Are the bailiffs coming?? (scotland)

CraigM_2

Hi all, i posted earlier today (please help bayliff problem) regarding my debts and a recent call i received telling me that due to an outstanding debt they would be sending a bailiff to my parents home (where i currently live).

I received some great help and advice regarding my debts and how to resolve them, But i am still unclear if a bailiff is coming to my home or if it is just a scare tactic. As far as i am aware i have no ccj's and i have not been issued a court summons or received a letter informing me that a warrant had been issued allowing a bailiff to enter my current residence.

I would appreciate if someone with knowledge of Scottish law would explain to me the the procedures that must happen before a bailiff has a right to enter your home as i thought that i would have to have been taken to court and then defaulted on payments before the bailiffs would be involved.

The debt is for £547, The last time i discussed it on the phone was apparently april which the i only know because the guy in the phone call said so, I may have binned a couple of letters regarding this debt since then but i am sure they were all threat letters with no mention of a ccj or a court date.

I would really appreciate any help as i said before that i live with my parents i don't want to have to tell them that a bailiff may appear unless i am 100% sure that it will actually happen

rog2

Craig - I just posted on your other thread - In my opinion it is a scare tactic, by a pretty nasty debt collection agency.
Ask yourself the following:

1. Have you received a court summons?

2. Have you been issued with a County Court Judgement?

3. Did the person who called you give the name of the company that he 'works' for?

4. Did he ask you to agree an appointment?

If the answer to any of the above is no - then it is pretty certain that this is NOT a bailiff.

rog2

Craig - have a look at the following link:

http://www.insolvencyhelpline.co.uk/identify_problem/bailiff_problems.htm

CraigM_2

pasted from my other thread:

thanks rog, beginning to think it is scare tactics myself, i posted another thread to find out the specifics of the laws in scotland regading bailiffs.

Since the call i have resolved to clear my debts anyway, so i suppose if it was a scare tactic i worked or at least it caused my lightbulb moment. My debts aren't that severe anyway.

from what i can remember my debts are as follows;

2 bank debts of approx £600 pounds each from when i was 16-18 which are statute barred now

a debt from capital one over a credit card with a £200 limit which soared to £500-£650 which i refused to pay because of the extortionate charges, This cant have been any later than 2003 and i am determined not to pay on a matter of principle, It may well be status barred already

a debt with T-Mobile for approx £250 from mid 2005 caused when my uninsured phone was stolen and i stopped paying line rental, i still have mixed feelings over paying this one as even though i received the phone free with the contact i had it for less than a year before it was stolen, but that was my fault not t-mobile's so this is another that i will grudgingly pay

a £547 debt for a tv which cost approx £350 of which i had paid back between £90-£190 before i got into financial trouble and defaulted on payents the finance company then never contated me for almost 8 months during which time the because of fees had turned into a £500 pound debt which when the company got in touch i refused to pay because of excessive charges. It is due to this debt i received the bailiff threat

a £250 debt with O-2 due to the theft of my previous phone i got another one on contract and missed one payment and was charged £20 pounds which i should have called them about instead i got stupid threw a the sim card and pu in a pay as you go card. this was roughly sometime 2006 and i fully intend to pay as i still use the phone on pay as you go

a £250 debt with paypal from june this year when i ordered goods and no payment was taken from my account for about 2 weeks, By the time paypal tried to take the cash from my bank there was not enough money in my account and as they tried several times to get the money my bank charged me £180 in direct debit charges which i managed to get reduced to £40 but i still owe paypal £250 which was was my first priority to pay once i had a job thanks to the bailiff threat i'm no longer sure this is my priority

i think the final one is student loan arrears of £97, there may be some other small debts maybe totaling as much as £500 but i need to wait on my credit check to be sure

I know that compared to a lost of posters here these are absolutely trivial amounts, but in my current financial situation it is still a lot of money and i appreciate all the help i have received on this exceedingly friendly forum