Some changes have been made on claims that are over £10,000 on how are dealt with. Please bear with us while we update this guide but most information will still be accurate and useful.
Written by Advicenow
This table is part of a series of guides about how to take someone to a civil court to sort out a dispute, and is designed to be used alongside the other guides. It provides a quick and useful way of checking your understanding and what you need to do and what to expect for small claims, fast track claims, breach of contract, debt, loss or damage which is someone else’s fault (negligence) with no personal injury, and personal injury (including road traffic accidents and accidents at work).
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Breach of contract, or Debt | Loss or damage which is someone else’s fault (negligence) with no personal injury | Personal injury (including road traffic accidents) | |
Basic time limits (for more information see Time limits for suing someone) | 6 years | 6 years | 3 years |
Is it a small claim? | Yes, if the value is under £10,000 and is not too complicated or of great public importance. | Yes, if value under £10,000 and is not too complicated or of great public importance. | Yes, if the injuries were not caused by a road traffic accident, or were caused by a road traffic accident that occurred before 31st May 2021, and the total value is under £10,000, and value of personal injury element is under £1,000. Yes, if the injuries were caused by a road traffic accident that occurred after 31st May 2021 if the total value is under £10,000, and value of personal injury element is under £5,000. Yes, if the injuries were caused by an accident and the total claim is worth under £10,000 and the injury element is worth under £1,000 if the case started before 6th April 2022, or £1,500 if the case started after that date. |
Is it a fast track claim? | Yes, if the value is over £10,000 and under £25,000 | Yes, if the value is over £10,000 and under £25,000 | Yes, if the injuries were not caused by a road accident, total value is under £25,000, and the value of the personal injury element is over £1000 (if the case started before 6th April 2022), or £1,500 (if the case started after that date), or if the were caused by a road accident that occurred before 31st May 2021. Or Yes, if the total value is under £25,000 and the value of the personal injury element is over £5000 if the injuries were caused by a car accident that happened on or after May 31st 2021. |
Is there a specific pre-action protocol? | Yes, for debt and building disputes. Otherwise No. You need to follow the guidelines for pre-action conduct | Yes for professional negligence (doctors/lawyers/accountants/surveyors). Otherwise, no. You need to follow the guidelines for pre-action conduct | Yes. Unless it is a small claim, when you need to follow the guidelines for pre-action conduct. If your claim is for personal injury caused by a car accident that occured on or after May 31st 2021, and the total value is under £10,000, and value of personal injury element is under £5,000 you need to use the new pre-action protocol. You do this by using the Official Injury Claim service. Please see How to make a small claim about injuries caused by a car accident. |
Can I use Make a money claim (sometimes called Online Civil Money claim or OCMC)? (See How to start a civil claim for other limitations, e.g. if there is more than one defendant, it is against a Govt
| Yes, if the value is under £10,000. (This service is expected to expand to include claims for up to £25,000 by the beginning of 2023.) | Yes, if the value is under £10,000. (This service is expected to expand to include claims for up to £25,000 by the beginning of 2023.) | No. |
Can I use Money Claims Online (MCOL)? (For more information about the limitations that apply to this service see How to start a civil claim e.g. if there are more than two defendants, or they don’t have an address in England and Wales) | Yes, for debt or a fixed amount of money up to £100,000. | Only if you are claiming a fixed amount of money up to £100,000. | No. |
Will I have to pay the other side’s legal costs if I lose my small claim? | No, except for court fees, witness expenses, and any expert’s report, unless you have behaved unreasonably | No, except for court fees, witness expenses, and any expert’s report, unless you have behaved unreasonably | No, unless you have behaved unreasonably |
Will I have to pay the other side’s legal costs if I lose my fast track claim? | Yes | Yes | No, unless you have failed to beat a Part 36 offer, or your claim was fundamentally dishonest, or other wrongful conduct |
What award can the court make if I win? | Debt: ● Amount of debt ● Interest Breach of contract: ● Usually, money to put you in the financial position you would have been if the contract had been carried out properly ● Occasionally, ordering the other person to remedy the breach of contract ● Interest | ● Compensation (damages) to put you in the position you would have been in if the person had carried out their duty ● Interest | ● Compensation for the injury itself, that is for your pain, suffering and loss of amenity ● Compensation for your losses and expenses ● Interest |
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Disclaimer
The information in this guide applies to England and Wales only. The law may be different if you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland. The law is complicated. We have simplified things in this guide. Please don’t rely on this guide as a complete statement of the law. We recommend you read the other guides in this series and try to get advice from the sources we have suggested.
The cases we refer to are not always real but show a typical situation. We have included them to help you think about how to deal with your own situation.
Acknowledgements
This guide was produced by Law for Life's Advicenow project. Thanks to all those who provided advice and feedback on this guide, particularly Judith Emmet, Clare Shirtcliff, and Ashley Fredericks from Nottingham Law School Legal Advice Centre.
Thanks to the Litigant in Person Support Strategy for funding the creation of this guide.
October 2021
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