Help!!!! Iv Just Had A Notice Of Seizure Of Goods

[chickaroo]

What do i do ive just had a notice of seizure of goods served me and i dont what to do?

They have took my car reg down and im a bit a worried what they will do?

[WWOW]

1. Did you sign anything?

2. Did you let anyone into your home?

3. What was the debt for?

4. How did you find the document?

[robin9342]

5. Is the car on finance?

[chickaroo]

Didnt let anyone in not signed anything and yes car is on finance

[robin9342]

Excellent. Do not let them in under any circumstances and do not sign anything. They cannot take your car as it is on finance!

 

Still leaves Q 3 and 4

[ashmk]

They love to play mind games by noting down your reg number, checking the door handles to see if its open and so on......

 

As long as its on finance they cannot touch it and they know it although they will tell you different to scare the bejeezers out of you.

[PGH7447]

leave it open with the keys in and when he drives off report it stolen;)

[chickaroo]

Balliffs for non payment of council tax i have sent the leter off now from the site butr just concerned as to what to do i live on my own and things like this scare me im in loads a debt really bad need go bankrupt but there is the matter of 350.00 to even do that

[kermit2482]

Excellent. Do not let them in under any circumstances and do not sign anything. They cannot take your car as it is on finance!

 

Still leaves Q 3 and 4

 

WRONG

 

A bailiff can still take a car that is on finance as im sure the more knowledgable of the this forum will vouch for, however its not as easy when its on finance and their is certain criteria to fill as im sure the likes of TT will agree. Personally i wouldn't touch it but there are some that would, but as i say the circumstances have to be right!!

[robin9342]

WRONG

 

A bailiff can still take a car that is on finance as im sure the more knowledgable of the this forum will vouch for, however its not as easy when its on finance and their is certain criteria to fill as im sure the likes of TT will agree. Personally i wouldn't touch it but there are some that would, but as i say the circumstances have to be right!!

 

Um, no I don't think so! A bailiff may remove the car, but this would be illegal. The simple fact is that a car on finance does not belong to you, it belongs to the finance company. The law says bailiffs cannot levy goods which do not belong to the debtor. Under what circumstances do you consider it would be legal for a bailiff to remove a car on finance?

 

Here's an interesting bit of research from the CAB which shows why your "profession" is so hated:

 

An analysis of 500 case reports from Citizens Advice Bureaux in England and Wales since October 2006 found that 64% of bailiffs were guilty of harassment or intimidation, 40% misrepresented their powers of entry, a quarter threatened debtors with imprisonment and 42% charged excessive fees. In over half the cases, the debtor was vulnerable. In all these instances the bailiffs concerned were either breaking the law or in breach of their own industry code and nationally agreed standards of practice.

[robin9342]

Just to add, I am aware the onus is on the debtor to prove to the bailiff that the vehicle is not his. (And that a personal loan for the car is not the same as HP)

 

A bailiff is not allowed to take a vehicle subject to hire purchase.. The vehicle is legally owned by the finance company until full payment is made.

Hire purchase means what it says….you are merely hiring the vehicle…..until the final payment has been made

 

Immediately you are aware that a bailiff could visit…..you must write to inform them that you do not own the vehicle. Our advice would be to send the letter by registered mail….an ensure that you keep a copy for your records.

From the bailiffadviceonline website (their highlights) Edited July 16, 2008 by robin9342
added info

[kermit2482]

Like i said certain criteria in certain circumstances we speak to the finance company and depending on the amount owed to the finance company and the amout of debt outstanding we could come to some amicable agreement with the finance company, however like i also said its too much of a pain for me so i personally would not do it, im merely stating that under certain circumstances it can and WILL be done, therefore people need to give out the correct information on this site!!

[kermit2482]

I will also add i have seen it done on 2 occasions with no repocussions so i base my posts on experience!! Can i ask if you have any bailiff experience???? And i dont mean that to sound pedantic, its just a question.

Edited July 16, 2008 by kermit2482

[robin9342]

I fail to see that such an arrangement could be legal. The vehicle belongs to the finance company, not the debtor, irrespective of how much is outstanding on the HP agreement. I imagine finance companies would be very reluctant to hand their property over to a bailiff unless there is not much left outstanding on the HP agreement because the debtor would be within his rights to stop paying them.

 

Even then, I would like to see a clause in any car finance agreement which legally permits the finance company to take such action.

[robin9342]

No, I have not ever worked for bailiffs (my morals would preclude this). If you read this thread, you will see that the opinion seems to agree that a bailiff cannot take cars on HP (including a post by TT):

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/bailiffs-sheriff-officers/147978-levy-hp-car-can.html

[kermit2482]

No, I have not ever worked for bailiffs (my morals would preclude this). If you read this thread, you will see that the opinion seems to agree that a bailiff cannot take cars on HP (including a post by TT):

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/bailiffs-sheriff-officers/147978-levy-hp-car-can.html

 

 

Thanks for providing the link, however as i say i talk from experience and seeing this happen whilst in training and being present whilst the phone calls were made to the finance company and then watching the said car get taken away, as they say seeing is believing im afraid and YES i know the car belongs to the finance company and not the CP however we have a liability order and sometimes the finance companies are willing to allow a deal where upon so long as they get their money they dont give a hoot what happens to the car, please rest assured this has happened and why should the finance company care what happens to the car once they have had their money, so you see it makes perfect sense although as i also say its a long drawn out process and one i personally would not get tangled up with as some of my past CP's would vouch for.

[robin9342]

I have no doubt that you have seen it being done during your training BUT that does not make it legal. We all know that the majority of bailiffs are predisposed to illegal activities (see my quote from CAB!) The debtor in your case was most likely not aware of his/her rights or the legalities (or otherwise) of the actions taken by your firm.

[tonycee]

Like i said certain criteria in certain circumstances we speak to the finance company and depending on the amount owed to the finance company and the amount of debt outstanding we could come to some amicable agreement with the finance company, however like i also said its too much of a pain for me so i personally would not do it, im merely stating that under certain circumstances it can and WILL be done, therefore people need to give out the correct information on this site!!

 

The Data Protection Act should prevent ANY discussions between any third party, without consent, regardless of who they think they are.

 

So the bailiffs appear to have been aided and abetted by the finance company.

 

Which would make this action even more deplorable.

 

Once again IMO this is just a classic example of the bailiffs abusing their authority.

 

Which as we are learning fast, is very limited indeed.

 

Therefore people need to give out the correct information on this site.

 

 

 

.

Edited July 17, 2008 by tonycee
Cant believe the ignorance.

[FairPlay77]

I will also add i have seen it done on 2 occasions with no repocussions so i base my posts on experience!! /quote]

 

The fact that there have been 'no repercussions' is probably because

most people are still ignorant of their rights. Hopefully, the more people who read this site the less possible it will be for bailiffs to break or twist the law.

[chickaroo]

i just rang bristow and sutour to tell them i didnt own the car and it was on finance they said they would have it checked out

They also refused my offer of payment for 33.00 a month and said i needed to pay 157.40 a month for 6 months NO CHANCE

 

so now what do i do??

[kermit2482]

i just rang bristow and sutour to tell them i didnt own the car and it was on finance they said they would have it checked out

They also refused my offer of payment for 33.00 a month and said i needed to pay 157.40 a month for 6 months NO CHANCE

 

so now what do i do??

 

 

Let them check it out it takes em a matter of minutes, they will see you are right and i pretty much guarantee they wont touch it, especially if you have more than 6 months left on the finance!! As for not accepting your offer this is probably because they want to see you to go through a means enquiry form or at least they should be!! My advice would be to put it in writing to them and see what response you get from that, in my opinion they are being unreasonable but hey what do i know

[robin9342]

i just rang bristow and sutour to tell them i didnt own the car and it was on finance they said they would have it checked out

They also refused my offer of payment for 33.00 a month and said i needed to pay 157.40 a month for 6 months NO CHANCE

 

so now what do i do??

First of all, WRITE to B & S (hmm....B S, what else could that stand for?). Telephone calls are easily denied. There are plently of template letters on here: see the other thread I mentioned. Make sure all contact with them is in writing.

 

Contact the council and tell them the bailiffs have been threatening you with illegal actions and see if they will take the debt back. If you are on certain benefits, they should take it back as you are in a vulnerable group. You can also pay the council direct as they are not allowed to refuse payments.

Edited July 17, 2008 by robin9342
sp

[robin9342]

Utter rubbish in my opinion and i wont harp on as it would clearly fall on death ears

Clearly it is not rubbish when you consider that well over 1/2 of bailiffs break the law in one way or another. Also, if it were "utter rubbish", why then are there so many bailiff threads on this forum?

Edited July 17, 2008 by robin9342
correction

[kermit2482]

Clearly it is not rubbish when you consider that well over 1/2 of bailiffs break the law in one way or another. Also, if it were "utter rubbish", why then are there so many bailiff threads on this forum?

 

Do i have to keep telling you its because bad news goes down better with society and people pay more attention to it, this forum is a classic example of it, if it were to praise all these people nobody would log on to it!!!!!

 

Now change the record please

[robin9342]

Do i have to keep telling you its because bad news goes down better with society and people pay more attention to it, this forum is a classic example of it, if it were to praise all these people nobody would log on to it!!!!!

 

Now change the record please

And do I have to keep telling you:

 

"An analysis of 500 case reports from Citizens Advice Bureaux in England and Wales since October 2006 found that 64% of bailiffs were guilty of harassment or intimidation, 40% misrepresented their powers of entry, a quarter threatened debtors with imprisonment and 42% charged excessive fees. In over half the cases, the debtor was vulnerable. In all these instances the bailiffs concerned were either breaking the law or in breach of their own industry code and nationally agreed standards of practice."

 

Now, you may not like it, but that is indeed BAD NEWS. Basically the above report confirms that the majority of bailiffs are lying, cheating, thieving, bullying scumbags! A fact that many of the members of this forum can also attest to given their experiences with bailiffs.