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The landlord in Suffolk can get the possession order transferred to the High Court for enforcement by requesting the county court to issue a warrant of possession, and in this situation, the High Court Enforcement Officer enforces the order.
HCEOs are also called law enforcement officers, sheriffs or certified bailiffs in Suffolk.
A possession order can only be enforced in Lowestoft, Bury Saint Edmunds, or Ipswich through the High Court when:
The possession hearing was in the high court in Suffolk as this is rare because the possession order is typically moved to the county court when a landlord in Suffolk seeks it, but it can take place in the High Court under exceptional circumstances such as factual disagreements or disagreements on law.
The landlord in Suffolk wants to have the possession order transferred to the High Court for enforcement.
The county court judge has to decide whether to allow the transfer of enforcement in Ipswich, Lowestoft, or Bury Saint Edmunds to the High Court.
The landlord in Suffolk can apply before the hearing or apply for the same during the hearing to transfer to the High Court for enforcement.
If the Suffolk 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.
A request for transfer may not be possible if there exists an outstanding request from a tenant in Suffolk; e.g., petition against the possession order.
However, the landlord can apply for a writ of control to recover the money owed if there are rent arrears in Ipswich, Lowestoft, or Bury Saint Edmunds and court fees that costs over £600.
The warrant of control, also known as writ of fi fa or writ of Fieri facias gives the landlord the power to seize and sell the assets of the debtor tenant in Suffolk.
The debts which come under the CCA (Act of Consumer Credit), are not transferable to high court and thus, the county court in Suffolk executes them as they are CCA regulated agreements.
If a landlord in Suffolk is applying for possession order transfer to the High Court for enforcement, it may be because:
The enforcement process in Suffolk is often quicker with the HCEO's than with a county court
Delays in implementation by the Suffolk county court bailiffs could cause the landlord to lose rental income
Avoid further property damage in Suffolk and any antisocial behaviour of the tenants
The HCEO can enforce a possession order as well as seize the goods in Suffolk when money is due
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 costs of using an HCEO for eviction in Suffolk are higher than the Suffolk county court bailiffs because the speed of eviction is quicker, however, a tenant may wish to oppose an application to transfer enforcement to the High Court.
The tenant may cite the following reasons:
Insufficient evidence by the landlord in Suffolk that the Count Court bailiffs will slow down the process
The total costs involved are not proportionate
The tenant needs extra time to find somewhere else to live in Ipswich, Lowestoft, or Bury Saint Edmunds
The common factors of tenants that are classed as exceptional situations that court in Suffolk might consider are overdue rent, children or any relevant factors.
If the Suffolk county court awards the application from the property owner to transfer the possession order to the High Court, the landlord must apply for the consent of the High Court before the court issues the writ of possession, except for:
Furthermore, the permission required before serving warrant of possession is not necessary when there is a violation of order of possession including suspension orders in which violation includes non payment of money in Suffolk.
When permission is sought from the High Court, it is liable for the landlord in Lowestoft, Ipswich, or Bury Saint Edmunds to give notice of the application every person involved in actual possession of the property - except in the debt recovery or cases against the intruders.
The High Court will not award approval except each tenant in Suffolk has such notice as the Court feels is enough.
When serving the notice, there are no set out requirements of the form in Suffolk.
The notice must include the fact of case; this is the vital part of the notice.
In another scenario, if in case only a sole tenant in Suffolk was being aware of the case transfer to the High Court, the reminder from the landlord including terms of the court order could be enough as a notice.
If the landlord does not give adequate notice or fail to offer information that is complete to the Court about any pending appeals or applications against the proceedings for possession, this could cause the possession writ, even after its execution in Suffolk to be set aside.
Many HCEOs in Suffolk have tried to circumvent the correct procedure by explicitly appealing to the High Court to take over the matter according to section 41 of the County Court Act 1984, or improperly utilizing Form N293A (i.e. rather than trespassers, against tenants).
On 21st March 2016, the Queens Bench Division (High Court's Senior Master) ascertained a practice note to avoid misconduct.
It is a known fact that the process is speedier in Suffolk with the HCEOs of the High court than the bailiffs of County court.
HCEOs require few days to enforce warrant of possession if the application notice of permission expires or after issuance of warrant of possession in Ipswich, Bury Saint Edmunds, or Lowestoft.
The HCEO is not under obligation to provide advance notice to the Suffolk 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.
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 Suffolk 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 Suffolk.
You will need to complete form N244 during your application to high court.
So, it is the responsibility of the tenant in Suffolk to inform HCEO if the stay is set aside or issued as the High court may not inform them.
Any other motion, such as setting aside the original order of ownership, must be sent to the county court in Suffolk.
High Court Enforcement Officers (HCEOs) are not on the High Court's payroll but are simply commercial agencies in Suffolk backed by the High Court.
In England and Wales, names of the enforcement officers authorised to execute High Court writs are contained in the Directory of High Court Enforcement Officers.
As a standard HCEOs subscribe to a code of practice.
A possession writ shouldn't be executed on specific days, such as Good Friday, on a Sunday, and on Christmas Day in Suffolk, unless the court has stated otherwise.
Starting from 6 April 2014, regulations for the actions of HCEOs and all other bailiffs, when seizing goods in Suffolk came out.
The regulations stipulate that:
Reach a residential property in Suffolk by 6 a.m. or 9 p.m., as approved by the judge
Entering the property in Suffolk while only a child under 16 years of age is present
Seizing essential domestic equipment such as washing machine, fridge, or cooker
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