Legal Services
Where Debt Collection attempts have been exhausted or the debt is not suitable for Debt Collection, Waters & Gate offers a comprehensive set of legal options for its clients.
Speak to our experienced Legal Team today to find out how we can help.
Legal action can be an important tool alongside debt collection; however, it’s important to note that all legal action by its very nature carries a risk and should not be undertaken without careful consideration.
Waters & Gate will never issue Legal Proceedings without your explicit consent.
Whilst the decision to proceed with legal action ultimately lies with you, Waters & Gate are there to help support and advise you through that decision process.
Some of the questions worth considering are;
Location
- Are we confident the debtor still resides at the address we have on file?
Insolvency
- Do we have any reason to believe that the debtor is insolvent or in the process of going insolvent?
Dispute
- We are confident there are no disputes which may call into question the validity of the debt?
Evidence
- Can we provide sufficient evidence to support any claim?
Our Legal Process
Where you approve legal action against your debtor(s), we will immediately pass the account to our legal team.
From the point the account is passed, there are up to five stages.
Pre Legal
Our Solicitors will firstly attempt to collect the debt without starting formal legal proceedings.
A letter before action is immediately issued to the debtor.
Our Solicitors will review the details of the debt alongside attempting to contact the debtor by phone, email and letter to try and resolve the issue.
The reason for this is twofold. Firstly, we hope that the debtor will realise that the matter is now serious and will take steps to resolve the issue.
Secondly, the Court expects us to do everything possible to resolve the matter before formal legal proceedings.
Claim Form
Where our Solicitors are failed to resolve the matter within the pre legal process, they will make a recommendation.
- Request approval to start formal legal proceedings.
- Consider withdrawing and writing off the debt.
Where our Solicitors request approval for formal legal action, we will forward that request to you along with any other relevant information and await your response.
At this stage, we are available should you wish to talk through the options to help make an informed decision.
It must be noted that should you approve at this stage you are entering formal proceedings.
Once a claim form has been issued, your Debtor (now your Defendant) has 14 days from date of service to respond. If they respond they are given a further 14 days.
If your debtor fails to respond to the Claim Form within the 14 days our Solicitor will process the judgment automatically.
It’s important at this stage to understand that a County Court Judgment will be registered against your defendant and remain registered for a period of six years unless the amount is paid within one month.
Response
Where the defendant responds to the claims form by either paying in full, making a settlement offer or payment plan we will immediately inform you (and seek your approval where the offer falls short of full payment)
Its also possible a defendant may decide to defend.
Where we receive a written defence, we will immediately forward you the details and await your response.
We at Waters & Gate are there to support you through the analysis of the defence and ensure should you decide to proceed, you are doing so on the basis of fact and experience.
Judgement
Where you claim has been successful, you will be given the option to move forward to Judgment.
A County Court Judgment (CCJ) will be registered against your defendant and remain registered for a period of six years unless the amount is paid within one month.
Enforcement
Where a judgment remains unpaid, we will offer you the opportunity to consider enforcement options.
Popular options include.
High Court Enforcement where Agents have the right to remove goods should requests to pay the debt are ignored.
Attachment of Earnings where money is deducted from Defendants wage or salary at source.
At Waters & Gate we will talk you through all the options, the risks and rewards associated with the various types, so you are fully informed to make the right decision.
