Stage one: Letter of Claim
The following table provides you with our costs of the initial debt recovery Letter of Claim, the charge of which is not recoverable from the debtor:
| Level of Debt | RLL Legal fee (£) Plus VAT |
| Less than £1,000 | £150* |
| £1,000 to less than £10,000 | £300* |
| £10,000 and over | £500* |
*We will also charge 50% of any interest and compensation recovered under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act, where relevant) plus VAT.
Disbursements:
Disbursements are payments to third parties which we make on your behalf and for which you will be liable. The only disbursement at this stage may include trace agent fees – this is required if the debtor needs to be traced and fees generally range from £35 to £200 plus VAT, subject to the information we have and the location of the debtor.
Other Pre-action correspondence will be considered separately at our standard hourly rates.
Stage two: County Court Proceedings for Undisputed Claims
Where the Letter of Claim goes without response or we receive an admission from the debtor, we would then look to issue Court proceedings on your behalf unless payment has been forthcoming. The cost of us preparing the claim form and particulars of claim together with filing these at Court and serving these is as follows. Please note these are in addition to stage one if we were instructed at that stage:
| Debt | Court Fee (£) no vat (Generally Recoverable) | RLL Legal fee (£) Plus VAT | Recoverable fixed costs (£) |
| Up to £300 | £35.00 | £300 | £50 |
| £300.01 – £500 | £50.00 | £400 | £50 |
| £500.01 – £1,000 | £70.00 | £550 | £70 |
| £1,000.01 – £1,500 | £80.00 | £600 | £80 |
| £1,500.01 – £3,000 | £115.00 | £750 | £80 |
| £3,000.01 – £5,000 | £205.00 | £800 | £100 |
| £5,000.01 – £10,000 | £455.00 | £1500 | £100 |
| £10,000.01 – £200,000 | 5% of claim | Hourly rates at £300 p.h. | £100 |
| Greater than £200,000 | £10,000.00 | Hourly rates at £350 p.h. | £100 |
Anyone wishing to proceed with a claim should note that interest and compensation may take the debt into a higher banding with a higher cost.
Once the Court has served the claim, a debtor has 14 days in which to file a Defence or enter an Acknowledgment. After the 14-day period has expired (assuming an Acknowledgment and Defence was not filed) a request can be made to the Court for judgment to be entered.
If the debtor decides to defend a claim at this stage, we will advise you of the options available to you and the likely costs. At that stage, it will be taken out of the debt recovery pricing regime and fees will be charged on an hourly rate basis until such time as there is a Judgment to enforce.
Stage three: Request for Judgment
Assuming there is not a hearing and the matter remains undisputed, the following costs will apply to making a request for judgment.
| Judgment Position | RLL Legal Fee (£) plus VAT | Recoverable fixed costs (£) |
| Default Judgment for a claim under £5,000 | £150 | £22 |
| Default Judgment for a claim over £5,000 | £300 | £30 |
| Requesting Judgment on admission of a claim under £5,000 and the Defendant’s offer of payment is accepted | £300 | £40 |
| Requesting Judgment on admission of a claim over £5,000 and the Defendant’s offer of payment is accepted | £400 | £55 |
| Requesting Judgment on admission of a claim under £5,000 and the Court decides on the amount of payment | £450 | £55 |
| Requesting Judgment on admission of a claim over £5,000 and the Court decides on the amount of payment | £600 | £70 |
Please note that the charges above do not include attendances at Court, where this is necessary this is charged on an hourly basis and a disbursement will be incurred for an advocate to attend Court.
Stage four: Enforcement
If judgment is obtained but not paid then further action may be required to enforce payment. The costs involved in this will be considered separately as they will vary depending on the method of enforcement available in each case. We have set out various option below and we can advise you on the most appropriate route in your particular circumstances:
| Enforcement | Disbursement (no VAT unless stated) | Our fixed fee (plus VAT) |
| Warrant of Control (for Judgment debts up to £600 in value) | £83 | £150 |
| Writ of Control (for Judgment debts over £600) | £71 | £150 |
| Order to Obtain Information | £59-£119 Court Fee £85-£150 plus VAT to serve Order | £600 |
| Attachment of Earnings | £119 | £600 |
| Interim Charging Order to secure the debt (uncontested) | £119 Court fee £43 Land registry Fees | £2100 |
| Statutory Demand | £85-150 plus VAT to serve Demand | £1500 (for debts under £100,000, if above that then we can provide a detailed assessment) |
| Proof of Debt | None | £300 |
| Third Party Debt Order (uncontested) | £119 | £600 |
| Consent Orders | £119 | £300 |
| Order for Sale | Detailed assessment to be provided | Detailed assessment to be provided |
| Bankruptcy Petition | Detailed assessment to be provided | Detailed assessment to be provided |
| Winding Up Petition | Detailed assessment to be provided | Detailed assessment to be provided |
Dispute claims
If the claim is disputed, then it will need to move onto our hourly rates charges as we will need to investigate the defence with you and potentially deal with defended pleadings. Our standard hourly rate is £300 plus VAT. We will provide you with our best estimate of the costs and chance of success to take the matter to Court and you will then be able to decide whether the potential success and return of the debt justifies the expense.
Please email Ruth Godfrey ruth.godfrey@rll-legal.com with the information referred to above to start the process.