What is the ruling on not paying the remaining amount of the price of goods that I deliberately did not pay nearly five years ago, knowing that the seller's whereabouts are unknown and it is not known whether the amount was deducted from her or not?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
You must hasten to repent to Allah for any shortcomings concerning the rights of others. One of the pillars of repentance is to return the financial right to its owner, or to give it as charity on their behalf if they cannot be identified. This right is not forfeited by the passage of time. If the seller was merely an employee, then the amount should be paid to those in charge of the shop if it is not their custom to deduct it from the employee.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/52144
Where this answer came from
- Source platform
- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 52144
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy