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The other choice for enforcing a possession order by asking the county court to issue a warrant of possession is for the property owner in St Albans to apply to transfer the order to the High Court for enforcement by a High Court Enforcement Officer (HCEO).
HCEOs are also called law enforcement officers, sheriffs or certified bailiffs in St Albans.
A possession order can only be enforced in Hatfield, Harpenden, or Welwyn Garden City through the High Court when:
The possession hearing was in the high court in Hertfordshire as this is rare because the possession order is typically moved to the county court when a landlord in St Albans seeks it, but it can take place in the High Court under exceptional circumstances such as factual disagreements or disagreements on law.
The possession order can be transferred to the High Court for enforcement when the St Albans landlord applies for it in the county court.
The transfer of enforcement in Hatfield, Welwyn Garden City, or Harpenden to the high court is determined by the judge of the county court.
The landlord in St Albans can request the possession order to be transferred to the High Court for enforcement during the county court possession proceedings.
Once the landlord in St Albans obtains the possession order, he/she will be required to apply to the County Court for the transfer of it to the High Court for enforcement.
The application for transfer cannot be made if the St Albans tenant had made the appeal against the application of a landlord and they have strong points.
The landlord can also apply for a writ of control if they need to recover the rent arrears and court costs of more than £600 in Welwyn Garden City, Harpenden, or Hatfield.
A control letter allows the landlord to seize the tenant or debtor's belongings in St Albans, and this was formerly known as writ of Fieri facias or writ of fi fa.
Any debt that is controlled by the Consumer Credit Act (CCA), cannot be moved to the high court for execution because CCA regulated contracts can only be executed in the county court in Hertfordshire.
The reasons why a landlord in St Albans may request that the order be transferred for enforcement to the High Court include:
The enforcement process in St Albans is often quicker with the HCEO's than with a county court
Loss in rental income by the Hertfordshire county court bailiffs due to delays in compliance
Prevention of further damage to the property in St Albans or anti-social behaviour
The HCEO can both seize goods and administer the order of possession in St Albans, when there are unsettled bills
8% interest rate, for arrears on the judgment debt will accrue from the time of the order transfer.
The eviction speed is faster and the payment of going through the HCEO is higher when compared to Hertfordshire county court bailiffs, therefore, a tenant would probably wish to avoid having their possession order enforcement in St Albans go to the High Court.
Usually, tenants want to avoid this process because:
If a landlord has failed in providing the evidence than there will be quite a delay for using county court bailiffs in St Albans
The costs involved are too high
The tenant may require more time to look for a new play to live in Harpenden, Hatfield, or Welwyn Garden City before eviction takes place
The St Albans court's decision about the order transference is affected by a number of factors, for instance, in case there are children with tenants or presence of notable rental arrears.
It is a must for the landlord to get permission from the high court if he/she wants to transfer the application granted by the County court in Hertfordshire, apart from when:
You will also not require permission for the writ of possession to be issued for a breach, including a breach of possession order that is suspended or when the possession order breach is bills that are unpaid in St Albans.
Once the landlord in Welwyn Garden City, Harpenden, or Hatfield contains a permission for enforcement of possession order from high court, he is bound to deliver notices of application to each party who is residing or using the premises.
High court may not consent until each leaseholder in St Albans has been served with the order and it is satisfied.
There is no specific requirement of notice to be served in a set form in Hertfordshire.
Sufficient proof depends on the facts of the case.
In the case of a sole tenant in St Albans who knew the case had been transferred to the High Court, a reminder from the landlord of the terms of the court order and a request to give up possession might be enough notice.
If satisfactory notice is not provided by the landlord or he provides the court with insufficient information about the pending appeals or applications against hearings of possession, then the warrant of possession will get invalid even after execution in St Albans.
Sometimes correct procedure had been tried to be avoided by some High Court Enforcement Officers (HCEOs) in Hertfordshire by applying to High Court directly to take over the issue under section 41 of the County Court Act 1984 as well as by using form N293A in improper way.
On 21 March 2016, the court issued a practice note through the Senior Master of the High Court (Queens Bench Division) to stop these malpractices and illegal use of their powers.
Generally, a possession order is normally enforced in St Albans faster through HCEOs than bailiffs from the county court.
The execution can be done just a couple of days after the landlord's application for permission to the High Court expires or the possession writ is issued in Harpenden, Welwyn Garden City, or Hatfield.
The visit of HCEO about the execution of the writ of possession does not require to be notified to the tenant in St Albans although it is common practice for them to drop off the writ and return a day or two later.
The HCEO must give the tenant a seven days' notice if they are seeking to seize money or goods, and recover possession of the property in St Albans.
It is possible to obtain stay or invalidation of warrant of possession or control through the high courts in Hertfordshire.
The N244 form should be used to make applications to the High Court.
If the tenant in St Albans is able to obtain the stay or set aside, he should notify the HCEO about the updated status as they may not be timely notified.
Application of other sorts, for instance for the invalidation of the first order of possession, should be referred to county courts in Hertfordshire.
The High Court authorizes the HCEOs as commercial agencies in St Albans, thus, they are not on the court's payroll.
In England and Wales, the names of authorized HCEOs are available from the HCEO's directory.
Every high court enforcement officer must stick to the code of practices.
For example, a possession of writ cannot be carried out on a Sunday, a Good Friday, or on Christmas Day in St Albans, unless it is ordered by the court.
Since 6 April 2014, HCEOs and other bailiffs in St Albans have been required to operate in accordance with a set of rules.
Under these regulations, HCEO has no right to:
The time of entering the Hertfordshire residential property is before 6 am or after 9 pm unless authorized otherwise by the court
Enter the St Albans premises if the only person available is a child under 16 years of age
Carry important household goods such as a microwave, refrigerator or laundry
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