What laws govern the bailiffs’ actions?
In 2002, the National Standards for Enforcement Agents was introduced which set a minimum standard which all bailiffs are expected to comply, but there was a disappointing element to this in that it did not include a complaints or appeals procedure and was merely a voluntary code. After much consultation, a White Paper was published in March 2003: this proposed to radically reform bailiff’s law, with its intention being to consolidate legislation into just one single code together with having one licensing body. Finally, on 25th July 2006, the government published The Draft Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Bill, which includes a single procedure for taking control of goods and this bill was put into the Queen’s Speech in November 2006, and is currently being debated in the House of Lords. Bailiffs are also governed by the Traffic Management Act 2004 which sets out the timeframes and procedures of enforcement for Civil Parking Enforcement. Each of the bailiff companies have strict code
