A warrant of execution is a form of
writ of execution
A writ of execution (also known as an execution) is a court order granted to put in force a judgment of possession obtained by a plaintiff from a court. When issuing a writ of execution, a court typically will order a sheriff or other similar of ...
used in the
County Court in England and Wales (only). It is a method of enforcing
judgment
Judgement (or US spelling judgment) is also known as ''adjudication'', which means the evaluation of evidence to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The term has at least five distinct uses. Aristotle s ...
s and empowers a
County Court bailiff to attend a
judgment debtor In English and American law, a judgment debtor is a person against whom a judgment ordering him to pay a sum of money has been obtained and remains unsatisfied. Such a person may be examined as to their assets, and if the judgment debt is of the ne ...
’s (hereafter, debtor) address to take goods for sale. The closest equivalent in Scotland is a charge for payment, executed by
sheriff officers after a decree (a
Scots Law judgment
Judgement (or US spelling judgment) is also known as ''adjudication'', which means the evaluation of evidence to make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The term has at least five distinct uses. Aristotle s ...
) is granted in a
sheriff court in favour of a pursuer (
claimant) seeking recovery of a debt or other sum due.
Procedure
An application for a warrant of execution can be made by the
judgment creditor (hereafter, creditor) at any point following the entry of judgment.
The request can be made for any amount up to the outstanding value of the judgment along with an application for the costs of requesting the warrant.
A warrant of execution can be issued in the County Court to recover a debt between £50 (£600 if the debtor is in
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
) and £5,000. If amount sought is more than £600 it can be enforced in the
High Court using a writ of control.
The value of the warrant will calculated by adding the amount of the request, plus the court fee and creditor's costs (if granted).
As the warrant can only be sought on a judgment debt of £5,000 or less, statutory
interest
In finance and economics, interest is payment from a borrower or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is distin ...
is not recoverable.
Upon issue of the warrant the court will transfer the case to the debtor's local court and write to the debtor informing them of the warrant. The debtor is currently given seven days to pay the amount of the warrant without further action; if the defendant pays within this time, the warrant is cancelled and the money is sent by the court to the creditor.
Should the defendant fail to pay, the bailiff will visit the premises of the defendant, usually within fifteen working days, and attempt to identify items which can be sold at auction to recoup the outstanding debt, subject to the restrictions below. Such items are usually removed and stored, the storage costs being added on to the outstanding balance. The items are auctioned, usually without a reserve price, and the resulting amount (less auctioneer fees) is paid to the creditor.
If there is still an outstanding balance, the bailiff may again visit and seize further goods or assets.
Instead of actually removing goods, the bailiff can take payment from the debtor or agree to return later to allow the debtor to gather funds. If the debtor agrees to pay later the bailiff may take
walking possession of goods as a
surety of payment.
Right of entry
The warrant grants limited rights of entry to the bailiff depending on the type of property and whether the bailiff has already successfully visited the debtor.
Residential property
A bailiff can only enter using peaceable means unless they have a High Court writ giving them the right to force entry. When forcing entry they must have a locksmith and police officer present and cannot force entry themselves. The locksmith can break into a locked door and if the debtor attempts to bar entry then the police officer can remove them{{fact, date=July 2019 or the bailiff can use reasonable force to remove them.
Peaceable entry means that they cannot push past the debtor to get in though an open door, they cannot get in though an open window (the law previously allowed them to do so), they cannot climb over fences or locked gates; they can only gain entry though an unlocked door or unlocked gate. Gaining entry to the land (i.e. the garden) does not give them permission to force entry into the property. They do not require permission to enter the property.
If the bailiff has previously been admitted and is returning to collect payment or goods to be sold, then they have a right of entry to residential property even if the occupants refuse to let them in. In this case they can force entry.
Business premises
If there is no living accommodation attached and the bailiff has good reason to believe the debtor has goods inside, they may force entry to business premises.
Goods that cannot be seized
Social policy considerations, particularly the requirements enshrined in the overriding objective of the
Civil Procedure Rules 1998
The Civil Procedure Rules (CPR) were introduced in 1997 as per the Civil Procedure Act 1997 by the Civil Procedure Rule Committee and are the rules of civil procedure used by the Court of Appeal, High Court of Justice, and County Courts in civil ...
, currently limit the goods which the bailiff may take.
The goods must currently meet the following criteria:
* The goods or items are required by the debtor to carry out business; examples of this are a tradesman's tools or reference books
* Essential household items which the debtor and their family require such as clothing or bedding
* Items which do not belong to the debtor; for example items that are subject to a hire purchase agreement, leased or rented from a third party. Goods that are joint owned by the debtor can be seized.
* Goods already marked for seizure by another bailiff dealing with a different warrant
As the warrant is a specific sanctioned interference with the debtor's general right to enjoyment of his property any question as to whether goods are or are not available for seizure is likely to be determined in the Defendant's favour.
Suspending a warrant
The defendant may apply for the warrant to be suspended; this application must state reasons, for instance an offer to pay by instalments, and usually requires payment of a fee. The court will inform the creditor of the application and require them to confirm whether they agree to the suspension and if not to state why and, in the case of an offer, what they would accept.
If the suspension is contested the court will list the application for a hearing. The court will there decide whether the warrant should be suspended, and whether terms attach to the suspension. The court is not bound by the party's suggested payment regimes.
Duration of a warrant
Warrants last for a period of one year from the date of issue. In some cases, a fee can be paid to extend the warrant's life beyond one year, but the creditor must supply the court with sufficient reason for such an extension to be granted, and - unless there are exceptional circumstances - apply before the warrant expires.
References
HMCS, Her Majesty's Court Services
Civil procedure
Warrants