I'm sorry I have not been thinking about these matters for a while but judging by what you are saying, no levy by the HCEO took place. Therefore no levy fees could be charged. When you say you went to the High Court on an interpleader, was it the HCEO fees that were reduced or the original amount claimed? If it was the fees they must have been taxed by a High Court Judge. Is this the case? Sorry to ask so many questions but it is not clear what has happened.

The trouble with all these things that you must do it in writing and it becomes a paper trail exercise.

He is talking BS. This may apply to criminal fines but up to now it has not been extended to non criminal matters as the Government cannot find a watchdog to oversee the bailiffs. Misrepresentation of powers and isuing threats against a person I think! Try reading this and look on the National Debtlines site and at the stickies about bailiff powers here. http://www.dca.gov.uk/enforcement/agents02.htm

Presumably the charges are on one account. Why the £160 enforcement fee? According to PK they did not have entry. And the bailiff fee should £42.50 at the most. Another avenue to follow would be to find out if the charged visit fees for each liability order when making one visit. They cannot do this under a decision made last year.

Sorry aboutthe length, feels like war & peace

You say you wrote to the LA to notify them about a change in address, do you still have a copy and did they ackowledge receipt of this. I ask because the council should notify you before applying for a liability order and before referring the matter to the bailiffs. As far as I am aware only in unpaid criminal fines can an order be issued to break into a house or in eviction. If you had signed a Walking Possession Order and the bailiffs had been in your property could the bailiffs break into your house (only in the most extreme cases), so Rossendales are overstating thir powers. If a bailiff had called at your house you would have found a letter or similar left at your property to notify you. If as the bailiffs had claimed, they had made 2 visits (which I find very doubtful), the maximum they could charge would be 1st visit fee £24.50 and 2nd visit fee £18.00, a total of £42.50. If they had levied on a vehicle outside your property, a seizure notice should have been posted through the door (although some are sticking the notice on the car or no notice at all - this is an illegal levy). These charges can only be applied if a court certified bailiff is in attendance as only certified bailiffs can act on Council Tax liability orders. The bailiff is guilty of not identifying himself, behaving aggressively, assault by trying to push inside your house, overstating his powers, issuing threats leading you to fear that may come to physical harm and fraud. He was in breach of the guidelines laid out and agreed to by the national body (I will post a link at the bottom). Unfortunately you will find that the police not to be interested in pursuing an action against the bailiff or indeed of even investigating the matter. You have been defrauded but the best way of recovering your monies is by letters of complaint about the behaviour of the bailiff to the council and Rs. First write to Rs and ask for a full breakdown of costs charged to you by the bailiff. If they are not forth coming with this you serve a Standard Access Request (SAR) asking for a screen dump of your account. This may cost you £10 (the maximum that can be asked for). In the meantime tackle the LA overthe way they actioned the liabilty order and the bailiffs without notifying you. Copy in the collections department, the claim department, Rs and your local councillor. Also point out the illegal behaviour of the bailiff in this letter and tell them that they are resposible for his actions and for any overcharge on the fees. The LA may decide to refund all your fees but don't hold your breath. Once you get a reply from Rs, you will have the evidence for taking them to the Couty Court to recover your money, make the LA joint defendants as they are liable as well. You might want to put in a Form 4 complaint aboutthe bailiff but think hard about this as the judges are not patient with those that mess them about. Hope this helps. I was going to include the advice given to officers by Devon & Cornwall Police but it has been removed from the website. If anyone wants it, PM me as I downloaded as a pdf file. Department for Constitutional Affairs - Enforcement - National Standards for Enforcement Agents

Just thinking about the advice to give, about to go out, will post in about 1 hour. Hope that ok?

Hi Wabco, I'll try to help. The 1st & 2nd visit fee are laid in statute. You could argue that they only visited once if you can prove this (you can ask for proof but they usually lie about this). If no levy was in place (make sure they did not levy on your car when on drive etc.) all other fees cannot be charged. It does sound as though they are trying on. Of course id the bailiff is not certified that called, they can't charge a penny. Hope this helps!

Oops my space bar is sticking! Despite what ill informed councils say, the charges are laid out in statute.

Hi Pinkmini, To ease your mind itis laidout in council tax legislation the fees that can be charged. £24.50 for a first visit and £18 for a second (this is for England, I believe it is £22 & £16 in Wales). They cannot charge for anyother visit (or letters) unless they make a levy (walking possession agreement) although a lot levy on vehicles parked outside the house whether you own them or not. The general advice is to park vehicles well away from the house and preferably sell them (for a small amount) to someone you trust. Don't forget to change ownership at the DVLC and change insurance into the owner's name. Do not open your doors or windows to them as if they gain access they then have the legal right of access at a later date. Read the stickies at the top of the bailiff's page.

There has been a ruling stating that a bailiff can not charge for the use of a credit card (December 2007). As far as I know this also applies to Debit cards but TT was waiting for this to be clarified. I know this ruling does not apply to High Court Enforcement Officers but the threat of taking a credit card charge for taxing was enough to make them refund it.

One of these days I'll get this text formatting sorted out!!!!!

Hi FWOG, here is a useful link that lays out guidelines for agreed good practice, signed up to by Councils and trade organisations:- Department for Constitutional Affairs - Enforcement - National Standards for Enforcement Agents hope it helps

I presume that Lamb to the slaughter appears to have little sympathy for any one on the receiving end of the bailiffs given recent posts! One wonders why Ltts is posting on this kind of web site?

HI Dazza, I think you have got caught up in your water companies new policy of taking old debts through the High Court by an action of Fi - Fa. Please read this link as it will give you useful information :- National Debtline England & Wales | Debt Advice | Factsheet 31 Dealing With Debts In The High Court You could apply to the High Court for an order to stay execution but in your case from what you have said, it should be possible to challenge the original application to the County Court. If A******* Water hold you liable they should supply you with all the details and you could put a N244 into the court. If you would like some advice on this matter, please PM any personal details to me. Do not post as these companies are known to read this site.