Some parties are hard to find and a few are actively avoiding the server. The rules have an answer, but the court will only give it when the attempts made were serious and are properly documented.
Refusal is not avoidance
A party who is identified and declines the documents has been served. The documents are left at their feet and the affidavit records it. Avoidance is different: no answer at the door with someone clearly home, a vehicle that is always in the driveway, a neighbour who says the person moved, an employer who will not confirm a schedule.
What the court looks for
Under Supreme Court Civil Rule 4-4, the court may order an alternative method of service where personal service is impracticable. The application is decided on the affidavit of attempted service, and the court is looking for diligence:
- Attempts on different days and at different times of day, including early morning, evening and weekends.
- Each attempt with the date, time, address, what was observed and who was spoken to.
- Inquiries made to confirm the party still lives or works at the address: neighbours, a building manager, an employer, a property search.
- Any contact with the party, including phone calls or messages, and their response.
What the order usually allows
The court chooses a method likely to bring the document to the party's attention: registered mail to the address, posting on the door, email, a message to a social media account, or leaving it with an adult at the residence. The order sets when service is deemed complete, and the document is then served in the way the order describes and a further affidavit sworn.
How we handle it
Additional attempts are made as needed, spread across different days and times of day, until the party is served or you tell us to stop. Each is billed at the follow-up rate. Every attempt is written up as it happens, so the cost of building the record is known in advance. When you decide to apply, the affidavit of attempted service is drafted from that record, sworn, and delivered, ready to attach to the application.
Provincial Court and family cases
The Small Claims Rules and the Supreme Court Family Rules have their own provisions for alternative service, on the same principle: show the court what was tried and why it did not work. The attempt record we keep is the same for every court.
Questions
What is an affidavit of attempted service?
A sworn record of every attempt to serve a party, with dates, times, addresses, observations and inquiries. It supports an application for an order for alternative service.
How many attempts before applying for alternative service in BC?
The rules do not set a number. The court looks for diligence: attempts at different times and days, plus inquiries to confirm the address. Three well-spaced, well-documented attempts is a common starting point.
Okanagan Process Servers is a process serving company, not a law firm, and does not give legal or procedural advice. This guide restates publicly available information from the sources on the references page. Rules, forms and time limits change; confirm the current requirement with the registry, the Residential Tenancy Branch or your lawyer.