URGENT Removal Notice/Warrant for son not living at home

Aquarian72

Hi, I woke up to find a removal notice from Marston Holdings in my letterbox for my son, I called and spoke to a rather brash man, I told him my son hasn't used my address for his post since last Oct (2016) and I've informed courts previously of this. He told me that it doesn't matter if my son is/is not living at my home, the warrant gives him the right to enter my property and remove my goods and I have to prove they belong to me within 7 days at court. I've also informed him I am disabled and I do not cope well with stressful situations, he didn't care.

I phoned the police in tears (101) who informed me it's a civil matter and I have no choice but to let the bailiff's in. I have phoned my son twice but it's possible he's in work and cannot answer calls.

The police suggested I go to the CAB for advice but I know I can get the same level of advice from here which suits my disability by not having to get dressed and struggle to get out the door.

Do I have no rights here? I may still have some receipts but my tv is prob over 5-7 yrs old, goodness knows where that is, my Macbook is on loan while mine gets fixed by a friend, I can prove my ipads belong to me but the man said he will take things from my home regardless, I have to go to court with the receipts to get them back. He doesn't care that my son doesn't live here, the warrant is for my address and that's that.

I am so stressed, I've cried twice and I'm waiting for my new microwave to be delivered today which I guess the lovely man from Marston's will take before I've had a chance to try it out.

I don't know the actual address my son is living in now but I could point out the door on a streetmap map, but the girl he's with has a 4 yr old daughter and I'm guessing she doesn't have a lot of gear worth much, it's not fair to send them to her door but likewise it's not right that my life is disrupted thanks to my wayward son.

Oh and I have a car from Motability, how do I prove I'm the owner and not my son or can they just take or clamp my car too? If that happens I can't get to work due to it being my only means of transport. Please be kind in your replies, I'm a little fragile and about to cry again!

Lisa

~Beanie~

I'm no expert (hopefully one will be along shortly) but don't open the door to them. Make sure all your windows and doors are locked and speak to them through the letterbox if necessary, they are not allowed to break in. They can't take anything if they can't get in.

If your car is a mobility one then don't you have some paperwork or something that states this? If not, move your car, park it away from your address so they can't find it.

Have a read of this: http://www.westopbailiffs.co.uk/stop-marstons-bailiffs-now/

Aquarian72

Hi

I'll have a look for car proof, your right there must be a hire agreement from Perry's.

I'm really worried about leaving the house as I've got a meeting at 3:45pm and work at 6.45pm, the latter means I won't be home till gone midnight, the man from Marston's said they can gain entry due to the warrant, I'm guessing by a locksmith, can they do this if no-one is home?

I don't know whether I should phone the man from Marston's again to ask that he give my son time to get off work (which may be 10pm) before he does anything further but I'm worried he'll put the pressure on again, all he's interested in is this £649, all I'm interested in is keeping my sanity, my possessions and my ability to get to work.

I'll have a read of your link you gave me, thanks so much, you have been very kind and it's very much appreciated :A

Lisa

Angry_kittens

Even high court sheriffs cannot force entry to a residential property unless a controlled goods agreement has been signed. You do not have to let them in, you do not have to sign anything, the man you have spoken to is blatantly lying about his powers in an attempt to bully you.

They won't remove goods from your house if you can prove that they are not your sons. It is not in their interest to incur removal costs when they will have to return them later from submitted receipts. That said the onus is on you to prove that they are not the debtors, not the other way round.

~Beanie~

Aquarian72 wrote: »

I'll have a look for car proof, your right there must be a hire agreement from Perry's.

Do you have a blue badge? If so, information in the link that I provided states that they cannot remove a car displaying a blue badge.

I'm really worried about leaving the house as I've got a meeting at 3:45pm and work at 6.45pm, the latter means I won't be home till gone midnight, the man from Marston's said they can gain entry due to the warrant, I'm guessing by a locksmith, can they do this if no-one is home?

Again, they cannot enter your property unless you have let them in previously. If you have never let them in before, they have no powers to break in or use a locksmith, no matter what they tell you. They will tell you anything and try to intimidate and frighten you into letting them in.

Go out as planned, honestly, you won't come home to find they have taken your stuff.

National_Debtline

Hi Aquarian72


Having to deal with bailiffs can be a worry but try not to panic. Do you know what type of debt the bailiff is collecting? It is correct that in the vast majority of cases a bailiff cannot force entry into a property unless they have been inside previously. Marstons often collect magistrates' court fines, which technically means they can force entry, however this must be a last resort that they can justify. In reality it very rarely happens even if the bailiff says they will force entry.


I would advise you to confirm in writing to both Marstons and the court that your son no longer lives with you. I understand you may have done this before but it's a good idea to do it again just to make sure they have the information. If a magistrates' court bailiff has that information in writing it would be very hard for them to justify forcing entry.


Another thing you may want to do is get a statutory declaration from your local county court, magistrates' court or solicitor. This is a sworn statement you can use to state your son does not live with you and none of the belongings in the house are his. This is the next best thing when you don't have receipts for everything. You may be charged a small fee of £11 for doing this. You can also get further advice from one of the free debt advice agencies who have helplines you can call if it is difficult for you to get out of the house.


Susie
@natdebtline

Stirfry

I have been in a similar situation. Two enforcement officers turned up on my doorstep and I answered the door believing that if I explained my Son had never lived at my address they would give me a chance to prove it. How wrong could I be. Whatever you do don't open the door to these people. Do not even talk to them. They break all the rules.

They have limited powers although they will tell you differently. They have no right to goods owned by yourself. Get the Statutory declaration done a.s.a.p and sent by recorded delivery along with a cease and desist all contact letter. E-mail them telling them you will only have contact by correspondence.

If you don't mind me asking do you know the name of the enforcement officer who left the note?

Aquarian72

omg I can't believe all of you lovely people have come to my rescue! I did venture out to my meeting and house still intact, I shall go to work, it's my only relief once a week to not think about my pain!

I have contacted my friend re my MacBook and I've found receipts for the important things like iPads, cooker, washing machine etc. What doesn't make sense to me is say he gets a locksmith to break into my house and I'm showing him receipts, he said he'll still remove the goods and I'll have to take receipts to court, how would this be allowed or is he trying to scare me?

Yes to having a blue badge, I shall display it in the window until this sorry affair is over.

Susie - I can email Marston's now informing them in writing about my son not living here, should I ask what magistrates court they are working on behalf of so I can then email the courts just in case it's different to the ones I've previously contacted or don't I give them any information on what I'm doing?

Should I tell Marstons that I'm going to get a Stat' Declaration done tmrw in my email or if they knock again, or not? Would they see I'm being honest about the situation and ease up on me?

The warrant is for magistrate court fines, he admitted that my son has previously paid his fines and said if this is paid off all are done, no more debt, it's just that he won't accept my son not living here and he said the warrant is for my address regardless, which gives him the right to remove my goods.

I promise I won't open my door to them and I've made sure my back gate and door are locked.

Stir-fry - I do have the man's name and phone number, is that good? I think I'll record any future conversations with this man! Also this cease and desist can I do this myself or is this a court document too?

Again you are all angels, I hope I don't cry in work as I'm a youth worker and it's not a good look when one goes blotchy for a couple of hours!

Lisa x

GDB2222

The fact is that the debt is not yours, and the bailiff has no right to remove your goods. They do tell an awful lot of lies!

fatbelly

Anything you communicate to Marstons (complaints@marstongroup.co.uk) you should also copy to the court.

Stirfry

Hi, Aqua

You can find the cease and desist letter on-line. I believe you need to get it witnessed by a Solicitor for a small fee. I asked about the enforcement officer because I am in dispute with Marston's over the illegal behaviour of Jarod Barnes in particular.

Marston's employees are told to ignore you, if you say your Son does not live with you. They see you as an easy target. They don't care who suffers as long as their fees are paid. Unfortunately the Court is no more than a electronic processing centre. In my situation my Son's fines were for two congestion charges, Transport for London were responsible for passing the debt to Marston's and the processing centre was based at Northampton. I don't know if this will help at all. You need to find out more details from your Son.

You might consider passing your Son's address on to Marston's, after all it is his problem not yours. But I tried to do that and they ignored me anyway.

If they turn up on your doorstep when you are in, make sure you film everything and have a friend on standby to come out as a witness. But remember don't engage!