Bailiffs Called In To At Least 280,000 Homes Over Council Tax Debt

Local authorities in England referred at least 280,000 households to bailiffs over council tax debt in the first year of the pandemic, and asked for more than 115,000 people to have their benefits deducted to clear their arrears. Councils adopted widely differing approaches to council tax arrears as the economy froze and unemployment rose during 2020-21, with some councils suspending all debt-recovery action while others continued to pursue thousands of households. Councils passed 281,380 households to bailiffs in 2020-21 – with at least 93,031 of cases relating to council tax arrears that built up during the course of that year, rather than previous years. Read more on the Observer website.

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2021/aug/08/bailiffs-called-in-to-at-least-280000-homes-over-council-tax-debt

Housing Minister Confirms Dates For Christmas Truce On Evictions

Bailiffs will be told not to enforce possession orders in England between 11 December and 11 January 2021, the housing minister has confirmed. In an answer to a written parliamentary question, Christopher Pincher confirmed the dates for the Christmas truce on evictions, which was first announced by the government earlier this month. Mr Pincher said the guidance being issued to bailiffs will also instruct them not to enforce possession orders in places where local public restrictions have been introduced by the government through legislation. The government has already said that evictions should not be carried out in areas which are subject to local lockdown measures. Read more on Inside Housing.

https://www.insidehousing.co.uk/news/news/housing-minister-confirms-dates-for-christmas-truce-on-evictions-67980#:~:text=Bailiffs%20will%20be%20told%20not,the%20housing%20minister%20has%20confirmed 

15 Renters An Hour ‘At Risk Of Eviction’

Figures from the Ministry of Justice reveal over 130,000 renters in England were put at risk of eviction during 2016.

·         In 2016, 53,201 private renting households in England were put at risk of eviction – equivalent to 131,938 renters, which is 15 renters per hour

·         A total of 21,596 private renting households in England were evicted by bailiffs in 2016.

·         The loss of a private tenancy remains the single biggest cause of homelessness in the country

Read more on 24housing.

Homelessness Reduction Bill Moves To The House Of Lords

The Homelessness Reduction Bill has passed the relevant stages in the House of Commons. It will now move to the House of Lords for its first reading on the 24 February 2017. There have been a number of changes to the Bill since it was introduced, including:

·         Removal of the requirement for local authorities to provide 56-days emergency accommodation for homeless people and rough sleepers with no safe place to stay.

·         Clarification that a local authority’s duty to prevent homelessness begins on receipt of a valid section 21 notice. Local authorities do not need to wait until a court order/bailiff’s warrant has been issued.

·         A limitation on the circumstances in which households can be found to be non-cooperative.

Read more on the Homeless Link website.

Ministry Of Justice Eviction Figures ‘Sober Reminder’

The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has released updated statistics on mortgage and landlord possession actions in the county courts of England and Wales in July to September 2016. The report reveals:

·         In the last twelve months 137,733 renting households in England were put at risk of eviction – equivalent to 316,900 renters

·         A total of 39,723 renting households in England were evicted by bailiffs in the last twelve months

·         The loss of a private tenancy remains the single biggest cause of homelessness in the country

Read more on 24housing.

22,592 Private Renting Households Evicted Over The Past 12 Months

Shelter says the “terrible impact” of welfare cuts and “chronic lack” of affordable homes is reflected in the 22,592 private renting households in England evicted by bailiffs in the last twelve months – the equivalent of 56,480 people and 88% higher than the number five years ago. Shelter spoke out on the release of latest mortgage and landlord repossession statistics from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) this week. The loss of a private tenancy remains the single biggest cause of homelessness in the country.  Read more on 24dash.

Brandon Lewis Issues Eviction Warning To Councils

The Housing Minister, Brandon Lewis, has written to all local councils in England to underline government guidance on the advice that councils give to tenants when seeking re-housing on the grounds of “homelessness” when faced with an eviction notice. The landlord associations have been lobbying the Minister for some time about what they see as erroneous guidance given by many local councils to tenants when they are seeking re-housing.  Many landlords have been reporting for some time that an alarming number of private tenants are being told by their local council to ignore eviction notices served by their landlords. They are often told to stay-put until bailiffs to turn up before moving out, otherwise they will not qualify for housing assistance and rehousing support. Read more on the Landlord Zone website.

New Law Proposed to Stop Councils Forcing Tenants to Wait for Bailiffs

The proportion of all repossession claims that have to be resolved by bailiffs in the last 12 months has shot up to 40%, compared to just 25% 5 years ago according to recent Government stats. Possession claims will only progress to bailiffs after a tenant has received an eviction notice and failed to vacate a property by the date specified. The NLA has consistently warned that putting vulnerable households in this position is detrimental to both landlords and tenants. Tenants often accrue further rent arrears that make them more susceptible to homelessness, while landlords could fall behind on mortgage payments as they are dragged through a lengthy and costly court process. As a result, landlords are becoming more reluctant to let out their property to vulnerable households as their confidence in their ability to regain possession without substantial financial damage is diminished. Read more on the NLA website.

Tenant Evictions Reach Six-Year High

The number of tenants evicted from their homes is at a six-year high, according to new figures, as rising rents and cuts to benefits make tenancies increasingly unaffordable. County court bailiffs in England and Wales evicted more than 11,000 families in the first three months of 2015, an increase of 8% on the same period last year and 51% higher than five years ago. The increase in the number of tenants losing their homes means 2015 is on course to break last year’s record levels. Nearly 42,000 families were evicted from rental accommodation in 2014, the highest number since records began in 2000. Read more on the Guardian website.

Councils Turning to Eviction Instead Of Helping Tenants with Rent Arrears

Councils have been accused of turning to bailiffs and the courts rather than helping people in rent arrears. StepChange Debt Charity research suggests councils are more likely to engage in aggressive enforcement action rather than offer affordable payment options to struggling tenants. The number of people contacting the charity with council tax arrears has increased 372 per cent in the last five years and over the same period the average amount owed has risen £157. Read more on the Independent website.

Evictions Rocket as Welfare Reforms and Rising Property Prices Hit Home

The number of tenants evicted from their homes in England and Wales hit record levels in November. Figures from the Ministry of Justice show that 11,100 properties were repossessed by bailiffs between July and September this year, the highest quarterly figure since records began in 2000. The homelessness charity Shelter estimates that over 1,300 people a day (560 households) in England are put at risk from eviction or repossession. Read more on the Guardian website.

Tenants Evicted From Flats with 'No Warning'

More than 40 people including children have been evicted from a block of flats in a raid by bailiffs. It follows the repossession of part of the property in Bartholomew Street, Exeter, from Property Edge Lettings which went into administration in 2012. Families, most of them Polish, say they were given no warning of the eviction and just 20 minutes to leave. Receivers Alder King, who sent in enforcement officers to repossess the property, declined to comment. Read more on the BBC website.

Benefit Cuts Leave 70,000 People in Council Tax Arrears

Around 70,000 people are being pursued by bailiffs for council tax arrears following benefit cuts, the Labour Party has claimed. The party has issued requests under the Freedom of Information Act to all English councils and 143 responded with figures showing 30,761 have been issued with bailiff notices. If extrapolated across England, 70,000 could be affected. The cut has been referred to as ‘a new poll tax’ by Labour. Read more on Inside Housing.

Reform Will Lead to Surge in Bailiffs Recovering Debts

Former housing minister Nick Raynsford has warned the Government’s planned £500m cut in council tax benefit is widely expected to prompt a surge in bailiffs recovering council tax debts.  The Government wants to devolve council tax benefit, requiring councils to set up schemes that will protect pensioners from cuts. However, they will have to do it with £500m less, as the Government wants to cut expenditure on the benefit by 10%.  Raynsford asked the Government what it is doing to prevent an “escalation of intrusive, expensive interventions against low-income households?”  The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice, Jonathan Djanogly, said: “If there are debts to be collected, bailiffs have to go and collect them; otherwise, the system would break down. However, the Government are clear that aggressive bailiff activity is unacceptable, and we are committed to introducing effective proposals that protect the public and ensure that bailiff action is proportionate.”  Read more on the Parliament website.