Louis - thanks for the suggestion that really helped I could get no answer from the CAB office - always through to recorded message and no queuing for calls - must have tried for best part of an hour. However I found the National Debtline really helpful - go through to and adviser straight away, they spent an hour going through my overall position - apart from a lot of useful advice they did answer the specific questions. 1 Bailiffs can only seize items that have been identified on the WP list. 2 They can force entry once they have previously made peaceful entry 3 The debt once with a Bailiff is subject to agreements made with the bailiff - not the council, but you can ask the council to take the debt back - they would obviously need a reason to take it back e.g. the bailiff was being unreasonable. Chris thanks for all your suggestions, Unfortunately my eligibility for benefits has been compromised as I previously was not an employee but a company director, In 2006 I signed on each week for 10-weeks before they told me - for me benefits claims lost me 2 days getting to and from signing on and £10 in car parking fees, when I could otherwise have been looking for work, overall a negative experience. My work finishing in December was via a payroll company so I have been PAYE fro the last 13 months so I might fare better now - once I do I will follow up you later suggestions - In the end I did find that the bailiff had had a discussion with the council and they had agreed to accept the offer of re-instating the payment. The advisor from the National Debt Line suggested that I make a complaint to the `enforcement agencies association' thanks - not-quite-so-deperate. Dan

I have been in an arangement with a bailiff collecting a debt of over £4,000 in councill Tax (A long story of debt and employemnt problems of 6 years). In arround May of last year - I allowed the balliff in who made a list of goods, and I signed a walking possesion order (I wish I had found and read this forum before now - but whats done....) I have since made payments of £125 a month untill being untill becoiming unemployed in December. I did not contact the balliff and I am in defauilt of the agreement, I had a collection team call and leave a note through the door yesterday. I have contacted the Coumcill debt unit who agreed that I could make the late payment now and catch up with another payment on the 26th Jan the original due date) I called the Balliff - who thought the company would want a lump some payment of 50% of the total due. The balliff then contacted me saying they would acceptt payments of £800 pounds (I just do not have this sort of money) we are down to rationing the number of bulbs we can afford to burn..... we are in a quite desperate position. What really worries me is that the balliff has asked to make appointment today to enter and take our goods - but he says that this will not be limited to the items on the possision order but all items excluding the statutory limitations... Some items in our house genuinely belong to friends who have lent us furniture as we have had such bad finacial pressures, and also our childrens have CD players and the like. I work in IT and Photography - My tools of business are the only valuable possesions we have and I do not know how I can protect myself from them just ransacking the house - He implied that they would force entry if there was no-one in to let them in The ammount showing as outstanding on the Debt is 4805 which is higher than the cuncill have on record so I suspect that charges have allready been applied - I did question this with the bailliff. I would have thought that the bailliff would have to take instuction from their customer the councill on decisions affecting the affordability of repayments....... This is about the final straw in debt problems going back too many years I really a desperate........ any advice would be hugely appreciated.