You need to Acknowledge receipt of a Court Claim within 14 days of receiving the form or the court may issue a ‘judgment by default’ which will appear on the register of judgments and on your credit file for six years.

You can do this on paper using the Response Pack or you can acknowledge online using the MoneyClaim online service or the New Moneyclaim online service (which one depends on the claim form you have received).

By Post – The Response Pack

Most claims will come with a number of documents known as the ‘Response Pack‘.

The court claim should arrive with instructions on how to respond, and detail the date you need to respond by.

Most claims will come with a number of documents known as the ‘Response Pack‘.

You should complete the ‘Acknowledgement of Service‘ section of the response pack carefully using the details from the claim form.

Enter the Court, Claim Number, Claimant Name and Defendant name from the claim form you have received.

Enter your address where you can receive post.

You should tick option 2 – ‘I intend to defend all of this claim‘.  This is not binding and if, after further investigation or consideration you decide to admit the claim or make an offer to pay by installment you can.

At this stage you are simply informing the court and the claimant you have received the claim and are taking action.

 This stops the claimant obtaining a judgment by default and extends the time period you have to respond fully to 28 days from the day you received the claim form.

You can complete your date of birth. This is simply for identification should there later be any query that you are the correct person.

Once you have completed the form ensure you sign and date it, and return it in the post to the Court Address printed on the claim form.

Using MoneyClaim Online ( Old )

Moneyclaim online can be accessed here

To use Moneyclaim online you must register for a Government Gateway Account.  To do this you complete this page with your First Name, Last Name, a valid email address that you have access to, and create a Password so you can access the site again. Then click Submit.

You will receive a Government Gateway Account Number. You MUST keep hold of this in order to log back in to the service later. WRITE IT DOWN.

Once you have logged in you will be asked for your Claim Number.

Once you have entered your claim number you will be shown a page with details of the claim you have received.  To begin with you should select START AOS.

Read the details and guidance given and click CONTINUE.

Select the button next to “Defend all of this claim”.  Do this even if you think you may want to admit part or all of the claim later.  It is not binding, and just ensures the claimant cannot request a judgment by default before you are ready to enter a defence, or admission.  Once you have completed this acknowledgement you will have 28 days from the date you received the claim to enter your defence ( or admission).

You should not contest Jurisdiction so do not tick that box.

Here you should check the details are correct and click the button next to ‘I am the Defendant’, tick the box confirming you have read the guidance ( once you have, of course), and type your full name in the signature box.  Then select SUBMIT.

You will then see a confirmation screen. We recommend that you click ‘View AOS as PDF’ and save the PDF to your computer.

You should then see your Status Summary, and can leave the website.

Using Moneyclaim Online ( New)

Visit ‘ Respond to a Money Claim‘ on the GOV.Uk website.

Once you have logged in you will be asked if you need more time to respond. This is the acknowledgment of service.  Say Yes, I need an extra 14 days and make a note of the date you need to respond by.  When you have submittd this form it will send both yourself and the Claimant an email to confirm the new deadline.  It also confirms to the Claimant and the court that you have received the claim.

If you do not respond

You might get a County Court Judgment (CCJ) in default if you do not respond by the date on the letter or email.

If you get a CCJ:

• bailiffs might be sent to your home or business
• you might have problems getting credit, such as a mobile phone contract, credit card or mortgage
• It may affect your job – particularly if you work in finance