We charge fixed fees for dealing with a claim for the recovery of a debt, of up to £50,000.00, due under an unpaid invoice. Such fixed fees will apply to standard cases which we will pursue through the County Court Business Centre. Complex or cases of over £50,000.00 in value will require a bespoke approach and we will provide you with an estimate as to costs and other information specific to your needs. We do offer discounts on volume, so please contact us to discuss your requirements.
Fixed fees are offered on the basis of a standard case and our fees will include:
- Taking your instructions and reviewing documentation;
- Sending a Letter before Action;
- Receiving payment and sending on to you or, if the debt is not paid, drafting and issuing the Court claim;
- When no acknowledgment of service or defence is received, applying to the Court to enter Judgment in Default;
- When Judgment in Default is received, writing to the other side to request payment;
- Accounting to you if payment is received or providing you with advice on the next steps and likely costs.
Letter of Claim
We will prepare and send on your behalf a compliant Letter of Claim.
Business to business debts = £75.00 plus VAT
Individual to business/individual debts = £250.00 plus VAT
The fee of £250.00 + VAT for individual debtors includes writing to your debtor as required under the Pre-Action Protocol which requires creditors to send detailed information and early disclosure of documents to individual debtors, together with certain prescribed forms. Under the Pre-Action Protocol individual debtors must be given a minimum of 30 days to reply and this may be extended depending on their response. Our £250.00 fee will include dealing with your debtors reply, which may involve negotiation of a payment plan, if appropriate and further disclosure of documents, if required.
These fixed fees will not include mediation or any other form of Alternative Dispute Resolution, which will be charged separately.
If we recover monies as a result of these letters, then we will charge an additional 10% on any sum that we recover.
Issuing Proceedings
Where it becomes necessary to issue legal proceedings, the following fees will apply:
Our costs:
For debts up to the sum of £10,000.00, we will charge a fixed fee of £600.00 plus VAT.
For debts between £10,001.00 to £50,000.00 we will charge a fixed fee of £3,500.00 plus VAT.
For business to business debts, the above fees will include the Letter of Claim fixed fee together with preparation of proceedings, service and obtaining Judgment in default, if no defence is filed.
For individual debtors, the above fees will be in addition to the Letter of Claim fixed fee but will include preparation of proceedings, service and obtaining Judgment in default, if no defence is filed.
If a defence is filed, or any interim applications are made, then our hourly rates will apply.
Once your claim is issued, we will no longer charge a percentage on any sums recovered.
Please be aware that, for debts up to £10,000.00 only an element of our costs will be recoverable from your debtor – this is dependent on the value of the debt. If your terms and conditions of business allow for recovery of legal fees, then further costs may be recoverable depending on the terms of the clause.
For debts over £10,000.00, our costs will be recoverable from the debtor – subject to assessment by the Court.
Court fees:
In addition, you will incur a Court fee which is payable upon issue.
In respect of debts under £10,000.00, the Court fee will vary from between £25.00 up to £410.00 depending on the value of your claim.
For debts over £10,000.00 but less than £200,000.00, the Court fee will be 5% of the value of your claim, or 4.5% of the value of your claim, if issued via Money Claims OnLine, if your claim is suitable for online issue.
For debts over £200,000.00 the court fee will be £10,000.00.
The Court fees are recoverable from your debtor
Interest and late payment charges
You may be able to recover additional interest and late payment charges from your debtor depending upon who owes the debt and the contractual arrangements.
Enforcement of the Judgment
Enforcement action will be charged separately on a fixed fee basis and we will notify you of the fixed fee and any court fees in advance, depending on the particular method of enforcement you choose to pursue.
We reserve the right to charge an administration fee, which we will agree with you in advance, if you instruct us to recover a debt by instalments.
Defended actions and debts above £50,000.00
Defended actions, interim applications and claims involving debts over £50,000.00, will be charged separately at an hourly rate. We will provide you with an estimate of the likely costs and the options available to you, once it becomes apparent that your case is being contested
How long will it take?
It is difficult to provide a precise time estimate of how long it will take to conclude a matter as it depends upon what the debtor does. However, in a case that is undisputed and where we obtain Judgment in Default which the debtor pays promptly, then it can take between 10 to 15 weeks for the matter to be resolved from the point you instruct us. If the matter is disputed or enforcement action is required, it will take longer to resolve. Individual debtors may take longer than business debtors due to the longer pre action protocol period which we are required to follow.
Who will do all the work?
Any work will be carried out by our litigation team which consists of solicitors and a legal executive, who are supported by an administrator / secretary.
