Delays with Third Party Debt Order + Registry

[LegalPanda]

Hello,

I have a CCJ against an individual for the sum of £5k and have applied for the TPDO on 8th Feb 2021. The file was sent to the judge on 10th Feb but I have not heard back from the court with an interim order as of today, having called a number of times just to be reminded that it's with the judge. Has anyone encountered a similar situation and / or how long did it take you to get an interim order?

Also I checked The Registry Trust and the CCJ is not listed as they have not been provided details from the court despite it being a month since the hearing. Again, has anyone encountered such a delay?

Many thanks for your assistance.

 

[Mr D]

How backlogged is the judge?

 

[LegalPanda]

They refuse to say, just that it's with the judge

 

[Big G]

Hi there LegalPanda,

The Courts are extremely overworked and under staffed at the moment as are the Registry Trust. We are dealing with CCJ's and different enforcements every day and if we send an application for a Third Party Debt Order we will put it in our diary for 2 months to chase it up then if we have not heard anything.

I completely appreciate how frustrating it is at the moment but there is not much you can do unfortunately. Once that application is made and with the Court you are in their hands and must be patient.

What is going to more frustrating is that the Court will make the interim third party debt order and send it to the Defendants third party (bank maybe) with instructions to freeze the funds if they are available and it will be listed for a final third party debt order hearing, this hearing may well be later in the year dependant on the local Courts availability. As your application is against an individual he/she may well make an application for a hardship order within that time if funds are frozen in their account.

I assume that you have knowledge of the Defendants financial circumstances and know that he/she does have enough funds in the bank or are owed enough funds from the third party? As the CCJ is £5k a swifter option may have been Bankruptcy but, again, I would only advise this if you knew that the Defendant does have the funds to pay and has assets to protect.

So, to summarise, yes we have daily issues with Court delays and I'd advise that you simply put it your diary a month and forget about it until then. Chasing the Court will not make them go any faster on your case unfortunately.

Best of luck!

 

[LegalPanda]

Thanks Big G, I appreciate your input.

I was hoping, rather naively that it would be actioned as an urgent appliction within a few days, clearly not. Looks like a waiting a game as you say.

I am not 100% certain the funds are available now as I fear that whilst the court is taking time to consider our application, the individual has taken steps to remove assets out of the jurisdiction.

It will be a real shame if the final hearing is set for much later in the year but I note that nothing can be done in relation to this.

If unsuccesful, bankruptcy will indeed be the next step.

@Big G, if you don't mind me asking as it appears you have submitted a few of these, how long did it take to get an interim order and how much later was the final hearing?

Thanks again.

 

[Michael Loveridge]

TPDO's are hardly ever successful, as debtors rarely have credit balances at their bank.

As the debt is for £5k I'd strongly recommend serving the debtor with a Statutory Demand. It doesn't cost anything to do so, and if he does have any assets then it may shock him into paying up quickly. If he fails to respond then it's a big red flag that he has no assets and that you're probably throwing good money after bad.

What I always do in this situation is to check at the Land Registry to see if he owns his house. If he does, then threatening bankruptcy is usually the most effective option. It's very rare that you have to go as far as actually issuing a petition, but even if you do you'll usually get paid.

Another alternative is to transfer the judgment to the High Court and send in the bailiffs. They are far more effective than the wimpy bailiffs in the County Court, as they get paid by results instead of a cosy Civil Service salary. The cost is trivial, and although it will only work if he has assets that are worth seizing it may stop you wasting more money if the bailiffs report that he doesn't have any assets.

 

[Big G]

Thanks Big G, I appreciate your input.

I was hoping, rather naively that it would be actioned as an urgent appliction within a few days, clearly not. Looks like a waiting a game as you say.

I am not 100% certain the funds are available now as I fear that whilst the court is taking time to consider our application, the individual has taken steps to remove assets out of the jurisdiction.

It will be a real shame if the final hearing is set for much later in the year but I note that nothing can be done in relation to this.

If unsuccesful, bankruptcy will indeed be the next step.

@Big G, if you don't mind me asking as it appears you have submitted a few of these, how long did it take to get an interim order and how much later was the final hearing?

Thanks again.

Sorry for the delay in my reply LegalPanda,

It is so difficult to give you an answer on this as some applications are returned a lot quicker than others. All that I can say is that we diary forwards at least 2 months when any applications and enforcements applications are made at the moment. We then do need to chase some up after that time.