Car Clamped please Help!!

G195Y

Hello everyone, am new to forum so hope someone can help out a desperate newbie!!
My wife has council tax arrears from before we met which only came to light when we settled down together, she had moved a lot for other reasons but being long term here she received letters from a bailiff, we tried to resolve but bailiffs were demanding amounts we just couldn't afford. My wife decided to apply for an IVA which is being processed as I type, however, the bailoff clamped car on drive, saying we know your wife drives it.
For this kind of reason when I bought the car privately I had my name put on receipt of payment from previous owner , but as it was for my wife to drive her name is on V5, when I phoned bailiff they arranged to come and see proof of ownership tonight but says the receipt means nothing and need to see V5!!! I explained that even this state's on it that it is not proof of ownership but she drove of leaving the clamp on the car!!
I don't know which way to turn now?!? Any advice would be greatly appreciated, tearing my hair out with woman.
Thanking you in advance
G195Y

pogofish

The Bailifadviceonline site has quite a bit of info for your situation - They are respected contributors in the Motoring forum, so I'm not stooging for them.

dancingfairy

You might want to call National Debtline for advice. I guess it comes down to who legally owns the car - is it the person who paid for it or the person on the V5?
This website here: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=895569 suggests that the V5 holder is the registered keeper and not necessarily the owner.
What proof do you have of being the actual owner and can you supply this to the bailiff?
(Oh obviously if you get grief from the bailiff then you can put in a complaint with them and also file a complaint with the council as the bailiffs are their agents).
df

System

Even the V5 says it only records the registered keeper and details on the V5 are not proof of ownership.

(or words to that effect)

G195Y

Hi and thanks, I will see if can contact those people tomorrow.
I showed her the receipt the previous owner made out when I bought the vehicle with my name, amount paid and vehicle details, but she says only V5 is acceptable (which actually states) this is not proof of ownership

poppasmurf_bewdley

I thought in a situation like this, you had to make a sworn statement before a Commissioner for Oaths stating that the vehicle legally belongs to you.

Others will undoubtedly be on soon to confirm that this is the case.

rizla_king

also some good bailiff stuff here http://www.legalbeagles.info/forums/forumdisplay.php?76-Bailiffs-amp-Enforcement-Officers-Agents

Herbie21

pogofish wrote: »

The Bailifadviceonline site has quite a bit of info for your situation - They are respected contributors in the Motoring forum, so I'm not stooging for them.

WOW....Your comments mean a lot to me. Thank you !!!

The past few months have been hectic (dealing with the raft of new legislation following the new bailiff regulations) that I have not had time to visit the MSE forum very often. Hopefully things are starting to calm down and I can resume posting here.

Herbie21

G195Y wrote: »

Hi and thanks, I will see if can contact those people tomorrow.
I showed her the receipt the previous owner made out when I bought the vehicle with my name, amount paid and vehicle details, but she says only V5 is acceptable (which actually states) this is not proof of ownership

Instead of contacting us tomorrow I will see what advice I can provide on the forum.

Unfortunately, in order to provide an accurate response it will ne necessary to ask a few questions:

How much is the Liability Order issued against your wife (according to the council)?

How much roughly is the car worth (such as ebay value)?

After the vehicle clamping, what forms were given to you. What is the title of the form? Has the form been completed properly?

Does your wife rely upon the car for employment purposes?

Now for the goods news.......

One vitally important part of the new regulations introduced on 6th April is the PROTECTION given to debtors who may be suffering serious financial difficulty. This provides that if evidence is provided (of serious financial difficulty) the enforcement agent is supposed to RETURN the account back to the enforcement company and to REMOVE the enforcement stage fee of £235. The debt should then either be subject of an affordable payment plan or be returned back to the council.

It is obvious that before a bailiff visits he will not know the personal circumstances of the debtor and therefore, the responsibility to provide evidence must fall on the debtor. We always recommend that contact be made with the enforcement company at the Compliance Stage (when the initial letter is sent) but if this is not possible contact should be made with the enforcement company at the first opportunity.

In your case, you say that your wife is currently undergoing the initial stages of an IVA. I cannot think of any better EVIDENCE of series financial difficulty than this !!! I assume that you can lay your hands on some documentary evidence.

For anyone else reading this it should be noted that all CIVEA members have agreed to REMOVE the enforcement stage fee if suitable evidence is provided (of serious financial difficulty).

G195Y

Good morning and thanks again everyone for help,
In response to Herbie21 (previous typo predictive text on phone, apologies), debt to council is 1900, car is probably worth 800-1000, and form is headed by debt firm and just says at top Notice after entry or taking control of goods (on a highway) and inventory of goods taken into control was stuck to car window.

With regards being filled out correctly it's hard to tell, certainly not professionally,
Amount you owe says £1898.97
Debt £306.49 + 2 others
Enforcement fee £447.96
Sum Outstanding due £507.00

I can get proof of IVA application, just all very confusing at moment, and I know the bailiffs aren't playing by the rules but hard to deal with them

[Deleted User]

Who is the policyholder of the Insurance?