2. A Wrong
Make sure you have been genuinely wronged and you are no getting counter-claimed, for instance, building works where you are a builder chasing an unpaid invoice and maybe you not have done everything right or perhaps even caused some minor damage. Consider putting it down to experience this time if it is low value. That being said, everyone may need to go to court once in their life and so see it as an educational experience and an entrepreneurial endeavour, not a grudge war. It can be cheap and easy to just bang off an N1 claim form (once you have written to them about your complaint and have been ignored) which can cost as low as £35 for a £500 claim.
3. Get it right!
Make sure you complete the pre-action stage properly and do not go straight to issue without a paper trail and make sure you fill in N1 correctly. If you do not you could get into trouble and if you are fighting a larger organisation they could make a strike-out application for a poorly particularised claim, for example, before the case even gets designated as “small claims” and now you are facing serious legal bills to amend your claim. The law still applies! If you make sure you have carefully filled in the N1 form you should be fine; and if there is a complex issue get a little bit of legal advice just to help with that. (Or perhaps try CAB.)
4. Exceptions.
Be aware of various exceptions such as personal injury and tenants against landlords and non-money claims like possession claims. These claims may not fall into the standard small claims track even though they may be under £10,000. Online resources below will help you and this is all explained in court leaflets and the court rules (Civil Procedure Rules, CPR) if you do your research.
5. Legal advice?
Well, the system is designed to exclude lawyers but there are companies who will help you with advice but not charge you an arm and a leg to actually represent you properly. Might be worth it if you trust them and you use them judiciously in proportion to the size of the claim. But, obviously having a solicitor represent you in its entirety defeats the purpose as it will eat away your claim value. We may be a bit expensive as we tend to deal in more complex, higher-value claims but we are considering creating a special advice service of £100 an hour (approx).
Conclusion: I claimed before I was a lawyer and found it worked well. The value was £2,000. I went to his home town where the case was transferred (as is common if your opponent is not a company). I paid a small number of fees. He did not show up. I got my money! Remember, that the most important thing is paperwork and preparation. So, before you issue, you should have basically laid out exactly what the complaint is and what you want them to do to correct it and give them time to respond.
