Unpaid fine - now visit from Marstons - please help & advise!

[tc101]

hi i need some help/advice

 

 

i went to court a few months back for non payment of a fine

 

 

was told to pay the £300 odd back weekly

 

 

i have not payed as my circumstances have changed and i could not afford to pay,

 

 

i have had nothing from them to say any thing so was going to pay after Christmas,

 

 

today i had a knock at the door and when i opened it there was a hco that asked if i was myself (full name used)

 

 

my reply was i am me, he then went on to tell me why he was here,

which was to collect the balance which is now £650?!

and that if i can pay by 6 pm tomo which is Sunday they will be back Monday to seize goods!

 

 

i have not let him in,

i have not said that i am me,

also i do not have anything worth that money,

i also have 3 children who are 4-5-8 and work 16 hours a week,

if any one can help i would be great full

 

 

thankyou x

[tc101]

he had a notice of attendance which he went to hand me i didnt take it so it was left on my door step, i did take it in once he had gone.

[honeybee13]

Hello and welcome to CAG.

 

I hope the forum guys will be along later, I think they may ask you whether you told the court that you couldn't afford to pay what it had ordered.

 

Also, please check your personal messages in a couple of minutes [under Notifications at the top of this page].

 

My best, HB

[gregs07]

Be vigilant don't open the door. Don't let him in. No rights to access private residence. Swerve him and pay the court the original fine.

[renegadeimp]

If the bailiff has already appeared under instruction of the court, then the bailiff Fee's will be due as well.

[tc101]

i have not phoned the court, and i havent let him in but he says that come monday he can let himself in with a lock smith is this true? he was from marstons x

[tc101]

i say i would pay just dont have that sort of money, he said that i need to pay full by tomorow or he will be entering with a locksmith

[unclebulgaria67]

This won't be an high court enforcement officer dealing with a magistrates court fine. It will just be a standard enforcement officer.

 

 

With Marstons they do both types of work, but their documents are not clear.

 

What was the fine for ?

 

Is the magistrates court near to you ?

 

 

Can you get there first thing Monday morning to ask for a re-determination hearing to decide on how much you can afford to pay ?

 

If this is a criminal fine, magistrates can give the enforcement officer permission to force entry to your house using locksmiths

which will increase costs that you have to pay.

 

 

This is why you should try to get magistrates to agree to an urgent hearing,

so they can look at what you can afford to pay.

 

 

Take with you details of income and expenditure, plus a copy of your latest bank statement.

[tc101]

he said he was a hco and the letter is headed as such,

if was for non payment of a tv license and theft under £10 when i was 18ish very stuipd i know but it was nearly 7years ago,

 

 

i got fined and didnt pay,

no there in another town,

he said it has to be payed by 6pm tomorrow,

or mon morning they will be here,

 

 

i dont have any thing worth value but worried they will take my childrens tvs and my sons ps3 and daughter wii/dvd

they have done nothing wrong!

 

 

the letter says the client is hmcts avon and Somerset

[tc101]

he had a thing on his chest recoreding every thing, i didnt say i was the name he asked for just i am me and he still carryed on

[tc101]

oh and it was non payment of a fine fo theft, i didnt go to jail or police staion or any thing x

[josephbloggs]

You have not done yourself any favours ignoring it and being evasive.

 

 

Before their attendance you will have had a notice of enforcement advising you to call them before a visit.

 

 

They have now visited and you have incurred the 235 enforcement fee.

 

do they have the right to enter my home ? - yes, in certain circumstances.

 

tribunals, courts & enforcement act 2007, schedule 12 part 18 (b)

he is acting under an enforcement power conferred by a warrant of control under section 76(1) of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 (c. 43)

for the recovery of a sum adjudged to be paid by a conviction;

 

the warrant of control allows for reasonable force for entry however, the following criteria must of been met:-

-it must be at the address on the warrant

-there must of been an element of refusal to pay (includes ignoring it)

-hmcts must be ok with it (doesnt require a seperate warrant contrary to popular belief)

-there must be sufficient assets to cover the debt, costs and extra costs involved

-the police will have to be in attendance.

-executor of the warrant must be a certificated enforcement agent

-reasonable force can be used means a locksmith, not against the debtor themselves.

[unclebulgaria67]

he said he was a hco and the letter is headed as such, if was for non payment of a tv license and theft under £10 when i was 18ish very stuipd i no but it was nearly 7years ago, i got fined and didnt pay, no there in another town, he said it has to be payed by 6pm tomorow, or mon morning they will be here, i dont have any thing worth vale but worryed they will take my childrens tvs and my sons ps3 and daughter wii/dvd they have done nothing wrong! the letter says the clinet is hmcts avon and somerset

 

I am not saying you should do this, but I expect that some people who might expect a visit by an enforcement officer, might temporarily store items at a friends house.

 

They will take enough items that are not essential for living, to cover the debt. So yes childrens TV's, games systems can be taken.

 

If the items in the house are not sufficient, they would probably take any car you owned, if you had one, it is was of enough value.

 

Think you should try to get to the nearest Magistrates Monday morning to try to sort this out. If they can see that you don't earn that much and don't have much in the way of money left to pay what is owed, they may accept a low payment per week or month. I can't see that they would want to cause you and your kids hardship.

[tc101]

i know i havent it wasnt done on purpose,

i would pay i have not said i wont and

i told him that,

 

 

the thing is he hasnt been into my propety so doesnt no what i have inside, ( none of which is worth the 650 he wants)

 

 

also can they take my childrens stuff

 

 

or go into my gardge or shed?

 

 

so ive pretty much had it and cant stop it now?

 

 

if i could pay him i would i dont even earn that much a month! x

[tc101]

the other thing im worried of is i have to dogs which are guard dogs and dont let any one in, and i dont want hem put down for doing there job

[tc101]

I am not saying you should do this, but I expect that some people who might expect a visit by an enforcement officer, might temporarily store items at a friends house.

 

They will take enough items that are not essential for living, to cover the debt. So yes childrens TV's, games systems can be taken.

 

If the items in the house are not sufficient, they would probably take any car you owned, if you had one, it is was of enough value.

 

Think you should try to get to the nearest Magistrates Monday morning to try to sort this out. If they can see that you don't earn that much and don't have much in the way of money left to pay what is owed, they may accept a low payment per week or month. I can't see that they would want to cause you and your kids hardship.

he said it has to be done by tomorow or monday he will be her so wont have chance to get there

[unclebulgaria67]

the other thing im worried of is i have to dogs which are guard dogs and dont let any one in, and i dont want hem put down for doing there job

 

If you don't let the enforcement officer (EO) in, they will call the Police I expect to help a locksmith help them come into the property. You will be told to put the dogs in one room.

 

If your children have friends or you have friends who don't mind providing storage, you could sort this out tomorrow. They have not been into the house to see what you have.

 

The EO will search the whole house including garages and sheds for items they could sell to cover the debt. They might not take them away, but they may take them into their control on paper and get you to sign this. Then if you did not pay an agreed amount, they could come back to take the items.

 

If you can, you should go to the Magistrates first thing Monday to try to sort this out. If you don't you will be accepting having the EO come to your house to do their job.

[ploddertom]

I've edited your thread title to reflect what has happened.

 

Marstons use a dual headed letter heading which says High Court Enforcement in large letters, only when you look again will you notice it also says something similar to "& Certificated Bailiffs". HCEO's do not collect on Court fines.

[dx100uk]

have you any paperwork

 

 

he left you or previous letters

 

 

dx

[tc101]

have you any paperwork

 

 

he left you or previous letters

 

 

dx

 

no ive had nothing from them no phone calls ect just him today giving me 24 hours to fine £650! its sunday tomo what does he want me todo!?

[renegadeimp]

Sounds like a rogue bailiff. You should have had multiple letters from the court before any bailiff action.

[Bailiff Advice]

Given that you actually went to court you would not receive a Notice of Fine /Collection order in the post but there is a legal requirement for you to be sent a Further Steps Notice by the court. Did you receive this? This is the final document form the court and you can make a payment proposal even at that late stage.

 

I appreciate that you have financial problems but you need to be aware that legally the courts cannot accept a payment proposal of less than £5 per week and this is the figure that applies for anyone subject to an attachment against their benefits.

 

Before a personal visit the bailiff company must sent to you a Notice of Enforcement. Did you receive this document and if so, did you contact the company?