Court process

Summary warrant procedure generally minimises the expense of enforcement and collection. A summary warrant is obtained by application to a sheriff. The application needs to be accompanied by a certificate from the creditor stating that:

•the persons specified in the certificate have not paid the sums due;
•the creditor has demanded payment of the relevant payable sum from each such person;
•14 days have expired without payment being made.

The certificate must also provide the amount due by each person specified in the application. A single application for a summary warrant can cover a number of clients. This makes the enforcement of debts covered by this process more efficient than processing individual applications. Assuming the above requirements are complied with, the sheriff must grant a summary warrant.