1st Class Bailiffs Articles

When it comes to surveillance, the term can sometimes make people think of large white vans with a satellite dish on top with investigators monitoring phone calls inside a nearby building like we see on TV.

In real life, the art of surveillance is all about the attention to detail of a particular case and there is more to it than just using a camera or video camera to record a person’s interactions or movements. There is a lot of planning involved and pre-observation research that first needs to be undertaken by those involved in surveillance services. These services are usually offered by professional private investigators or bailiff services with the expertise and experience required to successfully handle a range of cases.

A surveillance team will need the experience of knowing how to operate and carry out the surveillance operation, which may require both males and females from an ex-police or ex-forces background.

The video, photographic and communications equipment used also needs to be modern and state-of-the-art in order to provide a professional service to customers. The surveillance vehicles also need to be adapted in order to be kitted out with all the latest communications equipment available.

The cases taken on by companies offering surveillance services include covert investigations into corporate or insurance fraud, personal injury enquiries, employee absenteeism, theft and industrial espionage.

In this country, the scarcity of land is fast becoming a large problem for people. Many years ago, before the land was so densely populated, it was easier for travellers to pitch their camps wherever they so wished. And people travelling to summer festivals sometimes think they can camp anywhere they please. For local landowners who own stretches of open land, the problem of trespassers is becoming more and more serious, especially when trespassers move onto their land and refuse to leave.

But this problem does not just affect those who own agricultural and open land, but also includes those who own and operate on commercial land such as businesses on trading estates. In such cases, this can have a detrimental effect on the business as incidents of crime, disorder and vandalism are often commonplace once encampments occur.

So, the question arises, what can be done in such situations to remove these trespassers from your land?

Well, there may be a risk to personal safety when attempting to remove the trespassers yourself. Also, this can count against the landowner and their legal standing in such situations.

It is actually more effective to enlist the help of bailiff services who can take action on the landowner’s behalf and obtain an order for possession of the land. The process can be quickly implemented by the professionals and proceedings can be issued quickly. The bailiff services can also gather information and do research on the landowner’s behalf to help strengthen the case against the trespasser(s).

The image that can spring to mind when one thinks of a private investigator is the type of private eye or snoop that was romanticised in cinema - like Jack Nicholson’s character in Chinatown, the British Sherlock Homes or even Hercule Poirot as made famous by Agatha Christie. However, professional investigator services are in demand in Britain today. But what services do they provide?

Well, some of the main services that professional investigators provide include process serving, status reports, tracing and surveillance. The services can be varied and wide ranging and can be offered as an addition to bailiff services.

Professional investigators can act as process servers for clients and the services they offer can get fast and effective results. This can be for any legal document such as a court order or statutory demand.

Investigators can be involved with tracing and tracking down anyone, from missing debtors to missing family members. Investigators can provide surveillance on employees, those suspected of fraudulent activities or people claiming benefits which they are not entitled to: the list is endless.

These services can also offer status reports for once the target has been located, including a pre-litigation report on a debtor.

Investigator services usually have specialised teams which work on specific cases for clients in the UK and some companies can even provide an international service anywhere in the world.

The many reports of illegal traveller sites springing up all over the place during the bank holiday weekend has finally led to one council taking action. The daily and weekend newspapers have been rife with stories of traveller camps settling on land in local communities over the past few weeks.

In around a week’s time, Basildon Council will be publically advertising for bailiffs to win the lucrative £2million contract to clear 86 families from sites in the area. The sites are located at Crays Hill and Hovefields in Wickford.

The contract will be open to all bailiff companies across the continent and it will be advertised in the official journal of the European Union. The travellers have been attempting to stall the process by appealing against any eviction and private talks with the council are still ongoing.

Council leader, Tony Ball said:

“The advert will be published next week. We are then looking at about two months to award the contract, before any families still at the site are served 28-day notices of eviction. We hope in the meantime they will move off peacefully.”

This move by a local council closely follows government plans to utilise professional bailiffs’ services of debt collection.

At the recent Managing Consumer Debt conference, an Office of Fair Trading (OFT) representative, David Philpott, announced that the debt collection guidelines are to be revised later on this year. This news comes in addition to the UK government’s customs and tax department, the HM Revenue and Customs, declaring that it will utilise the services of private bailiffs and debt collection agencies in order to improve rates of collecting any unpaid tax which is still outstanding.

The updated OFT documentation will take into account debt purchase guidelines, plus debt collection and pre-delinquency management best practice.

Mr Philpott stressed that this guidance will not create any unnecessary burdens on the debt collection sector when he explained:

“We will take effective action against businesses that harm or may harm consumers but we also want to establish close links with businesses and consumer representatives to ensure constructive dialogue.”

The outsourcing of the tax collection is initially on a six month trial with letters being sent out to individuals and businesses who are overdue on their tax warning them that they will be referred to a debt collection agency unless they get in contact with the HMRC immediately.

A spokesperson for the HMRC has confirmed:

“We retain a flexible approach to ensure we get the best result for the taxpayer. Using private sector capacity has the potential to complement this approach and that is what we are now exploring.”

An attractive and peaceful small town in Gloucestershire was given a shock during the bank holiday weekend when an illegal travelling encampment was set up in a beautiful meadow.

This invasion occurred in Newent, the smallest of the four towns in the Forest of Dean District and which has been known for many years as the capital of the Ryelands.
The travellers arrived late on Friday, once the local council offices had shut for the weekend. Within no time, the camp was set up, complete with sewerage, toilet facilities and electricity.

Once the land was occupied, it was soon built upon and with it being the bank holiday, this made it extremely difficult for locals to make any objections to this invasion and contact any enforcement agencies dealing with traveller evictions.

The local townspeople were helpless to do anything as the hired lorries moved in and digging equipment was used to help construct the more-permanent encampment. The land was fenced off and 12 caravans were pitched in farmland just outside the town. The travellers moved onto the land they do not have planning permission for, just opposite three large houses.

Local councillor Len Lawton commented on the situation:

“Villagers were told the field’s owners only wanted to build temporary accommodation for horses. When the owners started making small engineering changes earlier this year, such as laying pipes, the council reminded them that major building work required planning permission.

“The owners were asked to respond but never did. I have nothing against the travellers’ lifestyle. My concern is that the legal system seems unfairly weighted against local people.”

Andy Coates, who is National Enforcement Services’ Chief Executive Officer, has received the Frank Martin Award from the Association of British Investigators (ABI) in recognition for his work as one of the top private investigators in the country.

Mr Coates was given the ABI award as praise for his service and dedication to the sector where he has worked for over twenty years. He has progressed from being head of the northern branch to being a member of the governing council. That is not all; his off-duty time also includes being a volunteer for the ABI, helping to boost the image of the organisation by directing and planning its marketing strategy.

Andy later commented on receiving the award:

“The ABI is crucial to the success of the private investigation sector… This award goes a long way to recognise the efforts so many private investigators put into their work and is a marvellous accolade for National Enforcement Services and the work we do.”

Tony Imossi, president of the ABI said:

“The Frank Martin award recognises those who have continued to show outstanding commitment to not only our organisation and its members but to the sector as a whole.

“With his team of bailiffs and administrators, Andy works to reclaim finances and properties for private companies, solicitors and even individuals. As well as a being a member of several private investigation organisations Andy heads up National Enforcement Services which deal in surveillance, debt collection and training, with services ranging from arrest warrants to forfeitures of lease and trespasser evictions.”

Andy has been involved with National Enforcement Services since he founded it in 1979 and has continued to increase the range of products and services the firm offers whilst providing staff with the latest technologies in their pursuits to reclaim debt.

The company’s head office is based in Darlington, County Durham and they offer services on a ‘no recovery no fee’ basis as well as providing training courses for bailiffs and civil enforcement agents.

Police have been told not to evict illegal gypsy and traveller camps from private land unless they are causing additional problems such as crime.

New guidelines have been offered to police forces from chief officers saying that the “mere presence” of an unauthorised camp should not normally result in their eviction, even though they are actually breaking the law through their trespassing.

Illegal sites are to only be cleared if the travellers are also guilty of “aggravating factors” such as crime, anti-social behaviour or damage to the environment.

The guidance says that the measures will help to balance the gypsies’ human rights, placing these alongside those of landowners and the general public.

Police have now admitted that illegal camps will still remain “a feature of life in this country” and it is “almost impossible” for gypsies to avoid camping illegally because of a lack of lawful sites around the country.

The Association of Chief Police Officers have come under fire, but have responded by saying that its guidance is necessary because these unauthorised encampments are “one of the issues” that stand in the way of community relations between the gypsies and travellers and settled communities.

The guidelines state that the final decision to use police powers is still at the discretion of the senior officer present.

This comes only three months after the Daily Telegraph newspaper had warned that the number of gypsy and traveller sites being forced on councils has more than doubled in two years.

Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said:

“It is shocking that the police are abandoning their commitment to defending private property.

“People pay their taxes for the police to defend our families and our property and the authorities must not abdicate that responsibility.

“A police force that turns a blind eye to trespassing is no police force at all.”

The most recent figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government showed there were 1,750 gypsy caravans on unauthorised sites in England with 2,240 on land owned by travellers, but without planning permission. The figures also show that even where councils turn down some applications for sites, inspectors are increasingly overturning those decisions.

Most people have certain preconceptions about the role of the bailiff, but in reality there are a number of different services offered.

One task frequently carried out by bailiffs is the tracking down of individuals. Most commonly this involves the tracing of debtors, but these skills can also be put to good use in searching for other people as well.

If you have missing family or friends, experienced bailiffs can help track them down. Experienced bailiffs know how to set about the task of tracing someone. They know what databases to check and they are all professionally trained investigators who will know the right questions to ask of the right people to help locate your loved ones.

With a staggering success rate of around 75%, this is the best way of tracking people down and urgent requests can be started within just a couple of days.

If you need to trace a family member and don’t know where to turn, it’s definitely worth considering making use of bailiffs. With access to the right databases and years of experience, they should be able to get an address for you and all this is done with due consideration to the Data Protection Act.

Travellers have set up camp in the vacant MFI car park in Drake Street, Rochdale according to the Rochdale Observer.

There were also reports of travellers using the Kwik Save site at Well i’th’ Lane, although this group of travellers had already moved on when the Rochdale Observer checked on Monday 13th April.

This comes three months after the Daily Telegraph had warned in an article that the number of traveller sites being forced on councils has more than doubled in two years.
Last year Rochdale Borough Council spent more than £23,000 cleaning up after travellers had used eight sites around Rochdale within just three months. Money was spent on employing bailiffs to move the travellers and clean up the waste left behind costing around £3,000 per site.

A council spokesman told the Observer they were aware of the current situation but were investigating what could be done about it.

Rochdale Councillor Mohammed Sharif, representing the Milkstone and Deeplish ward said:

“I reported the problem on Friday night. It’s private land so I don’t think the council can do much – they will have to get in touch with the land owners and work together.”