We have directed you to this page because you have quoted the debtor’s name and/or legal status incorrectly in the proceedings, which, means that the judgment order is defective and needs to be amended to enable us to enforce it on your behalf.
Without amendment, technically, the judgment order is unenforceable because an individual or business of the name stated does not actually exist as the name of the debtor must be shown correctly and precisely.
This is often purely down to a spelling mistake or typographical error, on the claim form, which, can be fixed easily to enable us to proceed.
Sometimes, the debtor’s legal status also needs updating because the order does not show that the judgment debtor is, for example, a limited company because you have not included the letters ‘ltd’, or the word ‘limited’ after the name when issuing the proceedings.
Also, you may have sued a trading style, an alternative name used by the company, which, is not its true legal name as a legal entity or you may have sued an individual trading as another name (trading style) or part of a firm or partnership, which, would provide us with more options to enforce the judgment on your behalf.
When we write to the debtor or attend at their premises, without amending the process, there is the risk that the debtor will notice the paperwork is defective because it contains errors and can use this to prevent us from taking enforcement action on your behalf.
If the debtor seeks advice from their lawyer or an advice charity, it is likely that their adviser will also pick up on this technicality; without resolving it would mean you have potentially wasted time and money to obtain a judgment, which, cannot be enforced. It could potentially be set aside or struck out, meaning you might have to start the whole process over again.
The Court and its users follow a set of rules called The Civil Procedure Rules 1998. CPR Rule 40.12 allows for the correction of errors in judgments and orders and states that:
(1) The court may at any time correct an accidental slip or omission in a judgment or order.
(2) A party may apply for a correction without notice.
You can therefore apply to the Court under this rule without a hearing to correct any simple errors that have been made.
Where more substantial changes are required over and above correcting a simple error, you may have to apply on notice to the Court and attend a hearing to vary the terms of the judgment order. A court fee will be payable to issue the application and there is no guarantee that the District Judge will allow the variation and if this is the case, you may have to start fresh proceedings to correct any significant errors.
If you are in any doubt as to the precise name and legal status of the debtor and require further guidance, we would recommend speaking to your solicitor or please contact us for further guidance.
You can conduct basic searches online via the Companies House website to check to confirm whether a business is a limited entity, and, if so, to confirm its Registered Office address and director details to verify that it is the business with which you have been trading.
Visit: https://www.gov.uk/get-information-about-a-company
The Electoral Roll managed by the relevant local authority lists individuals who have registered to vote from their home address and can be used to confirm they were in residence at the time of registering and potentially or more than likely to still be residing at their last known address.
If these resources do not provide you with the answers you need, please contact us to discuss the range of verification services that we provide including pre-sue reports to confirm our assessment as to whether it is worth pursuing the debtor for payment or our trace service to locate their current address when they have left their last known address.
Please contact us for further support or guidance:
T: 01993 220557
E: BD@courtenforcementservices.co.uk
