Ross and Roberts Visit AGAIN

[missstressed]

Hello

 

I was visited this morning by a bailiff from Ross and Roberts . He originally came round some months ago demanding money from me which I could not aford .

 

As it was council tax money I owed I emailed my local council who did help me come to an arrangement of £20.00 a wk which I have since been paying I have cleared half my debt however I have missed a wk here and there , when I have missed wks I have tried to double up the next wk .

 

Where do I stand now as I have defaulted arrangement all though I make regular payments ? also is right the bailiff can charge £141 for his visit this morning which they have kindly added to my bill ?

 

Where do I go from here ?

[padja]

I was in same position as you, at all times I spoke to council and did the arrangements with them, ring them again and explain what happened. This time however if you are to miss a payment ring the council to tell them dont just pay double following week. The IT wont recognise that as double payment so its probably passed back to bailiff as its saying you have missed X amounts of weeks. always tell the council if you can afford one week they will understand. So speak to council see what they say.

[fork-it]

also is right the bailiff can charge £141 for his visit this morning which they have kindly added to my bill ?

 

Where do I go from here ?

 

The fee is £24.50. Contact the council and make a formal written complaint the bailiff is attempting to defraud you with his fees contrary to Section 2 of the Fraud Act 2006. It is called Fraud by False Representation.

 

Also speak to your local councilllor and ask he intervenes as to why the bailiff is attempting to charge £141 when the law prescribes a fee of £24.50

[tomtubby]

Hello

 

I was visited this morning by a bailiff from Ross and Roberts . He originally came round some months ago demanding money from me which I could not aford .

 

As it was council tax money I owed I emailed my local council who did help me come to an arrangement of £20.00 a wk which I have since been paying I have cleared half my debt however I have missed a wk here and there , when I have missed wks I have tried to double up the next wk .

 

Where do I stand now as I have defaulted arrangement all though I make regular payments ? also is right the bailiff can charge £141 for his visit this morning which they have kindly added to my bill ?

 

Where do I go from here ?

 

It is very difficult to answer a question when you have provided so little information.

 

At the previous visit, did R & R gain entry or levy upon any goods?

 

If they had not, then the fee for the PREVIOUS visit was £24.50 for "attending to levy" (where no levy was made) and for the visit today, an identical fee but. this time for just £18.00.

 

Also, how much was the original debt?

 

You need to confirm with the council exactly what amount the debt was for that has now been passed to R & R.

 

If you had previosly had a bailiff visit, you were very lucky indeed that the council took the debt back and I know well that £20 per week is a lot of money if you don't have it, but with council tax it is a debt that is so important to pay because, unlike any other debt, your goods or car can be removed by a bailiff. That is why, if you are unable to make the agreed payment to the council that you MUST advise them straight away. I would very much doubt that the council will take the debtback for a 2nd time.

[missstressed]

Thanks for all your replies ,

 

The council did not take back the debt they made contact with Ross and Roberts and agreed a payment plan .

The first visit their was no levy issued , I have not signed anything or let the bailiff in my property .

 

I questioned the bailiff about his £141.00 visit fee , he said he can charge this as it is the second visit and it is only the 1st visit which is £24.50 .

 

I have wrote an email to the council this morning asking if I can continue to pay my debt as I was and if it is leagal for the bailiff to add £141 to any money owed . I did owe £1100 roughly ? and now owe with £655.94 that total is with the added £141 for todays visit

[tomtubby]

Thanks for all your replies ,

 

The council did not take back the debt they made contact with Ross and Roberts and agreed a payment plan .

The first visit their was no levy issued , I have not signed anything or let the bailiff in my property .

 

I questioned the bailiff about his £141.00 visit fee , he said he can charge this as it is the second visit and it is only the 1st visit which is £24.50 .

 

I have wrote an email to the council this morning asking if I can continue to pay my debt as I was and if it is leagal for the bailiff to add £141 to any money owed . I did owe £1100 roughly ? and now owe with £655.94 that total is with the added £141 for todays visit

 

Make a complaint to the council as this bailiff is clearly attempting to trick you. He is correct, the regualtions provide for a 1st visit at £24.50 but with regards to the 2nd visit, this is only £18.00.

[missstressed]

how can I prove he can only charge 18 pounds , at the moment it is just his word against mine isnt it ?

[ploddertom]

The fees they charge are laid down in the Council Tax (Administration & Enforcement) Regulations 1992 as Amended, Schedule 5 Charges Connected with Distress are the bits you need, have a read of this http://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/docs/Enforcement_Agent_Charges.pdf . I would suspect he has made a levy of some description, possibly on a car in the street near your home - he will argue he thought it was yours & then hope you know no better and just pay up.

 

Believe nothing he says. You can get one step ahead and send off for a breakdown of the charges, do this initially be email followed up with a copy in the post, here's a sample of what to write, adjust for your own needs.

 

"From:

My Name

My Address

 

To:

Acme Bailiff Co

Bailiff House

 

Ref: Account No: 123456

 

Dear Sir

 

With reference to the above account, Can you please provide me with a breakdown of the charges.

 

This includes:

a - the time & date of any Bailiff action that incurred a Fee.

b - the reason for the fee.

c - the name(s) of the Bailiff(s) that attended on each occasion a Fee was charged.

d - the name(s) of the Court(s) the Bailiff(s) was/were certificated at.

e - the date of the Certification.

 

This is not a Subject access request under the Data Protection Act S7 1998 so does not incur a fee of £10. You are obliged to provide this information.

 

I require this information within 14 days.

 

Yours faithfully

 

Ripped off customer"

 

PT

[missstressed]

Thank you , I will have a read of that link and send an email asking for a breakdown .

 

Where do I stand in this situation ? I checked my reciepts (the only ones I had left in my email box , I must have deleted the rest ) and I have made payments on the 7th march £40 the 15th march £20 and the 17th march £20 - I make regular payments and very rarely have I missed a payment , if I do miss a payment I try and pay double the next week .

Shall I just continue to pay on line like I have been , will the bailiff continue to turn up at my door , can they take me to court ?

[ploddertom]

 

Where do I stand in this situation ? I checked my reciepts (the only ones I had left in my email box , I must have deleted the rest ) and I have made payments on the 7th march £40 the 15th march £20 and the 17th march £20 - I make regular payments and very rarely have I missed a payment , if I do miss a payment I try and pay double the next week . There lies the problem as even 1 day late can be construed as breaking your agreement, remember it is the Council computer that looks at things and when you miss a payment it remembers, if you then pay double it only accepts you paid on time.

Shall I just continue to pay on line like I have been , if it were me then yes but you may have to budget for Bailiff fees will the bailiff continue to turn up at my door , yes can they take me to court ? they have already done so, they can take you back to Court for a Committal Hearing where the ultimate punishment is imprisonment but you are a long, long way from that

 

PT

[missstressed]

Ok I have sent of the email , and I have also phoned the council , the lady I spoke to said she could not help me and I had to ring Ross and Roberts . I have spoke to someone at R&R and she said I have defaulted my payment arrangement and that is why I have been charged 141 as a default charge , all though on the paper it says visit fee £141 ?

I was told I now have to speak to mr leader to arrangment a payment plan , first time I did this he asked for silly amounts of money which I no way could do .

What can I do , is there anything ?

[Feebee_71]

Others more knowledgeable than I will soon be along but there is no provision in the fee's schedule for you to be charged a default fee. No matter how many times they attend they can only charge for 1st attendance to levy (where no levy took place) at £24.50 and 2nd attendance to levy (where no levy took place) at £18.00. Any other visits are not chargable if they have no levy.

 

The other thing you need to confirm with the council is what the total amount they obtained the liability order for - including fees associated with obtaining the liability order - and which they passed on to the bailiffs firm. Do not take the bailiffs word for how much they have to collect from you as it is possible that they have already loaded their fees onto the account before getting in contact with you. The most they can chase you for is the liability order amount as confirmed by the council plus the £42.50 for the 2 visits they have already made.

 

Feebee_71

[missstressed]

Im having absolutely no joy , Ive just rang the manager at the council tax office who refused to listen to me and just kept repeating "Im not going to call the case back" I guess Im stuck now as I know the bailiff wants stupid money up front and payments I cant make . And to top it of the man who originally helped me from the council is not replying !!!!

[ploddertom]

Just keep making payments online, if & when the Bailiff calls just ignore him - easier said than done I appreciate. Did you send the letter in Post 8 off - I note you say you sent by email but did you also put a copy in the post.

 

PT

[missstressed]

No Ive not put a letter in the post yet , I have had an email though of the man who helped me from the council - he has said he is waiting on a reply from the accounts manager and will get back to me next week with their response . Im hoping they will let me continue with the payment plan , fingers crossed !

[padja]

I think best action is carry on paying the agreed amount previously, if the bailiffs arent satisfied well they will have to hand it back to council for them to take you back to court, this happened to me council then contacted me and after speaking to them they were happy with the arrangement to pay (mine was £10 a week) and said to me if I cant afford a payment one week I had to contact them immediately, if not they would without hesitation go back to court and seek custodial sentence, however if you are making regular payments to the bailiff and keep a record of it yourself I cant see any problems, They may bluff you with threats of courts and prison but making regular payments will stop that action. Just remember if you cant pay one week tell them with a phone call first followed up by a letter (recorded delivery)