Legal fees information for undisputed debt claims up to £100,000

At Canfields Law we pride ourselves in providing tailored debt recovery advice. However no two cases are the same. On this basis we recommend that you contact us in the first instance to have a chat about recovering the debt that is owed to you, this will help us understand your circumstances better and our fees will be as close to possible to the estimates we provide below.

Fee earners dealing with your work

The following lawyers deal with debt recovery work:

• Haris Ahmed – Head of Litigation (£275 per hour plus VAT = £330 per hour total);

Our fees include the following steps

Depending on the nature of instructions, our work could involve the following steps:

• Taking instructions and reviewing limited documentation.
• Undertaking appropriate searches, for example company searches on debtor.
• Sending a letter or a more particularised letter before action to debtor.
• Receiving payment and sending it to you, or if the debt has not been paid, drafting and issuing claim at court.
• Where no Acknowledgment of Service or Defence is received, applying to court to enter a Judgment in Default.
• When Judgment in Default is received, writing to the other side to request payment.
• If payment is not received within x days, providing you with advice on the next steps and likely costs.

Costs estimates/our legal fees

Our legal fees are the amount you pay us for the work that we undertake for you. This includes reviewing and acting on your instructions, from the point of being instructed all the way to the conclusion of your case. VAT is charged on top of the fees which is currently at 20%. We may charge disbursements(payments made to third parties) on top of our legal fees, the main disbursements may include counsel fees and court fees, if necessary. If VAT is applicable on the disbursements, then we shall advise you of this. 

Given that no two cases are the same and that every case will have its own nuances, we are unable to provide a fixed fee for our costs. We can, however, provide the following guideline costs estimates. The following guideline estimates assume that the claim is in relation to a debt (of no more than £100,000) which is undisputed and that no enforcement action (for example by a bailiff) is needed. 

Where no court claim is issued

• £550 – £2,750 plus VAT (this will include taking instructions and reviewing limited documentation, undertaking appropriate searches, sending a letter or a letter before action (as appropriate), reviewing a simple response from the debtor (if any), and receiving payment and sending it to you).

Where court claim is issued

• £2,750 – £5,500 plus VAT (this will include (if necessary) all the steps listed above plus issuing claim at court, applying for Judgment in Default where no Acknowledge of Service or Defence is received, once Judgment in Default is received then writing to the debtor requesting payment, then either transferring payment to you if received, or if payment has not been received in x days advising you of the next steps and likely costs).

If the debtor disputes your claim at any point (for example, either by advising us of the same during initial correspondence before a claim is issued at court, or by way of filing a Defence to the claim) we will then discuss the further work required and will provide you with a revised costs estimate, which could be on a fixed fee basis (if for instance, a one off further letter was needed), alternatively, we may provide an hourly rate if more extensive work is needed. Our hourly rates are also subject to change from time to time, so please ask us of the most recent hourly rates upon instructions. 

Anyone wishing to proceed with the claim should note that:

• Our full fees may not be recoverable from the debtor;
• Interest and compensation may take the debt to a higher banding, with higher consequent costs;
• The costs quoted above are not for matters where enforcement action, such as instructing a bailiff, is needed.

Disbursements/other costs payable

In addition to our legal fees above, you may also incur additions costs, as detailed below.

Court fees 

If a claim needs to be issued at court, you will be required to pay court fees. These court fees are regularly updated by the courts and as such we have no control over this. The current court fees are available here https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fees-in-the-civil-and-family-courts-main-fees-ex50/civil-court-fees-ex50 

To summarise, the following court fees are payable:

Counsel (barrister) fees

These will depend on the seniority of the counsel and/or the complexity of the work involved. For example, if you choose a very experienced counsel then his/her fees are likely to be higher. Counsel fees can range anywhere between £500 to £20,000 + VAT. 

Miscellaneous expenses

You may also incur costs for travel and background searches on a debtor (for example insolvency orders).

How long will you claim take to resolve

Matters usually take between 4 to 6 weeks from the time of your instructions to receiving payment from the debtor, assuming that no claim needs to be issued at court and that the debtor pays further to the receipt of the letter before action. 

If a claim needs to be issued at court then we will aim to obtain Judgement in Default in undefended claims between 4 to 8 from the point of issuance of the claim. 

Please note that the above time estimates are subject to change depending on the particular circumstances of the claim and we will provide you with updated estimates as the matter progresses.