Hi,

I have just managed to pay off one lot of council tax to a Marston bailiff, and he will shortly chasing me for another £3k.

He did have a long wait before to get paid including six fruitless attendances.

He is a nasty bitter individual, which I assume is par for the course, and after our initial telephone conversation I will only contact him by text, so I have a log of everything.

In our exchange of texts I have always remained polite, despite being called a liar by him on several occasions.

Now, the notice they have sent is unlike the last one. It does not ask me to contact their office but to ring my favourite bailiff by Saturday 14th with payment of proposals.

I had intended to text him tomorrow to offer £250 a month for 12 months with the last payment slightly more to clear the full balance. These would be paid on the 29th of each month as next year is a leap year.

He has mentioned he will not text me again. Can he insist on me calling him - he does make my skin crawl?

Can he also refuse/ignore my offer allowing the debt to default and add another few hundred on top for this.

Thanks for any advice,

Sara

Do you know how much you owe as confirmed from the Council?

Do you know how many Liability Orders they have against you?

Is the letter from Marstons a Notice of Enforcement?

Have you asked for a breakdown of what you have been charged previously?

The rules changed in April 2014 and what happens & charges can be found @ http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?453292-Bailiff-enforcement-A-Simple-Guide-to-the-Taking-Control-of-Goods-Regulations%281-Viewing%29-nbsp

Thanks Tom, in answer to your points:

Do you know how much you owe as confirmed from the Council?

- the amount appears correct but no breakdown given. just the total

Do you know how many Liability Orders they have against you? -

just this one

Is the letter from Marstons a Notice of Enforcement?

yes it is-

Have you asked for a breakdown of what you have been charged previously?

I checked and all were correct

Thank you for the link

Looking at your Notice of Enforcement can you tell me:

When it was dated?

When it was posted - if there is a frank on the envelope?

How it was sent & if posted what class was used - !st, 2nd or via a 3rd party?

When you received it?

The date & time they have given you to make contact?

Thanks Tom, in answer to your points:

 

Do you know how much you owe as confirmed from the Council?

- the amount appears correct but no breakdown given. just the total

 

The amount quoted will usually include the £75 Compliance Fee.

For making an arrangement to pay the Bailiffs are usually under instruction from the Council to collect within certain time limits, usually 3 or 6 months & before the end of the financial year. If your plan appears to last longer because you owe a lot and/or are having difficulty over payments which may be unrealistic the you should ask for help from your local Councillor(s).

I don't have it with me at the moment. I may have to let you know early tomorrow.

=

Fee looks correct ct plus £75

I think you will find he may well turn down any proposal you may have as neither he nor his company would make much out of the £75 fee charged. If they then go to the next stage and he is able to make a visit then he can add £235 to the debt and this is a more attractive proposition for him. Of course what he is hoping for is that you will allow him access to your home - a seriously bad idea - whereby he can take control of your possessions. Don't forget a much more attractive idea is that he hopes you may have a nice shiny motor outside he could seize, so if you have a car it would be best to place it under lock & key, park about 10 minutes away or park it on private land (with the owners consent). Providing he cannot make a Controlled Goods Agreement with you he is basically stuffed as he can charge no more fees. He will attend at different times of day - 6-30 in the morning is a favourite and will knock very loudly for up to 30 minutes or so.

For making an arrangement to pay the Bailiffs are usually under instruction from the Council to collect within certain time limits, usually 3 or 6 months & before the end of the financial year. If your plan appears to last longer because you owe a lot and/or are having difficulty over payments which may be unrealistic the you should ask for help from your local Councillor(s).

The arrangement with the council was for 12 months x £250 that should have started on 25 September, so only a little longer.

The Notice was dated 2 November and received on the Wednesday 4th. I am instructed to make payment or agree a plan by Sunday which appears strange and suspicious!! 13 days not 14?? Seems odd to pick the one day he is not working.

I think you will find he may well turn down any proposal you may have as neither he nor his company would make much out of the £75 fee charged. If they then go to the next stage and he is able to make a visit then he can add £235 to the debt and this is a more attractive proposition for him. Of course what he is hoping for is that you will allow him access to your home - a seriously bad idea - whereby he can take control of your possessions. Don't forget a much more attractive idea is that he hopes you may have a nice shiny motor outside he could seize, so if you have a car it would be best to place it under lock & key, park about 10 minutes away or park it on private land (with the owners consent). Providing he cannot make a Controlled Goods Agreement with you he is basically stuffed as he can charge no more fees. He will attend at different times of day - 6-30 in the morning is a favourite and will knock very loudly for up to 30 minutes or so.

I can see that but if I offer to clear the debt in the same time the council agreed surely it is not acting ethically to refuse this in order to increase your fee and he would risk the loss of his licence? or am I bring unrealistic?

He knows he would never gain access to the property and even if he did it wouldn't reach £500 and cars are old bangers.

The Notice was dated 2 November and received on the Wednesday 4th. I am instructed to make payment or agree a plan by Sunday which appears strange and suspicious!! 13 days not 14?? Seems odd to pick the one day he is not working.

7 clear days it needs to be.

EA's do work Sundays. Its a very productive day.

3rd party property is pretty safe, but not absolute. A court order can be sought quite quickly to gain access ad seize it.

10 mins away means very little. Especially if anpr is gloating around.

ANPR is good at finding cars that have new owners who owe squat.

Does a bailiff have to follow a Code of Conduct?

If I make a perfectly reasonable offer in line with that agreed with the local authority creditor (although broken), can they refuse it in order to claim another £235?

Can this be appealed against? Should I ask my local councillor as suggested by ploddertom - and what is the best way to make contact - phone or email?

Any point in contacting the council - they previously claimed it was "outside their hands"?

To an extent yes.

No, that agreement no longer stand and may not fir within the timescales set by the la for recovery.

You can ask the council to take it back bit they may not do.

Others may be able to advise you more on local councillor options.

ANPR is good at finding cars that have new owners who owe squat.

Its better at finding hidden cars. Its actually very rare that we come across a legitimately sold on car, but yes, it does happen.

To an extent yes.

 

No, that agreement no longer stand and may not fir within the timescales set by the la for recovery.

 

You can ask the council to take it back bit they may not do.

 

Others may be able to advise you more on local councillor options.

Thanks Grumpy,

I appreciate that agreement was in the past and gone. It's just that Tom mentioned the council may require settlement to be made in the financial year, but they were happy to extend this to September 2016.

What I should ask is if a "reasonable" offer is made and he refuses this, another £235 can be added. Can this £235 charge be appealed against on the grounds that he was being unreasonable about my offer?

Not if your offer falls outside of their collection timescales.

That's a shame. Just say no and collect £235.

The Notice was dated 2 November and received on the Wednesday 4th. I am instructed to make payment or agree a plan by Sunday which appears strange and suspicious!! 13 days not 14?? Seems odd to pick the one day he is not working.

It is not strange at all. The company should give you 7 clear days and Marston's appear to be allowing you a more generous period of time.

If you wish to avoid a personal visit and the debt increasing by £235 then you need to contact the company today.

I appreciate what you say about the council having previously agreed to accept settlement of the debt by way of monthly payments of £250 spread over 12 month. The fact is that you did not adhere to their proposal so that debt has been sent to Marstons and accordingly, they can insist on full payment immediately or accept a payment proposal. Whether they are willing to accept such a generous repayment proposal as the council will remain to be seen.

Thanks bailiffadvice.

When the councils direct debit hit my account their were not funds to cover it and I thought it would be represented but never was, but as you say this is gone.

The Notice, which was their first point of contact, says to contact the bailiff directly. If I ring the office I am pretty sure they will just refer me to him and he is not the most pleasant person to deal with plus he will want to visit and charge the £235.

Thanks bailiffadvice.

 

When the councils direct debit hit my account their were not funds to cover it and I thought it would be represented but never was, but as you say this is gone.

 

The Notice, which was their first point of contact, says to contact the bailiff directly. If I ring the office I am pretty sure they will just refer me to him and he is not the most pleasant person to deal with plus he will want to visit and charge the £235.

I am assuming from your posts that you are still within the 'compliance stage' (this is the period between the date of the Notice of Enforcement and the 'cut off' date to make payment. If so, then a payment arrangement should be made with the enforcement AGENCY and not the enforcement AGENT.

Please post back once you have spoken to the enforcement company.

We are in the compliance stage until Sunday.

What if they just say to call the agent?

We are in the compliance stage until Sunday.

 

What if they just say to call the agent?

They should not do so and I suppose that the only way to find out is to make a call. Please do so and then post back.