How to Defend a Debt Claim From a Bank or Credit Card Firm

By the eLitigant Editorial Team · Reviewed for current forms, fees & procedure · Last reviewed: September 2026 · How we check our guides

This guide covers County Court claims in England and Wales brought by a bank, a card provider, a lender, or a company that has since bought the account. The same machinery, in your hands.

Step one: find your deadline

The deadline depends on how the claim was issued. Read the date on your own claim papers rather than counting from memory.

Online Civil Money Claims

Claims issued through the Online Civil Money Claims (OCMC) service are governed by Practice Direction 51R. Money Claim Online is a different service and is not covered by this paragraph; see below. Paragraph 5.1(1) says: “the defendant must respond to the claim by 4pm on the 28th day after the issue of the claim form.” The clock runs from issue, not from the day the papers reached you. The parties may agree an extension “of up to 28 days in total”, and the defendant must record it on the website before the original 28 days run out (para 5.1(3)). An agreement by email alone is not enough.

Paper and other claims

This includes claims issued through Money Claim Online, where the claim form is deemed served on the fifth day after issue (PD 7C para 5.7), and bulk claims issued through the court’s Production Centre (PD 7B). For these claims, CPR 15.4 gives you 14 days after service of the particulars of claim to file a defence, or 28 days after service of the particulars if you file an acknowledgment of service under CPR Part 10. The 28 days run from service, not from the date you file the acknowledgment. On a paper claim, under CPR 6.14, a claim form is deemed served on the second business day after the relevant step, which is not always the day the envelope arrives. See our guide to Form N9.

Under CPR 15.5, you and the claimant can agree to extend the time for your defence by up to 28 days in total, and you must tell the court in writing.

What happens if nothing is filed

Default judgment is not automatic. Under CPR 12.3, the claimant has to ask for it, and it is available only if, on the date judgment is entered, no defence has been filed and your time has run out. A defence filed late, but before judgment is entered, still counts. If you are close to the deadline, file it anyway.

In 2025, 1,944,945 claims were issued in the County Court, and 1,118,041 default judgments were entered (Ministry of Justice, Civil Justice Statistics Quarterly, Tables 1.1 and 1.4). If judgment has already been entered against you, read our guide to setting aside a default judgment with Form N244. For the form itself, see how to fill in Form N244, box by box.

Step two: read what the claim actually says

The particulars of claim are the claimant’s written case. CPR 16.4(1)(a) requires them to include “a concise statement of the facts on which the claimant relies”. If interest is claimed, they must give the basis, the rate, the dates and the daily rate.

Where the claim is based on a written agreement, Practice Direction 16, paragraph 7.3 says a copy of the agreement “should be attached to or served with the particulars of claim”. The word is “should”, not “must”. A missing agreement is a reason to ask for it. It is not, on its own, an answer to the claim.

Note, against each paragraph, what your own papers show: the account, the balance, the dates, any payments, and who the claimant is. If the claimant is not the company you dealt with, our guide to asking a debt collector to prove the debt covers the earlier stage, before any claim.

Step three: ask for the documents

You can ask for the documents the claim relies on while you prepare the defence. A request does not pause your deadline. Send it, and keep working to the date.

• Documents mentioned in the claim. CPR 31.14 lets a party inspect a document mentioned in a statement of case. Under CPR 31.15 you give written notice; if you undertake to pay reasonable copying costs, a copy must be provided within 7 days. Part 31 stops applying once a claim is allocated to the small claims track (CPR 27.2), so this request is most useful before allocation, which is while the defence is being written.
• The credit agreement. For a regulated agreement, section 78 (running-account credit, such as a credit card) and section 77 (fixed-sum credit, such as a loan) of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 let you ask in writing for a copy of the executed agreement, with a fee of £1.

Step four: write the defence

CPR 16.5(1) says “the defendant must deal with every allegation in the particulars of claim”. For each allegation, you do one of three things:

1. Admit it, if it is true.
2. Deny it, and under CPR 16.5(2)(a) “state their reasons for doing so”, with your own version of events.
3. Say you are unable to admit or deny it and require the claimant to prove it. This fits matters outside your own knowledge, such as whether an account was transferred to the claimant.

Two parts of the rule matter most in debt claims. Under CPR 16.5(5), “a defendant who fails to deal with an allegation shall be taken to admit that allegation.” Silence counts. Under CPR 16.5(4), the claimant must prove any allegation about the amount of money claimed unless you expressly admit it.

A bare denial is not a defence. Practice Direction 3A gives, as an example of a defence the court may strike out, one that “consists of a bare denial or otherwise sets out no coherent statement of facts”. The defence ends with a statement of truth, which you sign. For the form itself, see our guide to Form N9B: defence and counterclaim.

Questions to answer from your own papers

• Was the pre-action letter sent? The Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims applies to a business claiming a debt from an individual. The creditor’s Letter of Claim should include an up-to-date statement of account, the Information Sheet and a Reply Form. A breach does not end the claim; under para 7.1 the court looks at compliance “in substance”, and it can affect case management and costs.
• Is the balance right? The claimant must prove the amount unless you admit it.
• Is it older than six years? Under section 5 of the Limitation Act 1980, an action on a simple contract cannot be brought more than six years after the cause of action accrued. Limitation is a defence you must raise yourself; the court will not raise it for you. When time starts for a particular debt depends on its dates, which you need to check.

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If you owe some or all of it

A defence is for what you dispute. If you owe the money, the response pack also lets you admit the claim and offer to pay; our guide to Form N9A, the admission form, explains how. You can admit part and defend the rest. Before you decide, talk to a free debt adviser. Our guides to Breathing Space and Debt Relief Orders describe two routes worth knowing about.

Free help

• National Debtline and StepChange give free debt advice.
• Citizens Advice can help you read the claim and your options.
• Support Through Court helps people facing court without a lawyer.
• If you have to pay a court fee, Help with Fees is an online application on GOV.UK.

This guide covers England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own courts and rules.

Related guides

• A claim has been made against you: what to do, and when
• You have fourteen days and a form called N9B
• Set aside a default judgment: CPR 13.2 and 13.3

Frequently asked questions

How long do I have to defend a debt claim?

On a claim issued through Online Civil Money Claims, the response is due by 4pm on the 28th day after the claim was issued (PD 51R para 5.1(1)). On any other claim, including Money Claim Online, the defence is due 14 days after service of the particulars of claim, or 28 days after service if you file an acknowledgment of service (CPR 15.4).

Does the claimant have to send me the credit agreement?

Practice Direction 16, paragraph 7.3 says a copy of a written agreement should be attached to or served with the particulars of claim. It says “should”, not “must”. If it is missing, you can ask for it, including under CPR 31.14 for documents mentioned in the claim.

Does asking for documents stop the court deadline?

No. A CPR 31.14 request, a Part 18 request or a Consumer Credit Act request does not pause the time for your defence. File the defence by the deadline, or agree an extension of up to 28 days in total and tell the court (CPR 15.5), or, for a claim issued through Online Civil Money Claims, record it on the OCMC website before the original 28 days expire.

Can I just write that I deny the claim?

No. CPR 16.5 requires you to deal with every allegation and give reasons for any denial. Practice Direction 3A gives a bare denial as an example of a defence the court may strike out.

What if I missed the deadline?

If judgment has not yet been entered, file the defence anyway: under CPR 12.3, default judgment is available only if no defence has been filed on the date judgment is entered. If judgment has been entered, CPR Part 13 sets out when it can be set aside, and delay is itself a factor.

When you are ready, talk your defence through with Chris. You check it, sign it and file it yourself.

Last reviewed: September 2026 · For use in England & Wales · eLitigant is a Community Interest Company (No. 16566612), not a law firm. This guide explains what the rules say; it is not advice on your case. Always check the current official source before you rely on it, and check, sign and send or file your own documents.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.