How to recover debts under £10,000

Owed less than £10,000? The small claims track is designed for exactly this — recovering debts without needing a solicitor. Here's how the process works, from first letter to getting paid.

Step 1: Send a Letter Before Action

Before you can file a court claim, you must send a formal Letter Before Action (LBA). This is a legal requirement under the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims, and skipping it can count against you in court.

Your LBA should set out:

• Exactly how much is owed and why
• Any interest or charges that have accrued
• A deadline for payment (30 days for claims against individuals)
• A clear statement that you'll file a court claim if they don't pay

Garfield drafts and sends compliant LBAs for you. For the full detail, see our letter before action guide.

Step 2: Wait for their response

Three things can happen:

• They pay. Problem solved.
• They propose a repayment plan. If you accept, get it in writing.
• They dispute the debt or ignore you. Move to step 3.

Step 3: File a court claim

If the LBA doesn't resolve things, you file a claim with the County Court using Form N1. This sets out the debt, how it arose, and what you're claiming (including interest and costs).

You'll pay a court fee upfront (£35–£455 depending on the claim value), but this is added to the debt if you win — so the defendant pays it back.

Garfield prepares and submits the claim form to Court for you.

Step 4: The defendant's 14 days

Once the Court serves the claim on the defendant, they have 14 days to respond. They can:

• Pay up
• Acknowledge the claim (which buys them an extra 14 days to file a defence)
• File a defence or counterclaim
• Do nothing

If they don't respond at all, you can apply for a default judgment — an automatic win. The majority of small debt claims end this way.

Step 5: The hearing (if they defend)

If the defendant files a defence, the case goes to a hearing. Small claims hearings are informal — you'll sit around a table with a District Judge who asks questions and manages the process. No barristers in wigs, no jury.

You present your evidence, the defendant presents theirs, and the Judge decides.

Step 6: Getting paid

If the Court finds in your favour, it orders the defendant to pay. If they still don't, you have several enforcement options: bailiffs, deductions from wages, freezing bank accounts, or securing the debt against property.