Registry Trust has welcomed today’s publication by the Ministry of Justice of its response to a government consultation on the proposal to allow for the names of claimants of money judgments, in the County Court and High Court, to be published on the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines in England and Wales. Currently, whilst the name of the defendant is included on the Register, the name of the claimant is not. Following the overwhelmingly positive consultation, the Government says that it will now legislate for the inclusion of the name of the claimant. This change will help consumers who have had a default County Court judgment made against them who do not know who the claimant is, regulators and charities to monitor how regulated firms use the courts to enforce debts, and lenders to make more informed credit decisions. The change should also support a better understanding of the nature of indebtedness in England and Wales.
Mick McAteer, chair of Registry Trust, which maintains the Register on behalf of the Ministry of Justice, said: “This is excellent news. We have been advocating for claimant details to be more readily available for some years. As custodians of the Register, we want the data we hold to benefit defendants, claimants, debt advisers, regulators, the third sector, lenders and policymakers alike and we believe this move is one step in the right direction. “We look forward to working closely with government on the detailed requirements, timeline and ensuring the protection of data for vulnerable individuals. “Registry Trust will continue to work across the sector to keep improving the Register to support better data-driven decisions that work for all concerned.” By way of next steps, the Government plans to lay Regulations in Parliament when parliamentary time allows, to allow His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) to provide Registry Trust with the names of claimants, to be included on the Register.
Read the full response here
ENDS
Contact: Kerry Postlewhite, k.postlewhite@registry-trust.org.uk. 07923 294382
Notes for editors:
1) The Register of Orders, Judgements and Fines in England and Wales contains information about individuals, businesses or organisations that have had unpaid judgments, orders or fines made against them by a court or tribunal. This information can be accessed publicly and is used in a number of different ways. For example, banks and lenders can use data from the Register when deciding whether to lend money.
2) On 21 November 2023, the Ministry of Justice published a consultation paper inviting comments on a proposal to include the names of claimants on the Register. The Register is maintained by Registry Trust, a not-for-profit company, on behalf of the Ministry of Justice, in accordance with the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines Regulations 2005 (‘the Regulations’).
3) The Regulations currently require, inter alia, the following information about County Court judgments to be held on the Register: the defendant’s name, address and postcode; the name of the court and case number; the date and amount of the judgment, and whether the debt has been satisfied. This data is sent to Registry Trust by HMCTS. This information can be accessed by anybody and is used, for example, by credit reference agencies to help to assess an individual’s credit ratings.
4) The consultation set out a proposal to amend the Regulations to allow for the names of claimants of money judgment in the County Court and High Court to be published on the Register in England and Wales. Claimant data is already included in the Registers for Scotland and Northern Ireland (which are also kept by RTL), where data on the claimant’s name is held.
5) The consultation asked whether respondents agreed with the proposal, whether they thought it posed any risks to court users, and whether they agreed it would have any of the following benefits: • helping consumers who have had a default County Court judgment made against them, but do not know who the claimant is; helping regulators to monitor how regulated firms use the courts to enforce debts, and helping lenders to make more informed credit decisions.
6) The consultation period closed on 16 January 2024. It received 151 individual responses to the consultation.