Small claims court

lju

I took a contractor to the small claims court a number of years ago over a driveway which they had laid badly.

You must ensure you issue the papers in the correct name. If you have his name then issue them in his name T/A his company name.

When it goes to court the judge will no doubt require an "expert" report. The judge in my case recommended an expert and suggested we pay 50/50 for the costs. The judge then added this onto the claim amount when the expert report agreed with me.

I ended up having to use the High Court Sheriffs  to get the money owed. I had made sure he owned his own house (the land registry were very helpful).

If you need any further information, I've still got all the paperwork which I will get out.

I found the forum at www.pavingexpert.com very helpful. The Brew Cabin - Paving and Drainage Forum | Pavingexpert 

Sandtree

Confussed12 said:

Once again thanks for all the replies, without going in to too much details. He is trading as a paving contractor with a company name, and definitely not registered with companies house, his registered address is just a local building and not his home address, when I searched this address it had numerous other companies registered at this address I have seen this before so it looks like he has separated himself from his home address i believe you can pay a fee to register at places like this.  

You need to be VERY careful with your words because you are contradicting yourself...

A sole trader can have a trading name... a sole trader cannot have a company name. A company has to be registered with Companies House otherwise its not a company in England and Wales. A company has a Registered Address but a sole trader doesn't. Both companies and sole traders can have trading addresses and correspondence addresses etc. 

There are various types of companies that provide forwarding addresses and the use of one isn't an immediate red flag. My company's registered office is our accountants along with a couple of hundred others but thats simply because the most likely people to use that address is HMRC who they would deal with anyway.

There is another thread on here from the other day where someone made a mistake on the name of who they sued and having paid their fees etc and gotten judgement in default they've now been told they need to pay a fee to attempt to correct the name and the debt is unenforceable until (and really, if) its changed.

macman

You keep saying 'company name'. But not registered at CH. By company name, do you simply mean trading name?
If his 'company name' does not include 'Ltd' in it, then he's just a sole trader. Which is it?
If he's representing himself as a ltd co, but not registered, then he's a sole trader, and trading fraudulently. The fact that you paid the bill to a personal account would anyway strongly support the view that your contract is with him as a sole trader.
If your claim is under £10k, it can go through small claims. The fee for online filing is £410: there are no other fees unless you need an expert report.
If you do not intend to proceed with small claims, then you should not have sent him an LBA.
if you are going to do small claims, then the first thing you need to resolve is who you are suing: Joe Bloggs Paving Ltd, or Joe Bloggs. Get that wrong and your action will fail at the first hurdle.

Confussed12

When I found him on the internet he has a trading name, the quote is a very basic email with a trading/ company name and his name at the bottom, I believe he is a sole trader as he isnt registered at companies house or have a company number, so sorry for the confusion, the only details I have are his first and last name, his bank details, his trading name and an address at a local building which is used as his trading address. Is this enough to issue the court papers. I apologise for getting my terminology wrong, I believe he is just a sole trader.

MattMattMattUK

Confussed12 said:

When I found him on the internet he has a trading name, the quote is a very basic email with a trading/ company name and his name at the bottom, I believe he is a sole trader as he isnt registered at companies house or have a company number, so sorry for the confusion, the only details I have are his first and last name, his bank details, his trading name and an address at a local building which is used as his trading address. Is this enough to issue the court papers. I apologise for getting my terminology wrong, I believe he is just a sole trader.

Yes it is enough, you would issue the claim to his personal name, at that address, being his last known address.
What was the name on his bank account? That should also allow you to verify his name.
As a sold trader he can not "fold the company/business" he is personally liable, so if he loses his choice is to pay, or you can take further action to enforce the claim, as a sole trader he does not benefit from limited liability. 

macman

I repeat: does his 'trading/company name' include 'Ltd' or not? If not, he's a sole trader. If it does, then he is a sole trader masquerading as a limited company, and you can sue him as a sole trader. Unless of course you are looking up the wrong company name. It is potentially fraudulent, though difficult to prove intent.
I suggest you also do a director search at CH against his name.
If you have sent the LBA to him as a company when he is a sole trader (or vice versa), then you will need to do it again before you commence your claim. If you use the wrong corporate entity, your claim will be thrown out before it starts.

loveka

In terms of the expert witness report I think the information on line is very confusing.

I was told by my solicitor and by 3 surveyors that the judge could order a joint expert witness. He also said we and the other party would have to jointly agree instructions for the expert, which could go through solicitors and this would cost a lot of money.

What actually happened was that we had a full structural survey which cost £600. We asked the court to accept this as our expert witness statement, and it has been allowed.

The other side asked the court if he could have a survey costing £1200 and submit that. The court refused permission.

There is a limit on the amount you can claim for an expert- I think it is £600 or a little less.

Having been through 9 months of hell over this I know the outcome will be I won't get any money if I win.. So I could have accepted the loss 9 months ago which probably would have been a good idea! It is very hard to get the money out of people I have read, and my guy particularly will stop at nothing not to pay!

MattMattMattUK

loveka said:

Having been through 9 months of hell over this I know the outcome will be I won't get any money if I win.. So I could have accepted the loss 9 months ago which probably would have been a good idea! It is very hard to get the money out of people I have read, and my guy particularly will stop at nothing not to pay!

It depends on how they were trading, limited, vs sole trader. If they are a limited company or LLP that has since liquidated then it is not possible, if they are a sole trader then it depends if they have any assets or not.

I have twice had to enforce debts after obtaining a CCJ (both for work), both times the person refused to pay, both times I obtained a writ of control then used a High Court Enforcement Officer to enforce the debt, both times I got the money, the only difference was that it ended up costing the person who owed the money a lot more due to additional fees, interest (8%) and charges. 

loveka

Yes, my guy has a limited company with no assets (according to Companies House) so no chance of getting anything I think.

Confussed12

No his company does not have ltd on it