Pestered By Court Baliffs

[leezadavies]

Rossendale the court baliffs where at my house when i got homefrom work my hubby had let them in, it is regarding council tax arrears, we explained that just 2 months previous we had paid £800 of the areares and now we did not have the money to pay the rest, he said no problem we could pay in installments, gave us the forms i filled them in and sent them off, weeks later they sent us a letter saying that what we offered was not acceptable, and we had to pay £100 per week!!! we had to go to family in wales the after we returned yesterday to find another letter from them saying the where going to levy goods ie. the car!! the car is in my hubbys name but i use it for my own buisness (as a mobile chiropodist)!!.

Can i change the car to my buisness name? how can they make us pay more than we afford, we are struggling with the mortgage ect. since the down turn.

[huggys boss]

While they were in your home did you sign a walking possession order?

 

As for the car, can you sell it to a relative or a very good friend for £1?

 

If you can, then park it away from your home.

 

How much do you owe? £100 a week is a lot of money.

 

I would write to the council and include a budget sheet. Tell them what you offered to pay the bailiff (the amount that they refused), and also tell them that you will be paying that amount direct to them. Start to pay it and stick to it. Use their online payments system or set up a standing order. Make sure you double check any account numbers to ensure that what you are paying is coming off the debt and not your current council tax bill.

 

What fees are Rossendales asking for at the moment ?

[leezadavies]

Thanks for your reply, my well meaninng hubby signed the walkin agreement:roll: that was before i got home!! the 2 debts they are chasing are £250 and £800 outstanding council tax! we offered them £15pw i know it doesnt seem a lot but my mortgage is over £800pm and we have 4 kids that is all we can reasonably afford.

will the council still accept the payments as the letters from rossendales say we should pay them direct not the council?

[huggys boss]

Seeing as your husband signed the walking possession agreement, the goal posts have moved.

 

Sit tight and somebody with experience of your situation will advise you - sorry I am not much use, but I have not had to deal with them once they have been in your home.

[overdone]

Thanks for your reply, my well meaninng hubby signed the walkin agreement:roll: that was before i got home!! the 2 debts they are chasing are £250 and £800 outstanding council tax! we offered them £15pw i know it doesnt seem a lot but my mortgage is over £800pm and we have 4 kids that is all we can reasonably afford.

will the council still accept the payments as the letters from rossendales say we should pay them direct not the council?

 

Bump........I had a similar situation years back and I prepared myself like this. Type a letter to the Office of Fair Trading. Within that letter, ask if Baliffs have to be licenced by them. (Of course they do) Ask also, in that letter, if there are certain goods a baliff cannot remove. (Of course there are). Make sure you keep a copy of the recorded delivery letter and posting RD slip. Keep your things looking very official. Find out the number of your Trading Standards and have it ready. Baliffs are renowned for blagging their rights. When they return you have all this ready to show them. Tape record their visit and make sure they know that you are recording too. Be ready to make a telephone call to the OFT after they have shown you their ID and licence details etc. Make sure all your valueables are at a neighbours or family friend. I am quite sure this is a scare tactic to get you to pay them so they can extort more money from you. It all worked for me and In my case, I had a written reply from the OFT before they came again.

[42man]

Leeza...i'm moving this thread to the Bailiff forums, where you should get some more advice and comment

[chris600uk]

Rossendale the court baliffs where at my house when i got homefrom work my hubby had let them in/QUOTE]

 

 

Check the bailiffs certificate

 

Then check the items listed, if any are exempt or there are global references to "other goods in the house" then the wpa may be unlawful.

 

 

weeks later they sent us a letter saying that what we offered was not acceptable, and we had to pay £100 per week!!!

 

 

That's quite normal for bailiffs - they aren't being paid to be reasonable.

 

we returned yesterday to find another letter from them saying the where going to levy goods ie. the car!! /QUOTE]

 

 

Did you leave the car at home? If not they couldn't levy on it cos it wasn't there.

 

Can i change the car to my buisness name?

 

No, not if they have made lawful levy, technically they have "seized" it.

 

how can they make us pay more than we afford, we are struggling with the mortgage ect. since the down turn.

 

They aren't interested in that - they are bailiffs - their job is to hound you until they get their money first and the councils money later.

 

Are you on any benefits? If you are you can ask for the account to be returned to the council so they can deduct payments from them.

Right now - unless the bailiff check works out, or the wpa can be shown to be wrong legally, then being on benefit might be the only solution - after all, you did say you weren't working - so why not claim what is rightfully yours?

[Fair-Parking]

Leeza - Rossendales aren't court bailiffs. They are private citizens the same as you or I. Did they tell that they were court bailiffs in order to extract money or to get you to sign a walking possession agreement?

[Guest BURP]

Leeza. That seems a lot of money since the maximum fee the law provides for bailiffs to charge for a walking possession is £10. Get the fee position from Rossendales, you might be in for a nice surprise!

 

Rossendales

Address 1

Address 2

Address 3

Postcode

 

DATE

 

Dear Sir/Madam

 

Re: [YOUR NAME + REF]: Opportunity to refund and compensate for fee error

 

I write following visits by your bailiff, however there appears to be an irregularity with your fees and I ask you to provide the following within fourteen (14) days:

 

a) The name of the certificating court and certificate number for the bailiff in charge

 

b) Written confirmation of your fees and charges

 

c) Truthfully confirm in writing they are lawful according to prescribed legislation

 

d) The name and address of the person or body you act for

 

If you cannot complete the above, please unconditionally pay me within fourteen (14) days a refund of all unlawful fees and unconditionally pay me compensation of £4999.00 for failure to comply with the law and I will consider this aspect of the matter closed.

 

If I later find an irregularity with your fees within the statutory time limit of 6 years prescribed under Section 2 of the Limitation Act 1980, I will enter no further correspondence with you and automatically file a Form 4 at court for committing offences under the Fraud Act 2006. This may also involve a criminal investigation by police and your firm's director(s) may receive a criminal record for fraud, assisting an offender and benefiting from proceeds of crime.

 

Please be advised there are no vehicles registered in my name and no bailiff has moved any goods. The vehicle available to me used in the normal course of my business as a mobile chiropodist is exempt goods for the purpose of civil enforcement.

 

This document is delivered by Royal Mail and I deem it good service upon you by the ordinary course of post under Section 7 of the Interpretation Act 1978. It is your responsibility and in your best interests this letter is handed to the relevant person within your organisation.

 

Yours Sincerely

 

 

YOUR NAME