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Letter before claim to a business that will not refund or pay you (England and Wales)
England and Wales · in English · for consumers
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For a consumer whose complaint to a trader has got nowhere — a refund refused, a deposit kept, money owed for faulty goods or poor work. This is the letter before claim the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct expects before a court claim: it sets out the claim and the amount, lists your documents and gives 14 days to reply, and says you will otherwise claim in the County Court, through Money Claim Online. Send it by email and by first class post with a free certificate of posting, and keep a copy.
- Made for use in England and Wales
- Last updated October 28, 2026
- Document in English
Where a UK document reproduces the words of legislation or of a government publication — UK, Scottish or Northern Irish — it contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
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When to use this document
- A business in England refuses to refund you and your complaints have gone nowhere.
- The trader kept your deposit although it never did the job.
- You are ready to take a firm to the small claims court and need the letter before action first.
- You want a formal letter before claim to send to a company in England or Wales.
What you fill in
The details the document asks for.
- Sender
- Sender's address
- Town or city
- Sender's postcode
- Date
- Trader
- Trader's postal address
- What the dispute is about
- Amount claimed
- Attachments
- Bank account
Common questions
- What must a letter before claim to a business contain in England and Wales?
- Enough for the business to understand the claim: who you are, what happened, what you want and how much, the documents you rely on, and a reasonable time to reply, 14 days in a straightforward case. The Practice Direction also asks both sides to consider settling, including by mediation. A court can penalise in costs a party who ignored these steps.
- What does it cost to make a small claim if the business does not reply?
- Issuing a money claim costs a court fee that rises with the amount claimed; GOV.UK lists the current fees, which changed on 13 July 2026, and Money Claim Online takes claims for less than £100,000. On the small claims track, up to £10,000, each side mostly bears its own costs, and you can add the fee to your claim.
- Is there a free alternative to a letter before claim?
- The Citizens Advice consumer helpline gives free advice and can refer a trader to Trading Standards, and many sectors have a free ombudsman or dispute resolution scheme. Neither replaces this letter if you intend to go to court; it is the step the court expects first. In Scotland and Northern Ireland the courts and their steps are different.
How you can sign this document
- Print it and sign by hand. The signature lines in the document are left blank on purpose — sign on them in ink.
- Sign it yourself with a qualified electronic signature. If you already hold a QES — Evrotrust, B-Trust, StampIT, ZealiD or any qualified provider on the EU Trusted List, on a card, a USB token, in a mobile app or in the cloud — our signing guide explains step by step how to sign this exact file without invalidating it. Step-by-step help, and a way to check it worked
DocMuse sells documents, not legal advice. Acceptance always depends on the recipient's rules and your local law.
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