CCJ removal?

[jaisunny]

Hello, new here.

Right i received a CCJ 2 years ago, i was staying with my partner (not at my usual address) for about 4/5 months due to stress/anxiety and also being off work with this. I therefore did not reply to in time the court papers that came through the door. When i did eventually get to the paperwork (late) i put it to one side thinking its some kind of scam (stupid me i know). A year later i checked my credit report randomly and smack CCJ warning on my report, i looked into it and realised those court papers a year ago were real.

Anyway, i have since written 2 or 3 letters to the company that took me to court without a single response.

It was for something stupid like £130 or something around that figure, the total on my CB is £177 im guessing included court fees..etc?

The money owed was actually some import charges when me and my friend ordered something from china (the parcel was addressed to me). When i got the charges at the time i remember writing to the relevant department asking for it to be wiped as the contents valuation were incorrect with the contents of the package being not for resale/test pieces.

So as you now know i have got this CCJ purely for being thick, but its not deserved.

£177 really is NOTHING, i would pay it off right away if i could at any time! past or present as ive always been financial stable. Anyway my questions:

1. What are the chances of a set aside if i explain the reasons above?
2. I've found companies offered to guarantee the set aside for £20 fee and the cost of the set aside. How reliable are they?
3. I've heard you can contact the company that took you to court in the first place and ask them to request the debt settled and request to remove the CCJ, is this true? I have sent 2 or 3 letters to this company (DHL) but they NEVER reply its bizarre.

Basically i want to pay this debt without any argument and remove the CCJ as its bugging me.

Thank you.

[FlamingParrot]

Re: CCJ removal?

Hi and welcome aboard

The only way I can see you could get rid of this CCJ would be to get it set aside by consent. If you offer to pay it in full, the claimant may agree to have it set aside with a consent order to be presented to the court. The court has ultimate discretion to grant the set aside but if the parties agree, the court will usually set aside the judgment. Claimants take you to court because they want their money, not to ruin your life so if you offer to pay there is no reason why they shouldn't agree.

If you've not had any success communicating with DHL you may need to contact someone higher up directly. Who have you been addressing your letters to? You may want to look here: http://parcel.dhl.co.uk/m/call-top.php :thumb:

Without the claimant's consent I don't see how you could succeed since you can't argue you didn't receive the court papers as you yourself say you did and CCJs are only removed if paid in full within a month, if they are paid in full later than that they are marked as satisfied and you can even request a certificate of satisfaction, however, the judgment would still be on record.

The online judgment registry site warns against companies who offer to get CCJs removed: http://www.trustonline.org.uk/unders...removing-a-ccj

[jaisunny]

Re: CCJ removal?

Hi and welcome aboard

The only way I can see you could get rid of this CCJ would be to get it set aside by consent. If you offer to pay it in full, the claimant may agree to have it set aside with a consent order to be presented to the court. The court has ultimate discretion to grant the set aside but if the parties agree, the court will usually set aside the judgment. Claimants take you to court because they want their money, not to ruin your life so if you offer to pay there is no reason why they shouldn't agree.

If you've not had any success communicating with DHL you may need to contact someone higher up directly. Who have you been addressing your letters to? You may want to look here: http://parcel.dhl.co.uk/m/call-top.php :thumb:

Without the claimant's consent I don't see how you could succeed since you can't argue you didn't receive the court papers as you yourself say you did and CCJs are only removed if paid in full within a month, if they are paid in full later than that they are marked as satisfied and you can even request a certificate of satisfaction, however, the judgment would still be on record.

The online judgment registry site warns against companies who offer to get CCJs removed: http://www.trustonline.org.uk/unders...removing-a-ccj

Thank you for the warm welcome and advice.

I did hear about this method you're referring to, hence my letters to DHL that i sent. I sent the letters to the address that was on the court papers. I explained to DHL that i am a long existing customer that paid my customs charges promptly every single time (apart from this one as i disputed its accuracy), which i advised them to check their record of me for this. Absolutely no reply from them at all.

What would be the method you'd advise in this instance? you mention a consent order, how does this work? does it cost? when i sent a letter to DHL i also mentioned i will pay any fees that they would of incurred from their side too. A little stuck on how to go about this.

Thanks

[R0b]

Re: CCJ removal?

What was the address on the Court papers, did you address it to a specific department? Was this the legal department or some other department like debt collections. I Agree with FlamingParrot, you need to maybe try and go higher up the ladder to get some sort of response.

Once you have confirmation that DHL have agreed to set aside the CCJ, you will need to do a Consent Order which is very simple as long as you set it out properly and shouldn't take more than 30 mins to do. Send it over to the contact at DHL have it signed by them and sent back or by email. You would then need to make an application to the court, standard cost being £155 and ask the Court to set aside the previous judgment, include the court reference number on the previous claim. there shouldn't be any need to pay DHL for costs on this as it is a matter of signing a Consent Order but if they do say costs must be met, i'd only pay reasonable costs whatever that may be.

That's it, you wait. The judge might want you in to ask why he should set it aside but if both parties agree then can't see why not. Then once you receive the consent order from the court, ping it off to the Registry Trust and have it removed.

[jaisunny]

Re: CCJ removal?

What was the address on the Court papers, did you address it to a specific department? Was this the legal department or some other department like debt collections. I Agree with FlamingParrot, you need to maybe try and go higher up the ladder to get some sort of response.

Once you have confirmation that DHL have agreed to set aside the CCJ, you will need to do a Consent Order which is very simple as long as you set it out properly and shouldn't take more than 30 mins to do. Send it over to the contact at DHL have it signed by them and sent back or by email. You would then need to make an application to the court, standard cost being £155 and ask the Court to set aside the previous judgment, include the court reference number on the previous claim. there shouldn't be any need to pay DHL for costs on this as it is a matter of signing a Consent Order but if they do say costs must be met, i'd only pay reasonable costs whatever that may be.

That's it, you wait. The judge might want you in to ask why he should set it aside but if both parties agree then can't see why not. Then once you receive the consent order from the court, ping it off to the Registry Trust and have it removed.

Hi Rob,

The letters i sent were to the address on the court papers/on the CCJ on my credit report. Im guessing it is DHL directly.

Anyway today i called national debt helpline and the court in question to get some advice, they advised me to go down the consent route as outlined above and send a N244 form to the court with this consent for the fee of £50 (not £155 as thats if you're asking for a set aside without any party involved). Now, i have called the number i have stored associated with this debt and its in fact a company working on behalf of DHL that simply only request the debt owed. I spoke to a nice lady at this company and she wasn't aware of this process im requesting but she advised i could email her my request to DHL and she would forward it onto DHL for them to decide if they'd accept payment if they'd send a consent to remove the debt and CCJ. If they agreed to all this i would then go to the court armed with this and the N244 form and the £50 fee to get it wiped from my name (or attempted to).

This is the advice i've been given from national debt helpline and the court directly which i called today also.

Now the issue is im not good with words in making a letter all fancy and profoessional, is there any generic templates available i could use/edit to my desired issue anywhere that would help me with this? i dont know exactly what im asking for either, a consent order?

[R0b]

Re: CCJ removal?

the standard N244 application fee is £155, I am aware of paying £50 for consent orders but not always the case and can sometimes get away with the fee depending on the court. But if you received a CCJ from a previous claim, it is my understanding that the only way to remove the CCJ is to have the judgment set aside. Therefore in order to set aside the judgment you will need to send an N244 application along with the appropriate fee, which is £155 with the Consent Order, and ask the court to set aside the judgment in the previous claim. Now the total cost for this would be £205 but I would just send the fee of £155 and wait and see whether the Court asks for the extra £50.

As for the wording, you will only need a few lines on the Consent Order, something along the lines of 1. The parties have reached an agreement, 2. The Judgment is to be set aside, 3. The original claim is withdrawn.

I'm sure there's probably templates on here but if not I can supply you with one and some standard wording but there will be bits you'll need to input yourself.

The effect of the setting aside of the judgment will mean that both parties are put in the position prior to the claim being made. DHL will have no reason to make another claim as they have already been paid!

Now, I don't always trust the court but if you want to go with their advice and National Debtline then it's going to be cheaper for you, but as I said the N244 is a standard notice application and the usual fee is £155.

[R0b]

Re: CCJ removal?

Double post by mistake ... oops

Just to add Consent Orders of £50 usually apply after the application notice and fee has been paid.

[jaisunny]

Re: CCJ removal?

the standard N244 application fee is £155, I am aware of paying £50 for consent orders but not always the case and can sometimes get away with the fee depending on the court. But if you received a CCJ from a previous claim, it is my understanding that the only way to remove the CCJ is to have the judgment set aside. Therefore in order to set aside the judgment you will need to send an N244 application along with the appropriate fee, which is £155 with the Consent Order, and ask the court to set aside the judgment in the previous claim. Now the total cost for this would be £205 but I would just send the fee of £155 and wait and see whether the Court asks for the extra £50.

As for the wording, you will only need a few lines on the Consent Order, something along the lines of 1. The parties have reached an agreement, 2. The Judgment is to be set aside, 3. The original claim is withdrawn.

I'm sure there's probably templates on here but if not I can supply you with one and some standard wording but there will be bits you'll need to input yourself.

The effect of the setting aside of the judgment will mean that both parties are put in the position prior to the claim being made. DHL will have no reason to make another claim as they have already been paid!

Now, I don't always trust the court but if you want to go with their advice and National Debtline then it's going to be cheaper for you, but as I said the N244 is a standard notice application and the usual fee is £155.

I have just called pearson solictors who deal with CCJ's and they advised exactly the same. That they'd charge me for 3 to 4 hours of their time (about £110 per hour) and the process would be for me to agree to pay the debt and in hope DHL agree to the consent order. With this the solicitors said its £50 to send the N244 form.

Are you still sure its £155 for this rob? if so i'd have to look into it further as some say £50 some £155.

And thanks for the explanation

Thanks

EDIT: here's an email the solicitors sent me that i just spoke to on the phone, i have removed their names and costs and other info..

http://i.imgur.com/SZ9RdWQ.jpg

[R0b]

Re: CCJ removal?

I am only going from my own experience, but as I am sure you can understand logically, to set something aside you need an N244 form and the cost of the application is generally £155. Obviously if solicitors are saying that it's only £50 then maybe that is correct but I have on some occasions been asked to provide the full application fee of £155.

What I suggest you do is, send in the application notice with Consent Order and the £50. If the court wants the full £155 fee then they will ask you for it before proceeding with the application, if they don't then you have saved yourself some cash.

Now, £400-500 to fill in an application and draft a Consent Order is a bit steep in my opinion so I don't mind helping you out on this one, if you like - shouldn't take too long. As you haven't actually paid the debt you are probably in a stronger position asking for the consent order so i certainly wouldn't pay the debt off first and then ask for the Consent Order. Obviously DHL do not have to agree to a Consent Order but they can do so as a gesture of goodwill, and if you explain that you are a regular customer of them who always pays then they might just agree to it.

As a side note this guy here, and I'm hoping i can post this as its in the public domain, works for DHL and appears to manage the debt side of things. Might well be worth addressing a polite letter to him - https://uk.linkedin.com/pub/astan-morarji/48/417/367.

[FlamingParrot]

Re: CCJ removal?

I have just called pearson solictors who deal with CCJ's and they advised exactly the same. That they'd charge me for 3 to 4 hours of their time (about £110 per hour) and the process would be for me to agree to pay the debt and in hope DHL agree to the consent order. With this the solicitors said its £50 to send the N244 form.

There's no reason why you'd need to pay a firm of solicitors to do something you can do yourself. The main issue here is to get a response from DHL and get them to agree to set aside the CCJ in exchange for payment in full. It all hinges on them agreeing to the set aside, no solicitor, no matter how good, can force a creditor to agree so you'd be wasting your money.

They are right to say that it's ultimately down to the court to agree to set aside the judgment, however, as I previously said, if the judgment creditor agrees, the court is likely to agree. I know of larger CCJs that have been set aside by consent, one even had a charging order against it. If DHL agree there's hardly any reason to argue about having applied promptly or any other of the usual arguments put forward for a set aside without consent.

Are you still sure its £155 for this rob? if so i'd have to look into it further as some say £50 some £155.

£155 is the standard fee for a contested application which usually requires a hearing.

EDIT: here's an email the solicitors sent me that i just spoke to on the phone, i have removed their names and costs and other info..

http://i.imgur.com/SZ9RdWQ.jpg

I'm sorry but I fail to see anything those guys have contributed that we haven't mentioned here, the only difference I can see is that we don't charge £110/hour. :lol: :lol: :lol:

[jaisunny]

Re: CCJ removal?

I am only going from my own experience, but as I am sure you can understand logically, to set something aside you need an N244 form and the cost of the application is generally £155. Obviously if solicitors are saying that it's only £50 then maybe that is correct but I have on some occasions been asked to provide the full application fee of £155.

What I suggest you do is, send in the application notice with Consent Order and the £50. If the court wants the full £155 fee then they will ask you for it before proceeding with the application, if they don't then you have saved yourself some cash.

Now, £400-500 to fill in an application and draft a Consent Order is a bit steep in my opinion so I don't mind helping you out on this one, if you like - shouldn't take too long. As you haven't actually paid the debt you are probably in a stronger position asking for the consent order so i certainly wouldn't pay the debt off first and then ask for the Consent Order. Obviously DHL do not have to agree to a Consent Order but they can do so as a gesture of goodwill, and if you explain that you are a regular customer of them who always pays then they might just agree to it.

As a side note this guy here, and I'm hoping i can post this as its in the public domain, works for DHL and appears to manage the debt side of things. Might well be worth addressing a polite letter to him - https://uk.linkedin.com/pub/astan-morarji/48/417/367.

Thank you so much, i really cannot fault your help here.

I figured that its possible to do yourself but the step by step process and professional wording is where i fail here. Are you on skype at all? maybe you could take a look at the letter i previously sent to DHL on this matter to see if adjustments could be made to then resend it to DHL to a more senior person/s as you've pointed out. The lady who works for the debt collectors on behalf of DHL also said they could forward a letter to someone in DHL, maybe thats a good option?.


When i spoke to the national debt helpline they mentioned that the £155 set aside would be going through a judge, where as the £50 N244 would be going through the admin team in the court hence the lesser figure. Anyway i guess thats to be found out a bit later and definitely worth what you said to give the £50 and if they ask for the rest then just cough up. My first port of call now would be to hope DHL offer a goodwill gesture to accept to the consent and then go from there.

- - - Updated - - -

There's no reason why you'd need to pay a firm of solicitors to do something you can do yourself. The main issue here is to get a response from DHL and get them to agree to set aside the CCJ in exchange for payment in full. It all hinges on them agreeing to the set aside, no solicitor, no matter how good, can force a creditor to agree so you'd be wasting your money.

They are right to say that it's ultimately down to the court to agree to set aside the judgment, however, as I previously said, if the judgment creditor agrees, the court is likely to agree. I know of larger CCJs that have been set aside by consent, one even had a charging order against it. If DHL agree there's hardly any reason to argue about having applied promptly or any other of the usual arguments put forward for a set aside without consent.


£155 is the standard fee for a contested application which usually requires a hearing.


I'm sorry but I fail to see anything those guys have contributed that we haven't mentioned here, the only difference I can see is that we don't charge £110/hour. :lol: :lol: :lol:

I wasn't going to use them, to pay £500+ for a service to help me pay and remove a judgement without any guarantee is way too steep on a £177 debt. I mean if the debt was 20k+ you'd think about it, possibly.

[FlamingParrot]

Re: CCJ removal?

I figured that its possible to do yourself but the step by step process and professional wording is where i fail here. Are you on skype at all? maybe you could take a look at the letter i previously sent to DHL on this matter to see if adjustments could be made to then resend it to DHL to a more senior person/s as you've pointed out. The lady who works for the debt collectors on behalf of DHL also said they could forward a letter to someone in DHL, maybe thats a good option?.

The first step is just to get DHL's attention so you can make the repayment offer in exchange for the set aside. They are a very large company and are likely to have experienced this situation before and probably have their own legal team, etc. so it is very likely they will want to draft the consent order themselves, in which case it would be just a case of you posting it up so we can take a look to make sure you're not agreeing to anything you shouldn't. :typing:

When i spoke to the national debt helpline they mentioned that the £155 set aside would be going through a judge, where as the £50 N244 would be going through the admin team in the court hence the lesser figure. Anyway i guess thats to be found out a bit later and definitely worth what you said to give the £50 and if they ask for the rest then just cough up. My first port of call now would be to hope DHL offer a goodwill gesture to accept to the consent and then go from there.

That's precisely the difference, a contested application requires a hearing with a judge hearing both sides, if there is consent it's just an administrative procedure. :juge:

I wasn't going to use them, to pay £500+ for a service to help me pay and remove a judgement without any guarantee is way too steep on a £177 debt. I mean if the debt was 20k+ you'd think about it, possibly.

An absolute rip-off! :rant: :mad2:

[jaisunny]

Re: CCJ removal?

The first step is just to get DHL's attention so you can make the repayment offer in exchange for the set aside. They are a very large company and are likely to have experienced this situation before and probably have their own legal team, etc. so it is very likely they will want to draft the consent order themselves, in which case it would be just a case of you posting it up so we can take a look to make sure you're not agreeing to anything you shouldn't. :typing:

That's precisely the difference, a contested application requires a hearing with a judge hearing both sides, if there is consent it's just an administrative procedure. :juge:


An absolute rip-off! :rant: :mad2:

First step; understood. Wording it properly = epic fail :tinysmile_cry_t: What am i asking for? to repay the money owed if they send me a consent order? sounds like bribery lol. Is a Tomlin order the same thing?

Would you be willing to have a look at the previous letter i sent DHL? maybe advise if i need to re jig it anywhere?

[FlamingParrot]

Re: CCJ removal?

First step; understood. Wording it properly = epic fail :tinysmile_cry_t: What am i asking for? to repay the money owed if they send me a consent order? sounds like bribery lol.

You would be asking them to agree to have the CCJ they obtained against you, set aside, in exchange for full payment of the judgment amount. It's perfectly legitimate since the whole purpose of obtaining a money judgment is to recover the money owed.

Is a Tomlin order the same thing?

A Tomlin order is a type of consent order but you'd normally use that one to avoid a CCJ in the first place. It could also be used if the amount you owe was larger and you wanted them to agree to it being repaid in a few instalments rather than as a lump sum. In that case, the order would give them the opportunity to request summary judgment if you didn't make the required payments but given the sum involved here it shouldn't be necessary.

Would you be willing to have a look at the previous letter i sent DHL? maybe advise if i need to re jig it anywhere?

Sure! :thumb:

[jaisunny]

Re: CCJ removal?

You would be asking them to agree to have the CCJ they obtained against you, set aside, in exchange for full payment of the judgment amount. It's perfectly legitimate since the whole purpose of obtaining a money judgment is to recover the money owed.


A Tomlin order is a type of consent order but you'd normally use that one to avoid a CCJ in the first place. It could also be used if the amount you owe was larger and you wanted them to agree to it being repaid in a few instalments rather than as a lump sum. In that case, the order would give them the opportunity to request summary judgment if you didn't make the required payments but given the sum involved here it shouldn't be necessary.

Sure! :thumb:

Excellent reply again thank you. Could you PM me your email address or something? i will send you the word doc, hopefully you can tell me where i went wrong lol.