Defended Claims

A traditional 'unenforceable claim' may take a number of years before there is a tangible result. The Defended Claim service offered by Grass Roots is unique in that it removes the advantage that a lender gains by 'dragging out' a claim.

Making a claim on a Defended Basis may be appropriate if we believe you may have a suitable unenforceable credit agreement.

Using a traditional claim strategy in respect of unenforceable claims has been proved to be at best laborious and time consuming as the lenders have developed a powerful strategy for dealing with such claims. The process of making a claim for unenforceability has never been quick and, when combined with a lender using 'stalling tactics' to further slow the progression of both individual claims and claims in general, the process of making an 'unenforceable claim' has not been as successful as certain claims companies led their clients to believe.

The Defended Claims Process is Different!

The Defended Claim Process changes this dynamic. The objective of a Defended Claim is to force the lender to act and take the case to Court if they have any belief that the credit agreement is enforceable.

In order to facilitate this we will refer your case to a solicitor. It is the solicitor's role to implement a review of the credit agreement and to provide legal opinion and advice to you.

Should the review conducted by the solicitor conclude that, in their opinion, the agreement is unenforceable due to a breach of Section 61 of the Consumer Credit Act or failure to comply with Section 77/78 of the Act, then your solicitor will inform the lender and may advise you that you can cease making repayments.

From the date of submitting your instruction to Grass Roots, this could occur in less than one month!

ATE and Indemnity Guarantee Makes this Possible

When ceasing repayment there is a risk a court would not agree with the solicitor. What would happen if you ceased repayment only for a court to rule the agreement was enforceable?

The Defended (Claim) Strategy is only possible as it includes After The Event (ATE) Insurance and the option for significant Indemnity Guarantee Insurance. To understand how these products work, we must first consider the action a lender may take when you cease repayments.

What happens next?

If you cease repayment on a Defended Claim there are three distinct possible outcomes:

The lender contests. A solicitor is required to defend court proceedings

If the lender believes that the agreement is enforceable they may attempt to take you to court to force repayment.

In this scenario a solicitor will be required to defend you against the lender on a Conditional Fee basis (i.e. you pay no further upfront fee, no fee if you lose and the lender pays your costs if you win). After the Event Insurance (ATE) will already have been purchased for you as a precaution should this event arise.

Your Defence would be unsuccessful if:

Your solicitor believed that the chances of your defence succeeding in court have fallen below 50% (for example if a lender produces new evidence)
The Court ruled that the credit agreement is enforceable

Where a Defence is unsuccessful, the ATE would pay the costs of the lender, the Indemnity Guarantee would refund you the Agreed Solicitor Fee and any Indemnity Guarantee Top Up would pay interest, charges, and missed repayments (up to the level insured).

Your Defence would be successful if:

The lender pulled out of the proceedings (i.e. they decided it was likely that your credit agreement was unenforceable after all and did not want to incur further costs)
The Court ruled that the credit agreement is unenforceable (in which case the lender would usually have to pay your solicitors costs and the record of the outstanding debt should be removed from your credit file.)

Where a Defence is successful, you would continue to not make any repayments.

You receive letters and phone calls

If the lender believes that the agreement is enforceable then they will usually attempt to contact you prior to commencing court proceedings.

However, even if the lender has no intention of commencing court proceedings (i.e. they are not confident that the agreement is enforceable) they may still attempt to contact you in an attempt to convince you to continue repayments. Where this is the case the lender may threaten, or ultimately invoke, court proceedings, report to credit reference agencies, etc. All correspondence should be forwarded to your solicitor.

It is important to remember that the only way a lender can force repayment is through court proceedings, for which you have ATE insurance and ultimately Indemnity Guarantee Insurance if required.

Credit Reference Solutions

Each client will have a different attitude to the potential for an outstanding balance remaining on their credit file or to non- repayment being recorded. A Defended Claim may result in an adverse recording on your credit file.

However if making a Financial Claim, Credit Reference Solutions may be able to remove records of an unenforceable loan or reports of non re-payment from the major credit reference agencies.

If the lender believes that the agreement is enforceable then they will usually attempt to contact you prior to commencing court proceedings.

However, even if the lender has no intention of commencing court proceedings (i.e. they are not confident that the agreement is enforceable) they may still attempt to contact you in attempt to convince you to continue repayments. Where this is the case the lender may threaten, or ultimately invoke, court proceedings, reporting to credit reference agencies, etc. All correspondence should be forwarded to your solicitor.

It is important to remember that the only way a lender can force repayment is through court proceedings, for which you have ATE insurance and ultimately Indemnity Guarantee Insurance if required

The lender does nothing

The lender may simply accept that the agreement is unenforceable and that taking any further action will be futile and lead to further costs for the lender. The outstanding amount will therefore usually remain on your credit file but with no attempt made to recover it.

The outcome all clients want! You have ceased making repayments, the lender is taking no action, you simply enjoy having reduced expenditure!

Beware 'Copycat' Defended Claims

The Defended Claim service offered by Grass Roots was released after significant research and planning. This is an exclusive service combining Grass Roots, solicitors and insurance provision.

All claims management companies are not equal. Grass Roots were shocked to hear that a 'rival' claims management company was advising clients to cease repayments without any of the backup that the Grass Roots product provides. All consumers considering making a claim for an unenforceable agreement need to be fully aware of the protection offered with Grass Roots Defended Claims and the risks borne by you should this protection not be included.

Beware: Important Consumer Information

Costs: Defended Claims

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Grass Roots

Defended Claims

The Defended Claims Process is Different!

ATE and Indemnity Guarantee Makes this Possible

What happens next?

Beware 'Copycat' Defended Claims

Grass Roots (Financial) Limited