Are you worried about bailiffs? If you have problem debts, seeing programs like Can’t pay? We’ll take it away can be alarming. As one reader said:
If I stop my direct debit and don’t pay them this month surely they will not be happy? I don’t want bailiffs around my house.
If you have already had a letter from a bailiff read: Bailiffs – do you have to let them in? What you need to know.
This article looks at what you can do BEFORE a debt is sent to the bailiffs, to make sure it never gets there.
This particular reader had a payday loan, but you may have the same thoughts about other types of “consumer debts” such as loans, overdrafts, credit cards, catalogues, mobile debts. Bailiffs aren’t just unpleasant to deal with, they can add hundreds of pounds of extra fees on top of your debt.
The good news: creditors will go through a lot of steps before sending a debt to a bailiff – and these take a long while.
Even better: you can stop any chance of bailiff action at each one of these steps!
This article looks at:
- what a lender does when you don’t pay a debt, all the stages this goes through, and
- how to make sure a bailiff never knocks on your door because of a consumer debt. (Other debts such as council tax arrears have different procedures, see below.)
When does a debt go to bailiffs?
To you not being able to pay a debt is a major event – but to a lender it’s something that happens all the time. Hundreds of thousands of people have arrangements with a creditor because they can’t afford the normal payments.
Obviously, lenders don’t like this, but it’s part of their business. They will have a procedure to go through and that procedure will not say “let’s send in the bailiffs as soon as possible.” That is the last thing they will do, it only happens if everything else hasn’t worked.
The following steps are typical:
Step 1 Requests for payment
First, you will normally get a simple reminder that you haven’t made a monthly payment. How a lender contacts you (letter, email, text, phone call) varies.
The next contacts are likely to ask you to pay the amount you have missed or to get in touch if you have problems. They may suggest if you contact them you can make an arrangement to pay. At some point, they will usually suggest you may want to take free debt advice.
Good options:
- offer what you can afford to pay. Getting this agreed will stop the contacts and stop the creditor moving on to the next steps. You have taken control of the situation long before there is any chance of bailiffs!
- if you aren’t sure what you can afford, you can’t pay anything, the creditor says you need to pay more or you have several debts then talking to a debt adviser such as StepChange is usually a good move. This can also help if you can’t face talking to the creditor.
Step 2 Debt sent “to collections” or a debt collector
It may sound worrying if you are told your debt is being passed “to collections” or you get a letter from a debt collection agency. The letters may start to sound less friendly, talking about court action, bailiffs, saying they may send someone round to your house. Mentioning these things doesn’t mean they are about to happen!
Debt collection agencies don’t have any special legal powers, they aren’t bailiffs. Usually, they have no intention of sending anyone to your house – it costs them money and you probably won’t be in… If they do, then this person has no legal power to do anything at all.
You may get more phone calls, but if these are becoming excessive read Are you getting too many calls about debts?
After a while, your debt may sold to a debt collector. This changes who your creditor is, but nothing else.
Good options for you are the same as Step 1:
- if you don’t recognise the debt, send them a Prove It! letter. It is easier to sort a problem out at this stage than in court.
- making an offer that is accepted stops the process going any further.
- if there are reasons why it has been hard to talk to the creditor so far, it may seem scary but it’s good to tell the creditor/debt collector about these, whether it’s because you have mental health problems, or you have been trying to cope with difficult circumstances;
- your problem has been going on for a while, so talking to a debt advisor can really help.
Step 3 Warning about court action
If debt collection doesn’t seem to be working, you may get a clear letter stating that court action will be taken within a certain time unless you contact them and come to an arrangement to pay. This letter often comes from a firm of solicitors and is headed something like Letter Before Action or Letter before Claim.
Good options:
- this is your last chance to reach an agreement without filling in court forms. Reaching an agreement at this point means no CCJ on your credit record and no chance of bailiffs. You may only be able to afford £5 a month, but the creditor may still accept that;
- don’t ignore these letters. If you don’t think you owe the money, you are unsure what to offer, or if you can’t pay anything at all, talk to a debt adviser. You may have a good defence if you are taken to court, so find out! See How to reply to a letter before Action for details.
Step 4 Go to court for a CCJ
You will know the creditor has started the process of getting a CCJ when you receive a Claim Form. For more about what you should do, read What to do if you get a Claim Form.
If you ignore this form you will get a CCJ without there being a court hearing, often saying you have to pay the full amount immediately. So:
- if you think you shouldn’t get a CCJ (the debt isn’t yours, it’s too old, you have already paid it etc) you have to defend the case;
- if you can’t pay it in full, you can make an offer to pay an affordable amount,
Contact National Debtline. They can talk about possible defences, what happens if there is a court hearing, what a good offer of a monthly payment would be for you etc
Step 5 Paying a CCJ
You will be sent a letter headed Judgment for Claimant. This will either say you have to pay the whole amount or it will say what the monthly payments have to be – £50 a month say.
If you make these payments, bailiffs will never be involved.
If you can’t, you need to ask for the payments to be reduced so you can afford them. See National Debtline’s fact sheet on Varying payments on a judgment. If you need any help with that, for example you aren’t sure if you need to complete an N244 or N245 form, talk to National Debtline.
You can do this again later if your situation changes and you can’t pay as much.
Step 6 Send debt to bailiffs
If you don’t keep up with the court set payments, the creditor can apply to the court to send the debt to bailiffs to be collected. You will then get a letter from the bailiff that has been appointed.
Even at this point, it is possible to stop bailiffs coming to your house by applying to the court to suspend the warrant. See Do you have to open the door to a bailiff? which looks at what happens when a debt is sent to a bailiff and your rights if this happens.
Key points to remember about bailiffs and consumer debt
The points to remember about debts such as loans, credit cards and overdrafts are:
- Creditors and debt collectors prefer to reach an agreement with you rather than go to court.
- Bailiffs can’t collect consumer debts until a creditor has gone to court and got a CCJ.
- If the CCJ said to pay the whole amount, you can get the court to change this to a monthly amount you can afford.
- If you pay the monthly amounts the court sets, bailiffs can’t be used.
Bailiffs and other types of debt
This article has looked at “consumer debt”, where you borrowed money you can’t repay. Bailiffs are also used to collect other types of debt such as Council tax arrears; Magistrates Court Fines; Parking penalties issued by a local council; and tax debts (Income tax, VAT and National Insurance).
There are different legal procedures for these debts and they can be much faster to end up with bailiffs than the consumer debts this article has covered. The bailiff powers can also be different. With any of these debts, it’s good to take debt advice straight away. Your local Citizens Advice is a good place for help, especially for council tax arrears where they will be familiar with negotiating with your local council.
Have you been contacted by a debt collector?
Worried about CCJs? find out the facts
Debt and mental health problems
shaun says
I have a debt of 610.00 I’ve been issued a warrant of control but I immediately rang creditors and offered weekly payments if 45.00 my first payment goes on Friday but deadline is 2 days after that will the bailiffs still come round
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Were you informed about the Warrant of Control by the creditor? Or have you received a Notice of Enforcement from a bailiff?
Also do you have anything in writing from the creditor accepting your £45 payment offer?
Donna says
Hello I have received a warrant of control today Sara. I downloaded a credit report and its a debt that defaulted in 2013 and sold on to Lowell who have sent in on 2017 to BWLegal. I have read negative thisg online about BWLegal so not sure I should contact them or fill out an N245 form to the coubty court?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Talk to National Debtline urgently about your options 0808 808 4000
Micky Maclean says
Dear Debt Camel,
I have been issued with CCJ this time last year, I was issued to pay forthwith however, I made offers which were refused and came to an agreement that as a student I would pay what I could afford when I could afford. Subsequently I have been paying every few months £5 here and there.
My question is the CCJ is not showing on my financial file, and the original debt is due to be statue barred in May 2018. I know the original default should be withdrawn in May however, what will happen to the CCJ, particularly as it doesn’t seem to be logged and should I continue to pay as I have or would you have other suggestions.?
I do not want Bailiffs at my door, they could apply to have it set against my mortgage however I am no where near positive equity.
I was going to check on “trust” the status of the CCJ but was concerned it would be linked and might flag up to someone I had checked?
Any advice you might have would be greatly appreciated.
Kind regards
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You can check on Trust Online and it won’t be flagged up to anyone. that would be a good start.
Was the CCJ at an address which isn’t linked to your current credit record? Have you checked all three CRAs, see https://debtcamel.co.uk/best-way-to-check-credit-score/
The fact that the debt is coming up to be “statute barred” is irrelevant once there is a CCJ.
If you have a house with negative equity and this CCJ and other debts as well, you could probably consider bankruptcy – it may well be possible to stay in your house (if you want). Talk to National debtline for some good debt advice.
jj says
With a debt of £5008, Lloyds have sent me letters over the past year saying they have sold my debt to Westcott, then Robinson way and later csl. How can they be selling it to different debt collectors? Why are the still contacting me if the debts been passed on? How long is it before they are likely to give me a ccj? I have never acknowledged the debt in writing and haven’t made a payment for a year. Would they be likely to accept a f&f offer of a reduced amount at this stage? Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The first two times, Lloyds didn’t sell your debt, they just passed it to a debt collector to try to collect on their behalf. When you didn’t respond to the debt collector, the debt will have been passed back to Lloyds again.
You need to read the letter Lloyds or CSL has sent you. that should make it clear if they are collecting on behalf of Lloyds or if they have bought the debt.
If you last made a payment a year ago, then Lloyds (or whoever they sell it to) has roughly 5 years from that point to go for a CCJ.
A F&F is more likely to be accepted if the debt has been sold to a debt collector. See https://debtcamel.co.uk/full-final-settlement-rejected/
Dave says
This is regarding an invoice I have just received, out of the blue, for £3,130.35. I wonder if you could give me some advice please.
I began training to be a driving instructor last year, and after I passed my first two of three tests, I was sold a trainee franchise package by a national driving school
….
I feel like going public to inform the current drivers exactly what they are up against and to warn potential instructors what they might be letting themselves in for. They are a very well known driving school.
Is there any advice you can give me please Sara. I lost a fortune paying for the training and franchise fees during my time with them last year, and now they are twisting the knife.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Hi Dave, I have edited out your very long story. It sounds as though it may be possible to challenge some of the items on the invoice. Whether you have a potential case against them for the other problems you experience – eg if they said they would supply a new car and didn’t – I am sorry I do not know. If you have any legal cover (eg through your house insurance) it could be worth talking to a solicitor. Or you could go to your local Citizens Advice. Or you may find it helpful to post on a forum such as Legal Beagles: http://www.legalbeagles.info/forums/.
Here I will just make some remarks about the debt situation which you may think are obvious, but sometimes when you are deep in the middle of a long dispute it can be helpful if someone sets out a framework.
1)You have been sent an invoice. If you want to dispute some or all of the items on it, you can try to do this at this point rather than wait until this goes to court.
2) if you think they should owe you money, you may be able to “counterclaim” if they do go to court. But you should probably get professional help before doing that.
3) You have posted on an article for people worried about bailiffs – there is no chance of seeing a bailiff for this unless you ignore it AND they then go to court and get a CCJ AND you then ignore that. I am not suggesting you should pay an invoice you don’t think is right, just saying that your concern should be to resolve the dispute, not worry about bailiffs.
Dave says
You are always so helpful. Thank you very much Sara.
You’re an unsung hero, like a modern day Robin Hood.
Bless you
Ravi says
Dear sara, I have £8k barclaycard defaulted debt.I could not maintain minimum payment for 6 months.I wonder why did they offer thousands pound credit card to an Int’l student with work restriction status at first place ?.I had just 20hr/weekly work right and later no work right at all.How did they believe i could pay their loan? Anyway i used it for my necessity.
I have very bad credit rating, now i want to write full and final settlement letter to them.I have learned so much from your website about my debt.I want to offer them £800 as full and final and request to update my credit file as settled.Will they accept it as i am already defaulted since 2018?? Will they put me in IVA or bankruptcy as they put me in default?Will these affect any visa and immigration issues? I want to say massive thank your for your and your website.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I want to offer them £800 as full and final and request to update my credit file as settled. Will they accept it as i am already defaulted since 2018??
That is a very low amount. Has the debt been sold to a debt collector?
Will they put me in IVA or bankruptcy as they put me in default?
It is your choice whether to start an IVA. nothing you have said suggests that one is a good option for you.
A creditor can make you bankrupt if you owe over £5000. But a commercial creditor such as a bank or debt collector is VERY unlikely to do this unless you have a lot of assets. being made bankrupt isn’t something anyone should usually worry about for a credit card debt.
Will these affect any visa and immigration issues?
I think you need specialist advice on your individual situation, I am not an immigration expert.
AK says
Hi Sara, could you, please, advise. I have a CCJ setaside hearing postponed due to COVID, but yesterday I received a letter from PRA claiming the payment and telling me that court has granted the judgement in their favour. No dates, no mentioning of a setaside hearing. I phoned a county court and they confirmed that the hearing is still pending as the court is closed for the visitors. What should I say PRA? Or should I just ignore them until the hearing is due? Thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you contact then and tell them you have a set aside application pending.
Karen says
I have a vanquis debt for around 5000 i havnt made any payments for 12 months havnt opened letters took phone calls, I know this is extremely stupid but as with lots of people I stuck my head in the sand, iam unemployed and wondering what steps I should start to take to communicate with them, iam scared to do so, but want to start paying something monthly as its affecting my health with worry thank you
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Can I ask if you have other problems debts too? Or other debts which you are paying?
Do you have any arrears on bills?
Karen says
I have made sure my prioty bills rent/council tax/gas/electricity/water tv licence etc are all paid and up to date, I have 2 catalogues under 1000 each thank you
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ok, do you expect your situation to improve, or are you likely to still be on benefits in a year or two?
Karen says
Due to covid-19 a fair chance it will be 12 months plus, also looking at my age etc, jobs are few and far between
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It sounds as though you have two main options:
– offer token payments to Vanquis and to the two catalogues. See https://debtcamel.co.uk/token-payment-debt/.
– have a Debt Relief Order, see https://debtcamel.co.uk/debt-options/dro/.
Token payments can work well on a temporary basis, but if your position isn’t going to improve they are just kicking the can down the road and a DRO may be preferable.
I think you should talk to a debt adviser about how to choose between them. I suggest you phone National Debtline on 0808 808 4000.
Karen says
Thanks iam in the process of writing to vanquis so fingers crossed they will help thank you
Horace says
I’m currently at the ‘debts getting sent to collectors/ defaults stage’. The last debt defaulted a week ago, which was Argos and they’ve obviously sent a somewhat stern email to me. I have dealt with everything at the default stage and everything is in plans with collections now like Moorcroft, Lowell, BPO etc. they seem fine with this, I’m fine paying this. My credit score is very low now so I’m even thinking maybe just file for a DRO? My credit score can’t get much lower. I’m pretty sure I can get it back up to 600+ in the next 5-10 years, as defaults remain for 6 years, but my fear is bailiffs. With me setting up plans (at the mid stage, not the earliest stage I could have) am I safe to assume I have made the correct steps to avoid bailiffs? I have nothing to take… but my parents do and I know bailiffs can’t take their things, but then I know they don’t care.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
For 2 months you have been posting on different pages under different names. Please talk to National Debtline on 0808 808 4000 about your options. Tell them about your mental health which makes finding work harder. A DRO may be very sensible.