Social Housing Reposession Order Validity

[Guest]

You have asked for comment on the existing Possession Order. That is impossible as you have not posted up the Possession Order that you have requested the court to vary from a, presumably, outright Order to a suspended Order.

This is my dilemma, I have never received any papers from the court advising that the Council have been awarded possession. In the previous court hearing a verbal declaration was made by the judge, but nothing written has ever been presented to me.

I have raised £6000 to clear the majority of the arrears which will leave £461. On my next pay day (19th Nov) arrears will be just over £800 which I have advised I can clear that balance in full and start making regular advance payments again.

I asked my advisor to liaise with the council as I do not want to engage with them as they have always been difficult. I asked if I was able to pay the arrears in full would they cancel the court case, it seems because I asked that they are now threatening if I don't pay all of the court costs as well as the owed rent, they will add another £391 courts costs at the next hearing. As it stands now, this is what my advisor has informed me the council are demanding: -


What I understand this to mean is:

1. if you were to pay £6461.67+£875.50= £7337.17 before 15 November (and commit to paying the future weeks on 19 Nov) then he would definitely not ask for the £391 extra and would withdraw the case on the day.

B) If you were to pay £6461.67 he would ask the judge to adjourn the case so he could potentially bring it back in future if you were not to make future regular rent payments and the future court costs could still be a possibility. My understanding is the £391 would not be immediately charged (worth clarifying). £875.50 would still remain on your account, but it is not clear whether WDC would push to recover it if you continued to make regular rent payments.

I believe the council’s demand for additional court costs after the rent arrears were settled feels like an overreach.”

Can anyone provide info on the court costs. I was of the understanding that court costs are not a priority debt, and they form no part of the rent account. This feels like blackmail to me.