UK residents are being warned of a new wave of fraudulent demands for payment from fake Bailiffs using the names “High Court Bailiffs” or “High Court Debt Recovery Bailiffs” and various .org web domains.
These demands claim that these scammers are acting under a “Writ of Control issued by the High Court” and include reference to “the lawful seizure of your assets” along with a QR code in order to create a false impression of urgency in the hope of over-riding the recipient’s caution.
However, just like our original blog warning of fake enforcement SMS messages, we are certain these postal demands are fraudulent, the PCNs in question do not exist and these “Bailiffs” are nothing more than the next set of chancers looking to prey on the unwary and we will explain why below…
To get a High Court Writ, you first need a CCJ
The most glaring issue with this type of demand is that in order to “transfer up” a claim to the High Court for enforcement, a creditor first has to secure a County Court Judgment for the sum owed. A PCN cannot simply be sent to the High Court as it is essentially just an invoice for payment.
When a claim is issued in the County Court the Court will send the forms to the postal address associated with the driver’s details held with the DVLA. So if this was a genuine judgment you would have previously received both the initial claim form, along with the subsequent notice of judgment issued by the court.
You can check for any CCJs registered in your name and at your address using any credit reference service (check your bank or building society for free access with many current accounts) or use the Registry Trust Online service here.
If this search shows no CCJ exists, then there cannot be any writ associated with it.
To enforce a High Court Writ, you need to be authorised by the High Court
High Court Enforcement Officers and Enforcement Officers (Bailiffs) must be properly authorised by the courts in order to enforce judgments. You cannot simply set up a “bailiff” company and begin trading.
For High Court Enforcement Officers (formerly the High Court Bailiff) the High Court Enforcement Officers Association has a full list of authorised members here.
If the company is not clearly listed on this page then they are not a genuine firm and you can read more about reporting a fake High Court Enforcement Officer on the HCEOA site here.
For Enforcement Officers (formerly known as County Court Bailiffs) they must hold a hold a certificate, granted by a judge at the county court and The Ministry of Justice has a full list of all authorised Enforcement Officers here.
Again, if the enforcement agent and their apparent employer is not listed on this page, then they are not genuine.
There are also a number of other signs that demonstrate to us as experts in debt collection that these demands are clearly fraudulent, but for obvious reasons we will not be posting these identifiers publicly.
Take Five to Stop Fraud
As the governments Take Five to Stop Fraud campaign is keen to point out the best way to stop yourself falling for a scam is to:
- STOP
Take a moment to stop and think before parting with your money or with your personal information. It could help keep you safe. - CHALLENGE
Ask yourself, could it be fake? It’s ok to reject, refuse or ignore any requests for payment or to seek further clarification on exactly what any alleged “debt” relates to. Ensure you are happy that any company that contacts you is genuine and if in any doubt, do not pay anything immediately. - PROTECT
If you have already paid money out to a suspected fraudster contact your bank immediately and report it to Action Fraud at actionfraud.police.uk or on 0300 123 2040
Unfortunately these fake bailiff scams are an old and ongoing problem and we would encourage anyone who receives a scam text or letter to report the issue direct to Action Fraud.
