Review: Moneyclaim Online is an e-Government Success Story

If you're owed money and the person or organisation won't pay, the only recourse that is really open to you is to take them to the small claims court. In the past, this was a major hassle and expense: you used to talk to your solicitor who would get the documents and help you fill them in, then they'd have to be taken tothe court and filed; you may have to turn up, then gain enforcement orders, and so on.

If you dispensed with a solicitor you could still proceed - indeed the small claims court was set up to be accessible to all people - but knowing what to fill in and what you needed to know was offputting, to say the least. It took lots of time, money and effort, and many people knew that and took advantage.

But the rise of e-government initiatives has led to the moneyclaim online website (www.moneyclaim.gov.uk), an initiative of the Court Service. It provides a simple web-based approach to the whole small claims process, allowing you to put in your case remotely. You can use the service if your claim is for a fixed amount of money with an upper limit of £100,000, enough for most of us. And not only do you present your case online, but they will then serve the relevant papers on the defendant, organise the hearing, pass judgement, allow you to gain an enforcement order, and even send the bayliffs round for you.

If you're the defendant, you can file all the relevant forms, rebuttals and counter-arguements online too. I guess if it gets to that stage you'll actually meet in court, but it's certainly a lot simpler than the paper-based approach. You can monitor the progress of your case online, too (and it can get quite addictive, waiting to see if they've filed any defence or not, as the deadline ticks down...)

The small fee (and I do mean small) is taken from your credit card over the internet. My only complaint is that they do not tell you precisely when then bayliffs are going to go there, as I'd like to turn up to watch the reactions.....

Associated Link: Money Claim Online website

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