The first step of the CCJ process is for the creditor to start this procedure, and you will be sent a CCJ Claim Form. This form will highlight how much the creditor believes they are owed.
An Admission Form will also be sent to you, which allows you your chance to respond to the claim and put your side of the story across as to why the creditor is claimed they are owed this money. It is important that you complete it and send it back within 14 days; this means that you can avoid a default judgment being issued.
During the CCJ process, you will essentially have four ways to respond to the CCJ claim:
Pay the debt in full. If you pay back the debt in full, along with any interest and court fees shown, then you can avoid being issued with a CCJ as no court hearing will take place.
Pay later or in instalments. If you go through this route then you need to fill in the form to say how you wish to pay back the debt, but a CCJ will still be issued against you.
Dispute the debt. If you think the amount that the creditor is claiming for is incorrect, then send the forms back explaining why you believe this is the case. You should pay back what you believe the creditor is owed. The Court will then decide who is right and, if it goes in favour of the creditor, you will be issued with a CCJ. If you believe that you do not owe anything at all, then return the Defence Form to the court explaining why you believe that this is the case. The ‘Acknowledgement of Service’ form will allow you to ask for more time to put together an argument.
You are owed money from your creditor. It could be that you don’t believe that you owe money to the creditor, but in actual fact they are in debt to you. This could be the case, for example, if a builder sues you for non-payment but you think he is in debt to you for breaching the contract. If this is the case then you will to fill out the counterclaim form, although there may be a charge for this.
Ensure that you do not miss the deadline for the claim or else the creditor could request a default judgment, which means that you won’t be able to explain your personal circumstances and the result of the CCJ process could demand that you make the full payment to the debt in one lump-sum.
For further information about the CCJ process, please call our expert debt advisors today on 0800 048 1752.