional court rulings have treated the tender of the check as the offer of an accord and satisfaction. If the creditor accepts, endorses, and receives payment from the check, he has accepted the contract and so discharged the whole debt owed by the debtor.