- CCJ Claim Form
Have you received a County Court Judgment?
It can be a shock when you receive a judgement and the forms required can be daunting to tackle. At InControl we deal with customer CCJ’s every day and can help by completing the right form for you.
If you qualify for one of our Protocol Compliant Debt Management Plans, we would deal with the courts on your behalf, ensuring that (if you accept the claim) an affordable payment is set and no further action is necessary.
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More Information on CCJ’s.
What is a County Court Judgement (CCJ)?
A CCJ is a way of taking court action to ensure you pay an outstanding amount owed to an individual or company. This usually takes place after all other methods of recovering the money have been exhausted.
Ignoring a CCJ can lead to further action the main ones being Attachment of Earnings, Charging Order or Bailiff.
The Claim Form for the judgement will arrive in the post and will explain the following details:
- How much the judgement is for
- How you should repay the judgement, in full or instalments as set out
- When you need to pay by, or make your first instalment payment
- Who you should be corresponding with and making payments to.
If you accept the claim.
If you owe the money and can pay if in full within 28 days this will mean the judgement will not show on your credit file.
Before the judgement is entered you will have the opportunity to reply to the claim form and admit to the claim fully, partially, or to dispute the claim. To admit to the claim fully or partially you should complete an N9a this will be sent to you with the claim form and should be returned the claimant. This form requests details of your financial situation and how you intend to pay.
If you dispute the claim.
If you dispute the claim complete an N9b and return this to the court. You have 28 days from receiving the claim form to respond. If you do not respond in 28 days a judgement will be entered against you.
If the judgement has been entered and you owe the money but cannot pay the judgement in full or the instalments the court has set are too high you can still vary the judgement.
Can’t afford the instalments?
The instalments on a CCJ can be varied to an amount that you can afford using a form called an N245, the court fee attached to this form is £40 which should be sent to the court by cheque or postal order along with the form. This form allows you to present your financial position and justify the reason for the reduced payments. You can make your instalment payments weekly, fortnightly or monthly. The judge does not have to accept your request for reduced payments if he has reason to believe you can afford more.
Northampton County Court Bulk Processing Centre
The majority of small claims go through the bulk clearing centre in Northampton, for more information and frequently asked questions visit:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/northampton-bulk-centre/ccbc/frequently-asked-questions
Some court form fees can be waived if you are in receipt of certain benefits. If you qualify you will need to complete an EX160 and send it to the court along with the form relevant to the outcome you require.
Court Fees – do you have to pay them?
If you have been contacted or threatened with Bailiff action to enforce the judgement, the individual or company you owe the money to would have had to apply to the court for a ‘warrant’ so a bailiff can visit your home. It may be possible to stop the bailiff visit by completing a N245 and making an offer of repayment. If the N245 is accepted the warrant will be stopped provided you maintaining your payments.
What is the process of receiving a CCJ?
- The individual or company will apply to court for the money you owe
- The court will issue a Claim Form to you (usually by post)
- Once this is received you will need to request a ‘response pack’ from the court
- You should then complete the relevant form from the response pack depending on how you wish to deal with the judgement
- Send the relevant form to the court
- The judge will determine whether your form is acceptable
- You must the adhere to the judges response or continue to fight your case
What will a CCJ do to my credit rating?
If you receive a CCJ this will be documented on your credit file and will remain there for 6 years.
Payment of the judgement in full within 28 days will mean the judgement will be removed and will not impact on your credit file.
Payment of the judgement in full after 28 days will mean the judgement will show as satisfied, however the judgement will remain on your credit file for 6 years.
I am a homeowner will my CCJ affect this?
Your home should be safe providing you comply with the repayments set out by the court, failure to do so could mean that the claimant will apply for a Charging Order. The debt would then become secured against your property behind your mortgage, so should you come to sell your house the secured debts would be repaid prior to you receiving any equity. In extreme cases the claimant could petition for the sale of your house in order to get the debt repaid.
Non-payment of a CCJ
If you do not pay your CCJ the claimant could apply for a Charging Order (explained above) or in some cases an Attachment of Earnings.
An Attachment of Earnings is an order to deduct money directly from your wages. You can respond to this using the form N56. This form will allow you to vary the judgement and should avoid the need for instalments to be deducted from your pay, which means you will not have to involve your employer.
If an Attachment of Earnings is successful your employer will be contacted by the court, the agreed amount will be deducted from your wages at source along with £1 administration fee.
For more information on Attachment of Earnings visit: