How to Check If You Have a CCJ: 3 Ways to Find Out

Wondering whether you might have a County Court Judgment against your name? You are not alone. Many people discover they have a CCJ only when they are declined for credit, rejected for a mortgage, or face enforcement action. Knowing how to check if you have a CCJ is the first step to understanding your financial position and taking control of the situation.

This guide covers three reliable methods for searching the County Court Judgment register in England and Wales, what to do once you have the information, and how CCJ Removal Services can help if a judgment is affecting your life.

Why You Might Not Know You Have a CCJ

County Court Judgments are issued when a creditor takes someone to the County Court over an unpaid debt and wins the case. The defendant is supposed to receive a claim form and then a judgment notice — but not everyone does.

Common reasons people are unaware of a CCJ include:

• The court paperwork was sent to an old address after a house move
• Documents were addressed incorrectly by the creditor
• Paperwork was received but mistaken for junk mail and not opened
• A debt was sold to a new collection company who issued proceedings without proper contact
• The judgment was obtained in your absence (a “default judgment”)

Whatever the reason, a CCJ stays on the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines for six years from the date it was issued — and it will show on your credit file for the same period. It can affect mortgage applications, loan approvals, renting a property, and even some employment checks.

Method 1: Search Trust Online (Registry Trust)

The quickest and most direct way to check if you have a CCJ in England or Wales is to search Trust Online, the official public register run by Registry Trust on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.

What Trust Online shows

• County Court Judgments (England and Wales)
• High Court Judgments
• Administration orders
• Fines issued by magistrates courts
• Tribunal awards

How to search

1. Visit trustonline.org.uk
2. Select “Individual” or “Business” depending on whether the CCJ is against you personally or a company
3. Pay the search fee (currently £6 per search at time of writing — check the site for current pricing)
4. Enter your full name and current or previous addresses
5. Results are returned immediately online

If a CCJ appears on your Trust Online search, you will see the court that issued it, the judgment date, the amount, and whether it has been satisfied (paid in full). This information is what lenders see when they run credit checks.

Tip: Search all addresses you have lived at in the last six years, as the CCJ may have been registered against an old address.

Method 2: Check Your Credit Report

All three main UK credit reference agencies — Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion — record CCJ information sourced from the Register of Judgments. Checking your credit report is a straightforward way to see if any judgments are listed against you.

How to check your credit report for CCJs

• Experian: Free 30-day trial via Experian’s website, then £14.99/month (or free via the Experian app with limited features)
• Equifax: Access via Checkmyfile, which shows all three agencies in one report (free 30-day trial, then £14.99/month — cancel anytime)
• TransUnion: Free access via Credit Karma

Your statutory credit report is also available free of charge from each agency — this is your legal right under UK data protection law. It may not be as easy to read as a paid report, but it contains the same CCJ information.

What the credit report entry will show

If a CCJ appears on your credit file, the entry typically includes the creditor’s name, the court that issued the judgment, the date, the original amount, and the current status (unsatisfied or satisfied). An unsatisfied CCJ means the judgment debt has not been paid in full.

Important: Credit agencies update their records from the register — there can be a short delay between a CCJ being registered and appearing on your credit file. Trust Online is always the most up-to-date source.

Method 3: Contact the County Court Directly

If you have received correspondence from a creditor, a debt collection agency, or HMCTS (HM Courts and Tribunals Service) about a court claim, you can contact the relevant County Court to ask whether a judgment has been entered against you.

How to contact HMCTS

The County Court Business Centre (CCBC) handles most online money claims in England and Wales. You can contact them by:

• Telephone: 0300 123 1056
• Post: County Court Business Centre, St Katharine’s House, 21-27 St Katharine’s Street, Northampton, NN1 2LH
• Online: HMCTS website

You will need your full name, date of birth, and any claim or case number if you have it. The court can confirm whether a judgment has been registered against you and provide details of the claimant.

This method is particularly useful if you have received a claim form (an N1 or online claim) and are not sure whether judgment has already been entered.

I Have Found a CCJ — What Happens Now?

Finding a CCJ on your record can feel alarming, but there are options available to you. The right course of action depends on the circumstances of the judgment and how long ago it was issued.

If the CCJ is satisfied (paid)

If you paid the debt in full within one month of the judgment date, the CCJ should have been removed from the register. If you paid after one month, the register should show the judgment as “satisfied” — but it will still appear on your credit file for six years. You can apply to have a “Certificate of Satisfaction” issued, which updates the register, but the entry remains visible.

If the CCJ is unsatisfied (unpaid)

An unsatisfied CCJ gives the creditor the right to take enforcement action to recover the money. This can include a bailiff visit, an attachment of earnings order, or a charging order on property. It is important to address an unsatisfied CCJ promptly.

If the CCJ was issued without your knowledge

If the judgment was issued at an old or incorrect address, or if you were not properly served with the original claim, you may have grounds to apply to the court to have the CCJ set aside. Setting aside a CCJ effectively cancels it — removing it from the register entirely.

There are two main routes for setting aside a CCJ in England and Wales:

• Consent Order: If the original creditor agrees to set the judgment aside (often in exchange for payment or a repayment arrangement), a Consent Order can be submitted to the court without a hearing. The court fee is £123 and the process typically takes around 12 weeks. Find out more about Consent Orders here.
• N244 Application: If the creditor does not agree or cannot be traced, you can apply to the court using an N244 form and attend a hearing to argue your case. The court fee is £313 and timescales are typically 4 months or longer depending on court availability. Learn more about N244 applications here.

Setting aside a CCJ removes it completely from both the register and your credit file — unlike satisfaction, which simply marks it as paid but leaves the entry visible.

How CCJ Removal Services Can Help

CCJ Removal Services specialises in helping individuals in England and Wales challenge and remove County Court Judgments. We are not solicitors and do not provide legal advice, but we guide people through the CCJ removal process — from checking the register and identifying the right route, through to preparing applications and navigating the court process.

If you have discovered a CCJ and are unsure what to do next, get in touch with our team for a free, no-obligation review of your situation. We can advise on whether a Consent Order or N244 application is the right approach, explain the likely costs and timescales, and help you get started.

You can also read more about how CCJ removal works on our main site.