Small claims is simpler than you fear. Speak to Kestrel.
The small claims track handles most money disputes under £10,000. You start online, fees scale with the claim and are added to it if you win, hearings are short and informal, and you do not risk paying the other side's solicitor bills in the normal way. The letter before claim you send first resolves a large share of cases on its own.
Small claims is not a separate court but a track of the county court designed for ordinary people. Most contract and debt disputes under £10,000 belong there. The judge leads the hearing, the rules of evidence are relaxed, and many hearings happen by phone or video.
Costs are the point. On the small claims track each side generally bears its own legal costs win or lose, apart from fixed sums and the court fees. That caps your risk, and it is why the economics favour doing the preparation well and the hearing yourself, with a lawyer behind you rather than beside you.
The court expects you to have tried to resolve matters first: a letter before claim with a deadline, and a genuine look at mediation, which the court offers free for small claims. Judges notice who behaved reasonably.
Guide edition: August 2026. General information for England and Wales. Current law and your particular facts require assessment before action.
Set out what happened, what you want and a deadline. For debts against individuals, the rules give them 30 days and a reply form.
File the claim with the facts in plain English and pay the issue fee, which scales with the amount and joins the claim.
The defendant replies, the court offers free mediation, and if it does not settle you get a hearing date and simple directions on exchanging documents.
Short, informal, judge-led. Bring the bundle, answer questions, stick to the facts. Judgment often comes the same day.
Tell Kestrel what happened. The AI legal assistant gathers the facts and prepares a summary for you to check. Request lawyer review from your Legal Centre.
Speak to Kestrel nowMost contract and debt claims carry a six-year limitation period. The court fee and timetable reward starting sooner: memories and companies both fade.
This guide concerns Money & debt recovery. It forms part of our reference library. Kestrel is preparing for SRA authorisation. See practice details for the proposed service and current availability.
They scale with the claim value on a published scale, from tens of pounds for small sums into the hundreds for larger ones, and they are added to your claim if you win.
No, and on small claims you generally cannot recover their fee anyway. The efficient model is a lawyer-built claim and bundle, then you attend the short hearing yourself.
You request judgment in default and win without a hearing. Ignoring court papers is the worst move a defendant can make, and many do it anyway.
A judgment is an order, not a bank transfer. If they still do not pay, enforcement follows: court enforcement officers, deductions from earnings, or a charge over property. Plan enforcement before you sue: a defendant with nothing is a hollow win.
Start with the AI legal assistant, then follow the case, messages and lawyer review in your Legal Centre.
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