Bailiffs- Not accepting payment plan but cashing cheque!

[tooth_fairy]

Hi
I have £300 outstanding from 2005-06 Council Tax, resulting from both myself and hubby losing our jobs.

We tried to arrange a payment plan with the council and they wouldn't accept it (£35 per month) and thus it's been passed on to a local firm of Bailiffs.

They called when we were at work and left a bill, we sent the CAG template letter saying we could only afford £40, which we can only just afford and giving them a statement of means.

They wrote back saying they were looking for £100+ a month, so we wrote back saying it could only be £40 per month at the moment and we would be willing for them to review this in 6 months. We said what day of the month we would pay.

They didn't respond to this one but have cashed the £40 cheque, today have come back and found a letter from the Bailiffs again, saying I HAVE to phone them by 12 noon or they will be coming to remove goods, NB NO walking possession agreement entered in, as we have not actually had face to face contact with them.

I am not willing to phone them, I want everything to be in writing but as they have not formally accepted this payment arrangement but have taken the £40, where do we stand.

Incidentially the new bill, recieved today is the full amount minus £40.

Bit stuck as to where to go from here....and what to write to them again?

Thanks
TF xx

[tiglet]

OK, you wrote to them stating a payment plan and they cashed the cheque. IMO, they have accepted that payment plan.

Write to them again, stating that you have made a reasonable offer to pay and intend to stick to the payment plan and taht by cashing the cheque you eem them to have accepted that plan. Advise them you will not accept any charges for this visit.

Also advise taht as there has been no WPO signed, as far as you are aware, tehy are not entitled to seize goods.

Copy this into your local council. if you get any more visit/problems, report them to the certifying court and to the council again.

[tooth_fairy]

Thanks Tiglet
I thought by cashing the cheque they'd be agreeing to the plan, afterall, for £303 owing, it will be cleared in less than a year anyway.

I have e-mailed the council today asking them if I can deal directly with them on this matter as the bailiffs aren't accepting a plan but are taking money AND still visiting, have also sent a further letter to the council to this effect.

Thanks again,
TF xx

[tiglet]

You have to remember as well taht the bailffs acnnot force entry to your home and cannot refuse to accept a payment.

By continuing to visit and therefore racking up the maximum charges they can, however, is something your council should investigate. i take it you have copies of all correspondance?

[tooth_fairy]

Yes I do and I have taken the liberty of sending them recorded, sending and e-mail and a fax to both the council and bailiffs all along the way so at least they cannot say they've not received anything.

[tiglet]

Ok, send them this letter special delivery to both the bailiffs and to the council, putting in the correct details where necessary:

Your address

Date

Official Complaint re: Their Name Certified Bailiffs

Their address

Dear Mr/Mrs Director of the bailff's company

Account Number: as shown on their letter

Thank you for your letter of 00/00/07.

As you will see from my previous correspondance, I have offered a payment plan for account xxx and have submitted a cheque for £40 as the first installment for this. The cheque was cashed on 00/00/07, therefore leading me to believe the payment plan had been agreed by your acceptance of the cheque without disputation of the contents of my communication.

Despite this, a further visit was made to my property on 00/00/07 stating that you "intended to seize goods" (put the correct wording in here). I have never entered into a walking possession order with any member of your company and have not broken the payment plan. Therefore, I do not accept any charges for this visit.

I will continue to pay the above account at the rate of £40 per month until the account is paid in full. I enclose an income/expenditure sheet to show that this is all I can reasonably afford to pay at the moment. I require your written acceptance of this agreement.

In addition, please provide a detailed breakdown of the costs you have charged, showing in each case the reason for the cost and the actual cost against that item. For any cost which relates to an attendance fee, please state the date and precise time of the attendance and the name of the certificated bailiff making each attendance with the name of the county court where the relevant bailiff obtained his or her certificate. Please provide receipts where appropriate.

I would also ask that Name of council person looks further into this matter as Council does have responsibility for the conduct of the bailiffs it retains and I may also have to involve the local government ombudsman and local councillor if I do not receive satisfaction regarding my complaints with regards to these fees and conduct of your company. I also reserve the right to inform the court which certified the bailiff about this matter.

Therefore please accept this letter as written confirmation that this account is “in dispute” and I do not expect any further action to occur until this matter has been resolved. Failure to respond favourably to this letter within fourteen days of receipt will result in the above stated actions being commenced without further notice.


Yours Sincerely,


Your Name


cc Your council person

[tooth_fairy]

Cheers Tiglet, shows no messing there!
Needless to say they didn't turn up at 12 noon at all, scare tactics.

Incidentially I was out shopping and spoke to the local MP, who was canvassing for the elections tomorrow and informed him about it, if he is re-elected tomorrow, he has asked me to write to him and he will investigate!

Cheers Tiglet for you help throughout this post!

[tiglet]

Good for you - go to the polling station tomorrow and speak to your local councillor too - it's amazing how interested politicians get around election time!

Hope this has helped - do let me know how you get on.

Drunky Tigs x

[buster642]

Originally Posted by tooth_fairy

Thanks Tiglet
I thought by cashing the cheque they'd be agreeing to the plan, afterall, for £303 owing, it will be cleared in less than a year anyway.

I think that strictly speaking according to UK law, any conditions attached to a payment are not valid unless agreed beforehand.

Therefore they are fully entitled to take the payment without being bound by any conditions.

This is often the case with "full and final settlement" offers. It must be specifically agreed in advance before you send the money. Simply sending a cheque and writing "by cashing the cheque, you accept...." on the back, or on a covering letter has no validity.

That being said, they are clearly being unreasonable. Looks like they are trying to find excuses to make visits and rack up charges.

[tiglet]

That's why in the letter I thought it was best to state "lead me to believe" as they did not dispute the contents of the poster's letter.

[setmefree]

Originally Posted by tooth_fairy

Hi
I have £300 outstanding from 2005-06 Council Tax, resulting from both myself and hubby losing our jobs.

If you are in receipt of any benefits you can apply to the council to have the arrears deducted from your benefits.
At the moment i think they can only take £2.90 a week.

[tooth_fairy]

No we're not in receipt of any benefits now, we did get a deduction as we did have benefits in the period 2005-2006 and they have reduced the amount owing. Thanks for the information there though!

[setmefree]

Take the letters from the bailiff's to your local CAB,explain to them your financial circumstances and ask them to act on your behalf. the CAB is lot different from how it was a few years ago, and they have some very s_ _t hot advisers all there to help you