Episode 9 The Sheriffs Are Coming

-'Meet the sheriffs.'

-Let's introduce ourselves.

We're here 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.

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

-I'm not waiting any more.

-I'm ordered to seize goods to clear this debt.

'..if you've been to court,

'but still not been paid what you're owed...'

Why don't you tell me who you are? You need to pay this.

'..the High Court Enforcement Officers are charged by law

'to recover what a court says is rightfully yours.'

I've seized your car, sir.

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

-'It's time to call the sheriffs.'

-I collected 42 grand.

'Coming up, Gary and Janice Lomas paid £3,600 for their dream kitchen,

'but got anything but.'

We knew then it was a fight between us and him.

'The sheriffs go in search of their money.

'Mike Campbell paid £9,000 for a car,

'but ended up taking the garage he bought it from to court.'

I said, "I want my money back." He said, "That's not going to happen."

'Can the sheriffs get him what he's owed?'

The total due today is £11,757.96p. How would you like to pay?

'And is it lift-off for the sheriffs' seizure of their biggest ever asset?'

I'm at your hangar at the moment. I have actually seized one of your aircraft.

'Blackpool - the ultimate British seaside resort.

'It's famous for its tower, rides and miles of sandy beach.

'It's also home to Gary Smith and Janice Lomas.

'When they decided to upgrade their kitchen,

'they thought it would be a simple matter.

'Instead, it's left them at their wits' end -

'short-changed and battling in the courts.'

GARY: We saved up a long time to have a new kitchen.

You think if they've had the money,

you've agreed a job, you've got plans,

that's what it's going to look like when it's finished,

that's what you expect to see.

'Janice has multiple sclerosis, while Gary, a stonemason by trade,

'suffered a serious accident on the job,

'meaning both are now unable to work and money is always tight.

'So paying for a new kitchen was a major investment for them -

'one which they entrusted to Chris Smith's Kitchen Supermarket.'

We thought, with it being a small family business,

it would be a pretty safe bet.

The impressions we got in the beginning were good.

-They were helpful.

-Friendly.

Yeah, we thought everything was hunky-dory.

'Gary and Janice agreed to pay Chris Smith a total of £3,600,

'to be paid in instalments,

'with the final £1,600 due when the kitchen was completed.

'But Gary and Janice soon realised

'they weren't getting the kitchen they dreamt of.'

The crux of the problem was the measuring up.

That's the only way I can see that the problem started.

Mr Smith worked to HIS measurements,

which is obviously what he took, but were not right.

'Gary and Janice had wanted a high-quality-finish kitchen

'with all the appliances covered.'

We've got the tumble dryer and the washing machine exposed.

You see the screw holes on each side.

'But the washing machine and dryer weren't covered, as agreed.

'One of the cupboards in the plans wouldn't fit

'and had to be replaced with a wine rack.

'There are also gaps between units, missing splashboards

'and poor finishing.

'But that didn't stop Mr Smith demanding payment of the full price

'before the job was even finished.'

He was constantly pestering Janice and she handed over a cheque.

From that point on, he told us he couldn't put the unit doors

on the washing machine and the dryer.

'Mr Smith bagged the full £3,600, without addressing their concerns.

'At this point, he became extremely difficult to pin down.'

We were constantly on the phone, asking was somebody coming today?

"Yes," we were told. "Yes, they were." No-one arrived.

'Gary and Janice's dream kitchen was turning into anything but.

'They wrote to Mr Smith demanding he finish the job to a proper standard,

'but he told them there was nothing wrong with his work.'

If you make a mistake and you're in business,

there's only you who can put that right,

it should become your responsibility, not the clients'.

'Despite three independent surveys confirming the work was substandard

'and the intervention of Trading Standards

'to make him agree to the necessary repairs,

'Mr Smith failed to ever finish the job as he'd promised.

'Finally, the couple decided that legal action was their only option.'

We took it to court. We knew then it was a fight between us and him.

And that was it.

'When the case was contested,

'a judge ruled in Gary and Janice's favour,

'awarding them £750

'for Kitchen Supermarket's failure to complete the job as agreed.

'Mr Smith then claimed he could only afford to pay this debt in instalments of £5 a week.'

Very, very insulted.

I didn't pay him £5 a week for my kitchen.

'Gary and Janice rejected his offer

'and went back to court, demanding payment in full.

'The judge agreed and ordered the debt be settled within a week.

'However, Mr Smith still refused to pay up.

'So today, sheriffs Pete Spencer and Dave Crabtree are in Blackpool,

'to make sure he pays up what he owes.'

We've been asked to attend the address where the showroom is,

I believe, between 9 o'clock and 5, Monday to Friday.

We're bang in the middle of the day. Hopefully, the shop will be open.

"Kitchens Made For You", that's going to be it. Highfields Kitchens.

'The name on the showroom sign may be different,

'but the sheriff's writ explains this is simply the trading name

'of Kitchen Supermarket UK Ltd.

'Pete and Dave waste little time announcing their arrival.'

Good afternoon. Is Mr Smith about? I'm an Enforcement Officer.

We've got a High Court writ to attend here today.

'Boss Mr Smith isn't around,

'so Pete asks the receptionist to get him on the phone.'

Good afternoon. I'm an Enforcement Officer.

We've got a High Court writ to attend here today.

Can you attend the property?

OK. Cheers, thank you.

On the way down.

'At this point, our cameraman is asked to leave.

'A few minutes later, Chris Smith arrives

'for a showroom showdown with Pete.'

PETE: Regarding a Gary Smith and a Miss Janice Lomas.

We're here to collect £1,637.40p or seize goods.

'Mr Smith produces a copy of the County Court paperwork

'and tells Pete, as there's a spelling mistake with his company name, he doesn't have to pay.

'Pete's not having any of it.'

I'm not from the County Court, so that's irrelevant.

I'm from the High Court.

I've got the High Court writ. The address of the person is fine.

We'll be seizing goods with view to removing them.

There's interest per day going on cos it's High Court.

We're up to £1,637.40. How would you like to pay?

'Having failed to get off on a technicality,

'Mr Smith concedes defeat and agrees to pay up.

'Three years after leaving Gary and Janice's kitchen in a mess,

'it's taken Pete a little over three minutes to get them the money they're owed.'

All the bank details there - the name of the account,

the account number and sort code.

You must reference it with that number there.

'With payment complete, Chris Smith decides he wants to give his side of the story.

'He says the judge only upheld the part of Gary and Janice's claim

'relating to their washing machine.'

This was his existing washing machine.

We couldn't put a guard on because of the shape of the washing machine.

So the judge awarded £750 to Mr Smith for one washing machine.

That's why we're here today. I wouldn't pay Mr Smith on principle.

These are a typical example of our customers

whose jobs we've done - photographs of jobs what we've actually done.

100% satisfied, and that's what we work on.

'But Gary and Janice were left far from satisfied.

'At least, for them, their long battle has finally come to an end.'

When I got the news they'd recovered the money,

I was quite gob-smacked, actually.

I certainly didn't expect them to recover it so quickly.

I thought he'd have played the game a lot longer than what he did.

That was the end of that. I was quite pleased. Thanks very much.

'Although sheriffs can go anywhere in the country, and frequently do,

'the bulk of their enforcements take them to either offices or houses.

'This morning, however, sheriffs Marc Newton and Tony Smith

'are off to a different type of commercial premises.

'They're off to an airport,

'and they're eyeing up the biggest asset they've ever seized.'

We're off to a place by Southend Airport.

We've had a report that this company has got a plane that they own.

So, hopefully, it'll be there and the company's still trading.

If we don't get any joy, we'll be seizing an aeroplane this afternoon.

'Marc and Tony are after £3,858 from a company, 247 Jet,

'that hires out private planes.

'They owe money to people who carried out services for the company,

'but whose fees weren't paid.

'They don't wish to be identified.

'If 247 Jet won't pay up,

'the sheriffs can legally seize any assets they can prove belong to the company,

'with a view to selling them at auction to pay off the debt.

'They're hoping not to have to take a plane.

'But if needs be, they will.'

I believe with a plane there's a log book

that has to be on it to fly.

So we'll try and make sure the plane can't go anywhere, if it is there.

Hopefully, with a plane sitting on the ground that they can't use,

we'll entice them into paying us.

'But first of all, the sheriffs have to establish whether the plane is there at all.'

-It could be anywhere.

-It could be in the sky, at Biggin Hill.

Farnborough.

Got to chase a plane round the country, trying to find it.

There it goes! Down the runway! Follow that plane quick!

'And airports aren't the easiest places to get access to,

'even for sheriffs who've come bearing High Court writs.

'First up, Marc has to negotiate the airport's own security.'

This must be the gate here.

I'm not sure if I've got the right place.

I'm after 247 Jet Ltd.

'They wait while the security moves a plane.

'And then, as officers of the High Court on the trail of a debt,

'they have the all-clear to head in.'

Am I going to fit under that wing? Take the wing out!

'While the sheriffs are allowed in, we're asked to wait outside.

'Marc heads to 247 Jet's offices - but he's soon back.

'The company's offices are shut,

'but he's managed to contact the boss, who's on his way.'

The guy said he's 45 minutes to an hour away.

So I've told him I'll hang on for him. I've told him what it's about.

He seems to think that he's paid it, but I don't think he had.

He wasn't 100% sure. He said, "I thought I'd paid that."

We're just going to hang on till he gets here.

'Three-quarters of an hour later, the boss duly arrives.

'Marc explains what he's doing there.'

They took you to court 5th April, to the County Court.

We need to collect the payment.

'The man says he can't pay, as his accounts office is closed.

'He's also unhappy that the amount owed has gone from just over £2,000

'to almost 4,000, due to legal fees, sheriff costs, interest and VAT.

'He says he will not pay the sheriffs' fees.

'Marc reminds him that if he doesn't pay, his plane is in jeopardy.'

You need to do something today or we're going to have to seize goods.

Unfortunately, sir, you don't get a choice.

I'm just saying to you we need to get some money. You can do £1,000.

You can do the rest on Wednesday.

'The man heads to his office, but isn't keen on the sheriffs following.

'That isn't going to stop Marc.'

He's not telling me where we're going and where we ain't going!

'Marc and Tony follow the man to his office.

'Soon after, they return.'

What's happened is he's paid us £750 today and he's going to pay the balance in two days' time.

We'll give him the benefit of the doubt. We'll give him 48 hours.

Hopefully, he'll pay up.

I told him we'll be back and it's going to be costing him a lot more money.

'With £750 in the bank for the people owed money, and the rest due to follow,

'it's at least lift-off for the sheriffs.

'But there's still several thousand pounds of the debt outstanding.

'If it's not paid in the next few days,

'the sheriffs will have to come back.'

It doesn't matter where it is for the people who owe the money.

We can pursue them wherever.

If we need to get into an airport, we'll get into an airport.

If we need to get into his office or his hangar to seize his plane, we will do so.

At this stage, hopefully, he'll realise that it's got to be paid

and he'll deal with it from there.

'Unfortunately, despite 247 Jet's promises,

'they didn't pay up the rest of the money they owed.

'Later, we'll see how Lawrence gets on when he returns to get the money owed - or take the plane.'

'Back on the road, on the trail of smaller vehicles than aircraft,

'are sheriffs Pete and Dave.

'They're in Preston, on their way to a second-hand car garage.

'The man they're on their way to help is Mike Campbell.

'He's a project manager for a major national construction company.

'He's living in Manchester, but currently working in Glasgow.

'It's no surprise, therefore, that his car is a massive part of his working life.'

I spend a lot of time behind the wheel. This is a tool of the trade.

It's sort of my live-in office.

'Mike's decision to treat himself to a new car to ease his commute

'turned out to be one that he's come to regret,

'landing him in court and bringing him to the doors of the sheriffs for help.

'Mike's problems began when he decided he was due a motoring upgrade.

'He went looking for a new car and, searching online,

'he thought he'd found the perfect model - a BMW X5,

'being sold by Arena Cars of Preston.

'Mike went to inspect the car in person.'

Looked at the car and it looked superb in the photos.

It actually didn't do it justice cos the car was superb.

There wasn't a scratch on the bodywork. The inside was immaculate.

That one. That's the same car.

It looks good and it feels good to drive.

'Besotted with the BMW, the same model as in these photos,

'Mike paid £8,995 for it.

'A few days later, it was delivered to him.

'The car ran on liquid petroleum gas.

'Almost immediately after filling it up, things started to go wrong.'

Filled the car up. Got the car back. Jumped out the car.

Went to lock it. Locking didn't work.

The deadlock doesn't work. The lock doesn't work.

The alarm system doesn't work. Therefore, it's not insured.

'Mike returned the car to Arena, who told him they'd fix it.

'After waiting two weeks, the locking problem still hadn't been solved.

'By now, Mike had serious concerns about what he'd bought.'

I said to him on the phone, "I'm coming down. You can keep the car. I just want the money back.

"You've had it longer than I've had it so far.

"I've owned the car two weeks and you've had it a week and a half.

"I want my money back." He said, "That's not going to happen.

'Instead, Arena agreed to pay for another garage to fix the locking issue.

'Which they did, for £438.

'Mike paid up-front, and Arena promised to send him a cheque -

'which he's never received.

'But before he could get too upset about that, worse was to happen.'

I was driving to a place just outside Glasgow,

got on the M74, was only two junctions down.

I was only doing 60 miles an hour.

All of a sudden, there was a knocking and a bang and the engine just cut out.

I came off the motorway, managed to park up near the National Park.

Car wouldn't start at all. There was no smell, no oil dripping, anything like that.

I phoned the RAC to get them to come and have a look.

'The RAC told Mike that his engine had failed.

'For the car to work again, he'd need it stripped down and rebuilt from scratch.

'Once again, Arena told him to bring the car in for them to fix.

'Mike paid another £460 to get the car towed

'from Glasgow to Arena in Preston, leaving him without a vehicle for work.'

I've got no other vehicle. I paid cash for the car.

I don't have the luxury of three or four cars. I had to borrow a van.

So I was gutted.

Another week went by, or week and a half went by.

I said, "Where's my car?"

He said, "All you need to know is that we're repairing it."

I said, "No, you've got my car.

"I want to know where my vehicle is."

"All you need to know is that we're going to repair it."

"But you've had it now for nearly three and a half weeks

and you've not done anything.

"What am I supposed to do?" He said, "That's all you need to know."

I said, "This is professional courtesy, is it? This is how you treat your customers?"

Frustration, anger...

Um... Just very, very, VERY frustrated.

Just wanted to go down and see him face-to-face.

'Arena said they were trying to fix the car.

'By now, Mike just wanted his money back.

'Arena refused to pay up, so Mike thought he had no option

'but to take Arena to court.'

Didn't know where else to turn. I'd completely run out of ideas.

Without physically going down there and grabbing the money off the desk

I didn't know what to do.

I was totally frustrated. Totally frustrated.

'After starting court proceedings,

'Arena eventually accepted liability in writing.

'Despite this, Mike still hasn't received any money.

'To get what he's owed, he's had to hire the sheriffs.

'Which is why sheriffs Pete and Dave are in Preston in Lancashire,

'on their way to Arena Car Centre.'

This first one we're going to is a car garage,

Broughton Motors, trading as Arena Car Centre.

'Car dealerships are a common visit for the sheriffs.

'The high-value assets on their forecourts

'represent both an opportunity and a challenge.'

In theory, we will be seizing vehicles

on arrival this morning.

The worst case scenario could be

that they're selling vehicles on behalf of customers.

We'll still seize the vehicles and it's up to them to prove

that they don't own the vehicles, customers own those vehicles.

'Pete and Dave arrive and pull up.

'The only problem is, they're a bit too early.'

-It isn't open yet.

-It opens at 9.30.

I'll give him a call. We'll seize the vehicles and list the vehicles.

See if we can get in touch with him a bit earlier than when he's going to arrive.

'Dave's given the task of listing the cars on the forecourt

'for a possible Walking Possession order.

'If Arena won't pay up, the sheriffs can execute the order

'to seize the vehicles.

'The threat of having the cars towed away and sold

'is usually enough to get the payment.

'Pete, meanwhile, is having trouble raising the manager.'

The mobile number's switched off.

I've just tried calling that up on the display.

By the time we've filled the inventory sheet out for the vehicles,

which is what Dave's doing, somebody should be on site.

We'll just have to sit tight and wait until somebody arrives.

'Dave gets on with listing more cars to cover the debt.

'Pete, meanwhile, lays the groundwork

'in case he needs to tow them.'

Can we have an indemnity to remove?

£12,000 is his debt so potentially, there'll be vehicles to remove.

There's going to be more than that, probably about four or five cars.

Right, I'll come back to you, in case he comes.

'A member of staff arrives on site, but it's not owner Stephen Thomas.

'The garage assistant does tell Pete

'what he fears most about the ownership of the cars on display.

'That they're owned, not by the garage,

'but by a third party funder.'

What you need to be doing is getting that funder down here

cos we've seized every vehicle on here.

He needs to get proof that he owns them and you don't.

-It's all in there.

-Is it all inside?

'Pete asks if he can produce evidence

'to back up what he's saying,

'while they wait for the boss to arrive.'

What we've seized is property of the court.

So they'll have to prove that they don't own them now.

'Pete's worried, because if Arena can prove

'the cars belong to a third party,

'he can't seize them and they'll be no use to him

'to use as leverage to get payment.

'He's just musing on the issue when there's an arrival.

'It's owner Stephen Thomas, on site and ready to talk.

'Can Pete persuade him he needs to pay this debt?'

-Mr Thomas, is it?

-Yes.

-It's in connection with Mike Campbell.

-Right. The X5.

-He's just been explaining what car it is.

-So, the total due today is £11,757.96p.

-Right, OK.

That's the reason for our visit,

to either collect that amount or remove goods to that value.

-I did contact the court...

-Right. County Court, yeah?

-Don't know.

Yeah. It won't have been us. It'll have been County Court.

-We did try to contact him to try to sort it out, which way we were going to pay it.

-Right. OK.

How would you like to pay it? We can do debit card, credit card, cash.

-Do a bank transfer?

-Yeah.

-That's fine as well.

-We're looking for the full amount today.

-Right. OK.

I'm not trying to get out of not paying it.

Um... Can you come back after, or...?

We can't. Just to make you aware, we've been on site for an hour now.

We arrived at half past eight.

-We don't open till half past nine.

-Which I gather.

After the first hour, we charge £181.50 plus VAT per hour.

Because you only open at half nine, I won't start charging you now.

You've got another hour before we start charging the waiting time.

From half past ten, we will be charging an hourly fee on top for waiting.

'To Pete's surprise, owner Stephen Thomas says he's willing to pay the debt in full,

'without Pete having to break sweat, let alone clamp any cars.

'But it's not over until the money's in Pete's hands

'or transferred into the sheriffs' bank account,

'and the owner has got to find nearly £12,000 from somewhere.

'The owner tried to make a bank transfer, but there's a problem.

'He's chosen the wrong type of transfer and it could take a day or two for the money to go through.'

Just been on to Barclays now and they have sent it.

But what they've said is he hasn't ticked the immediate payment box

and it could take up to a day.

'The sheriffs can't leave until payment is in their account.

'Not wanting Pete on site all day,

'the owner decides to change his method of payment.'

He's just rung somebody up.

They're going to just pay it by card.

Going to get the card machine and take it down and, hopefully...

'But no sooner is Dave off with the card machine,

'than he's back - empty-handed.'

Reverse on that.

The guy hasn't got a card.

'So, with the original bank transfer halted

'and unable to find a card to pay off the debt,

'if he wants the sheriffs out of his hair, the garage boss has got to find an alternative.

'He gets back on to his bank

'to see if he can arrange an immediate transfer of funds.

'Moments later, it looks like it's third time lucky.

'After checking the transaction with the office, Pete's had good news.'

The defendant's paid in full.

£11,767.96p. Paid it in full, which is what we've come for.

'A "paid in full" of nearly £12,000

'is a great start to the day for any sheriff.

'More importantly, it means Mike Campbell finally getting the money he's owed.'

"We're pleased to confirm, pending clearance, we have received monies payment in full in this matter.

"We shall remit the monies in the statuary 14-day period." I've won. Fantastic!

Never thought I'd get it. Cheers, guys.

Hello, there. I'm a High Court Enforcement Officer.

'Anyone that manages to obtain a County Court Judgement of over £600

'can upgrade it to the High Court and get a writ.'

We are here today to collect £20,741 and a penny.

'The sheriffs will demand payment or seize assets

'from anyone named on a writ, no matter how big or small the amount.'

The bottom line is, it needs paying.

We're coming in, whether you let me in or not.

'They've seized Formula 1 cars, trailers, aeroplanes,

'ships, sheep and bullion.

'The largest seizure they've ever made was for over £5 million.'

I'll write you out a receipt.

'These days, a High Court writ costs £60.

'If the sheriffs are successful, there's nothing more for the client to pay.

'If unsuccessful, the only cost is a £60 admin fee.'

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

He's going to be in for a shock, cos we don't.

'Earlier, we saw Marc and Tony at Southend Airport,

'trying to get money back from 247 Jet

'for people who carried out services for the company, but whose fees weren't paid.

'Their stand-off ended with the boss of 247 Jet paying £750

'and agreeing to settle the rest of the debt in five days.

'This payment never arrived.

'Now, Lawrence and Kev have got up early to beat the morning traffic

'and are going back to the airport to settle the debt once and for all.

'This time, they're under orders

'not to leave without either payment in full

'or a jet worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.'

The guy's just playing hard to get, so we're playing even harder today.

We've got a locksmith meeting us there. I've brought all the appropriate paperwork.

Notices to stick on the aircraft so that we can seize it.

We'll be removing any documents like insurance and service records,

which makes the plane scrap value if you haven't got them.

So, basically, we're looking

to potentially ground one aircraft today.

'With dawn breaking, they arrive and park up.

'They're waiting for a locksmith because, if needs be,

'they're legally allowed to force entry onto the plane.'

Yeah, dive in here.

Stealth approach!

'The wait also gives Lawrence the chance to study his battle plan.'

Aviation Way. There's the security hut.

It's over there.

Their door in is there.

-I'm pretty sure it's that hangar over there.

-That's handy.

'Soon after, their locksmith arrives

'and Lawrence and Kev are ready to go airside.'

Hello, mate. Looking for 247 Jet.

We're Enforcement Officers here to execute a High Court writ.

'Lawrence produces the High Court writ

'and airport security waves them through.'

Thanks very much.

I'm on the runway!

-You're not on the runway, you're on the taxi way.

-Left here?

-I'm on the runway!

-Get up there. KEV LAUGHS

This is it, this hangar here.

There might be somebody in there. The lights are on.

'No-one's answering the 247 Jet door.

'Lawrence has already located their prize asset

'and isn't in the mood for waiting.

'They head to the plane, locksmith in tow, but will they need him?'

-Oh, it's open!

-That's a good locksmith, that is!

Cor! It's a bit cramped in here!

-Not very big, are they?

-It's tiny!

'Lawrence isn't on board just to check out the executive facilities.

'He's looking to take possession of the plane's log book.

'Without it, it's illegal for this jet to leave the ground.'

A-ha-ha!

'And there it is! Lawrence has found exactly what he was looking for.'

All the documentation in here.

Certificate of registration, which we have to leave in here.

The Air Worthiness review certificate, the noise certificate,

Air Operation certificate.

It's worthless, it's scrap value without these.

'With these in the sheriffs' hands,

'this plane just had its wings clipped.'

Just need some tape.

'Without further ado, this plane is seized.

'It's now the property of the court on paper, and can't be moved,

'let alone flown by its owner.'

-Kev, do you want to have a drive over to security to see if he can get the guy on the phone?

-Yeah.

Encourage him to come down here.

'Kev sets off to get the man's number from security.

'It's time to let him know - unless he pays the £3,200 debt today,

'his several hundred thousand pound plane could be leaving with the sheriffs.

'When Kev returns with his number, Lawrence wastes no time

'in getting him on the phone to let him know what's what.'

Morning, sir. I'm an Enforcement Officer.

I'm at your hangar at Southend Airport.

I have actually seized one of your aircraft.

I've removed the appropriate documentation from the cockpit

and placed the appropriate notices within the cabin.

I need somebody to come down and sort this out.

So if you can come down, sir, before we end up removing the plane.

Thank you. Bye.

'The boss of 247 Jet calls Lawrence back.

'Unsurprisingly, he's got a few questions of his own.'

Who let us on the airport? We drove through security, sir.

Nobody can stop us entering the airport.

We're executing a High Court writ.

We have the power to force entry onto commercial premises,

but we didn't need to force entry.

I showed my identification to the security guard and he let us in.

We've got a locksmith with us to affect entry into the hangar.

For the moment, we've seized one of your planes outside.

We've removed the documentation from it.

We need somebody to pay it in full, sir, and we can release our seizure.

It will be going up by £225 plus VAT per hour that we're here,

because we've got the locksmith.

Bearing in mind you've got hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of planes,

to say you can't get £3,000 together when you've had months of notice

is just not acceptable.

'Lawrence's tough stance seems to have had an effect.

'The man agrees to pay by bank transfer.

'Given his track record, this still isn't good enough for Lawrence.'

I'm not able to check the bank account at this time in the morning.

There's nobody in the office to check it. Are you far away, sir?

We've got a debit card machine and you could pay by debit card.

OK, then, sir.

-I believe he's going to come with a debit card.

-Where did he say he was?

I asked if he was very far away and he said yes.

-He's changed his mind now?

-Yeah.

'Soon after, the boss arrives.

'He's not happy about his plane and even less pleased about our camera.'

-Hi, there.

-You can't film me.

'Not wanting to get in the way of the sheriffs' work, we withdraw,

'as the man speaks to them.

'He offers to make a down payment, but only half the amount Lawrence is looking for,

'and he won't give the plane back unless he gets all the money the ex-customer is owed.

'In the face of Lawrence's pressure, 247 Jet's boss

'realises the hopelessness of the situation.

'Faced with losing a jet worth hundreds of thousands of pounds

'for a £3,000 debt, he relents and agrees to pay on a debit card -

'in full.'

He did try and offer a part payment of £1,700,

but not when you've got £100,000 worth of plane seized.

You know, he realised that the game was up, basically.

We were advised that it was due to fly to Marrakech tomorrow,

so he'd have had disappointed customers

if they weren't able to take off.

So, yeah, good start to the day.

'Being a High Court sheriff is far from a 9-5 job.

'This morning, Lawrence and Kev have already been up three hours

'and have driven 130 miles through the dark.'

It's half past six and we're just coming up towards Loughborough.

We're going to a residential address.

We've also got a business address but given the time of day,

we're going to the residential address.

'The sheriffs are trying to help an 86-year-old lady,

'who wishes to remain anonymous.

'She loaned some of her savings to her dentist, John Hammond,

'to invest in a business.

'Despite repeated requests, this money was never returned

'and she was forced to take him to court.

'When Mr Hammond failed to contest the case,

'a judge ordered him to pay her £8,695 and five pence.

'But the dentist has still failed to pay.

'It's now down to Lawrence and Kev to remind him - in person.'

-I would imagine, being a dentist, he'll have money.

-Yeah.

He's in a named house, not a numbered house,

so I would imagine he's got quite a nice house.

Potentially, quite a nice car.

And we'll be catching him before he goes to work.

'The sheriffs are going to the dentist's village home first,

'as their High Court writ is against him, personally, not his business.

'But finding it could prove tricky.'

-Got to find the named house first.

-Yeah.

-That's always fun.

I've got batteries in me torch!

Country lane, named house - brilliant(!)

It HAS got a number on it.

-Why did I think it didn't have a number?

-Got it.

'Mr Hammond's house proves pleasingly straightforward to spot.

'And with vehicles on the drive, this is looking promising.'

That's them blocked and it's not blocked the neighbours.

'With the cars secured, it's time for a wake-up call.

'Can they get the elderly lady who lost her savings what she's owed?'

-Morning, sir. We're looking for a John Edward Hammond. Would that be yourself?

-Yes.

I'll show you some ID, sir.

I'm an Enforcement Officer and we're ordered here by the court today

to seize goods to the value of £10,706.66p.

'It's the man they've come to see, John Hammond.

'Straight away, he admits he's aware of the debt,

'and with interest, VAT and fees, the bill has gone up.

'Lawrence wastes no time outlining the payment methods he'll accept.'

-We don't take cheques, sir. We've got a chip and PIN machine for a card payment.

-Er...

If you've got a cheque, you can do a card, can't you?

'The dentist still seems to be half asleep.

'He wants to know why the sheriffs have come so early.'

We've come at this time of day to catch you in before you go to work.

That's the purpose. We don't come at seven to inconvenience you.

We come to catch you in before you go out.

If you've got internet banking, you can do a transfer into our bank account.

We can't leave here until it's sorted out.

'At this point, our cameraman is asked to leave the property.

'We continue filming from the pavement,

'as Lawrence gets on with seizing the cars on Mr Hammond's driveway.

'If necessary, these can now be towed away and sold

'to help pay his debt to the elderly patient he borrowed money from.

'Lawrence makes sure he understands the situation.'

The problem is, we're not ordered out to collect money.

We're ordered out to seize goods to clear the debt, instead.

'Lawrence's tough stance has an immediate effect.

'John Hammond says his son can pay the debt by bank transfer.'

If you can do us a screen grab, like a print-off of the screen.

'But there's a snag. His son lives in Switzerland.'

From abroad, I don't think there's any way we can verify.

'Mr Hammond then says his son can pay with his Swiss credit card.'

We don't take credit cards over the phone. It's got to be chip and PIN into a machine.

'Mr Hammond needs to come up with another way of paying the woman's money,

'or Lawrence may have no choice but to call the tow trucks.

'Then, with dawn breaking, another of the dentist's sons arrives at the house.

'He's got a more straightforward solution for how to get rid of Lawrence and Kev.

'He offers to pay £6,000 on a credit card there and then,

'with his brother in Switzerland paying the rest by bank transfer

'to settle the elderly lady's debt.

'This sounds like a good deal for Lawrence,

'who wastes no time putting this transaction through.

'But there's now a new problem.'

-So, 6,000 on this one.

-Finding signal, yeah. Right.

Still struggling.

BEEP It's done it again.

'Their trusty chip and PIN machine isn't working.'

Is there somewhere we can drive to to get a signal?

'Needing a mobile phone signal for the card machine,

'they try a change of location, but that doesn't do the trick, either.

'After an unsuccessful drive round the block,

'Lawrence realises the problem isn't the machine, but something else.'

I don't think it's a phone problem, you know, a SIM problem.

It seems to have full signal,

so it must be something to do with the card processing centre.

'Lawrence and Kev have to admit that technology has let them down

'and the son's credit card payment isn't going to work this morning.

'But with the dentist's vehicles seized,

'they're still in a strong position to get the elderly lady the money she's owed.

'Time to strike a deal.'

If your son does the 6,000,

because it's an international transfer

we'll allow a week, OK?

I need you to sign and print on that form.

Providing that money comes in, you won't ever see us.

Thank you. Bye bye.

'It's a mixed outcome for Lawrence and Kev.

'They've seized goods on paper as leverage

'and secured a concrete promise to pay from the dentist.

'But no sheriff likes to leave without the money they came for.'

That was a complete pain.

They were willing to pay on that one and we didn't have much choice.

You know, if you can't get a signal, if technology just isn't working...

Technology's a great thing, but when it mucks up,

you're probably worse off

than you'd be if you didn't have it in the first place,

cos everybody's so geared-up to it.

I've no reason to believe that the money won't be transferred as agreed.

'And Lawrence's prediction was proved right.

'It seemed their visit had the desired effect.

'Days later, Mr Hammond finally paid back the full amount he owed to the elderly patient.

'For the sheriffs, it's what they like best -

'another "payment in full".

'Mr Hammond told us that the money was loaned to him as part of a business investment and...

'..and suddenly being asked for the full return of the loan,

'which was difficult to do at short notice.

'Mr Hammond said...

'He reiterated that the debt has now been paid in full.'

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd