Enforcing a debt through bailiffs

This is a common question, and the answer depends on where you are in the process. You cannot simply instruct bailiffs or High Court enforcement officers to collect a debt out of the blue. There is a clear legal pathway you need to follow.

The starting point:

You must first obtain a court judgment against the debtor. Without a judgment, no enforcement agent has any legal authority to act. The usual route is to issue a claim through the County Court, either using the County Court Money Claims Centre or Money Claims Online if the claim is for a fixed amount of money. If the debtor does not defend the claim, you can obtain default judgment. If they do defend, the matter will proceed to a hearing.

Once you have a County Court judgment (CCJ):

You then have a choice about how to enforce it. The main enforcement options are as follows.

1. County Court bailiff (now called a County Court enforcement officer). You can apply for a warrant of control, which authorises the County Court bailiff to attend the debtor's address and take control of goods to be sold to satisfy the debt. This is done by filing an N323 request. The fee is relatively modest. County Court bailiffs handle debts of any amount awarded in the County Court, but in practice they deal with smaller sums and can be slower or less persistent than the private sector alternative.

2. High Court enforcement officers (HCEOs). If your judgment is for £600 or more, you can transfer the judgment up to the High Court for enforcement. This is done by obtaining a writ of control. You apply using form N293A. Once the writ is issued, you instruct a firm of HCEOs. They tend to be more commercially motivated and often more effective than County Court bailiffs. If the debt is over £600 but not more than £5,000, you have a choice between County Court enforcement and transfer up. If the debt exceeds £5,000, you can transfer up as of right. If the judgment is for less than £600, you cannot use HCEOs and must use the County Court route.

There is one important exception: if the claim is for a regulated consumer credit agreement debt, you cannot transfer it up to the High Court for enforcement.

Costs and fees:

The court fee for a warrant of control in the County Court is currently £77. For a writ of control in the High Court, the court fee is £71.50 to transfer up. The HCEOs then add their own fees, which are set by a statutory scale and are recoverable from the debtor in addition to the judgment debt, so in most cases the HCEO route costs you relatively little upfront.

Practical considerations:

Before choosing enforcement, it is worth considering whether the debtor actually has assets or income worth pursuing. If they are impecunious, enforcement action may simply add cost and delay for no recovery. You can apply for an order to obtain information (form N316) which requires the debtor to attend court and disclose their financial position under oath. This can help you decide whether enforcement is worthwhile and which method is best suited.

Other enforcement options to be aware of:

Bailiffs and HCEOs are not the only route. Depending on the debtor's circumstances, you might also consider an attachment of earnings order (if they are employed), a third party debt order (if they have money in a bank account), or a charging order (if they own property). Each has its own procedure, advantages, and limitations.

Summary of the process in order:

1. Obtain a court judgment against the debtor.
2. If the debtor does not pay voluntarily, decide on the most appropriate enforcement method.
3. If you want to use HCEOs, ensure the judgment is for £600 or more and apply to transfer it to the High Court.
4. Instruct the enforcement officers and let them carry out the writ or warrant.

If you already have a judgment and want to discuss which enforcement route is best for your particular situation, I am happy to go into more detail.