Each and every claim for a debt action will have a different journey. Some will settle in their infant stages, whereas some may drag out for much longer. The length of your claim will be determined by your objectives and the response of the other party. However, it should be noted that the process for commencing any claim for a debt action will follow the same steps.
Step 1: Letter of Claim
Upon receiving your instructions along with your supporting evidence, a Letter of Claim will be drafted to the Defendant outlining the basis of your claim and what it is you intend to recover.
The time in which the Defendant has to reply to this letter will vary depending on the type of Defendant, i.e. whether they are an individual or a business. Your solicitor will advise you further on this point.
Step 2: Response to the Letter of Claim
At this stage the Defendant can either admit the claim in full, admit part of the claim, defend the claim or ignore the claim.
Where the claim is admitted this would be the natural conclusion of your claim provided payment is made. Where a partial admission is made, it would be advisable to consider the amount admitted versus the further costs involved in commencing Court Proceedings.
However, where the Letter of Claim is ignored or defended it may be necessary to commence Court Proceedings.
Step 3: Commencing Court Proceedings
At this stage a solicitor will draft a Claim Form on your behalf outlining the basis of your claim, along with the amount claimed and any accrued interest. Much of the information contained within the Claim Form will have been provided to the Defendant in the Letter of Claim.
The Court will then issue a Sealed Claim Form and the Defendant will have 14 days from the date of service in which to either admit the full claim, admit part of the claim, defend the claim or ignore the claim. Alternatively, the Defendant may respond with an Acknowledgement of Service within those 14 days allowing for a response to be provided within 28 days from the date of service.
Step 4: Response to the Claim Form
As with the Letter of Claim, where the claim is admitted this would be the natural conclusion of the claim provided payment is made. Where a partial admission is made, it would be advisable to consider the amount admitted versus the further costs involved in commencing Court Proceedings.
Here, where the claim is ignored you are able to enter what is known as Default Judgment. This will allow you to apply for a County Court Judgment which you will then be able to enforce to recover the monies owed to you.
If the Claim is Defended then the claim will proceed to a trial. It is advisable to consider at this stage the cost of proceeding to trail versus the amount of the debt owed. Further information will be provided by your solicitor at this stage should proceeding to trial be necessary.
As you can see from the above there are many stages at which your claim may conclude. The length of your claim will depend on the response of the Defendant. Some claims may settle within the first month whereas a Defended claim may last up to and exceeding 1 year. Enforcing a claim can increase that timeframe further.
This process can be very time consuming and difficult to understand. However, Mewies Solicitors are here to make your claim as stress free as possible. If you are considering commencing a claim and require further information you can contact a member of the Litigation Team here at Mewies Solicitors via:
Email: d.alexander-connell@mewiessolicitors.co.uk
Telephone: 01756 799000