If you’re facing a visit from the bailiffs, there are steps that you can legally take to protect your assets. Check out our quick guide to learn more

Negotiate a payment plan

If you’ve fallen behind with your debt repayments and have received a Notice of Enforcement in the post, you don’t need to just wait for the bailiffs to visit and seize your assets. As soon as you receive this notice, one of the best ways that you can protect your property is to get in touch with the bailiffs directly and try to arrange a payment plan.

Depending on your circumstances, you might be able to pay the debt in full, ask to make a partial repayment, or negotiate a new monthly or weekly payment schedule. Not only can this prevent your assets from being removed, but it could stop the bailiffs from visiting your home at all. An expert debt advisor may be able to offer support and help you negotiate a new payment plan.

Secure your home

If bailiffs have issued a Notice of Enforcement and you haven’t been able to negotiate a payment plan, you can still take steps to protect your assets by securing your property. In most cases, bailiffs cannot force entry into your home, but they can use unlocked doors or windows to come inside. On the date of their intended visit, make sure that all your doors and windows are locked and keep the chain on your door. You might also want to consider installing a camera doorbell so that you can see who is standing on your doorstep before you open the door.

Hide valuable goods

You can also protect your assets from the bailiffs by hiding your valuables. While bailiffs can’t enter your property by force, they are allowed to make lists of goods that they can see through the window and use these observations to make a Controlled Goods Agreement. Concealing your valuables ahead of the bailiff’s visit might mean putting them in cupboards and drawers so that they can’t be seen from the window or closing all your blinds and curtains.

Move your car

When looking to enforce a debt, bailiffs will typically try to remove or make a list of all the valuable items they can access on your property. This can include your car, especially if it’s parked on your driveway or outside your home on a public road.

However, they can’t remove your car if it’s located on someone else’s property, so one way to protect an asset like this is to park it in a trusted friend or neighbour’s driveway or secure garage ahead of the bailiff’s scheduled visit.

It’s also worth keeping in mind that bailiffs can only take goods that belong to you, so if your car is under a hire purchase finance agreement – meaning its technically still owned by the lender – they have no right to remove it. 

Know your rights  

Receiving a Notice of Enforcement and knowing that bailiffs will be visiting can be intimidating and it can be even harder to face when you’re not sure of your rights. Before the bailiff arrives, take some time to understand what they can and can’t do, for example, bailiffs must not remove items that are essential to living such as your oven, fridge, or freezer, and they should also not take any assets that you need to do your job.

As a debtor, you also have different rights depending on the stage of the enforcement process that you’re in.

If you’re struggling to keep up with your debts and suspect a bailiff might be appointed, but haven’t yet received your first Notice of Enforcement, you can legally hide, sell, or remove assets from your home. Selling your assets might even help you to pay your outstanding balance.

Once you’ve received your Notice of Enforcement, but haven’t yet had a visit from the bailiffs, you’re also within your rights to hide or remove your assets. However, once the bailiff has arrived and made an inventory of your goods – known as a Controlled Goods Agreement – it’s a criminal offence to interfere with these assets in any way.

Facing a visit from the bailiffs? Our team of experts is here to help. Give us a call on 0161 826 5175 or send a message here.