bailiff fees please help!!!

[alissiaed3]

hi all, i have recently been visited by a bailiff to collect on council tax arears, what i need to know is, on the first visit i let him in to the house, anyway on the fees i can see he has charged me a first visit fee and also a levy fee both on the same visit(first visit.) is this correct as as far as i can see he shouldnt be charging me the first visit fee as he has charged the levy fee, is this correct?

[fluffy_bunny]

Are they calling it first visit fee or schedule H fee?

[ploddertom]

hi all, i have recently been visited by a bailiff to collect on council tax arears, what i need to know is, on the first visit i let him in to the house, anyway on the fees i can see he has charged me a first visit fee and also a levy fee both on the same visit(first visit.) is this correct as as far as i can see he shouldnt be charging me the first visit fee as he has charged the levy fee, is this correct?

 

If he has been in and done a levy on your goods it may pat to list on here what he has seized as some of the items on your list may be exempt in which case the levy will be invalid and the charges should be removed.

 

PT

[alissiaed3]

Thanks for the prompt replies, here is some more detail,

called on 11/3/20010 to collect council tax arrears, i let him in the house,

original sum owed to council £338.55,

1st visit fee £22.50,

levi fee(against my car) £33.00,

walking possession £11.00,

total now due £405.05.

 

is it right to charge me the 1st visit fee and the levi fee on the same visit?

[hallowitch]

They cant charge a visit fee the same day as a levy /walking possession fee

 

please check to see if this bailiff is certificated the fees he is charging went out out with the ark a visit fee is now £24.50 and a walking possession fee is £12

 

 

 

www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/CertificatedBailiffs/

[alissiaed3]

They cant charge a visit fee the same day as a levy /walking possession fee

 

please check to see if this bailiff is certificated the fees he is charging went out out with the ark a visit fee is now £24.50 and a walking possession fee is £12

 

 

 

www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/CertificatedBailiffs/

 

Thanks for the reply, i have checked his cetificate and it is valid, is this definetly the case for the 1st visit fee and the levi fee being charged on the same visit because if so i am about to file a form 4 complaint to the county court that issued his certificate.

[hallowitch]

please don't file a form 4 yet you must go through the council and the baillifs complaints procedure first to give them the opportunity to correct there mistake

 

For making a visit to premises with a view to

Levying distress (where no levy is made) - (i) where the visit is the first or only such visit): £24.50

 

http://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/docs/Enforcement_Agent_Charges.pdf

[hallowitch]

please read before you do anything

 

 

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/bailiffs-sheriff-officers/212401-important-if-you-need.html

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/bailiffs-sheriff-officers/115030-how-complain-court-about.html

[alissiaed3]

please don't file a form 4 yet you must go through the council and the baillifs complaints procedure first to give them the opportunity to correct there mistake

 

For making a visit to premises with a view to

Levying distress (where no levy is made) - (i) where the visit is the first or only such visit): £24.50

 

http://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/docs/Enforcement_Agent_Charges.pdf

 

Thank you very very much hallowitch, just contacted the bailiffs office, stated the facts to them and they denied it all the way, then stated to them some of the information you just provided me with and told them if it wasnt resolved i will be filling a form 4 complaint, put me on hold and surprise surprise they came back on the phone full of appologies saying were really sorry the bailiff has made an error and we will remove the first visit fee immediately. give me so much pleasure as the bailiff was so cocky and arrogant when he attended, ha!!!.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!!!!!!!

[hallowitch]

well done bet that wiped the smile of his face :lol:

 

have you made an arrangement to pay this must be done in writing and stuck to as they have a levy they will be looking for a way to charge you a van fee

[alissiaed3]

well done bet that wiped the smile of his face :lol:

 

have you made an arrangement to pay this must be done in writing and stuck to as they have a levy they will be looking for a way to charge you a van fee

 

Yes an arrangement has been made and will be stuck to, don't want to give them any excuses to come back.

 

And thanks again for all your help.

[tomtubby]

Yes an arrangement has been made and will be stuck to, don't want to give them any excuses to come back.

 

And thanks again for all your help.

 

Good to hear that this is resolved. UNLESS you now keep to the payment plan the bailiff can return to your property and charge an "attending to remove" fee to your account. The key is therefore to ensure that your payments are made BEFORE the due date.

[alissiaed3]

hi again all, the very same bailiff has just returned today to collect on an old council tax bill (seperate from the one above) but the exact same circumstances but this time i was out. he left a letter, first visit fee £22.50, levi fee £30,

this is his first visit in relation to this account so for a start the first visit fee is unlawfull again! but he has again levied against my car but the thing is he has already levied against my car on the first account which is still in place- can he do this?

what should i do about this as i have already spoken to them and had the charges removed from the first account, but the very same bailiff has done it again which leads me to believe that they are doing this to every account that gets passed to them and making a fortune unlawfully. what can i do?

 

Thanks in advance.

[ploddertom]

As you already know and have successfully argued they cannot have a levy and a vist fee at the same time. If the previous levy on your vehicle is still current then he cannot levy on the same goods again. In this case the levy fee + associated charges should be replaced by a 1st Visit fee of £24-50. I would also advise the Council they have done this.

 

PT

[alissiaed3]

As you already know and have successfully argued they cannot have a levy and a vist fee at the same time. If the previous levy on your vehicle is still current then he cannot levy on the same goods again. In this case the levy fee + associated charges should be replaced by a 1st Visit fee of £24-50. I would also advise the Council they have done this.

 

PT

hi pt thanks for the reply, that is what i thought i will be on the phone to the bailiff's office and the council first thing monday morning.

will let you know how i get on.

[ploddertom]

Nothing to stop you emailing both - Bailiffs in particular don't like to commit to the written word as it can be used against them.

 

PT

[josephbloggs]

interestingly enough the £24.50 1st, £18.00 2nd, and £12.00 wp etc are the maximium charges applicible to fees regarding each case/visit.

so, a bailiff company could in theory charge less than the usual max charges most companies use. so the fees could be correct. apart from adding the visit and levy at the same time.

could the company have visited before and this is why the 1st visit has been added on? or perhaps the company could have sent a letter through the post and claimed a visit took place? (i know for a fact this is how equita work)

it may be worth asking your local council when the liability orders were passed over to the bailiff company as well, because in some council areas if there are multiple files the company are only allowed to charge a visit fee on 1 account, but if the bailiffs visit on a different day with a different liability order they can add seperate fees, so, if they were given to the bailiff company on the same day, the visits that were seperate should of been done together, and therefore the bailiff company are trying their luck by adding 2 seperate fees.

also i think you would be wasting your time by putting a form 4 complaint against the bailiff, he could claim it is a mistake and it wouldnt go anywhere, you are best off just sticking to the payment plan set.

[alissiaed3]

spoken to them today and they are addament that they can levy against the same goods twice, even though the first levi is still current and valid.

any ideas?

[hallowitch]

spoken to them today and they are adamant that they can levy against the same goods twice, even though the first levi is still current and valid.

any ideas?

 

rubbish

 

once goods are Levyed (your car) they do not belong to you they belong to local authority who instructed to bailiff to take walking possession of them

 

 

 

read your notice of seizure on it near the bottom there should be a Walking possession agreement somewhere on this part there should be words to the effect of

 

 

I will inform any person who may seek to levy any other distress or execution that you are

already in possession of the property distrained upon and I will inform you of any such visit;

[Thegreenpimpernel]

Ditto

 

I've seen several bailiffs turn round, walk out, never to be seen again when shown a walking possession agreement from a previous bailiff visit - for the very reason HW states.

[alissiaed3]

Ditto

 

I've seen several bailiffs turn round, walk out, never to be seen again when shown a walking possession agreement from a previous bailiff visit - for the very reason HW states.

I understand what your saying guys, i know this as do you, but how can i enforce it when they blatently deny it? any help appreciated.