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Debt Recovery Pricing

Business to business debt recovery for claims of up to £100,000

References to VAT are to the prevailing rate, which is currently 20%.

General

It is difficult for solicitors to provide accurate estimates for the cost of Court claims, given their unpredictability. Whether a claim is defended or not will impact on the likely costs to be incurred.

Where claims are defended, the costs to be incurred will vary depending upon:

  • The number of disputed issues
  • The complexity of the issues/law
  • The number of parties involved
  • The number of witnesses involved
  • The extent of or the need for expert evidence
  • The tactical steps that have to be considered
  • The Court’s requirements and directions
  • The extent of compliance with Court orders by both sides

In addition to the fact that we are unlikely to know what position will be taken by an opponent at the outset, issues may arise during the course of a claim which cannot reasonably be foreseen at the outset. Such factors may have a significant impact on the work involved, and, therefore, the cost incurred.

 

Undefended debt recovery

To provide a degree of certainty, for straight forward, undefended unpaid invoice debt recovery, we offer a fixed price service as follows (the fees stated are based on an hourly rate of £200 plus VAT will be added at the prevailing rate):

 

Letter before action:

  • Debts up to £5,000 - £150.00 plus VAT
  • Debts between £5,000.01 and £10,000 - £200.00 plus VAT
  • Debts over £10,000 and up to £25,000 - £250.00 plus VAT

Issuing Court proceedings and obtaining an undefended judgment in default: - £300 plus VAT

 

Court fees:

  • Debts up to £5000 - £35.00 - £205.00
  • Debts between £5001 and £10,000 - £455.00
  • Debts over £10,000 - £200,000 - 5% of the value of the claim
  • Debts over £200,000 - £10,000.00

Any debts over £25,000 we will quote individually.

 

Our fees for this work include:

  • Taking your initial instructions and reviewing your documentation
  • Sending the letter before action
  • Receiving payment and sending it on to you, or, if the debt is not paid, drafting and issuing the claim.
  • Where no Acknowledgement of Service or Defence is received, applying to the Court for judgment in default.
  • When judgment in default is given, writing to the other side to request payment.
  • If payment is not received within the required period of time, providing you with advice on the next steps and likely.

 

Defended debt recovery

If proceedings are defended, the costs will increase. Our charges for dealing with such claims will differ, depending on whether the value of the disputed claim is below or over £10,000. Below, we have referred to debt claims of up to £10,000 as “Small Claims”.

 

Small Claims Defended Debt Recovery

Where Small Claims are defended, we offer the following fixed price to deal with such matters, following the issue of proceedings. These prices apply to defending Small Claims as well as to pursuing them:

 

Value - Up to £10,000

Stage:

  

Pre-Issue. Letter of claim or responding to Letter of claim

£200.00 - £600.00 plus VAT

Drafting Claim Form and Particulars of Claim or Defence

£300.00 - £600.00 plus VAT

Directions Questionnaire

£50.00 plus VAT

Preparing Witness Statement (per statement)

£400 - £1,000 plus VAT

Preparation for and attendance at Final Hearing

(to be conducted by one of our representatives or a barrister)

£1,000 - £2,000 VAT

TOTAL

£1,950 - £4,250 plus VAT

 

This table shows the minimum and maximum costs for dealing with these matters. The actual cost will depend on the amount of work involved in the case, which will be affected by a number of factors, including the amount of the claim, its complexity, the number of issues of involved, the amount of documents, the number of parties and witnesses, the length/amount of evidence being given and the urgency of instructions. The more of the above listed factors apply to your case, the more likely you are to be towards the upper end of this range, and, conversely, the fewer there are, the more likely you are to be towards the bottom end.

All the above costs are subject to exclusions and our terms and conditions, and, if more than one stage is reached, are cumulative. If the case settles at any stage and work has been carried out for that stage, our charges for that stage will still be payable.

Court fees are payable in addition, as above.

For details of the work that is not included in the above stages, and of additional costs that might be incurred in such matters, see here.

DEFENDED DEBT RECOVERY OVER £10,000

Defended claims for unpaid invoices for over £10,000 will be charged on an hourly rate. Our hourly charging rates range from £140.00 to £365.00 plus VAT, depending on the seniority of the lawyer dealing with the claim. The costs of pursuing such claims (beyond the fixed fees referred to above) will depend upon the amount of work that is involved and the issues raised above. Given these factors, our costs for handling the claim to a conclusion could range from £2500 to £100,000 plus VAT. The more of the above listed factors apply to your case, the more likely you are to be towards the upper end of this range, and, conversely, the fewer there are, the more likely you are to be towards the bottom end.

 

The key stages of defended debt claims are likely to be:

  • Issue of claim
  • Filing of Defence (and Counterclaim, where appropriate)
  • Defence to Counterclaim, where appropriate
  • Court administration papers exchanged and completed
  • Court timetable set, providing for:
    • Filing of any other claims
    • Exchanging documentary evidence
    • Exchanging witness evidence
    • Obtaining expert evidence
    • Other preparatory hearings
    • Trial

However, as indicated above, issues may arise during the handling of the claim which result in other steps having to be taken, including applications to the Court requiring the parties to undertake such steps, or to change deadlines that have already been set. These steps will add to our costs, and may result in additional Court fees being paid. Also, issues and evidence arising during the preparation of the case may result in the length of the trial being altered once it has been set.

Additional costs and charges will be incurred if it becomes necessary to make or defend appeals.

 

During the handling of your claim, we may have to pay other people to carry out roles on our behalf. These are known as disbursements, and may include:

  • Barristers’ fees for preparing Court documents, advising on issues in the case and conducting hearings, including the trial. The amount of these fees will depend on the same issues that will affect the amount of our charges and, therefore, will be in the same sort of range as indicated for our own charges. Barristers’ fees are also likely to be subject to VAT.
  • Experts’ fees. These might include the preparation of reports by surveyors, engineers or the like depending on the subject matter of the claim. The amount of their charges will depend on the amount of work they are required to undertake, and their experience/seniority. If they have to attend Court to give evidence at any hearings, their costs will increase. Consequently, it is impossible to indicate at the outset how much such costs might be. Most experts’ fees are likely to be subject to VAT.
  • Court fees. See above in respect of issue fees. It is also necessary to pay additional Court fees during the claim as follows:
  • The Court’s fee for the trial: £27 to £1175, depending on the value of the claim or the length of the trial
  • Application fee (for hearings on notice): £303
  • Application fee (without notice): £119

ENFORCEMENT

Once judgment is obtained, it may be necessary to enforce that judgment through further Court action. We can provide you upon request with details of the options available for enforcement and the associated costs.

SPECIFIC ESTIMATES

Given the issues raised above, we will always attempt to provide you with a more relevant and specific estimate of the likely costs of your case, once we have been able to obtain detailed instructions from you about the issues involved. To contact one of our lawyers about your case, and to find out more about the costs that might be incurred, please contact us.