Claims Officer (Ref: 14592)

Job summary

Please refer to Job Description

Job description

Job title: Claims Officer

Directorate: Chief Financial Officer

Workstream: Judicial Pay and Expenses Team (JPET)

Grade: AO

About us

HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is responsible for the administration of criminal, civil and family courts and tribunals in England and Wales. Our roles support our service users and colleagues, where people and businesses access potentially life-changing justice. We’re looking for individuals who are committed to public service and want to make a difference in people’s lives in delivering justice. If you’re interested in developing a career with a real purpose, please apply.

Background

The Judicial Fees, Expenses and Payroll (JFEPs) Team is a central part of Judicial Pay and Expenses and the Chief Financial Officers Directorate.

The JFEPs team processes judicial fees and expenses claims, as well as witness and appellant costs from courts and tribunals.

About the role

The key purpose of the Claims Caseworker role is to receive and progress for payment claims for judicial fees, expenses and witness and appellants’ costs arising from the Courts and Tribunals, and to deal with claimant’s queries, responding by letter, email or telephone.

Duties

Claims Caseworkers are assigned to teams that handle incoming claims and produce monthly payrolls. Claims Caseworkers will check, approve or reject claims. They will assist individual claimants by answering their queries by email and on the telephone. Caseworkers are supported in their role by comprehensive guidelines and instructions.

Interaction with Others (internal/external)

Claims Caseworkers work within a team with regular management support. They havecontact with claimants, including judges, legal professionals and lay members of the Tribunals. They may also liaise with Courts and Hearing Centre staff, and partner agencies such as our IT and payment service providers.

Your role as Claims Officer encompasses several key aspects (but not limited to):

• Receive and process fee and expenses claims arising from Courts and Tribunals
• Check and complete first line approval, confirming claims are valid, correct and comply with policy.
• Action claims in accordance with established procedures to ensure timely and accurate payment.
• Reject incorrect claims and advise claimants; accordingly, identify instances of non-compliance with policy and refer to team leader
• Answer and/or appropriately redirect enquiries from HMCTS staff, judicial office holders and other customers.
• Work as part of a team to clear the workload efficiently ensuring equal standards of service across all customer groups.
• Proactively look for opportunities to improve processes and activities of the team.

Other duties

The post holder is required to work in a flexible way and undertake any other duties reasonably requested by line management which are commensurate with the grade and level of responsibility of this post.

Who are we looking for? (Person Specification)

The ideal candidate for this position should demonstrate:

Essential

• Adaptable and willing, with the ability to work in a culture of change; continually improving (products, processes, and priorities) to meet the current and future needs of the organisation.
• Excellent communications skills: both written and verbal tasks.
• Excellent IT Skills particularly Excel
• Analytical skills for the investigation and resolution of complex issues

How to apply

Application Stage

Please submit

• Statement of suitability demonstrating how you meet the essential criteria (up to 250 words)

Your Statement of Suitability should be no more than 250 words and should give us real life examples of how your skills and experience match those needed for this role. Consider addressing particular points in the person specification requirements and key responsibilities. We recommend following the STAR format.

You must ensure that any evidence submitted as part of your application, are truthful and factually accurate. Please note that plagiarism can include presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own.

• Behaviour examples illustrating the Civil Service Behaviours “Making Effective Decisions” (up to 250 words).

Your Statement of Suitability should be no more than 250 words and should give us real life examples of how your skills and experience match those needed for this role. Consider addressing particular points in the person specification requirements and key responsibilities. We recommend following the STAR format.

We will aim to sift the Statement of Suitability and Behaviour Question but, in the event of a large number of applicants, an initial short sift may be conducted on the Behaviour Question only. Candidates who pass the initial sift of the Behaviour Question will progress to a full sift where all application assessment criteria is then assessed.

Interview Stage

If successful at sift, you will be invited to attend a remote interview, via Microsoft teams. During your interview, you will be assessed against the following Civil Service Success Profiles which will include:

• Questions in relation to the following Civil Service Behaviours:
• Making Effective Decisions
• Working Together
• Delivering at Pace

Strengths will also be assessed however these are not shared in advance.

Further details

Location

The post holder will ordinarily be assigned to Manchester Civil Justice Centre, 1 Bridge Street West, Manchester, M60 9DJ

Travel requirements

There will be a requirement to travel occasionally to any HMCTS site in line with business needs.

Opportunities for development

HMCTS is committed to staff development and offers an extensive range of training and development opportunities.

Skilled Worker Sponsorship

From 22nd July 2025, the Government increased the salary threshold for Skilled Worker visas. The starting salary for this role falls below the general salary threshold for sponsorship.

The Department cannot consider sponsoring you for this role unless you have held a Skilled Worker visa continuously since before 4 April 2024, you qualify for relevant tradeable points, or you meet other criteria where a lower salary can be considered. Therefore, if you believe you meet the eligibility criteria (in whatever way possible) and you have received a provisional job offer, please raise this during your vetting checks.

If you are applying for this role and you do not meet the new eligibility criteria for sponsorship, you will need to consider your options for obtaining and/or maintaining your right to work in the UK in light of these changes. Successful applicants must ensure they have and maintain the legal right to live and work in the Civil Service and in the United Kingdom.

The Department will continue to comply with UK Immigration Rules applied in the UK and Civil Service.

You can read more about Skilled Worker visas and the eligibility criteria here.

About our benefits

We reward our people for their hard work and commitment. We have a number of family

friendly and flexible working polices that will help you achieve a healthy work-life balance. In addition, we offer a range of employee benefits which include generous annual leave, a highly competitive contributory pension scheme, childcare benefits, season ticket and bicycle loans.

Proud to Serve. Proud to keep justice going.

Person specification

Please refer to Job Description

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Making Effective Decisions
• Working Together
• Delivering at Pace

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £25,582, HM Courts and Tribunals Service contributes £7,411 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

• Access to learning and development
• A working environment that supports a range of flexible working options to enhance your work life balance
• A working culture which encourages inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
• Annual Leave
• Public Holidays
• Season Ticket Advance

For more information about the recruitment process, benefits and allowances and answers to general queries, please click the below link which will direct you to our Candidate Information Page.

Link: https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths and Experience.https://justicejobs.tal.net/vx/candidate/cms/About%20the%20MOJ

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is counter-terrorist check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : SSCL Recruitment Enquiries Team
• Email : moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk
• Telephone : 0345 241 5359

Recruitment team

• Email : moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@resourcing.soprasteria.co.uk

Further information

Appointment to the Civil Service is governed by the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. If you feel a department has breached the requirement of the Recruitment Principles and would like to raise this, please contact SSCL (Moj-recruitment-vetting-enquiries@gov.sscl.com) in the first instance. If the role has been advertised externally (outside of the Civil Service) and you are not satisfied with the response, you may bring your complaint to the Commission. For further information on bringing a complaint to the Civil Service Commission please visit their web pages: http://civilservicecommission.independent.gov.uk/civil-service-recruitm…

https://jobs.justice.gov.uk/careers/JobDetail/14592?entityId=14592