How can I get a CCJ removed?

In order to get a CCJ removed, you must notify credit reference agencies that the terms of a CCJ have been satisfied and the payments are no longer outstanding. Alternately, removing a CCJ may involve letting these agencies know that a CCJ has been rescinded on appeal.

What cannot be done, unfortunately, is magically remove correct data about a CCJ. It will remain on your credit record for at least six years, as will all other information about your credit activities. Once a CCJ is made, it is entered on to the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines. A credit reference agency then holds details of your CCJ, which is taken from that Register. This may be why credit will be refused to you in the future.

A lot of County Court Judgments come about as the result of a summons that goes undefended. The court will usually enter a “Judgment by Default” – this is usually because the defendant is not aware that a response is needed and does nothing in return.

While it is possible for the debt to be paid off, the judgment will remain on the record anyway unless someone asks for it to be “set aside,” meaning noted as being satisfied. This usually happens because people are unaware that it is necessary to ask for it to be set aside.

In the event that a Judgment is reversed or set aside, then the court will automatically remove the entry from the Register of County Court Judgments.

In order for the removal of a CCJ to be processed, the following must be provided:

• The original summons
• The name of the plaintiff.
• The name of the court.
• The Case Number – If you do not have the case number, then the court will not even bother reading the application. In the event that you do not have this, then you need to contact the central registry and ask for it. This will cost you around fifteen pounds. You can contact the registry on 020 7380 0133.

Getting a CCJ removed

 

In order to go about getting the CCJ removed, you should first acquire a copy of your current credit record. You can do this by writing to credit agencies asking for a copy of your credit file.

You should then look in to the details on the judgments that have been filed against you. You can do this by using the sample letter below.

You should then request removal of any incorrect or unfair judgments. An N244 form must be used to petition the court to remove such judgments. These forms are available for free from the courts; you may also download a N244 form here. You should then complete the form, giving details related to your county court judgment. You should also provide a valid reason to set the judgment aside. Such reasons include the following:

• Fraud and Identity theft. Somebody used your name or address to obtain credit, which resulted in a County Court judgment without you knowing.
• Not given 28 days notice to pay.
• Incorrect address when the summons and judgment took place.
• Summons not received, not sent by recorded mail.
• Unable to attend court and defend yourself.
• The judgment should not appear on the credit files if it debt was settled within 28 days.
• In case of agreement to settle 'out of court' with the plaintiff, you should not have received a Judgment.
• If you did not receive any notification of the judgment/s made against you, then you can appeal.
• Acceptance of full amount of the judgment at the time, but now only agree partially
• Summons taken out against both yourself and another person jointly one only one party received summons
• Unavailability /out of the country, etc between the issue of the summons and entry of the judgment.
• Summons received late, so not given 21 days to reply to the court. If the summons was 21 days late then the judgment would have already been made.

You are then obligated to write to finance companies in the event that that there are outstanding defaults. Make sure that you are aware of the terms and conditions that are needed for full settlement. You should ask the finance company to confirm in writing the debt that has now been cleared. You can use the sample letter below for this.

You should then inform the credit agencies; you can do this by using the sample letter below.

At this point, your file should be clear.