5 minutes. £0 to start.

Answer a few questions to prepare a draft Letter Before Action. Check the applicable pre-action procedure, response period and any documents you must enclose before sending it.

Builder / tradesperson

What kind of dispute is it?

Pick the closest match. The party and debt questions then identify the draft route. England and Wales only.

Who is the Letter Before Action from and to?

Use full legal names. For a company, use the registered name (e.g. "Acme Builders Ltd").

Construction, housing conditions, professional negligence and some other disputes have separate protocols. Check the official list and scope of each protocol. This generator supports the general pre-action route and qualifying Debt Claims Protocol cases; if another route applies or you are unsure, get advice before using it.

Confirm the answers above before continuing. The dispute title alone cannot determine the correct protocol.

For a limited company, use the registered office address (find it free on Companies House).

The sum claimed, and the dates the obligation arose and fell due.

This tool covers ordinary money claims up to £10,000. The court decides track allocation; some claim types have different rules.

e.g. invoice date or purchase date.

Explain the legal basis in plain English, what happened, and how you calculated the sum. Identify the key documents you will attach.

Check paragraph 3 of the Debt Claims Protocol. The generator cannot verify that your account information is complete.

Phone calls, emails, ignored letters, anything you've tried already.

The remedy you're seeking, the deadline you're giving, and whether to claim statutory interest.

Mention a possible request for court-awarded interest

The draft says you may ask for 8% under section 69 where applicable; the court decides the rate and period. It does not add interest automatically. Contractual and commercial late-payment interest use different rules; avoid claiming both for the same period.

Documents and sending checklist

Your Letter Before Action draft

Review this draft and provide the required accompanying documents before sending. The generator does not certify pre-action compliance or create the official Debt Claims Protocol forms.

Check every fact, the legal basis and amount, and attach the relevant evidence. Send on the letter date shown; update both dates if delayed. A letter does not stop the limitation clock.

Attach the Information Sheet, Reply Form and Financial Statement from the official protocol annexes, plus the required account information. These attachments are not generated or sent by this tool. Post the package on its date or the next day unless the debtor explicitly requested a different method.

Preparing for a possible court claim?

Before issuing, complete any response, document, advice and further-notice steps that apply. On this browser, your answers carry across to the N1 claim form builder — parties, amount, dates and facts already filled in. The builder is part of Small Claims Preparation, £49.

Want the full case, not just a letter?

The £49 plan gives you: the refined letter with your evidence in it, the N1 and particulars builder, a defence builder if they claim against you, document storage and a deadline tracker. The AI Case Companion comes with the £119 plan, not this one. You keep 100% of any award.

Small Claims — Free Intake

5 minutes. £0 to start.

Not legal advice. Start My Claim is document-assembly software that produces a draft Letter Before Action from the details you enter; it does not create a solicitor–client relationship. Review everything carefully before sending, and for high-value or complex disputes consider taking independent legal advice.