Free Traffic Legal Advice

Dear Forum,

I recently checked my credit rating which should be very high, but noticed it was very low. After a bit of clicking around I was stunned to find a CCJ for £236, with my old address linked to it. The date of the CCJ is Jan 2023.

I left the old address in Jan 2020, and have been on the public electoral roll ever since so should have been easy enough to find. Other utilities found me at my new address with no problem.

I called the court, and was advised that this was for a parking charge from 2017, which I have no recollection of. The lady I spoke to gave the name of UKPC as the claimant, and advised me to complete an N244 set aside application, which I did. It didn't dawn on me that this was the sort of issue I should be seeking advice for first, I thought it would be straightforward.

Anyway, I have emailed the N244 form back to them, stating that I did not live at the address since Jan 2020, so the judgement was improperly served. I did this on the 5th September.

I did not contact UKPC or ask for all the particulars of the claim from the court, as per your guidance, as I didn't know I had to at the time. It was only after Googling after the event I realise I maybe should have.

Please could someone tell me how much these omissions matter? And what, if anything, I should do next?

Many thanks in advance.

I guess it's for the set-aside hearing, not the actual claim?  It may be worth posting the doc up.

What exactly did you put in your Witness Statement and draft order for the set aside? Have you quoted CPR 13.2 or 13.3? Have you quoted CPR 7.5?

Please show us what you put in your WS.

The CCJ will most likely be set aside under CPR 13.3. However, without knowing what else you put in your WS, it is likely that the cost of the application will be reserved, which is not good for you as UKPC will discontinue before any subsequent hearing and you won't be able to recover those costs.

If more than 4 months have passed since the CCJ, you could have applied CPR 7.5 which would have meant that the claim was struck out.

Was there a draft order?

May 2025? For a CCJ! That's a ridiculous amount of time to have this hanging over your head. Which court is your hearing scheduled at?

You need to urgently write a letter to the court manager and attach a Supplementary Witness Statement (SWS) and a draft order. Here are some suggestions:

Court Manager
Watford County Court
10 King Street
Watford
WD18 0BW

[Date]

RE: Request for Urgent Rescheduling of CCJ Set Aside Hearing

Claim Number: [Insert Claim Number]
Defendant: [Your Name]
Hearing Date: [Insert Scheduled Hearing Date]

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing to request an urgent rescheduling of the set aside hearing for the above-referenced claim. The hearing is currently scheduled for [insert hearing date], which is nearly eight months from now. This delay is causing considerable financial hardship.

Grounds for Urgency

I discovered the default judgment (CCJ) on my credit report on [insert date], and I promptly submitted an N244 application to have the judgment set aside. As per the overriding objective of the court under CPR 1.1, cases should be dealt with justly, fairly and expeditiously. The court expects a defendant who becomes aware of a default CCJ to act without delay, as I have done. However, the long delay in scheduling my hearing conflicts with this expectation and undermines the purpose of timely resolution.

The CCJ, which was obtained without proper service, is continuing to cause significant financial harm. I have been unable to access affordable credit, and it is negatively affecting my credit rating, housing, and employment opportunities. This situation is unjust and unsustainable given that UKPC failed to comply with CPR 6.9, as they did not make reasonable efforts to verify my current address before serving the claim.

The Overriding Objective

In addition to the financial impact, the current scheduling undermines the spirit of the overriding objective, which requires the court to ensure that cases are managed fairly, promptly and in a way that saves expense. The extended delay of nearly eight months renders meaningless the requirement for the defendant to act without delay upon discovering a default judgment. It also conflicts with the court’s duty to ensure that claims are served correctly and parties are given the opportunity to participate in proceedings in a timely manner.

Steps Taken to Rectify the Situation

Recognising that my initial application was submitted without fully understanding procedural requirements, I am submitting a supplementary witness statement and a draft order along with this letter. These documents provide additional evidence of incorrect service and outline my prospects for successfully defending the claim.

Request for Rescheduling

Given the severe financial impact and the procedural irregularities in the service of the claim, I respectfully ask that my hearing be rescheduled at the earliest possible date. The current delay is disproportionate and inconsistent with the court’s overriding objective to handle cases expeditiously and fairly.

Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter. I look forward to your response and a more appropriate hearing date.

Yours sincerely,

[Your Full Name]
Defendant

Enclosures
Supplementary Witness Statement (with evidence of address change and financial hardship)
Draft Order

Here is a suggested SWS:

IN THE COUNTY COURT

Claim No: [Claim Number]

BETWEEN:

[Claimant's Full Name]

Claimant

- and -

[Defendant's Full Name]

Defendant

---

SUPPLEMENTARY WITNESS STATEMENT OF [YOUR NAME]

I, [Your Full Name], of [Your Address], will say as follows:

Introduction


1. I am the Defendant in this case and submit this supplementary witness statement in support of my application to set aside the default judgment entered against me on [Insert Date of Judgment]. This statement is supplementary to my N244 application filed on [Insert Date of Filing].

2. I seek the court's discretion to set aside the judgment under CPR 13.2 on the grounds that the judgment was irregularly obtained due to improper service, or alternatively, under CPR 13.3, as I have a good prospect of successfully defending the claim and the delay until the hearing is causing me significant financial harm.

Failure to Serve at My Current Address

3. The judgment was obtained without my knowledge. The Claimant served the claim form to my old address at [Insert Old Address], which I vacated on [Insert Date]. I moved to my current address at [Insert Current Address] on [Insert Date], and I have been registered on the open electoral roll at this address since then.

4. The Claimant made no attempt to verify my correct address, despite having the option to do so through easily accessible databases such as the electoral roll or other credit referencing systems, in breach of CPR 6.9(3). The Claimant should have known that my address had changed by checking publicly available data before serving the claim form.

5. The claim form was served to an address that I had vacated several years earlier, meaning I had no knowledge of the proceedings and no opportunity to defend myself. I only became aware of the judgment when I discovered it on my credit report on [Insert Date].

Impact of the Default Judgment

6. The default judgment is having a devastating impact on my financial situation. My credit rating has been significantly damaged, and as a result, I have been unable to secure credit at reasonable rates. I am also facing issues with housing applications, as many landlords and letting agents require a clean credit report.

7. Additionally, the judgment is affecting my employment prospects, as certain employers check credit history during the hiring process. I have attached evidence showing the damage to my credit report as Exhibit A and proof of my address change as Exhibit B.

Real Prospect of Defence

8. I also submit that I have a real prospect of successfully defending the claim. Based on the limited information available to me, I believe that the Claimant, UKPC, has failed to comply with the strict requirements of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (PoFA) for keeper liability, or that their claim is otherwise defective.

9. Until I receive the properly served particulars of claim and associated documents, I am unable to provide a full defence. However, I intend to raise a defence based on non-compliance with PoFA, as well as the Claimant’s failure to follow the British Parking Association (BPA) Code of Practice, which is relevant to UKPC’s membership obligations.

The Overriding Objective and Delay Until the Hearing

10. I acted promptly as soon as I became aware of the default judgment, which is a requirement for a defendant seeking to set aside a judgment. I filed my application without delay, yet the hearing has been scheduled nearly eight months from now, which significantly undermines the court's overriding objective under CPR 1.1 to deal with cases justly and expeditiously.

11. The substantial delay before the hearing will cause further irreparable harm to my financial situation. Given that the default judgment was entered without proper service and I have demonstrated prompt action in seeking to rectify this, I respectfully request that the hearing be expedited to prevent further prejudice.

Claim is Dead Due to Failure to Serve within 4 Months

12. CPR 7.5(1) provides that a claim form must be served within 4 months from the date it is issued. The claim in this case was issued on [Insert Issue Date] and has not been properly served to me within that period.

13. Several cases confirm that the court cannot resurrect a claim after more than 4 months have passed without valid service:

(a) In Boxwood [2021] EWHC 947 (TCC), the court reaffirmed that CPR 7.6(3) does not allow extensions of time for serving a claim form unless strict conditions are met, and other CPR provisions cannot be used to circumvent these requirements.

(b) In Croke v National Westminster Bank Plc [2022] EWHC 1367 (Ch), the court refused to grant relief from sanctions where a claim form was served one day late, confirming the strict application of service rules. The claim ceased to have validity after the four-month period.

(c) Piepenbrock v Associated Newspapers Ltd [2020] EWHC 1708 (QB) refused an application for retrospective extension of time to serve a claim form. The court held that failure to serve within the validity period resulted in the claim becoming "dead."

(d) Vinos v Marks & Spencer plc [2001] 3 All ER 784 confirmed that the court does not have the power to extend time limits under CPR 7.6 after the four-month period has expired.

14. As more than 4 months have passed since the claim form was issued without proper service, this claim is now dead and cannot be revived.

CPR 12.3(1) and No Default

15. CPR 12.3(1) requires that judgment in default can only be entered if the defendant has not acknowledged service and the relevant time for doing so has expired. Since the claim form was not properly served, the time for acknowledging service has not even begun, let alone expired. As the condition in CPR 12.3(1)(b) has not been satisfied, the judgment was wrongly entered, and I request that it be set aside under CPR 13.2.

16. The failure to serve the claim form within the period of its validity means that the claim cannot be resurrected, and the court has no jurisdiction to entertain this dead claim.

17. In the matter of costs, I ask:

(a) standard witness costs for attendance at Court, pursuant to CPR 27.14, and

(b) for a finding of unreasonable conduct by this Claimant, seeking costs pursuant to CPR 46.5

18. Attention is drawn specifically to the (often-seen from this industry) possibility of an unreasonably late Notice of Discontinuance. Whilst CPR r.38.6 states that the Claimant is liable for the Defendant's costs after discontinuance (r.38.6(1)) this does not normally apply to claims allocated to the small claims track (r.38.6(3)). However, the White Book states (annotation 38.6.1): "Note that the normal rule as to costs does not apply if a claimant in a case allocated to the small claims track serves a notice of discontinuance although it might be contended that costs should be awarded if a party has behaved unreasonably (r.27.14(2)(dg))."

Conclusion

19. For the reasons stated above, I respectfully request that the court:

(a) Set aside the default judgment entered on [Insert Judgment Date] under CPR 13.2 or, in the alternative, CPR 13.3;

(b) Strike out the claim as it is now "dead" due to the expiry of more than 4 months since its issue without valid service under CPR 7.5(1);

(c) In the alternative, reschedule the set aside hearing to an earlier date due to the ongoing financial harm caused by the delay;

(c) Permit me to file a defence within 14 days of the reissued claim being properly served; and

(d) Order that the Claimant be responsible for my costs of this application.

Statement of truth

I believe that the facts stated in this supplementary witness statement are true. I understand that proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against anyone who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth without an honest belief in its truth.

Signed:


Date:

Exhibits:
Exhibit A: Credit report showing the impact of the CCJ.
Exhibit B: Proof of your address change (e.g., electoral roll, tenancy agreement, or utility bills).

And here is a suggested draft order:

IN THE COUNTY COURT

Claim No: [Claim Number]

BETWEEN:

[Claimant's Full Name]

Claimant

- and -

[Defendant's Full Name]

Defendant

---

DRAFT ORDER

UPON reading the Defendant’s application to set aside the default judgment under CPR 13.2 and/or CPR 13.3

AND UPON hearing from both parties

AND UPON considering that more than 4 months have passed since the issue of the claim and it has not been validly served within the time period required by CPR 7.5

IT IS ORDERED THAT:

1. The default judgment entered on [Insert Judgment Date] be set aside under CPR 13.2 as the judgment was irregularly obtained, or alternatively, under CPR 13.3 as the Defendant has a real prospect of successfully defending the claim.

2. The claim be struck out as more than 4 months have passed from the issue of proceedings, and the claim was not validly served within the time period prescribed by CPR 7.5(1), rendering the claim "dead."

3. Costs of the application be paid by the Claimant to the Defendant in the sum of £303.

Dated: [Insert Date]

Can we try the basics first.

OP, you posted: I left the old address in Jan 2020,....

You also posted: I called the court, and was advised that this was for a parking charge from 2017.

So, it's not 2020-2024 which is in the spotlight but rather 2017-2020.

So let's ask the questions:

Were you the registered keeper of the vehicle concerned or only the driver or hirer?
If the registered keeper, were your DVLA V5C details up-to-date;
If so, can you think why you would not have received any of the statutory notices?

In which case I suggest you do another basic task: submit a Subject Access Request to UKPC. Why go to court with what ifs/I can't explain how/I haven't a clue when you could try and nail some of the known unknowns beforehand?