How to value your small claim correctly

Add the first three. Subtract the fourth. State the fifth separately. That is your claim value.

The headline figure — the unpaid invoice amount, the price you paid for faulty goods, the deposit owed. Easy to identify.

8% per annum from the date the debt fell due (s.69 County Courts Act 1984). Quoted as a daily rate plus the running total. Continues to accrue until paid.

Consequential losses

Losses that flow naturally from the breach and were reasonably foreseeable at the time of the contract. Storage costs, replacement hire, lost income from a contract you missed because of their breach.

Mitigation deduction

Your duty to take reasonable steps to limit your loss. If you didn't, the court reduces your award accordingly. Must show what you did and why anything else was unreasonable.

Recoverable from the defendant if you win. Add to the claim total but show separately on the N1.

£260 maximum for legal advice on injunctions (CPR 27.14). Otherwise, no solicitor cost recovery on the small claims track.

How to value your small claim correctly

Why over-claiming hurts

A judge sees inflated claims constantly. Two claims arrive: one for £8,000 with every line item evidenced, one for £15,000 with vague consequential losses. The £8,000 claim looks reasonable. The £15,000 claim looks chancy.

Defendants and their solicitors know this. An inflated claim invites a robust defence — they will pull every line item apart and you will lose credibility on the genuine elements.

The strongest position: a claim where every figure is documented, mitigation is acknowledged, and the headline number is provable to the penny.