Letter from Chilvers Strachan? Read this before you reply

A letter from Chilvers Strachan usually means a debt has reached the litigation stage. Chilvers Strachan is a UK firm of solicitors with a debt-recovery practice — not a routine collector. Their letters carry real legal weight: pre-action correspondence, Letters Before Claim, county-court claim forms and CCJ enforcement.

This page covers what they do, what they can legally pursue, the deadlines that matter, and how an IVA treats accounts they are pursuing.

Who Chilvers Strachan are

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Chilvers Strachan is a UK law firm regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), authorised to conduct litigation in the county courts. The firm has a debt-recovery practice that acts for banks, finance providers, debt purchasers and commercial creditors where balances have moved past standard collections into formal legal action.

Because Chilvers Strachan is a solicitors firm, their correspondence carries more weight than a typical collector’s reminder:

• They can issue Letters Before Claim that start a formal pre-action timer
• They can issue and serve county-court claim forms
• After a CCJ, they can apply for an attachment of earnings, charging order or instruct High Court Enforcement Officers
• They are bound by the SRA Code of Conduct and (for consumer credit) the FCA’s CONC rules

What Chilvers Strachan can and cannot legally do

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Chilvers Strachan are solicitors, not bailiffs. They can:

• Send Letters Before Claim and other pre-action correspondence
• Issue and serve county-court claim forms on behalf of their client
• After a CCJ, apply for any of the standard enforcement options
• Negotiate settlements, instalment plans or Tomlin Orders on the client’s behalf

What they cannot do:

• Force entry to your home
• Take goods directly — only a court-instructed enforcement officer can attempt that
• Threaten arrest — the matter is civil, not criminal
• Add fees and interest beyond what the original credit agreement and the court allow

If a field agent appears at your door, you have no legal obligation to speak to them, let them in or sign anything.

What to do when Chilvers Strachan write to you

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The single most important number on the letter is the deadline:

• Letter Before Claim — typically 30 days to respond
• Claim form (N1) — file an acknowledgement of service within 14 days to keep your defence options open. Defence is then due within 28 days of service, extendable to 28 + 14 by acknowledging in the first window
• Missing the deadline is the single most common cause of an avoidable default CCJ

Within the window, decide whether to dispute, defend or settle.

Three checks worth running first

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1. Section 77/78 CCA request. Send a written request under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 for the original signed credit agreement, current statement of account and notice of assignment. Until those documents are produced, the debt is legally unenforceable in court.
2. Statute-barred check. Six years in England and Wales (five in Scotland) since the last payment or written acknowledgement, with no court action in that window, blocks enforcement under the Limitation Act 1980.
3. Balance check. Statements from old accounts often include compound interest and charges that were never properly enforceable. Ask for a full breakdown.

Submit any dispute or defence on the right court form, on time, with proof of postage.

Routes out if the claim is enforceable

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• Settle in full with a written discount agreement and a “full and final” clause.
• Tomlin Order — court-approved settlement terms that only convert into a CCJ if you default.
• Affordable instalment plan through the court’s online process or directly through Chilvers Strachan.
• IVA to bring all unsecured debts under one 5–6 year arrangement. Once the IVA is approved, Chilvers Strachan must stop the litigation on the included debt.
• Debt Relief Order for total debt under £50,000 with very low spare income.
• Bankruptcy where no realistic monthly contribution is possible.

Pitfalls when Chilvers Strachan are involved

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• Never ignore a claim form. Default judgments are entered automatically when no acknowledgement of service is filed by day 14.
• Never accept liability over the phone. Stay in writing.
• Never make a part-payment before checking limitation status — it can reset the statute-barred clock.
• Don’t assume the case is hopeless. Many of these claims are won by default; well-prepared defences regularly result in withdrawn claims or favourable settlements.
• Don’t confuse the solicitor with the creditor. Chilvers Strachan act for a client — any settlement must close the account at the client’s end too.

Frequently asked questions

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Are Chilvers Strachan bailiffs? No. Chilvers Strachan are solicitors. They can take legal action and obtain a CCJ for their client, but enforcement at your home requires a separate enforcement officer.

Can Chilvers Strachan take me to court? Yes. They are a regulated solicitors firm with rights to conduct litigation, and they regularly issue county-court claims.

Will an IVA stop Chilvers Strachan pursuing me? Yes. Once the IVA is approved, they and their client must stop proceedings on the included debt.

The debt is from years ago — can they still claim? If the last payment or written acknowledgement was more than six years ago in England and Wales (five in Scotland) with no court action, the debt is statute-barred.

Related guides

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• BW Legal — major UK debt-recovery solicitors
• How long can I be chased for a debt?
• Can debt be written off?
• How do I apply for an IVA?