Unpaid Invoice Small Claims Court: How to Recover What You're Owed in England and Wales

The Invoice Is 60 Days Late — Now What?

You've sent the reminders. You've called. The client is ignoring you. For sole traders and freelancers in England and Wales, an unpaid invoice under £10,000 goes to the County Court on the small claims track — and you don't need a solicitor to file.

Before you touch any court forms, though, you need a proper paper trail. Judges look unfavourably on claimants who rush to court without giving the debtor a fair chance to pay. That means a formal pre-action letter, the right waiting period, and a clear calculation of what's owed.

Send the Pre-Action Letter First

Which protocol applies depends on who you're claiming from:

• A business claiming a debt from an individual (including a sole trader, freelancer, or Ltd): The Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims (PAPD) applies. Send a formal Letter of Claim with a statement of account, the standard PAPD Information Sheet, Reply Form, and Financial Statement. You must wait 30 calendar days for a response.
• All other claims, including B2B between companies and consumer vs business: The Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct (PDPAC) applies. Send a Letter Before Action setting out the facts, the sum owed, and a response deadline — typically 14 days for a straightforward invoice dispute.

State clearly that you intend to issue court proceedings if the debt isn't paid by the deadline. Include the exact amount, how you calculated it, and that you'll be adding statutory interest.

Add Statutory Interest

For commercial debts (one business supplying another), the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 gives you automatic entitlement to interest at 8% above the Bank of England base rate, plus fixed compensation:

• Debts under £1,000: £40 compensation
• Debts £1,000–£9,999.99: £70 compensation
• Debts £10,000+: £100 compensation

For non-commercial debts, you can claim interest under Section 69 of the County Courts Act 1984 at 8% per annum. Calculate the daily rate (principal × 0.08 ÷ 365), multiply by the number of days overdue, and add it to your claim.

Whichever basis you use, state it in your Particulars of Claim and in the pre-action letter. You cannot blend the two regimes in one claim.

File the Claim

Once the response period expires without payment, a litigant in person can file through Online Civil Money Claims (OCMC) or on paper Form N1 to the Civil National Business Centre in Northampton; legal representatives must use OCMC for eligible claims. The court issue fee depends on your claim value — for a £3,000 invoice plus interest, the fee is £205.

Name the defendant correctly. If they're a sole trader, write "Jane Doe trading as Doe Consulting." If they're a limited company, use the exact registered name from Companies House, and serve the claim at the registered office address — not their shop or warehouse.

What to Expect at the Hearing

For an eligible specified-money claim of £10,000 or less, the court refers the defended claim to the free Small Claims Mediation Service under the applicable pilot: Practice Direction 51ZE for claims started outside OCMC, or Practice Direction 51R for OCMC claims unless the claimant opts out. Once referred, both parties must attend, but neither has to agree to a settlement. Many invoice disputes settle here.

If mediation fails, the hearing is usually informal — a 30-minute appointment with a District Judge in a private room, not a courtroom. Bring your contract or written agreement, every invoice, the pre-action correspondence, and proof of delivery for the goods or services.

The judge can award the principal debt, statutory interest, the issue fee, and the hearing fee. Most solicitor fees are not recoverable on the small claims track, though fixed costs on issue of £50–£100 may be recoverable under CPR Part 45 — which is precisely why doing it yourself makes sense for claims of this size.

The Making a County Court Money Claim guide includes an interest calculator, a pre-action letter tracker, and a service-and-deadline calendar so nothing falls through the cracks between the first letter and the judgment.

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