What you need to know about debt recovery costs and timescales.

If you are owed money we can help by embarking upon either the court and/or insolvency processes to obtain payment through our Asset and Debt Recovery services.

Pre-Legal Stage

The first stage of the process is to issue a Letter of Claim. This will notify the Debtor that court proceedings will commence if full payment is not received within either 7 days (Business to Business), 14 days (Individual to Individual or Individual to Business) or 30 days (Business to Individual) of the date of the Letter.

On all pre-legal recoveries we will charge you a flat fee of £75 plus VAT at 20% per letter(s).

County Court Proceedings

If no money is recovered within the deadline imposed, the following fees apply on the issue of County Court proceedings to include obtaining a County Court Judgment (CCJ) and are only applicable for straightforward, undisputed claims.

When calculating the interest and compensation on the outstanding amount, your claim may tip over into a higher banding, resulting in a higher cost.

The VAT elements of our fees cannot be reclaimed from the debtor unless ordered by the court.

Amount	Court Fees* VAT not applicable	Battens' Fees excluding VAT at 20%
Exceeds £5,000 but does not exceed £10,000	£455.00	£1,500.00
Exceeds £10,000 but does not exceed £200,000	5% of the value of the claim	£2,500.00
Obtaining a CCJ	Nil	£250.00

* Subject to change by notice of the Court Service

The above fees apply to all debts under the £200,000 limit and for all debts over this amount, please click here and we will give you call back.

Enforcement Action

Once a CCJ is obtained against the Debtor, enforcement action can be taken and we will be able to discuss with you the most suitable method to obtain payment.

Description	Court Fees* VAT not applicable	Battens' Fees excluding VAT at 20%
Order to obtain information from a Judgment Debtor	£69.00	£500.00
Application to request Bailiff service of the Order to obtain information from a Judgment Debtor	£139.00	£50.00
Application for an Attachment of Earnings	£139.00	£350.00
Re-issue of Order to obtain financial information and an Attachment of Earnings	Nil	£50.00
Request for a Warrant of Control	£96.00	£150.00
Re-issue of a Warrant of Control	£38.00	£50.00
Application to instruct a High Court Enforcement Officer	£80.00	£350.00
Application for a Charging Order	£139.00	£1,000.00
Application for an Order for Sale	£308.00	£2,500.00
Application for a Third Party Debt Order	£139.00	£2,000.00

Dependant on which course of action you embark upon, is dependent upon the time scale involved but on average each method of enforcement takes between 4 to 25 weeks.

Insolvency

The following fees apply as an alternative to the issue of proceedings and again are only applicable for straightforward, undisputed claims.

Description	Costs VAT not applicable	Court Fee VAT not applicable	Court Deposit VAT not applicable	Battens' Fees excluding VAT at 20%
Statutory Demand	Nil	Nil	Nil	£500.00
Bankruptcy Search Fee	£11-£15	Nil	Nil	Nil
Bankruptcy Petition	Nil	£352.00	£1,500.00	£2,500.00
Winding Up Petition	Nil	£352.00	£2,600.00	£2,500.00

This process can take between 20 and 40 weeks.

Hourly Rates

For more complicated claims and/or debts which are or will become disputed, the following hourly rates will apply and are not subject to VAT.

Directors/Associate Directors/Senior Associates	£285 to £365
Associates	£260 to £275
Other solicitors and Legal Executives	£205 to £240
Paralegals	£155 to £260
Trainee Solicitors and Apprentices	£135 to £195
Secretaries and Support	£115 to £120

Potential Additional Costs

For example, but not limited to.

Description	Third Party Fees excluding VAT at 20%	Battens' Fees excluding VAT at 20%
Your Debtor has disappeared and a current address is required to be found	Operating on a "no find no fee" basis. Otherwise, usually between £75 - £250.	£50.00 (for on-foot enquiries, please contact us for a price)
Where documents are required to be personally served	Between £75 - £250	£50.00
Where documents are required to be sworn/affirmed	£5.00 for the Affidavit and £2.00 for each Exhibit	£50.00