London Evictions hit Standstill

A Warning for Landlords as London Evictions hit Standstill due to County Court Bailiff Safety Concerns

As Covid becomes a thing of the past, wait times to evict tenants looked to be declining, however, this is all set to change for the worse.

London landlords face increased wait times to evict tenants from residential properties due to bailiff operations being suspended indefinitely. A mass email sent from London’s biggest court, the Central London Court, has warned of the suspension of bailiff appointments for the “foreseeable future”.

One bailiff (as reported by LandlordZone) has reported an 80% reduction in caseload, as bailiffs are being required to use the appropriate PPE to carry out evictions, which they are currently without.

This means even longer wait times for landlords in the London and Southeast areas, which traditionally already have high wait times for those landlords wishing to carry out an eviction.

It is now understood that the problem may be spreading to other parts of the UK, with County Court Bailiffs &Ldquo;downing tools” over safety concerns and a lack of proper equipment.

How can High Court Enforcement Officers help?

While central London court bailiff appointments have been suspended, this does not make eviction impossible. Quality Bailiffs offer an all-inclusive package to evict tenants from a residential property by applying to the High Court for a Writ of Possession.

With the Section 21 soon to be abolished, all landlords will have to resort to a section 8 notice, where they will have to prove ‘grounds for eviction’, a process that will have to go through their local county court. Once an Order of Possession had been obtained and the landlord has got permission to transfer up, Landlords have the option of applying to the High Court, a transfer process that usually takes between four to six weeks. The tenants will then be served a 14 day eviction notice. If they do not leave within this time, an Enforcement Agent will visit the property on the 15th day to evict the tenant.

If landlords are owed over £600 in rent arrears or for damages done to the property, a combined Writ of Possession and Control can be applied for.

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