Speed and efficiency are vital for the successful recovery of any debt and the Debt Recovery Unit at Gotelee can assist you from the moment a debt becomes overdue. We are successful in recovering debts for our clients because, quite simply, we are experienced specialists in debt recovery. We know the tricks debtors use to avoid making payment and, more importantly, the best tactics to set in place to successfully recover the money owed to your business.
What follows is a guide to the debt recovery process. For more details of how we can help please email Joshua Ripman (or call 01473 298193).
Letter Before Action
A letter Before Action demands payment from the debtor within 7 days (UK debts) and 14 days (non-UK debts), failing which County Court Proceedings can be commenced. You can expect that in approximately 70% - 80% of cases, the sending of a letter before action will result in the debt being paid.
If we receive instructions to commence County Court proceedings we will check the status of the debtor if it is a limited company. If it is an individual we will carry out various checks to verify the debtors correct address. We will also calculate interest due on the debt whether by way of contractual interest from your terms and conditions or statutory interest from the date the debt became overdue. In some circumstances we will also claim a sum of compensation of between £40 and £100.
County Court Proceedings
If payment in full is not made by the date given in the Letter Before Action, on your instruction, we will commence County Court Proceedings.
The Claim Form will detail the debt due, any interest and/or compensation, our fixed costs and the Court issue fee. You will be advised in writing of the total value of the claim. When we receive notification from the Court that the proceedings have been served on the debtor, we will let you know and advise you the date the debtor is to have responded to the claim.
If the debtor does not respond to the claim by the required date we will request Judgment in default. Once Judgment in Default has been received, we will contact you to discuss enforcement proceedings. If the debtor does respond to the claim by way of an admission, part admission, defence and/or counterclaim we will contact you to discuss the implications of the debtor’s response.
Judgment and Enforcement
If a County Court Judgment isn't enough to prompt payment from the debtor, enforcement proceedings will be necessary. We will make contact with you when Judgment is received in order to run you through the various methods of enforcement. It is at this stage that our service excels. We will advise you on the most appropriate method(s) of enforcement taking into account all of the information in hand about the judgment debtor. In a nutshell these are:
- Warrant of Execution (Judgments of less than £600)
- Writ of FiFa (Judgments in excess of £600)
- Charging Order
- Attachment of Earnings Order
- Third Party Debt Order.
Where little information is known about the Judgment debtor it is also possible to make an application for the Judgment debtor or an officer of the Judgment debtor to attend Court to answer questions about his/her/its financial incomings and outgoings.
Bankruptcy and Winding Up proceedings
Bankruptcy and winding up proceedings are both options when the debt in question is in excess of £750.
Proceedings are usually commenced by serving the debtor with a statutory demand which provides a set number of days in which the debtor must respond. If no response is made, bankruptcy proceedings (for individuals) or winding up proceedings (limited companies) can be commenced. Both of these procedures are technical and can be costly.
Debt Recovery Abroad
Our debt recovery specialists have direct experience of recovering debts both within the European Union and further afield. The procedure is slightly different to recovering a debt within England or Wales.
If you require more information about recovering a debt from a foreign debtor or an estimate of the costs involved please our Debt Recovery specialist solicitor Joshua Ripman (or call 01473 298193).