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What is a County Court Judgment
Ryan Jones • 21 February 2023
What is a County Court Judgment (CCJ)?
A County Court Judgment (CCJ) is a type of court order in England, Wales and Northern Ireland that could be registered against you or a business if you fail to repay an outstanding debt.
How do creditors get a county court judgment (CCJ)?
Your creditor will issue a claim via the courts in an attempt to obtain a a county court judgment (CCJ) (or high court judgment) if someone takes court action against you and you fail to respond or your defence is rejected.
You must respond to the county court by the date stated on the claim pack you receive. If the claimant is granted judgment it will l come in the post and will explain:
- how much you owe
- how to pay (in full or in instalments)
- the deadline for paying
- who to pay
Are judgments registered?
Historically, it was only judgments made in the county court which were a matter of public record as they were registered in the Registry of County Court Judgments. However, since 2006 all county court and high court judgments can be registered in the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines unless they are exempt.
What details are included in a registered judgment?
The courts send details of eligible judgments for registration to Registry Trust Limited, which maintains the Register of Judgments. Details on judgments include:
- the full name of the judgment debtor (the person who owes money)
- the judgment debtor’s address
- the judgment debtor’s date of birth (if known)
- the date of the judgment debt
- the amount of the judgment debt
- the court’s name
- the claim number
How can a creditors enforce a CCJ?
Unless enforced correctly a County Court Judgment (CCJ) is just a piece of paper telling a debtor they are liable for the amount claimed. There are various options that creditor can take if a defendant fails to pay the County Court Judgment (CCJ).
The claimant can apply to the court to take any of the following enforcement actions:
- Summon the defendant to court and ask for evidence concerning why they cannot/will not pay the debt
- Make an order deducting an amount from the defendant’s salary each month until the debt is paid
- If the defendant is a business, the court can demand they present their accounts and explain why the debt has not been paid
- The court can freeze the defendant’s bank account, building society, or business accounts and use monies from these accounts to pay the debt
- A charge can be made over the defendant’s property (this means that if the property is sold, the defendant must pay the amount before taking any money from the sale for themselves)
- Bailiffs can be dispatched to the defendant’s premises to recover the money owed
- A winding-up petition to close or ‘wind up’ the company can be made (if granted, the company’s assets will be sold, and any excess funds will be paid to creditors)
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What is Credit Control and How Can Outsourcing Help? Credit control is an important part of a business’s financial management strategy. It is designed to reduce credit risk and ensure that debtors are paying their debts on time. Credit control systems help businesses to identify customers who are at higher risk of defaulting on their payments, and also help them to collect outstanding debts. With the right credit control system in place, businesses can manage their credit risks more effectively and minimize losses due to bad debt. Outsourcing credit control can be a great way to free up your employees and resources to focus on other aspects of your business. By outsourcing this task, you can save time and money that would otherwise be spent on hiring additional staff or investing in costly training programmes. Furthermore, you can also benefit from the expertise of experienced professionals who have an in-depth knowledge of credit control processes and regulations. This will help you ensure that all accounts receivable are managed efficiently, while also reducing the risk of bad debts. Benefits of Outsourcing Your Credit Control Functions Outsourcing credit control offers businesses a range of benefits to improve cashflow, reduce costs and free up key resources. It can help to ensure that invoices are paid on time and the process is managed in an efficient and effective manner. With outsourced credit control, businesses can gain access to expertise and experience in the field of debt collection. This means that they can benefit from improved processes, as well as aged debt recovery and can help make better decisions about when and how to extend credit, as well as strategies for collecting payments quickly and efficiently. For your employees, outsourcing can help to reduce stress levels for staff by taking away the burden of chasing payments or handling difficult debtors. How to Choose an Outsourcing Partner for Credit Control Services Outsourcing Credit Control can be a great way to increase efficiency and reduce costs, but it can also be seen as a risk to your business relationships. Many businesses fear that outsourcing their credit control team will lead to strained relationships with their customers and suppliers. However, taking on a company with a strong reputation for exceptional service and interaction with debtors will mitigate this risk and ensure that their involvement does not jeopardise your business relationships. When choosing an outsourcing partner for credit control services, it is important to consider their experience in the industry, their customer service record, and the quality of their services. It will always be valuable to look for a partner who is willing to provide tailored solutions that meet your specific needs. Be sure to take into consideration the cost of their services so that you can make an informed decision, there is a wide range of options and companies out there offering these services. Best Practices for Implementing an Effective Credit Control System Getting paid on time is a challenge that many businesses face. It involves constantly chasing payment with reminder emails or calling your customers for an update on when your invoice will be paid. This process can be time-consuming and tedious, but it is necessary to ensure your business's financial health. To ensure that debts are paid in a timely manner, it is important to have effective credit control processes in place here are a few examples that are worth implementing even if outsourcing is not on the immediate horizon. Before entering into any contract, it is important to conduct thorough research on your new customer or client. This will help you make sure that your customer or client is reliable and trustworthy, and that you can be confident in the agreement you are about to enter into. Researching a potential new customer or client can involve checking references, verifying information provided by the customer or client, and conducting credit checks. If your business is often spending time chasing late payments from customers, it might be worth reconsidering your invoicing processes. By making your invoices as clear and concise as possible, you can avoid any confusion or misunderstandings about payment terms. This will help ensure that customers know exactly what they need to do in order to pay you on time. Additionally, having a consistent invoicing system will help streamline your processes and save you time chasing up late payments in the future. Make the Right Choice & Outsource Your Business's Credit Control Functions Today! Healthy cashflow is crucial to the success of any business, it’s amazing how many businesses neglect their credit control function and often employ inexperienced workers or overworked accountants. Outsourcing these functions to a trustworthy and experience party can have huge benefits for companies struggling to keep onto of credit control functions. Outsourcing credit control can help improve your business cashflow, reduce bad debt, improve client relationships and provide reliable solutions without the need for costly in-house solutions. Recoup is a leading debt collection and credit control company that has been in business for decades. With our extensive experience, they have developed bespoke solutions tailored to the specific needs of a wide variety of businesses. 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