Bailiff Industry Under the Spotlight!

Ever had problems with the Bailiff Industry (I use that term loosely)?  Bailiffs act on behalf of courts to collect for debts that have been judged, such as a county court judgements (CCJ).  If you have not been taken to court, then they are just debt collecters who have NO POWERS!  Even if you have been taken to court, there are still options available to you.  For instance, it is possible to get the Bailiff action suspended.  Where the bailiff is acting on behalf of the county court you will need to fill in a special form N245 - Application to Suspend the Warrant. This form can be obtained directly from your local county court or downloaded from the Courts Service website at www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk.


But not every Bailiff is reputable, and it is those who do not follow the correct process that need to be reined in and made accountable for their misrepresentations and flagrant abuse of the law.  It is these few that give Bailiffs a bad name (not saying that a Vulture that profits from other peoples misfortune is a good name of course).  As the list of complaints has grown, and the self regulation has failed, the Government has finally decided to act.  The guidelines that Bailiffs currently act under are to be reviewed and regulation of the industry is to become law, including things such as what fees can be charged by Bailiffs.  The Government are currently having a consultation on this very subject which can be found at:


https://consult.justice.gov.uk/digital-communications/transforming-bailiff-action


If you have had problems in the past (or not), have your say to try and let this Government get something right for a change!