Citizens Advice calls for more action on bailiffs

Only independent regulation will stop indebted Brits being at the mercy of the “bully boy tactics” it claims are employed by some of the country’s bailiffs and this idea should have formed the central theme of the recently drafted tribunals, court and enforcement bill, Citizens Advice suggests.

Thousands of people in the UK ask Citizens Advice about debt each month and these debt solution seekers have “already waited far too long for reform” to protect them, the charity asserts.

Peter Tutton, Citizens Advice debt policy officer, said: “If the government is serious about protecting the most vulnerable, independent regulation should be a central provision of this bill.”

“As it stands, the bill just extends the existing system – a system with a dismal track record of failing to protect vulnerable debtors.”

Brits in debt could soon face further financial pressures as it was revealed this week that two of the nine members of the interest rate-setting committee at the Bank of England voted to increase the cost of borrowing in February.