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Bailiffs

If you have fallen behind with payments to your county court judgment, the creditor may ask the court to use bailiffs to collect the debt.

You will receive a document titled ‘warrant of execution’ and then a county court bailiff will visit you.

Other types of private bailiff or high court enforcement officer may visit for unpaid magistrates’ court fines, council tax arrears or high court enforcement. Their powers are different to county court bailiffs and their charges are higher.

A bailiff has the power to take goods from your property and will then sell them at auction to pay off your debt.

A bailiff cannot break into your property unless you have already allowed them in or they entered through an unlocked door or window, on a previous visit. This is called ‘walk in possession’. Once the bailiff has ‘walk in possession’ they can use force to enter again in future.

If a bailiff enters your property, they will not take any goods on the first visit. They will usually make a list of items in your house which they can take in future. Once they have done this, it is an offence for you to remove any of these items from your house.

If you have received a visit from any court bailiff, please contact us straight away.

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FAQs

When can a bailiff force entry into my home?

If a bailiff has already been in your property, they can use force to enter again at a later date.

They cannot force entry on their first visit, but they can enter through an unlocked door or window.

There are only two instances where bailiffs can enter forcibly on their first visit:

When a magistrate gives permission in cases where someone has avoided paying a criminal fine
When bailiffs are acting for HM Revenue & Customs collecting tax, VAT or national insurance debt

Who can I speak to if I have a complaint about a bailiff?

If your problem relates to county court bailiffs, you should write to the court involved.

If the bailiff was instructed by your local authority, you could contact them to complain.

Any complaints about private bailiffs should first be addressed to their company.

Most bailiffs are members of a trade organisation, so if your complaint is not resolved you can ask them to investigate. The Enforcement Services Association and Association of Civil Enforcement Agencies both have their own complaints procedures.

Any allegation of violence should be reported to the police as this is a criminal offence.

What If I feel the charges added to my debt are unfair?

Most agreements allow creditors to add charges and interest. If you feel that the charges are unfair or too high, you should first make a complaint to the creditor.

Creditors can add charges, but the Office of Fair Trading guidelines state these should be “based on actual and necessary costs” and should not be too high compared with the debt itself.

If you do not get a satisfactory response, you could contact the Financial Ombudsman Service who can investigate the matter further.