Halt bailiff visits until Covid-19 crisis has finished, urges Labour
BAILIFF VISITS should be halted for the duration of the Covid-19 public health crisis, Labour has said.
In April, the Government banned bailiff visits but the temporary measures ended on Sunday, with debt collections allowed to restart yesterday.
On a visit to Citizens Advice in Beverley, East Yorkshire, Labour’s Shadow Justice Minister and Hull MP Karl Turner warned that millions of people could now face an anxious wait for a knock at the door.
Mr Turner said: “It is incredibly worrying the Government promised not to reintroduce bailiff visits during a public health pandemic, they’ve gone back on what they promised there.
“We’ve now got a situation where three million people are likely to be affected and 800,000 of those people who might be expecting a knock on a door today are people who have been affected directly as a result of Covid-19 and the public health crisis.
“So what we’re saying is the Government should think again, they should stop bailiff visits right now, get this public health crisis out of the way and then go back to reintroducing.
“But we need better oversight and we need better regulation – there is not enough, that’s just the truth of it.”
Analysis from debt charity StepChange shows that approximately three million people are facing bailiff visits due to council tax arrears.
Around 800,000 are estimated to have incurred those arrears solely and directly due to the pandemic.
Research by Citizens Advice has shown that of those who have fallen behind due to coronavirus, 63 per cent are key workers, while 65 per cent are shielding or at increased risk.
Ray Davies, from Citizens Advice Hull and East Riding, said: “Obviously people have been having a very difficult time during lockdown.
“Citizens Advice feel that there are up to six million people being affected literally through no fault of their own and they’re going to suffer tactics of private bailiffs collecting debts and will put them in a very difficult position.”