Need legal advice now from a debt recovery solicitor?
Call, email or provide us with a few details of your matter, and we’ll help you arrange an initial consultation. You’ll get:
- Unlimited time to discuss your debt recovery case with an experienced litigation solicitor
- An outline of your legal position in your debt recovery matter
- A clear fee-quote and time frame to resolve your case
The Debt Recovery Experts
- Small claims track, fast track, intermediate track, and multi-track claims
- Experienced negotiators and expert litigators
- Enforcement services to follow up if necessary
- Debt recovery applications and defence
Commonly asked questions on debt recovery.
The law surrounding debt recovery isn’t something most people come across on a daily basis, which is why our debt recovery solicitors in London and Brighton have answered some of the most commonly asked questions on the topic.
1. What is debt recovery?
Debt recovery is the process of pursuing payments of unpaid debts owed by an individual or a business.
In England and Wales, the debt recovery procedure is usually conducted through the courts. Depending on the size of the debt, your debt recovery case will be issued a ‘track’ by a judge. There are three types of track:
- Small track – for claims below £10,000
- Fast track – for claims between £10,001 to £25,000
- Intermediate – for claims between £25,000 and £100,000
- Multi-track – for claims over £100,00
If debt claims are particularly complex, they can be assigned a different track than expected. For example, a particularly complex claim below £10,000 can be assigned to the fast track if the judge thinks it necessary.
You can find out more about the tracks in our Fixed Recoverable Costs blog.
2. What is the debt recovery process?
The debt recovery process is broken up into four stages:
1. Pre-action. The claimant sends a pre-action letter or letter before action. Letters before action require the debtor to pay within 14 days if they are a business, or 30 days if they are an individual.
2. Issuing the claim. If the individual hasn’t paid the debt within the time outlined in the pre-action letter, you will need to issue the claim formally. Depending on how much your claim is for, you will need to issue it in the county court or high court.
3. Acknowledgement. Once the court has processed your claim and served it on the debtor, the debtor will have 14 days to file an acknowledgement with the court. Once acknowledged the debtor has 28 days from the date the claim form was served on them by the court (not from the date it was acknowledged) to send a defence.
4. Enforcement. If the debtor still hasn’t paid, you will have to bring enforcement proceedings. There are numerous proceedings which you can use to enforce proceedings. Some examples of enforcement proceedings include a writ of control, warrant of execution and bankruptcy proceedings. A debt recovery will identify which set of proceedings you’ll need to bring to recover your unpaid debt.
If a debt is paid after acknowledgement, you won’t need to enforce the judgement.
3. How difficult is it to recover debt?
It’s impossible to say how easy it will be for you to recover any owed debt without knowing more details about your specific case. However, to give an idea, factors that impact how easily you can recover debt include:
- The amount of debt owed
- The willingness of the debtor to repay the debt
- Whether you have to adopt enforcement proceedings to reclaim the owed debt
For more complicated debts, it’s worth arranging an intial consultation with one of our debt recovery solicitors to understand your current situation from a legal perspective and your available options. To arrange an inital consultation please call our solicitors on 020 3007 5500.
4. Do you offer legal aid for debt recovery matters?
We are currently unable to offer legal aid in any capacity as we lack the necessary legal aid certificate. We also don’t offer pro bono property law work at present.
Debt recovery: fees and work.
The cost of debt recovery can vary wildly between firms. At Britton and Time, our debt recovery solicitors are committed to giving you clear estimates of costs, telling you how long your case will last, and advising on what we are doing for you.
Average costs
The debt recovery fees below are split into court fees and our professional fees. We don’t offer fixed fees on debt recovery matters and the actual fee incurred for your matter may differ significantly from the fees below if your case is not straightforward.
In many cases, it may not be worth paying professional fees to recover smaller sized debts. Our debt recovery solicitors will always advise you on the risks of doing so at any consultation.
Issuing the claim:
Debt value | Court Fee | Our Fee (excl. VAT) | Total (excl. VAT) |
Under £10,000 | Max. £455* | From £900 | From £1,355 |
£10,001- £25,000 | 5% of the claim | From £1,200 | From £1,700 |
£25,001 + | Max £10,000 | From £1,200 | From £2,450 |
*Please note court fees are pro-rated based upon the value of your claim. Claims below £5,000 will incur fees between £35 and £205.
The fees quoted exclude enforcement and are exclusive of bailiff fees or equivalent services.
Enforcement:
Method | Disbursements | Our Fee (excl. VAT) |
Writ of control | £66 | £250 |
Third-party debt order | £110 per party and £500 for counsel | £950-£1,250 |
Attachment of earnings order | £110 per defendant | £450-£750* |
Charging order | £110 per order, £6 per land registry title and £500-£900 for counsel | £950 |
*Should a hearing be required, additional fees will be payable.
Hourly rates
Depending on who is working on your case, our hourly rates are as follows:
Senior solicitors £400 plus VAT per hour
Solicitors £275 plus VAT per hour
Trainees and paralegals £175 plus VAT per hour
Administration £150 plus VAT per hour
Charges are made in increments of 1/10 of an hour, or for every 6 minutes spent on your matter, rounded up.
Work involved
The stages below are indicative of the work involved in a standard debt recovery claim from issuing a letter before action to enforcement. Depending on your matter, not all of the stages may be applicable.
- Taking your instructions and reviewing the documentation
- Undertaking appropriate searches
- Sending a letter before action
- Receiving payment and sending onto you, or if the debt is not paid, drafting and issuing a claim
- Where no Acknowledgment of Service or Defence is received, applying to the court to enter Judgement in default
- When Judgement in default in received, write to the other side to request payment
- If payment is not received within a set number of days, providing you with advice on the next steps and likely costs
- Pursuing the claim in court and assembling your case
- Once a favourable result is achieved, applying for enforcement if necessary
Factors affecting costs
No two debt recovery matters are the same, and several factors affect how much your case will cost.
Cost variables include
- The size of the debt
- Whether or not the debtor has the capability to pay their debt
- The need for enforcement if the debtor chooses not to pay
- The terms and conditions within any written contract
- The conduct of the parties
- Any aggravating factors, e.g. is there any fraud involved or any other offences
Disbursements and third party costs
There are several disbursements payable during debt recovery, which range from £25 to £10,000 depending on the size of your claim.
Please see the ‘Average Costs’ section above for a full outline of all applicable court fees.
How long will a debt recovery claim take?
The length of time a case takes will depend on the complexity of your matter. For straightforward cases that settle after a letter before action, it may only take 1-2 weeks.
However, for cases that proceed to the County or High Court, the time frame for your case could be anything from 6 months to 2 years from start to end.
Need legal advice now from a debt recovery solicitor in London or Brighton?
Tell us about your case and we’ll get back to you the same day.
Meet our expert litigation team.
Paul Britton
Managing Director
Sophie Campbell-Adams
Director and Solicitor
Rory Lindsay
Solicitor
Leonardo Bosco
Solicitor
Alexander Grist
Trainee Solicitor
Aryan Fallahi
Trainee Solicitor
Grace Marchant
Trainee Solicitor
Why Britton and Time Solicitors?
Debt recovery law is our speciality. Our solicitors have worked on various debt recovery cases, which have given our solicitors an abundance of knowledge and experience in this area of law. When it comes to your specific debt recovery case, we’ll always guarantee:
Award-Winning Service.
You are our priority, and the law is our speciality. Our award-winning debt recovery solicitors in London and Brighton ensure you know exactly where you stand from a legal perspective so you can make a well-informed decision.
Full Billing Transparency.
No fee surprises. Ever. Our debt recovery solicitors will inform you from the outset on how much your case will cost, and we will do everything in our power to keep costs down and within your original fee estimate.
Regular Communication.
With fortnightly updates on your case, you’ll never be left in the dark. Our debt recovery solicitors in London and Brighton ensure you know exactly how your case is progressing and are with you every step of the way.
Our reviews.
It’s not about how good we think our services are; it’s about what you think.
Will to Win
There are three things that make Britton & Time, and in particular Paul, stand apart from other law firms: knowledge, communication and a will to win.
Rated excellent by over 95% of our clients.
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Need legal advice now from our debt recovery solicitor in London or Brighton?
Call, email or provide us with a few details of your matter, and we’ll be able to help you the same day.