Bailiffs attended your old address and you were not there, so they traced you, and turned up at your new address knowing you have not been given a Notice of Enforcement.[1]
You might be pursued by the Historic Debts Team[2] looking to recover lost and forgotten court fines and sent bailiffs to look for you.[3]
The warrant of control will have your previous address proving the Notice of Enforcement was not given.[4]
Giving the Notice of Enforcement and keeping a record of the time it was given to the debtor[5] is part of the Schedule 12 enforcement provisions.
If the bailiff is unable to show you were not given the Notice of Enforcement at your current address, the bailiff may not recover any fees and charges,[6][7] and you may apply to the court to dispute them.[8]
Ask the bailiff or the bailiff company to prove the Notice of Enforcement was given to your current address at least seven clear business days before attending.
If you did not know about the court fine until bailiffs contacted you, then both the proceedings and the fine are invalid.[9]
Ask the bailiff to show evidence of the time the Notice of Enforcement entered the postal system.[4]
Template Letter
Send the letter to the bailiff company and get a certificate of posting from the post office.
Give a copy of the letter to the bailiff company by email and make a screenshot of the sent email capturing the time you gave it.
Send a copy of the letter by text message to the bailiff to his mobile and make a screenshot of the sent text message to record the time you gave it.
Keep all screenshots for your file.
If the bailiff does not comply, you may give it in evidence the bailiff did not give a Notice of Enforcement.[4]
[1] Paragraph 7.1 of Schedule 12 of the Tribunals Courts and Enforcement Act 2007
[2] See Historic Debts Team
[3] Contrary to Paragraph 12 of the Taking Control of Goods: National Standards, April 2014
[4] Section 7 of the Interpretation Act 1978
[5] Paragraph 7.3 of Schedule 12 of the Tribunals Courts and Enforcement Act 2007
[6] Regulation 3 of the Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014
[7] Regulation 17 of the Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014
[8] Civil Procedure 84.16
[9] Section 14 of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980
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