When a person is unable to pay his creditors, a civil case can be brought to the County Court in England and Wales, or the Sheriff Court in Scotland. The court can make a judgment (or a decree in Scotland) against the debtor that then remains in force until such a time as the debt is paid.
Although having a CCJ(s) on record will not rule out the ability for an individual to get credit, they have to be considered in the context of the application as a whole. The lender may view the individual in this case as someone who has been unable or unprepared to meet obligations in the past and therefore this may reflect there ability or intention to do so in the future. For this reason the importance of removing a CCJ is evident.
Most CCJs are the result of an undefended court summons. This can often happen as the defendant is not aware of the correct course of action needed to resolve the situation. In this way, the court will enter a judgment by default.
The Central Registry will then pass the information about the CCJ to the credit reference agencies. Debts to a specific creditor can be paid in full; however the CCJ will stay on file. This is partly because a request for the removal of the CCJ has never been issued. Simply because whoever received the judgment did not know that it was necessary.
If a CCJ is set aside or reversed (This can take place by appeal or settling the outstanding arrears within one month), the courts will automatically remove the entry from the Register of County Court Judgments.
The details below are required to process the removal of a CCJ:
# The name of the plaintiff. This will usually be the creditor
# The Case Number. This is needed in every instance as without the case number the court will not even consider an application.
# The original summons.
# The name of the Court.
Getting a CCJ Removed
Firstly, you will need to obtain a current copy of your credit file. This copy can be requested via the internet, or by written request from one of the credit reference agencies – usually Experian or Equifax.
Secondly, obtain all the information about the CCJ that has been issued against you. As mentioned, this will be obtained from your credit file.
The next step is to write a letter asking the court to send all of the details they have against you regarding your CCJ.
What should I do if I have been unfairly or incorrectly issued with a CCJ?
A form known as the ‘N244’ may be requested from the County Court, free of charge. The N244 form is filled out to request the removal of an unfair or incorrect CCJ to the Courts. This form must be completed giving all the details relating the CCJ, with an explanation why the judgment should be set aside.
Here are some common reasons for why a CCJ should be set aside:
# The full 28 days notice was not given to pay the outstanding debt.
# An incorrect postal address was used when the summons and judgement took place
# The summons was never received
# The issued CCJ still appeared on the credit file even though all arrears were settled within 28 days
# 21 days was not provided to reply to the court, due to a late summons.
# Your name was used by another to gain credit, resulting in a CCJ
# Out of court settlements with the plaintiff, resulting in all arrears paid
# If you did not receive any notification of the judgement/s made against you, then you can appeal.
# Unable to attend court, due to other circumstances
# Summons taken out against both yourself and another person jointly and only one party received summons
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