A County Court Judgment (CCJ) is issued by county courts to enforce debt payments and can have severe consequences for your business's reputation and financial standing if left unaddressed. In this blog, we'll discuss why regularly checking for CCJs is essential for your business and provide a step-by-step guide on how you can check for CCJs.
Why should you check for CCJs?
Monitoring your business credit profile for CCJs is an important part of managing risks to your business, here’s why:
Protecting your reputation
A CCJ on your business record can be more than just a financial inconvenience, it can be damaging to your business's reputation. When potential clients or business partners discover CCJs against your company, it can harm their trust and confidence in your ability to fulfil financial obligations. By identifying and addressing them quickly you can reassure other businesses that you’re committed to financial responsibility and can help you to maintain a positive reputation with your partners and customers.
Minimising financial risks
Ignoring a CCJ won’t make it go away and can even lead to significant financial risks for your business. You may also incur additional costs to the debt, such as court fees and interest. These can escalate to the point where your business operations could be significantly hindered, with enforcement actions like bailiffs seizing assets or a winding-up petition being filed against your company. By keeping an eye out for any CCJs, you can address them before they grow into larger issues and avoid escalation.
Maintaining cash flow
When a CCJ is registered, it means you have to pay a debt within a tight deadline, usually 30 days, which can immediately strain your finances. Accessing any new finance, such as a business loan, can also become a lot tougher since lenders see it as a red flag and might either turn you down or charge you higher interest rates. If you don't settle the CCJ, you might even face the risk of having your assets seized, disrupting your operations and further harming your cash flow.
How to check for CCJs on your business
Staying informed about legal notices can help you manage them more effectively. Thankfully, checking for CCJs is a relatively straightforward process.
By signing up with Capitalise for Business, you gain access to your business credit profile. From there, you can view any legal notices registered against your business and other adverse credit information.
When you subscribe to a Capitalise plan, you'll also receive immediate alerts on any CCJs registered against your business. This enables you to take prompt action, such as disputing inaccuracies or negotiating settlements, to protect your cash flow and ensure your business operates smoothly.
How to check who the CCJ is from
After a judgement is issued, you should receive communication detailing the CCJ. This will include information about the debt and the court case, such as how much is owed. To find out who registered the CCJ, you will need to contact the court that issued the judgement.
By making CCJ monitoring a regular part of your business routine, you’re not just protecting your finances, you're also preserving the trust and confidence people have in your business. To start tracking your business credit score and keep on top of any negative factors, you can sign up to Capitalise today.
