Debt Recovery Pricing

Debt Recovery Pricing Information for debts up to £100,000

Our services are tailored to meet the specific needs of each client. The following outlines our charges for business debt recovery matters involving debts of up to £100,000.

Pre-Action Charges

If you require assistance with a one-off debt recovery matter, we charge an initial setup fee. This fee will be agreed with you in advance and will depend on the nature of the case and the value of the debt.

Where possible, we offer fixed fees for our services. If a fixed fee is not appropriate, our standard hourly rates will apply based on the time spent by our partners and staff.

The fees and disbursements detailed here apply to undefended debts only. Additional costs may apply for third-party services (e.g. agents attending hearings), which vary depending on the case.

Please note:

Letters Before Action & Late Payment Demands

Our fee for reviewing your documents and issuing a Pre-Action Letter or Late Payment Demand will depend on the amount of paperwork and time involved. This includes any necessary correspondence or phone calls with you.

For straightforward cases with complete documentation, our fee is typically £150 -£200 plus VAT.

Issuing Proceedings

When proceedings are issued, you may be able to recover:

These costs are recoverable from the debtor if your claim is successful and the debtor has the means to pay.

Our charges for issuing a claim include:

Please note: If our fee exceeds the fixed costs recoverable from the debtor, the difference will remain payable by you.

A full breakdown of our fees and the recoverable fixed costs is provided in the table below.

Amount Claimed	Our Fee (exc VAT)	Court Issue Fee (Recoverable)	Recoverable Fixed Costs
£100.00 - £299.00	£100.00	£35.00	£50.00
£300.00 - £499.00	£120.00	£50.00	£50.00
£500.00 - £999.00	£140.00	£70.00	£70.00
£1,000.00 - £1,499.00	£175.00	£80.00	£80.00
£1,500.00 - £2,999.00	£225.00	£115.00	£80.00
£3,000.00 - £4,999.00	£325.00	£205.00	£80.00
£5,000.00 - £14,999.00	£450.00	£455.00	£100.00
Exceeds £10,000.00 but does not exceed £200,000.00	£650.00	5% of the value of the claim	£100.00

Entering Judgment

There is no Court fee to enter Judgment. Our fees for entering judgment in default are £75 plus VAT.

On entering judgment, you can claim the “fixed costs on entry of judgment” set out in part 45 of the Civil Procedure Rules and which will form part of the sum payable by the debtor under the judgment. The amount of recoverable “fixed cost on entry of judgment” which you can claim will depend on the amount of the claim and stage at which judgment is entered as set out in the table below:

	Sum from £25.00 to £5,000.00	Sum exceeding £5,000.00
Judgment following failure by debtor to file an acknowledgement of service	£22.00	£30.00
Judgment entered in default action in default of defence	£25.00	£35.00
Judgment entered on defendant’s admission and claimant’s acceptance as to mode of payment	£40.00	£55.00
Judgment entered following admission and proposals rejected	£55.00	£70.00

Work Coverd By Our Fees

The fees outlined above include the following services:

Reviewing your initial instructions.
Examining relevant documentation and preparing a Letter Before Action.
Managing any payments received and accounting to you for those funds.
Drafting and issuing a County Court claim.
If no Acknowledgement of Service or Defence is received, applying to the Court for Judgment in Default.
Once Judgment in Default is obtained, writing to the debtor to request payment.

Additional Work

Any work beyond the scope outlined above will be charged at our standard hourly rates. This may include, for example:

Likely Timescale to Obtain Judgment in Default

A Letter Before Action or Letter of Demand will typically be sent within 7–10 working days of receiving your instructions, unless further information is required.
If the debtor is a business or partnership, the letter will usually request payment within 7 days.
If the debtor is a sole trader or consumer, they will generally be allowed 30 days to respond.

If payment is not received or no acceptable payment proposal is made, we will seek your instructions to issue court proceedings.

In an uncontested matter, Judgment in Default is typically obtained within 8 to 10 weeks from the date we receive your instructions. The exact timeframe may vary depending on factors such as the complexity of the case, the debtor’s response, and their ability to pay.

If the claim is defended:

For claims under £10,000, the matter will likely be allocated to the Small Claims Track, with a final hearing usually scheduled within 3–6 months, depending on court availability.
For claims over £10,000, the process is more complex and may involve expert evidence or case management hearings. These cases often take several months or longer to reach a final hearing.

For claims over £10,000, the process is more complex and may involve expert evidence or case management hearings. These cases often take several months or longer to reach a final hearing. Most matters are resolved through a commercial settlement agreed between the parties during the litigation process, often before the final hearing.

Enforcement Of A Judgment

If a debtor fails to pay after judgment is obtained, there are several enforcement options available:

Method	Our Fee (exc. VAT)	Court Fee	Other Fees
Warrant of Control issued through the County Court and enforced by the Bailiff.	£150.00	£110.00
Issuing warrant of execution through the High Court to be enforced by the High Court Sheriff (HCEO).	£150.00	£66.00	The HCEO Fee in the event that the recovery is successful is recovered from the debtor. A Compliance Fee of £70 plus VAT is paid on instructing the HCEO and is not refundable if the recovery is not successful from the debtor. A Compliance Fee of £70 plus VAT is paid on instructing the HCEO and is not refundable if the recovery is not successful
Renewing a warrant through either the County Court or High Court.	£75.00	£33.00

Other enforcement methods include:-

Method	Our Fee (exc. VAT)	Court Fee	Other Fees
Application for a Charging Order.	£225.00	£110.00	£50.00 Agent’s fees
Attachment of earnings.	£95.00	£110.00
Statutory Demand.	£250.00 - £350.00 plus VAT (for preparation of the demand)		Process Server’s fee (to be advised)
Preparation of a Winding up Petition against a company.	£1,500.00 - £2,000.00 plus VAT (for preparing the petition and preparation for one hearing)	£1,880.00 (made up of Court Fee of £280 and Official Receiver’s Deposit of £1600.00)	Process Server’s fees, Search Fee for Prior Petitions, Agent’s fees for service of the petition/preparation of Certificate of Service) and Advocate’s fees for attending hearing (to be advised)
Bankruptcy Petition (individual)	£1,500.00 - £2,000.00 plus VAT (for preparing the petition and preparation for one hearing)	£1,540.00	Process Server’s fees, Search Fee for Prior Petitions, Agent’s fees for service of the petition/preparation of Certificate of Service) and Advocate’s fees for attending hearing (to be advised)

The fees outlined in the table assume that the enforcement process is uncontested by the debtor. For enforcement methods requiring a court hearing, the fees are based on the assumption that only one hearing will be necessary. If a hearing is adjourned or an additional hearing is required, further fees will apply.

If the enforcement method involves a court hearing, we will arrange for an agent or barrister to attend on your behalf. We will confirm the applicable fee before the hearing. For brief hearings such as those to consider a final charging order or a bankruptcy petition an agent’s attendance fee typically ranges from £125 to £150 plus VAT. A barrister’s fee will be higher, but in most cases of unopposed hearings, a barrister will not be necessary.

Additional fees that may arise during the enforcement process include:

Land Registry fees:

After judgment is obtained and we begin discussing enforcement options, we will provide a full breakdown of the fees and disbursements relevant to the selected method.

Please note that the timescale for enforcement varies depending on the circumstances of your case and the method chosen.

FG's Hourly Rates

Our hourly rates are set out in the table below.

Partner	£255.00
Senior Associate	£225.00
Solicitor	£150.00
Trainee Solicitor	£111.00
Paralegal	£86.00