My car is worth £400 and I use it for work. Can it be taken?

For a car or vehicle to be exempt from civil enforcement, it must be necessary for use personally by the debtor in the debtor's employment, business, trade, profession, study or education, and its value must not exceed £1,350.^[1]

If a bailiff takes an exempt car, he may issue his own written valuation,^[2] but they will have a tendency to over-value the car to put it above the £1,350 exemption threshold.

To get an authoritative valuation on your car, its true value is the amount someone is willing to pay for it.

Search eBay completed listings for the same car as yours on a like for like basis that have sold in the last 30 days. Make screenshots of at least three completed listings showing the sale price under £1,350, and that can be used in evidence when making a claim to exempt goods.^[3][4]

^{[1] Regulation 4(1)(a) of the Taking Control of Goods Regulations 2013

[2] Regulation 35(2) of the Taking Control of Goods Regulations 2013

[3] Civil Procedure 85.8

[4] See Making a claim to exempt goods}