Does your debtor own their own house?

If your judgment debtor owns their own home, which is registered at HM Land Registry, or if they own other property, perhaps such as a shop, restaurant, factory, or a holiday home, you can apply to the Court for an Order which places a "charge" over the judgment debtor's property.

This "charge" is like a mortgage, and although it will not result in immediate payment of your judgment debt, it will mean that when the judgment debtor sells the property, the outstanding charge must be paid before the judgment debtor can complete the sale. By paying or "discharging" the charge, you will then receive your money. Of course if there are a number of outstanding "charges" including one or more mortgages then these have to be paid off in strict priority i.e. from the date they were entered in the Charges Register to the property.

In the meantime it does mean your judgment debt is "secured" against the judgment debtor's property. And it doesn't stop you from transferring a case where the judgment debt is above £600 and not regulated by the Consumer Credit Act 1974, to Sherforce so that our Enforcement Officer can attend at the debtor's address and take legal control of goods which may result in more immediate money being paid.

Finally if you want to accelerate the payment of your judgment debt, an application can be made for "An Order for Sale ". Further details about this application can be made by applying to the SLC Team in person.

Timing of the Application
Before launching into this Track please double check that your judgment debtor:

has failed to pay the amount of the judgment debt when it is due; or has failed to pay one or more of the installments due under the terms of the Court's judgment