Newlyn Bailiffs: Not accepting My repayment

Gemqueen1960

Dear all,

I have a large debt to Islington council, which has been passed through to Newlyn Bailffs, I am more than willing to pay this off: £2,304, I wrote to them on 27.03.2014, which they say they received on 1.04.2014. My repayment was £200.00 per month.

They have written to me - a letter dated 17.04.2014, which I received today 23.04.2014, stating that they will not accept the arrangement, they want the amount in full (which i do not have), they say that:

"I would also advise you that wer are not currently willing to set an arrangement under the terms you have provicedd as your curent outstanding balance is: £2,304, therefore this would not be a suitable period of time over which to set an arrangement. I would remind you that Newlyn PLC is under no obligation to offer any arrangement; we are intstructed under the terms of the Liability ordes to collect payment in full or, if this is not possible to remove good to be sold at public auction in order to recover the full balance owed.

However wer are sometimes able to offer an arrangement out of courtesy. If you wish for our company to consider this course of action then we shall require a full and detailed financial statement alongsde supporting documents such as proof of your income.

In providing this information you willl allow us to fully assess your financial circumstances wiht a view to offering you an amicable arrangement. Enforcement action will be halted until 25th April 2014 to allow you a sufficient period of time to supply the requested information. If you have not done so within the timeframe provded then wer shall have no option but to recommence action in order to recover the debt"

They then quote that more charges will be applied to my account - minimum £235.00 !!

Can someone tell me what my best course of action is, I really do not want to give them my payslip details etc, but I really want to pay this debt - however I have no assets to cover the entire debt - I can only pay £200.00 per month, and this is at a stretch.

I apologise for the long winded post, but I really need advise as soon as possible, as the time frame is incredibly short! In essence anything in writing has to be done by tomorrow, and I will need to send any paperwork by special delivery in order to arrive for 25 April 2014.

As a footnote, Islington council do not want anything to do with the debt and will not take it back.

Appreciate any feedback.

Gemqueen1960

I see a few people have viewed this post. Any advice is appreciated - could any1 from National debtline help?

loveka

I am no expert on this, but it seems they are saying they will accept a payment plan if you give them the income and expenditure form. In which case I would do that.

I read on here that debt collectors cannot legally demand to see proof of earnings, only a court can do that.

I would play ball with them so they accepted the payment plan. However others may know better. If you do a search, there have been loadd of threads on here about the process bailiffs can follow, what they are allowed and not allowed to do etc.

DS4215

Seeing as they won't accept your proposed £200 per month (and it will be a stretch for you), write to them with the income/expenditure form, but make it so that you are paying less than that per month (£100 for example)

If they are going to play silly b*gg*rs then don't make it too difficult for yourself to make the repayments....

fawd1

E-mail them, again offering a repayment plan but this time COPY IN the head of collections at the council. I had this situation many many moons ago and they wouldn't accept anything I offered until I copied the council in and then they were very obliging and accepted the lowest offer to date.

nolongerindenial

Has this been through a court yet? As fstatar as I am aware they can not enforce any collection activity without court consent. I may be wrong but I would be requesting a payment plan, and a debt of £2305 paid by £200 installments makes the repayments to less than a year which from my experience is not unnacceptable.

National_Debtline

Hello there,

Bailiffs (or Enforcement Agents as they are now supposed to be known) have more powers than a regular debt collector although it appears that you are in a good position to negotiate. I'm writing this with the assumption that the bailiff has never been in to your property. If they have been in please do let us know as the advice would be different.

What's important is that you never let them in to your property. Please ensure that you keep your doors locked and secure. If you have a vehicle please ensure that it is hidden away from your property - preferably on a friend or family member's driveway.

If the bailiff cannot peacefully get in to your property you will be able to tell the them how much you can offer them. If they do not wish to accept your offer their only alternative would be to pass the debt back to the council. You would then be able to negotiate directly with the council.

So, just to recap, so long as you don't let them in to your property you can tell them that you are prepared to offer the £200 per month - and if they do not wish to accept it, they can pass the file back.

I'm afriad it is very likely that you will be stung with that £235 fee they mention, it's not likely to be avoidable UNLESS you can set up a payment arrangement before they visit. In reality the bailiff is likely to want to visit - they'll want to maximise the amount they make.

Please click here if you would like to read our comprehensive guide to council tax and bailiffs.

nolongerindenial:

It appears that the locla authority has obtained their 'liability order' - the enforcement of council tax starts with an application for one of those via the Magistrates' Court.

Best wishes,

David @natdebtline

Gemqueen1960

Thank you all for your helpful comments. Today I have emailed both the bailiffs and head of revenues at Islington council with my repayment plan again. I have also posted both emails to both parties via special delivery to reach them b4 1pm post tomorrow.

I am putting £200.00 away this month and will continue to do so, when they get back to me i will pay whatever i have saved and then continue with the £200.00 monthly payments thereafter.

I will keep this post updated with any progress.

Thanks again, all. Every comment has been very useful.

Gemqueen1960

PS.. No bailiff has entered my property... and they wont get in!!!

I dont have any cars - they have already tried to charge me monies for a car they say is mine... I dont know how to drive!!!

I got confirmation regarding the bailiffs who visited ie: whether they were certified and when etc.

They tried to charge levy fees - I got them to remove them as they did not gain accesss to my property.

They gave up and revised the bill.

I have always told them I am willing to pay, but unable to pay the full amount in one instalment.

I wont let them beat me, I'll pay this debt off... but on MY terms!

stevemLS

DS4125 - this is poor advice, if OP is found to have lied on his/her I/E statement, that could be a serious matter.

OP - it is right that they can't "demand" proof of income/outgoings, you are asking for a year to pay a debt for which a liability order has been obtained, if you want them to go along with it you have to prove your offer is reasonable.

Don't forget ultimately council tax is a debt you can be imprisoned for if your non payment is found to be wilful and culpable.

Gemqueen1960

StevemLs,

Thank you for your comment.

I have had to battle made up charges by the bailiffs - adding £750.00 to the bill, by charging levy fees etc, I will gather the info for the expenditure form which will prove my outgoings etc.

I am aware of the consequences - which is why I am wanting to start a repayment plan.

Thanks again, all the comments thus far have been very helpful.