urgent help needed over bailiff please

[e39darren]

Hi my girlfriend just had a visit off the bailiff at 6.50 this morning regarding an unpaid fine ( car tax ) . The fine was issued by a magistrates court but i honestly forgot about it until i had a letter off the bailiff company ( swift credit ) .

 

She opened the door to them but did not allow them in and they told her unless the full amount was paid they would be back with a van and locksmith at 7am tomorrow morning as he has a distress warrant off the court .

 

I rang him on the number he left and explained i could not afford the £600 by tomorrow and could we agree on a payment plan to which he replied no he needs full payment and then i said to him i would not allow him access to my house and he mentioned something about section 4a of the domestic crime act that gives him the power to use a locksmith .

 

I then said to him about calling so early when i have 2 young children in the house and he said he can call from sunrise which was 5.25 so i asked him if he would like having his children woken up by someone banging the door that early and he replied " it wouldnt bother me as my 3 kids get up with me as im a single father and besides i would never have anyone banging my door as i have perfect credit and no debt " i then said to him " how great it must be to have the perfect life " to which he replied" i recently lost my wife so is my life so f**king perfect to you ?

 

I will be there tomorrow without fail with a van and locksmith to remove EVERYTHING you own " and slammed the phone down .

 

Be started to really shout and get nasty down the phone so can anyone give me some advice please as i am stuck in work all day today

Many thanks

Edited May 16, 2013 by citizenB
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[citizenB]

Someone will be with you soon as they can.

[seanamarts]

£600 seems a lot, I would email the bailiff company and request a breakdown of the fee's and charges. I would also request from them a payment plan that you are able to manage.

 

It really isnt a good idea to get into conversations with the bailiff, they will tell you all sorts of twaddle just to get their cut.

[tomtubby]

Did you receive a summons?

 

Did you complete the summons?

 

Did you complete the Means Enquiry Form ( vitally important to do so !!!)

 

What fine was imposed?

 

Have you made any payments at all to to the court?

 

Lasty...and most importantly...did you receive a Further Steps Notice?

[ploddertom]

Post deleted as duplicated

[unclebulgaria67]

What you have to do is contact the Magistrates court that is dealing with this and ask to speak to the enforcement manager. Advise them of your conversation with the bailiff and how they had threatened you. This is not acceptable. Whilst technically they can force entry in relation to a court fine, this does not happen very often, as they have to get permission of a Magistrate and it is usually only in the last event, where you totally refuse to pay anything. What you can do, is make a payment arrangement directly with the Magistrates court, if you make a statutory declaration to them. If you did not receive a further step notice which warned you that bailiffs would be instructed to visit your property, making the declaration to Magistrates will mean this is back with the court and out of the bailiffs hands. Try to do this today if you can.

[wonkeydonkey]

Following the fine you should have received a Further Steps Notice did you received that?

If not, did you move house after the fine was issued?

When was the fine issued?

What amount was the fine?

 

If you can give us a the answers to the above we can look to see what options are available to you.

However, before he can attend with anyone he will need to get the Court to verify that to be the next step and show you are willfully refusing to pay. There are many steps to take before his huffing and puffing can blow the house down so remember that and continue to politely refuse hime entry with the telling you are seeking to reach arrangement with the court. If at all possible film him if he calls again.

 

WD

[e39darren]

Thanks for the replys and i had a summons a while back and i pleaded guilty by post and then they informed me i had been fined £340 . I put it to the back of my mind and forgot about it and then last week i had a letter off swift infroming me that a bailiff will be calling and he called this morning .

I rung the courts today and they told me i would have to deal with the bailiff as its in their hands now and the courts cant do anything about it .

Am i correct in thinking that the bailiff cant force entry in the morning unless he tells the magistrates that im totally refusing to pay ?

I have rung the bailiff to ask to pay by installments and they refused to accept them so is it a case of me not refusing to pay ?

What would happen if i paid the original fime direct to the courts in 1 lump , could the bailiffs still threaten to enter my house ( i couldnt afford to pay it untill a week tomorrow tho )

[wonkeydonkey]

Thanks for the replys and i had a summons a while back and i pleaded guilty by post and then they informed me i had been fined £340 . I put it to the back of my mind and forgot about it and then last week i had a letter off swift infroming me that a bailiff will be calling and he called this morning .Did you get a notice advising you that you needed to bring the account up to date etc..this is the Further Steps Notice we are referring to and if you never got it you have rights to swearing a stat dec to that effect....and have the fine wound back to its original status minus the bailiffs fees

I rung the courts today and they told me i would have to deal with the bailiff as its in their hands now and the courts cant do anything about it .

Am i correct in thinking that the bailiff cant force entry in the morning unless he tells the magistrates that im totally refusing to pay ?

I have rung the bailiff to ask to pay by installments and they refused to accept them so is it a case of me not refusing to pay ?

What would happen if i paid the original fime direct to the courts in 1 lump , could the bailiffs still threaten to enter my house ( i couldnt afford to pay it untill a week tomorrow tho )

 

WD

[e39darren]

WD

 

 

No i didnt have that so what should i do now ?

Thanks in advance

[ploddertom]

Have you moved since being fined?

[e39darren]

No im at the same address , they only sent the summons in febuary

[ploddertom]

In that case you should go back to the Court and ask if they provide proof the Further Steps Notice was sent.

[wonkeydonkey]

if they cannot as PT say's prove the notice was sent, you can ask to appeal by way of a stat dec, you will then either/or be called to appear before the magistrate for their decision or the fine will be rolled back, at which time you can pay it in full minus the bailiffs fees.

 

I would suggest you do not delay in getting the ball rolling ,if you act sooner rather than later from the time the fine was notified to you as left unpaid, the better your chances to getting it rolled back.

 

WD

[e39darren]

I just spoke to the courts and they said they cant prove they sent it but its not their fault i didnt recieve the further steps notice and because i ecieved the original summons i am umable to appeal and they will not deal with it , i have got to deal with the bailiff and even if i paid the original fine direct to the court they would still allow the bailiff to pursue me for thier fees .

I think it is totally unfair and wrong as i am willing to pay the fine but im not willing to pay double just to cover some bully boys wages

[ploddertom]

Appears to me they have been very hasty if they only sent the original summons in February. That should have given you 28 days + postage time. Then there is the FSN which I think allows 10 days + postage time. To my mind this should give approx 7 weeks since the fine was issued. It seems to me as if they don't actually know whether the FSN was issued or not, you could use the same argument back at them that you sent payment but it isn't your fault if they didn't get it. Time for Complaints to the Court Manager, Fines Officer & Enforcement Team.

[e39darren]

It gets better , i just popped home to ring swift and the letter off the bailiff is a final notice letter about carrying out a distress warrant and when i rung them they wouldnt speak to me as the court had given them the wrong date of birth for me so they couldnt confirm my identity , could ii use that to buy me some time by my girlfriend showing the bailiff my driving licence withmy correct date of birth and saying that he mught be after the wrong person ?

[e39darren]

And also how can they issue a final notice on their first visit ?

[wonkeydonkey]

And also how can they issue a final notice on their first visit ?

 

This is why they are required to send the 'Final Steps Notice' before any visit takes place giving you a Final Notice.

 

As PT says time to start the complaints process to Court Manager, Fines Officer and Enforcement Team

 

Make sure you start by saying you are not refusing to pay the fine, outline that you received the original summons but no notice to your letter pleading guilty, notice of the penalty imposed or reminder to pay. Keep it short and to the point and suggest you be allowed to submit a Statutory Declaration to that statement thereby enabling you to pay in full forthwith.