Letter from Restons Solicitors? Read this before you reply

A letter from Restons Solicitors usually means a consumer-credit debt has reached the litigation stage. Restons Solicitors is a debt-collection law firm regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), and their letters typically come either as a Letter Before Claim (a formal pre-action notice) or as part of an active county-court action.

The deadlines printed on those letters matter — they govern whether the matter ends in a default CCJ or in something more manageable. This guide explains who Restons are, what they can legally pursue, and how an IVA treats accounts that Restons are pursuing.

Who Restons Solicitors are

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Restons Solicitors are solicitors regulated by the SRA, authorised to conduct litigation in the county courts. Their work is concentrated in consumer-credit debt recovery for a range of debt-purchaser and original-creditor clients, typically including Hoist Finance, Cabot Financial, Arrow Global and a number of bank and credit-card issuers.

They issue Letters Before Claim, file county-court claims (often through the Northampton or Salford bulk-processing centres), and pursue enforcement action after a CCJ.

Because Restons Solicitors are a firm of solicitors, their letters carry more weight than a routine 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 on a property, or instruct High Court Enforcement Officers

They are bound by the SRA Code of Conduct and (where consumer credit is involved) the FCA’s Consumer Credit Sourcebook (CONC).

What Restons Solicitors can and cannot legally do

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Restons Solicitors are solicitors, not bailiffs. They can:

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

They cannot force entry to your home, take goods, threaten arrest (the matter is civil, not criminal), or invent fees and post-default interest beyond what the original credit agreement and the court allow.

What to do when Restons Solicitors write to you

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

• Letter Before Claim: typically gives you 30 days to respond
• Claim form (N1): you must 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
• Missing the deadline is the most common cause of an avoidable default CCJ

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

1. Section 77/78 CCA request — request the original signed credit agreement, current statement of account, and notice of assignment. Until those documents are produced the debt is legally unenforceable.
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.
3. Disputed balance or wrong person — challenge in writing, on the relevant court form.

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

What happens if you ignore Restons

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The escalation track is fast:

1. Letter Before Claim — usually 30 days
2. County-court claim form — 14 days to acknowledge service, 28 to defend
3. Default judgment (CCJ) — entered automatically if you don’t respond
4. Enforcement — attachment of earnings, charging order, or High Court enforcement on the CCJ

Once a default CCJ is in place, getting it set aside is technically possible but legally difficult and time-pressured. The window of maximum leverage is the 14 days after the claim form arrives.

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 — agreed settlement terms recorded by the court but only converted to a CCJ if you default.
• Affordable instalment plan through the court’s online process.
• IVA (Individual Voluntary Arrangement) to bring all your unsecured debts under one 5–6 year arrangement, including any debt that Restons Solicitors are pursuing. Once the IVA is approved they 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.

Common pitfalls when Restons Solicitors 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.

Frequently asked questions

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Are Restons Solicitors bailiffs? No. Restons Solicitors are solicitors. They can take legal action and obtain a CCJ on behalf of their client, but enforcement at your home would require a separate enforcement officer (county court or High Court bailiff) acting on the CCJ.

Can Restons Solicitors take me to court? Yes. They are a regulated solicitors firm with rights of conduct of litigation. Their letters often precede or accompany a county-court claim.

Will an IVA stop Restons Solicitors pursuing me? Yes — once the IVA is approved, Restons Solicitors and their client must stop proceedings on the included debt and cannot enforce against you for the included balance.

The debt is from years ago — can Restons Solicitors still claim? If the last payment or written acknowledgement was more than six years ago in England and Wales (five in Scotland) and there has been no court action, the debt is statute-barred and cannot be enforced. Raise this in writing as a defence.

Related guides

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• Hoist Finance UK — frequent Restons client
• Cabot Financial — frequent Restons client
• How long can I be chased for a debt?
• Can debt be written off?
• How do I apply for an IVA?