Bailiff Costs, Rossendales.

Thespian_2

:money:Hi guys.

Is there a procedure I can follow with regards to reclaiming Bailiff charges?

I owed £130 on my council tax to St Helens council in Merseyside and had been paying in installments to a collection company known as Rossendales.

This was until August when my pregnant wife became ill and we were in and out of hospital. Little baby Molly was born healthy two weeks ago Sept 6th

Through my own fault and the stress I completely forgot about the installments and today Sept 19th Bailiffs turned up at my house.

The wife and I were out walking with the baby when I received a call on my mobile from the Bailiff saying we had to pay £338.00 or they would tow away our car which was in our drive. I'd guess our car was probably worth £2,500.

I arrived on the scene with my parents to discover that not only had they blocked our drive they had clamped the front wheel of the vehicle. Because they had overheard me saying 'We should just drive it away' apparently they were left with no option despite them already blocking the drive.

For this clamping service they added another £30.00 to the bill

In the end my parents paid the Bailiffs £368.00 to settle the account and the Bailiffs left.

I am absolutely fuming over this as they have trebled the debt I owed and was wondering if there is a procedure I can follow to reclaim what I consider excessive fees back?

I have read up a little bit and just drafted a letter with regards to asking Rossendales for a Subject Access Request but am loathed to send them another £10 for this.

Are there any other ways or options open to me?

Thanks

Phil