Drakes/Marston group balliffs broken my lock and pushed over my baby daughter-PLEASE HELP!!!!

[louloubella73]

Hi, I m new but desparately need some help!!!

 

I have had a really bad few years, I had to stop work after my last baby was born as I got very badly depressed-at the moment i m trying to live on the disability/carers allowance I get for my two young sons (they re both profoundly autistic) As a result I have got into debt which tbh I feel like I m drowning in-I m paying off what I can, but I just seem to be throwing money at whoever shouts the loudest

 

This morning a balliff rang my doorbell-I had not seen her before and can t recall or find any letters from her company. I opened the door on the chain as I always do so my two toddlers don t run out-as soon as I did this she wedged her foot in the door. She said she had a warrant and that I had to let her in-I asked to see ID/the warrant and she refused unless I let her in-she said I had to let her in and till I did she wouldn t discuss the matter any more. I know when I m beaten, asked how much I owed-I said I needed to phone the bank to see how much was in there and I would pay her whatever I had in the bank by debit card there and then, and I would need to go to the cash machine (5 minutes away) for the rest-at no point did I refuse to pay the money, I m not silly, I know a warrant is a warrant. My baby daughter was struggling to get through the gap of the door so I asked the balliff to remove her foot so I could close the door just while I phoned the bank and the court(to verify who she was)-I even offered he my car keys/ debit card to hold as security until I made the calls and re opened the door-she flatly refused and said she had a legal right to gain entry-she then started pushing the door in an attempt to break the chain-terrified, I went to shut the door and she pushed it back with such force the door handle hit me in the face and my baby girl was knocked flying-my front door is glass and the balliff could clearly see my daughter was there when she did this-I could n t believe my eyes- I was more than willing to pay the full amount there and then-she knew that but would not let me leave the house-she said if I did she d gain entry and take goods-she said i had 30 minutes to get someone down with the remaining 200 owed or she break the door. Thank God, my neighbour came out and ran to the cashpoint with my card. in the meantime (maybe realising someone had been watching???) rang the police and alleged that I had punched her in the chest -I could nt believe what I was seeing/ hearing-the chain had been on the door the whole time-I didn t go near her let alone touch her

 

The police arrived, I paid the money (all the time my neighbour was at the cashpoint she was doing a countdown of how many minutes I had left) My baby is shaken, my toddler is petrified and the balliff has broken the lock on my door when she tried to force it. How can this be legal???? I can t believe this can happen in what is supposed to be a civilised society. I phoned the balliff company twice to complain and was cut off both times. Do I have to sit back and take this-it seems so unfair-had I become aggressive or refused to pay I could understand it more, but I did neither-how can this be right-I m just so shocked and shaken..Please help!!!!!!! Also, the money that I used was my months benefits-what the hell will I live on now???????

 

 

 

In July I was fined by the DVLA at the local magistrates courts for 'failure to surrender a vehichle license'-to cut a long story short, I taxed my car at the post office in Feb-I had the funds in my account until the bank took £70 in charges

which bounced the cheque-I phoned the DVLA when I found out and tried to pay by debit card but couldn t as they didn t take electron-anyway they invalidated the tax disc, told me to get a new one and return the invalid one-this last thing is what I forgot to do, hence the fine (I accept that was my fault for forgetting-I ve never disputed that

[louloubella73]

Hi again-have realised I have made a right mess of posting this thread-sorry if it isn t legible!!

 

I m no drama queen so I can t believed how shocked and shaken I feel-sounds daft but i feel like I ve been emotionally mugged at knifepoint or something-I had no choice whether or not to hand that money over there and then-I can t believe I wasn t even given the option of going to get the money-do these people think those in debt keep hundreds of pounds in cash in their houses- if I had cash I wouldn t be in debt-am I missing something?

[wavsurgeon]

Sorry to hear this.

 

Sounds like you need to get advice. Have you looked at the debt section of this site ?

[sea-sidelady]

Thread moved to the Bailiff forum, you will get more help here.

[louloubella73]

ok, thanks

[louloubella73]

Hi again (sorry, I seem to be turning into a forum stalker!)

 

In my thread I didn t mention that the police advised me I was legally obliged to let the balliff in, that I had no right to shut the door. I assumed they knew what they were talking about-when my friend was at the cashpoint the policeman told me I had 20 more minutes before I was legally ob;iged to allow them entry.

 

Was this true?

[postggj]

this is an out rage

police helping baliffs again

the only time baliffs have legal right to enter your home is if you invite them in or they have a walk in possesion order which you signed

[postggj]

what was the debt for, parking ticket, etc

[sheraton01]

Sorry I cant really give you any advice but just wanted to say that we called the police yesterday to assist with a bailiff who was using undue force to enter our home and the attending policeman really wasnt any help, he also suggested that we let them in and looked most suprised when I outright refused.

 

I am now looking into pursuing a complaint against him also.

 

I can assure you though that you have definatley come to the right place for advice

[tonycee]

More disgraceful behavior.

 

This is what should of happened.

 

 

Department for Constitutional Affairs - Enforcement - National Standards for Enforcement Agents

 

 

And this is what you should do.

 

I Want complain about a Bailiff

 

Independent Police Complaints Commission Home Page

 

Local Government Ombudsman - How to complain

[louloubella73]

Thank you so much for the replies-they are so appreciated-I m still amazed at how much this has affected me tbh, but my shock has turned to outrage and anger so the practical advice/links are a massive help

 

The fine was for 'failure to surrender a vehicle license;-basically I bounced a cheque that i gave the post office for my car tax back in feb( largely due to £70 of OD charges from the lovely halifax, but hey, that s another thread!) -I tried to pay the DVLA over the phone by couldn t as they wouldn t accept visa electron-they invalidated the tax disc and I bought a new one-what I forgot do was send the old one back (, which is why they took me to court)

 

The thing is, I know I shouldn t have buried my head in the sand, I accept that-but at no point today did I refuse to pay this balliff-in fact I was desparately trying to to stop her coming into my home and taking things-not because I ve got anything worth taking (I haven t-my car is such an old banger the balliff laughed when I told her to take it!) but because the kids were upset and because it would have broken my heart to see this women callously taking the PS3 , games etc(that my 17 yr old son saved up for for months from his part time job at tescos, bless him) and to sell them for a fraction of what they are worth-that would have killed me-all that hard work he put in for someone to line their pockets with from extortionate charges for simply knocking on my door. It s all just so wrong, it shouldn t happen in what s supposed to be a civilised society

 

It s a real David and Goliath battle this isn t it-thank God people are starting to get wise and stand up to **** like this.

[louloubella73]

this is an out rage

police helping baliffs again

the only time baliffs have legal right to enter your home is if you invite them in or they have a walk in possesion order which you signed

 

 

The balliff had a warrant issued by the magistrates court-the policeman said this allowed them entry as the balliff said-was this not the case????-i m still confused about what different types of warrants mean-the balliff refused to give me a copy even after I d paid in full so I can t refer back to it

[postggj]

as this is a magistrates warrent not county court, not my area ime afraid

realy need tomtubby on this

 

ill look up the regs on this

[postggj]

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/bailiffs-sheriff-officers/154709-magistrates-court-warrant.html

 

found a tomtubby thread

this will answer your question

[louloubella73]

Thank you!

 

I still can t work out whether they can use a locksmith or not though if I m not here-it s all so confusing!

[postggj]

it appears from tomtubby that they only way they can enter is by invite only

wait for a few more people to comment before taking it further as not my area

 

tomtubby is the baliff expert, very much doubt he will get it wrong

[louloubella73]

Hi again

 

As a few of you have suggested, I have tried to Pm tomtubby, but for some reason it wouldn t go through. If you re out there tomtubby I could desparately do with some advice!

 

I ve filled out the baliff complaints form, and I ve sent a complaint to the police commission-I am now worried that they will make it look like I ve made it all up (especially after the 'woman' had the cheek to say I d shoved/ punched her in the chest-I still can t believe that-apart from the fact the chain was on, she was built like a brick u know what house-Mike Tyson would ve struggled let alone me!)

 

Also, I m worried that I ll need proof regarding the broken lock-can I get a locksmith to write a report that the lock was forced-all the police did was make a note that the lock wasn t right-when I asked if they could take fingerprints they dismissed it-but as I said to them, what reason would the baliff have had to have her hands on my doorhandle other than to gain entry???? made sense to me but not to them-what do others think?

[tonycee]

TT has had her PM facility withdrawn.

 

Im no expert, but my limited knowledge tells me that the police seem to know even less about the law regarding bailiffs than i do.

 

You will feel as though you are fighting a losing battle, but you must fight on, as we all must.

[louloubella73]

TT has had her PM facility withdrawn.

 

Im no expert, but my limited knowledge tells me that the police seem to know even less about the law regarding bailiffs than i do.

 

You will feel as though you are fighting a losing battle, but you must fight on, as we all must.

 

 

Thanks for that reply, I d still love some advice as to what proof I should get that my lock is broken as I fear otherwise it will become hearsay-ideally I d love to get a locksmith to make a report, but that ll cost money I haven t got.

I m still SO angry-I live in a rented house and the gas meter has run out-I can t afford to put any more on until Tuesday when I get my child benefit because all my money has gone to this baliff-why couldn t I have paid it in 2 halves-what difference would it have made to them? This country sucks with a big fat S!

 

And the more I think about the police the more I m boiling- in hindsight, they literally aided and abetted that woman in criminal damage and forced entry. And the (very young) policeman had the audacity to verbally caution me for swearing just because I said 'I don t f ing believe this' when told I had to let the balliff in! Since when is swearing in your own house a crime, particularly when it s not directed at anyone?

 

Also, the balliff whined to the policeman about 'having to deal with people like me' how tough her job was and how she was used to the treatment she received (SHE received!!!!violin anyone?)-I was forced to listen to all this as the policeman forbabe me from shutting my own front door until my friend returned with the money. Talk about provocation-and to think the police were there to prevent a breach of the peace??? Create one more like.

 

With wicked hindsight am beginning to wish I had given this witch of a woman a sharp right hook-seeing as she accused me of it anyway, what harm could it have done!!

[sheraton01]

Im no expert, but my limited knowledge tells me that the police seem to know even less about the law regarding bailiffs than i do.

 

Oh so true!!!

 

I have now spoken to 3 police officers who obviously dont have a clue.

 

Whilst I am wating for them to appear to take my statement (heaven only knows when they will show) I have decided to be helpful and print a few quotes of various sites for them.

 

Sheraton

[louloubella73]

Hmm-have just realised I have focussed so much on the bad behaviour of the balliffs, I ve never checked that their costs were legal-they charged me over £200 for what was their first visit-she drove a van but as I paid in full she didn t need it. Do you think they overcharged?

[tomtubby]

This complaint is such that it most CERTAINLY needs to be one to be sent to one of the seven regional complaints managers who have been appointed by HMCS to deal with complaints such as yours. I can provide the details for you of the relevant person but I will need to know which part of the country you are in. ie: South East, South West, North East etc. There are different people within each area.

 

Regarding your complaint, I will provide a more detailed response later on this evening.

 

This is yet another example of why I strongly believe that ALL bailiffs enforcing these unpaid Magistrates Court Distress Warrants are CERTIFICATED. Their contracts provides that they MUST be certificated but sadly MOJ agreed to allow a grace period so as to ensure that they are properly trained !!!

 

Unless complaints are made to the relevant person this sort of treatment WILL continue.

Edited September 11, 2008 by jonni2bad

[louloubella73]

Thanks for you posts btw Sheraton-sorry to hear you re in a similar situation. I haven t yet made a formal complaint to the police of assault/ criminal damage/ forced entry as they told me I d never prove it-do you think I should phone and ask to make a statement or am I wasting my time?

 

I can prove that the lock was undamaged 3 weeks ago, as my landlord had them changed by a locksmith as I lost my key.

 

Sheraton, you re not in Kent/London borders are you? I d never insult the local police force, suffice to say their reputation precedes them for all the wrong reasons!

[louloubella73]

Great-i have just completed a bailiff complaint form (T4)-but when I phoned the local magistrates court to ask where to send it they d never heard of one, and said any complaints have to be sent straight to the bailiff company and that all they will do is forward it on to them!!

 

I just know they won t take it seriously, will falsely counter any allegations and I m wondering what the point is!

[sheraton01]

Thanks for you posts btw Sheraton-sorry to hear you re in a similar situation. I haven t yet made a formal complaint to the police of assault/ criminal damage/ forced entry as they told me I d never prove it-do you think I should phone and ask to make a statement or am I wasting my time?

 

I can prove that the lock was undamaged 3 weeks ago, as my landlord had them changed by a locksmith as I lost my key.

 

Sheraton, you re not in Kent/London borders are you? I d never insult the local police force, suffice to say their reputation precedes them for all the wrong reasons!

 

No I'm no where near there

 

I have no intention of insulting the police force when they arrive BUT I do intend to be ready for their "we can only investigate criminal activity, it is not our place to prevent people doing a job"

 

Policeman who attended our house said "I would think carefully before trying to press charges, it wont go anywhere you know" It may not but it wont be for want of trying. If everyone who had the same problem made a complaint then at some point someone will have to listen.

 

I have decided that if my complaint to my local authority is not taken seriousy then I will persue every single legal option available to me

Edited September 11, 2008 by sheraton01