Enforcement Agent fee review 2023

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Overview

The Ministry of Justice has reviewed the fees that can be recovered from debtors by Enforcement Agents when using procedures under the Taking Control of Goods Regulations 2013 and the Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014. They regulate how Enforcement Agents are able to take control of goods to enforce judgment debts and they set out the fees they can recover from debtors for the work they do.

The fees were introduced in 2014 by the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 and have not been revised since then.

The MOJ intend to bring forward all the legislative amendments at the same time and by the end of 2023. An implementation date has not been given.

Change to Fees

Proposed fee changes:

• High Court and Non-High Court fee to increase by 5%.
• Uplift the thresholds above which a percentage fee can be added to certain fees by 24% (rounded to the nearest £100), meaning that the threshold for non-High Court cases will be £1,900 and the threshold for High Court cases will be £1,200.

Change to Procedures

Proposed procedure changes:

• To increase levels of settlements at the Compliance Stage extend the minimum period of notice that must be given before Enforcement Agents and High Court Enforcement Officers can visit a residential property. This may be up to 28 days.
• Within these proposals, an High Court Enforcement Officer with the agreement of the creditor can agree to repayment plans at the compliance stage without the need to visit.
• The MOJ will be clarifying when the fee for Enforcement Stage 2 can be recovered in the High Court Enforcement fee scale.
• The MOJ is proposing using the non-High Court fee scale for low-value High Court debts.

Background

The regulations which came into force in April 2014 sought to strike a balance between providing enough revenue for Enforcement Agents and High Court Enforcement Officers to run a profitable business, whilst seeking to protect debtors from disproportionate costs. They also sought to ensure costs were kept low by encouraging early settlement. A ‘Compliance Stage’ was introduced to reduce costs by incentivising settlement of the debt without the need for an enforcement visit.

The Ministry of Justice states that the reasons for these proposed changes are that “It is integral to the justice system to have an effective enforcement industry to ensure that businesses and creditors can effectively collect money owed to them”, and that “It is equally important that those facing enforcement action are treated fairly”. (Review of the Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014 – 2023).

Proposed Change to the Compliance Stage

To encourage higher settlement rates at the Compliance Stage, following a number of responses from professionals in the Enforcement sector, the following have been suggested:

• An increase to the Compliance stage fee – to reflect the costs of a more complex process and to fairly compensate Enforcement Agents for additional tasks.
• A chance to the statutory Notice of Enforcement – to explain more clearly the enforcement process to those facing enforcement action. To include information about support from debt advice organisations, including the ‘Breathing Space’ Scheme.
• To increase the length of the compliance period – to encourage debtors more time to engage with the Enforcement Agent and agree on an affordable repayment plan.

Enforcing CCJs

When you are owed money and have obtained a county court judgment the quickest, most effective and most successful way to get your Judgment enforced is to transfer the judgment up to the High Court. It can then be enforced by a High Court Enforcement Officer.

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Contact us today for further information and costs.

Telephone or email Frank G Whitworth for advice.