HER MAJESTY’S COURT SERVICE and UNPAID FINES.

• About HMCS.
• What are Magistrate Court Fines?
• Which Bailiff companies can enforce the warrants?

ABOUT THE WARRANT.

• The importance of seeing a copy of the warrant.

UNPAID FINES: YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED

• How can I check if the fees charged are correct?
• What happens in vulnerable situations?
• I can’t afford to pay my Magistrates Court fine.
• Can I be sent to prison for not paying my council tax?
• Can the bailiff force entry into my home?
• How do I complain about the Bailiffs?

ALL ABOUT CLAMPING ORDERS.

• Can my car be clamped and removed?
• What is a Clamping Order?
• Sale of the clamped vehicle.
• Does the bailiff need an SIA licence to clamp my car?
  

I can’t afford to pay my Magistrates Court Fines.

If you cannot afford to make the payments due under a fine and you are not receiving benefits, you must contact the Magistrates Court immediately and the court will require that you attend a very simple hearing where you will have to complete a list of your Income & Expenditure. It would be for the Magistrate to consider your circumstances and set a payment arrangement that is affordable. For a hearing such as this, there is no fee to pay, and normally you will just be able to turn up at the Magistrates Court without an appointment.

Following the hearing, the court will advise the fines office of the arrangement that has been agreed and this should ensure that bailiff action will cease…..you must keep to the payment arrangements.

I’m receiving benefits and can’t afford to pay my fine.
If you are receiving benefits, in particular, Income Support you can apply for nominal repayments to be deducted from your benefits. Previously deductions could be made at a rate of £2.80 per week, but the Department of Work & Pensions considered that this amount should be increased .The new rate of deduction is now £5.00 per week.

As deductions can also be made in respect of Council Tax, CSA arrears and gas/electricity arrears, the DWP have agreed that where there is insufficient benefit to deduct the £5.00 or, where there are already two deductions in place, the old standard rate of £2.80 per week should apply. When you first attended Court, and a fine was imposed, the court should have been made aware of your financial situation and arranged deductions on your behalf.

However, if your financial circumstances have changed  since that time and you are now receiving the above benefits, you must contact the Fines Department immediately to inform them of your new circumstances so that arrangements can be made for the deductions to be made. This will ensure that bailiff action will cease. Under the Third Party Deduction Scheme there is an overall cap of £8.40 per week that can be deducted from your benefits.

We have listed here the relevant Statutory Ruling in the event that you wish to write to the Magistrates Court on this.

The Fines (Deductions from Income Support)(Amendment) Regulations 2004.