Bailiff indemnities

Surrey County Council did not have the information requested.

Dear Surrey County Council,
can you please answer under public interest using yes or no answers or a detailed description if you wish ...

the answers should be contained within your code of ethics and your contracts or
simply in any code of conduct.this is not a complaint against your council
but research into how bailiffs can be a law unto themselves if not watched

1. Does your enforcement agent contract allow your enforcement agents to
issue an indemnity against prosecution for themselves without the prior
agreement of the council in cases where they have wrongfully seized when
the customer is identifiably vulnerable?

2. Have you ever allowed bailiffs to make their own settlement agreements
where goods have to be returned after 3 months?

3. Would you allow enforcement agents to breach the equalities act by
achieving a gain whilst someone is under mental health treatment if it
meant your business rates were collected,even if they didnt inform you?

4. How would you react if they did this without you knowing?

5. Would you class a secret indemnity kept from the council which achieves
a gain at the cost to the vulnerable victim a material breach of contract
.?

6. Must enforcement agents always report failed levies and a full report
when dealing with vulnerable customers 7.would you employ enforcement
agents that have fraudulently concealed information that could cause
litigation to the council or serious damage to a protected party in the
past ?

thank you for your public concern in answering these questions asap.

8.before a seizure of a persons assets do you make sure under human rights act that the bailiff has done a fair and balanced test with regards to whether the seizure is in the favour of the public interest

Yours faithfully,

claire moore

Yours faithfully,

claire moore

FOI/COR/SCC, Surrey County Council

Dear Ms Moore

YOUR REQUEST REF NO. FOI002733 UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000

Thank you for your request for information received on the 27 December 2019. Your request reference is as above.

We will respond to your request promptly and in any event within 20 working days from the date of receipt of your request. If you wish to contact me to discuss the progress of your request, please use the contact details given below and quote the reference number given above.
 
Regards

Helen Gilbert
Legal & Democratic Services

Corporate Information Governance Team (Room 138) |  Democratic Services  | Surrey County Council | County Hall | Penrhyn Road | Kingston upon Thames | Surrey | KT1 2DN
Tel: 020 8541 8935 | Email: [Surrey County Council request email] |

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FOI/COR/SCC, Surrey County Council

1 Attachment

Dear Ms Moore

 

YOUR REQUEST REF NO. FOI002733 UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000

We have considered your request which was for information in respect of
the use of baliffs/enforcement agents.

 

It is understood that the Council rarely uses them and only after a court
judgment. 

 

The Council is not responsible for the collection of business rates and/or
council tax.  You would need to contact the district/borough councils in
Surrey for information in connection with the enforcement of outstanding
business rates/council tax.

 

Please see the following link for a list of the relevant councils

 

[1]https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/council-and-...

 

A number of questions raised by you were asking us for an opinion which is
outside the remit of the Act in any event as the Act only gives a right of
information in respect of recorded information held at the date of the
request so we are unable to assist.

 

If you are unhappy with the handling of your request for information and
wish to make a complaint or request a review of our decision, in the first
instance you should contact the County Council, quoting your request
number given above, at:

 

Freedom of Information Officer

Surrey County Council

Legal & Democratic Services

County Hall

Penrhyn Road

Kingston upon Thames

Surrey

KT1 2DN

[Surrey County Council request email]

 

If you are not satisfied by the County Council’s response to your
complaint, you have the right to apply to the Information Commissioner for
a decision.  The Information Commissioner will normally expect you to have
exhausted our complaints procedure.  The Information Commissioner can be

contacted at:

 

Information Commissioner’s Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF

 

Yours sincerely

 

 

 

 

Mrs Mary J Elliott

Freedom of Information Officer

 

 

 

Mrs Mary J Elliott

Freedom of Information Officer

Legal & Democratic Services

(Mondays to Thursdays)

 

Corporate Information Governance Team (Room 138) |  Democratic Services |
Surrey County Council | County Hall | Penrhyn Road | Kingston upon Thames
| Surrey | KT1 2DN

Tel: 020 8541 7969 or 020 8541 9130 (if unavailable) | Email:
[2][Surrey County Council request email]

 

[3]cid:image001.jpg@01D4DB4C.8DCBAD00

 

 

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