When is a claim form deemed served under CPR 6.14?

A claim form validly served within the United Kingdom under CPR Part 6 is deemed served on the second business day after completion of the relevant CPR 7.5(1) step. Enter the completed step date, such as posting or permitted electronic sending. Do not enter the issue date, actual receipt date or an already calculated deemed-service date.

Responsible actor. The claimant or court completing valid claim-form service; the defendant checking the resulting response timetable.

Identify the document as a claim form rather than later particulars, an offer or an application notice.

Verify the method, recipient, address and any order before relying on ordinary deemed service.

For the relevant step, use completed posting, delivery, personal service or permitted sending under CPR 7.5(1).

Ordinary valid domestic claim-form service under CPR 6.14. This page computes deemed service, not whether service was valid or whether the four-month service-step limit was met. A different service order and service outside the United Kingdom need separate review. The bundled service calendar assumes service in England and Wales. CPR 6.2 uses the bank holidays of the UK part where service takes place; Scotland and Northern Ireland require separate calendars.

1. Establish valid domestic claim-form service and its completed step.
2. Exclude the completion date.
3. Count two service business days.
4. Use the separate acknowledgment and defence rules to identify the correct response trigger.

Exclude the completed service-step day and count the next two business days. CPR 6.2 excludes Saturday, Sunday, bank holidays, Good Friday and Christmas Day. Use business-day status, not the court-office closure calendar.

The two-business-day calculation skips non-business days throughout. A PD 2A office closure alone does not postpone deemed service. December 24, 2026 is a service business day even though the ordinary court office is closed.

The calculator covers complete trigger, deemed-service and result dates in 2026 and 2027. Check the actual office, filing channel, order and any additional directed closure. PD 2A closes the ordinary court office on December 24 in both years, but that office closure does not make the day a non-business day for service. Historical editions, later calendars, specialized pilots and online procedures require separate review.

Fictitious example

Fictitious established facts. The valid claim-form step is completed October 20. The next two service business days are October 21 and 22.

Fictitious established facts. The calculator does not establish valid service, applicability, a filed acknowledgment, an agreed extension, court permission or actual office access.

Alternative service orders

CPR 6.15(4) requires an alternative-service order to specify the deemed-service date and response periods. Use the actual order instead of this ordinary preset.

Service-step limit is distinct

CPR 7.5(1) generally requires the domestic step before midnight four months after issue. This calculator does not decide compliance with that separate limit or grant a Rule 7.6 extension.

Other documents

Later particulars and other documents use CPR 6.26 and its method-specific time boundary. Applying two business days to every document gives a different answer.

• Ordinary valid domestic claim-form service under CPR 6.14. This page computes deemed service, not whether service was valid or whether the four-month service-step limit was met. A different service order and service outside the United Kingdom need separate review. The bundled service calendar assumes service in England and Wales. CPR 6.2 uses the bank holidays of the UK part where service takes place; Scotland and Northern Ireland require separate calendars.
• The calculator covers complete trigger, deemed-service and result dates in 2026 and 2027. Check the actual office, filing channel, order and any additional directed closure. PD 2A closes the ordinary court office on December 24 in both years, but that office closure does not make the day a non-business day for service. Historical editions, later calendars, specialized pilots and online procedures require separate review.

• Identify the exact claim form and its issue date.
• Check domestic scope, address, permitted method and any service order.
• Preserve proof of the completed CPR 7.5(1) step.
• Check the separate service-step limit without substituting the deemed date.
• Compare any court notice or certificate with the entered facts.
• Identify whether the claim form states that particulars will follow.
• Establish the date the permitted CPR 7.5(1) step was actually completed. Postal service uses the prescribed posting or provider step; electronic service requires a permitted method and the applicable consent. Deemed service does not establish court filing or timely issue. Preserve the method, address, completed step and any certificate or court notice.