21st
Apr 2014
The government in its infinite wisdom has decided to hike up the costs of the court fees on possession claims by an extortionate amount that has not been seen for many years.
Keys Points
- Accelerated Possession Issuing a Claim for Possession - After the expiry of a Section 21 applying to court using the Accelerated Possession application fee rises from £175 to £280
- SECTION 8 ONLINE - This can only be used where Section 8 Notice issued for rent arrears ONLY now increases from £100 to £250
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SECTION 8 NON Rent Arrears - £175 to £280 - This is a more complicated process see - NON Rent related grounds FREE 15 PAGE GUIDE
Dealing with Possession NON rent arrears
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At present applying for possession after a
Section 8 Notice has been served costs £175 which is the same for an accelerated possession claim after the serving of a
Section 21 Notice. The government plans to increase the cost to £280 from April 22nd.
The discounted fee of £100 for an online possession claim (PCOL - see
Apply for Possession Online) service is being raised to £250, a 150 per cent hike. This online process can only be implemented if a
Section 8 Notice is issued because of rent arrears and with the new rate, will no doubt significantly discourage landlords from using this method.
The only cost that will not be raised within an eviction process is the warrant of possession when a bailiff is used, staying at £110.
The Ministry of Justice has just published the report titled:
Court Fees: Proposals for reform
Part one consultation response: Cost Recovery
Regarding the increase in court fees for possession claims, this is their response taken from paragraphs 33 and 34:
"Having carefully considered the comments made, the Government has decided to press ahead with the change. Although it is recognised that in some instances the fee rise is high, it considers that the benefits brought by a simplified approach with a fee which reflects the average cost of issuing such proceedings justifies the change. Fee remissions will be available for those with low capital and income and in cases such as possession claims, it is expected that the court fees would be passed on to the debtor as part of any cost award."
"The fact that higher fees would be passed on to the debtor was highlighted in some responses, with concern expressed that this would simply increase their debt burden. The Government considers that it is appropriate to recover the cost of these proceedings through fees and as such it is unavoidable that the higher fees will be transferred to the losing party in the form of costs. If a creditor incurs those costs through being forced to pursue a case to the courts, it is just that they should be expected to be met by the debtor."
Fees for money claims have also come under the gavel and applies to those that are higher than £1,500. All of these fees are based on a gradient system in line with how much is being claimed; such as if a claim is more than £3,000 but less than £5,000, then the cost before April 22nd is £120 however from that date it rises to £205.
PIMS Related content - Compare Tenant Eviction Notices
Where the Tenant fails or refuses to leave there are only two forms of Eviction Notice to end the Tenancy. If you fail to serve a valid Notice any
application made for possession will be
denied
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This is a "Mandatory Possession" process |
Issue both |
This is a "Fault based" process |
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The tenant has breached a term of the Tenancy [these are known as grounds for possession ] and I require them to leave and I also want compensating for losses (rent arrears, damage etc). The process is more complicated and the Judge has discretion to deny possession and allow the Tenant to stay. see Suspended OrdersUse this process where
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