HCEO’s What has been your experience?

I too obtained a CCJ against a tenant for rent arrears, He is a self employed window cleaner and drives a large van with a truck mounted cleaning system which I know are quite expensive, however I am told that these cannot be seized as they are for his livelihood, He also buys and sell cars, none of which are registered to him so they are out as well. He denies access to the bailiff to his home so it seem to me that I have wasted my time and money so far and I can't see the HCEO making any difference.
Jack.

The use of an HCEO to recover unpaid rent from a former tenant is always a commercial decision. The costs to instruct are just £60 and if unsuccessful only a further £75 is payable.

However, I have always stated that former tenants can be difficult to enforce against. The first issue is the very nature of why there is a debt in the first place. These are tenants and as such do not own their home.

HCEOs are therefore looking for other assets like a vehicle. This again must be free of finance and of significant value to justify the costs of removal and sale.

Having said the above it is not all bad. The very threat of seizing and removing goods will at least prompt dialogue and hopefully payment, either in full or by arrangement.

There are also other debtors that need to get rid of the CCJ issued against them for credit reasons.

In terms of costs, these are set by the MoJ and are based on a percentage of the amount owed and a foxed fee for each stage of enforcement.

If the HCEO has failed, there are other options which can include an attachment to earnings, a third party debt order (taking money direct from their bank account) or bankruptcy proceedings.

As I said, each case must be judged on it's merits and unfortunately sometimes it is better just to walk away.

I have a similar experience like you. I tried the county court bailiff first, they are not good, waste my money and time. Then I transfer to HCEO’s to enforce, I also expect fairly swift and effective results, but disappointed either. I feel TV program and their Website are misleading, make us to believe how effective to use HCEO. But in reality is not like that.

wanda

I use David's company quite a lot and do on occasions get some very good results, but I recover from the home-owning guarantor, not the tenant. I also collect car registration details on application (people are all smiles upon taking on a tenancy).

However, I do find many of their staff dismissive and rushed when an unusual situation is presented.

total disappointment do not contact you ignore your emails I am owed some 3 thousand pounds got £82 back back waste of my time tony barker

Seeing as though David is following this thread, I ought to perhaps point out that whilst some of your recoveries may be for Lamborghinis in middle-class middle-England, the ones I send your way are for debtors whose households do not appear at first glance to have very much in the way of assets. I often get reports back from your officers to say, essentially, 'not worth bothering with'. If you were to probe a little deeper and continue to pursue, even the mere threat of removing their 'worthless' goods will get the cheque book out and the debt paid. I had to plead with you in one instance where the recovery was deemed pointless and when you went back and applied a little pressure, the full £3,000.00 was paid -victory for both of us, but only with my insistence.

Sometimes it does feel as though your staff have the same attitude I would expect them to have with the debtor as they do when I call. I am the one sending you the business, not the person owing money, so I expect a little more courtesy. Perhaps it's just the mentality you get into when dealing regularly with people of such ilk.

Hi all, it's disappointing to hear that you have had issues with staff, I am out of the office until Tuesday now so if you can email me with your issues and I will ensure they are dealt with.

All I would ask is that you consider the some of the difficulties we have in enforcing against former tenants with either no assets or assets worth very little.

As I have said above, it is a commercial decision and we are not always successful but will always try our best to recover what you're owed.

My email is in my profile page, Regards, David

Reply to the comment left by "David Carter" at "08/07/2015 - 15:51":

even the boss never replied to my request for him to phone me so what chance is there of any body else contacting me maybe we should all go on the telly

Reply to the comment left by "David Carter" at "09/07/2015 - 14:48":

I'm sure as the head of the company you genuinely want to provide excellent service. I don't have names and dates/times so won't be emailing you but some of the staff are rude and I think get so used to shouting at debtors or whatever, they carry that across when speaking with us customers. Not just for the fun of it, but when there are slightly unusual and perhaps more challenging scenarios, it seems like they are only interested in the straightforward cases.

I appreciate it is all based on commercial decisions, but I know my area very well. It is one of the poorest areas of the country and whilst most of my debtors have little in the way of assets, with some applied pressure it is amazing how much money they can actually cough up. When there is no-one home and your officers are looking through the window of a very average terrace house in merry ol' Grimsby, they conclude it's not worth the bother and I very often know, in an 'off-the-record' way, that these debtors are very much in a position to pay up...they may not let on or it even be visible in the form of a seizable asset like a Ferrari parked out front, but if your officers tried a little harder than writing it off at the first visit, then maybe we'd all get something out of it.

In many of the cases where we have had good results, I have first had to plead for you to return and threaten removal of goods...surely (even if it is a bluff due to commercial unviability) this should be standard practice.

Whilst I appreciate you don't want to be seizing goods if you're not going to recover even your own costs for the seizure itself, but I would really like the option that where goods (if seized) are only likely to cover your expenses in carrying out the seizure -and no money ever make it to me- to do so...even if it is just to get a form of justice and redress. I'd rather the debt go unpaid, but the debtor have nothing to even sit on in their lounge than purely the debt go unpaid and they retain all of their (worthless) belongings. In on HCEO programme (not TSO/TSAC) this was exactly what happened. All kitchen/restaurant equipment was loaded up, seized and sold even though it only covered the seizure itself. You are the last resort and only likely hope of some form of rebalance.

Please make this a consideration.

Reply to the comment left by "tony barker" at "10/07/2015 - 08:15":

Hi Tony

David Darter is "the boss" of The Sheriffs Occice.

Are you dealing with a different High Court Enforcement Agency, there are several you know!
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