Bailiffs V Company V Director

[Fireboy]

Hello,

 

This is my first ever post...on anything...So please go easy on me if im in the wrong area, or dont use the correct terminolagy. But i desperatly need advise. Im sorry this is very complicated.

 

I am the only director of a Ltd Company. Its an old company trading for over 20 years. Its recently fallen on hard times. the company owes no tax and no vat, all up to date. However the company owes 3 companies £3000.00 so £9000.00 in total. Also, recently we lost a Court case against the HSE and were fined £3000 and costs were also awarded of £21,000.00. So the company now owes £33,000.00.

Despite my best efforts to pay everyone with installments , all attempts have been rebuffed.

I have now recived Visits from multiple bailiffs all looking to strip the company (My Shop) of all goods.

The bailiffs have now also started to call at my house. This is where it gets complicated.

My house is in my wifes name and always has been for over 20 years.

My question is can the Bailiffs come to my house and remove goods?

Next question.

The Ltd company owns the shop that i work from. I have spoken to the bank that owns the mortgage and they have agreed a reduced payment plan. Can i open and oporate a new Ltd company from the same premises but with a different name. And if so how do i stop the bailiffs.

 

Just so you are aware i am not a bad person. or someone who deliberatly avoids paying people. My company is a very small family company that has oporated very well for a very long time. I have never set out to hurt anyone. Recently my brother who ran the company with me died from a very serious and sudden illness. And my father who originaly set up the business also has been taken terminaly ill. All of this has taken its toll on me...who now has to deal with everything.

Any advise anyone could give me would be much appriciated.

[caledfwlch]

Bailiff's cannot levy your personal goods - its a ltd company, they can only levy on the companys goods.

 

AFAIK, if you wound up the company, the debts would go with it because its ltd - you would not be personally responsible.

 

Do NOT let the bailiff's into your house. The fact that they cannot legally take personal goods matters little to the vermin.

 

I suspect you need to see a solicitor specialising in company law for the trading under different name problem, I would imagine if you close the current company, the mortgage etc will have to go with it.

[Fireboy]

Thank you for the reply. I have visited a liquidation company today, and they gave me the same advise. They said the bailiffs can only levy on assets of the Ltd Company. However this afternoon i was confronted by a particulary nasty bailiff at my shop who said to me "you are the company director, that means everything you own i can take". I said to him that i would be willing to pay in installments if they let me trade. He flatly refused and said that he was taking everything. The only thing that stopped him was the fact that the goods had already been levyd by a previous bailiff. He eventualy left and said that he would be coming to my house in the next few days ... I dont mind telling you im very very scared

[DonkeyB]

If he comes to your house, call the police. Check his ID. Ask for a warrant which allows him to levy against personal goods – he won’t have one. Was he wearing ID today? He should have been. Did he have a warrant?

[ims21]

Thread moved to Bailiff forum

[ploddertom]

Is this County Court Bailiff or High Court Enforcement Officer? He is allowed to attend your home address as in his eyes there may be goods there that may be able to satisfy the debt.

[DonkeyB]

Is this County Court Bailiff or High Court Enforcement Officer? He is allowed to attend your home address as in his eyes there may be goods there that may be able to satisfy the debt.

 

Not if the goods do not belong to the company – you cannot enforce against an individual for a company’s debts, unless there is a personal guarantee in place and it has been through court.

[Fireboy]

Can i first say thank you to everyone for there advise. Have felt like the only person in the world that is going through this.

 

Re visits from bailiffs to my house for company debt. There is nothing at my house to do with my company. My wife was left the house from her parents. I have never even been on the deeds.

[hallowitch]

Is this County Court Bailiff or High Court Enforcement Officer? He is allowed to attend your home address as in his eyes there may be goods there that may be able to satisfy the debt.

 

what ploddertom means is you cant stop them coming to your house but you do NOT have to let them in

 

anything belonging to you thats outside your house( car move it out the street ),expensive garden furniture,lawnmower lock it away (i do believe they can break into a garage shed etc if they are not attached to the house )

[DonkeyB]

what ploddertom means is you cant stop them coming to your house but you do NOT have to let them in

 

anything belonging to you thats outside your house( car move it out the street ),expensive garden furniture,lawnmower lock it away (i do believe they can break into a garage shed etc if they are not attached to the house )

 

You are missing the point. A bailiff CANNOT take personal items unrelated to the business, full stop. A bailiff should NOT be attending a personal address unless there is evidence that company goods are there. To do so would be theft and a criminal offence. Bailiffs are not above the law.

 

Therefore visiting the house could easily be construed as being threatening and harassment. That is not on. The bailiffs know this but like to intimidate. It is 100% against the law.

[hallowitch]

You are missing the point. A bailiff CANNOT take personal items unrelated to the business, full stop. A bailiff should NOT be attending a personal address unless there is evidence that company goods are there. To do so would be theft and a criminal offence. Bailiffs are not above the law.

 

Therefore visiting the house could easily be construed as being threatening and harassment. That is not on. The bailiffs know this but like to intimidate. It is 100% against the law.

 

no i did not miss the point i know the bailiff can only take/levy goods belonging to the debtor what i said was

you cant stop a bailiff going to a debtors home and its better to hide goods rather that argue the point of who owns the goods at a later date

[DonkeyB]

no i did not miss the point i know the bailiff can only take/levy goods belonging to the debtor what i said was

you cant stop a bailiff going to a debtors home and its better to hide goods rather that argue the point of who owns the goods at a later date

 

Strongly disagree. It’s best to know the law and act on it.

 

As for the semantics you are defending, this is what was said:

“He is allowed to attend your home address as in his eyes there may be goods there that may be able to satisfy the debt.”

 

This is plainly wrong. There is no definition in that statement of what the goods are, or whose they are. It is misleading at best.

 

Please do not confuse the OP with woolly rubbish!

[numbers666]

The bailiff can only take goods that belong to the debtor....

 

In this case it is (the debtor) Acme ltd not Mr Acme - the company is a 'entity' in own right. The whole point of Ltd is to limit the liability.

If you wind the company up the debt dies with it UNLESS you signed a PG - are the bailiffs acting on a PG concurrently ?

 

The debtor in this case does not have a home - it/she/he has a trading address and registered company address.

 

The OP should stat dec that his and wifes home has no goods or chattels belong to acme ltd. All goods and chattels are at xx address.

 

The OP would not have to hide goods at his private home cause they do not belong to acme ltd.

 

I would file complaint if the bailiffs turn up at PERSONAL address and call police.

 

N

 

edit - in fact if someone came on my land demanding money for another's debts - he/she would get short shrift and removed - i do believe that one has the right to defend still ?

 

Also why not resign the directorship - leave the company with no 'leaders' !! That will confuse the hell out of them

Edited September 11, 2012 by numbers666
felt like it

[DonkeyB]

The bailiff can only take goods that belong to the debtor....

 

In this case it is (the debtor) Acme ltd not Mr Acme - the company is a 'entity' in own right. The whole point of Ltd is to limit the liability.

If you wind the company up the debt dies with it UNLESS you signed a PG - are the bailiffs acting on a PG concurrently ?

 

The debtor in this case does not have a home - it/she/he has a trading address and registered company address.

 

The OP should stat dec that his and wifes home has no goods or chattels belong to acme ltd. All goods and chattels are at xx address.

 

The OP would not have to hide goods at his private home cause they do not belong to acme ltd.

 

I would file complaint if the bailiffs turn up at PERSONAL address and call police.

 

N

 

Bang on. We should not be scaring people into hiding their own goods – that kind of attitude plays into the hands of the bailiffs, and implies you do have something to hide.

[lamma]

I strongly suggest that any and all future encounters with the bailiff are recorded.

[old bill]

Which bailiff companies are involved in this case and which bailiff company is threatening to attend your home? I am a retired police officer and I can assure you that in the case of a limited company, only the assets of the company can be seized. Any attempt by this bailiff to seize any of your personal goods would amount to Theft and render the idiot liable to prosecution. He would also risk having his bailiff's certificate discharged and forfeiting his bond.