No, you do not want to counterclaim. All you are doing is defending the whole claim made against you.
If you wanted to counterclaim, on what basis would you want to do so? If your only concern is "costs", what costs are those?
In small claims, the general rule is no recovery of costs for the losing party, but CPR 27.14(2)(g) allows recovery for
unreasonable behaviour, such as a claimant pursuing a vexatious claim or a defendant unreasonably refusing to respond to a reasonable request. To be awarded costs, a party must apply to the court, which then considers the conduct against the
Ridehalgh v Horsefield test of whether the behaviour "permits of no reasonable explanation". If successful, the court can order the unreasonable party to pay costs, subject to summary assessment.
What constitutes unreasonable behaviour? There's no specific definition, and each case is judged on its own facts. However, examples could include:
• A claimant with no real prospect of success: who brings or pursues a weak case without a reasonable explanation.
• A defendant who fails to provide a reasonable explanation for their actions or refusal to settle a claim.
• Conduct causing unnecessary costs, such as a very late discontinuance.
In order to recover costs under CPR 27.14(2)(g), the party seeking costs must apply to the court to have them assessed. The court will consider if the conduct "permits of no reasonable explanation".
The court will consider the specific circumstances of the case to determine if the behaviour was unreasonable. If the court finds unreasonable behaviour, it can then assess and order the payment of costs, which can be a substantial amount but unlikely in these small claims.
There are some important considerations to take into account. The threshold for establishing unreasonable behaviour is high, especially in the small claims track where the presumption is generally against costs recovery.
The standard of behaviour expected from a represented party may differ from that of a Litigant in Person (LiP).
