Charge on property

[Mel W]

Hi
Completely out of the blue we received a solicitor’s letter stating that we had an outstanding debt with their client from 2009. This was at a time when we closed our family business. Following a CCJ in 2008, they state that they have a charge on our property and attached a court paper for a Final Charging Order. They also state that they have been charging us £3.74 per day in interest since 2009!! If we do not make arrangements to pay they will make an application to enforce an order of sale.
We sold the property in question in November last year and there was no charging order registered with Land Registry. Can anyone advise where we stand with this please as we are sick with worry about what will happen next. We have not been in contact with the solicitors since we received the letter or in fact had any contact with their client for over 15 years I would say.

[Pezza54]

Hi Mel
Please read the article "What happens to an unpaid CCJ after 6 years" at www.carringfondean.com
The creditor can extend the ccj beyond 6 years but has to obtain the Court's permission by way of a formal application
It is worth checking the property title deeds using the land registry online search to see if a charge has been registered against the property and whether the new owner's name has been registered.
As you only sold the property last November you could contact the new owner to find out if they have received any official/court letters.
An interim charging order should have been sent to the address.

[atticus]

In addition ...

Was the solicitors' letter sent to you at your new address, or was it forwarded from the old one?

Assuming that the charging order was made several years ago, if the solicitors were acting at the time and failed to register the charging order at Land Registry they will be answerable to their client for the loss.

[Pezza54]

It is possible for a charging order to be made on a property after it has been sold.
You really should do a property search on the land registry to establish if a charging order has been placed on the property. If it has you should let the new owner know so they can take action to remove it

[atticus]

In that scenario, the purchaser's conveyancer should have carried out a "priority search" which gives a period of protection against adverse registrations.

Let's see what further information the OP provides.

[Mel W]

Hi

Thankyou both for your invaluable advice. In response to your questions- The solicitors letter was sent to our old address and the new owners bought it round to us. There is no charge on that property currently and I saw the new owner yesterday and they have certainly not received an interim charging order. The date of the charging order against us was 11/02/2009.
Are they really allowed to charge us £3.74 per day since 2009 with no correspondence or notification? The original debt was £17, 073.39 and they now state it stands at £37,845.86. Thanks

[atticus]

The rate of interest payable on judgement debts is 8% per annum.

Interest on £17K for 15 years is £20,400.

[Pezza54]

As the ccj is over 6 years old the creditor will need the court's permission to take any enforcement action.

[Mel W]

Thanks for the advice. So we need to see what course of action they will take once they realise that the charge was never registered?

[Pezza54]

They will have to pay a court fee to make an application for the court's permission and have a very good reason why they are still chasing a debt after so many years

[ohitsonlyme]

I had a very similar situation solicitor ccj on the beneficial interst of my ex wife for fees in our divorce.The charging ordeer wa a form K restriction that was very easy to avoid as it only state that notice is to be given to the holder of the restriction and this was done on the day of the sales completion and avodied paying them.
We have another property that they aslo gained a charging order/ restrcition on which we are now selling and hoping to do the same.
So far the ccj solictors have only sent demands for payment threatening actionut not done anything other thanletters to date

The 6year rule about going back to court relates to not being able to take further enforcemnt action I am not sure what other fresh actions can be taken if any
Followong with interest

[Pezza54]

Yes you are right. Form K Restriction affords the creditor flimsy protection and can be bypassed in the method the conveyancing solicitors took in your sale.
The creditor's solicitor should seek a court order to obtain 14 days notice before disposition.
You should check the wording of the restriction on your latest property on the land registry.
It is unlikely that the solicitor will fall into the same trap twice, but you never know

[Mel W]

I'll keep you updated on any developments, Thanks for all the assistance on this site

[DE DOGS]

I understand that once a judgment has been given, the matter of interest or charges is stopped, as there is a judgment on the debt is proved, and so interest cannot be added after.

[Pezza54]

Hi Mel
you don't live in Scotland by any chance?

A charging order expires after 12 years in Scotland but not in England or Wales.

What was the debt for?