CCJ Collection & Enforcement

An Attachment of Earnings can be an extremely effective recovery tool against a debtor who is employed (but not self-employed).

Put simply, a fixed amount is collected from the debtor's employer on a weekly or monthly basis and transferred to you, the creditor. This is achieved by means of a two-part action.

Initially the court will instruct a debtor to complete a form illustrating their incoming funds and outgoing costs, this is called a statement of means. Should the debtor refuse to co-operate the court may require them to attend to provide this information. Again, if the debtor fails to comply with the courts direction it is possible that they can be sent to prison for up to 14 days or fined for not supplying the information.

Once the information is received from the debtor the court will set a Protected Earnings threshold, which enables your debtor to cover their basic living expenses. From the remainder the court will decide on a suitable monthly repayment amount and will instruct the debtors employer to pay this amount direct to you.

This avenue of enforcement is extremely effective, however it may take longer to recoup the full amount than some of the other options available.

For any County Court Judgment with a value in excess £600 is suitable to be "Transferred Up" to the High Court for enforcement.

We will act in association with our fully accredited and authorised High Court Enforcement partners to seize any physical assets your debtor may hold.  A High Court Enforcement Officer (HCEO) has very different powers to those of a Bailiff employed by the County Court and can:

Force entry to Commercial Premises on the first visit to levy on or remove goods providing the property is not physically attached to or forms any part of a residential dwelling.

Climb fences, walls or gates to access the grounds of a Residential Premises and subsequently use any open window or door to gain peaceful admittance.

Once inside a Residential Premises the HCEO can break down internal doors to seek out and levy on the debtor's goods or assets.

Force entry into any outbuilding, barn, garage, stables or other structure found on a debtor's property, provided it is not attached to a Residential Premises and does not form any part of the dwelling.

A High Court Enforcement Officer will seek to recover all of their considerable fees from your debtor, these added costs in combination with the more purposeful enforcement action they take, will often help focus the mind of your debtor in a very short time.

Previously known as an Oral Exam, an Order to Obtain Information is a method we can use to investigate the assets of a debtor.

For a fixed fee your debtor will be summoned to court to be interviewed at length by a senior court official or District Judge about their assets. If the debtor is a Limited Company the Managing Director or a senior Management figure will be summoned to answer questions about the company's assets.

If the debtor does not co-operate with the court it is possible the matter may be referred to a higher judge, usually a circuit judge, who can issue a fine or even send the debtor to prison for up to 14 days.

The order can be a very effective way to investigate the debtor's assets, as the interview is conducted under oath. The inconvenience of being summoned to court plus the very real penalties for failing to attend can often be all that is required to bring forth payment.

Some debt collection companies will say that the most effective means to enforce a Judgment in excess of £750 against a private individual is to instigate Personal Bankruptcy proceedings.

We do not agree.

Personal Bankruptcy proceedings will almost never result in an unsecured creditor receiving payment and any agency that tries to tell you anything to the contrary will often have an ulterior motive. Even if you are the creditor that instigates the proceedings you will not become a "preferential" creditor (such as a mortgagee) and your Judgment will remain unsecured. Whilst in theory it is possible that unsecured creditors will receive a payment after all preferential creditors, in practice this is very rarely the case unless the individual in question has significant assets within the UK and crucially that are not ultimately owned by another entity.

As a general rule we will not recommend this course of action to our client's as the fees are considerable, often in the region of £1500-£2500 and the likelihood of seeing any return on the investment is negligible.

However if your debtor has considerable assets or cash reserves it can be profitable to pursue this avenue of enforcement.

If your judgment is registered against a limited entity, Ie a Ltd, Llp or Plc company then you can petition the court to have the debtor company "wound up". Compulsory liquidation or "winding up" as it is known is a court-based procedure that forces an insolvent company into liquidation, the liquidator then looks to realise all of the companies assets with a view to making payment to its creditors prior to the dissolution of the business.

Whilst it can be a very effective tool in your armoury, it is not without its own risks and it is not an inexpensive option with fees often totalling around £2500.00 including disbursements.

If however your debtor company has significant assets it can be a worthwhile avenue to pursue in enforcement.