Consumer CCJs fall by 68% but respite could be short lived

The number of County Court Judgments (CCJs) issued against consumers in the third quarter of 2020 (Q3 2020) fell over 60 percent, from 290,184 to 112,179, compared to the same period last year, according to new figures Registry Trust. The proportion of judgments marked as satisfied remains very low at just 5 percent.

The total value of CCJs registered fell by 46 percent to £228 million in Q3 2020, down from £420 million in Q3 2019. But, the average value of judgments rose by over 40 percent from £1,449 to £2,032. The median value also rose from £599 to £784, an increase of 31 percent. Significantly fewer judgments are being issued, but for higher values.

A different picture emerges with High Court consumer judgments. The number rose from 21 to 44, up over 110 percent over the period. The total value also rose significantly from just under £1 million (£970,501) to £8 million, an increase of 736 percent. The median value of High Court judgments rose from £9,722 to £137,426, with the average value also rising from £46,214 to £184,337. The smaller number of High Court judgments means that data can be subject to large fluctuations.

Registry Trust is the Registrar of Judgments, Orders and Fines in England and Wales (on behalf of the Ministry of Justice). This excludes claimant data which is public and available from the courts but not centrally registered.

On behalf of Registry Trust, Mick McAteer, chairman said “Government and regulator interventions, and forbearance by creditors, in response to the Covd-19 crisis are clearly having a huge effect on the numbers of judgments registered. But, the respite may be short lived as damage to household finances will show up later. The low proportion of judgments marked as satisfied is a cause for concern as it could adversely affect households’ access to future credit”.