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Costs and timescales of court and insolvency processes for personal debt recovery
If you are owed money we can help by embarking upon either the court and/or insolvency processes to obtain payment.
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 £30 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 straight forward 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* | Battens' Fees |
Does not exceed £300 | £35.00 | £80.00 |
Exceeds £300 but does not exceed £500 | £50.00 | £90.00 |
Exceeds £500 but does not exceed £1,000 | £70.00 | £105.00 |
Exceeds £1,000 but does not exceed £1,500 | £80.00 | £115.00 |
Exceeds £1,500 but does not exceed £3,000 | £115.00 | £120.00 |
Exceeds £3,000 but does not exceed £5,000 | £205.00 | £125.00 |
Exceeds £5,000 but does not exceed £10,000 | £455.00 | £350.00 |
Exceeds £10,000 but does not exceed £200,000 | 5% of the value of the claim | £450.00 |
Obtaining a CCJ | Nil | £55.00 |
* Subject to change by notice of the Court Service
To obtain a CCJ takes on average between 6 to 8 weeks.
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* | Battens' Fees |
Order to obtain information from a Judgment Debtor | £69.00 | £200.00 |
Application to request Bailiff service of the Order to obtain information from a Judgment Debtor | £139.00 | £30.00 |
Application for an Attachment of Earnings | £139.00 | £150.00 |
Re-issue of Order to obtain financial information and an Attachment of Earnings | Nil | £30.00 |
Request for a Warrant of Control | £96.00 | £50.00 |
Re-issue of a Warrant of Control | £38.00 | £30.00 |
Application to instruct a High Court Enforcement Officer | £80.00 | £150.00 |
Application for a Final Charging Order | £139.00 | £500.00 |
Application for an Order for Sale | £308.00 | £1,500.00 |
Application for a Third Party Debt Order | £139.00 | £1,500.00 |
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 16 weeks.
Insolvency
The following fees apply as an alternative to the issue of proceedings and again are only applicable for straight forward undisputed claims.
Description | Costs | Court Fee | Court Deposit | Battens' Fees |
Statutory Demand | Nil | Nil | Nil | £400.00 |
Bankruptcy Search Fee | Between £11-£15 | Nil | Nil | Nil |
Bankruptcy Petition | Nil | £352.00 | £1,500.00 | £1,500.00 |
Winding Up Petition | Nil | £352.00 | £2,600.00 | £1,500.00 |
This process can take between 10 and 20 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 | Battens' Fees excluding VAT at 20% |
Your Debtor has disappeared and a current address is required to be found | Between £50.00 for office-based enquiries and £150.00 for on-foot enquiries | £28.00 |
An agent is required to attend the Debtor’s address, for whatever reason | Between £150 - £200.00 | £42.00 |
Where documents are required to be personally served | Between £75 - £200 | £28.00 |
Where documents are required to be sworn/affirmed | £5.00 for the Affidavit and £2.00 for each Exhibit | £28.00 |
The above can take between 1 and 28 days.