Directions questionnaire (N180)

A short form with outsized consequences — it decides which track your case runs on, whether mediation is offered, and where the hearing will be.

What triggers the N180 being sent out?

It is sent once the defendant files a defence. Until then there is nothing to allocate: an undefended claim ends in a default judgment rather than a hearing. When the defence arrives, the court sends a notice of proposed allocation with the questionnaire attached and a date by which both parties must return it.

What happens if I do not return the N180 in time?

The court can strike the claim or defence out, or make whatever other order it thinks appropriate under CPR 26.5. In practice a late questionnaire often attracts an unless order first, giving a short final deadline. It is not a form to leave in a pile, and if the deadline is genuinely impossible you should write to the court and explain before it passes.

Should I say yes to the mediation question?

Saying yes costs nothing and closes nothing off. The Small Claims Mediation Service is free, runs by telephone, usually takes about an hour, and any settlement is recorded in a binding agreement. Refusing mediation without a reason can attract criticism from the judge later. Saying yes does not oblige you to accept an offer you do not think is fair.

Can I ask for the hearing to be at a court near me?

The form asks whether there is any reason the claim should be heard at a particular court, and for an individual defendant the claim is normally transferred to their home court automatically. If travel, disability, caring responsibilities or the location of witnesses genuinely affects where you can attend, say so on the form with the reason rather than assuming the court will guess.

Do I have to name my witnesses at this stage?

The questionnaire asks how many witnesses will give evidence and whether any need special arrangements such as an interpreter or step-free access. You are not filing their statements yet, but understating the number can cause difficulty later when the court has allowed a hearing slot based on what you said.

Is there a fee to file the N180?

There is no fee for the questionnaire itself. On the small claims track there is also no separate hearing fee band the way there is on the fast track; the relevant fees are the issue fee and, where applicable, the hearing fee published in the EX50 schedule. If money is a barrier, Help with Fees applies to court fees generally.

Directions questionnaire (N180)

Small Claims · Glossary

Directions questionnaire (N180)

A short form with outsized consequences — it decides which track your case runs on, whether mediation is offered, and where the hearing will be.

Last reviewed: August 2026

directions questionnaire (N180)

is the form both sides complete once a claim is defended, giving the court the information it needs to allocate the case to a track and set a timetable.

Where this comes from

— case management, allocation and the directions questionnaire.

— the small claims track and the directions typically given.

— the small claims track version of the questionnaire.

What happens after you make a claim

— gov.uk walk-through of the stages after a defence.

Why a short form matters so much

The directions questionnaire arrives at the moment a claim stops being a piece of paperwork and becomes a case with a timetable. The court has a defence in front of it, and it needs to decide three things: which track the claim belongs on, how long a hearing will take, and what each side must do before then. The N180 is how it finds out.

Because it is short — a couple of pages of tick boxes and dates — it is easy to treat as a formality. That is a mistake. The answers you give shape the allocation decision, the hearing length, the court you travel to, and whether the free mediation service is offered before any of that happens. Several of those choices are hard to undo.

The N180 is the small claims track version. Claims that look like they belong on the fast track or intermediate track use form N181 instead. If you receive the wrong form, the covering notice of proposed allocation will say which track the court has provisionally in mind, and you can say on the form if you disagree.

What the questionnaire asks

• Settlement and mediation.
• Whether you agree to the case being referred to the Small Claims Mediation Service, and whether you want a one-month stay to try to settle.
• Whether there is any reason the claim should be heard at a particular hearing centre, and why.
• Whether you agree the claim is suitable for the small claims track, and if not, which track you say it belongs on and why.
• How many people, including you, will give evidence at the hearing, and whether anyone needs an interpreter or other support.
• Whether expert evidence is needed. On the small claims track expert evidence requires the court's permission and is rarely allowed, so this needs a real justification.
• Dates in the coming months when you or your witnesses cannot attend, so the court avoids listing the hearing then.

How answers change the outcome

Two neighbours dispute a £4,100 fencing and landscaping bill. The defendant files a defence saying the work was incomplete and partly defective. The court issues a notice of proposed allocation to the small claims track with N180s attached, returnable in two weeks.

The claimant ticks yes to mediation, says the claim is suitable for the small claims track, lists two witnesses, and gives three weeks in October when she is abroad. The defendant ticks no to mediation, argues the claim needs an expert surveyor and should go to the fast track, and lists no unavailable dates.

The judge allocates to the small claims track anyway — the value and the issues fit — and refuses permission for expert evidence, because the alleged defects can be shown in photographs and described by the parties. Mediation does not happen, because it requires both sides to agree. The hearing is listed for a date outside the claimant's stated absence. The defendant's refusal of mediation does not decide the case, but it is on the file, and it removed the cheapest route out of the dispute for both of them.

The mediation question, taken seriously

The Small Claims Mediation Service is the most under-used advantage available to a self-represented party. It is provided by HMCTS at no cost, it is conducted by telephone with a mediator who shuttles between the parties, and it usually finishes inside an hour. Nothing said in mediation is reported to the judge, and if no agreement is reached the case simply carries on to a hearing.

The practical case for agreeing is straightforward. A hearing costs a day, exposes both sides to an outcome neither controls, and produces a judgment that still has to be

if the losing party does not pay. A mediated settlement is agreed by the parties, can include a payment plan a judge would not order, and tends to get paid because the payer chose it.

There is a wider direction of travel here too: the courts have become progressively more willing to treat unreasonable refusal to engage in dispute resolution as conduct that matters. On the small claims track, where costs recovery is tightly limited, the consequences are usually modest — but a judge who reads “no” without a reason on the questionnaire has formed a small impression before anyone has said a word.

• Missing the return date.
• The court can strike out a claim or defence for non-return. Diary the date the moment the notice arrives.
• Refusing mediation reflexively.
• Free, confidential, and non-binding unless you agree something. Declining it out of principle removes an option and gains nothing.
• Asking for an expert without a real need.
• Expert evidence on the small claims track needs permission and is usually refused. Asking anyway can look like an attempt to escalate a modest claim.
• Leaving availability blank.
• If you do not tell the court when you cannot attend, it will list the hearing when it suits the list, and moving it afterwards needs an application.
• Under-counting witnesses.
• The hearing length is set from what you say. A slot that turns out to be too short can mean an adjournment and months of delay.
• Assuming the questionnaire is where you argue the case.
• It is not. Keep the merits for the witness statements and the hearing; use the form for logistics and track.

Frequently asked questions

Sources & further reading

• CPR Part 26 — case management and allocation
• CPR Part 27 — the small claims track
• Form N180 — directions questionnaire
• What happens after you make a court claim
• EX50 — civil and family court fees

Questionnaire landed on your doormat?

Start My Claim helps you work through what to tick, what to ask for, and what happens next.

Last reviewed: August 2026.

References checked against CPR Parts 26 and 27 and HMCTS form N180 as published in August 2026.

This page is explanatory only and is not legal advice. Start My Claim is self-service software, not a law firm — its tools help you build and run your own case.