Services and pricing for debt collection

The information below concerns debt collection services for debts of up to £100,000.

You may be owed money for any number of reasons, but the details below are written for collection of money owed on an unpaid trade invoice.

A debt may be disputed or undisputed. The approach, and the cost, will depend on this factor.

Undisputed debt

An undisputed debt may be pursued by a statutory demand (leading potentially to the debtor’s bankruptcy) or by litigation (leading to a court judgment).  Which route to take will depend on the circumstances of the debt and of the debtor. The fees below consider each of these. Nevertheless, in any case the aim is for early settlement of the matter before it gets to court and the recovery of the debt.

Our role

We will:

  • Consider the documentation you supply
  •  Advise you on the claim
  • Write an opening letter to the debtor (and further correspondence)
  • Advise you on any responses received and on your options for the next course of action
  • Draft and serve a statutory demand (if appropriate) or legal proceedings
  • Follow-up action

You role

You must:

  • Provide as much documentation and information as you can
  • Pay the court fees and other fees in advance

Costs

We will discuss the pricing with you in the individual matter. We would expect our fee to be 10% of the debt to carry the matter through to judgment on an undisputed claim.  VAT is added to this fee

The court fees in the County Court are set nationally. The fee for the Court to issue the claim depends on the level of the claim:

  • £3,000 – £5,000: £185
  • £5,001 -£10,000: £410
  • £10,001 -£100,000: 4.5% of the value of the claim

The fees and deposit payable to the Court in bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings following a statutory demand are:

  • Court fee: £280
  • Petition deposit:
    • Individual debtor: £990
    • Company debtor: £1,600

Disputed debt

If the debtor disputes the debt, whether they deny owing anything or they just dispute the amount, this is a matter of litigation. Our aim is still to resolve the matter before it reaches the court and the initial steps remain the same (except that the statutory demand procedure cannot be used).

In this case the time to resolve the matter depends on the course of the dispute, the nature of the evidence and that debtor’s defence to your claim. In this case our charges will be made on the hourly rates set out in our general Terms of Engagement.