The cost of a penny of debt is a contract that has the same legal enforcement as a debt of $1M.

That is the point I am making here.

If you actually borrow $1 from your mate, he is not going to take you to court to recover it, neither is a firm going to spend a lot of effort recovering a few hundred dollars of debt.

But they could if they choose and they could force you into bankruptcy if you are unable to pay.