UK · EU · US · InternationalI have received a letter before action. Do I have to reply?
No. A letter before action is a private letter, not a court order, and nothing happens on the day the deadline in it passes. But the question is the wrong one. The Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct expects a defendant to respond within a reasonable time, 14 days in a straightforward case, and if the claim is later issued the court reads the correspondence first. Silence is treated as non compliance, and non compliance is punished in costs and interest even by a defendant who goes on to win. The right question is what to say, and how quickly.
Response to a letter before action: £345 fixed. The letter and the underlying documents read, the claim assessed, and a written response that protects your position on liability, costs and any counterclaim. No VAT. Advice by Santosh Pandey, Solicitor of England and Wales, SRA No. 641612. Handled entirely in writing. See the letter before action fee schedule.
What the letter is, and what it is not
A letter before action, also called a letter before claim or letter of claim, is the step the Civil Procedure Rules expect a claimant to take before issuing proceedings. Where no specific pre action protocol applies, the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct governs. Paragraph 6(a) says the letter should set out the basis of the claim, a summary of the facts, what the claimant wants and, if money, how the amount is calculated. Paragraph 6(b) says the defendant should respond within a reasonable time, 14 days in a straightforward case and no more than three months in a very complex one, confirming whether the claim is accepted, and if not, why, which facts are disputed and whether there is a counterclaim.
It is not a summons. Ignoring it does not produce a judgment. What it does produce, if proceedings follow, is a record the court will read.
Why silence costs money even if you would win
Paragraph 13 of the Practice Direction says the court will take non compliance into account when giving case management directions and when making orders for costs under CPR 44.3(5)(a). Paragraph 14(b) lists failing to act within a reasonable period as a failure of compliance, and paragraph 14(c) adds failing to respond at all to an invitation to use ADR. Paragraph 16 sets out the sanctions: an order that the party at fault pays some or all of the other side's costs, an order for costs on the indemnity basis, and for a defendant, interest on any sum awarded at a higher rate, up to ten per cent above base rate. Paragraph 11 adds that silence in response to an invitation to mediate can itself be treated as unreasonable and met with additional costs.
Put shortly, a defendant who ignores the letter and then wins may still be ordered to pay costs for the pre action stage, and a defendant who ignores it and loses pays more than one who engaged.
Check whether a specific protocol applies
If the claimant is a business and you are an individual, including a sole trader, and the claim is for a debt, the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims applies instead of the general Practice Direction. That protocol requires a prescribed letter of claim with an information sheet and reply form, and gives 30 days to respond, not 14. A business to business debt claim stays under the general Practice Direction. Construction disputes, professional negligence, defamation and dilapidations each have their own protocol with their own timetable, listed at paragraph 18 of the Practice Direction. The first thing we check is which regime the letter is under, because the deadline and the required contents follow from it.
Read the letter against paragraph 6(a)
A surprising number of letters before action fail their own test. If the letter does not state the legal basis of the claim, does not show how the figure was arrived at, or demands payment without identifying the contract or the breach, it has not complied with paragraph 6(a) and your response can say so and ask for the missing information before engaging on the merits. That is a legitimate reply within the reasonable time, and it shifts the compliance burden back.
What a good response contains
The response is the mirror of the letter. It confirms whether the claim is accepted in whole, in part, or not at all. Where it is not accepted it gives the reasons and identifies the facts in dispute. Where there is a counterclaim, set off or a defence such as limitation, it says so, because a defence raised for the first time in the Defence looks like an afterthought. It proposes or responds to ADR, even if only to say that mediation would be considered once the claimant has provided the documents. And it asks for the key documents relied on, which paragraph 6(c) expects both sides to disclose.
It should be headed and written on the footing that a judge will read it. It should not contain admissions of fact you have not checked, apologies that will be quoted back as concessions, or offers to pay without the words "without prejudice save as to costs" where an offer is intended to be protected.
Three replies that make things worse
The angry email. A reply sent in the first hour, disputing everything and attacking the claimant's motives, becomes exhibit one to the claim. It usually contains at least one admission.
The partial payment with no reservation. Paying part of the sum "to make it go away" can be treated as an acknowledgement of the debt, restarting the limitation clock under section 29 of the Limitation Act 1980, and as an admission of the balance. If a part payment is right, it goes with a letter that says exactly what it is and is not.
The request for more time with no reason. Asking for an extension is sensible; asking for one without proposing a date and a reason reads as delay, and delay is what paragraph 14(b) punishes.
If the deadline in the letter is unrealistic
The 14 days in the Practice Direction is the reasonable period for a straightforward case. A letter demanding payment within seven days of a complex claim is not a deadline the court will enforce, but it still needs an answer within seven days: a holding response acknowledging the letter, identifying the protocol that applies, and stating the date by which the substantive reply will follow. That single paragraph converts silence into compliance.
What we do
We read the letter, the contract and the correspondence, identify the applicable protocol and the true deadline, assess the claim on the documents, and send a response that answers each point, preserves every defence and counterclaim, deals with ADR, and sets the tone for the negotiation that usually follows. Fixed at £345, agreed in writing before any work begins. If the claim is good and the sensible course is to settle, we say so and negotiate the terms.
Questions clients ask
Is a letter before action legally binding?
No. It is correspondence, not a court document. But the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct expects a reply within a reasonable time and the court can penalise silence in costs and interest if proceedings follow.
How long do I have to respond?
Under paragraph 6(b) of the Practice Direction, 14 days in a straightforward case and up to three months in a very complex one. Under the Debt Protocol, which applies where a business claims a debt from an individual, 30 days.
What happens if I ignore it?
Nothing on the day. If the claimant issues proceedings, the court treats the silence as non compliance under paragraphs 13 to 16 and can order you to pay costs, costs on the indemnity basis, or interest at up to ten per cent above base rate on any sum awarded.
Should I pay part of it?
Not without a letter that states what the payment is and is not. An unexplained part payment can acknowledge the debt for limitation purposes and be read as an admission of the balance.
What does a response cost?
£345 fixed: the letter and documents read, the claim assessed, and a written response that deals with liability, disputed facts, any counterclaim and ADR. Negotiation and settlement correspondence after that is from £495. No VAT.