advice needed in county court tomorrow

jimmy_mumu

the coucil has decided to take me to court to seek reposession of our house for failing to pay my rent on time. i've got arrears of £134 and have been paying not every week but almost upto date. i can't get out of the house all the time and sometimes i go a week without going out. i have mental health problems but i don't wish to go into that. i'm married and have 3 children and i'm on benefits. i don't know what to expect tomorrow so could anyone give me some idea what to expect please. will they kick us out. i've now got the rent paid by direct debit now and i know i should have done it before but couldn't. if you want to come on my post and give me grief, please don't i've got enough on my mind at the mo. thanks jimmy

frugglewump

Whatever happens do actually go.

Have income/expenditure details and try to see what you can overpay to catch up. If you go in and acknowledge the fault but have clearly tried to address the issue with the direct debit they are likely to be more sympathetic.

I've not been through this but normally if you go in to court willing to do something about the situation they will be reasonable. As far as I know it costs the council more to kick you out than to sort the situation out.

kickingkay

jimmy_mumu wrote:

the coucil has decided to take me to court to seek reposession of our house for failing to pay my rent on time. i've got arrears of £134 and have been paying not every week but almost upto date. i can't get out of the house all the time and sometimes i go a week without going out. i have mental health problems but i don't wish to go into that. i'm married and have 3 children. i don't know what to expect tomorrow so could anyone give me some idea what to expect please. will the kick us out. i've now got the rent paid by direct debit now and i know i should have done it before but couldn't. if you want to come on my post and give me grief, please don't i've got enough on my mind at the mo. thanks jimmy

jimmy i wish you luck tomorrow can you get all your details together really try and tie up lose ends write a letter to the judge maybe explaining why things got out of hand about your health can you get a letter from your gp in time maybe or at least refere to your gp and contact them prior to this so they are aware the courts maybe looking into your health,
um going back to your state of affairs have proof of all banking transactions showing your commitment to pay by dd and that you can afford to pay by dd
no one will want to put a family out onto the streets so grovel if need be
but going back to support you will get tons on here i hope you are getting plenty at home
take care
klare x

bargainaddict

Hi, not got any advice but just want to say good luck for tomorrow. Hope it goes well for you.

jimmy_mumu

i have written proof from the bank that the direct debit is set up. my doctor is another problem. i haven't told him the full extent of my depression and the way it affects me ( i've been sectioned before and don't want it to happen again ). he's treating me for depression and i'm on meds for it. i'm just not very good at opening up. he will back me though so i will ring him in the morning.

iwanttosave_2

may be a stupid question but have you checked to see if you are entitled to housing and council tax benifit, my friend recently had to go to court because of this, she explained her situation and they let her keep the house, the only problem is after they have aplied once to the courts and after you again fall back on the rent they do not have to tell you if they aply again and can just serve you with an eviction notice.

If you expain why you got into the situation and show you are making the effort to get back on track you should be o.k. Never been in the situation myself so can't really halp much more than this. Good luck and hope you get everything sorted.

fatbelly

Ok, can't guarantee this but the council are probably looking for a suspended possesion order - that means that the court orders you to pay your rent, plus a fixed amount each week towards the arrears. If you're on income support that only need be £2.85 each week towards the arrears. If you default on that arangement, the court orders possession without a further hearing. But if you stick to the arrangement, you're safe.

So, go, dress smartly, call the judge 'sir' and be scrupulously polite. You'll be in there about five minutes. No need to go on about the mental health stuff - the court just wants to know that you will be able to pay the rent and the arrears.

Let us know how you get on.


Are you sure you're getting the right amount of housing benefit?

jimmy_mumu

yes i have checked the figures. thanks for the advice. got to admit, it is pretty scary though

Addicted2Chocolate

I think if you go along to the hearing and are prepared to be honest, inlcuding about your health, the judge should be sympathetic. If you have not been to court before it can be very daunting. But try to keep calm, do not interrupt the judge and only talk when you are incited to, address the judge Sir Or Madam (there are plenty or female judges!!)
acknowledge yor mistake and that you are comitted to repayting the arrears. I cane really beleive they have taken you to court for such a small amount, but obviously dont say that at court! good luck and post an update when you get back...

jimmy_mumu

thanks for all the help. it went really well. i managed to talk to someone before i was seen and told her about my problems and how i came to be in this mess. she came in court with me and did 99% of the talking on my behalf. she's from debtline in sheffield and she's also going to help me with my other debts. i was very worried and stayed awake most of the night. just glad it's over. they adjourned it without putting it on file and as long as i make the repayments it will be the last i hear of it. nobody from the council told me i could have had it stopped straight from my benefits, if i had known that it wouldn't have got this far. i've got to pay £150 costs though but the council was asking for more. in the end it's a good result and i would really like to thank you all for your input on this. . thanks again. jimmy

Karma67

I'm so glad it went well for you