you are probably right, thank you for you help though

Thank you, I am just waiting on confirmation from the council that they don't have this address listed anywhere in relation to the council tax arrears, and then I will submit a formal complaint. It just seems daft that they can enter any property they choose, the link between the cousin and this address was at best tenuous and yet they still have a lgeal right to enter. Just a couple of points I forgot to mention if you could help me on whether they should make up part of my complaint. The EA said that the liability order was placed against the person and the property and so he could take things to pay off the debt. I don't think this is true, is he misrepresenting what has happened and his powers. Secondly there was a water bill in my MIL name initial; surname but they had put Mr down instead of Mrs by father in law passed away and when we swicthed the names they didn't change the title. The EA thought this was evidence that the cousin lived there despite the initials being wrong, he took a photo of the water bill and emailed to his office without permission, do they have any legal rights to do that, seems like an invasion of privacy.

Thanks for the reply, I have contacted the cousin and explained as best I can to him that he needs to address this issue. It's just so infuriating that a very large enforcement agent can seemly enter a property with no real evidence that the debtor lives there, then refuses to leave when asked, causing a lot of distress, they can do all that without facing any real consequences.

Hello everyone, I need a bit of help and some clarification. My cousin-in-law has a large amount of council tax arrears fopr Brighton & Hove Council, he has emigrated to another EU country and in his absense the Council have been awarded a Liability Order against him. Yesterday an enforcement agent came to my mother-in-law's house who lives in Twickenham, saying that he was there for the cousin and to collect money or possesions to pay off the debt. My MIL explained that the cousin doesn't live there and now lives in another country. (He grew up in the house as child but has not lived there for over 20 years). The EA asked for my MIL to fetch a utility bill to proove that the cousin doesn't live there, so she went to get one, whilst she was away the EA entered the house (peacefully, no in my mind dishonestly) and refused to leave. My 13 year old sister-in-law was very distressed and upset and called me at work, so I came over to try and sort this out. I then explained to the EA that the cousin lives in another country and hasn't lived in this house since he was a minor and what proof he had that the cousin was at this address, he said that they had done an Experian Credit Check and this was an address (this is possible but hardly proof of his current residence). I asked to see any documentation giving him a legal right to be on this property, he refused citing the Data Protection Act, I called the police on 101 who told him he had to show me. All he had was a transcript of the traces they had run, no letter from the council. I asked whether he had a copy of the Liability Order, he said "no, that stays with the council". We showed him, the deeds of the house, utility bills and the current council tax bill to proove what we were saying, he ignored them and said "it doesn't proove that the cousin doesn't live here". I told him that he has not produced anything that I would consider a legal right to be on the property, or any real evidence that the cousin lives at this address, so asked him to leave the premises as I belive him to be trespassing. He refused saying that the only way to get him to leave was to lay hands on him, which would be assault and I would do so at my own risk (from my POV this was a threat that should I touch him he would retaliate). Finally after calling his company and emailing them a copy of the council tax bill they got him to leave. I have got confirmation from the company that he won't return and this address has been removed, but I remain sceptical. I have read as he as gained entry peacfully once he can now force his way on again. My questions are, has he complied with what he has to, no liability order or letter from the council, deceiving my MIL to gain entry etc. What is actually on the liability order, does it include an address that gives the EA to gain access to, or have they done this off their own back. Why on Earth do we have to proove what we are saying and why isn't the onus on the EA to proove what he is saying is correct.