HELP - How to win a Set Aside Hearing??

[Guest]

A company owes me a considerable amount of money - around £5,000. They've refused to pay for over a year despite me threatening legal action. They are TERRIBLE at responding to me. So I filed an online money claims application and emailed them to say I'd filed it. The didn't respond. A month or so later I win a default CCJ as they didn't respond to the court letters. Yay I thought. I asked them to cough up and they didn't. So I instructed a bailiff company. A week later I get a letter from the court saying they've applied to have CCJ Set Aside and allege that they never received the court papers.

Their address is correct. The online money claims helpline said they would have also received an email confirmation. In their application to set aside, they said they got court papers late and also starting making bizarre claims that I stole money from them and never did any work for them (despite my copious evidence that I have) - they are blaming coronavirus for lost post.

I have a telephone hearing in a couple weeks (thank you COVID) and I'm worried about what the hearing entails and also that I haven't had an opportunity to present evidence to rebut their claims that I never worked for them etc.

Any thoughts and advice??

[ploddertom]

If it was for that amount and the debt was not regulated by the CCA then you could have transferred the debt to the High Court for enforcement purposes. Under normal circumstances a High Court Enforcement Officer may have attended and even though Set Aside has been applied for it has not been granted and therefore enforcement can continue. In the current climate visits are not being made.

As for Set Aside it is for the Defendant to make their case. I would strongly suggest that Set Aside will be granted pending a further & fuller Hearing. I wouldn't worry too much about this upcoming Hearing* answer anything put you by the Judge honestly.