baliff advice needed

[jotap]

Im new here and in desperate need of advice regarding baliffs.
Im currently paying them £40 per month,for a council tax arrear,this has been going on for a few years as its been a vicious circle of paying baliffs,managing to afford to live,then not being able to afford the current years council tax.
It came to a head in january of this year when the council added on this years council tax,the baliffs returned asking for more than the £40,after i told them i couldn't pay any higher amount the bullying tactics kicked in. I then offered £80 and they refused that offer. I then contacted the council,told them the situation and the lady said she would contact the baliffs and ask them to accept the offer of £80, but i had to take debt advice on the situation.
I spoke to a debt advice service that told me to stick to my current payments,and in the meantime they were going to help me with a debt relief order.
Today i had a baliff visit,demanding the £80,saying i had defaulted on my agreement,i have not signed anything to say i would pay the £80 per month. I shut the door on the baliff,phoned the council,who said i had defaulted on the verbal agreement. I phoned the baliff back,offering to pay the extra to make up the payments,he refused to accept that and informed me he would be returning with a locksmith and a couple of boys to clear my house!!........the whole morning ended in me paying £200 just to stop them taking anything and they will be returning tuesday of next week to make a new arrangement......is there anything i can do????

[ploddertom]

Re: baliff advice needed

First thing you need to do is to click the Black Triangle under your post and ask to be moved to the Bailiff Forum.

You say you have been paying this for some years now, If that is the case then you need more information about what you owe. You need to speak to someone at the Council and ask the following questions:
1 - how many Liability Orders they have against you
2 - the dates they were obtained
3 - the addresses they were for
4 - the period of time each covers
5 - how much each one was for
6 - how much is still outstanding
7 - the dates they were passed on for enforcement
8 - the dates & amounts of any payments

As this appears to pre date the change in the Regulations last April you also need to know what you have been charged to date by the Bailiffs. Send something similar to this to them, initially by email and then a copy in the post.

"From:
My Name
My Address

To:
Acme Bailiff Co
Bailiff House

Ref: Account No: 123456

Dear Sir

With reference to the above account, Can you please provide me with a breakdown of the charges.

This includes:
a - the time & date of any Bailiff action that incurred a Fee.
b - the reason for the fee.
c - the name(s) of the Bailiff(s) that attended on each occasion a Fee was charged.
d - the name(s) of the Court(s) the Bailiff(s) was/were Certificated at.
e - the date of the Certification.

This is not a Subject Access Request under the Data Protection Act S7 1998 so does not incur a fee of £10. You are obliged to provide this information.

I require this information within 14 days.

Yours faithfully

Ripped off customer"

[ploddertom]

Re: baliff advice needed

Has a Bailiff ever gained access to your home or otherwise seized any of your goods? If so can you list what was seized exactly as described on their paperwork?

[Kati]

Re: baliff advice needed

First thing you need to do is to click the Black Triangle under your post and ask to be moved to the Bailiff Forum.

Hi [MENTION=62308]jotap[/MENTION], I've moved your thread to the bailiff section so you'll get the advice you need
K x

[jotap]

Re: baliff advice needed

Hi,yes a baliff has been allowed into my property by myself,this was a few years ago when i first made an arrangement with them,,i had to agree a repayment plan and sign a walking possession order. When they added a new years council tax bill i only agreed to carry on paying the £40 and they added the new amount onto the existing payment plan.

[jotap]

Re: baliff advice needed

Thankyou [MENTION=49370]Kati[/MENTION]....

[ploddertom]

Re: baliff advice needed

Hi,yes a baliff has been allowed into my property by myself,this was a few years ago when i first made an arrangement with them,,i had to agree a repayment plan and sign a walking possession order. When they added a new years council tax bill i only agreed to carry on paying the £40 and they added the new amount onto the existing payment plan.

It is even more important now you get the info I asked about as I would hazard a guess you have been paying well over the odds for a year or thres now. I would also guess they have been adding the original Walking Possession to further Orders without informing you of the due process. Which Bailiffs are you dealing with?

[jotap]

Re: baliff advice needed

Yes,i think they have been using the original walking possession order as i have never granted them entry since the early days of dealing with them. Its a company called B and S baliff services of blackwood

[jotap]

Re: baliff advice needed

And also at one point i had an attachment of earnings order in place for council tax arrears plus i was paying the baliffs at the same time

[ploddertom]

Re: baliff advice needed

Don't say exactly where you live but are you in Wales - reason for asking is that the charges are a little different there? If you have quite a few Liability Orders then it may be that the Council may have to send them by letter & might have to start a spreadsheet to track them - don't worry as we can help with this. There is a chance the Bailiffs will be obstructive about revealing their fees - if so then you will have to ask the Council as they remain 100% liable for the actions & charges of their contractors.

[jotap]

Re: baliff advice needed

Yes,im in south Wales.... Thankyou for your advice so far,,I'll get onto the council first thing tomorrow,and write a letter to the Baliffs, they dont have an email address. As soon as i get any info back I'll let you know.... Thankyou again

[ploddertom]

Re: baliff advice needed

If you have any hassles with the Council then involve your local Councillor(s). It may take a little while to unravel all this as it sounds as if a lot was done under the "old rules" and wonder how much may be subject to the Transitional arrangements. For the one you got in January this year did you get a Notice of Enforcement from the Bailiffs?

[bizzybob]

Re: baliff advice needed

It would appear that the involvement of local councillors is essential, these bailiffs, may well have seriously overcharged here.

[jotap]

Re: baliff advice needed

Yea,i did have something off them stating the amount i owed and asking me to contact them to arrange payment,,but i genuinley cant pay any more than i am already,and they're not accepting that

[jotap]

Re: baliff advice needed

Spoken to the council and have the following info
3 liability orders
Obtained: 21/2/13. 8/8/13. 26/9/14
Covering: 2012-13. 2013-14. 2014-15
Value:£691 balance 401.94
£934.07. Balance 934.07
£966.72 balance. 966.72
Passed for enforcement 27/3/13. 19/9/13. 21/11/14
They would not give me any payment details,they said i would have to speak to the bailiffs regarding that