illegal removal by newlyn bailiff

[martintobin]

Hi, hope someone can help.....
Briefly, lived in a property for 3 years, when i moved there was £109 council tax outstanding unbeknown to myself (hands up my error). 2 years later recieve letter from bailiff demanding £469.. When queried i was advised its for council tax. Contacted local council and when confirmed that i in fact owed £109 + £125 in summons cost totalling £234. This i paid immediately to the council. 3 months later i recieve another letter from bailiff demanding £225 in council tax. after querying this i'm told its for their bailiff fees. i disputed this with them and heard no more until 2 months later they attended my property and removed two vehicles worth over £2000 to recover there costs.... Although cab , national debt helpline and local MP all agree this was illegal i seem to be facing a brick wall with any action to recover the vehicles.

if possible could someone please advise of a possible course of action
Many thanks

[Amy]

Re: illegal removal by newlyn bailiff

Are you absolutely certain this debt is paid in full to the council other than the bailiff fees?

Do they still have the vehicles or have they been sold?

[martintobin]

Re: illegal removal by newlyn bailiff

Hi, absolutely paid in full. I have a letter from the council confirming debt was paid in full in May 2010 and a nil balance on the account. Vehicles were removed on 23 November 2010. i have now recieved a letter from the bailiff solicitor claiming that they were legally allowed to remove the vehicles, if i pursue a form 4 complaint against the bailiff they will vigourosly defend it and pursue me for costs and they would now like £705.30 plus £30 per day storage since november 23rd. now totaling £705.30 bailiff fees plus £1590 storage fee= £2295.30. Newlyn's solicitor letter was also sent to my local MP who has now decided on the strength of their solicitors letter to wash his hands of this and advised me to pay !!!!!! wow truly unbelievable..

[wiccaqueen]

Re: illegal removal by newlyn bailiff

did you ever receive a notice of seizure of goods and inventory listing the cars levied

did you receive a removal notice when they removed the cars

the council cant remove themselves from this they are fully responsible for all bailiff actions

send the bailiff company a subject access request

[Amy]

Re: illegal removal by newlyn bailiff

I would agree that you need to send a Subject Access Request to the bailiffs.

Were you ever visited by the bailiffs prior to the removal of the vehicles? Did they leave you any paperwork? If so, what paperwork did they leave you? Did they leave you any details of what fees had been applied and why?

These are very important questions because bailiff fees for unpaid council tax are completely different from other bailiff fees in that the fees are subtracted from the total amount of the liability order before any payment of actual council tax is applied.

This means that if they legitimately did visit you twice (this is the maximum number of visits permitted) and you only paid what was due in council tax, then the liability order is still live and outstanding by £42.50. However, the bailiffs in this case are claiming an outstanding amount of £225 and we need to know specifically what this amount relates to.

[martintobin]

Re: illegal removal by newlyn bailiff

yes i recieved a removal notice when they removed the cars with the car registration numbers handwritten on the paper.
yes i was visited prior to this once by a bailiff. there were no cars at my house at the time and i spoke to the bailiff outside. no paperwork was handed to me then, just a threat that he would break in! i have recieved several letters through the post from the bailiffs, each one a removal notice demanding £459. i have stated to both council and bailiff that i was prepared to pay £42.50 but not other charges. in the letter i have recieved from their solicitor it details their charges.
24.50 first visit 25th february
18.00 second visit 10th March
183.00 third vist to levy distress on vehicle parked on my road apparently, not my car as it wasn't there then. 12th March

i might add i am also disputing the other visits.
am in process of sending an sar now.. many thanks for your comments

[wiccaqueen]

Re: illegal removal by newlyn bailiff

24.50 first visit 25th February
18.00 second visit 10th March
183.00 third vist to levy distress on vehicle parked on my road apparently, not my car as it wasn't there then. 12th March

did they give the date of the levy visit

working on the assumption that your outstanding liability (for bailiff visits) is £42.50 this incur a levy fee of £24.50 not £183 (there will be a van/attendance fee added the same day not allowed)

a copy of the notice of distress levying the vehicle not belonging to you should be included and don't forget they levied one vehicle but removed two

I think you have a very strong case and think you will have to take the bailiff firm to court for the SAR because they will be very reluctant to send it

Have you started a Formal complaint with your council

don't forget to send everything recorded deliver and keep proof of postage

[Amy]

Re: illegal removal by newlyn bailiff

If they have levied on a vehicle owned by somebody unrelated to this debt then the levy is illegal and should be removed immediately.

If I were you, I would write to your council and if you need any help with this I will help you, pointing out everything that is wrong with this and demand that they help you ascertain from the bailiffs (while you wait for the SAR) exactly what the fees are for and how much they are for. You cannot be expected to pay these fees until and unless you know what they are.

The National Standard for Enforcement Agents states the following: “Enforcement agents will on each and every occasion when a visit is made to a debtor's property which incurs a fee for the debtor, leave a notice detailing the fees charged to date, including the one for that visit, and the fees which will be incurred if further action becomes necessary. If a written request is made an itemised account of fees will be provided. “

Add a paragraph to your letter telling the council that if you are forced to sue for the return of your vehicles that you will be naming the council as a second defendant and will be claiming costs against them. Put a deadline on the letter that they must respond by, as wiccaqueen says - it is not acceptable that the council can simply wash their hands of this.