Bailiffs

A bailiff is someone who is instructed to come to your house to do one of the following things:

A landlord - to carry out an eviction
A creditor/lender - to repossess Hire Purchase or conditional sale goods
A creditor - to enforce a fine or debt
To enforce an injunction

If you have received a letter to say that bailiffs are coming to your house, it is useful to know your rights. Bailiffs usually guess you have little or no knowledge of procedure and may try to insist on removing goods to repay debts.

What They Can Seize

There are certain exceptions as to what a bailiff can take from your home. For example:

If the bailiff is acting on a County Court Judgment (CCJ), they cannot seize any goods essential to basic domestic needs such as furniture, clothing or household equipment.
Usually, bailiffs are not permitted to take items such as vehicles, books or any equipment which is essential to the running of a business. However, if they are acting on Council Tax, VAT or Income Tax, they may be exempt from this rule.
No bailiff can repossess goods which are subject to a Hire Purchase or rental agreement.
Bailiffs are forbidden to take any property belonging to anyone other than the individual named on the distress warrant.
Goods in joint ownership may be seized.

Rights of Entry

If a bailiff calls at your house to repossess any goods, you are not obliged to let them in, nor may they force entry into your home from the outside. They might ask you if they can come in, assuring you they are not there to remove anything, just to discuss a way of helping you avoid that - but Don't Let Them In! Once a bailiff has been let into your house willingly, they may return at any time and enter your house forcefully and without permission. If you leave a door or window open, they are well within their rights to enter your property. Once they have entered they can also force entry into any other part of your home.

You do not have to let a bailiff into your house. A bailiff cannot force their way past you if you answer the door. If all your doors and windows are securely closed they will not be able to gain peaceful entry to your house unless you let them in.

If Entry Has Been Granted

Once the bailiff is inside your house, they will generally take the goods away immediately but you may come to an agreement known as a "walking possession agreement". This means that the goods that have been seized now legally belong to the bailiff and can be removed at any time. However, the bailiff will allow them to stay in your home and you can continue to use them providing you make the agreed payments. This agreement states that you will pay an amount of £0.45 plus VAT per day to continue to use the goods. This is not a permanent solution but will give you time to come to an agreement with the courts. An agreement will have to be signed if the debtor does not wish for the goods to be taken immediately.

In order for a walking possession order to be valid, a bailiff must have gained peaceful entry to the property and seized the goods. They cannot list items that they have seen through a window and put a walking possession order through the letterbox for you to sign and return. NEVER sign a walking possession order in these circumstances.

Bailiffs may often take more goods than you may believe to be necessary. This is because repossessed goods are sold at public auction and typically will sell for about 10% of their original value. This means that if you owe £100, a bailiff will probably try to seize goods to the value of at least £1,000.

If you get an unexpected visit from a bailiff, buy yourself some time. Always ask to see their credentials and ask for a copy of the 'Warrant of Execution' They must have one and you are entitled to a copy. Tell them to leave it with you for a few days so you can check it out. Then contact your creditor with your financial statement and come to an amicable agreement.

National Standards for Bailiffs

The National Standards for Enforcement Agents (NSEA) is endorsed by a range of central and local government departments and the bailiffs' trade bodies, all of whose members should comply with it.

Enforcement agents should:

Produce identification and authorisation on request.
Communicate clearly and provide information (on charges etc) promptly.
Carry out their duties in a professional, calm and dignified manner.
Provide procedures for identifying and dealing fairly with vulnerable debtors such as people who are disabled, elderly, those who have been bereaved recently, lone parents, pregnant women, unemployed, people with language difficulties.

Conduct Guidelines:

Unlawful force should not be used to enter any premises.
Bailiffs must avoid disclosing the purpose of their visit to anyone who is not the debtor. Relevant documents should be left in a sealed envelope addressed to them.
Ideally, visits should only be made between 6am and 9pm (or any time that the debtor is conducting business). They should not take place on Sundays, Bank Holidays, Good Friday or Christmas Day, unless legislation or a Court permits this. Respect for other religions and cultures should be upheld, and visits avoided on appropriate festivals and holidays.
If the only person present appears to be under 18, the bailiff must leave, but may ask when the debtor will be home. If the only persons at home are children under the age of 12, the agent must simply leave.
Goods that are clearly those of a child should not be seized.
Bailiffs should take all reasonable steps to satisfy themselves that the value of goods seized is proportional to the debt and charges owing.
When goods are removed, receipts should be given to the debtor.