Negotiating a lower payment

Are you struggling to afford a CCJ?

If you believe the amount for the debt is incorrect or need a repayment plan, you can find information on this on our 'Completing N9A or N9B forms' section. You may receive a CCJ for a higher amount if you did not return the admission form or the creditor and the court disagree with the proposed payment. However, there is always a chance to lower fees (called redetermination). You must submit the form within sixteen days from the date of the judgment. 

 

Redetermination

The redetermination process allows you to ask the court to review the judgment, this must be done no later than two weeks after a CCJ. You will need to write to the court explaining your financial situation along with a list of expenses and income to support your application. You must open your letter with the following phrase "I wish to seek a redetermination under rule 14.13 of the Civil Procedure Rules". The court will respond with the next stage, this may include attending a hearing (you can request a hearing if you wish to put your case forward personally) to determine the new payment rate. 

 

Variation

If you run out of time to lodge a redetermination, you can still apply to lower payments via a "Variation" (court form N245). This usually happens if your circumstances change suddenly. The court will contact your creditor to see if they are happy to accept your repayment offer. If they refuse, the court will then decide on these payments and write to you with their decision. You can apply for variation at any time if your circumstances change, but there is a court fee of £50 (as of December 2021) to do this. If you are on a low income, this sum may be waived.

 

How we can help

Lestons can assist in various ways, in this situation we would recommend appointing one of our excellent third-party independent financial advisors. Please note we make no commission from these referrals but do need clients to open a case so that we can prepare a financial brief for them. To gain our assistance you need to open a case, this is done by simply clicking on the link at the top of the page, you will then need to deposit a sum equal to one hour’s usage, upon receipt of these funds you will be assigned your personal caseworker who will telephone you to discuss the matter and make suggestions on how to proceed.

 

Please note your caseworker can only give generic advice, their role is to prepare your details for handling by our appointed financial advisor and to act as your point of contact, they will also issue you with your Password and PIN, these will be needed to log onto your client dashboard. From your dashboard you will be able to manage and view every aspect of your case, upload documents, images, files etc.