Chandler and Swale Council **Now Sorted Successfully**

[joe7175]

Back in September 2012, Swale Council passed some of our Council debt to Chandlers - a total of £629.50 inc. Chandlers fees.

 

I came to an agreement with Chandlers to pay £50 per month on the 17th of each month.

 

I paid £50 on the 17th Sep, 17th Oct but due to a delay in getting paid in November I could not pay them until the 19th Nov.

 

I logged in to their website on the 17th Dec to make payment but the system told me I could not do this as the case was with a bailiff and I should ring them. I didn't get a chance as the following morning at 8.20 I had a call from my wife saying a man was outside taking details of her car and he had knocked and handed her a distress notice. He said he would be back in the afternoon to collect the money or take the car.

 

I called Chandlers and was told because I had paid the £50 2 days late in November the agreement had been cancelled.

 

The notice also said they had added a further £165.00 to the debt so in total I had to pay £639.50. £10 more than the original debt even though I had already paid £150 towards it.

 

I contacted the bailiff and tried to make an arrangement but he was having none of it and wanted the full amount. I went to the council and after an hour of them passing me from different people, they said if I could raise the £479.50 they would ask Chandlers to hold off their fees until January 19th.

 

I managed to borrow the money from a number of sources and cleared the debt to the council. No more owing money to them

 

However, they told me the new £165 charges to Chandlers consisted of £40 levy fee and £125 attendance fee. Chandlers had never visited us before (we had only spoke on the phone) and on the paper they gave us it did not list any items.

 

As we now have no debt with the council the only amount outstanding is to Chandlers themselves for these charges which I think are extreme. The fees need to be paid by the 19th Jan and so my questions are:

 

1) Is £165 for a first visit to high?

2) If I do not pay them do they still have the right to remove our car or belongings even though they are no longer collecting on behalf of the council?

 

By paying the council directly and cutting out Chandlers I thought I got one over on them but £165 for being outside my house for less than 10 minutes and doing nothing is crazy.

 

Thank you in advance for any help you can give.

[i hate bailiffs]

They have no right over the car £24.50 is the first visit fee

 

to put it simply i would invite chandlers to take you to court for there fees

 

make a formal complaint to the council about there agent copy in local MP

 

As for chandlers now they would be acting on a dead/settled liability order so can really do nothing

 

Out of interest what is the car worth in relation to the debt does it have Hp on it/company car

[josephbloggs]

because a levy was added before the amount was tendered to the council they are still entitled to their fees, and they can use the liability order issued to collect/enforce for their fees,

The levy stands unless your vehicle is on finance or a mobility car or a vehicle you dont own, if one of those is the case then provide documentation to chandlers they will have to remove the fees.

Expect another visit should you not make payment as advised most likely to include a removal fee and /or waiting time or a head h fee.

[i hate bailiffs]

because a levy was added before the amount was tendered to the council they are still entitled to their fees, and they can use the liability order issued to collect/enforce for their fees,

The levy stands unless your vehicle is on finance or a mobility car or a vehicle you dont own, if one of those is the case then provide documentation to chandlers they will have to remove the fees.

Expect another visit should you not make payment as advised most likely to include a removal fee and /or waiting time or a head h fee.

 

simply put it the fees are wrong

Removal fee i expect they turned up in a car to tow the car so cant be charged

 

Waiting fee there is no such thing

I would like to see where you get your info from

 

can the op list a breakdown of fees and the dates they took place i expect there will be more than the one fee per visit

[joe7175]

Thank you for the replies. The car is worth around £1500 and is owned by my wife outright. Should Chandlers not have provided us with a Levy notice and listed the car?

 

It is completely unfair as I have basically been charged just for paying 2 days late. The bailiff could have knocked on the door and I would have been happy to pay him the £479.50 I ended up paying the council and that would have ended the matter.

 

It seems he wanted to add the charges at all costs.

[dx100uk]

because a levy was added before the amount was tendered to the council they are still entitled to their fees, and they can use the liability order issued to collect/enforce for their fees,

The levy stands unless your vehicle is on finance or a mobility car or a vehicle you dont own, if one of those is the case then provide documentation to chandlers they will have to remove the fees.

Expect another visit should you not make payment as advised most likely to include a removal fee and /or waiting time or a head h fee.

 

WRONG!!

 

dx

[joe7175]

They have not supplied any breakdown of fees. The council confirmed Chandlers fees with me as being £40 levy fee and £125 attendance fee.

[i hate bailiffs]

However, they told me the new £165 charges to Chandlers consisted of £40 levy fee and £125 attendance fee. Chandlers had never visited us before (we had only spoke on the phone) and on the paper they gave us it did not list any items.

.

 

How many times have the bailiffs attended sounds like they are charging lots of fees on the same day

 

What they have done is to gain fees what vehicle did they turn up with unless it was a tow truck there should be no van fee

[wonkeydonkey]

You need to contact the bailiff and ask for a breakdown of their fees, they appear to have lobbed anything and everything in the way of fees for one visit which of course is not allowed.....get the breakdown (as opposed to simply speculating what they have charged for) then come back here and caggers will help you sort fact from fiction so you can challenge them.

 

WDTo:

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"

[joe7175]

They only attended the once and he was in a normal van. He said he would get a recovery vehicle to collect our car that afternoon if we didn't pay

[wonkeydonkey]

They only attended the once and he was in a normal van. He said he would get a recovery vehicle to collect our car that afternoon if we didn't pay

 

More reason to get all the info as post #9

[josephbloggs]

@dx100uk

Im not wrong may i politely direct you to the council tax (administration And enforcement) regulations 1992, regulation 45, paragraphs 3 & 4.

 

Anyway, yes a levy SHOULD be left detailing the vehicle and leave a memorandum of fees.

The other fees ive mentioned are what you could expect the bailiffs to attempt to add if indeed they return (legally or otherwise)

[i hate bailiffs]

@dx100uk

Im not wrong may i politely direct you to the council tax (administration And enforcement) regulations 1992, regulation 45, paragraphs 3 & 4.

 

Anyway, yes a levy SHOULD be left detailing the vehicle and leave a memorandum of fees.

The other fees ive mentioned are what you could expect the bailiffs to attempt to add if indeed they return (legally or otherwise)

 

Where does waiting time come into that then

[brassnecked]

Whatever, they should have left a Notice Of Seizure AT THE TIME of the levy, but neglected or forgot to do so they should be put on strict proof as per WD so send the letter ask them to and justify their fees, something smells of preloading here, a no no.

[wonkeydonkey]

They have not supplied any breakdown of fees. The council confirmed Chandlers fees with me as being £40 levy fee and £125 attendance fee.

 

If your Council has joined others and outsourced their back room administration, then it might not be the Council giving you this information but a very bailiff orientated outfit.....you really need a full breakdown of the fees charged.

[tomtubby]

Please call the council and ask them to confirm the amount of the LO passed to the bailiff co.

 

Next, ask for confirmation of the date of any supposed levy and fees charged.

 

Please post back.

[joe7175]

I am waiting for someone from the council to get back to me with the info regarding LO / Levy fees and I will post back when I get a response.

 

I have also sent the letter to Chandlers requesting a full breakdown from them.

 

My only concern is that they stated their fees had to be paid by the 19th Jan, this Saturday, so concerned I will get another visit and more charges in the mean time.

 

They cannot take the car now as my wife crashed it last night! It is a write off so I can present the pictures and insurance details to Chandlers if they need proof.

[joe7175]

The notice they handed to my wife by the way was just a 'Notice of Bailiffs Attendance' - It detailed just the balance outstanding and that they would re-attend the same day and may remove goods in our absence.

[wonkeydonkey]

If that is the case and the car was never listed as having been levied , they would not have been able to take it....I hope your wife is ok and escaped with little injury.

 

WD

[brassnecked]

Yes hope your wife is OK, and no they cannot have levied without actually seizing the car, and listing it's full details imho

[joe7175]

Latest update - Chandlers have told me they are posting out a breakdown of the charges, the council have stated the following -

 

£24.50 first fee was levied on 21.06.12

£18.50 second fee was levied on 24.07.12

 

I presume these fees were when the council sent them the debt as we certainly had no visits from them?

 

The council have stated these fees have been paid and this must have been taken from the £150 I paid direct to Chandlers by way of the 3 x £50 installments.

 

The council then added - "Because the November installment was a couple of days late, the bailiff re-attended your property on 20.12.12 at 08:23a.m at which, time you incurred additional bailiff fees - £125.00 attendance fee and £40.00 levy fee. "

 

This is where the new £165 charges come from.

 

When they say "re-attended" I get the impression they have visited before without leaving documentation.

 

Either way, on the 20th December when they added the £165 charges the bailiff had just a normal van and handed us a 'Notice of bailiffs Attendance' . Nothing detailing a levy.

[ploddertom]

Latest update - Chandlers have told me they are posting out a breakdown of the charges, the council have stated the following -

 

£24.50 first fee was levied on 21.06.12

£18.50 second fee was levied on 24.07.12

These are the 2 dates they are claiming to have visited on first, you should have had at least a hand delivered letter on each occasion.

 

I presume these fees were when the council sent them the debt as we certainly had no visits from them?

 

The council have stated these fees have been paid and this must have been taken from the £150 I paid direct to Chandlers by way of the 3 x £50 installments. That will be correct as the Bailiff is allowed to deduct his fees first.

 

The council then added - "Because the November installment was a couple of days late, the bailiff re-attended your property on 20.12.12 at 08:23a.m at which, time you incurred additional bailiff fees - £125.00 attendance fee and £40.00 levy fee. " They cannot charge them both at the same time. Were you left a Notice of Seizure, if so can you list the goods noted on it exactly as they appear.

This is where the new £165 charges come from.

 

When they say "re-attended" I get the impression they have visited before without leaving documentation.

 

Either way, on the 20th December when they added the £165 charges the bailiff had just a normal van and handed us a 'Notice of bailiffs Attendance' . Nothing detailing a levy.

 

PT

[joe7175]

Hi Ploddertom, we have only been visited once on the 20/12/2012 when the bailiff knocked and handed us the 'Notice of bailiffs Attendance' . We received nothing on the two dates they list - 21/06/2012 and 24/07/2012.

 

We have never received a Notice of Seizure from them. They have never been in our property and on the day they claimed they would be back to take our car (20/12/2012) they just left us with the 'Notice of Attendance'.

 

Absolutely nothing else has ever been received.

[joe7175]

I am beginning to wonder actually whether the two initial visits were to the wrong address - we moved to our current address on the 25th June 2012 - This would be 4 days after the supposed first visit and a month before the supposed 2nd visit. Althought the council were informed of our new address could it be possible that they went to our old address? Can they still charge for this?

[ploddertom]

Wait and see what you get back from the Bailiffs. Of course there is a very good chance they will be reading this anyway.