A friend of mine had a visit from Marston's Enforcement person and was force to pay £650 on the spot.

My friend is foreign and doesn't have a lot of English.

(The reason for the fine is long story about not understanding how things work in the UK.

She didn't commit the offence but was down as the registered keeper of the vehicle.)

1) He showed his badge and pushed his way into her flat while she was looking at it.

2) He threatened to take away the landlord's goods. He said he needed receipts to prove ownership of the goods if they belonged to the landlord.

3) Unaccompanied female being confronted by strange man in her home.

4) He said he had a warrant but did not show her the warrant.

5) She called my wife for advice (they speak the same language) and told me.

I then spoke myself with Enforcement person to see what was going on.

He told me that he wanted £650 or he would take away the goods.

I asked if he would accept part payment he refused saying he had to collect the full amount.

I ask if he could put distraint on the goods while she sorted things out again he refused.

6) He said he was recording his visit. Is that legal and can we get a copy?

7) She eventually managed to pay him and was given a Marston’s receipt which only had the Marston’s reference number but no details of the debt/fine.

He failed to put his name and details on the space provided on the receipt.

8) He did not leave a copy of the warrant which he said he was acting under.

9) There was no prior warning of his visit.

10) I asked him if was allowed to push his way into her flat seeing that she is a female by herself.

He said. “It’s not as though she is some fifteen year old”.

I’m all for upholding the law but outright bullying techniques must not be allowed surely.

When I asked him about this he replied “I know my job.”

Bullies

The agents should be carrying a body worn video camera. If you feel that it was badly done then you could make a complaint to Marston and ask for the BWV footage to be viewed – and you could probably get a copy for yourself.

Thread moved to the appropriate forum...please continue to post here to your thread.

Regards

Andy

A friend of mine had a visit from Marston's Enforcement person and was force to pay £650 on the spot.

My friend is foreign and doesn't have a lot of English.

 

1) He showed his badge and pushed his way into her flat while she was looking at it.

 

2) He threatened to take away the landlord's goods. He said he needed receipts to prove ownership of the goods if they belonged to the landlord.

 

3) Unaccompanied female being confronted by strange man in her home.

 

4) He said he had a warrant but did not show her the warrant.

 

 

He told me that he wanted £650 or he would take away the goods. I asked if he would accept part payment he refused saying he had to collect the full amount. I ask if he could put distraint on the goods while she sorted things out again he refused.

 

6) He said he was recording his visit. Is that legal and can we get a copy?

 

7) She eventually managed to pay him and was given a Marston’s receipt which only had the Marstons reference number but no details of the debt/fine. He failed to put his name and details on the space provided on the receipt.

 

8) He did not leave a copy of the warrant which he said he was acting under.

 

9) There was no prior warning of his visit.

 

10) I asked him if was allowed to push his way into her flat seeing that she is a female by herself.

Thank you for providing such a clear background. I will attempt as best I can to answer your above point.

1) The bailiff is allowed to gain peaceful entry. There is a difference between the bailiff pushing his way into the property and of him taking advantage of the opportunity to walk into the property when the door was opened (which he is allowed to do). The difference would be evident by viewing the BWV camera footage.

2). It needs to be made clear that when it gets to the very late stage of enforcement (a personal visit), the purpose of the visit is to 'take control of goods' to sell at auction to raise money to clear the debt and bailiff fees. Accordingly, in order to stop goods being taken, some evidence of ownership is recommended.

3). The bailiff is allowed to go into a property where there is a unaccompanied female. Regulation 10 of the Taking Control of Goods Regulations 2013 provides that goods should not be taken if the only person present is a vulnerable debtor or a child.

4). The warrant is not addressed to your friend. It is addressed to the enforcement agent. HMCTS has confirmed that a warrant does not need to be provided to the debtor at the time of attendance. The following thread is one that I started on this same subject.

https://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?437698-Magistrate-Court-Fines...Distress-Warrants-Warrants-of-Control....Official-response-from-HMCTS&p=4658720&viewfull=1#post4658720

5). As outlined above, the purpose of the visit is to take control of goods. It is therefore very difficult at such a late stage for part payment to be accepted. An alternative, would have been for the agent to have allowed your friend to sign a Controlled Goods Agreement. However, this option would not be available to her as your friend appears to have said that the goods in her property belonged to the landlord !!

6). BWV (Body Word Video) is used by almost all enforcement agents. Their use has led to a significant decline in the number of complaints upheld by enforcement companies. Their use is vital as it not only protects debtors, it also protects the enforcement agent from violent attacks etc. Such incidences have also thankfully significantly declined.

7). You mention at the start of your post that your friend had been aware of the fine. You have no mentioned whether your friend had responded to any letter from the court.

8). There is no requirement for the enforcement agent to leave a copy of the warrant.

9). You need to ask your friend whether or not she had responded to any of the letters from the court. This would include the summons, the Notice of Fine and Collection Order and finally, a Further Steps Notice. She should also have received one previous letter from Marston's entitled: Notice of Enforcement.

She did tell the DVLA that the car had been sold after she received the letter about the offence.

She did not have the buyers details.

The car had been sold by her son who had been using the car.

Her problems are down to not understanding the letters.

She should involved me earlier as I a native British person.

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply to me.

She did tell the DVLA that the car had been sold after she received the letter about the offence. She did not have the buyers details. The car had been sold by her son who had been using the car.

 

Her problems are down to not understanding the letters. She should had involved me earlier as I a native British person.

 

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply to me.

Thank you for such an honest response. Hopefully, if she has purchased a new car, she had sought your advise.