County court Judgement | CCJ

What is a County Court Judgement (CCJ)?

A CCJ or County Court Judgement is a judgement that is issued by the court when you have failed to make payments on your debts. The courts set an affordable regular payment based on your individual circumstances.

A CCJ is normally issued after you have made little or no attempts to make some sort of arrangement with your creditors. In order for a creditor to apply to the court to issue a CCJ, they must have previously sent a default notice to you.

The process of a CCJ

• Your creditor applies to the court for a claim form to be issued
• The form is stamped by the court and issued, along with a response pack which entails
  • Defence Form - Complete if you disagree with the claim
  • Admission Form - Complete if you admit to owing the amount on the claim form
  • Acknowledgement of Service - You should complete this if you need extra time to complete or defend the claim. (it will give you 28 days instead of 14)
• Send the relevant court forms back
• Upon admission of the claim, the court arrange an affordable repayment scheme, which you must adhere to until the CCJ is paid off.
• Upon denial of the claim, the court will arange a court hearing to discuss and solve the problem, which you must attend.

Unable to pay a CCJ

If you can't afford the payments of the CCj you must obtain a form for an "Application to Vary an Order" (N245) There may be a fee involved if the application is not made within 14 days.

If you can't pay any of the CCJ, you will need to fill out an "Application Notice" form (N244) which can have the judgmement set aside. You will need to submit a new income and expenditure along with a fee. A hearing date will be set for you to attend the court to discuss your situation. A representative of the creditor may also appear.

Finding out if you have a CCJ

A CCJ will appear on your credit file. You can get a copy of your credit file from any of the three credit reference agencies.

How will a CCJ affect my credit file?

A CCJ will appear on your credit file for 6 years. However, your credit rating will have already been affected by non payment of the debt. If you pay a CCJ in full within 30 days, it will not go on your credit file.