What to Do When You Receive a Letter Before Action (UK)

Deadlines, how to respond, and what happens if you ignore it

A letter has arrived. It is from a solicitor — or sometimes from an individual acting without one. It uses words like "breach," "damages," "without prejudice," and "court proceedings." It demands a response within 14 days, or 30 days, or some other deadline. It looks serious. It is serious. But it is not a lawsuit — yet.

This is a Letter Before Action (LBA), sometimes called a Letter of Claim or a pre-action letter. It is the opening move in the English civil litigation process. How you respond to it — or fail to respond — can shape the entire course of the dispute.

What Is a Letter Before Action?

A Letter Before Action is a formal notification that someone intends to bring legal proceedings against you unless you resolve the dispute. In England and Wales, the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) require parties to comply with pre-action protocols before commencing proceedings. These protocols are not optional — the court expects compliance, and non-compliance can result in costs penalties.

The Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols sets out the general framework. For certain types of claims — professional negligence, construction disputes, debt claims, personal injury, judicial review — there are specific pre-action protocols with detailed requirements. For all other claims, the general practice direction applies.

The key principle is this: litigation should be a last resort. Before issuing proceedings, the claimant must write to you with concise details of the claim, including the basis of the claim, a summary of the facts, what they want from you, and (if money is claimed) how the amount is calculated.

What Are the Deadlines?

The response deadline depends on the type of claim and the applicable protocol.

General claims (no specific protocol). The claimant should allow you a reasonable time to respond — 14 days in a straightforward case, up to three months in a very complex one. This guidance comes directly from paragraph 6(b) of the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct.

Debt claims against individuals. The Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims requires a minimum of 30 days for the debtor to respond. The letter must also include a prescribed information sheet and a reply form. This applies to debts owed by individuals and sole traders — not to business-to-business debts, though even in B2B cases, offering 30 days is considered good practice.

Professional negligence claims. The Pre-Action Protocol for Professional Negligence Claims requires the defendant to acknowledge the letter within 21 days and to provide a detailed response within three months.

Judicial review claims. The Pre-Action Protocol for Judicial Review requires the defendant (usually a public body) to respond within 14 days.

The deadline stated in the letter is not always the deadline required by law. If the letter gives you 7 days to respond to a complex commercial dispute, that may be unreasonable, and the court is unlikely to penalise you for taking longer if your response time was reasonable in the circumstances.

Step 1: Do Not Ignore It

This is the single most important piece of advice. Ignoring a Letter Before Action has several consequences, none of them good.

First, the claimant can proceed to issue court proceedings immediately, arguing that you failed to engage with the pre-action process. Second, the court may impose costs penalties on you — even if you ultimately win — on the basis that you failed to comply with the pre-action protocol. Third, silence may be interpreted as an admission of liability, or at least as an indication that you have no defence.

Even if you think the claim is baseless, you must respond. Even if you are outraged by the letter, you must respond. Even if you need more time, you must respond to say so.

Step 2: Read the Letter Carefully

Before responding, understand what is being claimed. Identify the legal basis of the claim (breach of contract, negligence, breach of statutory duty, debt, etc.), the factual allegations, the amount claimed, and the remedy or outcome the claimant is seeking.

Note any documents referred to in the letter. If you do not have copies of those documents, you are entitled to request them as part of the pre-action disclosure process.

Step 3: Consider Your Position

Ask yourself three questions. First, is there any substance to the claim? Be honest. If you clearly owe the money or clearly breached the contract, the most cost-effective course may be to negotiate a settlement rather than fight proceedings you are likely to lose. Second, do you have a defence? If you believe the claim is wrong, identify why — the facts are different from what the claimant alleges, the law does not support the claim, the claim is time-barred, or the claimant has suffered no loss. Third, do you have a counterclaim? If the claimant has wronged you, your counterclaim may be more valuable than their claim.

Step 4: Respond in Writing

Your response should be addressed to the claimant or their solicitors and should be clearly marked as a response to the Letter Before Action. Your response should confirm whether you accept or dispute the claim. If you dispute it, explain why — set out the facts as you understand them and identify the points of disagreement. If you partially accept the claim, say so. If you need more time to investigate, explain that and propose a timetable. Propose alternative dispute resolution (ADR) — typically mediation. The court now takes a very dim view of parties who refuse to consider ADR. Under the CPR, a party's silence or refusal to engage in ADR can result in costs sanctions.

If the claim is a debt claim against you as an individual or sole trader, the protocol requires you to use the reply form enclosed with the letter. You must respond within 30 days.

Step 5: Consider ADR

The courts in England and Wales actively encourage Alternative Dispute Resolution. Mediation, in particular, is strongly supported. The pre-action protocol requires the parties to consider ADR before issuing proceedings, and the court will expect evidence that ADR was considered at the case management stage.

You are not required to mediate. But unreasonable refusal to mediate can result in the court ordering you to pay the other side's costs even if you win the case. The practical effect is that mediation is quasi-compulsory in all but the most extreme cases.

If the claim is for a relatively small amount, consider whether mediation or direct negotiation can resolve the matter more cheaply than litigation. The cost of a day's mediation is typically £1,000 to £5,000 per party (including the mediator's fee). The cost of litigation through to trial can be tens or hundreds of thousands of pounds.

What Happens If Proceedings Are Issued?

If you respond to the LBA and the parties cannot resolve the dispute, the claimant may issue proceedings. In the County Court, the claim is issued online through Money Claims Online (for debts up to £100,000) or through the County Court. In the High Court, the claim is issued at the court office.

Once proceedings are issued, you will be served with a Claim Form and Particulars of Claim. In England and Wales, you then have 14 days to file an Acknowledgement of Service (if you need more time to prepare your Defence) and a further 14 days to file a Defence — or 28 days from service of the Particulars of Claim if you do not file an Acknowledgement. The Defence must respond to each allegation and set out your case.

"Without Prejudice" Correspondence

You may notice the phrase "without prejudice" on some correspondence. This is a legal privilege that protects settlement negotiations from being disclosed to the court. If a letter is marked "without prejudice," anything you say in response to it (and anything said in the letter itself) cannot be used as evidence at trial.

This is a useful mechanism for genuine settlement negotiations. However, it does not protect admissions of liability made outside the context of settlement — only communications that are genuinely aimed at compromise. Do not mark everything "without prejudice" in the hope that it will protect you from the consequences of what you say.

A "without prejudice save as to costs" letter is different. This means the letter cannot be shown to the court on the merits of the case, but it can be shown to the court when costs are being decided. This is how Calderbank offers (and Part 36 offers in the CPR context) work — they create costs consequences if the recipient rejects a reasonable offer and then fails to do better at trial.

Common Mistakes

Ignoring the letter. Already discussed. Do not do this.

Responding with anger or threats. A proportionate, professional response is always more effective than an emotional one. Courts do not reward aggression; they reward reasonableness.

Admitting liability without considering the full picture. If you did breach the contract, that does not mean the claimant's loss is as large as they claim. Admitting liability on one issue without understanding the full consequences can be costly.

Failing to propose ADR. Always include an offer to mediate or to engage in some form of ADR. Even if you do not think it will work, the fact that you offered protects you on costs.

Missing the response deadline and not explaining why. If you need more time, say so immediately. A short holding letter explaining that you are taking advice and will respond by a specific date is always better than silence.

This article covers the pre-action protocol framework in England and Wales under the Civil Procedure Rules. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate procedural rules. Always check the specific protocol applicable to your type of claim.

Received a Letter Before Action and not sure how to respond? CommonBench can help you analyse the claim, draft a response, and understand your options — before the deadline passes. [Try CommonBench →]