Notice of Debt Recovery - First letter received.

How long do I have to send of this DQ, i have not recieved any letters yet and I cannot see anything on my account as you said

edit: managed to get into mcol account by using claim number and password

recent transactions show: Claim Status

A claim was issued against you on 20/05/2025

Your defence was received on 06/06/2025

So it seems no DQ form sent to me yet right?

It will tell you when the DQ has been sent. You can get it ready any time by downloading your own.

I have a mediation telephone appointment booked. What do I do from here?

If you mean at the mediation appointment, you offer £0 to settle and do not discuss your defence, it will be over in a few minutes. Search this forum for lots of examples.

If you mean after that, the case will be allocated to a court local to you, note the date by which the claimant has to pay the court fee because the case will be discontinued rather than paying the fee.

Their tactics are either to scare people into paying up or, if they ignore the court paperwork, to secure a judgment in default. They give up rather than incur the cost of court for anyone who properly defends their case.

Thanks yes I’m at the mediation telephone appointment at the moment. Will offer £0 to settle

After my mediation I’ve had a look at my MCOL account today. It says my claim was transferred to (court near me).

What does this mean?

It means that your request in the N180 you submitted has been actioned.
In due course you will get details of dates including, importantly, the date by which the claimant has to pay the court fee.
Because the case has been transferred to your local court, you no longer have any need to use MCOL.

Received an email few days ago by the claimant. Offering to settle for substantially less out of court. Assuming I decline? Should I respond, if so what?

Thanks again

Ignore all offers of a settlement. It is the precursor to their discontinuing the claim. Let us know when you receive the N279 Notice of Discontinuance.

Received a notice of allocation to the small hearing claims track (hearing). The hearing will take place sometime early next year according to the letter.

They will discontinue just before they have to pay the £27 trial fee. What is that deadline?

The deadline is mid January 2026. There’s also a deadline mid December to provide any evidence to be used in court

It is more helpful if you can give us the actual dates rather than "mid ____".

Sorry 23rd Jan 2026

And the 'mid-December' one?