County Court Judgements and your credit rating
If you get a county court judgment (CCJ) or a high court judgment, it will stay on the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines for 6 years.
For this six year period Banks and loan companies will be aware of the CCJ and will take this into account when deciding whether to give you credit or loans.
Get the CCJ removed if you pay within a month
If you pay the full amount within a month you can get the judgment removed from the register. You will need to contact the Courts to do this.
If you pay after a month
If you pay after a month, you can get the record of the judgment marked as ‘satisfied’ in the register. It will stay on the register for 6 years but people searching the register will see that you’ve paid.
In order to get the Court records amended to say you’ve paid you’ll need to send proof of payment, and pay a £15 court fee.
Search the register of judgments
You can search for details of any judgments against you on the register of judgments. http://www.trustonline.org.uk/index.php/search-yourself
You’ll have to pay a small fee - a simple search costs £4.
If the information on the register is wrong, you can contact Trust Online, who will check the details with the court.
Don’t bury your head in the sand
Your credit rating needs to be managed like any other aspect of your financial affairs. Use the Trust Online website to check your credit records and make sure that the information on file is correct.
If you receive a CCJ don’t bury the correspondence. Appeal against the judgement if you feel it is incorrect or make sure you make arrangements with the Court to pay what you owe as soon as possible.
