How to complain about bailiffs

Having bailiffs turn up at your door is often upsetting. But bailiffs should always treat you with respect, and they must always keep to the law. If the bailiffs have entered your house illegally, charged overly large fees, taken things that were exempt or not yours, lost or damaged your stuff, seized things worth far more than the debt, sold things below their market value, or not followed the proper procedure, you should complain.

Clearly, no one, including a bailiff, is allowed to be violent to you. If a bailiff is violent when they visit, you should call the police straight away or as soon as possible afterwards. They can be charged with assault, just like anybody else.

What to do

Write a letter to the Bailiffs and the authority that uses them (see box). Explain what happened and give details, for example, if you or other people in your home felt threatened by the bailiff's behaviour. Give times and dates of any incidents. Keep a copy of the letter, and make a note of the date you sent it.

It can be a good idea to send a copy of the letters you write and receive to your local Councillor or Member of Parliament (MP).

• If your complaint is not dealt with after the first letter*, write again explaining why you are not satisfied, and what you want done. If you don’t get a response to your first letter within a reasonable time (a month, say), write again, repeating your first complaint and adding that you have not received a reply to first letter.

• If you are not happy with the response to your second letter*, you may decide that there is no point in writing again. But don't give up! You may have several other options:

• If the problem is with bailiffs sent by the council*, give the council a ring; some councils have procedures that say who you can take your complaint to if you are unhappy with the council's response. If they don’t, you could visit your local councillor. If he/she agrees that the council hasn't dealt with your complaint properly (or at all!), they can write on your behalf, or take your case up personally with the council department you are complaining about.

• If this does not work, you should consider making an application to a local government ombudsman*. A local advice agency may be able to help you with this. You will have to show the ombudsman that you have given the council a 'reasonable opportunity' to resolve the complaint, which means that you must wait at least 12 weeks between making your first complaint and contacting the ombudsman (see links on right).

• If the problem is with private bailiffs you should also consider making a complaint to the county court that licensed the bailiff*. A bailiffs' license is granted on the basis that the person is 'fit and proper' and knows the law, so if they have abused their position and acted against the law you should tell the court. Even if you don't go ahead with making a complaint, this is sometimes a useful thing to threaten when asking the bailiff to deal with your complaint seriously.

You could also complain to a bailiff's professional association (you can do this as well as taking any of the other types of action - though this may just make things complicated for you). You can only complain to an association that the bailiff is a member of - their letterhead should tell you this. This could be the Association of Civil Enforcement Agencies (Contact them on 01242 241456) or the Enforcement Services Association (contact them on 0117 907 4771).

April 2007