Debt Recovery Lawyers for You

There are three main stages in the debt collection process:

• Pre-action letter to the debtor, outlining the amount owed – often this is enough to secure repayment without further action needed
• Court proceedings for the amount owed, including interest on the original sum and compensation for late payment
• Enforcement of the court’s decision – this may involve bailiff action, a Charging Order or Third Party Debt Order

We always base our approach on your circumstances and priorities, helping to ensure we can efficiently and effectively recover the money you are owed in a way that works for you.

Many clients question whether the amount they’re owed is enough to warrant legal action, whilst others think it’ll be too expensive to use a debt recovery expert.

While the exact costs involved will depend on the circumstances, in many cases we are able to recover debts quickly and for a relatively low cost, meaning our debt recovery services are generally highly cost-effective.

We always aim for complete transparency over our costs, so will make sure we provide you with an estimate of how much your debt recovery is likely to cost before you decide to take action. That way you can be confident that using our lawyers to recover a debt is a sound financial decision.

Speak to us about our fees and we will be happy to discuss the various options so we can help find a cost-effective debt recovery solution for you.

While there is no strict time limit on how long you have to recover a debt, after a certain period the debt will become ‘statute barred’, meaning you can no longer take court action to recover the debt. While you can still attempt to recover a debt once it’s statute barred, you have few legal options if the debtor simply ignores you or refuses to pay.

How long you have before a debt becomes statute barred will depend on the type of debt. For most debts, you will have six years from the day when payment was originally due, but there are certain types of debts, such as mortgages, which have different time limits.

This can vary considerably. If the person who owes you money does not dispute the debt and has no reason to delay payment. However, if the debtor disputes the debt, claims to be unable to pay or have other reasons for delaying payment, or if they simply fail to respond to our communications, recovering your debt could take significantly longer.

While our debt recovery lawyers can typically recover most debts voluntarily, there are various enforcement actions we can take to enable a debt to be collected on your behalf.

Some of the most commonly used debt recovery enforcement options we can offer include applying to the relevant local court for one of more of the following:

County Court Judgement (CCJ) – This will set out the debt owed and specify that the debtor has 30 days to make payment. If they do not do so, the CCJ will stay on their credit record for 6 years, acting as a strong incentive for payment.

Warrant of Execution – The court will appoint a bailiff to visit the debtor and demand payment. The bailiff will be empowered to seize goods from the debtor up to the value of the debt owed, if required.

Charging Order – Places a charge on property owned by the debtor, meaning if they later sell the property, they will be required to repay the debt from the proceeds of the sale.

Order of Sale – Forces the debtor to sell a property to repay their debt.

Attachment of Earnings Order – Can be used for debts owed by an individual. Forces their employer to deduct money from the debtor’s wages to repay the debt.

You are usually entitled to claim interest on any money you are owed. Exactly what rate of interest applies will depend on the circumstances, but for many types of debt the rate is set at 8%.

This will depend on the type of debt and the nature of the relationship between you/your business and the person who owed you money.

Typical evidence of a debt includes:

• Emails, letters or other written correspondence
• Receipts
• Statements of accounts

While it is your responsibility to prove that the debt is owed, once you have established that the debt is legitimate, it is up to the debtor to prove either that they have paid or that there is a good reason for their failure to pay.