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Another way of implementing the possession order is by asking the county court to give a warrant of possession where the landlord in Exeter can make an application to move the order to the high court for implementation by a high court enforcement officer (HCEO).
HCEO's are commonly referred to as agents of enforcement, or Sheriffs in Exeter.
The High Court can enforce the possession order in Crawley, Luton, or Exeter on different conditions, such as:
The hearing for the possession order was in the High Court in Devon as a hearing a possession order in the High court is abnormal because, if a Exeter landlord sues for a possession order in the High Court, the case is transferred to the county court except there are particular circumstances, like complex disputes of fact or vital points of law.
An application is submitted by the Exeter landlord to the county court requesting for the transfer of a possession order to the High Court so that it can be enforced by an HCEO.
It is the county court judge that will determine if to transfer the enforcement in Luton, Exeter, or Crawley to the High Court or not.
During the county court possession hearings, a landlord in Exeter can request that the possession order to be moved to the high court for enforcement.
If the Exeter landlord wishes to transfer the proceedings to the High Court after the possession order has been made, then they will be required to fill out an application to the county court to do so.
The inability to make the possession order application at the county court can be influenced by an outstanding application from the Exeter tenant, such as an appeal against the possession order.
Another scenario is recovering the debt if the overdue rent is over £600, the landlord applies for the writ of control to recover money in Exeter, Luton, or Crawley.
It gives an owner a chance for seizure and sale of the things owned by the tenant in Exeter and the writ is also known as a writ of Fieri facias or writ of fi fa.
If the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (CCA) regulated the debt, it could not be transferred to the High Court, as CCA regulated agreements can only be enforced in the county court in Devon.
A Exeter landlord might request for a transfer of the possession order to the High Court for enforcement, for reasons including:
Enforcement in Exeter by HCEO is usually faster than the county court bailiff enforcement
The slow process of execution by bailiffs of county courts in Devon results in losses for landlords due to unpaid rent
Avoid further property damage in Exeter and any antisocial behaviour of the tenants
HCEOs have authority of execution of the possession order and also of seizing the goods in Exeter in case of money owned
Immediately the county court transfers the possession order, the arrears on the judgement debt will begin to accrue interest at 8% per annum.
Not only is it more expensive to use a HCEO, eviction in Exeter is also faster with HCEOs as compared to county court bailiffs in Devon, tenants may counter an application for a transfer to the High Court for enforcement.
Some reasons the tenant may give include:
The Exeter landlord did not provide significant evidence that shows the county court bailiffs couldn't facilitate the eviction in good time
The costs of transfer of the order are too much
They need extra time to find a place before eviction in Luton, Crawley, or Exeter
The decision of the Exeter court to oppose the transfer of order will be influenced by several factors that affect the tenant such as if the tenant has children or has significant rent arrears.
The landlord can only get the writ of possession issued if they have obtained the permission of the High Court and they need to get it done as soon as their application to transfer is granted by the Devon county court, however, they won't need the permission in:
Also, permission is not required for issuing a possession writ following a possession order infringement, including a possession order that is suspended, where the infringement involves non-payment of money in Exeter.
When a landlord seeks permission from the High Court to enforce a possession order, the landlord in Crawley, Luton, or Exeter is required to notify everyone in the property of the application and the only exceptions are if there are actions against trespassers or in cases involving mortgage repossession.
The landlord must also give sufficient notice to the Exeter tenants to ensure they are aware of the transfer of the possession order to the High Court.
Notice can be given in any way in Devon as there are no rules for this.
However, it should be according to the facts of the case.
In the event that only one tenant in Exeter is involved and understands that the move to transfer the case to high court, a reminder regarding the details of the notice and application to give back ownership to the renter is considered sufficient.
Failure to provide sufficient notice means failure to provide enough information to the Court about pending applications or appeals against the proceedings, and this can lead to the writ of possession been set aside, even after its execution in Exeter.
Some HCEOs in Devon may not follow the correct procedure and they apply straight to the high court to take over a suit or use Form N293A to circumvent the proper process and can apply directly to the High Court to take over a matter and were misusing Form N293A.
In March 2016, the High Court Senior Master issued a practice note to ensure that these misconducts stop.
HCEOs ensure faster enforcement of a possession order in Exeter than bailiffs in a County Court.
A HCEO can execute a writ of possession in just a few days after the landlord's notice of application for permission has expired or of the issue of writ of possession in Exeter, Luton, or Crawley.
There is no need to give notice to the tenants in Exeter about the HCEO visit for writ execution but it is common practice to deliver writ a couple of days before the visit.
In cases where a HCEO is claiming to seize money and goods due to costs and rent arrears and recovering possession of the premises in Exeter, they will have to provide the tenant a 7 days' notice.
Any writ of possession orders can be set aside or kept with the High Court in Devon.
Form N244 should be used when applying to the high Court.
So, it is the responsibility of the tenant in Exeter to inform HCEO if the stay is set aside or issued as the High court may not inform them.
Any other application must be made through the Devon county court, for example, setting aside the possession order that was original.
HCEO's in Exeter are not employed by court; however, they serve as business agencies mandated by high court.
The Register of High Court Compliance Officers comprises the lists of England and Wales enforcement officers approved to conduct writs from the High Court.
Every high court enforcement officer must stick to the code of practices.
They can't execute a writ of possession on some special days such as Good Friday, on a Sunday, or on Christmas day in Exeter without an expressed authorization by the court.
Regulations govern the actions of HCEOs and all other bailiffs in the seizure of goods in Exeter with effect from 6 April 2014.
These restrictions mean that HCEOs cannot:
The time of entering the Devon residential property is before 6 am or after 9 pm unless authorized otherwise by the court
Enter the Exeter premises if the only person available is a child under 16 years of age
Taking basic household stuff for instance refrigerator, cooker or washing machine
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