Episode 3 The Sheriffs Are Coming

-Meet the sheriffs.

-Let's introduce ourselves.

We're here today to execute a High Court writ.

They're the men whose job it is to get you your money back.

It's an arrestable offence, to stop me doing my job.

They're High Court Enforcement Officers charged by law to recover

what a court says is rightfully yours.

-I'm not waiting any more.

-If you've been ripped off and don't know where to turn...

I'm ordered to seize goods to clear this debt,

which could mean clearing this place out.

..if you've been to court but still not been paid what you're owed...

-Why don't you just tell me who you are?

-This is an absolute crock. You need to pay this.

-I've seized your car, sir.

-You can either let us through the door or we'll go through the window.

..it's time to call the sheriffs.

Just collected 42 grand.

Coming up, marketing consultant Louisa Nightingale

doesn't work for free,

so why didn't this college pay her for her work?

You can't hire someone and you can't just not pay them.

The sheriffs go in search of what she's owed.

Whether I kill off the business or not is irrelevant.

I'm here to execute a writ on behalf of our claimant.

Beth Mercer spent her life savings on a horsebox

that was unfit for the road.

Looked at it and I went, "He's got to be joking."

The sheriffs champ at the bit to get her her money back.

Vehicles will be seized if the amount isn't paid within the hour.

And things get heated when the sheriffs take up a dispute

with a Luton car yard.

If it's nothing to do with you, why don't you just tell me who you are?

In the nation's capital,

while millions go about their day-to-day business,

trying to do the same are enforcement officers

Lawrence Grix and Kev McNally.

They're fighting through London traffic

on their way to their latest job.

High Court Enforcement Officers,

commonly known as sheriffs,

are commanded by the High Court to collect payments

it's awarded where the person owing the debt has failed to pay.

Today, they're chasing thousands of pounds owed

by a training college to a woman that did work for them

but was never paid.

There it is. College of Accountancy and Management Studies.

-That who we want?

-Yeah.

My name's Mr Grix. I'm an enforcement officer

and I'm looking to execute a High Court writ.

Which company is it?

College of Accountancy and Management Studies Ltd,

and Genius Tuition.

We're here today to seize assets sufficient to clear that debt.

The person they've come to help

is marketing consultant Louisa Nightingale,

from the Docklands area of London.

Her problems started when she took the decision

to leave the company she was working for and go freelance.

The day after she became self-employed,

she was approached for work by Jatinder Kaur

of the College of Accountancy and Management Studies.

They were looking for ways to get more students into the college.

As my first client, I was really excited

and then I went away and did loads of work for them,

thought of all these plans we could draw up

of things to help the college.

I guess that's what freelance is.

You never know when your next job is coming

and you've got to be there to just jump at the opportunities, so I did.

Louisa worked for the college for a month,

putting in long hours and hard work.

Then she submitted her first invoice to them.

Well, I sent it off but I didn't get a response,

and normally you would get a confirmation of receipt.

So I called them up and, "Oh, yes,

"we did get it and we're processing it,"

so I was like, OK, great.

But no payment came.

In the end, Louisa carried on working for the college

and its sister business, Genius Tuition,

for a further two months,

still without getting a penny in payment.

And then it got to the point where they then started to say,

"We don't have any money,"

so I just thought,

OK, this isn't good.

I just thought, how is this even possible?

You can't hire someone and you just can't not pay them.

At her wits' end, Louisa didn't know where to turn.

I'd done all the things - I had a contract,

we'd signed everything, I did the invoices properly,

I did late payment invoices, final reminders.

There was literally nothing else I could do.

I think they were just hoping that I would just forget about it.

But I only had a handful of clients,

not enough to live on, so I really needed the money.

Finally, Louisa got advice that her best option

was to take the college to court.

They didn't contest the case.

A judgment was issued in Louisa's favour.

But still, a month on, Louisa hasn't been paid.

Her only option now lies with the sheriffs.

Aiming to bring Louisa the justice she deserves,

Lawrence and Kev are still in discussions with staff

at the College of Accountancy and Management Studies.

The reception staff tell Lawrence that the College has applied

for a form of insolvency known as a CVA.

They think this should stop the sheriffs' enforcement.

Doesn't mean anything to us at the moment.

Just because she's got an insolvency practitioner involved

two days ago to prepare a company voluntary arrangement,

that doesn't stop us enforcing today.

It might not stop him enforcing,

but a company with money troubles does present Lawrence with problems.

If it doesn't have any cash,

they won't be able to pay him.

His only option would be to seize goods,

a laborious and expensive process.

With that in mind, he sends Kev off to see what assets are on site.

If push comes to shove,

he could remove and sell them to pay off the debt.

Not very much stuff.

Nothing of any value, really.

But one item does catch Kev's eye.

A full set of the Encyclopaedia Britannica.

I don't know what they are but I imagine a full set of them

are quite desirable.

I imagine they're more than any of the computers.

Second hand computers are worth next to nothing at auction.

But the only knowledge Lawrence seeks is how much it's worth.

He hot foots it to eBay to find out.

There's loads of them on here.

-1984, complete set, 700 quid.

-It is a complete set as well.

It's giving 25 as a full set.

1994, £318.

Later, we'll see how Lawrence gets on when he's forced to bring out

the big guns to try and get Louisa her money.

I'm here to execute a writ on behalf of our claimant.

If that kills the business off, then so be it.

You all right? Guv'nor about?

We're sheriffs from the High Court.

If you win a county court judgment for over £600

but don't get paid, all is not lost.

For a fee of £60, your judgment can be transferred up

to the High Court for enforcement.

Then you can call in the help of the sheriffs.

My name's Mr Grix, I'm an enforcement officer.

They'll take up your cause

and enforce the writ on the debtor on your behalf.

We cannot leave until that money hits our bank account.

They can force entry to commercial premises,

enter residential properties through open or unlocked doors

or windows, and seize and remove goods to auction,

all in the cause of getting you what's rightfully yours.

I'm coming in any way today, whether you let me or not.

If they are successful, there's nothing more to pay.

If not, the only cost is a £60 fee plus VAT.

-See how easy this job is?

-We're off.

Heading up the highway to their latest job today

are enforcement officers Marc Newton and Tony Smith.

They're off to a used car dealers'

that owes a disgruntled former customer thousands of pounds.

We're just on our way up the M1 now to Luton.

We've got a company called Carland Direct.

Carland Direct are a garage

which sold a faulty car to one of their customers, Maryam Awan.

They fixed the car but then made her pay for repairs,

so the matter ended up in court.

Carland Direct didn't attend and the court ruled in Maryam's favour.

And now she wants her money back.

Arriving at Carland Direct's vast Luton forecourt,

Marc and Tony head for the main office.

Can they convince the company they need to pay off this debt?

Hello, mate. You all right?

It's about a High Court writ that's been issued.

-Who for, sorry?

-Carland Direct Ltd.

-Who's it from?

-Maryam Awan.

-Talk outside if you don't mind?

-Yeah, no problem.

While the Carland Direct manager has no choice

but to talk to Marc and Tony,

we're asked to leave the premises.

We continue filming from the street.

The manager says he's just an employee,

and therefore can't initiate any payment.

He says the only person who can,

the director Mr Shabhaz Khan,

is currently abroad.

Well, you're going to need to get hold of him,

or someone's going to need to pay this.

The amount outstanding is £3,239.44.

Problem is, if you don't we're going to start removing.

We have to seize goods.

The man says he can't pay the debt,

and that Marc will have to wait

until his director arrives back in the UK.

He says he's supposed to be picking him up,

but, when questioned by Marc...

So he's landing at three o'clock and you haven't left yet?

..he doesn't seem to be sure when he's arriving,

or even which airport.

One minute he's coming back in a couple of days,

then he's coming back in an hour, then you don't know what airport...

The manager retreats to make arrangements.

But a whole hour later there's still no sign of any payment.

So the sheriffs decide to step things up.

-What are you going to do?

-Start clamping that one and then that one.

All right.

The manager is not happy at all about seeing one of his cars

being clamped,

particularly as his own Porsche is sat on the forecourt.

We're not taking it, we're just seizing it.

-I'm not waiting any more.

-We've been here waiting for an hour.

The man says he's just an employee,

but Marc thinks he's more senior than he lets on,

and capable of initiating payment.

Who are you then? Who are you?

You're the guy who works here who drives the Porsche, yeah?

So you must get paid good wages for being a car salesman?

Don't treat me like an idiot.

You must have a few quid, driving that.

With the clamps now out, the manager seems worried enough

about his Porsche to drive it off

while Marc and Tony are busy with the Mercedes.

With the manager seemingly unwilling to resolve the situation,

Marc decides to instigate his plan B.

He leaves Tony on the forecourt and heads to his van.

We've got an address for the director,

which is just around the corner.

So as he's gone off, I thought what we might do

is pop round to the house around the corner.

We're not getting anywhere

and I think he thinks we're just going to leave.

He's going to be in for a bit of a shock, because we don't.

Well, what a surprise.

It looks like the manager's had the same idea as Marc,

and driven his Porsche to the director's house.

Is he or the director inside?

With no-one seemingly willing to talk to him,

Marc decides it's time to play hardball.

Give Lawrence a ring and start organising tow trucks for this,

because the Porsche is parked outside this house

and he's not opening the door.

He's just mucking us about here, ain't he?

Marc thinks the manager's inside the house.

But in fact he's just around the corner in another car,

and not in a good mood.

CAR HORN BLARES

Oi.

I'm trying to get hold of the director.

If you don't mind, I don't consent to you filming me.

-Please explain to me why are you here. If you clamp a vehicle, that's three grand.

-Yeah.

I'm trying to get hold of the person, but it's nothing to do with you, that's what you told me.

-Why are you here, then?

-Because I'm getting lied to constantly.

-No, you're not.

Number's there on the board.

The vehicle you clamp. Now what's the next step?

We're going to remove it.

I'm not going to wait, I told you. I'm not going to continue to wait.

Marc wants to know why, if the manager is just an employee,

he's so worked up about Marc's attempts to get hold

of the director, Shabhaz Khan.

If it's nothing to do with you, it's a bit weird how the car

you drive turns up outside the director's home address,

but it's nothing to do with you.

Why don't you just tell me who you are? You've obviously got something to hide.

You could refer to me as Mr Ahmed if you want.

-That's no problem. That's my surname, Mr Ahmed.

-Right.

So you can call me Mr Ahmed.

You, if you don't mind pointing that away...

Why don't we get out of the road,

because one of us is going to get run over in a minute?

-If you give me some time the problem will be...

-We've given you time.

You've had an hour and a half and done nothing.

Our director is not in the UK.

We're trying to locate him and bring him to you.

Well, I'm going to go back to the car yard

-because we're getting nowhere here.

-Please bear with us. We are trying to help you.

-OK, OK.

Marc heads back to Carland Direct's forecourt.

He still doesn't know where company director, Shabhaz Khan, is,

or where any money's coming from.

If he doesn't get something soon,

he'll reluctantly have to tow away the cars.

It's a message that Tony meanwhile has been trying to get across

to others at Carland Direct.

He's warned them if they don't pay up,

they'll get hit by additional towing and sheriff fees.

Soon after, another Carland Direct employee, Daniel, emerges.

He may not be the company director,

but he does agree to pay in full.

Finally, victory for the sheriffs.

Marc and Tony's assertive tactics

and refusal to get browbeaten have come up trumps.

Carland Direct arrange for the money to be paid.

They're also keen to put their side of the story.

By itself, the car's probably about over 100 a month,

so, you know, one or two, we are going to have a few issues.

At Carland Direct, if you do have an issue, we do deal with them.

Happy days. All done.

You know, if anybody wants to buy any cars, come to Carland Direct,

we'll be more than happy to...

Although at times frustrating,

Marc's got what he wanted from the job - a paid-in-full.

Well, total was about two and a half hours on that job.

Total collected was £3,239, of which they paid just over 1,000 in cash

and the rest on a debit card.

It's another score for the sheriffs, and, more importantly,

means Mariam Awan getting back the money a court of law says

is rightfully hers.

Back in north London, Lawrence and Kev are

at the College of Accountancy & Management Studies.

They're trying to get nearly £7,000 on behalf of

Marketing consultant Louisa Nightingale.

She carried out work for the college but was never paid.

While the sheriffs are listing assets,

a consultant for the college arrives to talk to Lawrence.

He says they're planning on challenging the court award,

which should prevent Lawrence seizing goods.

You can't take anything away without anything...

Well, we can if we believe the goods are in jeopardy.

Which, to be fair, I do.

Two days ago, wheels have been put in motion for a CVA,

so basically, the company is trying to get out

of the majority of its debts, by the sound of it.

The bottom line is, it needs paying. It should've been paid before now.

It's got to the stage where CCJs have been issued and not been paid.

It needs paying.

While Kev keeps listing,

the college's solicitor is brought in to discuss the situation

with Lawrence on the phone.

He warns that enforcing payment might mean the end for the company.

But with a live writ, it's not something that will stop Lawrence.

Whether I kill off the business or not is irrelevant.

I'm here to execute a writ on behalf of our claimant.

If that kills the business off, then so be it.

That's not my responsibility.

It's the responsibility of the directors of the business.

Dissatisfied with what the college has told him so far,

Lawrence is getting worried they're not going to pay up.

So, has the college got funds to settle certainly one of these today?

The one in the name of the limited company,

College of Accountancy & Management Studies Limited?

Is there sufficient funds, £6,212.26, to clear this today?

Right, then we'll be removing goods.

Lawrence has been at the college for nearly an hour

and is getting increasingly frustrated.

He decides to up the ante in the hope that it might provoke

the college into paying up.

He calls in the removal truck, or rather, removal trucks.

Can you tell Cathy I need a...?

What are we going to need? A few 7.5 tonners here, aren't we?

Erm...at least four 7.5 tonners.

And the four trucks seem to be helping to grease the wheels

towards payment.

KEV: He's back again.

-Just had a call from the accountant.

-Yep.

-They're trying to raise something and they'll get back to you in a few minutes.

-Trying to raise something?

-Yeah.

-Funds?

-Yeah.

The signs are that at least one of the writs is going to get paid.

But Lawrence wants to keep the pressure up

until the money's in his hands.

Have you managed to, erm...

find four trucks?

Good, good. Good, good.

Let me know how long they'll be. Hang on.

-Are we getting full payment on this or...?

-Yes, you are.

-Right.

It's all right. Just hold off on the trucks for...

sort of, 15 minutes or so,

cos we might be getting full payment.

So, 15 minutes later, Lawrence checks with the office

to see if any money's been received.

All right, cheers, Frankie. Bye.

Yep, they're all in the account.

Right, I'll do you a receipt.

Of the two writs, he's collected payment in full for one of them

and listed goods he'll remove at a later date if the second isn't paid.

We eventually collected full payment of one of the cases.

It was the larger one. The Genius Tuition is still outstanding.

We weren't going to get that out of them today.

A successful afternoon's work for the sheriffs,

and, more importantly, for Louisa Nightingale.

But the college didn't learn its lesson there.

The college tried to get the second writ against Genius Tuition

set aside. This was eventually rejected by the court.

And so, four months later, Lawrence and Kev went back.

This time, our camera was asked to leave straightaway,

and after lengthy discussions...

We seized the entire contents of this college

last time we were here in July.

She needs to come down here and get this sorted out or we're going to

have the van up to the doors and we'll start emptying the place.

..they, too, agreed to pay in full.

Have you got the bank details, have you?

OK. Thank you. Bye-bye.

Which means Louisa finally getting every penny she was owed.

She's come with her sister to celebrate.

I did expect it to be quite hard for them because I wasn't sure what assets they actually had

or if they would actually pay up there and then.

Really massive weight off my shoulders. I can't believe it. I'm so happy.

All this hard work's been worth it, so, it's just great news!

-BOTH:

-Cheers! To the sheriffs!

Someone else needing the help of the sheriffs is Dave Simpson.

He runs a security firm in Bromley

and feels mistreated after cashing in a share scheme

at what should've been a profit, but which ended up losing him money.

He wants it back.

The problem is, the people he wants it back from aren't any old company.

They're Barclays Bank.

Dave's problems started after Barclays Wealth Department

offered him the opportunity to invest £50,000

in a five-year share scheme

whose value would go up or down in line with the FTSE 100 share index.

'There are risks with that. I understood them and I was quite happy to go along with that,'

and invest the money for five years on the basis of what was going on with the stock market at the time.

Two years into the five-year scheme,

Barclays gave investors the chance to leave it early,

an option that suited Dave.

I've got four children and they've all got various needs, education and housing,

and I was going to try and help them out with that.

Dave rang Barclays, who confirmed that if he cashed his shares in

there and then, he'd make £2,700 profit on his £50,000 investment.

He decided to go ahead.

'So I wrote them a letter that specifically said

'on the basis of what I was told on THAT day,'

that I would like to get my money back

and also I said I've put my e-mail address,

my mobile phone number down there, and said specifically,

this is what I expected to get back, which I was quoted.

If there was any problem with that, cos I realise things could change,

let me know.

Some weeks later, Dave received a cheque from Barclays.

They'd cashed in his shares for £47,994,

considerably less than the telephone quote for over £52,000

that had prompted him to sell them.

Dave feels his letter was clear that if the value of his shares dropped,

Barclays should have checked with him before selling them.

Barclays refused to refund Dave any money so he took them to court.

The bank didn't contest his claim and Dave got a judgment against them.

But they've still not paid up, so now he's gone to the sheriffs.

And swinging into action to help him get his money back

are Marc and Kev.

We're just heading down to the Docklands in London.

We've got a writ for Barclays Wealth.

Amount that's outstanding on this is £6,500.

Barclays has revenues of over £30 billion a year.

Dave Simpson, considerably less.

But as long as there's a High Court writ,

the sheriffs will do all they can to help Dave take on Goliath.

I think they've definitely got the money at the moment.

I don't know but that looks like one of his...

-That looks like the security, doesn't it?

-It does, doesn't it?

They park up in front of Barclays' head office and head in.

Barclays' front door is as far as the security will let our camera go.

But Marc and Kev ARE allowed in to enforce Dave's High Court writ.

We've been issued a writ for Barclays Wealth.

The sheriffs deliver the writ. All they can do now is wait.

Half an hour later, Marc and Kev emerge.

But, for the time being at least, they're empty-handed.

They weren't going to pay today, unfortunately.

Because we had the writ in the name of Barclays Wealth, they're saying that's a nonentity.

It's just a name that they use for a little department.

The guy said he's going to take it away, look at the paperwork,

and then if they have to pay it and it's owed and the judgment has gone against them, they'll pay it.

It was a disappointing end for the sheriffs. But only briefly.

Their visit brought Dave's plight to the bank's attention

and wishing to resolve the matter, Barclays paid up in full.

It means Dave finally got the return on his investment

he'd originally hoped for.

Barclays told us that:

..until the sheriffs visited their office.

They said they've paid the judgment in full to resolve the matter.

Still to come...

Pete goes in search of his most valuable ever seizure.

If you follow us in, erm...

we're seizing a Lamborghini.

This central London guitar store sold a customer's classic guitar

but kept her money.

Can Lawrence and Kev change their tune?

If you're not able to come here, I'm going to call out locksmiths

and I will be removing all the goods from the premises today.

And the clamping firm that took these men and their car for a ride.

It felt like we were being robbed.

Can the sheriffs get the clampers to pay up what they owe?

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

One family needing the help of the sheriffs are the Mercers, from Durham.

11-year-old Alice is a hugely promising horse rider

with realistic dreams of making it to the top of the dressage world.

This requires a lot of dedication from both Alice,

Grandma Janet and her mother, GP nurse Beth.

I'm convinced it'll be her profession.

We've been told Alice has something special

and we will do everything we can to give her that start in her life.

I work six days a week, on the seventh day she competes.

Their problems began when Beth decided to purchase a horsebox wagon

that could transport and sleep her, Alice and beloved pony Quiz,

as they travel to riding competitions across the country.

But instead of making the pursuit of their dream easier,

it's left them out of pocket, forced to go to court,

and desperately in need of the sheriffs' help.

You're just being naughty now, aren't you?

Beth's search for a wagon brought her to Danny Jackson's Bonfields Horseboxes in Derby.

At Bonfields' lock-up,

Beth found a horsebox which was exactly what she was looking for.

She agreed to pay £4,500 for it

on the condition some minor repairs were carried out as part of the deal.

'Because it was a used wagon, it wasn't going to be perfect.

'There were about eight things that needed doing,

'and it was the electrics checked, there was a bit of welding.'

He actually stated in e-mail to us

that they would do all this before they delivered the wagon to us.

Go on then, missus!

But when the vehicle arrived, it was clear all was far from well.

I came in from work, looked at it, and I went, "He's got to be joking!"

None of the minor repairs Bonfields promised they would carry out

as part of the sale had been done.

Urgently needing the vehicle to move Quiz,

she was forced to drive it anyway.

Then, on one of Beth's first drives with it,

another far more serious fault became apparent.

And as I was coming down the drive for the hill, the lights just went.

I thought, "What the heck?" And I slammed the brakes on and the lights came back on.

I thought, "There's a loose connection." But we steadily lost lights, didn't we?

I mean, the last half-mile, I drove home with absolutely no lights.

Pitch black. It was... I've never had a journey like it.

How we didn't end up down the ditch...

The mechanic came out, looked at it, and he just said,

"Give us the keys, don't start it, don't touch it."

The mechanic told Beth and Janet that, in its present state,

the horsebox was fit only for the glue factory.

And he just turned round to us and says, "Don't drive it. It's a fire risk."

He said, "You could just get down the road and everything will just go up in flames."

With the horsebox effectively written off,

Beth and Janet wrote to Mr Jackson, demanding he take back the vehicle

and give them a full refund.

To no avail.

Beth and Janet's only option was to take Bonfields to court.

'Because I felt so angry,'

it makes you even more determined

to take it to the end and get back what you're owed.

When the case went to court,

Mr Jackson admitted there were faults with the horsebox.

He agreed to pick up and sell the vehicle to pay Beth her money.

But then, as months passed, nothing happened.

No money was paid and he failed to pick up the horsebox.

I don't know how he goes to bed and sleeps at night.

I really don't know how he can do it.

Beth and Janet's last hope of getting their money back

now rests with the sheriffs.

Which is why enforcement officers, Darryl Oreton and Mark Povey,

are arriving at Danny Jackson's home in Derbyshire.

The driveway is full of vehicles, including what they hoped for...

a horsebox.

If it's owned by Bonfields,

they can seize it if no payment's forthcoming.

They make sure it's blocked in by their van.

No-one's answering the door.

Darryl manages to raise business owner, Danny Jackson,

through an open window.

Enforcement officer, I've got a High Court writ

to execute against Bonfields Horseboxes on behalf of Beth Mercer.

-It needs to be paid cash, debit or credit card.

-I don't know anything about it.

-I think you do, sir.

-I don't think so, no.

Yes, this is the woman that you sold a faulty horsebox to.

Let me speak to my solicitor and then I'll speak to you.

A few minutes later, Danny Jackson comes back

and asks Darryl and Mark to leave.

-No, we won't be leaving, sir.

-Sorry?

Vehicles will be seized if the amount isn't paid within the hour.

Any which will cover the debt.

Any which will cover the debt and costs.

-What about the truck?

-Sorry?

What about the horse truck.

Do you have any proof or documentation for that?

Do you want to grab that for us?

While Danny Jackson goes looking for his documentation,

Darryl heads to the back of the house.

Sheriffs can legally enter a residential property named in a writ

through an unlocked door or window.

Darryl finds that the back door isn't locked.

He takes his chance to enter.

-Is it Mr Jackson, is it?

-I'm Mr Jackson.

Do have proof of purchase on any of the vehicles?

No, just the logbook.

Mr Jackson is not at all happy about Darryl being in his house

and decides to take emergency action.

Yes, I want the police, please.

-Yes, I've got a team of blokes around here.

-Enforcement officers.

Enforcement officers, they forced themselves into my house.

We didn't force our way in.

-It's the first I've heard of it.

-It's not the first you've heard of it, sir.

With the police now on their way,

Mr Jackson gets back to the matter in hand.

He tells Darryl he can't afford to pay the debt.

We need to get the money raised or goods are going to be seized.

Do you know anyone who can put this on a credit card for you?

Nothing on these premises belongs to Bonfields Horseboxes.

If Mr Jackson's right, that none of the vehicles on the drive

belong to Bonfields Horseboxes, he'll need to provide proof.

While he sets about doing that, on the other side of the house...

The police are here.

Darryl heads out to talk to the boys in blue.

We're enforcement officers.

We have a High Court writ against Bonfields Horseboxes.

-Obviously, we're just trying to get this money raised.

-Right.

-Or seize goods to the value of.

-He's saying nothing here belongs to Bonfields.

-Right, OK.

Darryl knows he's operating legally on the property

and that the police are only likely to help him.

Mr Jackson, however, is hopeful that the long arm of the law

will be on his side.

-Morning.

-Morning, all right, are you?

It's a dispute about a horsebox.

Mr Jackson explains his side of the situation to the police

but there's nothing they can do to help him.

But even though the law's on Darryl's side,

he's running into problems.

Mr Jackson won't pay and Darryl can't prove anything on the property

definitely belongs to Bonfields Horseboxes.

-I think he owns that but I can't prove it.

-No.

The police depart as there is nothing more they can do.

Before he follows them, Darryl wants to make one last attempt

to convince Mr Jackson to pay up.

The debt's not going to go away, it needs to be paid, whether it can be paid in full,

whether it can be paid over instalments.

With Mr Jackson still refusing to pay,

Darryl carries out a walking possession,

listing items he could remove at a later date if the debt's not paid.

They technically belong to the court now

and, unless Mr Jackson can prove they don't belong

to Bonfields Horseboxes in the next five days,

then the sheriffs will remove and auction them.

I'll leave you with some paperwork.

Like I say, the debt's not going to go away,

it's only going to increase if we have to call out again.

Mr Jackson wants to tell us his side of the story.

He says he did go to Durham to try and collect the horsebox,

to pay off the debt

but says the land owner where it's parked wouldn't let it go.

We went up there twice, a total of 250 miles there,

1,000 miles we've done trying to get it

and the bloke would not release it.

All Darryl can do is reflect on a testing visit.

Hopefully, this little bit of pressure today will make him go and get the vehicle back,

get it sold and then Miss Mercer

will get the full money that she's owed.

Thankfully, for Beth and Janet, Darryl was right.

It seems their surprise visit was enough to inspire a change of heart in Mr Jackson.

He later agreed to pay in full and has now also picked up the horsebox.

Finally, the delighted Mercer family can move on from their ordeal.

Hopefully , Alice will be able to get out and compete a bit more

because I'm not going to be working six days a week.

Extremely good result but we wouldn't have got it without the sheriffs.

Sheriffs never give up on a job unless they absolutely have to.

Which is why enforcement officer Pete Spencer is in Blackburn,

about to breathe new life into a cold case.

Pete's been chasing this particular debt for the last six months,

without any luck so far.

I visited two private addresses previously

with no joy.

The total outstanding for this one is £40,657.91.

It's a considerable debt but Pete knows the person that owes it

has a valuable asset that would more than cover what's outstanding.

Nothing less than a Lamborghini convertible sports car.

Only problem is, every time Pete's tried to seize it previously

it's been moved before he's had the chance.

Today, Pete's had new intelligence as to the whereabouts of the car,

in a nearby garage.

If it is there we will be seizing the vehicle and removing today.

We've got value on it at around 58 to £60,000 second-hand.

So, you know, it's going to cover the outstanding.

The garage he believes the Lamborghini is at

is not connected to the writ.

Even so, Pete's concerned about how much commotion his attempt

to seize such a valuable car is going to cause.

We've got trouble where somebody is arguing about a £300 car,

never mind a £70,000 car.

There's potentially, there could be issues here,

which is why, if the vehicle's there,

I'll ring the police straightaway to get their attendance.

With that in mind, Pete heads in to scout the garage,

keeping as low a profile as possible.

Not wanting to draw attention to him,

we keep the camera out of sight.

Will the Lamborghini be there?

Yes, we've got the car, drive back out again.

Hi, the Lamborghini's here.

We've been in, we've drove round, pulled back out again,

but obviously it's there.

We need to be taking it, don't we?

Time to call in some help.

Good afternoon, enforcement officer for the High Court.

We've got a vehicle that we have seized previously

and we've just found it again after looking for the past six months.

Can I request police attendance?

There will be a breach of the peace.

Yes.

It's a Lamborghini, we're seizing it on behalf of the High Court.

The longer I sit here, the chances are it could move.

Then I can't physically stop it from driving off,

as we've seen it drive off before.

Could you put it down as urgent, as well, please?

After an hour's wait, the police finally arrive.

Has he come on his own? Has he got dogs?

Has he got dogs?

All right.

We are going to go in, if you follow us in.

We're seizing a Lamborghini.

It is parked over there, out of the way.

With the police now behind him,

it's time for Pete to enter the premises.

Sheriffs don't need to give prior notice of their visits,

so the garage has no idea Pete's coming,

which he hopes means the car will still be on site.

How they'll react to his demands is anyone's guess.

But, if he can hold his nerve,

Pete could be on the verge of his most valuable ever seizure.

Time to introduce themselves.

We're enforcement officers from the High Court. We've seized that vehicle.

That vehicle is none other than the £60,000

Lamborghini convertible Italian supercar Pete was looking for.

It's one of only a few thousand ever made

and by far the most valuable asset he's ever got close to seizing.

The owner isn't on site.

Pete chases him up on the phone.

Good afternoon, Mr Patel.

I'm an enforcement officer with a live High Court writ to attend today

to remove your Lamborghini.

It's for an outstanding debt.

I'm commanded by the High Court judge to attend here today

to collect £41,000 or remove a vehicle.

We know it's your vehicle and that's why we're taking it.

We can. I wouldn't be here... If I couldn't do that I wouldn't be here.

All right, no problem.

OK. Thank you.

Bye-bye. He's on his way.

It's so far, so good for Pete.

He's found the car, and spoken to the owner,

who's agreed to come down and speak face-to-face.

In the meantime, the garage agrees to provide the car keys.

There's a code as well to start it, so we've got the key and the code now

to start the vehicle so we don't have to lift the vehicle

which will make life a lot easier and a lot quicker to do the removal.

And right on cue, the Lamborghini

is delivered into Pete's waiting embrace.

Unless its owner can produce over £40,000 in the next few minutes,

every handmade Italian inch of it will be Pete's.

But before he can take it for a spin, the owner himself, Mr Patel,

arrives to find Pete with his beloved motorcar.

-Hiya. Mr Patel?

-It is, yeah.

Yeah, I've spoken to the solicitor, he's quite happy with the scenario.

Not quite believing someone has the power to take his Lamborghini away from him,

Mr Patel makes one last attempt to save the car.

He pleads that he's never received any paperwork

relating to the court case.

Yeah, it is a complete shock to me because I've just seen the paperwork from the sheriffs here myself.

-It's dated from 2011, yeah?

-Yeah.

2011, which I'd moved on from my property in 2010.

I'm completely, completely, shocked about it.

I've never received any letters, or anything.

Pete, however, is less than convinced.

I've been there personally and left some paperwork.

I've also been to that address, as well.

Preston County Court...

Then, you will have received something from county court.

With the car already in Pete's clutches, and unable to find

£40,000 at such short notice, Mr Patel has to accept he'll have

to wave goodbye to his beloved Lamborghini,

for today, at least.

He's now got five days to either pay in full for the car to be returned

or the car will be sold at auction.

My solicitor will sort it out tomorrow, hopefully.

Fingers crossed.

So we'll just leave it with the solicitors now.

Pete's job now is to get the Lamborghini

to a secure storage unit.

He might not be smiling, but inside, you can be sure,

he's thrilled to bits at finally catching up with his quarry

and driving away with one of the world's most sought after sports cars.

And it's even better news for the people owed the money.

Good job done as far as we're concerned. We've come and done what we needed to do today.

The moral of the story for debtors is,

that when it comes to chasing up debts a court says you owe, sheriffs don't give up.

And since Pete towed the Lamborghini,

the owner, Mr Patel, has paid up enough of the debt

to have the car returned to him.

The case is now closed.

This morning, Lawrence and Kev are on their way for a return visit

to a guitar shop in central London.

We're heading to London Guitar Centre.

We've attended this address before and we've had no correspondence

from the last lot of paperwork we left there.

The woman they're on their way to help, Emma,

agreed to let the shop sell her vintage 1959 Fender Jazzmaster guitar.

She doesn't want us to use her full name.

The guitar was sold,

but Emma didn't get paid for it, so she took the case to court.

The London Guitar Centre didn't contest it

and Emma was awarded a judgment for the £3,120

but she's still not been paid.

The sheriffs gave the shop a chance to pay up on their first visit

but they haven't done so.

So this time, if there's no payment, they'll be removing goods.

We'll go there with maybe the intention of forcing entry

with locksmiths and hopefully seizing

possible guitars on the premises.

-It's literally there, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-Oh, we've got space. I think we've got space.

-There's loads of spaces up there.

They park up outside the shop, just yards away

from the world famous bustle of Leicester Square.

Despite the busy street, the shop appears to be closed today

but this isn't going to stop Lawrence.

He finds a phone number stuck to the front door

and wastes no time calling to introduce himself.

Hello, there, is that the London Guitar Centre.

Hello there, my name's Mr Grix, I'm an enforcement officer.

I'm at your premises now.

I don't know where you are because the place is locked.

Right. Are you in the vicinity, sir?

We're here to execute a High Court writ.

The shop owner asks him to leave paperwork at the shop

detailing the money owed so he can then deal with the matter.

But given the shop ignored the papers left on their last visit,

the owner's hitting all the wrong notes with Lawrence.

No, I can't, sir, because I came here before, I left paperwork,

you haven't been in touch at all.

With all due respect you could just be spinning me a line now.

I'm not saying you are but you've made no attempt to get in touch

with me so if you're not able to come here,

I'm going to call our locksmiths.

Despite Lawrence's threats, the owner maintains he isn't prepared to pay today.

Lawrence tells him that, in that case, he'll be removing goods

and there's nothing they can do about it.

Realising the stock's going, the shop finally agrees to send

someone down to let the sheriffs in, so they won't need to force entry.

OK, lovely.

The other fella's on his way.

So now is the long wait.

Later, we'll see what happens,

when the sheriffs finally get into the London Guitar Centre.

On the road again, enforcement officers Marc and Tony

are on their way to a north London car pound.

They've been tasked with trying to get money owed to

a member of the public by a clamping firm, Newline Parking Management.

Marc's not sure what sort of reception the sheriffs will get

when they arrive there.

They're going to be up for having an argument, I would imagine.

We'll just have to see how it goes, really.

The man they're on their way to help is IT consultant, Dominic Marks.

He's from Bristol but today, he and friend, Tim,

are looking for a car parking space in London.

Constant residents' parking or ticket meters.

He's being extra careful to make sure he parks in the right place.

Permit holders only...

Because a few months ago, when he parked in the wrong one,

it led to a run-in with a clamping company, so serious,

it's seen him go through the courts and brought him

to the sheriffs to recover the £1,500 he's rightfully owed.

Dominic's problems started when he came to north London

with friend, Tim, one Saturday to go to a party.

Looking for somewhere to park, they found Shelford Place in Stoke Newington.

This is where we parked the car.

Their parking space is now covered by a building site

but at the time, it was clear of yellow lines.

The warning signs on the walls were also absent then.

It seemed like a great place to park.

It was an empty little road and was clear

so we found a place, parked the car.

After a fun night at the party, Dominic and Tim stayed over at a friend's.

They came back the next day to retrieve the car.

Only problem was, it had disappeared.

It took a while to actually register that it was gone.

I kind of got there and I thought, "Have I just gone mad?"

And, "Did I actually park on a road that looks really similar to this?"

-Because we parked down there, didn't we?

-Initially we thought it had been stolen.

And, then, having found one sign in the dark miles up a wall,

that gave us the clue that the car had been towed.

Dominic's car had been clamped and towed by Newline Parking Management

for parking on private land

and unfairly so, in his opinion.

These signs when we got here were either ripped off or they'd been whitewashed.

There were no signs that were obviously visible.

What we found was the one sign that was hopelessly inadequate.

It was in the dark.

There was no light near it.

It was about three metres, or so, up the wall

and it was hidden behind a hoarding for a construction site.

Dominic called Newline and was told that, as it was a Sunday,

he wouldn't be able to collect his car until the Monday.

He also learned he'd be charged an overnight fee,

in addition to the clamping and towing costs. A total of £467.

The next day, Dominic and Tim paid the money unwillingly and under protest.

When we handed over the money it felt like we were being robbed

and we had no recourse against them at all.

It felt incredibly unjust like they were essentially bullying us

and we couldn't do anything to combat the situation.

Worst Monday ever, for sure.

Disgusted at how he'd been treated,

Dominic brought a county court claim against the clampers.

Newline contested the case in writing but failed to show up in court.

The judge ruled in Dominic's favour.

With damages and court fees on top of what he'd paid Newline,

he was awarded £1,515.80.

But despite this, Newline still haven't paid up.

Dominic's last hope of seeing his money lies with the sheriffs.

Arriving at Newline's north London compound,

the only thing Marc and Tony find is a large, yellow gate.

Tony volunteers to make first contact.

-Anyone there?

-Yeah.

-What, people, or...?

-Yeah.

-Hello!

Marc decides to move the van, so IT'S not clamped.

Tony's knock, meanwhile, draws out an employee.

A High Court writ that's been issued against Newline Parking Management

and the vehicle pound.

We're High Court sheriffs.

-What's he say, Tone?

-Coming back.

-He's putting the dog away.

-Eh?

-He's putting the dog away.

While the dog is removed, a woman from Newline

comes to the gate to find out who the sheriffs are.

We're High Court enforcement officers.

Here's the writ from the court. The writ is live and it would need to be paid.

You need to deal with this today, unfortunately, while we're here.

We'll need to stay here until it's done.

After a quarter of an hour of waiting,

the woman comes back to tell the sheriffs some unexpected news,

the clampers are willing to pay.

We don't take cheques, babe.

But because the sheriffs don't take cheques,

she says they'll have to wait for her brothers to come back.

Marc and Tony sit in the van, and wait.

It's a bit of a difficult one because our only way

we can get in there, which is going over the fence,

but, obviously, it's quite a tricky fence to climb over with all the razor wire on the top.

Also on the other side of the gate is a big Rottweiler.

At the moment we're just sitting tight.

Someone's just pulled up now so hopefully this is the guy.

Two clampers emerge wanting a word with the sheriffs.

Whoo, whoo, whoo...

We know who you are, don't matter who you are.

We don't care who you are, don't record me.

The clampers decide to continue discussions inside their premises

and, unsurprisingly, we're not allowed to follow them.

Soon after, Marc is back.

We had two guys pull up who've gone in

who, I think, are the lady we spoke to's brothers.

And they've just asked us in

but when we've both gone to walk in they've created a bit of a fuss,

so Tony's just gone in on his own to deal with it.

He's big enough to look after himself in there if there's any trouble,

so...

we'll see. Hopefully when he comes out in about five minutes

he'll have the payment and it'll be dealt with and we can get on our way.

After half an hour of high-level negotiations,

Tony emerges.

He's got a smile on his face, but he's left something else behind.

I've left my card machine in there. Hello?

HE WHISTLES

Hello, I left me machine in there.

Yeah, my card machine.

See you later, boys, have a good day.

Take care.

It might have taken them nearly two hours,

but Tony just collected payment, in full.

All paid up, all done, no dramas.

It's a great result for the sheriffs.

More importantly, it means Dominic Marks

finally getting the cheque in the post he'd hoped for.

It came to a lot of money, it was about £1,600 which is...

It's a lot of money for me.

I'm sure it's a lot of money for most people, as well.

And that had a positive effect on my finances.

That was a very good day.

Put the cheque in the bank and drink a toast to the sheriffs

and blow a raspberry at Newline, I guess.

Back in central London, Lawrence and Kev are still near Leicester Square,

waiting to get into the London Guitar Centre.

They're there to remove goods on behalf of a customer, Emma, who's owed money.

But rather than have the sheriffs force entry,

the shop's decided to let them in, instead.

And after just over an hour, the manager arrives.

Hello, there.

I'll just show you some ID.

It's now simply a case of working out how many guitars

Lawrence and Kev need to take, to get Emma her money.

How much is the amount for?

It was £4,924.95 but, obviously, there's an hour's waiting time to go on that now.

With the manager's expert eye to guide them,

Lawrence and Kev are eager to get started.

However, there's a snag.

The valuable electric guitars are all being sold on behalf of customers

and so don't belong to the shop.

It's just that electrics are a bit more robust to transport

and they're, obviously, a higher value.

I mean, that's £950. There isn't a £950 acoustic guitar downstairs, is there?

With the sheriffs unable to go electric,

they need to make sure the more delicate acoustic guitars reach the auction in one piece.

Do you want to get the bubble wrap out of the van?

We'll case them up, I've got cases for everything.

As the guitars are likely to only fetch a fraction of their retail price at auction,

being able to raise enough money isn't guaranteed.

You've got auctioneer's costs, you've got to be looking at six or seven grand, really.

So, 13 at 300.

That's 4,000, innit?

-That's mine, 759 rubs.

-Don't drop it.

Put that one in, I think that's about it for that box.

Finally, with the walls of the shop growing bare,

Lawrence thinks they're getting close to the required amount.

Erm, we're getting there. We still need...

Is there anything else you'd recommend?

There's a couple of guitars that are sort of 300-ish each.

That might do it.

With the last guitar safely de-tagged and wrapped,

this seizure is bringing back musical memories for Kev.

I used to sort of have a bash about.

Dunno if it qualifies as playing. Making a noise!

With that over, it's time to concentrate on the day job

and loading up the van.

Removal of goods is the ultimate sanction sheriffs can impose.

But, on this occasion, they had no choice.

Unless the owner has a swift rethink

and arranges to pay the debt himself, his valuable stock

will be sold to the highest bidder.

Either way, it's a successful outcome for Lawrence and Kev

who have done everything they can to get Emma as much of her money back as possible.

We've ended up taking 23 guitars in total...

in the back of the van and they'll be off to auction.

So, yep, taken guitars, gone and job well done.

It's been a textbook removal for the sheriffs, who head back to base.

Following their visit, they received no further payments from the shop.

They therefore auctioned the guitars

and the money raised went to Emma towards payment for the debt.

The London Guitar Centre told us they hadn't paid Emma

because the shop had become involved in a dispute

with Westminster Council over business rates,

which had severely restricted its ability to trade.

They said they hoped the sheriffs' removal of the guitars would

provide Emma with the money she was chasing.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd