Bailiffs 'Exposure' - The aftermath

Following the controversial release of the ITV programme Exposure – Bailiffs, the Local Authority Debt Enforcement & Recovery (LADER) forum held a conference last week which saw more than 60 local authorities meet to discuss promoting good practice in the enforcement arena.

Debt Management Today previously reported on ITV’s broadcast of the programme which saw an undercover ‘apprentice’ film a bailiff who used intimidation tactics, made racist statements and recalled being physically violent to a debtor. The enforcement conference was a chance for those in the debt collection arena to debate and comment on the standards of the industry in the aftermath of this exposure.

The Conference Panel included Lord Lucas of Crudwell and Dingwall, Philip Evans, co-founder of the Enforcement Law Reform Group, John Kruse, Author of the White Paper on Profit Sharing and Professional Practice and Jamie Waller, CEO of debt management and enforcement organisation JBW.

Lord Lucas focused on a need for Local Authorities to care about those they enforced against, whilst Philip Evans – who was chairing the Conference – emphasized that whilst the needs and nature of debt has evolved in the past 50 years, enforcement has continued as if nothing has changed.

It is now common for bailiffs to enforce many debts simultaneously against an individual, and the discussions during the conference concluded that Bailiff Law has not been updated to facilitate these changes.

Jamie Waller of JBW said: “The conference was a success. No other organisation has ever managed to get so many Local Authority Officers into a room to discuss bailiff services. LADER will ensure that the momentum around the subjects of bailiff procurement, fees and vulnerable debtors remains active.

“We will follow up with the delegates over the next few weeks with the view of collecting their feedback and making improvements for the future. It is with thanks to Lord Lucas, Philip Evans and John Kruse that the event was such a success.”

After the discussion was opened up to the floor, members of the audience commented that Local Authorities are being driven by cost of the procurement services rather than quality, which is in turn resulting from some bad behaviour in order to maintain market share and profit.

Local Authorities are increasingly demanding a per cent payment on fees collected and this is driving up the costs of enforcement to people already in debt.

Both the local Authorities, Advice Agencies and Bailiff Association in attendance agreed that clear and transparent guidelines need to be set out to ensure that a bailiff company can become an extension of a Local Authority and they work together to change the perception of the industry and move forward.

By Miranda Atty