Claims against a Person or an Organisation
There are two ways of making a claim. You can either make a money claim online or you can use the paper claim form (CPR Part 7) (Form N1).
As a rule, the amount that you will pay to take someone to court, and the method you use, will depend on whether you know the total claim amount (or not).
You pay the cheapest court fees by using the online service. Plus, making an online claim means the court fees will be calculated for you.
Important: When you already know the ‘specified’ amount that you are claiming, the court bases the charges on that exact amount (plus any applicable interest).
Hence, you will need to use the paper claim form if you are unsure of the exact amount. Even so, you would still need to pay the current court fees when you send a paper claim form.
In this case, you need to estimate the amount of your claim and then pay the paper form fee for that estimated amount.
Here’s a good example:
Estimating a money claim value between £1,000.01 and £1,500 means you would need to pay court fees of £80 if you are using the paper claim form.
County Court Fees 2022
| Amount of Money Claimed at the Court | Fee for Paper Form | Fee for Online Claim |
|---|---|---|
| Up to £300 | £35 | £25 |
| £300.01 to £500 | £50 | £35 |
| £500.01 to ٟ1,000 | £70 | £60 |
| £1,000.01 to £1,500 | £80 | £70 |
| £1,500.01 to £3,000 | £115 | £105 |
| £3,000.01 to £5,000 | £205 | £185 |
| £5,000 to £10,000 | £455 | £410 |
| £10,000.01 to £200,000 | 5% of the claim | 4.5% of the claim |
| £200,000+ | £10,000 | Paper claim only |
Multiply the claim amount by 0.05 to calculate 5% of the claim value. You should round the figure down to the nearest one pence (1p) where necessary.
Note: Leaving the section marked ‘amount claimed‘ blank on the form will result in an automatic court fee of £10,000.
How to Pay Small Claims Court Fee
You can pay the court fees online by credit or debit card. Send a letter with the paper form if you want the court to accept an online payment (remember to add your contact details).
If not, you would need to pay by postal order or cheque (made payable to ‘HM Courts and Tribunals Service’) if you choose to use the paper format.
There may be extra fees to pay later in the process. There would be a charge for a court hearing and further costs will apply if you need to get a judgment enforced. But, in most cases you can get these fees back after making a claim – assuming you win your case.
Court and Tribunal Fees (England and Wales)
There is usually a fee to pay if you go to a court or a tribunal in England or Wales. Those who are receiving a low income, or on certain benefits may be able to get money off court or tribunal fees.
Court and tribunal fees are not the same as legal costs (e.g. charged by a barrister or a solicitor). The amount you pay at a court or a tribunal depends on the actual claim or type of case.
There may be multiple small claims fees applied to certain situations (e.g. an application fee and a hearing fee).
- The court fee to get a divorce or dissolve a civil partnership is £593.
- The court-handling fee for getting a legal separation is £365.
- The court fee to claim money owed to you starts from £35.
- The cost of applying for a financial order is £275.
- There is no charge to appeal a benefits decision.
- The cost of applying for bankruptcy online in England is currently £680.
- There is a fee of £215 to apply for probate (e.g. estates over £5,000).
- Searching the register of judgments costs between £6 and £10.
You cannot pay most of the court and tribunal fees online. An exception is the Money Claim Online service.
You will need to pay in person by cash, cheque, or using a debit or credit card. If you pay by postal methods using a cheque, make it payable to ‘HM Courts and Tribunals Service’.
Note: Court fees may differ in Scotland and some of the processes for courts and tribunals differ in Northern Ireland.
Small Claims Court Interest on Money Owed
As the claimant, you can claim interest on the money owed to you by the defendant. Claiming an ‘unspecified’ amount means the interest gets calculated for you.
But, claiming for a ‘specified’ or fixed amount of money means you would need to calculate the total amount of interest owed.
How to Work Out the Interest Amount
Being owed money by another business means you can charge interest on late commercial payments. But, for the majority of other debts, the rate of interest is 8%.
There are 3 easy steps to calculate the daily rate of interest for small claims court:
- Determine the yearly interest: Multiply the amount you are claiming 0.08 (for an interest rate of 8%).
- Determine the daily interest: Divide the yearly interest by 365 (or the number of days in a calendar year).
- Calculate the total interest amount: Multiply the daily interest by the number of days that the debt has been overdue.
An Example:
If we assume the amount owed is £2,000 the annual interest would be £160 (2000 x 0.08 = 160).
Divide £160 by 365 to get the daily interest of 43p a day (160 / 365 = 0.438). Thus, the interest on 60 days of debt would be £25.80 (60 x 0.43 = 25.80).
Related Help Guides
- Apply to bankrupt someone who owes you money.
- Court and tribunal fees (Ffioedd llysoedd a thribiwnlysoedd).
- Steps for making a court claim for money owed to you.
Note: In some situations, court and tribunal fees may be waived (set aside) for applications to adjourn civil and family hearings because of coronavirus (COVID-19).