Credit Hire in Scotland: What QOCS Actually Changed

Scottish defender firms have been vocal about a rising tide of litigation and what they see as the role of Qualified One-Way Costs Shifting in driving it. The argument is now playing out in industry journals and the national press. For credit hire handlers running Scottish cases, the commentary matters less than the underlying rules.

What QOCS Is, in Plain Terms

QOCS was introduced by the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) (Scotland) Act 2018 and came into force on 30 June 2021. The core principle: an unsuccessful pursuer in a personal injury claim is generally protected from paying the defender's expenses. This applies to PI claims including those with credit hire attached.

Three headline exceptions: the court can disapply QOCS where the claim is fraudulent, where there has been an abuse of process, or where the pursuer's conduct has been manifestly unreasonable.

How QOCS Changed Credit Hire Litigation Economics

Before QOCS, the costs risk of losing was a real brake on marginal claims. Post-QOCS, that downside shrinks. Cases that previously settled pre-action or were dropped now push further into litigation.

Expect more Scottish cases to reach proof, more fraud allegations raised pre-litigation, and more scrutiny of pursuer conduct than two or three years ago.

The Fraud Question

Defenders can ask the court to set QOCS aside where fraud, abuse of process, or manifestly unreasonable conduct is established. The friction is over what's being raised pre-litigation — sometimes blanket fraud concerns on nothing more than a delay between accident and intimation.

There is now Scottish appellate authority on exactly this point. In Natalie Manley v Thomas McLeese [2024] SAC (Civ) 16, the first reported Sheriff Appeal Court decision on QOCS, the court held that the threshold for a finding of fraudulent representation is a high one. Simply preferring one party's evidence over another's does not, on its own, justify stripping QOCS protection.

Your Scottish Credit Hire Playbook

• Intimate promptly and keep a clear audit trail. Late intimation isn't a legal problem in itself, but it's used as a hook for fraud concerns.
• Front-load the evidence. Impecuniosity, need, rate benchmarking, and mitigation in the file before pre-litigation correspondence goes out.
• Plan for litigation. An increasing share won't settle pre-action.
• Know the route. Most Scottish credit hire goes through the Sheriff Court, with the All-Scotland Sheriff Personal Injury Court in Edinburgh handling specialist work.
• Track defender tactics. Log blanket fraud denials and lean on Manley v McLeese.

The Takeaway

QOCS isn't a pursuer advantage. It's an access-to-justice mechanism with built-in safeguards for defenders where claims cross the line. The Sheriff Appeal Court has made clear those safeguards work both ways.

For credit hire handlers, the real shift is operational. Cases that used to settle on costs risk now need litigation-grade evidence from day one.

Disclaimer: this article is general guidance, not legal advice.