Small Claims Question

CeePeeBee

Hi all,

Last year we had some 'work' done on our property and the long and short was it was hideous, not fit for purpose and still is not complete. We initiated a discussion with the company and we were unable to receive a refund, so we initiated small claims proceedings. 

Fast forward, mediation didn't help so we went through the pre-hearing phase and bacj in Feb we received a letter telling us the hearing date would be in July time, and that we'd need to submit all of our evidence to be heard prior to that (around a month before) via a portal.

Has anybody got any experience of when this portal becomes available? We're a month away from that submission date now and when viewing the case on MoneyClaims portal, there's just a "not available" next to the relevant portal/submit documents, etc

I'm just wondering if somebody has experience and can put my mind at ease in terms of timings!

Aylesbury_Duck

Aren't you too early, if the hearing is going to be in July and the portal opens a month before?

CeePeeBee

Aylesbury_Duck said:

Aren't you too early, if the hearing is going to be in July and the portal opens a month before?

This is my point though - that's my assumption. There's been no information or indication that the portal opens a month before. The letter purely stated that all submissions would need to be filed by mid-June (13th I think), prior to the hearing a month or so later. 

Nothing in terms of when the portal is available. We've got a LOT to do is all so trying to work back from a date.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Might be worth a post here OP

https://legalbeagles.info/forums/forum/legal-forums/court-claims-and-issues

Jenni_D

Usually your Witness Statement is sent via email (the WS being a PDF attachment) to the nominated court. (Which would usually be your local court as your are a consumer suing a business). What does your documentation say as to where the hearing court is located?

CeePeeBee

Sorry for the delay in updating and thanks for your comments so far.

We have all the documentation and evidence available - we just don't know where it should be presented! The letter we received outlining the hearing date and the date by which to pay the court fee (£85) simply states to "provide the court and every other party, all documents on which to be relied upon, 14 days prior to the hearing"...

There's no number for me to ring to pay the fee (I've tried 3 I could find online for the county court in Leicester) and no portal anymore to upload.

Instead I've emailed the 'enquiries' mailbox at the County Court, which states a 29 day turnaround for info....the last time I emailed them, I never got a response anyway.

So I feel kind of left alone on this...

A_Geordie

It sounds like you are using the Online Civil Money Claims (OCMC) portal rather than the Money Claims Online (MCOL) portal. Are you able to confirm that? If you're not sure, can you confirm the web address that you use to log in to the portal. 

For OCMC it should be: https://www.moneyclaims.service.gov.uk/eligibility
For MCOL it should be: https://www.moneyclaim.gov.uk/web/mcol/welcome

CeePeeBee

I can confirm that the claim was originally submitted via OCMC based on the URL provided. However that portal now says that it will "no longer receive updates on the case" as remediation failed and it's moved to hearing stage

"Your online account will no longer be updated

Your online account will no longer be updated. If there are any further updates to your case these will be by post."

The only letter we received was in April, notifying us of the hearing date, at Leicester County Court, and then to pay the fee (no email, URL or telephone number to do that) and provide the documents via an online portal (no URL for that at all).

A_Geordie

The OCMC is a pilot scheme that runs until October 2025 and to be quite frank, I find it to be pretty turd compared to the current MCOL system so if you have any claims between now and October (assuming the pilot isn't extended or MCOL is superseded) I owuld highly recommend using the MCOL portal for future claims as it is much simply to understand and use.

That said, something seems to be amiss here. First thing's first, Part 51 of the Civil Procedure Rules governs the OCMC and I would suggest you start reading up on this Part to get an understanding of the process, even if you don't understand all of it. Link is here: https://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/rules/practice-direction-51r-online-court-pilot

Second, from what you have described so far it seems you have just surpassed Section 6C which is after the claim is stayed for 28 days for the parties to try and reach a settlement. Following that, Section 6C.1 is then considered and for the court or legal advisor to determine if the claim will continue in or out of the OCMC according to the criteria listed in 6C.1. If the criteria is not met then the claim should be sent out of the OCMC and sent to the "preferred court" as defined at the beginning of Part 51.

As far as I'm aware, Leicester is not an early adopter court so I would think that the claim is now outside of this process and the normal civil procedure rules apply. This could be why thereis no URL for the portal, but if that's true then Section 19 would trigger which explains the reason why it is being sent out of the OCMC. Yet, according to the letter you received you have a letter that merely tells you of a hearing date and to pay the fee and upload your documents - that's the headscratcher bit for me because that doesn't make sense but it's been a while since I have used the OCMC so I could be missing a step. 

I would suggest you contact Leicester County Court and get some answers on whether this is still within the OCMC process or if it is now fallen out of it. Worst case, Section 18 does allow you to request yourself to come out the OCMC process if you so wish (not sure if you can at this stage but nothing to suggest there is a point of no return). Payment of the fee can be done over the phone but you may want to clarify the position before you do that. 

Telephone details for the Leicester CC are here: https://www.find-court-tribunal.service.gov.uk/courts/leicester-county-court-and-family-court although I have noticed some county courts now route through to a central team that you have to go through first before they put you through to someone at the court. 

Let us know how you get on from there and we can maybe help you after if you still need it.

CeePeeBee

Thanks for your comment - everything you've said makes sense and articulates exactly where I am right now.

I tried ringing LCC yesterday - sadly the numbers listed either rang out with no response, or were a menu system with no opportunity to speak to anybody other than listening to process. I've tried every option short of saying I need domestic violence assistance!

A_Geordie

When you call the number, have you tried to press option '0' to get through to someone? Granted, that option is for urgent applications but seeing as there is no other option available, I would be inclined to try that first and see if they can put you through to LCC. I would suggest you tell the person on the other end that you need to make a payment over the phone for the upcoming hearing fee and there was no other option to speak to someone - You can then ask your other questions once you have been transferred.

Failing that, you may want to consider the following options:

1. contact the support line for OCMC: https://www.gov.uk/respond-to-court-claim-for-money/respond-to-a-claim-online and see if they can confirm whether or not the claim is now outside of the OCMC or if it is still within it. If still within this process, why have LCC supplied no URL to upload documents. 

2. Email LCC using hearings.leicester.countycourt@justice.gov.uk and in the subject line, using the following format: URGENT: [Claimant Name] v [Defendant Name] (Claim No. XXXX) - Hearing Date XX/XX/XXXX at [Time].

Set out in your email the current situation and the answers you need concerning the OCMC, payment of fees and filing evidence in advance of trial since there is no URL to upload. When mentioning you need to make a payment for the hearing fee, make sure to leave your contact telephone number and availability over the next few days in case they call you. 

3. If all of the above fails, then you should consider sending the fee by cheque or postal order with a cover letter by post to LCC for processing - make sure this arrives before the payment fee deadline. 

4. Send your witness statement and evidence by email to the court using the same email address above and the same subject line format but omit the "Urgent". You also need to send the statement and evidence to the defendant by the stated deadline in the court letter which should be done by post unless the defendant has agreed to accept service by email. If you haven't already asked, it may be worth asking if they agree to receive your statement and evidence by email, which would avoid unnecessary stationary and postage costs.

5. Finally, and just a word of caution, as you have come to realise, the courts are very slow and it is not uncommon for them to misplace or lose court documents and evidence. I would suggest you make at least two copies of the court documents, witness statement and evidence for the day of the hearing (one for you, one for the judge) and be prepared to explain to the judge if they ask you why you didn't follow the court orders (you may need to tell them why you couldn't).

This could potentially avoid the court having to adjourn the hearing for a later date and waste everyone's time. If your court bundle is large and voluminous then you will have to decide if you want to spend the time and cost re-printing a copy, but at least have all the necessary evidence to show you have attempted to comply with the court orders.