Please note that all fees quoted are exclusive of VAT
Our fees are time-based and are calculated by reference to hourly charging rates dependent on the seniority of the fee earners working on your matter. Our departmental hourly rates are:
- Partners £290 – £350
- Associates £260 – £280
- Solicitors £155 – £175
- Chartered Legal Executives £175
- Trainees £150
- Other Fee Earners £130 – £150
We will agree an initial fee with you for reviewing any documents & correspondence supplied by you and writing an initial letter before action, claiming payment of the debt on your behalf. Depending on the amount of documentation which you provide, our fee is likely to be in the region of £500 to £1,500 (excluding VAT).
Should it become necessary to issue proceedings for recovery of an undisputed debt, the following Court fees will apply:
| Fee Payable | Fee Payable | |||
| Value of your claim | Court issued claim | Filed via SDT/MCOL | ||
| Up to £300 | £35 | £25 | ||
| Greater than £300 but no more than £500 | £50 | £35 | ||
| Greater than £500 but no more than £1,000 | £70 | £60 | ||
| Greater than £1,000 but no more than £1,500 | £80 | £70 | ||
| Greater than £1,500 but no more than £3,000 | £115 | £105 | ||
| Greater than £3,000 but no more than £5,000 | £205 | £185 | ||
| Greater than £5,000 but no more than £10,000 | £455 | £410 | ||
| Greater than £10,000 but no more than £15,000 | 5% of the value of the claim | 4.5% of the value of the claim | ||
| Greater than £15,000 but no more than £50,000 | 5% of the value of the claim | 4.5% of the value of the claim | ||
| Greater than £50,000 but no more than £100,000 | 5% of the value of the claim | 4.5% of the value of the claim | ||
| Greater than £100,000 but no more than £150,000 | 5% of the value of the claim | N/A | ||
| Greater than £150,000 but no more than £200,000 | 5% of the value of the claim | N/A | ||
| Greater than £200,000 | £10,000 | N/A |
If you wish to proceed with a claim, you should note that:
- the VAT element of our fee cannot be reclaimed from your debtor; and
- interest and compensation may take the debt into a higher banding, which means that a higher Court fee may be payable.
We will charge between £500 and £750 (excluding VAT) to draft simple short-form Court proceedings claiming payment of an undisputed invoice.
If the other party fails to acknowledge service of the proceedings or file a defence to the claim, we will charge £350 (excluding VAT) to request a default judgment and, on receipt of the default judgment, to write to the other party again, demanding payment.
A default judgment will only include Court fees and fixed solicitor’s costs (as provided for by the Civil Procedure Rules). You will not be able to recover the fees which you pay us.
If the other party fails to pay the judgment debt, we will (if requested) write to you setting out the various ways in which you may be able to enforce payment of the judgment debt. The fees set out above do not include the cost of any further action which may be required to enforce payment of the judgment debt.
If the other party disputes/defends your claim and the matter becomes contested, we will discuss any further work which may be required and provide you with a revised estimate as to the costs of such further work.
The precise work and stages involved in debt recovery matters vary according to the circumstances. However, we have set out the key stages involved in a typical claim:
- Taking your instructions and reviewing documentation.
- Undertaking appropriate searches.
- Sending a letter before action.
- Receiving payment and sending on to you, or if the debt is not paid, drafting and issuing a claim.
- Where no Acknowledgement of Service or Defence is received, applying to the court to enter Judgement in default.
- When the Judgement in default is received, writing to the other side to request payment.
- If the payment is not received, providing you with advice on the next steps and the likely costs.
Our services (within the scope of this costs estimate information) does not include the following:
- Disputed or Defended proceedings. This will be charged at the hourly rate of the relevant fee earner working on your matter and could increase depending on the expertise required. We would agree a revised scope of work and fees with you before any additional costs were incurred.
- Counsel’s (barrister) fees may also be payable in addition to our fees. The fees for counsel will vary depending on the amount of preparation required for any enforcement hearing. On average the fee would be £1200, but again we would agree any fee with you in advance if counsel was required.
We will provide you with as detailed a costs estimate as we can, once we know what issues have been raised and have a better idea of how long it is likely to take to resolve the matter for you.
Undisputed claims are likely to take anything between 2 weeks and 3 months from receipt of instructions from you to receipt of payment from the other side, depending on whether or not it is necessary to issue a claim. This is on the basis that the other side pays promptly on receipt of Judgement in default. If enforcement action is needed, the matter will take longer to resolve.
Disputed claims can take up to 12-18 months to resolve.
In certain circumstances, it may be appropriate to draft and serve a statutory demand claiming payment of an undisputed debt. Our fees for doing this (including the cost of arranging for personal service of the demand on the debtor) will be in the region of £1,000 plus VAT. We can discuss this method (and the costs involved) in further detail during our initial consultation.
What are your next steps?
Please get in touch with us. We look forward to helping you.
Solicitor