please please please help..re bristow and sutor

[ems]

Hi there i have got myself into a mess and doint know which way to turn. i have outstanding council tax for a property i lived in between june 2002 and sept 2005. had no information re this until bailiffs turned up.. stupidly i let them in wanting to sort the problem and agreed a payment plan and yes like an idiot signed the walk in possession order..all was well untill i was late with a payment got a phone call demanding payment and was told the least i could pay was 100 a month (the original payment been 20) me and my husband are on benefits i agreed over the phone and last month paid.. on Tuesday i got a bailiff at my door from bristow and sutor saying i have defaulted and now have to pay 500 by tomorrow or they will take my property. I explained i am paying and it turns out the person company i am paying is newlyn but i have no paperwork from them at all.. i do not feel i owe all if any of the monies owed which i am currently dealing with..i have no problem paying what i owe but do not have 500 for tomorrow.. I have phoned national debt line who have said to just not answer the door tomorrow while i get a payment plan sorted....can they obtain entry if i do not answer if they can whats the likelihood they will the property they levied was a microwave our sofa TV and computer all second hand and won't raise the 500 let alone full cost they say we owe of 1200 help please

[ploddertom]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

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

[ploddertom]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

Even if they turn up again you do not have to let them in. They may huff & puff and issue all sorts of threats including forcing entry but in reality they need the permission of their Client - the Council - and also an Order from the Court. When you speak to the Council also ask them who your local Councillor(s) is/are, contact them by phone ASAP and ask they intervene on your behalf - if only to put the Bailiffs on hold until you can sort out who you owe what to.

You say they have a levy and have said some goods so far, are there any more items listed? Do they have more than 1 levy?

[ems]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

No to my knowledge its just the one sheet, what they have on is sofa tv microwave and computer they were very nice when they were around to do the levy in the fiirst instance and didnt add any of the kids stuff. I have been in touch with the council who were very unhelpful but have said they will send me copies of all the statements...what concerns me is that they are saying my husband is liable for a period after we moved and it is that one where we are due a visit for today.

The council i used to live in is walsall i am now in south tyneside .

I intend to sort it i just need to get past today then i can come out fighting and get it sorted..

Thank you for the replies it has put my mind to rest slightly just want want them breaking in and scaring my 9 and 6 year old kids

Ems

[ploddertom]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

Moving to your levy and the items it contains:
Sofa - how old is it, does it still have its labels on - if older than say 18 months & the labels missing it could not be removed for sale as they would fall foul of the Regulations concerning sale of second hand furniture. If it were to be removed would you still have sufficient seating for each member of the household.
Microwave - how old is it, is it a top of the range model or a £30 job from Asda/Tesco
Computer - is that how it is listed? Or have they listed different items that make it up?

Am I reading this as your OH being responsible for Liability Order before you married or moved in together. If so then they can only seize goods belonging solely to him. Do you know how much was owed originally? Have you asked for a breakdown of the fees charged? If not then choose Letter 1 from http://www.legalbeagles.info/forums/...Useful-Letters , you should send initially by email followed by a copy in the post.

[ems]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

no its after we met and after we moved out, we are not sure if we are dealing with identity fraud or something but are pretty sure he is not liable we are trying to find out, sofa was second hand when we got it and we have had it two years doint think labels are on now, we would have dinning room chairs but that would be it, microwave is 12 years old and was not an expensive one PC was listed as that a PC and it is not a brand name my husband has built it himself, would be worth more broken down into separate parts,

having said all this it is now 20:40 and there has been a few knocks but thats it....now the fun starts trying to get this whole mess sorted.......me and my oh are on income based jsa.. what i doint understand is how come we have 6 accounts 2 with bristow and sutor and 4 with newlyn when we only lived there from 06/02 to 09/05 so that is 4 at the very most anad for at least 2.5 of those years we we re on full ctb ? Walsall council are being no help accusing me of lying and not giving me any information saying its with the baylif..they did agree to send me the bills they produced but that was Tuesday have not received anything from them but got statements from newlyn and my info from national debt line.. I will give benefit of the doubt until Monday but will call back and will not allow myself to be bullied... I do want to point out that I have absolutely every intention to pay money i owe but want to know i def owe it first...am i right in this? how would i get the council / can i get council to take case back it would be so much easier paying the council not two different debt collectors namely newlyn and bristow and sutor.

I also feel that newlyn are saying we have a levy when we doint i only recall allowing the people from bristow and sutor in and until today had no paperwork from them ( them being newlyn) so i am pretty sure they cant have a walk in possession order against us but there is a fee for levy on each of the accounts. also can they charge a visit fee for each account ?

phew sorry about all that

thx for help

Ems

[bluebottle]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

Hi Ems,

Walsall Council do need to smarten their act up and cut out the "We schoolgirls stick together" number with Bristow & Sutor and Newlyns.

As Ploddertom states, the sofa could not be sold as it does not comply with Furniture Safety Regs. The computer would not, in my considered judgement, be saleable if your OH built it himself. It would have to be PAT-tested for electrical safety before it could be sold, if at all. If items such as monitor, scanner are branded items, then, possibly, they might be saleable, but would probably have to be PAT-tested. You shouldn't worry about PAT-testing; that's the bailiff's problem, especially if they try to sell it without proof it has been tested for electrical safety as Trading Standards will jump on them. That's why a lot of smaller charity shops no longer sell electrical items. PAT-testing is not cheap.

[ploddertom]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

My interpretation of what you have said leads me to say that the levy they have taken is invalid and I would argue that the Bailiff only made a levy to gain a financial advantage for himself and his Company. It should have been returned to the Council as Nulla Bono - insufficient goods. In my opinion you should be asking for the levy and all associated charges to be removed and replaced by a Visit Fee if applicable. Have you enquired what I stated in Post 2.

[ems]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

I have got some of that information from newlyns I think there are a few extra things to ask them again and not from bristow and sutor as yet as i was to concerned about keeping my kids out the way today but that will be the first thing on my agenda tomorrow, will write and ask for all the info from both companies....newlyn really scared me on the phone and all this problem started becasue i thought they were bristow and sutor as I was late with a payment from them so agreed to the 100 as i new bristow etc had the walk in possesion....it now turns out that two different balifs are dealing with cases and i have messed up and am now in trouble with B&S ....i just wish i could pay to walsall but when i called on wednesday the man was very unhelpfull saying things like im only calling becasue of the baylifs and i have no intention of paying...they wouldnt answer my questions and left me feeling about 2 inches tall :-( i know been on benefits i can ask for it just to be taken from our jsa at 3.40 a week but i do want to pay this of

Ems

[wales01man]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

I hope someone on here can help yu make a formal complaint to the council concerning the way one of their employees treated you on the phone im throughly disgusting

[wales01man]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

I hope someone on here can help yu make a formal complaint to the council concerning the way one of their employees treated you on the phone im throughly disgusted

[bluebottle]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

99% of certificated bailiffs all share a single brain cell and it is often difficult for anyone, including themselves, to work out whose turn it is to have the brain cell.

I'll deal with Newlyns' threatening telephone calls first . Here, you have Section 3, Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and Section 127, Communications Act 2003 you can use to curb their threats. With the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, you can obtain a "without notice" injunction from your local County Court that can restrain not only the bailiffs, but Walsall Council as well. However, within three working days of being granted the injunction, you must submit a claim against the bailiff companies and the council for any anxiety you have suffered as a result of their conduct. Your local Law Centre can provide you with free legal advice as to how to go about this. I am attaching a Form PF39CH which you should print off and take to the Law Centre for advice on completion. I would also be inclined to write to the CEO of Walsall Council and ask them to intervene and explain just what the hell is going on and who is supposed to be doing what. You certainly need to ask the questions Ploddertom has listed in Post #2.

[ploddertom]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

I have got some of that information from newlyns I think there are a few extra things to ask them again and not from bristow and sutor as yet as i was to concerned about keeping my kids out the way today but that will be the first thing on my agenda tomorrow, will write and ask for all the info from both companies....newlyn really scared me on the phone and all this problem started becasue i thought they were bristow and sutor as I was late with a payment from them so agreed to the 100 as i new bristow etc had the walk in possesion....it now turns out that two different balifs are dealing with cases and i have messed up and am now in trouble with B&S ....i just wish i could pay to walsall but when i called on wednesday the man was very unhelpfull saying things like im only calling becasue of the baylifs and i have no intention of paying...they wouldnt answer my questions and left me feeling about 2 inches tall :-( i know been on benefits i can ask for it just to be taken from our jsa at 3.40 a week but i do want to pay this of

Ems

You need the information from the Council first not the Bailiffs! From the Bailiffs you need a breakdown of their fees - Letter 1 from http://www.legalbeagles.info/forums/...Useful-Letters and send initially by email followed by a copy in the post.

[ems]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

thx to you all for your help that is job one and two for me to sort, will get e-mail sent to council if i can find the details and a letter, i will deal with newlyn as well i realized my mistake re information for council last night on re-reading post sorry been a bit fraught...i am calm now and coming out fighting.

ems

[ploddertom]

Re: please please please help..re bristow and sutor

You can seek the info from the Council via the phone as it is the quickest method. Don't beat yourself up over this, most of us here have been in the same or similar positions previously. Most important thing to remember is that if the Bailiff calls do NOT allow him entry regardless of any threats he may make.