Warrant of Execution - Procedure

Procedure

An application for a l Warrant of Execution can be made by the judgment creditor (hereafter, creditor) at any point following the entry of judgment.

The request can be made for any amount up to the outstanding value of the judgment along with an application for the costs of requesting the warrant.

A warrant of execution can be issued in the County Court to recover a debt between £50 (£600 in Scotland) and £5,000. If amount sought is more than £600 it can be enforced in the High Court using a Writ of Fieri Facias (often called Fi. Fa.)

The value of the Warrant will calculated by adding the amount of the request, plus the court fee and creditor's costs (if granted).

As the warrant can only be sought on a judgment debt of £5,000 or less, statutory interest is not recoverable.

Upon issue of the Warrant the court will transfer the case to the debtor's local court and write to the debtor informing them of the warrant. The debtor is currently given seven days to pay the amount of the warrant without further action; if the defendant pays within this time, the warrant is cancelled and the money is sent by the court to the creditor.

Should the defendant fail to pay, the bailiff will visit the premises of the defendant, usually within fifteen working days, and attempt to identify items which can be sold at auction to recoup the outstanding debt, subject to the restrictions below. Such items are usually removed and stored, the storage costs being added on to the outstanding balance. The items are auctioned, usually without a reserve price, and the resulting amount (less auctioneer fees) is paid to the creditor.

If there is still an outstanding balance, the bailiff may again visit and seize further goods or assets.

Instead of actually removing goods, the bailiff can take payment from the debtor or agree to return later to allow the debtor to gather funds. If the debtor agrees to pay later the bailiff may take walking possession of goods as a surety of payment.