Court claims
Creditors who issue claims in bulk use the County Court Bulk Centre at Northampton County Court. These claims are issued electronically and served by post and can only be issued against debtors in England and Wales, Scotland has its own court system and procedure. The bulk centre is just a centralised processing centre for money claims, many of which are expected to go undefended. If a claim progresses to the point where a hearing is required, the case will be transferred to the your local county court.

The rules governing claims issued through the bulk centre are set out under Practice Direction 7 of the CPR:
When a claim form is sent, the defendant has 14 days from the date of service to respond to the Claim from the date of service. The date of service is calculated based on 5 days after the date of issue. Failure to respond within this time frame makes it possible for judgment by default to be entered.
The date of service is always deemed to be the fifth day after the date of issue, regardless of whether that day is a business day or not. This is as stated under Practice Direction 7 of the CPR.
The claim form will have a unique number and a password printed on it which can be used to obtain details of the claim, as stated by Practice Direction 7 of the CPR.
These details can be used to log in to the MCOL (Money Claim online) website to respond to the claim online. See responding to a claim.
Possible responses to a claim
- An acknowledgment of service. Acknowledging gives you a further 14 days to submit a defence in full or in part.
- A defence. It is advisable to take advantage of the extra time afforded by an acknowledgment of service, however, it is possible to enter a defence straight away.
- An admission. If you haven’t got any grounds to dispute either the account or the amount, you can file an admission. An admission can result in judgment against you.
If you file an Acknowledgment of Service, you have 28 days after the date of service to send your Defence or Part Admission. If you agree to the full amount then complete the N9A form and send this directly to the Claimant.
ReferenceSee responding to a claim.
