Episode 4 The Sheriffs Are Coming

-Meet the sheriffs.

-My name's Mr Grix, my colleague and I are enforcement agents.

It's to do with a High Court order...

They work for the High Court, and if it says you're owed money,

it's their job to go and get it.

I'm here for £6,072.18.

They can demand payment on the spot...

I'm here for the full balance.

How are you going to pay it?

..or remove assets instead.

The car will be going unless you can pay it.

You'll have a week to pay in full, before it gets sold at auction.

Obstructing their work can be a criminal offence.

I wouldn't do that if I were you.

The door needs to stay open.

Every year in England and Wales,

unpaid debts totalling more than £80 million

are recovered by the sheriffs.

Coming up...

The sheriffs take on a group of squatters

in the heart of central London.

-Devil worship!

-THEY ALL SHOUT

Devil worship!

In 30 minutes' time, you are going to be leaving this property.

Lawrence and Kev chase an insurance payout

for a family involved in a car crash.

Just as I was approaching a roundabout,

the guy came out from the left and there was no way I could get out the way.

And Tommy and Craig track down a vet who owes money to a former employee.

-Here we go.

-Mrs Mulvey? She's still living here, isn't she?

While most of their workload involves unpaid debts,

High Court enforcement agents can also act

in cases of unlawful occupation of land or property,

commonly known as squatting.

..whatever you want...

And early this morning the sheriffs

are gathering in a car park in Camden, in central London,

to enforce one of these jobs.

We've got a double gate roughly there, yeah?

A single gate there, the double gate is where we're going to go in.

Under the guidance of team leader Mark King,

they're here to evict a group of squatters

who've set up camp on a nearby plot of land.

Not sure what it was originally -

maybe a garden centre or something like that.

I believe the people were allowed in to stay there first off, but,

for whatever reason, the client now wants the land back.

The squatters are thought to have been there for at least two years.

The owner of the land has been unable to persuade them to leave

peacefully, and so now has obtained a writ of possession,

authorising the sheriffs to get the site back for him.

We're looking at about 30, possibly 40 people in there.

Not sure until we get there, to be honest.

I had a look past this morning,

the gate isn't even locked.

It could be that they've all gone.

We'll see when we get round there.

The squat's a short drive away, and it has a number of entrances,

so the sheriffs are splitting up.

Andrew, give me an update, mate. Are you by gate three?

Right, everybody ready, yeah?

And once they're all in position...

-Right, we all fit?

-..it's time to go in.

Right, let's go. Right.

As expected, they have no problem getting past the gate,

but before they rouse the occupants,

they want to be sure they've got the whole ground covered.

The tent's going to be over the other side there,

so you go and sort that.

Give us a shout once you're round there.

Once the site's secure,

they issue the wake-up call that's every squatter's worst nightmare.

High Court enforcement.

High Court enforcement. Time to wake up!

High Court enforcement.

-Morning, mate.

-High Court enforcement.

All right?

You need to pack your stuff up, you need to vacate, OK?

Quick as you can, please. Thank you.

The dazed occupants have been caught off-guard.

Pack your stuff up as quick as you can.

And at first glance, it doesn't look like they're planning to cause any trouble,

but the sheriffs aren't going to be letting their guard down until they

know exactly what they're dealing with.

How many have we got, do you think?

I don't know yet, but they're all over the place.

They're up in the attic on this bit.

The site is littered with makeshift structures,

so it's hard to know where people might be,

and the last thing the sheriffs want is any surprises.

Open the door, mate.

Yeah, I'm on that.

-I'm packing up, brother.

-OK, all right, OK.

If you can just leave the door open.

-Yeah.

-This fella here, he's going to stay with you,

just make sure you're getting on with it, OK?

-How long do we have, brother?

-We're going to give you about an hour.

-OK?

-OK.

-All right, thank you.

At first, it seems the squatters are cooperative, if a little eccentric.

They're quite happy, aren't they, most of them?

They're sort of free spirits, aren't they, I suppose?

I suppose that's what you'd call them.

But Mark might have spoken too soon,

as one occupant seems to be dragging his heels.

Have you got all your stuff?

I've got it here somewhere, but I'm not very happy about it.

Well, I'm sorry I've upset you, but get on with it.

Have you got a family home?

-Yeah, they're all in bed at the moment.

-Yeah?

-Just get on with it, mate.

-Don't touch my arm. I'm going.

Right, you need to start packing your stuff up.

Yeah, I've done it already.

-I don't care...

-You were given two ears and one mouth for a reason. Please listen.

I said I've packed it up already and I'm going to pick it up and leave.

Rather than standing around arguing, can you actually show me you're doing that?

-I'm not arguing, I'm just telling you friendly.

-If you carry on, you'll be removed from the site.

No-one was expecting the squatters to be pleased,

but the sheriffs need to be on the lookout for tempers running out of control.

There's an element of wounded pride, so you can almost expect them to

push back a little bit, but it's just how far.

One man, who's been living in a tent in the yard,

is refusing to pack his things

and is claiming the eviction isn't legal.

I'd love to speak to you in truth and honour,

because I know that this documentation is unlawful.

I've studied law for three decades,

and I unfortunately know that the entire legal system

of your country is now in such gross fraud that we've stood away from it.

Take a breath, mate, take a breath. It's a High Court writ, OK?

Stamped by the court.

The man claims that the squat has declared itself

an independent country, so he isn't bound by English law.

You want to kill me,

you want to exile me from the land I've built for the last three years,

which we found abandoned...

-It's not your...

-..and brought back to life.

-The land doesn't belong to you.

-The land is God's.

But a philosophical debate isn't on the sheriffs' agenda.

-At ten to six...

-No-one wants to hear.

..that's in 30 minutes' time, OK,

you are going to be leaving this property.

If you want to take your stuff with you...

-How do I live?

-..you need to start to pack it up.

-You've got 30 minutes.

-How do I live?

The sheriffs can use reasonable force if necessary,

but it's a situation they'd rather avoid,

so Mark is hoping his ultimatum will have the desired effect.

I've explained to him what he needs to do.

He's not really listening, so I think...

I've given him 30 minutes to start to pack up.

If he's starting to pack up within those 30 minutes, fine.

We'll see at ten to six, see what happens.

Later, can the sheriffs persuade the man to leave peacefully?

The projected image that this man's sending to me

is absolutely despicable.

You know I read minds, don't you? And I read yours,

and it's not pleasant. Please, take it away.

Using the County Courts to try to recover money you're owed isn't difficult.

1.5 million money claims are made every year in England and Wales,

involving anything from faulty goods or poor workmanship,

to unpaid invoices.

Claims can be filed by post or online for a small fee.

Both parties in the case will be asked to submit evidence,

and you may have to attend a court hearing.

If you're successful,

a County Court judgment - or CCJ - will be issued against the debtor,

and if they still don't pay, that's when you call the sheriffs.

Every year, 3.9 million motor insurance claims

are made in the UK as a result of accidents, theft or damage.

99% of these claims are accepted and subsequently paid out,

but occasionally claimants find themselves

unable to get the money they're owed.

Lawrence and Kev are heading towards the Sussex coast,

to deal with one of these cases.

We're off to Hastings Insurance Services Limited.

We are looking for £4,575.

The claimant is Bill Young from Ashington in Northumberland.

It all began with an outing to the local takeaway

with wife Christine and their kids.

We got in the car, headed down the road,

and just as I was approaching the roundabout,

the guy came out from the left.

I did see it coming,

but it was right at the last second and there was no way I could get out of the way.

The other driver smashed into the side of Bill's car,

writing it off and leaving the family shaken and hurt.

I can remember getting out of the vehicle

and I tried opening the door, couldn't get out.

I had to climb out of the driver's seat and I actually

did go to hospital and got checked over because...

because of my injuries.

Christine suffered whiplash,

and it soon became clear that so did their 15-year-old daughter, Elise.

My daughter realised at school when she was sitting

on the high chairs in the science lab,

cos she had no back support,

and that's when she realised she was uncomfortable with it.

So she had to actually tell the teacher she needed a special chair.

She had to go through physio and stuff like that.

But the good news was that the Youngs' insurance company was supportive.

They said they would claim costs and compensation

from the other driver's insurers,

Hastings, and seemed confident of a result.

They got in touch to say that the driver had said it was his fault,

so we had nothing really to worry about.

We had a courtesy car.

But as it went on, it started to drag on and drag on.

It seemed that Hastings wasn't going to pay out just like that.

I was quite surprised

because it's quite a big insurance company

and I thought it would just be... They would pay up straightaway, sort of thing.

Especially when the guy who's hit you is admitting fault straightaway.

Basically an open and shut case, really.

Weeks became months,

and the situation was becoming increasingly worrying for the family.

I was just stressed all the time,

ringing up the insurance company just about every other day.

I would send one thing and then they would say,

"We need something else."

Well, I thought, "Well, why didn't you say that in the first place?"

It just went on and on.

At the back of your mind you're always thinking,

"Am I going to get the money?" You know,

"Is it going to end up me paying for something that's not my fault?"

A few months after the accident,

the Youngs did receive the payout for their written-off car,

but it took a year before Christine got compensation for her injuries,

and Elise's whiplash was even less straightforward.

It turned out she'd have to go to court.

You don't really want your daughter going into a court.

She seemed to take it in her stride, but it was worrying for us.

And after the hearing, they were more confused than ever.

The guy who was representing the other company,

he basically just agreed they would pay out.

There was no questions asked.

It just seemed to be a waste of time.

The Youngs could at least expect the matter to finally be resolved.

But 18 months after the accident, they're still waiting.

Now the Youngs' insurers have decided to take the final step.

They've obtained a High Court writ against Hastings Insurance

and engaged the sheriffs.

We've been informed that the sheriffs are going to go into

the offices of the insurance company...

Basically bang on their door.

..and actually physically take the money.

We didn't expect this, so we'll see what happens from here,

but hopefully we'll finally get what...

-What we deserve.

-..we need.

Lawrence and Kev are soon to arrive

at Hastings Insurance Services Limited.

It should be straightforward,

but Kev's taking nothing for granted.

You'd have thought a job like this is a relatively easy payment,

but you can never guarantee it.

It's up this road somewhere, I believe.

There it is, Conquest House, Hastings Direct.

It's not quite the name on the writ,

but it's more than likely to be just a trading name for the debtor company.

Unperturbed, Lawrence and Kev park up and head into the building.

-Hi, there.

-They'll rumble you, Pete, straight away.

But our cameraman doesn't get far.

Morning, yeah.

We wait outside, while Lawrence explains.

My name's Mr Grix. My colleague and I are enforcement agents.

We've got a High Court writ against Hastings Insurance Services Limited.

The sheriffs' unannounced arrival causes some confusion.

Lawrence and Kev don't know any of the specifics of the case,

all they've got is a writ against the company

with Mr Young's name on it, and no-one here knows who he is.

After an hour, they've made little progress.

One of the issues they've got at the moment is looking for the person

in the claim.

Once they find out who that is,

they'll be back down and sorting it out.

They're familiar with these scenarios.

I think with such a big company,

they must get a few of these things sort of slip through the net.

The sheriffs can demand the writ is paid regardless,

but companies are usually reluctant to reach for their credit cards

until they know what they're paying for.

So Lawrence is prepared to give them a bit of time,

rather than threatening to remove assets from the office.

Another 45 minutes passes before, eventually, he's out.

And all the waiting around hasn't dampened his spirits.

That went very well, really.

Eventually, they found who should be dealing with the claim.

Apparently, they'd already agreed a settlement and the solicitor should

have paid it, so it's actually the solicitors that have paid it now.

It took a bit longer than we would've liked, really,

but sometimes it does.

They've been paid the full £4,575.

18 months after their car accident,

the Youngs have finally got the compensation they were owed.

Well, we've finally heard from the sheriffs.

It's good news.

They're getting the money, so that's great.

We would have preferred that we didn't need to claim

and we didn't need it, but that's what these things are for.

In London, the sheriffs are at a squat in Camden Town.

-Morning!

-The man who owns the land originally allowed the squatters

to stay, but now wants it back.

He couldn't persuade the squatters to leave of their own accord,

so he's got a writ of possession

which empowers the sheriffs to evict them.

As expected, they're not best pleased.

We try to love this world, and,

of course, the "good fellas" kick us out.

But for the most part, the squatters appear to be leaving peacefully,

with a couple of exceptions.

You'll be removed.

Physically.

Right, I have a bit of paper here - it's a High Court writ.

It commands me to come onto this land...

Right, I've told you, mate, what's happening.

OK...

I'm a free person and I have the right to live and be on this planet.

And outside, another man isn't cooperating, either.

-Sorry?

-The projected image and energy

that this man's sending to me is absolutely despicable.

Can you please ask him to stand at least 12 feet away from me?

If you were inside packing up,

I wouldn't be anywhere near you, would I?

Cos I will remain out here. I won't come inside.

You know I read minds, don't you? And I read yours, and it's not pleasant.

Please, take it away.

The man previously told the sheriffs he doesn't recognise English law.

Now he says he won't leave until he finds his pet cat.

Somewhere I have a very, very small kitten, it's tiny,

and I need to find it.

I can't even find it here.

As soon as these people came on-site, she ran away.

But kitten or no kitten,

the man needs to pack his belongings if he wants to take them,

and has so far refused to do so.

The sheriffs' patience is running out.

We'll keep hanging in with him, you know.

We can keep playing his game for a little while,

and eventually enough will be enough, where

he may have to be helped off-site.

And he's not the only squatter sailing close to the wind.

-If you touch me, sir...

-Yeah.

..and you want to remove me...

-Yeah.

-..I don't know if that's the best thing to do,

because obviously you don't have any powers.

-I do have power to do that.

-I don't think so.

You don't think so, I'm telling you I have.

You haven't gave me birth, sir, I'm really sorry,

you have to ask my mum and my dad.

But the sheriffs don't need his parents' permission.

And as the man continues to be obstructive, enough is enough.

I don't respond to you.

Don't touch me, don't touch me.

Come on, mate. You go and get your stuff...

Don't touch me!

I haven't said anything, I haven't done anything to you.

-Come on.

-What are you doing?

You're going, mate. You're too gobby.

I'm not too gobby. Hey, what's going on there?

-You've had the opportunity.

-What do you mean?

He's not complying with what he should be doing

and he's just standing around, being an issue.

Um... If he just carries on like that,

the others are going to start sort of going along with his view.

The man is convinced the sheriffs don't have any authority,

and once outside, he calls the police.

We have some people literally harassing us and attacking us.

They're very dangerous. They pretend to have... They have some uniforms,

you know, they pretend to be bailiffs or sheriffs or something,

and it's a little bit of an illegal situation here,

so we need to have some police here.

Meanwhile, back inside the squat,

the sheriffs are still battling with the man in the tent,

who now says he's ill.

-Are you unwell?

-Yes, I am, seriously unwell.

-OK.

-I really have been for the last three years.

-All right.

-I'm suffering from consumption.

I've only got 10% of my lung capacity left.

I'm very, very hard pushed to breathe and when stressed,

it makes it worse.

Take this man away from me, he's really upsetting me.

-All right.

-He's really upsetting me!

-He's gone now.

-No, he hasn't!

Right, he has now, OK?

-Get him away from me.

-All right, listen...

-I mean, seriously.

-Do you need medical assistance?

I would love it,

but it's not a case that your medical people could help me.

I haven't got a name, they won't treat me,

-so it's not going to help.

-Are you refusing...?

-I don't have a name.

Do you want me to get you an ambulance?

-Yes or no?

-I don't know what's going to happen, you may as well get me a hearse.

-Do you want me to get you an ambulance?

-You may as well get me a hearse, I promise you.

Later, patience runs out with the man in the tent.

I have done nothing to these people,

they are now depriving me from any ability to live!

And tempers flare as the site is secured.

THEY CHANT

Why are you destroying our garden?!

If you've won a County Court judgment and haven't been paid,

for £66 you can get the case transferred up to the High Court,

which will issue a writ for enforcement by the sheriffs.

My job is to collect in full or remove goods.

They've got special powers of entry.

We don't have to take any notice of your security protocol, I'm afraid.

And there's no limit on the size of the debts they can pursue.

£1.6 million.

If they're successful,

they'll recover your money and costs from the debtor...

Have you got the cash now, then?

..as well as their own fees, which are set by the Government.

She's paid, the judgment is settled.

Thank you very much.

If the sheriffs can't get your money,

they'll ask you to pay a fee of £75 plus VAT.

In the Midlands, sheriffs Tommy Coyle

and Craig Wild are heading into the Oxfordshire countryside

to visit a residential address.

This morning, it's an early one.

We're off to go and see a Mrs Susan Mulvey,

who is a vet.

The debt itself is just short of £4,000.

The debt is for wages owed to a former employee,

and it's not the first time Mrs Mulvey

has been in trouble over the treatment of her staff.

In 2013,

an employment tribunal awarded nearly £10,000 in compensation

to another former worker, who was unfairly dismissed.

Mrs Mulvey didn't defend either case,

and in this latest incident, currently owes £3,943.

We've been to the vets before,

to the actual shop and the address where she trades from,

left a notification because she was actually operating

on an animal at the time, so we couldn't get to see her personally.

Since then she's never been in touch with us at all,

so our office has done some background checks,

to find out where her home address is,

and that's where we're off to now.

As the claimant sued Mrs Mulvey personally,

rather than her business,

catching her at home could be a good way to get the debt paid.

That's the one.

-In there, then.

-In there.

The sheriffs approach the house,

first checking out the car on the driveway,

but it's not that promising.

That hasn't moved for ages, mate, that hasn't.

The sheriffs will need to find some other way

of persuading the debtor to pay.

If she's in.

Got milk here, so think someone's still here.

Yeah.

Here we go.

Good morning. Mrs Mulvey?

Is she available?

It's Mrs Mulvey's husband,

and it seems like the vet has already left for work.

She's still living here, isn't she? Could you get her on the phone? Because we've been given this

as an enforcement address for her.

I can wait here, yeah.

It's not ideal that Mrs Mulvey's not here,

but the sheriffs know all too well that their presence

on the doorstep is often enough.

He's going to get her on the phone now,

and hopefully Tommy can have a chat with her over the phone

and explain the situation to her.

Sure enough, the man returns with Mrs Mulvey on the line,

and the sheriffs are invited in.

Thank you.

Now that they're inside,

they can't be told to leave and could seize assets,

but hopefully it won't come to that.

Tommy's explaining the situation to her on the phone.

They're trying to arrange the money as we speak. Um...

I don't think they've got the money themselves in one account,

it may have to come from two or three accounts.

Mrs Mulvey needs to come up with close to £4,000 now,

and it's not uncommon for debtors to struggle to raise

enough funds on the spot.

If she can't, then the sheriffs will have to decide whether to accept

a part-payment for the time being, or stand their ground.

But this time, that scenario is avoided.

Fantastic news for the claimant.

He's transferred the money into one account

and they paid on a debit card in full.

Ten months after winning their case in court,

Mrs Mulvey's former employee has finally got the wages they're owed.

Back in Camden,

the sheriffs are still trying to evict a group of illegal squatters.

What's happening if we don't want to go?

You'll be removed.

While most are cooperating,

one man has had to be removed by force.

-You're going, mate, you're too gobby.

-I'm not too gobby.

Wait, what's going on here?

And a second is continuing to cause problems.

He's been refusing to pack his belongings,

and is now claiming to be unwell.

Two hernias, two dislocated shoulders and untold back pain.

-OK.

-I live in a tent in a garden, not out of choice but out of force,

because you people threw me out of my last life

because I challenged the system and refused to wear a name.

The system has been trying to deprive,

deny and delay me any rights to live on this planet.

But the sheriffs have heard it all now,

so after 45 minutes of arguing and endless excuses,

the man is given some assistance.

I have done nothing to these people.

They are now depriving me from any ability to live!

Put him down gently, Steve.

I have my rights.

Keep going.

-Legs down.

-I have my rights.

-I have my rights.

-Thank you very much.

Brother, I need my property, my kitten, I need my kitten.

-His cat's inside there, his baby cat.

-My children, my child is in there.

The man needn't worry, as Vader the kitten is soon found.

-Here's your cat.

-That's Vader, what about the rest of my stuff?

Now he's been removed, he wants his stuff, yeah?

At the moment...

I'm not going to let him get that.

I'm going to clear the site and then I'll get a couple of our officers

to pack his stuff up and just bring it out to him.

MAN SHOUTS With the troublemakers now off the site,

the sheriffs need to chivvy the rest of the squatters along.

I can see you've got your breakfast, have you got everything else?

-Are you taking the bike?

-It's mine, yeah.

After being on the site for three years,

some of the squatters have a lot of possessions.

Luckily, they've also got a couple of vans,

which is making the process a bit easier.

I think we've got about half out at the moment.

The majority of them have been OK,

it's just a couple who have had to be removed because they're not...

They're not doing what we've asked them to do.

Sorry.

Meanwhile, the police have arrived,

at the request of one of the squatters,

who is convinced that the eviction is illegal.

But once the police see the sheriffs' paperwork,

it becomes clear to them it's the squatters

who are on the wrong side of the law.

OK, we'll go hang out front

and just make sure no-one's getting all uppity.

-Thank you.

-OK.

As the final squatters gather their belongings and leave,

the temperature again starts to rise.

MAN SHOUTS

Garden community, garden community, garden community...

The squatters are gathering outside and making themselves heard.

Get a job, get a job!

Not that the sheriffs are worried.

I think it's a case of much sound and fury doth signify nothing.

Before the sheriffs can leave,

they have to be certain that none of the squatters have been left behind.

Search every nook and cranny, roof spaces,

outbuildings, shrubbery, tents,

everything, yeah? Leave no stone unturned, yeah?

Even if you think someone's checked it already, just double-check it, please.

And as the search of the building progresses,

Mark comes across something a bit odd.

I found a hatch or something in the floor, not sure where it goes.

Probably nothing, but I need to check it.

No, just the floor. That's fine, cool.

It turns out to be nothing.

And with the site confirmed as clear of squatters,

attention turns to making sure they don't get back in,

and securing the site for the owner.

It's going to be a difficult place to secure up.

Ideally, they're going to want security guards here,

but whether he chooses that or not...

If he doesn't, they'll probably be back in straightaway.

The other thing the sheriffs can do is make sure there's nothing much

to come back to.

As long as their makeshift homes are still standing,

this site will continue to be a draw for the squatters,

so the owner has asked the sheriffs to remove them.

SQUATTERS YELL

Unsurprisingly, it only winds the squatters up more.

Please stop destroying my home.

My belongings are inside.

Devil worship!

Why are you destroying our garden?

Why are you destroying our beautiful garden?!

But the time has now come for the squatters to move on,

and Mark is confident they will.

There's still people coming back and forwards who've got stuff in there,

which we are letting them on to get, escorting them on,

and they're all outside still, all being very verbal.

But as the day goes on,

they'll peter out.

Thanks to the sheriffs,

the land is back in the hands of its rightful owner.