CCJs rise sharply despite drop in value of defaults

Over the same period, the number of online searches by people checking judgment status grew by ten percent, according to TrustOnline, an online source for UK judgment information about individuals and businesses.

During 2017, nearly 1.2 million judgments were registered against consumers in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Up almost a quarter on 2016, the number of adverse consumer debt judgments has risen in each of the past five years.

However, despite the sharp rise in the number of judgments, their total value rose only six percent to £1.78bn following a 13 percent fall in the average value.

The statistics cover county court judgments (CCJs) registered in England & Wales; simple procedure, ordinary cause and small claims decrees registered in Scotland; and default and small claims decrees from Northern Ireland.

TrustOnline is run by Registry Trust, a non-profit organisation which collects judgment information from jurisdictions throughout the British Isles and Ireland.

The trust records details of: county court judgments, high court judgments, CSA liability orders, fine defaults and tribunal awards for England and Wales (on behalf of the Ministry of Justice); undefended default, small claims and High Court judgments in Northern Ireland; and, undefended simple procedure and money decrees entered in the small claims, summary and ordinary causes sheriffs’ courts in Scotland.

The statistics over the course of 2017 are:

Q1 2017 (compared with Q1 2016)

• Total: 307,546 (up 35 percent)
• Value: £469.0m (up 14 percent)
• Average: £1,525 (down 16 percent)

Q2 2017 (compared with Q2 2016)

• Total: 299,662 (up 46 percent)
• Value: £465.6m (up 17 percent)
• Average: £1,554 (down 20 percent)

Q3 2017 (compared with Q3 2016)

• Total: 325,166 (up 23 percent)
• Value: £488.5m (up 11 percent)
• Average: £1,502 (down 10 percent)

Q4 2017 (compared with Q4 2016)

• Total: 236,375 (down 10 percent)
• Value: £357.3m (down 15 percent)
• Average: £1,512 (down six percent)