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Alternatively, to enforce an order of possession by asking the county court to give a possession warrant, the landlord in Merseyside is asked to move the order to the High Court for the (HCEO) High Court Enforcement Officer's to enforce.
High Court Enforcement Officers are known as enforcement agents, certified Sheriffs, or bailiffs in Merseyside.
High Court can enforce the possession order in Saint Helens, Southport, or Liverpool if:
The hearing for the possession order was in the High Court in Merseyside as a hearing a possession order in the High court is abnormal because, if a Merseyside 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.
If the Merseyside landlord applies for the transfer of the possession order from the County Court to the High Court to enable the HCEO to enforce the order.
County court determines if the enforcement in Liverpool, Southport, or Saint Helens can be transferred to high court.
During the county court possession hearings, a landlord in Merseyside can request that the possession order to be moved to the high court for enforcement.
The Merseyside landlord will need to apply to the county court requesting that the possession order be transferred to the High Court for enforcement purposes after a possession order has been obtained.
The inability to make the possession order application at the county court can be influenced by an outstanding application from the Merseyside tenant, such as an appeal against the possession order.
If the total costs including the unpaid rent along with court expenses are over £600, the owner of the property can appeal for warrant of control for recovering the owed money in Liverpool, Southport, or Saint Helens.
A control letter is proof for the debtor / tenant's goods to be taken over or sold in Merseyside - this was earlier referred to as, and is still frequently called, a Fieri facias letter or a fi facias letter.
However, the debt cannot be transferred to the High Court if the debt or rent arrears are regulated by the Consumer Act 1974 (CCA), that is because agreements regulated by the CCA can only be enforced in the Merseyside county court.
The reasons why a property owner in Merseyside might seek to transfer the order to the High Court for enforcement include that:
Enforcement in Merseyside is normally faster through HCEOs as compared to county court bailiffs
Delay in enforcement via County Court bailiff in Merseyside causes rental income loss
Further damage to the Merseyside property and anti-social behaviours are prevented
The HCEO can impose the order of custody and seize the products in Merseyside if the money is due
Interest, which now sits at 8%, on the debt for arrears will accumulate from the beginning of when the transfer has been ordered.
HCEOs offer faster eviction speed in Merseyside and are more expensive than the bailiffs in County Court in Merseyside, thus, a tenant may not be comfortable with the transfer arrangement and kick against it for a wide range of reasons.
The tenant's causes can be:
The landlord in Merseyside hasn't provided proper evidence that a delay will result from using county court bailiffs
The prices are excessive and/or disproportionate
He/she is looking for some extra time to find a place to stay in Liverpool, Southport, or Saint Helens before vacating
Extenuating circumstances such as children or rent arrears may play a major role in the court in Merseyside when considered by the judge.
If County Court in Merseyside grants the application of landlord to transfer to High Court, the landlord needs to get the high court permission before the issuance of the writ of possession, except in:
Permission is also not needed for the issue of a writ of possession, including a suspended possession order or lack of payment following the breach of a possession order in Merseyside.
When a landlord seeks permission from the High Court to enforce a possession order, the landlord in Southport, Liverpool, or Saint Helens 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 High Court, therefore, cannot give permission until every person in Merseyside involved with the possession order has received the notice sufficiently.
There is no specific requirement of notice to be served in a set form in Merseyside.
The facts of the case will help with determining the sufficient notice.
Once a tenant in Merseyside already knows that there has been a transfer of the order to the High Court, a notice such as a reminder of the stipulations in the court order and a request that the tenant leaves the property may be regarded as sufficient.
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 Merseyside.
The several incidents of HCEOs in Merseyside trying to divert from the specified process by giving a direct application and taking charge of matter with the wrong usage of section 41 or N293A which is in opposition to tenants rather than trespassers.
On 21 March 2016, a practice notice was released by the Senior Master of the High Court (Queens Bench Division) to ensure that these abuses are avoided.
HCEOs usually enforce a possession order in Merseyside faster than county court bailiffs.
Execution of a letter of possession by a HCEO may occur only a few days after the expiry of the notice of the landlord's request for permission to the High Court, if necessary, or the question of the letter of possession is given in Saint Helens, Liverpool, or Southport.
The HCEO is not under obligation to provide advance notice to the Merseyside tenants about when the writ of possession will be executed, however, they usually drop the writ with the tenant and revisit the tenant a day or two later.
However, a 7-day notice must be provided by HCEOs if they would be regaining possession of the property in Merseyside and seizing goods and payment in form of court costs and owed rent.
The Merseyside High Court reserves the right to stay or set aside a writ of control or a writ of possession.
All applications to the High Court must be made on form N244.
If the court grants the application, the tenant in Merseyside must inform the HCEO of the grant because the HCEO may not get such information from the High Court.
Any other application must be made through the Merseyside county court, for example, setting aside the possession order that was original.
HCEOs in Merseyside are commercially paid agencies given authority by the High Court and are not actual employees of the court.
Around England and Wales, the HCEO directory contains all enforcement officers' names with powers to enforce writs from high courts.
All high court enforcement officers must abide to a code of practice.
The HCEOs are forbidden to carry out the writ of possession on a Sunday, Christmas Day or Good Friday in Merseyside unless they are recommended by the court to do so.
Since 6 April 2014, HCEOs and other bailiffs in Merseyside have been required to operate in accordance with a set of rules.
These restrictions mean that HCEOs cannot:
Enter a residential property in Merseyside before 6:00 a.m. and after 9:00 p.m. without the court authorization
Enter the Merseyside property if the person present is the child aged under 16
Take household goods such as fridge, cooker, washing machine, and many more
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