marstons group

[JonnieG]

i am currently being pursued by a bailiff from the above group for un paid magistrates court fines. However my partner has just undergone surgery on her hands and is unable to work for 6 weeks i am currently out of work our only income is her SSP. There is no way i can pay the £602 pounds all in one go as they require can i contact the issuing magistrates court explain the situation to them and try to enter a payment plan with them or do i have to try and thrash it out with marstons

[josephbloggs]

Re: marstons group

technically the courts have discharged duty towards the fine (functus officio) so it may be a wasted phonecall. (may not necessarily won't be)
once the fines officer has issued the account to marstons, the fine isn't means tested.
they send you the initial compliance letter, and if you call the offices up they can usually offer an arrangement to pay based on how long they have to chase you (180 days)
if it goes out to an enforcement agent, they will usually expect full payment at the door. which sounds like your current position.

you could try sending in proof to marstons that your partner is off due to injury and see if they think you are classed as vulnerable or not.
i know marstons dont class unemployed as vulnerable necessarily as technically your benefits are there to pay your bills, how you allocated them is up to you is their take on it.

[JonnieG]

Re: marstons group

Thanks i will give it a go tho i wont hold my breath lol

[JonnieG]

Re: marstons group

Ok i have spoken to the magistrates court and they have given me a website address where i can pay the original fine of £292 after which i will recieve a reciept complete with reference number. I have also spoken to Marstons and requested a copy of the original warrant which to this date i havent recieved or seen i also asked for a detailed breakdown of their fees and what they had been applied to and the person on the phone told me they couldnt send me a copy of the warrant as it came from the magistrates court and point blankly refused to send me a copy of there fees so where do i stand now

[josephbloggs]

Re: marstons group

marstons won't have a copy of the warrant the original is held at the court.

the fees will be £75 compliance stage letter fee & £235 for the visit = £310 in total

paying the court direct will not stop marstons either, they are legally obliged to pass any payments collected straight to the enforcement company who will deduct their £75 first and the remainder is split pro-rata between the debt and the 235 fee.

[AntoniChm]

Re: marstons group

The £75.00 Fee actually gets paid to the Ministry of Justice first (or should be !)

[josephbloggs]

Re: marstons group

Erm no ... It goes to which ever company is collecting the debt

[Milo]

Re: marstons group

Ok i have spoken to the magistrates court and they have given me a website address where i can pay the original fine of £292 after which i will recieve a reciept complete with reference number. I have also spoken to Marstons and requested a copy of the original warrant which to this date i havent recieved or seen i also asked for a detailed breakdown of their fees and what they had been applied to and the person on the phone told me they couldnt send me a copy of the warrant as it came from the magistrates court and point blankly refused to send me a copy of there fees so where do i stand now

What the court failed to tell you is that as soon as they received your online payment they will pass it to Marston so that they can deduct the amount of £292 from the amount owed and the bailiff will continue enforcement. It is important to stress as well that the bailiff will not be seeking recovery of his fees. This is because, under the regulations imposed last April it provides that from any payment made (either to the enforcement company or the court) that the Compliance Fee of £75 is deducted at source with the bailiff being apportioned on a 'pro rata' basis between payment of the court fine and bailiff fees.

For the debt to have got to the stage where the amount of fees is £310 it would mean that you should have received the initial Notice of Enforcement from Marston Group with a Compliance Fee of £75. It is at this stage that a payment proposal should be made. A personal visit with an Enforcement Fee of £235 will only. follow in cases where there had been no contact from the debtors.

[stuuartdavis84]

Re: marstons group

Hello,
i am assuming this matter is been dealt with but if not please reply as I can give you some advice on the matter..

[Big Al]

Re: marstons group

Hey stu - what info do you have?

[stuuartdavis84]

Re: marstons group

Hi, What is your situation with marstons ? Or are your referring to the original post?
The reason I ask, is my advice would vary on how far marstons with the recovery.
but happy to give the advice to anyone in trouble with these animals :-)

[Big Al]

Re: marstons group

I don't have any situation, but I'm always interested in finding ways of fighting bailiffs.