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Debt Help :-
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Mortgage Help :-
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Baillifs rights, how & why to avoid them
When bailiffs may be used
Your creditor (the person you owe money to) can make a claim against you in the County Court. A County Court Judgment (CCJ) may be made stating you must repay the debt.
Your creditor can ask the court to issue a 'warrant of execution', which means that bailiffs may be called in to help recover the debt.
If you owe tax to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), or Council Tax to your local authority, they may send bailiffs to recover the debt.
One course of action your creditor might take is to use a bailiff to take away some of your possessions and sell them to recover their money. It can be a scary process so it's vital to know your rights.
You may able to talk to the council about how you can pay what you owe. They may agree to stop the bailiffs' action and accept a repayment plan. If they do, you will avoid having to pay bailiffs' fees.
Debt collector is not the same thing as a bailiff. Debt collector has no powers at all to seize goods and even a bailiff can't do so unless they've got a court order known as a 'Warrant of Execution'.
Private bailiffs can be very difficult to deal with and it is usually best not to let them into your home. They are not allowed to force entry unless you have let them in on a previous visit.
They can't force their way in on their first visit, but they can enter through an open window, or an unlocked door. People are advised to talk to them through the letterbox or via an upstairs window because if they literally get a foot through the door then that constitutes sufficient lawful entry.
Bailiffs are sometimes used to threaten to take away possessions which then may be sold as a means of raising money to repay a part of your debt. There are some goods that bailiffs should not be able to take from your home. These include
- Clothing,
- Furniture
- other personal and domestic items considered necessary basics
It should also be noted that once bailiffs have gained entry to a property, they can use force to open other internal doors.
As a last resort, your council can ask the magistrates' court to consider sending you to prison for non-payment. The court may decide to do one of the following:- set a rate of repayment
- write off part or all of the debt, depending on your circumstances
- adjourn or make no order. If you are required to attend a committal hearing, you should seek specialist advice.
If you are having problems negotiating an affordable payment arrangement with your council or bailiffs, you could ask to see any Code of Practice or Recovery Policy with which they should comply.
Please feel free to complete an enquiry form to enable an advisor to call you at your convenience.
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