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Not only can a possession order be enforced by requesting for a warrant of possession from the county court, a landlord in Fulham can also request that the order be transferred to the High Court to be enforced by the HCEO (High Court Enforcement Officer).
In Fulham, HCEOs are also known as sheriffs, certificated bailiffs or enforcement agents.
The imposition of possession order through high court is possible in Fulham, Parsons Green, or Walham Green by two methods:
When the possession hearing takes place in the Greater London High Court, as this is unusual because the possession order is normally transferred to the county court when a landlord in Fulham applies for it in the High Court, however, the hearing can take place in the High Court in some exceptional situations like important points of law or complicated disputes of fact.
If the owner of the property in Fulham appeals the transfer of possession order from county to high court for HCEO implementation.
The county court judge has the authority to decide whether the enforcement in Fulham, Parsons Green, or Walham Green should be transferred to High Court or not.
The landlord in Fulham can make a request whilst the county court process is in order to be transferred to the enforcement of the High Court.
If the Fulham 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.
Application for transfer cannot be launched if made if there is a pending appeal by the tenant in Fulham against a possession order.
Or if the tenant has rent arrears, when coupled together with court costs come to more than £600, a landlord can apply to get a writ of control which will enable them to recoup any debited money in Parsons Green, Walham Green, or Fulham.
A control letter allows the landlord to seize the tenant or debtor's belongings in Fulham, and this was formerly known as writ of Fieri facias or writ of fi fa.
If the debt is regulated by the CCA 1974 (Consumer Credit Act) then enforcement by the High Court cannot be applied because only Greater London County Courts have the power to enforce the agreement regulated by Consumer Credit Act.
There are certain reasons why a landlord in Fulham can apply for a transfer of the order to the High Court for enforcement including:
Enforcement in Fulham is usually faster by HCEOs than by county court bailiffs
Further loss of rental incomes because of the delayed enforcements via the county court bailiffs in Greater London
Prevention of further damage to the property in Fulham or anti-social behaviour
The HCEO has the power to implement the order of possession and seize belongings in Fulham if money is owned
Right from the transfer of the order, the interest on judgement debt of arrears will accumulate which is currently at the rate of 8%.
The eviction speed is faster and the payment of going through the HCEO is higher when compared to Greater London county court bailiffs, therefore, a tenant would probably wish to avoid having their possession order enforcement in Fulham go to the High Court.
Usually, tenants want to avoid this process because:
Insufficient evidence by the landlord in Fulham that the Count Court bailiffs will slow down the process
The costs involved are disproportionate
Tennant needs some more time to find another place to live in Walham Green, Fulham, or Parsons Green
Finally, the tenant's condition; if unpaid rent is substantial, and a tenant has children, will form relevant factors for the decision by the county court Judge in Fulham.
The landlord must obtain permission from the High Court before the writ of possession is issued if the landlord's application to transfer possession order is granted by the Greater London county court, except in:
Similarly, you can continue with a breach of possession order without having to worry about the writ of possession and this also applies to the suspended possession order in Fulham.
The moment an application to enforce a possession order has been sent to court, a property owner in Walham Green, Fulham, or Parsons Green should be ready to notify each party occupying the property regarding the order application.
Permission must not be granted by the High Court except each tenant in Fulham is provided with the notice in the timeframe that is deemed sufficient by the Court.
The order may be served in any format considering that there aren't specific requirements in Greater London.
However, it should be according to the facts of the case.
If there is only one tenant in Fulham in the property who is already aware that the case has been transferred to the High Court, in this case, a reminder of the terms of the court order from the landlord and a request that possession is given up can be considered sufficient notice.
Failing to provide sufficient notice, or to provide full information to the Court about pending applications or court appeals against the possession proceedings, can cause writ possession to be set aside, ever after its execution in Fulham.
Some HCEOs in Greater London apply to the High Court directly to take over the case through Form N293A or Section 41, the County Court Act 1984, and they thus bypass the normal procedure.
So, to stop these malpractices, a senior Master of the High Court (Queens Bench Division) issued a practice note to avoid these unfair practices.
Basically, an order of ownership in Fulham is usually imposed quicker via the HCEOs than the when handled by bailiffs from a regional court.
A writ of possession can be executed by an HCEO a couple of days after the landlord's possession notice or issue of a possession of writ has expired or the possession writ is issued in Parsons Green, Fulham, or Walham Green.
The HCEO is not obligated to inform the tenant prior to their visit in Fulham on when the writ of possession would be executed, usually they deliver the writ and visit the property again the next day or 2 days after.
The tenants must be served with a notice of 7 days if a High Court Enforcement Officer (HCEO) is looking to recover the possession of the Fulham property as well as the seizure of goods and money such as pending rents or any other costs.
Any writ of possession orders can be set aside or kept with the High Court in Greater London.
Form N244 is used for these applications.
If stay or set aside is given, then it's important for the tenant in Fulham to inform the HCEO themselves of these details because the High Court may not have provided them with the information.
Otherwise, other applications, including setting aside the original possession order must be made to the Greater London county court.
HCEOs in Fulham aren't the employees of the court, they are actual the commercial agencies authorized by the High Court.
If you need to check the names of enforcement officers in England and Wales, there is a Directory of High Court Enforcement Officers who have been authorized to execute High Court writs.
HCEOs are required to follow practice code.
A writ of possession cannot be enforced on Christmas Day, Good Friday or Sundays in Fulham unless the court says so.
From April 6th 2014, rules govern the actions of the HCEOs and all other bailiffs in Fulham, when confiscating commodities.
The rules include the requirements that the HCEO must not:
Gain access to a Greater London residential property before 6am or past 9pm, unless authorised by the court
Entering in the Fulham property when only a kid of less than 16 years of age is present inside
Take essential household goods like washing machine, fridge or cooker
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