Moneyclaim Online is a portal to commence a civil claim online, in the courts of England and Wales.
Claims started using Moneyclaim Online will be issued in the County Court Business Centre and will remain at the County Court Business Centre unless they are sent to a County Court hearing centre.
A claim is only likely to be transferred to another County Court hearing centre, if it becomes defended or if a judgment is obtained and steps are taken to enforce it requiring local involvement, such as instructing a bailiff.
Before you can commence a claim, you need to register and create an account. You need to log in to check progress and to file a request for judgment if the Defendant fails to respond in time.
What Types Of Claims Can Moneyclaim Online Be Used For?
The service is intended to be used for straight forward claims for money. Your typical unpaid invoice type claims. It must be for a specified sum of money.
The maximum value of a claim that can be brought is £100,000. It is unlikely that a claim for such a large amount, would be set out in the simple space available in the online methods but it remains an option should the claim not exceed £100,000.
The maximum number of Defendants is limited to two, so if you want to sue 3 or more Defendants you need to use a different method.
The space available on for the particulars of claim is a maximum 1080 characters, including spaces. That is very little space indeed to set out anything other than a very simple claim. If you type more than this the last part of your text will not appear on the claim.
It is an option to issue the claim form without particulars of claim, and to file and serve the particulars of claim separately. If you are considering that, you may just instead want to issue a normal claim, so one using papers and posting them, at the County Court Money Claims Centre.
As the claim is issued online, you don’t actually sign a statement of truth. Instead, by stating your name you agree that the contents of the claim form and particulars of claim to the best of your knowledge and belief, and that you are authorised to verify the statement of truth.
You pay the court issue fee with credit card or debit card.
What Are The Benefits Of Moneyclaim Online?
The main benefit of the online methods of starting a claim, is that the claim is issued straight away that very day. It avoids the delay of completing and posting off a claim form to the County Court Money Claims Centre.
If a claim is at the very end of limitation (most claims must be issued within 6 years that the cause of action accrued), issuing online can be an important option. That won’t be an issue for many people though, as claims are generally brought promptly, rather than being left for years.
When you complete the information to issue a claim, it is issued, printed and sent out automatically, so it is not checked by any court staff. If you make an error, that error will remain in the claim form. The portal is designed to get you to provide the basic information, which it then inputs into the claim form.
What Happens After A Claim Is Issued At Moneyclaim Online?
The court office will print a physical copy of the claim form and post it to the Defendant. It will include the general response forms for the Defendant to use, including a Defence, Acknowledgment of Service and Admission form.
It will also send a notice of issue to the Claimant, confirming the unique claim number given to the claim and also confirming the date for the Defendant to reply.
These should both be sent out within 2 days of issuing the claim online.
The Defendant can log in to Moneyclaim Online to file its response, whether that be a defence, acknowledgment of service or admission. It can also post a copy rather than use the online facility.
If the Defendant does not respond, the Claimant can log back into Moneyclaim Online and request judgment in default, so a CCJ being entered against the Defendant.
Moneyclaim Online Contact Details
The address for filing any document, application or request (other than one which is filed electronically) is the County Court Business Centre, St Katharine’s House, 21-27 St Katharine’s Street, Northampton, NN1 2LH.
Tel: 0300 123 1057
Check the details have not changed though, by checking here.
Please note that there is an alternative online portal for simple claims that do not exceed £10,000 in value. It is similar but perhaps more simple and quicker to get through. The link for that is here.
