How to enforce a county court judgment when the other side will not pay

A judgment is only the first step

A county court judgment says that the other side owes you money. It does not mean the court automatically collects that money for you. If the debtor pays within the time ordered, the matter may be finished. If they do not, enforcement is a separate stage.

That is the part many people discover too late. The court can give you a judgment, but you still need to choose an enforcement route, pay any further fee, and decide whether the debtor has anything realistic to recover.

Before you enforce

Start with the basics. Check the judgment amount, the date payment was due, and whether the debtor has made any payment since. Write once more with a short deadline if there is a chance they will pay without further action.

Then think about what you know. Do they have a job? A bank account you can identify? A trading address? Vehicles or stock? Property? The best enforcement method depends less on what feels strongest and more on what assets or income actually exist.

If you know very little, you may be able to ask the court to order the debtor to attend court for questioning about their finances. That can help you decide whether enforcement is worth pursuing.

County Court bailiffs

County Court bailiffs can attend the debtor’s address and try to take control of goods to satisfy the judgment. This is one of the most familiar enforcement routes, and it can be useful where the debtor has goods of value at a known address.

It is not a magic button. Bailiffs cannot take everything, they may not gain entry in many ordinary consumer situations, and if there are no goods worth taking, the visit may not produce payment.

High Court enforcement officers

For judgments over £600 that are not regulated by the Consumer Credit Act, it may be possible to transfer the judgment to the High Court for enforcement by High Court enforcement officers. They are often faster and more persistent than County Court bailiffs.

This can be effective against businesses with premises, equipment, stock or vehicles. It may be less useful against an individual with limited assets.

Attachment of earnings

If the debtor is employed, you can ask the court for an attachment of earnings order. This requires their employer to deduct money from wages and send it towards the judgment debt.

This can be steady and effective, but only if the debtor is an individual in paid employment. It will not help against a company, a self-employed person, or someone whose employment details you do not know.

Third party debt orders

A third party debt order can freeze money held by someone else for the debtor, most commonly money in a bank account. If the order succeeds, the money can be paid towards the judgment.

Timing matters. You usually need to know where the debtor banks, and the account needs to contain money when the order bites. If the account is empty, the order may achieve very little.

Charging orders

If the debtor owns property, a charging order can secure the judgment debt against that property. This does not usually produce immediate payment, but it can protect your position if the property is sold or remortgaged.

Charging orders are most useful for larger debts where the debtor owns real property. For modest consumer claims, the time and cost may not be worth it unless there is a clear route to recovery.

Which option is worth using?

The right enforcement step depends on what you know about the debtor. If they are a trading business with premises, enforcement officers may be worth considering. If they are employed, attachment of earnings may be more realistic. If you know where they bank, a third party debt order might work. If they own property, a charging order may protect the debt.

The hard truth is that some judgments are not worth enforcing. If the debtor has no money, no assets and no stable income, more applications can simply add cost and frustration. That does not mean the judgment was pointless, but it does mean enforcement needs a practical plan.

The short version

If the other side ignores a county court judgment, you have options. Bailiffs, High Court enforcement, attachment of earnings, third party debt orders and charging orders can all help in the right case. The key question is what the debtor actually has. Enforcement works best when it is targeted at real income or real assets, not just anger that the judgment has been ignored.

Nothing in this guide is legal advice for your specific situation.

Related guides

• What happens at a small claims hearing
• How to begin proceedings in the small claims court

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