Debt Collection

Unfortunately not everyone pays money when it's due, and sometimes not at all. Our expertise in efficient debt collection litigation is available for individual, small business and large scale corporate clients, based on many years specialized experience.

We can deal with cases on a one-off basis as needed, but special discounted rates are available by negotiation for bulk commercial debt litigation. We are particularly adept at dealing with debtors for factoring clients, where speed of processing is particularly important. We are happy to visit bulk commercial clients to discuss our service and costs with them.

Put paid to bad debts

Are your bad debts in danger of ruining you or your business? Can you afford to let them lie on your books for months on end? Are bad debts stopping you from progressing? Whatever the reason, whether you're a private individual, a small business with a single debt or a large company with many debtors, we can act quickly and efficiently to recover what is owed to you. Simply contact our specialist Debt Recovery Department and we will:

• Issue a preliminary chaser letter followed by a Letter Before Action
• We will request payment from the debtor and clearly warn of the consequences of continued non-payment.
• Make an initial telephone call if no response is received.
• Issue Legal Proceedings or serve Statutory Demand
• Enforce Judgment where necessary

Issuing legal proceedings:

We will commence legal proceedings to recover all monies due to you.

If you pursue a debt of up to £10,000 using the Courts, your case will be allocated to the Small Claims Track. This procedure provides a simple and informal way of resolving disputes and it is relatively inexpensive. The Court fees can be added to the amount of your claim and so too can interest on the debt from the time it became due.

If you are a business, the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 gives you the right to claim interest on the late payment of commercial debts. A commercial debt is a debt that results from a contract made between all businesses and public sector bodies for the supply of goods and services. Compensation and interest for late payment can accrue on unpaid debts of any value provided contractual interest has not been agreed.

If your Claim is successful you are awarded judgment by the Court. If the defendant still refuses to pay up or falls behind in payments, we can attempt to enforce judgment through the Courts.

Enforcing Judgment:

There are four main methods of enforcing judgment and in each case a fee is payable. This will be added to the amount of your Claim.

• 1. Warrant - the most common method is to use a Warrant (or Writ) of Execution. This is effective if the Defendant has assets / goods on his or her premises which can be taken and sold.
• 2. Attachment of Earnings Order - where a debtor is employed, you can apply to the Court for an Order that the employer pays a certain amount towards the debt directly from the debtor's wages/salary every month.
• 3. Charging Order - prevents the debtor from selling his or her assets such as property, land or investments without paying what is owed to you. Where the debtor is a homeowner, a charge may be registered against it. You will not get your money until the debtor sells his/her assets, however, in some circumstances you may be able to ask the Court for an Order to force him/her to sell.
• 4. Third Party Debt Order - is usually made to stop the debtor taking money out of his/her bank or building society account. It can also be sent to anyone who owes the Debtor money and the third party must make payment directly to you instead.

Statutory Demand

You may also wish to consider winding up (Insolvency) proceedings. Winding up is the procedure whereby a company is forced to cease trading and its assets sold in order to pay off creditors. The equivalent for an individual is bankruptcy and the threat of either is usually powerful enough to ensure that payment is made quickly.

We can advise as to whether insolvency proceedings are appropriate.