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Free small claims mediation

A defended small claim for a fixed sum is now referred automatically to a free, one-hour telephone mediation run by HMCTS. This guide explains when that happens, what the call is like, what a settlement means and how to prepare.

Checked against official sources on 30 September 2026. Court fees from 13 July 2026; enforcement agent fees from 1 May 2026.

When a small claim is referred to mediation

The rule is CPR 26.6 as modified by Practice Direction 51ZE, the Small Claims Track Automatic Referral to Mediation Pilot Scheme. The pilot runs from 22 May 2024 to 6 April 2027 and applies to claims issued on or after 22 May 2024. Under the modified rule, where the only remedy claimed is a specified sum of money and the claim is not a road traffic accident or personal injury claim, ‘where all parties have filed their directions questionnaire, the claim will be referred to the Mediation Service’. The Mediation Service means the Small Claims Mediation Service operated by HM Courts and Tribunals Service. There is no opt-out box: a defended money claim of £10,000 or less goes to mediation as a matter of course.

For claims started in Online Civil Money Claims (the gov.uk ‘Make a money claim’ service), PD 51R para 6.2(5A) adds that when the claimant’s directions questionnaire is received in a defended claim not exceeding £10,000 excluding interest, the court must stay the proceedings for 28 days to allow for mediation and refer the matter to the service. The directions questionnaire (form N180, or its online equivalent) asks who will attend the appointment, which dates in the next three months you cannot do, and whether you need an interpreter or have a vulnerability the service should know about.

Because the pilot is time-limited, the position after 6 April 2027 will depend on whether it is extended or made permanent. For claims over £10,000 the court may offer mediation, and the parties may arrange independent mediation themselves. See what happens after you issue for where mediation sits in the sequence.

What the appointment is like

The service is free. You are given a date and time for a telephone appointment lasting up to one hour. A mediator from HMCTS speaks to each side separately, shuttling between the two calls to explore options, pass on offers and help the parties negotiate. You do not speak to the other party directly. You can have someone with you. The mediator does not decide who is right, does not give legal advice and does not tell the judge what was said.

Two protections encourage candour. First, you cannot mention what happened during the mediation appointment in court. Second, going to mediation does not push your hearing date back: HMCTS says you will not have to wait longer for a court hearing if you go to mediation first. HMCTS reported that 48% of the 10,250 mediation appointments attended in 2023 settled, and that in the online service settlement agreements are reached on average 24 calendar days from issue.

The service can be contacted at scmreferrals@justice.gov.uk or on 0300 123 4593.

If you settle

You make a verbal agreement at the appointment. It is legally binding, which means both sides must follow it. The mediator records the terms in a settlement agreement, which for claims referred under CPR 26.6 must be in form N182. Typical terms are a lump sum by a date, or instalments of a set amount on set dates, sometimes for less than the full claim.

Under the modified rule 26.6(5), the proceedings are then automatically stayed with permission to apply for either judgment for the unpaid balance of the settlement sum, or the claim to be restored for hearing of the full amount claimed, unless the parties agreed that the claim is to be discontinued or dismissed. In practice that means a claimant who is not paid does not have to start again: an application to the court for judgment for the balance, or to restore the claim, is the remedy.

If you do not attend

Attendance is expected, and the rules give the sanction teeth. The modified rule 26.6(6) and rule 27.8(7) require the court, if the claim reaches a final hearing, to consider whether any sanction is appropriate having regard to whether the parties attended mediation. Rule 27.14(2A) allows a failure to attend to be taken into account when the court decides whether a party has behaved unreasonably for costs purposes. The standard directions in PD 27A Appendix B require a party who did not attend to give an explanation for that failure.

Gov.uk puts it plainly: if you have been told you must attend mediation, the judge can sanction you if you do not attend or make an effort to reach an agreement, and sanctions can include your case being dismissed (struck out) or having to pay all court costs even if you win. If you tell the court why you did not attend, the judge will take your reasons into account. Reasons can be given through your Money Claims online account or at the hearing. See costs in small claims.

Note that ‘make an effort to reach an agreement’ is not the same as being obliged to settle. A claimant who attends, listens and explains why the full sum is owed has complied even if no agreement results. The court will not know what was said, only whether the parties attended.

Preparing for the call: a checklist

An hour goes quickly when the mediator is switching between two calls, so most claimants find it helps to decide their position beforehand.

1. Know your floor figure. Work out the lowest lump sum you would accept today, allowing for the time, court fees and enforcement risk a hearing involves. The interest and fee calculator gives you the full figure including interest to compare against.
2. Decide on an instalment plan you would accept. Many settlements are by instalments. Decide the minimum monthly amount and the longest period you would live with, and remember that a broken agreement leads back to court for judgment on the balance.
3. Have the evidence to hand. The agreement or invoice, the messages, the letter before claim and the defendant’s reply, and your bank statement showing what was and was not paid. You will not be sending documents to the mediator, but you may need to answer a point the defendant raises.
4. Be ready to explain how the debt arose in two minutes. Who agreed what, when, what was delivered, what was paid, what is outstanding and why the defence is wrong. A short, dated chronology is the easiest way to do this.
5. Consider what the defence actually says. If part of it has some force, a settlement that reflects it may beat a hearing that goes the same way.
6. Be somewhere quiet with a charged phone and a pen to note the terms as they are agreed.

If you would like to think through your own figures first, ask ClaimsBot about this guide.

If mediation fails

A claim referred to mediation that does not settle must be allocated to a track no later than four weeks from the date the last directions questionnaire is filed (CPR 26.7(3)). The court then gives directions and fixes a hearing, with at least 21 days’ notice. Where the defendant is an individual and the claim is for a specified sum, the claim is sent to the defendant’s home court for the hearing. The median time from issue to a small claims trial was 41.0 weeks in April to June 2026. See the hearing and how long does a small claim take?.

Nothing stops the parties negotiating after a failed mediation. The Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct says parties should continue to consider settlement at all times, including after proceedings have started, and a written offer can be relevant to costs if the other side unreasonably rejects it (CPR 27.14(3)).

Sources

• Practice Direction 51ZE – Small Claims Track Automatic Referral to Mediation Pilot Scheme
• Civil Procedure Rules Part 26 (rules 26.6 and 26.7)
• Practice Direction 26 – small claims mediation (form N182)
• Make a court claim for money: mediation – gov.uk
• Small Claims Mediation Service – gov.uk guidance
• Practice Direction 51R – Online Civil Money Claims Pilot (para 6.2(5A))
• Form N180: directions questionnaire (small claims track) – gov.uk
• HMCTS fact sheet: Online Civil Money Claims – gov.uk