Recovering Rent Arrears with Money Claim Online (MCOL) UK 2026

Your tenant owes you rent, and they may already have moved out. The first thing to know is that getting your property back and getting your money back are two different legal jobs. A Section 8 arrears claim normally includes the arrears, and the court usually gives a money judgment alongside the possession order. But a judgment is not the money, and county court bailiffs enforcing a possession order do not collect the rent debt for you. If the tenant has already left, or you are not seeking possession, you bring a separate money claim, and the easiest route to that is Money Claim Online (MCOL).

This guide covers how to recover rent arrears (and unpaid damage above the deposit) as a money debt: when to bother, how MCOL works, the fees, getting a County Court Judgment, and the four ways to actually enforce it. That last part matters, because a judgment is only worth what you can collect.

Guidance, not legal advice. Court fees change (the GOV.UK fee list was updated in July 2026), so confirm the current figures on GOV.UK before you file.

First, try to avoid court altogether

Litigation is slow, and a judgment against a tenant with no money is worthless. Before you claim:

• Deduct what you can from the deposit first. You only claim the shortfall above it.
• Try a payment plan. A tenant who has moved on to a new home will often agree to clear arrears in instalments rather than take a County Court Judgment that wrecks their credit for six years. A calm, documented approach recovers more, faster, than a claim form.
• Keep every message. A tenant who ignored a reasonable plan strengthens your position if you do end up in court.

This is exactly what LetCompliance's Arrears Recovery service does (see the end of this guide): a collections specialist agrees a realistic payment plan and documents each step, for one flat fee with no commission on what is recovered. Court is the fallback, not the first move.

What Money Claim Online is

MCOL is HMCTS's online service for making a money claim, for debts up to £99,999.99. For a typical rent-arrears debt it is faster and cheaper than a paper claim. Claims under £10,000 are dealt with on the small claims track, where costs are limited and you do not usually need a solicitor, which fits most arrears cases.

You can claim the arrears, unpaid charges, and interest, against the former tenant (and any guarantor, if you had one, which is why a guarantee is worth having).

Before you file: the letter before action

The court expects you to follow the pre-action protocol: in plain terms, give the debtor a fair chance to pay before you sue. Send a letter before action (also called a letter before claim) setting out:

• Who owes what, and how the figure is calculated (attach the rent ledger).
• That you will start a court claim if it is not paid or a plan agreed within a reasonable time. Under the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims, an individual has 30 days to reply.

Skipping this can cost you at the costs stage even if you win. Keep proof you sent it.

Have your evidence ready: the tenancy agreement, a rent ledger showing every payment and shortfall, the deposit deduction, and the letter before action. A clean ledger is what wins an undefended claim on the papers.

The court fee

The issue fee scales with the amount you claim (plus interest). Indicative bands (confirm the current figures: the GOV.UK fee list was updated in July 2026):

• Small debts (a few hundred pounds): tens of pounds.
• Around £1,500–£3,000: roughly £115.
• £5,000–£10,000: a few hundred pounds.
• Over £10,000: about 5% of the amount claimed.

There is a further hearing fee if the claim is defended and listed, and fees to enforce a judgment. You can add the fees to the claim and recover them if you win, but you pay them up front.

Getting a County Court Judgment (CCJ)

Once the claim is served, the tenant can pay, admit it and propose instalments, defend it, or ignore it. If they do not respond in time you can ask the court for judgment in default: a CCJ. A CCJ:

• Orders them to pay (in full, or by instalments the court sets).
• Is recorded on their credit file for six years, which is itself a powerful incentive to settle. Paying within a month of judgment can get it removed.

A CCJ is the judgment. It is not the money. If they still do not pay, you enforce it.

Enforcing the judgment: the four routes

This is where landlords underestimate the process. You choose the method that fits what the debtor actually has:

• Warrant of control (county court bailiffs): bailiffs attend to seize goods to the value of the debt. Quick to request, but capped at £5,000 through MCOL, and worthless if the debtor has nothing worth taking.
• Attachment of earnings order: the court orders deductions straight from the debtor's wages. Effective if they are in stable employment; useless if they are self-employed or not working.
• Charging order: places a charge on property the debtor owns, so the debt is paid when it is sold (and, in some cases, you can force a sale). The strongest route if the debtor is a homeowner.
• Third-party debt order: freezes and takes money from the debtor's bank account. Powerful but you need to know where they bank and catch funds in the account.

Each has its own fee, added to the debt. Pick the route to the asset the debtor actually has.

Is it worth it? The honest answer

A money claim is worth pursuing when the debtor is traceable, employed, or owns property: then a CCJ plus the right enforcement route usually gets results, or at least a settlement. It is often not worth it against someone who has disappeared with no assets and no income: you would pay fees to win a judgment you can never collect.

Treat recovery as a commercial decision, not a point of principle. And remember the deposit and any guarantor come first, because they are the cheapest money to recover.

How LetCompliance fits

LetCompliance is built to make the claim unnecessary and, if it isn't, easier to evidence:

• The rent ledger shows every payment and every shortfall by date, which is exactly the evidence an MCOL claim and a judge need, with nothing to rebuild from bank statements. Switch on arrears chasing and LetCompliance chases the tenant from the same record (on a paid plan it can collect the rent by Direct Debit too).
• LetCompliance's Arrears Recovery service puts a collections specialist on the phone to your tenant to agree a payment plan and document every step, for £99 one-off, no commission on what is recovered. It is the amicable route that avoids court, and the pre-action paper trail if court becomes necessary.
• The Ground 8 arrears checker handles the possession side (getting the property back), which runs on a separate track from recovering the money.

MCOL is the last resort when a tenant simply will not engage. By then you already have the ledger and the dated history to back the claim.

Sources

• GOV.UK: Money Claim Online (MCOL) user guide and Make a court claim for money: enforce a judgment
• GOV.UK: Civil court fees (EX50)