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Bristow & sutor pulling a fast one!

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  • Bristow & sutor pulling a fast one!

    Hello im new to the site and having some trouble with Bristow & sutor, any help and advice that anybody has would be very apreciated. I have read through most of the relative stickies on here and had a read on a few other advice sites so im not completely clueless (i hope).

    So my situation is i have an outstanding council tax payment from when i lived with my ex girlfriend, the council gave us a court summons but said we did not have to attend and could pay in installments when the debt is passed to the bailiffs. This is what we have been doing since around may last year, me and my ex had agreed to take it in turns and pay 2 months each as obviosly we where both jointly liable so this is what we have done and for me this was no problem but she had lied to me on one occasion back in the summer about paying so i got a phone call from B&S around ten days after our payment date saying they have recieved no money this month so i thought fine i will pay it now to clear that months agreement off.

    Everything went fine for the next few months untill december when it was the ex's turn to pay again, she came out with all of this rubbish about not being able to afford it so she spoke to the council who rearragned the monthly installments from £46pm down to £20pm i have a letter from B&S confirming this. so i thought fine it will be my turn to pay again in february.

    So on friday i got a call from my mum saying a bailiff turned up at the house asking for me saying hes going to sieze goods and what not, my mum told him i dont live there (which i dont) and she doesnt know my new adress, i have told B&S on loads of occasions that i do not live at my parents adress anymore and they can contact me through my email or telephone if there are any problems, but i have refused to give them a new adress saying that i am living with a friend and wouldnt want the hassle of bailiffs at his house.

    So it turns out that my ex hasnt paid any money to them and lied to me again about doing so, i recieved no word of this from B&S via email or telephone and they just showed up at my parents house and have levied against my old mans car which was on the front drive! I beleve that he has commited illegal distress by doing this as the vehicle is not owned by the debtor and i am also under the impression that a claim for tresspass to goods can be made and myself or my dad can claim compensation for this?

    I have had some charges added onto the outstanding amount of £230 in a letter the bailiff posted through the door after my mum told him to leave, these include:

    Attendance to levy fees £24.50
    Levy fee £31
    Redemtion of goods fee (head H) £24.50

    Now i am under the impression that i do not owe the levy fee and redemtion of goods fee, would this be correct? I wasnt sure on the Attendance to levy fee so any help with that would be brilliant. I have also decided that i am just going to pay £30 ASAP and the final £200 at he end of january when my xmas overtime pay from work comes through as i cannot be bothered trying to squeeze money from that lieing parasite of an ex any longer, could anybody say what the best way to pay this would be? Ideally id like to pay B&S or the council over the phone as i completly despise bailiffs and i am afraid i would loose my temper if i met the cowardly person who intimidated my mother on friday. However i spoke to B&S over the phone on friday and they said i would have to call the bailiff and arrange payments with him they gave me a number but there was no answer so i am a bit lost on this.

    Anyway my apologies for the mammoth wall of text, i didnt want to miss something out that could be important.

    Any help or advice from somebody would be massively apreciated thanks for taking the time to read,

    Kieran.
    Tags: None

  • #2
    Re: Bristow & sutor pulling a fast one!

    Hi,

    Any levy on your father's car is invalid. Your father needs to show the bailiffs the logbook to prove the car is owned by him and not you.

    To be honest, the best thing is to clear the debt at the end of this month as you plan. Sadly, the fact your ex has not kept to the agreement is irrelevant as you are jointly liable for the debt. Pay the money directly to the council using either their online payment system or their automated telephone payment system.

    As regards fees, you have not been visited by them, so in my opinion you owe no fees whatsoever. If they have visited your parents' house once, it could possibly be argued that you owe the money for one visit which is the £24.50 mentioned. However, it would be for the bailiffs to pursue you for this amount. Given the distress caused to your parents (sorry, no pun intended!), I'd be inclined to write to the council's Head of Revenues and CEO stating that due to this distress you feel it only fair any lawful fees, if any exist, are waived and you will pay only the CT debt outstanding on the xxth Jan 2013.

    With regards to compensation, it would be for your father to pursue this, but as you have given no forwarding address, it is difficult to see where else the bailiffs might go. They definitely should not have carried out the unlawful levy, and he could potentially claim for this.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Bristow & sutor pulling a fast one!

      Thanks for such a quick reply that is a great help, i will give him the bailiffs number so he can show them the logbook for the car.

      Ok i will pay the money directly to the council rather than B&S, it is rather annoying that my ex is being so awkward about it but i am fed up of having anything to do with her and this is the easier option.

      That is good news that it seems i am only liable for the £24.50 charges but i will definatly be writing a letter to the head of revenues at the council, I will get on the case first thing monday and hopefully things will start moving in the right direction. I will speak to my old man about claiming for any compensation as he was very annoyed that they had issued a levy against the car. How much do you think this would be?

      Also i have checked the Govt website and it says that bailiffs must inform me in writing 2 weeks before the first visit which they didnt do, i suppose this is more ammunition to use against the attendance to levy fee of 24.50, or am i mistaken?

      Kieran.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Bristow & sutor pulling a fast one!

        Regarding the two weeks written notice I am not sure without reading the regulations. As for compensation, it is a case of how much 'consequential loss' your father suffered through not being able to use his vehicle, or for the upset caused for an invalid levy.

        Going back to your first post, I find the advice of the council questionable. There is no reason why they could not have agreed a repayment plan with you, thus saving you the problems you have encountered with the bailiffs. I think this should be mentioned in any letter you send, as it is, to my mind, unacceptable and purely a money generating enterprise for them. You need to balance against this that the bailiffs have acted surprisingly fairly towards you (levy excepted), by agreeing to a rescheduled payment plan. Normally one missed payment triggers intense enforcement activity and a refusal to agree to any further repayment plan. Your treatment has been a bit more encouraging, and nearer to what it should be, but still leaving something to be desired.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Bristow & sutor pulling a fast one!

          As the levy is invalid due to it being on a third party motor, all fees apart from a visit fee of £24.50 if it was the first visit, are void , as to the Levy fee £31
          Redemtion of goods fee (head H) £24.50, they can go whistle, both unlawful in the circumstances so must be removed.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Bristow & sutor pulling a fast one!

            Yea i agree they where quite fair with the first missed payment which did suprise me, i am just worried that the council will not accept payment and say that i have to go through B&S but we will see tomorrow when i give them a call, i may even go into the office and speak to somebody face to face as its only just up the road.

            I will update the thread tomorrow, after i have spoken to the council and bailiff hopefully there will be some good news and they accept my proposed payments of £30 tomorow and the remaining £200 at the end of the month when i get paid.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Bristow & sutor pulling a fast one!

              At the end of the day if you use the automated methods of payment, they can't refuse your payments. If you then use the same method to pay the rest at the end of the month they can't refuse that either.

              It would be nice to think they would call of the bailiffs when you make a proposal to settle things in full - some will, some won't. Good luck and let us know.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Bristow & sutor pulling a fast one!

                Hello guys, i have spoken to the council and informed them of my situation they have agreed to take payments of £30 and then a further £200 at the end of the month, i also spoke with B&S and they have said that there will only be a charge of 18.50 once they get the V5 details from the DVLA to confirm the vehicle does not belong to me.

                I checked that there will be no further visits from the bailiff and they confirmed this, the council have instructed them not to send a bailiff round again unless the last payment of £200 isnt made in time.

                Thanks for the help it is apreciated and hopefully i wont have anymore issues,

                Kieran.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Bristow & sutor pulling a fast one!

                  Excellent result - well done!

                  Comment

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