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What are the impacts if a County Court Judgement has been made against your company?

Published on : 20th October, 2022 | Updated on : 12th May, 2025
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Written ByRobert Moore

Marketing Manager


+447584583884

Rob has over a decade of experience in web and general marketing. He has extensive knowledge of the Insolvency sector and has helped many worried directors with their questions.

Rob is now working with the Board at RMT KSA to develop strategic marketing programmes to support the business plan and drive more company rescues.

Robert Moore

Table of Contents

  • What is a County Court Judgment (CCJ)?
  • The CCJ process:
  • Can I stop the Court from issuing a CCJ against my company?
  • What happens if the debt can be repaid in full?
  • Can a CCJ force my company to repay its debts?
  • What are the impacts on the company and me as a director?
  • Does a CCJ make you, as a director, personally liable for the company debts?
  • Are there any solutions to an affected credit rating?
  • Can a CCJ be removed?
  • To summarise

What is a County Court Judgment (CCJ)?

A CCJ is a court order that can be registered against an individual or limited company for non-payment of a debt. A judgement is made if the creditor has tried all other means to collect the debt.

If a CCJ has been issued against a company because it cannot pay then it has failed one of the tests of insolvency. in that it cannot pay its debts when they are due.

The CCJ process:

  1. Creditors apply to the court and issue the claim.
  2. A County Court Summons is issued by the Court
  3. You have 14 days to respond – either pay back the debt, request more time to pay (up to 14 days) or appeal the judgment with evidence. If you do not respond or come to an alternative arrangement with the creditor who filed the claim, then the CCJ will be issued and recorded against your company.

Can I stop the Court from issuing a CCJ against my company?

The only way you can stop the issuing of a CCJ is to go to court and challenge the debt. It might be that the amount being claimed is wrong or is in dispute.

To do this, you must provide all of the necessary documents for supporting your application.

So, if you receive a Country Court Summons you must act!

What happens if the debt can be repaid in full?

If you can pay the CCJ amount in full, within 30 days of the judgment date then you can stop the CCJ being recorded on your credit file.

Can a CCJ force my company to repay its debts?

No. It is up to the creditor to decide if they want to invest more time and money into working with the courts to get the debt repaid.

Be aware that failure to pay settle the debt required by the CCJ can result in enforcement action i.e. bailiffs on your doorstep.

If the CCJ is not paid then the creditor can do the following.

  • Apply for a Charging Order (securing the debt against a property owned by the company)
  • Issue a  Winding Up Petition,
  • A Third-Party Debt Order or an Attachment of Earnings Order (a court order making your employer pay a portion of your earnings direct to the creditor until the debt is settled)

How does a CCJ affect the company?

If a CCJ is filed, then your businesses credit rating is affected for a period of six years. With a CCJ on your credit rating, it may be harder to obtain finance.

What about supplier terms?

A poor credit rating will make suppliers more cautious. Expect upfront payments for goods and services.

Can a CCJ be removed?

There are three ways in which you can get the CCJ removed:

  1. Pay the CCJ within the month. Make sure the Court have been informed of the payment being settled. Proof of payment is required.
  2. Wait for six years – when the CCJ will be removed from your credit record immediately, even if it is not paid.
  3. Have the CCJ set aside i.e. respond and dispute the claim.

For more information on this see our page on removal of a CCJ

To summarise

Act. Talk to an Insolvency Practitioner like ourselves, to assist you with your options. We can help find a solution before the Court has to be involved. Have you heard of a Company Voluntary Arrangement?

creditor definition in dictionary

Secured And Unsecured Creditors – What Is The Difference?

I am confused about secured and unsecured creditors.  What is the difference? As a director of a company that is doing well and making money you may have no real understanding about the important differences between certain types of creditors.  The only time it really comes up is if you apply for a loan for the business and the lender talks about security and the loan being secured etc. Secured Creditors A secured creditor is a creditor that has security over an asset or assets of the company. So, if the company can't pay then they have the right to the proceeds of the sale or proceeds of the asset.  This is enabled by a legal document called a charge or debenture.  There are two kinds of charge;  A Fixed Charge and a Floating Charge.  The difference is quite hard to explain in a few words so we have a dedicated page on the differences.  Have a read here on fixed and floating charges.  A fixed charge is essentially a charge on a very specific asset whereas a floating charge is across a range of assets or asset that can change.A charge is a bit like a mortgage on your house.  If you fail to keep up your payments then the bank can effectively force the sale of the asset and reimburse themselves.  In a company situation if the secured lender is owed money then they can "force" the company into the hands of administrators who will pay them having sold the assets.  This description is simplistic and is more akin to the old system of receivership but it illustrates the principal. Unsecured Creditors These are essentially creditors that have no security over the assets.  This can be a trade supplier, HMRC, a utility company.  Banks will often lend without security but they will charge a higher rate of interest to offset the risk they can't get their money back.Be aware though that some creditors are called secured as they have a personal guarantee from the director and they may use terminology like "secured against the directors personal assets"  In insolvency law they are not secured and so come after the secured creditors that have a "charge" over the company's assets when money is paid over in the event of a terminal insolvency event like liquidation. What about defacto secured creditors? These are creditors that do not have any security over the company's assets but they have control over the company in that they can shut it down.  An example might be the creditor that runs their proprietory software, or their means of payment (this happens when Amazon have lent the company money to develop their online shop)  such creditors are more properly referred to as "ransom creditors". Ransom creditors are more important if the company is insolvent but could be rescued and so need to continue to trade.  So they need to be kept happy!In a liquidation scenario they would be behind a secured creditor that had a charge over the stock for example.For a more detailed explanation of the priority of creditors in an insolvency situation then please look at our page on creditor priority.  There is even a handy infographic on there too. 

Read
Secured And Unsecured Creditors – What Is The Difference?

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