N244 for amendment

[wire23]

Hi everyone

I am looking for some advice about a
small claim.


case I have recently won from a car purchase.

I was given a default judgement as the defendant did not turn up for the hearing and did not provide any evidence at all in their defence.

When I received the judgement the defendant was to have paid what was owed by 4pm on 29th January 2025. This did not happen.

As the defendant had not paid i started looking at high court enforcement.

I was in conversation with one when they said that they could not see the judgement on whatever it is they use. The agent then asked about the defendants business entity.

i said that they were a limited company but the judgement was missing LTD from the business title and may be difficult to enforce and i was advised to send a completed form N244

[Pezza54]

Hi
Welcome to LB

Please read the article "How to amend the debtor's name or legal entity status on a County Court Judgement Order (CCJ)" at
www.courtenforcementservices.co.uk

Check for the precise company name by searching on Companies House Register

Complete N244 application notice, attach it to an email to the county court providing a phone number so the court can contact you to take the court fee
When you get the call, query the fee. EX50 states the fee is only £15 to vary (amend or change) a judgement or order

They may try to charge you £119 for an application without notice

[wire23]

Pezza54 Thanks very much for the update.
i phoned the new national contact centre this morning and was quoted £303 to do the amendment without notice. I have done a companies house check and they have the suffix LTD. when i did my initial claim through MCOL the word LTD was not there but in all my letters i.e. letter before action etc it was. The defendant has not used LTD on their form N9B (is there a potential problem that could arise).
i am extremely grateful for the advice and support

[Pezza54]

Are you saying the word Ltd was omitted on your claim form? Did the defendant's defence highlight this mistake stating the claimant has sued the wrong entity? The address must be correct as the defendant received the claim form and filed a defence

Did you refer the staff member to EX50 and ask why it wasn't either the £15 fee or £119 for an application without notice?

[Pezza54]

Please read "Can I change the defendant name?" at www.moneyclaimsuk.co.uk

Note the sentence which you should include "re-service of the claim form to be dispensed with as it was validly served at the defendant's correct address"

[wire23]

Thankyou very much for your very kind assistance.
LTD was missing on my N1. HCEO said they could not enforce the judgement because LTD was missing.
The defendant claimed he had a solicitor (so i would have assumed it would have been picked up) the only thing i received from defendant was the N9b and an email asking to settle out of court for a lot less . He did not even turn up to court.
The address and everything else is correct. The reason I phoned this morning was to ask about the cost and distribution of the N244.

[Pezza54]

Is it possible the court staff member thought you were the defendant wanting to set aside the judgement?

You should try phoning the court again. Another staff member may tell you a different court fee. £303 is too much to change a defendant's name when the address is correct

[Pezza54]

The fact that the defendant did not state Ltd on N9B should be in your favour. The defendant alternates between with Ltd and without Ltd
Write that in your application notice

[wire23]

update on my case.

Defendant sent an email last night telling me he had submitted
N244 to have judgement set aside (i understand this can be done). He also stated that he was transferring the case to his local court. Can anyone give advice for the following please.

1: Has anyone come across this before. The case has been heard and judgement given (granted by default, because he did not turn up to court and at no stage did he provide any evidence other than what was on his form N9B).

2: should I get copies of the N244

[Pezza54]

The defendant will have had to pay a £303 court fee tor an application notice to set aside the judgement
You should receive a copy of the application notice and any witness statement and/or evidence the defendant has filed in support of his application
The court should fix a hearing date for the application and you should be given the opportunity to dispute the application by filing your own witness statement and evidence

Please read CPR 23 General Rules About Applications For Court

[wire23]

PEZZA thanks very much for your assistance in this matter. I will now wait a while then see what happens.

[Pezza54]

Please also read CPR 13 Setting Aside or Varying Court Judgement

You state "he was transferring the case to his local court"
Under 13.4 (1) and in particular 13.4 (1)(d) the court will only transfer the application to the defendant's home court if the defendant is an individual

In this case the defendant is not an individual. You contracted with a company and will need to show this in your witness statement including evidence to support your statement. You should dispute the claim being transferred and maintain it should remain in your home court where the trial took place

The defendant should have acted promptly after receiving the judgement (cpr 13.3 (2)). How long has it been since the judgement was issued?

The defendant will also need a good reason why he did not turn up for the trial and failed to inform the court he was unable to attend

[Pezza54]

It is possible that court staff will transfer the application hearing to the defendant's home court without reference to you beforehand

You should email your court with "Urgent" in the subject line, stating that the defendant has made you aware he is applying to transfer the application to his local court. Point out this should not be allowed under cpr 13.4(1)(d) as the defendant is not an individual

You could also ask the court to send you a copy of the application notice as you do not trust the defendant to serve you with one

[wire23]

The judgement was on the 15th January and I received a copy of it on the 28th. The judgement instructed the defendant to pay by 4pm on the 29th January, that is when the defendant informed me they had no idea of the court date. That's after me sending the defendant my court bundle by 9th December as noted on my N157 (including my copy of N157). I will certainly fire of an email to the court. Not sure if this is the norm but my recent emails have not been answered.

[Pezza54]

It seems likely the defendant is going to claim he didn't receive N157 from the court so was unaware of the court date and the deadline for filing and serving his witness statement and evidence
Is there any way you show that he did receive N157? When he received your witness statement he may have thought you were just keen to send it when you had completed it