Getting a County Court Judgement removed from your credit report is a lengthy process but it is possible to do. You will need to fill out certain documents and have the approval of the court. Having the approval of the creditor that took your account to the court is also ideal.
How to Avoid Getting a County Court Judgement
Having a creditor take your debt to the county and create a judgement against in you is one of the most negative and serious actions they can take. To have gotten to that stage means that you defaulted gravely on your account and took no steps to remedy it.
You can avoid this ever happening by staying in contact with your creditors about your situation. If you’ve taken on too much debt you may need the services of a credit consolidation counsellor, who can take your debts and turn them into one smaller monthly payment.
A bad situation at work, getting hurt or having a sudden change in finances can also contribute to unstable loan payments. Always stay in touch with your creditors. Let them know ahead of time if your payments are going to be late and why, or if you’ll need to make a smaller payment. Not all companies will comply with your needs but many of them will, and proving trustworthiness will do a great deal to allay them taking any serious steps against you.
What to do After Getting a Judgement Filed Against You
However, if the action has already been taken, you can still redeem yourself. It’s possible to get in over your head and simply not know what to do. If a creditor has filed a judgement against you and you have been ordered to repay the amount due, you will also be liable for all court costs accrued in the process. This will increase your bill substantially.
In most cases, the debt is valid and indisputable, but if your case is different and this is genuinely not your responsibility, you may file to prove that the claim is not valid. If you have proof of such, the judgement will be dropped and you will not owe the money.
A valid debt needs to be repaid. Contact the creditor and work out a reasonable arrangement by which you can pay the amount owed. Review your financial situation and make sure that you’re creating arrangements that you can and will stick to.
Once you’ve paid this debt in full, obtain a letter of receipt from the company and tell them of your intention to have the CCJ removed from your credit report. The company more than likely will be willing to assist you in this matter now that the debt is fulfilled.
Getting the CCJ Removed
Obtain copies of your credit report. An official form will need to be filed, called the N244, with the county court. You’ll need to explain, in detail, the circumstances of the account that was sent to the court and request that it be set aside. You will also need to furnish the original summons, the name of the plaintiff, the name of the court and the court case number.
You may obtain your court case number by contacting the central registry. There will be a fee attached.
Provide the letter from the creditor stating that the account has been paid in full. You can request that a letter acknowledging receipt of this form be sent to you, though this will usually be done regardless.
Once you have received a notice from the court that the judgment has been set aside, make a copy of it and send that to your credit bureaus with the request that the judgement be dropped from your credit report.
Allow at least four weeks for this to transpire, then check your credit report again to verify the removal of the judgement.
