Marston Group and Tv License Fine.

[MonsterRipper899]

i,

 

This morning i got a call from my 16 year old daughter

who was really upset crying telling me that we had a bailiff at the door.

 

She said she loud banging on the door and then heard a woman shout through the letter box to open the door NOW.

 

She looked through the bedroom window and without introducing her self

she told my daughter to go and open the door.

 

she finally said she was a bailiff after my daughter asked what she wanted.

 

At first i thought it was a mistake as i will never let myself get into any sort of debts.

 

I told her to not open the door and give her my phone number so she could speak to me (i was in work at the time).

 

I spoke to the bailiff and i must say she was the rudest person i have ever spoken to.

She was shouting saying she is going to ring a locksmith to come and break in.

I told her my daughter was home alone.

She said it doesn't matter.

 

I then found out that the debt was for my wife for unpaid TV license.

I do remember sometime last year my wife had changed bank and did not transfer the TV license

so we went without one for 6 months without knowing.

 

We thought it was strange that we didn't receive any correspondence!

We had a man from TV license knock at the door and he told us we didn't have a license.

We explained we totally forgot and he set us up a new one on the doorstep.

 

He never took or asked for payment for the 6 months missed.

Nor had we received anything since!

 

I spoke to the bailiff again, who was still constantly hammering on the door demanding my daughter open it. She said the fine was for £630!

 

I argued that it couldnt possibly be.

its only 6 months we didn't have one!

I refused to pay her and said we will have to sort it out with the court as i think there has been a mistake somewhere down the line.

 

Well she didn't like that!

she said ok i am calling the police and i am calling a locksmith.

I didn't really believe her so i decided to call her bluff and wait it out to see what would happen.

 

My daughter rang me 40 minutes later to say the police had turned up

and was too demanding that she open the door!

 

i rang the bailiff again who put me on the the police man.

The police said that the bailiff could come into my property.

I tried to argue that my daughter is home alone and he didn't care.

I told him he had no right telling my daughter to open the door

and his presence was just to keep the peace.

 

He then passed the phone back onto the bailiff who said the fine has now gone up to £800 a

nd when the locksmith comes it will be another £200.

 

i decided enough was enough and i paid with my card over the phone.

I asked if i could see the warrant before i paid and she said NO! she only has one copy.

After i paid however she did post it through the letter box which i will scan on here for you.

 

what i want to know is.

Was this legal what happened?

I really don't feel like i should of paid as i was not given a chance to pay the original debt

and i really feel it was inappropriate the way she and the policeman spoke to my daughter.

She was absolutely terrified. she sat on the floor under her bedroom window crying her eyes out while this big brut of a woman was hammering the door down.

[2ltr16valve]

If you knew nothing of being taken to court to be prosecuted for the tv license offence then your wife MUST go to your local magistrates court and file a statutory declaration ASAP. This is time limited from the time you become aware of it.

 

I had very similar thing a few years ago. Filing the stat dec will void the conviction and the fine with it. Thus you would be entitled to a full refund from the bailiff/court.

[MonsterRipper899]

i will do that ASAP. thank you for the information!

 

I posted the same post on another forum and i am told that the warrant i was given is forged.

 

I would love people to see it. So frustrating that i cant upload!

[matt v atos]

Dx100 – Instructions on uploading pdfs

Scan the required letters/agreements/sheets

as a picture file

remove all personal info including barcodes etc. using paint

but leave all figures and dates.

Go to one of the many free online pdf converter websites

convert the image to pdf format.

or if you have PDF as an installed printer drive use that

open a new message box here

hit go advanced below the message box

hit manage attachments below that box

hit the add files button on the top right

hit select files, navigate to your file on your pc

hit upload files

NB: you can set where it goes in the post by hitting insert inline.

Then hit reply button

[madmatt1009]

and what the hell were the police doing, demanding that the OP's daughter open the door, surely they should have told the Bailiff that she was causing a breach of the peace??

[Sparks_]

How old is your daughter please?

[matt v atos]

How old is your daughter please?

 

OP " my 16 year old daughter who was really upset"

[2ltr16valve]

and what the hell were the police doing, demanding that the OP's daughter open the door, surely they should have told the Bailiff that she was causing a breach of the peace??

 

Although it is wrong of the bailiff to insist the op's daughter open the door. I think if I remember correctly from my experience the warrant carries a right of entry ? Being magistrates distress warrant so they can use a locksmith. I suspect the bailiff told the police they need to help and mr PC plod went along with it. As I found out their knowledge is lacking some what when it comes to bailiffs.

 

My experience was also with marston. In my experience they are violent. Lying thugs who will lie to get what they want.

[honeybee13]

Hello MonsterRipper.

 

Please don't spam the forums to build up your post count. You have dx's upload instuctions now and if you're really stuck, you can send it to myself or anyone on the site team and we'll post it up.

 

HB

[MonsterRipper899]

wouldnt call it spam but ok.

 

My daughter has just showed me a sound clip of the bailiff and i am just horrified!

 

another strange thing which my daughter told me. After my daughter told the bailiff how old she was, The bailiff said "your names kelly isnt it?". Kelly is my 21 year old daughter who lives in another address.

 

Another odd thing was when my daughter told her my mum is in work the bailiff said i will check. I know she works and proceeded to give the hospital and the ward where my wife works! She is a nurse btw

 

how did she know these things?

[MonsterRipper899]

would sombody point me in the right direction?

 

i am looking to file a statutory declaration. How do i do this?

 

I am also looking to put in a complaint about the officer that attended. Where would be best for me to put in my complaint?

 

thanks

[2ltr16valve]

would sombody point me in the right direction?

 

i am looking to file a statutory declaration. How do i do this?

 

I am also looking to put in a complaint about the officer that attended. Where would be best for me to put in my complaint?

 

thanks

 

You do this by going to the issuing court. The court where the case was heard. I am guessing your wife did not attend the hearing ? And did not know about it ?

You should have been sent a summons in the post.

 

If I remember you said the fine is in your wife's name. So it's your wife that will have to go. You will need to pay a small fee to go In front of a magistrate and state you(she) knew nothing of the summons until the bailiff turned up.

 

Complaint wise you can complain to marston but I wouldn't waste ur time. You can also complain to the court as the bailiff is their agent acting on their behalf so they are liable for their actions

[MonsterRipper899]

You do this by going to the issuing court. The court where the case was heard. I am guessing your wife did not attend the hearing ? And did not know about it ?

You should have been sent a summons in the post.

 

If I remember you said the fine is in your wife's name. So it's your wife that will have to go. You will need to pay a small fee to go In front of a magistrate and state you(she) knew nothing of the summons until the bailiff turned up.

 

Complaint wise you can complain to marston but I wouldn't waste ur time. You can also complain to the court as the bailiff is their agent acting on their behalf so they are liable for their actions

 

yes that is correct my wife knew nothing about a hearing.

 

We have arranged to both take the day off work tomorrow and go down to the court.

 

We have been reading more into this Stat. Dec. and we have read that we can get it signed infront of a solicitor and then posted to the courts? IF this is correct it would be much better for us, do you know anything about this?

 

If the Stat Dec is granted. What is my next step? How can i recover this money?

 

Thanks

[2ltr16valve]

yes that is correct my wife knew nothing about a hearing.

 

We have arranged to both take the day off work tomorrow and go down to the court.

 

We have been reading more into this Stat. Dec. and we have read that we can get it signed infront of a solicitor and then posted to the courts? IF this is correct it would be much better for us, do you know anything about this?

 

If the Stat Dec is granted. What is my next step? How can i recover this money?

 

Thanks

 

 

I have heard about solicitors doing them

But my ex and I went to the court directly. Took about half hour and was done. Wrote a simple statement and went in front of magistrate. All done.

Refund wise. I think you have to write to the court and they refund although in my case this took about 4 months !

[tomtubby]

It is of great concern that yours in the 2nd post in one day where the bailiff has attended with police and locksmith. There is the right to force entry for an unpaid Magistrate Court fine but this EXCEPTIONAL provision is only supposed to happen if the bailiff has a strong belief that the debtor is at the property and refusing entry. Clearly this could not have been the case given that the bailiff was able to confirm that your wife was at work !!!

 

Firstly, on the matter of the bailiff knowing the name of your elder daughter, this information is most likely to have been obtained by the bailiff company during their everyday electoral roll (and other search facilities) to ascertain whether your wife still lives at the property. I would 'assume' that your elder daughter is still on the electoral roll. As to how the bailiff knew that your wife works at a hospital it is likely that this info was gained from elsewhere ( see below).

 

Secondly, by error your TV licence lapsed and you received a personal visit from a CAPITA Ltd TV Licensing Inspector. From what you have explained, your wife confirmed that she had been without a licence for 6 months.

 

What is also CLEAR is that your wife was PROSECUTED by TV Licensing and this is where there is a lot of confusion. What should happen is that TV Licensing have 6 months to "lay the complaint" at the Magistrates Court and your wife should have received notification of the date in which the matter would be heard. The Court representative would have relied upon your wife's statement obtained during the visit that she was guilty of not having a TV Licence. When she gave the statement it is usual for the CAPITA TV Licensing inspector to also obtain details of whether your wife is in receipt of benefits or whether she is employed. It is possible that when questioned she stated that she was a nurse at xxx hospital ( and if so, this could be where the bailiff obtained details of her employment).

 

There is now a further problem in that after the hearing (which by the way are "bulk" applications where as many as 50 or more cases of TV License evasions are heard) your wife should have received a letter from the court entitled Notice of Fine.

 

There is more. BEFORE a Distress Warrant can be issued to a bailiff there is a legal process that MUST be undertaken which is for the court to send to your wife a legal document called a Further Steps Notice. This is similar to a 'default' notice' and give the debtor one FINAL opportunity to pay the debt to avoid a Distress Warrant being issued and further bailiff charges of up to £300 being added.

 

As you can see from, above, your wife should have therefore received notification of a hearing date....a Notice of Fine stating the amount that she had been fines and finally, a Further Steps Notice. There is also one further letter and this should have been the INITIAL letter from the bailiff company.

 

If your wife has not received ANY of these notices then BEFORE considering a Statutory Declaration you need to establish the reason WHY the notices had not been received. In most cases this will be because of a change of address.

 

As you are attending the court today you can make the enquiries with them regarding the address. In most cases the court prefer the debtor to appear in person to swear a Statutory Declaration. A Statutory Declaration will REVOKE the conviction and your wife would be entitled to a refund.

 

On the matter of the complaint regarding the conduct of the bailiff, in the first instance, a complaint may be registered with the Magistrates Court and they can investigate the complaint with the bailiff company. Unless debtors involve the Magistrates Court with complaints they will not be aware of what is happening with the enforcement of THEIR distress warrants.

 

Can you post back once you have been to the court.

 

PS: The conduct of the police in this matter is very worrying indeed.

[brassnecked]

For a police officer to insist a minor allows a bailiff access to a property is most worrying, perhaps a complaint to the Inspector at the police office is in order on that point. Police are notoriously untrained in bailiff law as in they fall hook line and sinker for the bailiff who often lies through his teeth as to his/her powers

[tomtubby]

Is there any update on this query?