Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

[Little Miss]

I was fined for not having a TV license which I hold my hands up for and admit my guilt , money was tight and I was living hand to mouth and on income support as a single mother so couldn't afford it. I didn't attend court but was fined in my absence £200 and something pounds which came out in my income support each week, but when my child reached 5 years old my income support was changed over to jobseekers allowance and I noticed the payments stopped and so I assumed the court fine was paid.

However I received a letter from the courts 5 months later telling me that I still owed £90 and if I didn't pay it asap they were going to take further action, I was shocked to say the least because I thought the fined had all been paid off, so I phoned them immediately to see what was going on and was told that when my benefits got switched over, the payments had stopped. The lady proceeded to tell me that she could see on her screen that a notice was on the system notifying them of this benefit switch over and she didn't know why it hadn't been started back up again.

She said that she would send me a card and I am to pay £6 a week onto the card until the debt was paid off instead I paid £12 a week on the debt to make it go down quicker. Then I started university and so was not entitled to benefits anymore and had to sign off and student finance was delayed in paying me student finance so for a month I was living on borrowed money and hand to mouth, I contacted the courts at the start of December to notify them that I wouldn't be able to pay them anything till January, and I got a sent a distress warrant from Collectica Enforcement Services with an extra £309 added onto my £90 bill that I had left to pay.

To cut a long story short, 2 men have come to my house on 2 separate occasions with threatening letters and the last letter was a warning saying that this was my final warning and they will be round with a locksmith unannounced. I am living on tender hooks now that they will break into my home with a locksmith and take mines or my child's things, I am a poor student and a single mum living on the breadline, I don't get no financial help from my child's father and I don't have any parents or grandparents so there is no one I can lend the money from there's just me.

I also have a car which they are threatening to take even though its a TV License fine and not a car fine, but I need my car to get to uni on time for 9.10am after I drop my child off to school for 8.55am I wouldn't make it to uni till at least 10am if I had to give up my car to catch the bus the same at the end of my course which finishes at 3pm and my child's school at 3.10pm if I was on the bus I wouldn't get there till at least 4.15pm by then social services would be called, the other alternative is to get to uni an hour late and then leave an hour before the end missing out on 2 hours of valuable lessons, or to send my child to breakfast and after school club the full school week so I can get to uni by bus on time but its costly and I would hardly see my child I feel like they are ruining my life because they courts are saying they wont call off the bailiffs so that I only pay the £90 I owe instead of the £399 Collectica have imposed on me, does anyone know what else I can do???? please help!!!

[XuHi]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Hi Little Miss,

First thing I would do is ring the Courts and ask them exactly how much the Collectica fees should be. They should be able to tell you as I believe all Enforcement Services charge the same rates for their visits.

From what I can see on their website they should have only charged you £215 making the total fee payable £295 not £399 this is even outlined on there website at: http://www.collectica.co.uk/fees/

Remember they didn't have to trace you so the £85 fee doesn't apply. They were given your details from the courts.

Whilst on the phone confirm with them how much the fee payable to 'them' is. They should give you the original figure of £90. Whatever you do DON'T pay Collectica pay the fee directly to the Court. These dirty bailiff companies hold the funds till you have paid all their fees then pay the court. Effectively committing fraud!

Then you will obviously have Collectica chasing you to pay the fees they unlawfully charge to try enforce law :/ But the good news is they can't take goods from you just to recover their own costs. They'll have to take action against you themselves to get the money back as they have no Court Order.

Even then they would find it hard as it would be a Civil matter and County Court Bailiffs used in Civil matters have less powers and any Civil matter cannot lead to an arrest.

You can even refuse entry to a County Court Bailiff and they MUST listen.

Another alternative to the above would be simply to file an: Application Of Extension Of Time To Pay form located here:

https://www.courtsni.gov.uk/SiteColl...ion%20Form.pdf

Due to your mitigating circumstances I cannot find any reason why your application wouldn't be successful other than the fact that this is a criminal matter and I am not sure if the form applies to criminal cases.

Hope I helped.

Thanks, XuHi.

[ploddertom]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Remember they didn't have to trace you so the £85 fee doesn't apply. They were given your details from the courts.

Wrong, the £85 is an admin fee that they are allowed to charge when receiving instruction from HMCTS.

These dirty bailiff companies hold the funds till you have paid all their fees then pay the court. Effectively committing fraud!

How?

Another alternative to the above would be simply to file an: Application Of Extension Of Time To Pay form located here:

https://www.courtsni.gov.uk/SiteColl...ion%20Form.pdf

That is for Northern Ireland and doesn't apply to England & Wales

PTPT

[Sir Vere Brayne d'Emmidge]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Hi Little Miss,

First thing I would do is ring the Courts and ask them exactly how much the Collectica fees should be. They should be able to tell you as I believe all Enforcement Services charge the same rates for their visits.

From what I can see on their website they should have only charged you £215 making the total fee payable £295 not £399 this is even outlined on there website at: http://www.collectica.co.uk/fees/

Remember they didn't have to trace you so the £85 fee doesn't apply. They were given your details from the courts.

You are ever so wrong, the "compliance fee" of £85 is applied immediately the warrant is issued, then if the defaulter does not pay at "letter stage" and an enforcement agent has to attend the defaulter's address to remind them of the fine a further £215 is added, immaterial of how many visits are required to satisfy the Warrant.

Whilst on the phone confirm with them how much the fee payable to 'them' is. They should give you the original figure of £90. Whatever you do DON'T pay Collectica pay the fee directly to the Court. These dirty bailiff companies hold the funds till you have paid all their fees then pay the court. Effectively committing fraud!

Wrongest possible advice you can give, the criminal procedure rules are as cleas as as christal:

(5)
The warrant no longer has effect if—
(a)
there is paid to the person executing it the sum for which it was issued and any extra sum payable in connection with its execution;

Then you will obviously have Collectica chasing you to pay the fees they unlawfully charge to try enforce law :/ But the good news is they can't take goods from you just to recover their own costs. They'll have to take action against you themselves to get the money back as they have no Court Order.

See above

Even then they would find it hard as it would be a Civil matter and County Court Bailiffs used in Civil matters have less powers and any Civil matter cannot lead to an arrest.

It is not a civil matter, but a criminal one, and since the fees are part and parcel of the warrant that neds to be satisfied this will apply:

Entry to levy distress
3 (1) An authorised officer may enter and search any premises for the
purpose of executing a warrant of distress issued under section 76
of this Act for default in paying a sum adjudged to be paid by a
conviction.

Use of force
5 An authorised officer may use reasonable force, if necessary, in the
exercise of a power conferred on him by this Schedule.



You can even refuse entry to a County Court Bailiff and they MUST listen.

A bailiff enforcing a Distress Warrant is not for the CountyCourt, but a Magistrates Court, one can not refuse entry to a Magistrates Court bailiff executing a Distress warrant, if you do they, can and will, use a locksmith to access premises and the cost is chargeable to the defaulter (approximately £150.00) plus any other cost to make the premises secure after the bailiff has left.

Another alternative to the above would be simply to file an: Application Of Extension Of Time To Pay form located here:

https://www.courtsni.gov.uk/SiteColl...ion%20Form.pdf

Due to your mitigating circumstances I cannot find any reason why your application wouldn't be successful other than the fact that this is a criminal matter and I am not sure if the form applies to criminal cases.

Hope I helped.

It surely did not

Thanks, XuHi.

I understand that you are a student, if you read law then I strongly suggest you do your research properly, if you read any other subject then take your time before you end up putting your big boot in your mouth!

[Sir Vere Brayne d'Emmidge]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

I was fined for not having a TV license which I hold my hands up for and admit my guilt , money was tight and I was living hand to mouth and on income support as a single mother so couldn't afford it. I didn't attend court but was fined in my absence £200 and something pounds which came out in my income support each week, but when my child reached 5 years old my income support was changed over to jobseekers allowance and I noticed the payments stopped and so I assumed the court fine was paid.

However I received a letter from the courts 5 months later telling me that I still owed £90 and if I didn't pay it asap they were going to take further action, I was shocked to say the least because I thought the fined had all been paid off, so I phoned them immediately to see what was going on and was told that when my benefits got switched over, the payments had stopped. The lady proceeded to tell me that she could see on her screen that a notice was on the system notifying them of this benefit switch over and she didn't know why it hadn't been started back up again.

She said that she would send me a card and I am to pay £6 a week onto the card until the debt was paid off instead I paid £12 a week on the debt to make it go down quicker. Then I started university and so was not entitled to benefits anymore and had to sign off and student finance was delayed in paying me student finance so for a month I was living on borrowed money and hand to mouth, I contacted the courts at the start of December to notify them that I wouldn't be able to pay them anything till January, and I got a sent a distress warrant from Collectica Enforcement Services with an extra £309 added onto my £90 bill that I had left to pay.

To cut a long story short, 2 men have come to my house on 2 separate occasions with threatening letters and the last letter was a warning saying that this was my final warning and they will be round with a locksmith unannounced. I am living on tender hooks now that they will break into my home with a locksmith and take mines or my child's things, I am a poor student and a single mum living on the breadline, I don't get no financial help from my child's father and I don't have any parents or grandparents so there is no one I can lend the money from there's just me.

I also have a car which they are threatening to take even though its a TV License fine and not a car fine, but I need my car to get to uni on time for 9.10am after I drop my child off to school for 8.55am I wouldn't make it to uni till at least 10am if I had to give up my car to catch the bus the same at the end of my course which finishes at 3pm and my child's school at 3.10pm if I was on the bus I wouldn't get there till at least 4.15pm by then social services would be called, the other alternative is to get to uni an hour late and then leave an hour before the end missing out on 2 hours of valuable lessons, or to send my child to breakfast and after school club the full school week so I can get to uni by bus on time but its costly and I would hardly see my child I feel like they are ruining my life because they courts are saying they wont call off the bailiffs so that I only pay the £90 I owe instead of the £399 Collectica have imposed on me, does anyone know what else I can do???? please help!!!

Welcome to the forum little miss,

First things first, the bailiffs can not take anything that belongs to a child or is used solely by a child.

They can not take your clothes (but "real" fur coats can be levied upon) bedding and virtually everything that one might find in today's kitchens, exept for a tumble dryer, a dishwasher and a microwave if you have a main oven, and they must be freestanding not built in.

They must leave a table and as many chairs as household occupants.

The levy must cover the value of the warrant, depending on the value of your car that might be taken, but it realistically has to fetch a minimum of £2,000 at auction before a bailiff will even entertain calling a tow truck.

When it comes to everything else, whatever the cost to replace them, like for like, would be, they will only realize 10-20% at an auction, so a £2500 Panasonic Viera 60" all singing and dancing TV might, on a good day go for £400/500 of which 17% is payable to the auctioneer, a 3 piece real leather sweete puchased for £2500 might fetch between £200/250, anf again less 17%.....people are funny about used furniture.

Second thing, if you are still on benefits you are to be considered a vulnerable case, so the bailiff has three options:

1). If there you own sufficent goods to be seized and sold at auction to pay for the warrant they will take those.
2). If there aren't sufficient goods they can return the warrant to Court saying that the warrant can not be enforced because there is nothing of value to seize.
3). They might decide to discuss with you a payment plan on their terms, bearing in mind that the warrant must be satisfied within 365 days of it's issue. In some cases less, depending on the contract between a specific HMCTS and the Bailiff Company.

Third thing, if you are working, but there are insufficient goods to be taken, then it's up to you to discuss with the bailiff a payment plan, but be aware that it can be quite harsh financially, but whatever happens do not agree to a weekly/monthly figure that you know you can not afford, but be prepared to forgo any type of luxury for the duration of the payment plan, and perhaps giving up some habits and choose a cheaper supermarket to do your shopping in, like give up Waitrose (other expensive supermarkets are available) and go to Aldi (other cheap supermarkets are available).

Fourth thing, don't panic!

[bizzybob]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Looks like OP is totally reliant on Student Finance, as in grant and loan, and fell victim to the usual Studenf Finance muppetry as in seriously delayed payments Sir Vere, so the only steady income would be Child Benefit, and any Housing Benefit Llittle Miss may be entitled to.

Could you confirm if that is the case please Little Miss?

[teaboy2]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Hi Little Miss,

First thing I would do is ring the Courts and ask them exactly how much the Collectica fees should be. They should be able to tell you as I believe all Enforcement Services charge the same rates for their visits.

From what I can see on their website they should have only charged you £215 making the total fee payable £295 not £399 this is even outlined on there website at: http://www.collectica.co.uk/fees/

Remember they didn't have to trace you so the £85 fee doesn't apply. They were given your details from the courts.

Whilst on the phone confirm with them how much the fee payable to 'them' is. They should give you the original figure of £90. Whatever you do DON'T pay Collectica pay the fee directly to the Court. These dirty bailiff companies hold the funds till you have paid all their fees then pay the court. Effectively committing fraud!

Then you will obviously have Collectica chasing you to pay the fees they unlawfully charge to try enforce law :/ But the good news is they can't take goods from you just to recover their own costs. They'll have to take action against you themselves to get the money back as they have no Court Order.

Even then they would find it hard as it would be a Civil matter and County Court Bailiffs used in Civil matters have less powers and any Civil matter cannot lead to an arrest.

You can even refuse entry to a County Court Bailiff and they MUST listen.

Another alternative to the above would be simply to file an: Application Of Extension Of Time To Pay form located here:

https://www.courtsni.gov.uk/SiteColl...ion%20Form.pdf

Due to your mitigating circumstances I cannot find any reason why your application wouldn't be successful other than the fact that this is a criminal matter and I am not sure if the form applies to criminal cases.

Hope I helped.

Thanks, XuHi.

XuHi - With all due respect, please refrain from giving legal advice on areas of law you clearly know little about.

This is serious stuff, there is no place for ill informed advice driven by your own personal conspiracy theory of one rule for the rich and another for the poor, which became clear to me and no doubt others in your own thread where you yourself were seeking advice on court bailiffs and didn't think you should have to pay the fine for speeding because you felt it was to high!

Giving wrong advice can lead to serious consequences for people who end up listening to such wrong and advice. I know your trying to help, but for now, leave it to those who know their stuff.

[Little Miss]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Thank you everybody very much for replying, I really do appreciate it!!

sorry my reply has taken so long, I've been snowed under with so much assignments that I haven't had the time to get back to you.
I might aswell tell you what has happened since I last wrote this post.

Well the fine was passed on to Marstons bailiffs and these animals showed no mercy whatsoever and added an extra £399 onto the fine them selves, I was out of my mind with worry and was advised to keep my car locked away out of sight somewhere. I was also advised to display a notice of removal of implied right of access by my front door.

But a bailiff by the name of Warren Donnelly came to my house almost every other day, banging off the door, staring in through the living room window and banging it off too and shouting threats out to me, I was very frightened and he wouldn't go away. He'd sit outside my house for up to half an hour each time and I think its because he knew I was a single mother living alone with a child so was easy target for him.

Then he did something I think all car owners should take heed of, all of a sudden he just stopped coming to my house and so I thought that the 'notice of removal of implied access' had worked.
Also I went to the courts and they wouldn't let me pay the £99 they claimed I owed, they kept on saying its nothing to do with us now its in the hands of Marstons, even though I tried to explain that it was my financial situation at the time that prevented me from paying them. So on the advice of someone, I paid it into the machines and it was accepted.

I received a letter a few days latter saying the money I had paid had been accepted but it was still a matter belonging to Marstons now and that they would pass this money onto Marstons.
I was informed by a friend that once the principle debt had been paid off ( what I owed the courts) then the bailiffs could no longer chase me for any money as the original debt had been settled, so after not seeing the bailiff for nearly 3 weeks I thought it was all sorted and started parking my car back outside my home again...BIG MISTAKE!!!!:fear:
Because one day whilst getting my child ready for school and myself to go uni, I just so happened to look out the window and got the shock and fright of my life. There was the same bailiff Warren Donnelly parked outside and my vehicle had been clamped, I went outside to plead with him that I need it for the school run, my principle debt had been paid off so I owe him nothing, I had a notice of removal of implied right of access but he was having none of it saying that the tow truck was on its way.

He laughed at the notice of implied right of access saying its not worth the paper its written on, so I tried a different tactic, I tried to ask him to allow me to pay it in instalments but again he said no, he wants it all right now and he'll give me an hour I felt so helpless!!!
To cut a long story short he sat outside in his van constantly knocking the door telling me I only had half an hour left to find the money, then 15minutes, then 10 minutes and then after the hour went by, he knocked my door to tell me that another £100 was now added to the debt.

In the end I ended up paying Warren Donnelly of Marstons bailiffs nearly £500 for a £99 debt I'd already paid off just to get my car back. I'm so angry right now even typing this is making me so angry that they are allowed to rob people like this with the law on their side, obviously he knew I didn't know the law and what was legal or not and took advantage of that. Now I plan to get all the help and knowledge I can so that this never EVER happens to me again and I can advice other people going through this.

[Milo]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Little Miss,

Thank you so much for updating this thread regarding your problem with Collectica/Marston.

It is such a shame that you took notice of the bad advice from a 'friend' to put a Notice of Removal of Implied Right of Access at your front door and secondly, to pay the amount of the fine only into the HMCS 'drop box'. Such 'advice' is commonly given out by internet sites that support the Freeman on the Land (and other such movements) and not surprisingly, are seen by enforcement companies as tactics designed to evade paying bailiff fees.

Almost daily reports are now being seen on forums where courts are advising debtors that they cannot accept payment once a warrant has been issued and that if payment has been made into the 'dropbox' that letters are received from the courts advising that the payment has been forwarded to the enforcement company.

You state that after the experience of having to pay the bailiff that you now plan to get all the help and knowledge you can to help others that may be going through the same problem.

By far the best advice is firstly never to allow a TV Enquiry Agent into your home. This is perfectly legal.

Next, if you receive a summons....reply to it and provide the court with a completed Income & Expenditure. The fine will then be set at a rate that is affordable.

Also, in your case you need to find out why you had not received an initial letter from Collectica. The bailiff fees at that time (March 2014) should have been £85.

[Sir Vere Brayne d'Emmidge]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

I am sorry to say that you came to this forum to get advice, you did not heed any of it and you ended up paying more money than you shold have done.

May this thread be a warning to anyone who thinks that Enforcement Agents will turn around and walk away if they see a "right of access removed" notice, oddly enough it just spurs them on to be less reasonable than they might have been if not rubbed the wrong way up!

[Milo]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Well the fine was passed on to Marstons bailiffs and these animals showed no mercy whatsoever and added an extra £399 onto the fine them selves, I was out of my mind with worry and was advised to keep my car locked away out of sight somewhere. I was also advised to display a notice of removal of implied right of access by my front door.



In the end I ended up paying Warren Donnelly of Marstons bailiffs nearly £500 for a £99 debt I'd already paid off just to get my car back.

There appears to be some errors with the figures qutoted by you.

You have said above that before displaying the notice or taking the payment to the court that Marston's had added £399 to the account "for themselves". Given that this debt was before the new regulations came into effect on 6th April the fees at that time were £85 when sending a letter and £215 for making a personal visit making a total of £300. The fine amount was £99 making a total of £399. As mentioned above, you need to make enquiries as to why you had not received an initial letter.

You then say that you ended up paying the individual bailiff (Warren Donnelly) £500. This does not seem right at all and you need to find out why you were asked to pay this much. The correct figure should have been £300.

[Amethyst]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

To cut a long story short he sat outside in his van constantly knocking the door telling me I only had half an hour left to find the money, then 15minutes, then 10 minutes and then after the hour went by, he knocked my door to tell me that another £100 was now added to the debt.

This appears to be the additional £100 to bring the amount to nigh on £500.

[wales01man]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Sound advice from the last 2 posters. The easiest way to avoid any Bailiff fees is to pay the fine once its set by a Court putting silly notices on doors and calling Bailiffs names does not make the fine and fees go away.

My only problem is with Bailiffs who bend the rules and charge excessive unlawful fees no need for this there are other ways to pay a fine but the Courts need information before a Bailiff gets involved.
As much as we hate the Bailiff system until its reformed anyone dealing with them needs to know they are acting within the law until they stray from this nothing makes them go away if THEY want their money

[rds60h]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Something any of those who have given advice have omitted to state is that the OP should have received a "Further Steps Notice" from the Fines Officer before initiating a Distress Warrant.

"Before any enforcement action can be taken to recover the debt, the Fines Officer is under a legal obligation to abide by the Courts Act 2003 and to issue a Further Steps Notice. This will be sent to the address on the court file. The Further Steps Notice is a legal document advising the amount that is outstanding and providing details of one or more ‘steps’ that will be taken against you if the amount stated is not paid in full within the strict time frame outlined in the Further Steps Notice (10 working days) from the date given on the Notice."

If I am right in assuming that the OP did not receive the Further Steps Notice then I believe the OP should now contact the Court and point out that the proper and legal procedure has not been adhered to and therefore all other costs other than the original outstanding fine should be reimbursed.

[Milo]

Re: Collectica Enforcement Services are trying to ruin my life help!!!!!!

Something any of those who have given advice have omitted to state is that the OP should have received a "Further Steps Notice" from the Fines Officer before initiating a Distress Warrant.

If I am right in assuming that the OP did not receive the Further Steps Notice then I believe the OP should now contact the Court and point out that the proper and legal procedure has not been adhered to and therefore all other costs other than the original outstanding fine should be reimbursed.

If you read the initial post from the OP she states that she had not attended the hearing and that she had been fined £200 in her absence. She therefore would have known of the amount of the fine from the Notice of Fine & Collection Order.

At the start of paragraph two she then states that he received another letter from the courts 5 months later telling her that she still owed £90 and that if she did not pay the amount asap that the court would take further action. The only statutory notice that the court are required to send if the account is in default is a Further Steps Notice and accordingly, the letter that she received would have been the FSN.