Hi.
Has somebody enforced Possession Order in the last year or so? How long did it take you to execute the Writ of Possession? Did your T try to suspend it?
Thank you.
Hi Tim_Ira
We are in the same boat I think: we are landlords needing to act on a county court possession order and getting conflicting advice on timescales. Any advice you get will be gratefully shared!
Cheers
Ade_J
Likewise, I have a Possession Order granted for 14 days which I believe my tenant is going to ignore.
Any advice on the next steps, timescales, issues to look out for etc. would be helpful
I did one in july this year from clerkenwell - It took three month from baillifs application to execution
Luckily tenant paid throughout the period
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My god!!! Thanks for sharing, S.
When we evicted our T back in 2009 or so (our only eviction bar this one), it took bailiffs one month, that’s all. I also read that T can apply to suspend the writ claiming exceptional hardship. The truth is not far behind. With her several CCJs she won’t find anywhere decent, so it will be exceptionally hard for her to move on. Exceptional hardship, indeed ))))
Stone, do you mind me asking how come your T paid throughout all this period? Were they not resentful?
Also, when T got their letter from bailiffs, did you get a copy, too?
Thank you.
Hi All
We were granted possession order, allowed T six weeks, expires today. T will not move out. She is continuing to pay rent. I read on Attwell’s Solicitors website that this is to be expected. Croydon Council have nowhere to house her so appear to be coaching her on how to stay put. We have read a lot of websites and spoken to a lot of private bailiff companies. I believe we have two choices: apply for county court to evict her (backlog 17 weeks processing to issue then indeterminate time for county bailiff to enact the eviction) or we have to apply for county court permission N244? to allow high court to issue eviction notice (also seventeen weeks processing then HCEO - private bailiffs - will take 4 to six weeks). Timings differ depending on whom we speak to. HCEOs are unable to predict county and high court processing times. Anybody any experience with Croydon County Court processing of N244 paperwork? We hold no animosity toward T - we just need to sell up. But this has been going on since February. It seems Croydon Council - who’s housing department has zero homes to offer - coach tenants on how to stay where they are.
So sorry and horrified to hear it. So, it’ll be over half a year just for bailiffs to enforce the court order? That’s some serious backlog.
Thanks for all contributions - learning lots. I understand that a request to amend the order of possession can be lodged with 14 days of the order’s issue date. We’ve missed that but others might be able ‘fast-track’ transfer to high court jurisdiction allowing earlier appointment of HCEO. Check this though - this is ‘info’ gleaned from websites.
I’m now worried that Croydon Council will help T claim exceptional hardship and so counter any eviction notice.
Do you know, when bailiffs put note through T’s door (or stick it on the door), do they inform LL about it? I vaguely remember from the last eviction that bailiffs needed LL to open the front entrance door to the block of flats, so we came on the date agreed and unlocked it. Then the bailiff slid the papers through the flat door.
Hi Tim_Ira
Not been as far as using bailiffs yet - sorry I can’t help.
Sorry, misunderstood you. You obviously were talking about waiting times for Order of Possession not Writ of Possession. Anyway, good luck with getting your property back.
Hi Tim_Ira
We have the order of possession - expiring today. Worried about next step - getting writ of possession. I just haven’t experienced the final stages of bailiffs delivering an eviction notice. Consensus is: from appointment of HCEO, possession can be rendered in four to six weeks. But getting from expiry of order of possession to appointment of HCEO is the grey area for me: how long does it take the courts (county or high) to process the writ of possession? Reading around suggests months!
Do keep us updated and best of luck with it.
I am in a similar situation - have a Possession Order that expires in a week and the tenant is not going to leave.
I’m slightly confused as to the next step. Is it:
- Apply for a writ of possession, which when searched brings up form N293A ‘Combined certificate of judgment and request for writ of control or writ of possession’ and send to the court that issued your judgment
or - N325 Request a warrant for possession of land?
Any information / experience on this including whether I have to hand deliver this to the same court would be appreciated.
Hi Steve35
Still a learning curve but this choice is emerging:
Route 1: N325 to county court yields Warrant of Possession (17 weeks for Croydon County Court) and then that authorizes a county bailiff to do eviction (indeterminate time - very hard to find out - probably months)
Route 2: N244 to county court yields their permission (20 weeks for Croydon County Court) to escalate eviction process to High Court (sometimes - hit and miss) then High Court issues Writ of Possession and appointment of an HCEO (a private bailiff) who’ll get the eviction done in four to six weeks.
So comparative risks are:
Route 1: indeterminate time for Warrant based on how big backlog is then another indeterminate time for county bailiff to act based on how busy THEY are and then risk that county bailiff walks away from eviction due to difficulty of task (returning perhaps two weeks later).
Route 2: indeterminate time for County Court to give permission based on how busy they are AND no guarantee of success based on how convinced they are that issue needs escalating. But if Permission allowed then Writ is a done deal and more seasoned, more motivated HCEOs do get possession first go. More costly for appointment of HCEO.
Too late for me but for anyone else in the same boat - when pursuing accelerated possession (N5B? - can’t remember) - make sure you ask at that stage for Order of Possession to allow escalation to High Court. Can be done within 14 days of submission I believe. This needs checking - not sure!
AAAAAHHHH - Hindsight!
What a horror story , it’s only going to get worse.
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