Bailiffs Are Coming

[kologna]

4 yrs ago, i obtained a vehicle under lease from a finance company. During this period, i was in and out of work, and fell behind in my payments regularly. When the lease agreement was coming to the end of the term, i decided to return the vehicle rather than purchase it outright, as it no longer suited my purpose (all payments were up to date and there was no outstanding amount).

Within weeks, i received a final invoice from the finance company which included pictures of minor damages caused during ownership + labour charges (a total of just over 1,000 pounds).

I recall being flabbergasted by the amount...and wrote to the finance company stating the following "I disagree with your invoice in the sum of £1,xxx.xx. Clause xx of the contract states that I must return the vehicle to you in good condition (other than fair wear and tear). The condition of tyres and rims on the vehicle are deemed as "fair wear and tear" bearing in the age of the vehicle of 4 years. Also the labour quoted is very unreasonable."

I never got a reply....and let the matter lie.

 

Now 4yrs or so on, i received a visit from an HCEO in my absence in the form of a hand delivered letter shoved through the mailbox …"Notice of Legal Control of Goods" and "Walking Possession Agreement"...(delivered last week) ….naturally i'm freaking out!!!

 

The schedule is as follows:

A. Amount of Judgement £1242.xx

B. Judgement Costs £177.00

C. £7.75 at the rate of 8% per annum

D.Costs of Execution £101.75

E. Charges of the Authorised HCEO £xxx.xx!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Amount to Levy: £2,xxx.xx:mad:

 

I have since received a second letter from their office dated 3 days after the first notice (via post) - Notice Of Seizure By HEO telling me that the amount has now increased to £2,441.50 and that if not settled that they will add a further £720 + VAT should they have to remove goods (I only saw the 2nd letter yesterday - and am extremely paranoid that any minute now that they can turn up and attempt to seize my goods, scaring the crap out of everyone – the additional fees just seem extremely excessive).

 

I work full-time and could scrape together the original judgment fees to the creditor, but the additional amounts have got to be ludicrous. What shall i do next...

(a) Contact the HCEO firm questioning the irregularity of the fees and establish what their Charges Of the Authorised High Court Enforcement Office consist of OR negotiate repayment within 12months??

(b) Contact my creditor (Finance Company) or their solicitor and agree to pay the full amount?? (I only wanted clarity on their valuation of the damage caused as i thought their costs were unfair - but they never replied, instead dragging me through the courts!) or finally.

© Take Civil Action and apply for a setaside???

 

I am keen to get the matter resolved quite quickly without incurring further costs – one could imagine the distress that this causes people.

P.S - How much time do i have between when the HEO visited and when they are likely to return?

[dx100uk]

if you never got the court papers or the run up to it , get it set aside.

 

use our search for set aside

 

dx

[tomtubby]

4 yrs ago, i obtained a vehicle under lease from a finance company. During this period, i was in and out of work, and fell behind in my payments regularly. When the lease agreement was coming to the end of the term, i decided to return the vehicle rather than purchase it outright, as it no longer suited my purpose (all payments were up to date and there was no outstanding amount).

Within weeks, i received a final invoice from the finance company which included pictures of minor damages caused during ownership + labour charges (a total of just over 1,000 pounds).

I recall being flabbergasted by the amount...and wrote to the finance company stating the following "I disagree with your invoice in the sum of £1,xxx.xx. Clause xx of the contract states that I must return the vehicle to you in good condition (other than fair wear and tear). The condition of tyres and rims on the vehicle are deemed as "fair wear and tear" bearing in the age of the vehicle of 4 years. Also the labour quoted is very unreasonable."

I never got a reply....and let the matter lie.

 

Now 4yrs or so on, i received a visit from an HCEO in my absence in the form of a hand delivered letter shoved through the mailbox …"Notice of Legal Control of Goods" and "Walking Possession Agreement"...(delivered last week) ….naturally i'm freaking out!!!

 

The schedule is as follows:

A. Amount of Judgement £1242.xx

B. Judgement Costs £177.00

C. £7.75 at the rate of 8% per annum

D.Costs of Execution £101.75

E. Charges of the Authorised HCEO £xxx.xx!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Amount to Levy: £2,xxx.xx:mad:

 

I have since received a second letter from their office dated 3 days after the first notice (via post) - Notice Of Seizure By HEO telling me that the amount has now increased to £2,441.50 and that if not settled that they will add a further £720 + VAT should they have to remove goods (I only saw the 2nd letter yesterday - and am extremely paranoid that any minute now that they can turn up and attempt to seize my goods, scaring the crap out of everyone – the additional fees just seem extremely excessive).

 

I work full-time and could scrape together the original judgment fees to the creditor, but the additional amounts have got to be ludicrous. What shall i do next...

(a) Contact the HCEO firm questioning the irregularity of the fees and establish what their Charges Of the Authorised High Court Enforcement Office consist of OR negotiate repayment within 12months??

(b) Contact my creditor (Finance Company) or their solicitor and agree to pay the full amount?? (I only wanted clarity on their valuation of the damage caused as i thought their costs were unfair - but they never replied, instead dragging me through the courts!) or finally.

© Take Civil Action and apply for a setaside???

 

I am keen to get the matter resolved quite quickly without incurring further costs – one could imagine the distress that this causes people.

P.S - How much time do i have between when the HEO visited and when they are likely to return?

 

 

Clearly, you had disputed the debt and if you had received a summons then you should have replied when sending the form back to the court that you were disputing the debt.

 

I am therefore assuming that you had not received a summons.

 

If so, then you can contact the Court (details should be on the HCEO writ) and complete an N244 to set aside the Judgment.

[Bartok]

Subbing.

 

I have a friend in the very early stages of a Peugeot Passport finance return. She returned the car to Peugeot and only just received a bill for over £2000 for 'repairs'. She is the sort of person to ignore it, she is skint anyway.

[kologna]

Ok. So I have sent the n244 to the county court (didn't send a copy to the hceo). I also sent a letter to the hceo asking them to justify their add'l charges as they haven't levied any goods or I haven't signed anything (nobody was home when the noticenof seizure was posted through the tricking letter box!). This letter was also sent for the attn of the county court manager.

Both correspondences were sent by registered post

signed for! Am I on the right track?

 

What happens next? And what are my rights should the hceo appear whilst my letters are being considered by the county court?

[ploddertom]

Ok. So I have sent the n244 to the county court (didn't send a copy to the hceo). I also sent a letter to the hceo asking them to justify their add'l charges as they haven't levied any goods or I haven't signed anything (nobody was home when the noticenof seizure was posted through the tricking letter box!). This letter was also sent for the attn of the county court manager.

Both correspondences were sent by registered post

signed for! Am I on the right track?

 

What happens next? And what are my rights should the hceo appear whilst my letters are being considered by the county court?

 

What have you applied for on your application - is it just for Set Aside? On the same form you should also have applied for a Stay of Execution pending determination of your set aside application. If granted this would have halted any further enforcement action or charges.

 

The chances are the HCEO will write back and state that all charges have been applied in accordance with the HCEO Regulations. The letter on its own is not sufficient to stop further action and don't be surprised if they visit again. You could show him your set aside application and date if received but again enforcement may still proceed - the Stay of Execution is what is need.

 

It is not all bad news however. If you win your set aside the HCEO has to withdraw and all associated charges refunded/removed. If you do win do not rely on the Claimant advising the HCEO do it yourself by email and copy sent in the post.

 

PT

[kologna]

What have you applied for on your application - is it just for Set Aside? On the same form you should also have applied for a Stay of Execution pending determination of your set aside application. If granted this would have halted any further enforcement action or charges.PT

Thanks Ploddertom - I have done just as you advised, and asked for setaside and stay of execution pending setaside, based on the fact that no prior notice was received by myself prior to the HCEO appearing on my doorstep. I hve since received a reply from the court stating that my case has now been moved to my local county court. I expect to receive news of their decision to setaside or at least a stay of execution OR i guess a date of the hearing shortly - is that correct? , and how long am i expected to wait. I also copied in a letter to the County Court Manager about my concerns of the HCEO's excessive charges.

 

The chances are the HCEO will write back and state that all charges have been applied in accordance with the HCEO Regulations. The letter on its own is not sufficient to stop further action and don't be surprised if they visit again. You could show him your set aside application and date if received but again enforcement may still proceed - the Stay of Execution is what is need. PT

They have visited again, and in my absence have threatened to add more charges should they have to visit again. In the meantime, the Enforcement Office has not replied to my letter asking them to explain their excessive charges....7 days have passed now. What's my next move?

[kologna]

Apologies if ihave pre-empted some replies - but if my next move is to submit an N1form to my local county court - can somebody help me with the calculation of costs and content of the response?

 

Cheers

[ploddertom]

 

 

They have visited again, and in my absence have threatened to add more charges should they have to visit again. In the meantime, the Enforcement Office has not replied to my letter asking them to explain their excessive charges....7 days have passed now. What's my next move?

 

You need to chase up with your local County Court and explain the urgency re the HCEO. In the meantime inform the HCEO Company of your actions - did you keep copies of your application - and reply you have had so far. Unfortunately they are doing nothing wrong at present but if they don't know what you are doing they can't guess.

 

PT