Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

[MissFM]

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

Yep, and some on here argue 'tough'.

I think you're mistaken there - no-one condones it, particularly - but if that's how it is in practice then it's stupid to pretend otherwise, particularly if that would land people seeking support in further financial shite

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

That is still side-stepping the question. Would that payment have been made following the direct actions of enforcement? Not "made after enforcement began" as the man had no knowledge of enforcement - could you argue that enforcement made him pay?

You miss the point. You don't have to argue enforcement made him pay. The issue is were the fees lawfully applied? The answer would be yes. However, and I think this was what you mistook to be a glib comment, I would hope someone would intervene on the person's behalf before it got to this stage, thus minimising fees or stopping them altogether. Failing that, I hope someone would try to challenge the fees in the case you painted to try to get them removed.

[wales01man]

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

A Question?
When a Council sends out the final demand or the LO is obtained do they state in writing what may happen if the debt is not paid.
When a CCJ claim is threatned by a Creditor or solicitor or in a LBA it normally states what happens if the debt is not paid and a CCJ is granted

[Kati]

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

Just for the record ... My dealings with bailiffs and CT meant that the first I knew of EA involvement was once they knocked at the door. The council recalled the debt after my appeal and paid the bailiffs themselves! If the debtor is informed beforehand then the £75 should be paid by them ... even if they had ignored previous letters.

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

Is that the legal position?

Yep, and some on here argue 'tough'.

[MissFM]

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

That is still side-stepping the question. Would that payment have been made following the direct actions of enforcement? Not "made after enforcement began" as the man had no knowledge of enforcement - could you argue that enforcement made him pay?

A valid point - I think that the "debtor" would have had to be made aware both that the "debt" was to be passed to EAs (with an opportunity to acknowledge and make arrangements to pay) and also that the first stage (failing a result from the above) had then been entered into (thus incurring the £75) - otherwise it's totally unfair.

Is that the legal position?

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

Sorry, only just back on here. I'm sorry you found my comments glib, but they were what they were. I would argue that the payment would have been made as part of the enforcement process. It is true in the example you gave. I don't think there were any glib comments - if I went into hospital, I would hope my Council Tax and bills would continue to be paid if not covered by direct debits.

I'm not necessarily saying it's right, but it's certainly better than what there was before as is witnessed by the fall in numbers across all forums.

That is still side-stepping the question. Would that payment have been made following the direct actions of enforcement? Not "made after enforcement began" as the man had no knowledge of enforcement - could you argue that enforcement made him pay?

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

The law will be clarified somewhat in coming months which should help. :tinysmile_twink_t2:

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

Honestly, doubleslap2, you would try the patience of a saint - and even here they are in short supply :hand::lever:

I'm just waiting for someone, anyone, to show where it says in any legislation that if you pay the council direct, they are legally bound to pass on any money to the bailiff. No-one has. There has been plenty of comments along the lines of 'it's clear in the legislation', 'it's all there for you to read', 'it's what happens', but nobody has managed to quote the exact legislation.

[Kati]

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

Nice idea Kati - but...(not meaning to be a bad fairy) ...a poll is not necessarily going to give an accurate interpretation of the law, which is pretty crucial for people needing definitive advice... :tinysmile_hmm_t2: xx

I'm not meaning for people to look at for advice ... I'm just thinking it might stop a LONG drawn out argument over the wording of the legislation that will take time to wade through :lol:

No offence taken by the way xxx

[MissFM]

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

I'm certainly not a saint @MissFM ... nice as I may seem :tinysmile_twink_t2:

While I agree that a little argument MAY be ok, sometimes (as adults) we have to agree to disagree. I cannot see us all ever agreeing on this, so why not have a poll instead (I'll get one sorted out tomorrow if everyone agrees)??

Kxx

Nice idea Kati - but...(not meaning to be a bad fairy) ...a poll is not necessarily going to give an accurate interpretation of the law, which is pretty crucial for people needing definitive advice... :tinysmile_hmm_t2: xx

[Kati]

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

Honestly, doubleslap2, you would try the patience of a saint - and even here they are in short supply :hand::lever:

I'm certainly not a saint [MENTION=37303]MissFM[/MENTION] ... nice as I may seem :tinysmile_twink_t2:

While I agree that a little argument MAY be ok, sometimes (as adults) we have to agree to disagree. I cannot see us all ever agreeing on this, so why not have a poll instead (I'll get one sorted out tomorrow if everyone agrees)??

Kxx

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

So what does it cover? A bailiff sends a letter and charges £75, and the debtor pays. What other real costs have been incurred? Again, they knock on the door, the debtor pays in full - what other costs have been incurred to justify an additional £235?

One has to balance against the cases you cite the ones where despite their best efforts nothing is paid voluntarily and the sale of goods doesn't cover the debt and fees. If everyone paid straight away as you suggest above, there would be far fewer EA's needed. As with any job, some bits are easier than others. Personally I wouldn't want any of their job, but it has to be done.

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

Ok, after the soaps, perhaps you would answer the question rather than sidestep it with glib comments.

Sorry, only just back on here. I'm sorry you found my comments glib, but they were what they were. I would argue that the payment would have been made as part of the enforcement process. It is true in the example you gave. I don't think there were any glib comments - if I went into hospital, I would hope my Council Tax and bills would continue to be paid if not covered by direct debits.

I'm not necessarily saying it's right, but it's certainly better than what there was before as is witnessed by the fall in numbers across all forums.

[MissFM]

Re: Bailiff £75 Compliance fee, do I have to pay it?

Honestly, doubleslap2, you would try the patience of a saint - and even here they are in short supply :hand::lever: