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Meet the sheriffs. | 0:00:02 | 0:00:03 | |
My name's Mr Grix. My colleague and I are enforcement agents. | 0:00:03 | 0:00:05 | |
-It's do with a High Court order. -They work for the High Court. | 0:00:05 | 0:00:08 | |
And if it says you're owed money, it's their job to go and get it. | 0:00:08 | 0:00:12 | |
I'm here for £6,072.18. | 0:00:12 | 0:00:16 | |
They can demand payment on the spot. | 0:00:16 | 0:00:18 | |
I'm here for the full balance. | 0:00:18 | 0:00:20 | |
How are you going to pay it? | 0:00:20 | 0:00:22 | |
Or remove assets instead. | 0:00:22 | 0:00:24 | |
The car will be going unless you can pay it. | 0:00:24 | 0:00:26 | |
You'll have a week to pay in full before it gets sold at auction. | 0:00:26 | 0:00:29 | |
Obstructing their work can be a criminal offence. | 0:00:29 | 0:00:33 | |
I wouldn't do that if I were you. | 0:00:33 | 0:00:34 | |
The door needs to stay open. | 0:00:34 | 0:00:37 | |
Every year in England and Wales, | 0:00:37 | 0:00:40 | |
unpaid debts totalling more than £80 million | 0:00:40 | 0:00:43 | |
are recovered by the sheriffs. | 0:00:43 | 0:00:45 | |
Coming up, | 0:00:48 | 0:00:50 | |
Kate Killick is owed three months' rent after her student lodger | 0:00:50 | 0:00:54 | |
upped and left without warning. | 0:00:54 | 0:00:56 | |
He rang me one day to say he had been kicked off the course | 0:00:56 | 0:00:59 | |
and basically said, "Tough," | 0:00:59 | 0:01:01 | |
and had no sense that he was ever going to pay the money back. | 0:01:01 | 0:01:04 | |
But when Tommy and Craig pay the man a visit, | 0:01:04 | 0:01:07 | |
he's reluctant to face the facts. | 0:01:07 | 0:01:10 | |
The car's not going anywhere, I'll tell you that now. | 0:01:10 | 0:01:12 | |
You need to address this, Mr Akbar, otherwise it will be going. | 0:01:12 | 0:01:15 | |
A repair to Tony Grace's pride and joy wasn't up to scratch. | 0:01:15 | 0:01:20 | |
I felt angry that they'd not done the job properly. | 0:01:20 | 0:01:23 | |
But will the sheriffs be able to find enough assets | 0:01:23 | 0:01:26 | |
to get his money back? | 0:01:26 | 0:01:27 | |
This is a remapping device. | 0:01:27 | 0:01:30 | |
About £3,000-£4,000 brand-new. | 0:01:30 | 0:01:32 | |
Ken meets a debtor with an identity crisis. | 0:01:32 | 0:01:35 | |
He's going in roundabout ways, trying to palm me off. | 0:01:36 | 0:01:39 | |
And the sheriffs face resistance on a factory floor. | 0:01:39 | 0:01:42 | |
-Can you move? -On a commercial property, | 0:01:42 | 0:01:44 | |
we can force entry if we need to, sir. | 0:01:44 | 0:01:46 | |
-It's a court order, sir. -But you ain't got to come in. | 0:01:46 | 0:01:49 | |
In the Midlands, enforcement agents Tommy Coyle and Craig Wild are up | 0:01:54 | 0:01:58 | |
early. They're in pursuit of a debtor who Craig is convinced has | 0:01:58 | 0:02:02 | |
been avoiding him, and they're about to knock on his door. | 0:02:02 | 0:02:06 | |
We're off to go and see a Mr Ali Akbar, | 0:02:06 | 0:02:10 | |
who has had several visits from ourselves and notifications have | 0:02:10 | 0:02:13 | |
been left on every single time. | 0:02:13 | 0:02:15 | |
He's failed to respond to it. | 0:02:15 | 0:02:16 | |
Mr Akbar has been taken to court for unpaid rent. | 0:02:17 | 0:02:21 | |
The claimant is Kate Killick, | 0:02:21 | 0:02:23 | |
a beauty therapist and a single mum with two children. | 0:02:23 | 0:02:27 | |
She first met Mr Akbar when she was hoping to make some extra cash by | 0:02:27 | 0:02:31 | |
renting out a spare room in the family home. | 0:02:31 | 0:02:34 | |
The extra income is really important, | 0:02:34 | 0:02:37 | |
because it's whether or not you have a really nice Christmas, | 0:02:37 | 0:02:40 | |
you haven't got to worry about presents for the children. | 0:02:40 | 0:02:43 | |
I don't think anyone really wants a stranger living in their house, but, | 0:02:43 | 0:02:47 | |
you know, sometimes you have to do things. | 0:02:47 | 0:02:50 | |
Kate lives in Shoreham in Sussex, | 0:02:50 | 0:02:53 | |
and to find a lodger, she contacted the local airport. | 0:02:53 | 0:02:56 | |
They have a flying school and are often looking for host families to | 0:02:56 | 0:03:00 | |
accommodate trainee pilots. | 0:03:00 | 0:03:02 | |
The college put her in touch with Mr Akbar, and she agreed to take him in. | 0:03:02 | 0:03:07 | |
Yeah, when I first met Ali he just seemed like a reasonably nice | 0:03:07 | 0:03:12 | |
young person. | 0:03:12 | 0:03:14 | |
I think he was 20 or 21. | 0:03:14 | 0:03:16 | |
Initially he was paying £125 a week, with breakfast, | 0:03:16 | 0:03:21 | |
but he never got up for breakfast, so I just dropped it to 100, | 0:03:21 | 0:03:25 | |
it seemed fairer. | 0:03:25 | 0:03:26 | |
And in many ways Mr Akbar was the ideal lodger. | 0:03:26 | 0:03:30 | |
He was hardly ever here. | 0:03:30 | 0:03:32 | |
He did go out every evening and he didn't get home till the early hours | 0:03:32 | 0:03:37 | |
of the morning, | 0:03:37 | 0:03:38 | |
and when I left for work in the morning he was still in bed, | 0:03:38 | 0:03:41 | |
so I never really saw him. It was perfect, really, | 0:03:41 | 0:03:45 | |
from that point of view. | 0:03:45 | 0:03:47 | |
What wasn't so perfect was that after several months, | 0:03:47 | 0:03:50 | |
he began to fall behind with his rent. | 0:03:50 | 0:03:52 | |
But at first, Kate wasn't worried. | 0:03:52 | 0:03:54 | |
When I questioned him, | 0:03:54 | 0:03:56 | |
he said his mum was out the country and he'd have to wait till she got | 0:03:56 | 0:03:59 | |
back in the country and he'd get the rent. | 0:03:59 | 0:04:02 | |
And because she'd paid so much for these college courses and he's got | 0:04:02 | 0:04:06 | |
another year or so, you know, | 0:04:06 | 0:04:08 | |
I just thought that they'd be good for the money. | 0:04:08 | 0:04:11 | |
But after Kate hadn't received her rent for three months, | 0:04:11 | 0:04:14 | |
Mr Akbar suddenly pulled the plug on their arrangement. | 0:04:14 | 0:04:17 | |
He rang me one day to say he'd gone into college | 0:04:17 | 0:04:19 | |
and he'd been kicked off the course. | 0:04:19 | 0:04:21 | |
So he'd literally packed his stuff up and gone, | 0:04:21 | 0:04:24 | |
and basically said, "Tough," I wouldn't be able to get | 0:04:24 | 0:04:28 | |
the rent money, the arrears. | 0:04:28 | 0:04:30 | |
He just appeared to not even have any sense of responsibility | 0:04:30 | 0:04:35 | |
or that he was ever going to pay the money back. | 0:04:35 | 0:04:39 | |
I did say I would go through the small claims court and he just | 0:04:39 | 0:04:42 | |
basically said, "Good luck with that." | 0:04:42 | 0:04:45 | |
For Kate, it was an upsetting end to the relationship. | 0:04:45 | 0:04:49 | |
I am very angry with Ali, | 0:04:49 | 0:04:51 | |
because you welcome someone into your home and treat them almost like | 0:04:51 | 0:04:55 | |
a member of the family, | 0:04:55 | 0:04:56 | |
give them a lot of trust and believe in their honesty, | 0:04:56 | 0:05:00 | |
and they let you down. | 0:05:00 | 0:05:02 | |
And it's a lot of money to lose, £1,500. | 0:05:02 | 0:05:06 | |
So, just as she'd promised to do, | 0:05:07 | 0:05:09 | |
Kate pursued Mr Akbar through the courts. | 0:05:09 | 0:05:12 | |
There was a court date set to explain his side and he didn't turn up. | 0:05:12 | 0:05:17 | |
A default judgment was awarded in her favour, | 0:05:17 | 0:05:20 | |
but Kate suspected that wouldn't be the end of it. | 0:05:20 | 0:05:24 | |
Just because someone's told they've got to pay you the money, | 0:05:24 | 0:05:27 | |
they're not going to do it. | 0:05:27 | 0:05:29 | |
So I went online to see what my options were, | 0:05:29 | 0:05:32 | |
and that's when I found out about the sheriffs. | 0:05:32 | 0:05:35 | |
It's now down to the sheriffs to get back her lost rent, | 0:05:35 | 0:05:38 | |
plus costs and fees. | 0:05:38 | 0:05:40 | |
100%, the sheriffs are my last hope, | 0:05:40 | 0:05:42 | |
because I know he's not going to pay the money. | 0:05:42 | 0:05:44 | |
He doesn't think there's a legal way that I can get the money, | 0:05:44 | 0:05:47 | |
so he's going to have a surprise. | 0:05:47 | 0:05:49 | |
In Birmingham, enforcement agents Tommy and Craig are arriving at | 0:05:56 | 0:06:00 | |
Mr Akbar's home. | 0:06:00 | 0:06:02 | |
We've noted a vehicle a couple of times that has been there, | 0:06:02 | 0:06:06 | |
it's a sporty Vauxhall. | 0:06:06 | 0:06:09 | |
The DVLA check has come back on that vehicle - | 0:06:09 | 0:06:11 | |
the registered keeper is down to him. | 0:06:11 | 0:06:13 | |
So today's job is to go there, knock the door again, if the car's there, | 0:06:13 | 0:06:18 | |
we'll clamp it straight away. | 0:06:18 | 0:06:20 | |
And if he wants to pay it then that's fine, we'll deal with that, | 0:06:20 | 0:06:22 | |
and if not, unfortunately his car's got to go. | 0:06:22 | 0:06:25 | |
The sheriffs approach Mr Akbar's house with anticipation, | 0:06:25 | 0:06:29 | |
their eyes peeled for the prize asset. | 0:06:29 | 0:06:31 | |
-There it is, that white car there. -That's his car? -That's his car. | 0:06:31 | 0:06:34 | |
I'll park behind it, then. | 0:06:34 | 0:06:36 | |
That's really good, look. | 0:06:36 | 0:06:38 | |
There's the white car, there's the VXR. | 0:06:38 | 0:06:41 | |
Tommy blocks the car in | 0:06:41 | 0:06:43 | |
and they get straight to work. | 0:06:43 | 0:06:45 | |
-Right, that's on. -You done? -Done. | 0:06:51 | 0:06:54 | |
HE KNOCKS | 0:06:59 | 0:07:00 | |
But, just like Craig's previous visits, there's no answer. | 0:07:03 | 0:07:06 | |
HE CONTINUES KNOCKING | 0:07:06 | 0:07:08 | |
-Brr! -Mr Akbar, it's Mr Wild from the sheriff's office. | 0:07:12 | 0:07:17 | |
If you fail to come to the door, | 0:07:17 | 0:07:18 | |
we'll have to deal with the court order by removing the Astra. | 0:07:18 | 0:07:21 | |
This is what I get all the time here, just no answer. | 0:07:25 | 0:07:28 | |
They're in, but they just don't answer the door. | 0:07:28 | 0:07:31 | |
And after a few more minutes of trying with no response, | 0:07:31 | 0:07:35 | |
Craig sets the wheels in motion. | 0:07:35 | 0:07:37 | |
I'm just going to phone the tow truck now. | 0:07:37 | 0:07:41 | |
When we clamp a vehicle and immobilise it, we have to wait | 0:07:41 | 0:07:44 | |
two hours, giving them a chance, really, to resolve it, | 0:07:44 | 0:07:47 | |
even though we've been knocking at the door. | 0:07:47 | 0:07:49 | |
It normally takes well over an hour for the transport to get here, | 0:07:49 | 0:07:52 | |
so that's why Craig's organising it now. | 0:07:52 | 0:07:54 | |
Cheers, thanks a lot, bye-bye. | 0:07:54 | 0:07:56 | |
Contractors are all booked now, | 0:07:56 | 0:07:58 | |
so the cost of that will go on top of their bill. | 0:07:58 | 0:08:00 | |
In our experience, once the tow truck turns up with its amber lights | 0:08:00 | 0:08:04 | |
flashing and the engine revving, | 0:08:04 | 0:08:06 | |
that usually brings them to the door. | 0:08:06 | 0:08:07 | |
This does happen sometimes, | 0:08:07 | 0:08:09 | |
they just completely go to ground inside and they won't come out until | 0:08:09 | 0:08:13 | |
the actual transport arrives to take the vehicle, and then someone may | 0:08:13 | 0:08:17 | |
come to the door saying, "We didn't know nothing about it and want to | 0:08:17 | 0:08:20 | |
"resolve this," and it's too late, normally. | 0:08:20 | 0:08:24 | |
They have to find a large sum of money very quickly or it'll be going | 0:08:24 | 0:08:27 | |
on the back of a truck and away. | 0:08:27 | 0:08:30 | |
But no sooner has Tommy spoken than a young man walks out of the house. | 0:08:30 | 0:08:34 | |
-How's it going? -Hello, sir. | 0:08:36 | 0:08:38 | |
Mr Akbar, is it? | 0:08:38 | 0:08:39 | |
Mr Wild from the sheriff's office. | 0:08:39 | 0:08:42 | |
They've sent us out to obviously execute this court order. | 0:08:42 | 0:08:45 | |
Because you owe the money, there's a High Court order. | 0:08:47 | 0:08:50 | |
Yeah. | 0:08:50 | 0:08:51 | |
The court thinks you do. | 0:08:52 | 0:08:54 | |
Mr Akbar, it seems, is in denial. | 0:08:56 | 0:08:58 | |
Well, unfortunately, Mr Akbar, all letters have been left | 0:08:58 | 0:09:01 | |
for your attention, you've failed to deal with it, | 0:09:01 | 0:09:03 | |
so they've sent us out to remove the car today. | 0:09:03 | 0:09:05 | |
You haven't, sir. The court say different. | 0:09:09 | 0:09:11 | |
Well, you've had paperwork hand-delivered by the agent here. | 0:09:15 | 0:09:18 | |
No problem at all. | 0:09:20 | 0:09:21 | |
Craig obliges and shows Mr Akbar his writ. | 0:09:21 | 0:09:25 | |
And that's the commandment of the courts to endorse and obviously | 0:09:25 | 0:09:28 | |
take control of your assets today. | 0:09:28 | 0:09:30 | |
Faced with the documents, Mr Akbar finally has a moment of realisation. | 0:09:30 | 0:09:34 | |
Penny's dropped now, has it? | 0:09:36 | 0:09:37 | |
It's already been to court, sir. No, it's already been to court. | 0:09:43 | 0:09:46 | |
Exactly, she's gone to court because... | 0:09:48 | 0:09:50 | |
I'm not mad, blud. I'm not mad. | 0:09:50 | 0:09:52 | |
I'm not a bailiff, no, I'm a High Court enforcement agent. | 0:09:54 | 0:09:57 | |
I just explained it to you, I'm a High Court enforcement agent, | 0:09:58 | 0:10:01 | |
I've been here at least three times, left letters for you, | 0:10:01 | 0:10:04 | |
you've failed to respond to that. | 0:10:04 | 0:10:05 | |
Despite seeing the court order, | 0:10:07 | 0:10:09 | |
it seems Mr Akbar is unwilling to recognise the sheriff's authority. | 0:10:09 | 0:10:13 | |
Because the law says and the court say | 0:10:14 | 0:10:17 | |
we've got to come here to see you. | 0:10:17 | 0:10:19 | |
And if you don't deal with it, we've got to deal with it for you. | 0:10:19 | 0:10:22 | |
We don't want to do that. We'd much rather get paid and be on our way. | 0:10:24 | 0:10:27 | |
What makes you think it's not going to go? | 0:10:29 | 0:10:31 | |
You need to address this, Mr Akbar, otherwise it WILL be going. | 0:10:34 | 0:10:37 | |
The car will be going unless you can pay it. | 0:10:37 | 0:10:39 | |
That's fine. But the law says you've got seven days from today, | 0:10:44 | 0:10:49 | |
once your assets have been removed. We'll start doing the paperwork now, | 0:10:49 | 0:10:54 | |
you've got the seven days to seek your own legal advice, | 0:10:54 | 0:10:56 | |
try and raise the money and if you're successful, | 0:10:56 | 0:10:59 | |
then you're entitled to your goods back. | 0:10:59 | 0:11:02 | |
Mr Akbar clearly doesn't want to pay, but it looks like the sheriff's | 0:11:02 | 0:11:05 | |
ultimatum of removing the car is finally sinking in. | 0:11:05 | 0:11:10 | |
After briefly heading inside to mull it over, | 0:11:10 | 0:11:12 | |
he returns and he's changed his tune. | 0:11:12 | 0:11:15 | |
It has to be the full balance, the reason for that is... | 0:11:17 | 0:11:21 | |
You could have before. | 0:11:23 | 0:11:25 | |
We don't have many options. | 0:11:27 | 0:11:29 | |
Full amount or let the vehicle go, it doesn't matter whether you | 0:11:33 | 0:11:37 | |
let it go or not, it will go, and you'll get seven days. | 0:11:37 | 0:11:39 | |
That's all we can do for you. | 0:11:39 | 0:11:41 | |
It's 20 to nine now, you've got | 0:11:41 | 0:11:43 | |
until quarter past ten, an hour and a half. | 0:11:43 | 0:11:46 | |
If you want to stop the vehicle going. | 0:11:46 | 0:11:48 | |
-No problem. -No problem at all, Mr Akbar. | 0:11:51 | 0:11:53 | |
Mr Akbar's offer of part payment has come too late. His previous | 0:11:56 | 0:12:00 | |
failure to engage with Craig doesn't fill the sheriffs with confidence | 0:12:00 | 0:12:04 | |
about the prospect of him sticking to a payment plan, | 0:12:04 | 0:12:07 | |
so with a decent asset sitting in front of them, | 0:12:07 | 0:12:10 | |
it's got to be the whole lot. | 0:12:10 | 0:12:12 | |
The defendant has indicated he might get some money, but the time is | 0:12:12 | 0:12:16 | |
ticking and we told him the deadline to get that money to us. | 0:12:16 | 0:12:21 | |
We've also told him that he has incurred the extra cost | 0:12:21 | 0:12:23 | |
of the contractor, because we've commenced them on their way. | 0:12:23 | 0:12:27 | |
So, unfortunately, it's been a very expensive day for Mr Akbar. | 0:12:27 | 0:12:31 | |
As they wait it out in the van, | 0:12:31 | 0:12:33 | |
Mr Akbar again comes to speak to them, and he's got a fresh offer. | 0:12:33 | 0:12:37 | |
We can't, it's not a case of us | 0:12:45 | 0:12:46 | |
trying to not be helpful, we do as much as we can, | 0:12:46 | 0:12:50 | |
we leave the vehicle clamped for two hours. | 0:12:50 | 0:12:52 | |
This is clamped. | 0:12:54 | 0:12:56 | |
It's clamped. | 0:12:56 | 0:12:57 | |
There's a clamp on the front. | 0:12:58 | 0:13:00 | |
Once again, it's taking a while for reality to sink in. | 0:13:00 | 0:13:04 | |
But with his offer of payment gradually increasing, | 0:13:04 | 0:13:07 | |
Tommy is quietly confident. | 0:13:07 | 0:13:09 | |
Yeah, a bit more positive that time, | 0:13:09 | 0:13:12 | |
could be payment in full coming here. I've got a feeling, | 0:13:12 | 0:13:14 | |
I can feel it in the air, coming down the pipes. | 0:13:14 | 0:13:17 | |
But later on, there's another problem | 0:13:17 | 0:13:20 | |
as the car suddenly appears to have a new owner. | 0:13:20 | 0:13:23 | |
The car's yours now, is it? When did you get it? | 0:13:26 | 0:13:29 | |
Using the County Courts to try to recover money you're owed | 0:13:35 | 0:13:39 | |
isn't difficult. | 0:13:39 | 0:13:40 | |
One and a half million money claims are made every year | 0:13:40 | 0:13:43 | |
in England and Wales, involving anything from faulty goods | 0:13:43 | 0:13:46 | |
or poor workmanship to unpaid invoices. | 0:13:46 | 0:13:49 | |
Claims can be filed by post or online for a small fee. | 0:13:50 | 0:13:54 | |
Both parties in the case will be asked to submit evidence | 0:13:54 | 0:13:57 | |
and you may have to attend a court hearing. | 0:13:57 | 0:14:00 | |
If you're successful, a County Court Judgment, or CCJ, | 0:14:00 | 0:14:04 | |
will be issued against the debtor, and if they still don't pay, | 0:14:04 | 0:14:08 | |
that's when you call the sheriffs. | 0:14:08 | 0:14:10 | |
Enforcement agent Ken Warby is no mug, | 0:14:14 | 0:14:17 | |
and today his nose to sniff out a tall story is going to come in handy. | 0:14:17 | 0:14:22 | |
He's on his way to Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire | 0:14:22 | 0:14:24 | |
in search of a local businessman. | 0:14:24 | 0:14:27 | |
We are going to visit someone called Mr Rostami, | 0:14:27 | 0:14:31 | |
trading as LJ's Nightclub. | 0:14:31 | 0:14:33 | |
Mr Ebi Rostami's been sued by a woman who was injured | 0:14:35 | 0:14:38 | |
after slipping in his club. A court's ordered him to pay, but he hasn't, | 0:14:38 | 0:14:43 | |
so it's Ken's job to collect £5,213, | 0:14:43 | 0:14:47 | |
including costs and fees. | 0:14:47 | 0:14:50 | |
It turns out Ken is no stranger to the nightclub scene himself. | 0:14:51 | 0:14:55 | |
Give me a half of shandy, and... | 0:14:56 | 0:15:00 | |
I can pull a few shapes on the dance floor, absolutely. | 0:15:00 | 0:15:03 | |
But sadly we won't get to see that today, | 0:15:03 | 0:15:05 | |
as it seems the nightclub has shut down. | 0:15:05 | 0:15:08 | |
We was there a couple of weeks ago, and that's empty. | 0:15:08 | 0:15:12 | |
Sheriffs are permitted to visit any address where they believe | 0:15:12 | 0:15:15 | |
the debtor may have assets, | 0:15:15 | 0:15:16 | |
and they've been told Mr Rostami also runs a cafe. | 0:15:16 | 0:15:20 | |
This second business could be the key to Ken getting his claimant's money. | 0:15:20 | 0:15:25 | |
He reaches Aylesbury, | 0:15:26 | 0:15:27 | |
parks up... | 0:15:27 | 0:15:29 | |
..and heads into town on foot, passing the nightclub on the way. | 0:15:30 | 0:15:35 | |
Just checking to see no-one's moved back in there, | 0:15:35 | 0:15:37 | |
but it is as it was a couple of weeks ago. | 0:15:37 | 0:15:40 | |
Off to the caff, and hopefully our guy is there. | 0:15:40 | 0:15:43 | |
The cafe is just down the road, and Ken heads in. | 0:15:45 | 0:15:48 | |
Hello. I wanted to speak to Mr Rostami. | 0:15:55 | 0:15:57 | |
He's the owner, yeah? | 0:16:01 | 0:16:03 | |
I need to speak to him urgently. | 0:16:03 | 0:16:05 | |
Can someone get hold of him? | 0:16:05 | 0:16:07 | |
Thank you. | 0:16:09 | 0:16:10 | |
The barwoman heads off to see if she can track down Mr Rostami, | 0:16:10 | 0:16:14 | |
and shortly afterwards a man appears from the back. | 0:16:14 | 0:16:17 | |
Hello. | 0:16:17 | 0:16:19 | |
It's Mr Rostami I want to speak to. | 0:16:19 | 0:16:21 | |
Sorry, are you a... are you a manager here? | 0:16:23 | 0:16:27 | |
In fact, although Ken has no way of knowing it, this is Mr Rostami, | 0:16:27 | 0:16:31 | |
and he's being somewhat economical with the truth. | 0:16:31 | 0:16:34 | |
He's not here? | 0:16:37 | 0:16:39 | |
Right. | 0:16:42 | 0:16:43 | |
Well, you need to get him on the phone, | 0:16:44 | 0:16:46 | |
because I need to speak to him urgently, thank you. | 0:16:46 | 0:16:48 | |
Cheers. | 0:16:50 | 0:16:52 | |
Mr Rostami walks off, and although he doesn't know the full story, | 0:16:52 | 0:16:55 | |
Ken smells a rat. | 0:16:55 | 0:16:57 | |
Well, this is interesting. I think this guy, in a roundabout way, | 0:16:57 | 0:17:00 | |
is trying to palm me off to someone else. | 0:17:00 | 0:17:03 | |
But first impressions, yeah, plenty of assets in here, so, um... | 0:17:03 | 0:17:06 | |
..we'll wait and see. | 0:17:08 | 0:17:09 | |
It's ten minutes since Mr Rostami disappeared | 0:17:10 | 0:17:13 | |
before a new member of staff comes to speak to Ken, | 0:17:13 | 0:17:16 | |
and now it seems the story has changed. | 0:17:16 | 0:17:19 | |
Right. We were informed that the guy owned this as well. | 0:17:27 | 0:17:30 | |
Right, OK. Did he used to own this, then? | 0:17:32 | 0:17:34 | |
Right. I need to speak to the owner, | 0:17:36 | 0:17:38 | |
because I've got a High Court writ of control, | 0:17:38 | 0:17:40 | |
which gives me authority to remove goods from here in lieu of | 0:17:40 | 0:17:44 | |
an outstanding amount that he owes. | 0:17:44 | 0:17:46 | |
So you need to make some phone calls | 0:17:46 | 0:17:49 | |
and get him or her down here straight away. | 0:17:49 | 0:17:51 | |
So while one staff member thinks Mr Rostami owns the cafe, | 0:17:51 | 0:17:56 | |
another seems to know nothing about it. | 0:17:56 | 0:17:58 | |
Ken's not sure what exactly is going on, | 0:17:58 | 0:18:01 | |
but he knows better than to take the barman's word for it. | 0:18:01 | 0:18:04 | |
"He doesn't own this, Michelle owns this." | 0:18:04 | 0:18:06 | |
Well, I'm not going to go away on that basis. | 0:18:06 | 0:18:09 | |
I need to speak to the supposed owner or new owner of this place, | 0:18:09 | 0:18:12 | |
and I need some proof that she is the owner here. | 0:18:12 | 0:18:15 | |
Soon enough, a woman turns up who appears to be a manager. | 0:18:16 | 0:18:20 | |
Hello. | 0:18:21 | 0:18:22 | |
Are you Michelle? | 0:18:22 | 0:18:24 | |
Our cameraman obliges and steps out onto the street. | 0:18:29 | 0:18:33 | |
Ken follows shortly afterwards, | 0:18:35 | 0:18:37 | |
and it seems Michelle has told him the same thing as the barman. | 0:18:37 | 0:18:41 | |
She just confirms that he shut the nightclub down, this guy, | 0:18:41 | 0:18:44 | |
and he has nothing to do with this place. | 0:18:44 | 0:18:46 | |
I said, "I need to see some proof that you are the sole owner of this place." | 0:18:46 | 0:18:50 | |
She said, "Well, it's going through." | 0:18:50 | 0:18:52 | |
And then I said, "Is your name on the business rates?" | 0:18:52 | 0:18:54 | |
She said, "No, it's still his name." | 0:18:54 | 0:18:56 | |
I said, "You need to find this money and find it all, | 0:18:56 | 0:18:59 | |
"because I will be removing your goods." | 0:18:59 | 0:19:03 | |
So we're going to wait and see. | 0:19:03 | 0:19:04 | |
She's gone to make a few phone calls. | 0:19:04 | 0:19:06 | |
I'm just going to get back in there and | 0:19:06 | 0:19:09 | |
tough this one out, I think. | 0:19:09 | 0:19:11 | |
If Mr Rostami has indeed sold the business to this Michelle, | 0:19:13 | 0:19:17 | |
it must've been fairly recently. | 0:19:17 | 0:19:19 | |
There's even still a job advert in the window with his name and mobile | 0:19:19 | 0:19:23 | |
number on it, not to mention his earlier appearance behind the bar. | 0:19:23 | 0:19:26 | |
Ken is not going to walk away from this one in a hurry. | 0:19:28 | 0:19:30 | |
And soon enough, there is an offer of payment. | 0:19:32 | 0:19:35 | |
She said that she can't come up with the full amount of money but she can | 0:19:35 | 0:19:38 | |
come up with £2,000 and she has offered to clear the debt in three weeks. | 0:19:38 | 0:19:43 | |
So hopefully that will be good enough for the client. | 0:19:43 | 0:19:47 | |
The news is she is actually, um... | 0:19:47 | 0:19:50 | |
Mr Rostami's ex-wife, | 0:19:50 | 0:19:53 | |
so that's the connection. So... | 0:19:53 | 0:19:55 | |
Dig a little bit deeper and we always get the truth in the end. | 0:19:56 | 0:19:59 | |
Ken heads back in, | 0:20:00 | 0:20:02 | |
where he persuades Michelle to part with a further £213 up front, | 0:20:02 | 0:20:07 | |
leaving a neat £3,000 to pay over three weeks. | 0:20:07 | 0:20:10 | |
Ken's confident she'll make good on her promise. | 0:20:10 | 0:20:13 | |
I'm pretty sure they're going to have the funds. | 0:20:13 | 0:20:16 | |
It's quite a good result, really, | 0:20:16 | 0:20:17 | |
because originally I was given the story | 0:20:17 | 0:20:19 | |
the guy had nothing to do with her place any more and that isn't quite the case, | 0:20:19 | 0:20:23 | |
so a good result for the client, on to the next job. | 0:20:23 | 0:20:27 | |
Following filming, the debt owed by Mr Rostami was paid in full. | 0:20:28 | 0:20:32 | |
The young woman who was injured in LJ's nightclub | 0:20:32 | 0:20:36 | |
has now got the money awarded to her by the court. | 0:20:36 | 0:20:39 | |
Enforcement agents Lawrence Grix and Kev McNally are on the road. | 0:20:49 | 0:20:53 | |
They're heading to Bishop's Stortford in Hertfordshire | 0:20:53 | 0:20:56 | |
with a writ against a car garage. | 0:20:56 | 0:20:58 | |
Today's debtor, though, is not the normal, run-of-the-mill garage, | 0:20:58 | 0:21:02 | |
and the vehicle at the centre of the dispute is no everyday car. | 0:21:02 | 0:21:06 | |
We're going to see Porsche Dynamics Ltd. | 0:21:06 | 0:21:09 | |
The money they owe is £1,658 | 0:21:09 | 0:21:13 | |
and the debt is relating to some work they did. | 0:21:13 | 0:21:16 | |
It's actually for a gearbox gasket replacement. | 0:21:17 | 0:21:20 | |
The claimant in the case is heating engineer Tony Grace, | 0:21:23 | 0:21:26 | |
a lifelong Porsche enthusiast | 0:21:26 | 0:21:28 | |
and the proud owner of a Dolphin Grey model. | 0:21:28 | 0:21:31 | |
I've always had Porsches. I've always had a passion for them. | 0:21:31 | 0:21:34 | |
I like the engine in the back and the sound of them. | 0:21:34 | 0:21:37 | |
They're not overstated, the Porsches, | 0:21:38 | 0:21:41 | |
but the 966 Turbo, it's the best one out of all of them. | 0:21:41 | 0:21:45 | |
It's such a fast car and good fun, you know. | 0:21:45 | 0:21:49 | |
But even the finest engineering isn't without its flaws, | 0:21:49 | 0:21:52 | |
and one day, Tony discovered his beloved car | 0:21:52 | 0:21:56 | |
had sprung a leak in its gearbox. | 0:21:56 | 0:21:58 | |
So he looked around for a suitable specialist and someone he knew | 0:21:58 | 0:22:02 | |
recommended Porsche Dynamics Ltd. | 0:22:02 | 0:22:04 | |
When I first saw the garage, it seemed OK. | 0:22:04 | 0:22:08 | |
I wasn't mad on the guy. | 0:22:08 | 0:22:10 | |
He didn't seem as knowledgeable as other people that I've used, | 0:22:10 | 0:22:14 | |
but you can be wrong on that, | 0:22:14 | 0:22:16 | |
so I wouldn't hold that against him, you know. | 0:22:16 | 0:22:19 | |
The man said the garage could fix the problem and charged Tony £700, | 0:22:19 | 0:22:24 | |
but it didn't seem to make any difference. | 0:22:24 | 0:22:26 | |
I kept taking it back and forward. | 0:22:26 | 0:22:28 | |
I don't know whether they misdiagnosed it, | 0:22:28 | 0:22:31 | |
but every time I got it back, it was leaking. | 0:22:31 | 0:22:33 | |
So, in the end, I took it to a garage. | 0:22:33 | 0:22:35 | |
I got it up on the ramp, and when I looked, | 0:22:35 | 0:22:38 | |
they'd used a sealant on it and it was probably about six inches long, | 0:22:38 | 0:22:42 | |
and I thought, "You can't do that on a car like that!" | 0:22:42 | 0:22:45 | |
That's not really going to stop the pressured leak on the oil. | 0:22:45 | 0:22:49 | |
Even I know that and I'm not a mechanic. | 0:22:49 | 0:22:51 | |
Tony's final confirmation that he hadn't got the service he'd paid for | 0:22:53 | 0:22:57 | |
came when the second garage made the repair he'd requested all along. | 0:22:57 | 0:23:01 | |
He changed the gasket within five hours. | 0:23:01 | 0:23:04 | |
He'd done a really good job and, touch wood, | 0:23:04 | 0:23:06 | |
I've never had a problem with it. | 0:23:06 | 0:23:07 | |
So, obviously, | 0:23:09 | 0:23:10 | |
the other people didn't do the gasket. | 0:23:10 | 0:23:13 | |
And that's when Tony began to get annoyed. | 0:23:13 | 0:23:16 | |
Because I had to take it somewhere else and pay again, | 0:23:16 | 0:23:19 | |
I've sort of had to pay double, | 0:23:19 | 0:23:21 | |
and I've thought, well, that's not right. | 0:23:21 | 0:23:23 | |
If I pay for something that's cost me 700 quid | 0:23:23 | 0:23:26 | |
and then I've got to pay again... | 0:23:26 | 0:23:28 | |
I felt angry that they'd not done the job properly, really. | 0:23:28 | 0:23:32 | |
Tony got in touch with Porsche Dynamics Ltd to complain, | 0:23:32 | 0:23:35 | |
and initially, it sounded like they were keen | 0:23:35 | 0:23:38 | |
to get the matter resolved. | 0:23:38 | 0:23:39 | |
He said, "Oh, yeah. We'll give you your money back." | 0:23:39 | 0:23:42 | |
So he didn't argue at first. | 0:23:42 | 0:23:43 | |
But this went on for weeks and weeks. | 0:23:43 | 0:23:46 | |
In the end, I had no alternative but to sort of take it further. | 0:23:46 | 0:23:50 | |
Tony took the company to court | 0:23:50 | 0:23:51 | |
and won his case when they didn't offer a defence. | 0:23:51 | 0:23:55 | |
They haven't paid. | 0:23:55 | 0:23:56 | |
Now he's escalated the case to the sheriffs. | 0:23:56 | 0:23:59 | |
If they don't get nowhere, I'll just have to accept it. | 0:23:59 | 0:24:03 | |
Lawrence and Kev are on their way to the debtor garage | 0:24:08 | 0:24:11 | |
and it seems they and Tony have a lot in common. | 0:24:11 | 0:24:14 | |
Rather than tactics, | 0:24:14 | 0:24:16 | |
the top conversational topic is the finer points of Porsche. | 0:24:16 | 0:24:19 | |
I had one a few years ago, now. | 0:24:19 | 0:24:21 | |
I had it for a long time. I loved it. | 0:24:21 | 0:24:23 | |
If I had had the money, I would have had one when I was younger. | 0:24:23 | 0:24:26 | |
I probably wouldn't now, to be honest. | 0:24:26 | 0:24:28 | |
I'm getting to the time of life where I don't want to be | 0:24:28 | 0:24:30 | |
getting down onto the level of a tea tray to get into my car. | 0:24:30 | 0:24:33 | |
The sheriffs arrive at the industrial estate | 0:24:34 | 0:24:37 | |
they're looking for and the debtor company isn't hard to spot. | 0:24:37 | 0:24:41 | |
-There it is. -The Porsche was a bit of a giveaway. | 0:24:41 | 0:24:43 | |
That's how I roll. | 0:24:43 | 0:24:45 | |
Like a ninja. | 0:24:45 | 0:24:46 | |
The sheriffs head inside in search of £1,600. | 0:24:47 | 0:24:51 | |
Morning, sir. | 0:24:53 | 0:24:54 | |
My name's Mr Grix. | 0:24:56 | 0:24:58 | |
My colleague and I are enforcement agents. | 0:24:58 | 0:25:00 | |
We're here with a High Court writ of control against Porsche Dynamics Ltd | 0:25:00 | 0:25:03 | |
in favour of Mr AJ Grace. | 0:25:03 | 0:25:06 | |
-Right. -We're ordered here today by the court to take control | 0:25:06 | 0:25:08 | |
of goods to the value of £1,658.02 to clear this debt. | 0:25:08 | 0:25:13 | |
The only way to prevent further action is to pay in full. | 0:25:13 | 0:25:16 | |
At this point, the man asks our cameraman to leave, | 0:25:16 | 0:25:19 | |
while the conversation continues inside. | 0:25:19 | 0:25:21 | |
The debtor says he's got plenty of work but cash flow's a problem | 0:25:21 | 0:25:26 | |
and so he can only raise £400, | 0:25:26 | 0:25:28 | |
with the remainder to be paid over a period of weeks. | 0:25:28 | 0:25:31 | |
But to go on a payment arrangement, | 0:25:31 | 0:25:33 | |
Lawrence wants at least half the debt cleared today, | 0:25:33 | 0:25:36 | |
and he'd need to take control of goods on the premises as security, | 0:25:36 | 0:25:40 | |
and that's where there's a problem. | 0:25:40 | 0:25:42 | |
It seems Porsche Dynamics Ltd has another unpaid debt, | 0:25:42 | 0:25:46 | |
and a different enforcement agent has already called | 0:25:46 | 0:25:49 | |
and had first dibs on everything here. | 0:25:49 | 0:25:52 | |
They've actually listed and got an inventory of goods | 0:25:52 | 0:25:55 | |
they've taken down into their possession. | 0:25:55 | 0:25:57 | |
So we've got to find other assets that they haven't taken control of. | 0:25:57 | 0:26:03 | |
So, while the boss calls around to see if he can raise any more money, | 0:26:03 | 0:26:08 | |
the sheriffs are on a treasure hunt for any assets that are left. | 0:26:08 | 0:26:12 | |
Predictably, the cars are all owned by customers, | 0:26:12 | 0:26:15 | |
so Lawrence and Kev are focusing on the garage equipment. | 0:26:15 | 0:26:18 | |
And so far, it's hardly proving to be a gold mine. | 0:26:18 | 0:26:21 | |
As of now, there's only one diagnostics bit of kit | 0:26:21 | 0:26:24 | |
that's worth... probably worth a couple of grand. | 0:26:24 | 0:26:27 | |
We're just seeing what else there is. | 0:26:27 | 0:26:28 | |
Most of the stuff's on finance as well. | 0:26:28 | 0:26:30 | |
So he's getting the finance documentation together, as well. | 0:26:30 | 0:26:33 | |
We'll get a result of sorts on this job. | 0:26:33 | 0:26:35 | |
It just depends. It depends what it is. | 0:26:35 | 0:26:38 | |
It soon becomes clear that the boss can't raise any more money. | 0:26:38 | 0:26:42 | |
The sheriffs have little option but to refuse his offer of £400 | 0:26:42 | 0:26:46 | |
and remove anything they can find which hasn't already been bagged | 0:26:46 | 0:26:50 | |
by the other enforcement agent. | 0:26:50 | 0:26:52 | |
45 minutes later, they are out the door with goods in hand. | 0:26:52 | 0:26:57 | |
This is a remapping device, | 0:26:57 | 0:26:59 | |
I would guess about £3,000-£4,000, brand-new. | 0:26:59 | 0:27:03 | |
This is a snap-on bit of diagnostic kit. | 0:27:03 | 0:27:07 | |
Brand-new, this would probably be £3,000-£4,000. | 0:27:07 | 0:27:10 | |
At auction, you'd probably get half of that. | 0:27:10 | 0:27:13 | |
It may not be the Crown Jewels, | 0:27:13 | 0:27:14 | |
but it should raise enough at auction | 0:27:14 | 0:27:16 | |
to cover Porsche Dynamics' debt. | 0:27:16 | 0:27:18 | |
That's if the man doesn't come up with the money first | 0:27:18 | 0:27:21 | |
and within seven days. | 0:27:21 | 0:27:23 | |
I think he'll potentially buy it back. | 0:27:23 | 0:27:25 | |
He'll try and get the money together to buy it back | 0:27:25 | 0:27:27 | |
before it gets sold. Hopefully. | 0:27:27 | 0:27:29 | |
In fact, the boss never did make any payment at all | 0:27:29 | 0:27:32 | |
and his equipment has been listed for auction. | 0:27:32 | 0:27:35 | |
The claimant, Tony Grace, should get his money back any day now | 0:27:35 | 0:27:39 | |
and is delighted to see the matter finally coming to an end. | 0:27:39 | 0:27:43 | |
Yeah. Good news. Probably, with the money, | 0:27:43 | 0:27:46 | |
I'll probably end up spending it on the dog. | 0:27:46 | 0:27:49 | |
She's got a bad foot. | 0:27:49 | 0:27:51 | |
It's nice to have it come to an end and put it to bed, | 0:27:51 | 0:27:55 | |
and then forget about it and move on. | 0:27:55 | 0:27:57 | |
Life's for living. | 0:27:57 | 0:27:58 | |
HE LAUGHS | 0:27:58 | 0:28:00 | |
Porsche Dynamics Ltd told us that... | 0:28:02 | 0:28:04 | |
It's before dawn and the sheriffs are gathering in Southend in Essex. | 0:28:32 | 0:28:37 | |
There's lights on up in the property, | 0:28:37 | 0:28:39 | |
so we need to be really quiet. | 0:28:39 | 0:28:40 | |
They're here to evict a group of squatters from a nearby building. | 0:28:40 | 0:28:44 | |
If the window's open, me and Jack go through the window. | 0:28:44 | 0:28:48 | |
If the door opens easy, then in through the door. | 0:28:48 | 0:28:51 | |
It's a commercial property which has been vacant for a while, | 0:28:51 | 0:28:54 | |
and it's thought about a dozen squatters have moved in. | 0:28:54 | 0:28:58 | |
The owner wants them out so he can renovate the building. | 0:28:58 | 0:29:01 | |
He's got a writ of possession which the sheriffs are about to enforce. | 0:29:01 | 0:29:05 | |
On this occasion, getting in proves to be straightforward | 0:29:05 | 0:29:09 | |
as the window opens easily. | 0:29:09 | 0:29:11 | |
Soon followed by the door. | 0:29:11 | 0:29:13 | |
All right, let's go. | 0:29:13 | 0:29:15 | |
Hello! | 0:29:15 | 0:29:16 | |
Once inside, at first they can't find any sign of the squatters... | 0:29:16 | 0:29:21 | |
-Where is everybody? -..until they get through into a second corridor... | 0:29:21 | 0:29:25 | |
Whoa! Warm in here. | 0:29:25 | 0:29:27 | |
..where the heating is on full blast and gives the game away. | 0:29:27 | 0:29:30 | |
Least they've got the heating on. | 0:29:30 | 0:29:32 | |
Yeah, nice and warm there, ain't you? | 0:29:32 | 0:29:34 | |
Wakey-wakey! High Court enforcement. | 0:29:34 | 0:29:37 | |
Enforcement agents, fellas. | 0:29:37 | 0:29:39 | |
On first impressions, | 0:29:39 | 0:29:40 | |
it seems like it's going to be a straightforward job. | 0:29:40 | 0:29:43 | |
There's lots and lots of rooms. | 0:29:44 | 0:29:47 | |
It is about ten people altogether but they're all aware and they all | 0:29:47 | 0:29:51 | |
seem quite cooperative. They're all just packing up and going. | 0:29:51 | 0:29:53 | |
I did see a big pile of suitcases in one room near the stairs as we | 0:29:53 | 0:29:56 | |
came in, so it wouldn't surprise me if they're pretty much ready to go. | 0:29:56 | 0:30:00 | |
There is one woman, though, who is starting to kick up a fuss. | 0:30:01 | 0:30:04 | |
She's not happy about the sheriffs' early morning wake-up call. | 0:30:06 | 0:30:09 | |
If you don't get on with packing your stuff, | 0:30:09 | 0:30:11 | |
you're going to be removed without it. | 0:30:11 | 0:30:13 | |
That's fine, and I have an issue with all these people | 0:30:13 | 0:30:15 | |
standing here watching me like I've done something wrong. | 0:30:15 | 0:30:18 | |
Like I said, is there any need for it? | 0:30:18 | 0:30:20 | |
Right, if you stay here, Angie, with the lady, OK? | 0:30:20 | 0:30:23 | |
If you just move down a little bit | 0:30:23 | 0:30:25 | |
and we'll just give you a little bit of space, yeah? | 0:30:25 | 0:30:27 | |
You pack your stuff up, OK? | 0:30:27 | 0:30:30 | |
And then we're out of here, yeah? | 0:30:30 | 0:30:32 | |
Does my council tax or anything like that go on this, by any chance? | 0:30:35 | 0:30:38 | |
Just curious. | 0:30:38 | 0:30:39 | |
-No. -No. | 0:30:39 | 0:30:40 | |
Now, there's a new one I've not come across before. | 0:30:42 | 0:30:44 | |
A squatter that pays council tax. | 0:30:44 | 0:30:46 | |
Further down the corridor, | 0:30:48 | 0:30:49 | |
another man is also questioning the sheriffs' authority. | 0:30:49 | 0:30:52 | |
What is going on? You're all leaving. | 0:30:54 | 0:30:56 | |
You're all going. | 0:30:58 | 0:30:59 | |
It's not your property, so I suggest you go and pack your stuff | 0:30:59 | 0:31:03 | |
like everybody else is doing and leave. | 0:31:03 | 0:31:05 | |
Thankfully, most of the squatters | 0:31:08 | 0:31:09 | |
are willing to leave without argument. | 0:31:09 | 0:31:11 | |
Have you got everything? | 0:31:13 | 0:31:14 | |
Yeah, I take the shoes from downstairs. | 0:31:14 | 0:31:16 | |
But you've got everything, yeah? | 0:31:16 | 0:31:18 | |
Because once you go, you can't come back in. | 0:31:18 | 0:31:20 | |
Apart from the woman, all of the squatters are Eastern Europeans. | 0:31:20 | 0:31:24 | |
Oi. Stop. | 0:31:25 | 0:31:27 | |
HE MUMBLES | 0:31:28 | 0:31:31 | |
They don't want any trouble. | 0:31:31 | 0:31:33 | |
And although the building's being left in a bit of a state, | 0:31:33 | 0:31:35 | |
it's still not as bad as many squats they've seen. | 0:31:35 | 0:31:38 | |
We've seen a lot worse buildings than this, to be fair. | 0:31:38 | 0:31:41 | |
No holes knocked in walls or anything like that, | 0:31:41 | 0:31:43 | |
which is always good for the landlord. | 0:31:43 | 0:31:46 | |
While most of the squatters are now outside, | 0:31:46 | 0:31:49 | |
one man is taking longer than others to gather his possessions. | 0:31:49 | 0:31:52 | |
Last male's on the way out now. | 0:31:54 | 0:31:57 | |
Once he's gone, Lawrence makes a suspicious discovery in the room. | 0:31:58 | 0:32:02 | |
Halifax Visa debit, a Post Office card and a Capital One credit card. | 0:32:03 | 0:32:09 | |
He's found a pile of bank cards. | 0:32:09 | 0:32:12 | |
They all belong to different people with English-sounding names. | 0:32:12 | 0:32:16 | |
Lawrence thinks the most likely explanation | 0:32:16 | 0:32:18 | |
is that they've been stolen. | 0:32:18 | 0:32:21 | |
I think we'll have to hand those in to the local police. | 0:32:21 | 0:32:24 | |
Everybody's out of the building now | 0:32:27 | 0:32:29 | |
and now it's just the last little bit. | 0:32:29 | 0:32:31 | |
There's a few external doors, the last few locks are being changed. | 0:32:31 | 0:32:35 | |
It's been a good day and it's all been done fairly quickly. | 0:32:35 | 0:32:38 | |
It's taken just over an hour to get the squatters out | 0:32:38 | 0:32:41 | |
and secure the building, which will now be handed back | 0:32:41 | 0:32:44 | |
to its rightful owner. | 0:32:44 | 0:32:46 | |
It's eight o'clock in the morning, | 0:32:52 | 0:32:53 | |
and enforcement agent Lawrence Grix is already on the road. | 0:32:53 | 0:32:57 | |
He's heading into Surrey for an unpaid debt owed by a business | 0:32:57 | 0:33:01 | |
specialising in eco-friendly heating systems. | 0:33:01 | 0:33:03 | |
We're down near Guildford today, | 0:33:04 | 0:33:06 | |
just coming into a place called Gomshall. | 0:33:06 | 0:33:08 | |
We've got the Green Shop and Jan Aukstolis. | 0:33:09 | 0:33:14 | |
We're here today for just under £8,500. | 0:33:14 | 0:33:18 | |
The claimant in the case is Neil Cummings, | 0:33:20 | 0:33:22 | |
a self-employed builder who came across the company | 0:33:22 | 0:33:25 | |
after embarking on a labour of love, building his own family home. | 0:33:25 | 0:33:29 | |
I've built houses for other people, | 0:33:31 | 0:33:33 | |
but the idea of actually building a house specifically for us | 0:33:33 | 0:33:36 | |
was a lifelong ambition. | 0:33:36 | 0:33:38 | |
When we eventually found this plot, it didn't have any gas. | 0:33:38 | 0:33:41 | |
There's no gas supply, there's no oil here, | 0:33:41 | 0:33:43 | |
so I decided that I wanted to go the green route. | 0:33:43 | 0:33:46 | |
After researching his options, | 0:33:46 | 0:33:48 | |
Neil found a local supplier and installer, | 0:33:48 | 0:33:51 | |
the Green Shop in Gomshall. | 0:33:51 | 0:33:53 | |
He went to meet the man in charge, Jan Aukstolis. | 0:33:53 | 0:33:57 | |
He talked the talk, | 0:33:57 | 0:33:58 | |
he seemed to certainly know what he was talking about. | 0:33:58 | 0:34:01 | |
At the heart of the whole system was a wood-burning stove, | 0:34:01 | 0:34:05 | |
and initially Neil was very pleased with the installation. | 0:34:05 | 0:34:09 | |
All of the work proceeded well and everything was installed. | 0:34:09 | 0:34:13 | |
Everything seemed to be fine and above board. | 0:34:13 | 0:34:16 | |
That was until Neil wanted to add a new feature on to the system, | 0:34:16 | 0:34:20 | |
and when he couldn't get hold of Mr Aukstolis, | 0:34:20 | 0:34:23 | |
called in another plumber. | 0:34:23 | 0:34:24 | |
He came along and had a look at the system that we had here | 0:34:24 | 0:34:28 | |
for a couple of hours, and he turned round and said, | 0:34:28 | 0:34:31 | |
"I'm really not happy." | 0:34:31 | 0:34:32 | |
He said that in his opinion, | 0:34:32 | 0:34:34 | |
the system didn't have enough safety features within it. | 0:34:34 | 0:34:37 | |
So Neil had it disconnected. | 0:34:39 | 0:34:41 | |
When he contacted the manufacturer of one of the other main components | 0:34:41 | 0:34:45 | |
in his heating system, | 0:34:45 | 0:34:46 | |
not only did they confirm what the plumber was saying, | 0:34:46 | 0:34:49 | |
they also forwarded an e-mail they'd sent to Mr Aukstolis. | 0:34:49 | 0:34:53 | |
And in the e-mail, it basically turned round and said | 0:34:53 | 0:34:56 | |
that the wood-burning stove used in conjunction | 0:34:56 | 0:34:59 | |
with this particular system must, | 0:34:59 | 0:35:01 | |
and must was all in capital letters, "MUST have an in-built quench coil." | 0:35:01 | 0:35:05 | |
The quench coil is designed to release energy from the system | 0:35:05 | 0:35:09 | |
in the event of a power cut or safety features failing, | 0:35:09 | 0:35:12 | |
and without it, he feared he was sitting on a potential time bomb. | 0:35:12 | 0:35:17 | |
If you can't release the energy, it's going to explode, | 0:35:17 | 0:35:20 | |
and the idea of actually spending my life savings building this property | 0:35:20 | 0:35:24 | |
to potentially have, you know, | 0:35:24 | 0:35:26 | |
my family in a dangerous situation, is scary. | 0:35:26 | 0:35:30 | |
Neil tried to get in touch with Jan Aukstolis to see what he had to say. | 0:35:30 | 0:35:35 | |
He didn't reply to any of my text messages, e-mails. I phoned him, | 0:35:35 | 0:35:39 | |
I went down to the shop, I couldn't get hold of him at all. | 0:35:39 | 0:35:42 | |
Eventually, Neil decided the only option was to get quotes to rectify | 0:35:43 | 0:35:47 | |
the work and complete the installation, | 0:35:47 | 0:35:49 | |
and then take Mr Aukstolis and the Green Shop to court | 0:35:49 | 0:35:53 | |
to cover the costs. | 0:35:53 | 0:35:54 | |
When they didn't defend the case, Neil won a default judgment. | 0:35:54 | 0:35:58 | |
Since then he hasn't paid any money at all, | 0:35:58 | 0:36:01 | |
so I've decided that I need to take this case further. | 0:36:01 | 0:36:04 | |
Money's tight, I haven't been able to rectify any of the situation, | 0:36:04 | 0:36:08 | |
and I won't be able to rectify it until I get any money, | 0:36:08 | 0:36:10 | |
if I do get any money, back from the sheriffs. | 0:36:10 | 0:36:14 | |
So hopefully, in their hands, we'll see what they can do. | 0:36:14 | 0:36:17 | |
Lawrence is en route to the shop, | 0:36:25 | 0:36:27 | |
and his research in the office has painted a promising picture | 0:36:27 | 0:36:30 | |
of what he might find. | 0:36:30 | 0:36:32 | |
It looks quite a reasonably large premises, | 0:36:32 | 0:36:36 | |
when you look at it on Google, | 0:36:36 | 0:36:39 | |
with a car park to the rear. | 0:36:39 | 0:36:40 | |
So hopefully they'll have assets there. | 0:36:40 | 0:36:44 | |
There is money in wood-burning stoves. | 0:36:44 | 0:36:46 | |
But Lawrence is foreseeing a potential pitfall. | 0:36:48 | 0:36:51 | |
Mr Cummings has obtained his writ in the name of the boss personally, | 0:36:51 | 0:36:55 | |
and the Green Shop, which is just a trading name, | 0:36:55 | 0:36:58 | |
and so not a legal entity. | 0:36:58 | 0:37:00 | |
Success this morning may boil down to how exactly | 0:37:00 | 0:37:03 | |
the business has been set up. | 0:37:03 | 0:37:06 | |
Lawrence arrives at the Green Shop | 0:37:06 | 0:37:08 | |
just as some workers are about to get into their vans. | 0:37:08 | 0:37:11 | |
I'm going to have to try and catch this fella here, I think. | 0:37:12 | 0:37:15 | |
So there's no hanging about. | 0:37:15 | 0:37:18 | |
Morning, gents. I'm looking for Jan Aukstolis. | 0:37:18 | 0:37:22 | |
-Is that you at all? -No. | 0:37:22 | 0:37:24 | |
Is he here? Is Mr Aukstolis here? | 0:37:24 | 0:37:26 | |
Our cameraman retreats to the road | 0:37:30 | 0:37:32 | |
while Lawrence tries to find out where Mr Aukstolis is, | 0:37:32 | 0:37:36 | |
but the workers here don't want to wait. | 0:37:36 | 0:37:40 | |
When they start preparing to leave, Lawrence swings into action... | 0:37:40 | 0:37:43 | |
..repositioning his van... | 0:37:47 | 0:37:48 | |
..and blocking the entire entrance to the car park. | 0:37:51 | 0:37:54 | |
Sorry to have to do this to you, guys. | 0:37:55 | 0:37:57 | |
I fully appreciate that you're only just trying to earn a living | 0:37:57 | 0:38:00 | |
and do your job. | 0:38:00 | 0:38:01 | |
But as their vehicles are sign-written | 0:38:02 | 0:38:05 | |
and could belong to the debtor, | 0:38:05 | 0:38:06 | |
Lawrence can't let them leave until he has answers, | 0:38:06 | 0:38:09 | |
which seem to be hard to come by. | 0:38:09 | 0:38:12 | |
Mr Aukstolis isn't here. | 0:38:12 | 0:38:15 | |
The guys that are here say they basically run the place, | 0:38:16 | 0:38:19 | |
they don't see him very often. | 0:38:19 | 0:38:21 | |
They've tried contacting him on the phone, | 0:38:21 | 0:38:23 | |
I've tried contacting him on the phone. | 0:38:23 | 0:38:25 | |
The three vehicles that I've managed to block in | 0:38:25 | 0:38:28 | |
are all clear of finance. | 0:38:28 | 0:38:30 | |
If I can't get hold of him and the guys here can't get hold of him | 0:38:30 | 0:38:35 | |
then, yeah, I'll basically remove the vehicles. | 0:38:35 | 0:38:38 | |
But getting hold of Mr Aukstolis | 0:38:38 | 0:38:40 | |
turns out to be quite simple after all. | 0:38:40 | 0:38:42 | |
One man who's here is showing more interest in the case. | 0:38:42 | 0:38:46 | |
Mr Grix, G-R-I-X. | 0:38:46 | 0:38:48 | |
And Lawrence puts two and two together. | 0:38:48 | 0:38:51 | |
So, are you Mr Aukstolis, then? | 0:38:51 | 0:38:53 | |
It is indeed Mr Aukstolis - | 0:38:53 | 0:38:56 | |
the man who sold Neil his dangerous heating system. | 0:38:56 | 0:38:59 | |
Lawrence shows him his writ and explains he's here for £8,440. | 0:38:59 | 0:39:05 | |
Mr Aukstolis tells him nothing here is owned by him, | 0:39:05 | 0:39:08 | |
but by his business, | 0:39:08 | 0:39:10 | |
which is registered as The Green Shop Gomshall Limited. | 0:39:10 | 0:39:13 | |
Lawrence demands proof of ownership, | 0:39:15 | 0:39:17 | |
but in the end, he doesn't need to see it. | 0:39:17 | 0:39:20 | |
Perhaps mindful of his staff trapped in the car park | 0:39:20 | 0:39:23 | |
and unable to get to work, | 0:39:23 | 0:39:25 | |
Mr Aukstolis manages to come up with some money. | 0:39:25 | 0:39:28 | |
Lawrence moves his van out of the way and lets them go. | 0:39:28 | 0:39:32 | |
That didn't go too badly. | 0:39:32 | 0:39:34 | |
The gentleman there actually was Mr Aukstolis, | 0:39:34 | 0:39:36 | |
and he's managed to come up with just under £3,500 today, | 0:39:36 | 0:39:41 | |
and I've put him on a monthly arrangement | 0:39:41 | 0:39:43 | |
of £1,000 a month for the rest. | 0:39:43 | 0:39:45 | |
All being well, he should clear his debt in five months. | 0:39:46 | 0:39:50 | |
He does admit that the limited company owes the money, | 0:39:51 | 0:39:54 | |
which is basically why he's paid some money today. | 0:39:54 | 0:39:56 | |
But we'll have to see what happens, | 0:39:58 | 0:39:59 | |
he may well just stick to his arrangement. | 0:39:59 | 0:40:02 | |
Down the road in Sussex, | 0:40:03 | 0:40:04 | |
word of the payment has come as a welcome relief to Neil Cummings. | 0:40:04 | 0:40:08 | |
Really good news from the sheriffs. | 0:40:09 | 0:40:11 | |
We've actually finally managed to get hold | 0:40:11 | 0:40:13 | |
of the first initial payment of just over £3,500, | 0:40:13 | 0:40:16 | |
so that's come in and that's brilliant. | 0:40:16 | 0:40:18 | |
So we've already got the new wood-burning stove, | 0:40:18 | 0:40:20 | |
which is just sitting in place, it's not actually connected. | 0:40:20 | 0:40:23 | |
Let's just hope that Jan is true to his word | 0:40:23 | 0:40:26 | |
and honours the agreement and it will be the end to a lot of stress | 0:40:26 | 0:40:30 | |
and anxiety that we've had over the last year. | 0:40:30 | 0:40:34 | |
When debtors can't pay on the spot... | 0:40:41 | 0:40:44 | |
I'm assuming that you haven't got £5,000. | 0:40:44 | 0:40:47 | |
Oh, dear. | 0:40:47 | 0:40:48 | |
..the sheriffs won't always remove assets to get your money. | 0:40:48 | 0:40:51 | |
Goods go for about a fifth of their true value at auction | 0:40:51 | 0:40:54 | |
and it's often better to agree to a payment plan. | 0:40:54 | 0:40:57 | |
If you can come up with half of it today... | 0:40:57 | 0:41:00 | |
Do you reckon you can do 200 a week? | 0:41:00 | 0:41:02 | |
They'll make a list of assets... | 0:41:02 | 0:41:04 | |
Ice machine. | 0:41:04 | 0:41:06 | |
Bar chiller cabinets. | 0:41:06 | 0:41:07 | |
Television, PlayStation. | 0:41:07 | 0:41:09 | |
..and a controlled goods agreement is signed, | 0:41:09 | 0:41:11 | |
making it an offence for anyone else to remove them. | 0:41:11 | 0:41:15 | |
You sign the form, it acts as security. | 0:41:15 | 0:41:18 | |
The sheriffs will only return to take the goods | 0:41:18 | 0:41:21 | |
if the debtor fails to make payments. | 0:41:21 | 0:41:24 | |
I've signed him up for £1,000 a month. | 0:41:24 | 0:41:26 | |
Providing you stick to that, you won't hear from us again. | 0:41:26 | 0:41:28 | |
In Birmingham, Tommy and Craig are still trying to recover debt | 0:41:34 | 0:41:37 | |
owed by a Mr Ali Akbar. | 0:41:37 | 0:41:40 | |
He's finally realised that, with a tow truck on the way, | 0:41:40 | 0:41:43 | |
he needs to come up with more than three grand, sharpish, | 0:41:43 | 0:41:46 | |
or else his car will be going. | 0:41:46 | 0:41:49 | |
So far, he's only managed to make offers of part payment, | 0:41:49 | 0:41:52 | |
which have been rejected. | 0:41:52 | 0:41:54 | |
But now a family member has got involved | 0:41:54 | 0:41:56 | |
and is about to throw the sheriffs a curveball. | 0:41:56 | 0:41:59 | |
The car's yours now, is it? | 0:42:01 | 0:42:03 | |
When, when did you get it? | 0:42:03 | 0:42:05 | |
You bought it yesterday, did you? | 0:42:05 | 0:42:07 | |
Oh, right, so he sold it to you yesterday? | 0:42:07 | 0:42:10 | |
-How much? -How much for, my love? | 0:42:10 | 0:42:12 | |
It is. We need to see evidence. | 0:42:12 | 0:42:14 | |
Because we need to investigate it, you see, we need... | 0:42:14 | 0:42:17 | |
We can't just, unfortunately, take your word for it. | 0:42:17 | 0:42:20 | |
Moments later, Mr Akbar emerges with a change of registered keeper form. | 0:42:20 | 0:42:24 | |
Right, OK. It's still wet, though, this. | 0:42:27 | 0:42:30 | |
Craig's having none of it. | 0:42:30 | 0:42:32 | |
It won't prevent us from removing the vehicle, unfortunately, Ali. | 0:42:32 | 0:42:35 | |
Yeah, unfortunately... | 0:42:38 | 0:42:39 | |
We can speak to her, but the car's still going. | 0:42:39 | 0:42:42 | |
I don't think that's valid, unfortunately. | 0:42:42 | 0:42:45 | |
If the Akbars want to stop this vehicle being removed, | 0:42:45 | 0:42:48 | |
they're going to have to do better than that. | 0:42:48 | 0:42:50 | |
He was claiming that the car was his all the time. | 0:42:50 | 0:42:52 | |
All of a sudden, he's come out with the bottom half of the V5 document, | 0:42:52 | 0:42:56 | |
saying he's sold it now to his mother or sister. | 0:42:56 | 0:42:58 | |
Clearly, the indication was it was his car this morning, | 0:42:58 | 0:43:01 | |
so it won't prevent us from removing the vehicle today. | 0:43:01 | 0:43:04 | |
But the Akbars aren't giving up just yet. | 0:43:04 | 0:43:07 | |
The plot thickens when Craig | 0:43:07 | 0:43:09 | |
overhears a conversation in the doorway. | 0:43:09 | 0:43:12 | |
If you want to transfer the money into his account, that's fine. | 0:43:12 | 0:43:15 | |
I said, if you want to transfer the money into his... | 0:43:15 | 0:43:18 | |
Well, I can. | 0:43:18 | 0:43:20 | |
Well, it is my business. | 0:43:22 | 0:43:23 | |
But if they're thinking of making a bank transfer to complete the sale | 0:43:26 | 0:43:29 | |
now, it would be too late. | 0:43:29 | 0:43:32 | |
If there's a money transfer just happening just now, | 0:43:32 | 0:43:35 | |
that's going to be irrelevant because we've already took control | 0:43:35 | 0:43:37 | |
of the vehicle prior to it being sold. | 0:43:37 | 0:43:40 | |
Meanwhile, Mr Akbar has reappeared on the driveway, | 0:43:40 | 0:43:43 | |
and to Tommy's surprise, gets behind the wheel of another car. | 0:43:43 | 0:43:47 | |
Strange, isn't it? | 0:43:47 | 0:43:48 | |
Yeah, unusual. He seems to be going. | 0:43:49 | 0:43:52 | |
Perhaps he's gone to get some money. | 0:43:52 | 0:43:54 | |
Perhaps not. But the tow truck's now well on its way, so Tommy and Craig | 0:43:54 | 0:43:59 | |
take the opportunity to do a damage report on his car. | 0:43:59 | 0:44:03 | |
It's been pranged, that has. | 0:44:03 | 0:44:05 | |
Driver's side, rear wing. | 0:44:05 | 0:44:07 | |
Time is running out for Mr Akbar, | 0:44:07 | 0:44:10 | |
who soon returns, but has he come bearing cash? | 0:44:10 | 0:44:14 | |
You all right? Do we know what we're doing? | 0:44:14 | 0:44:16 | |
Are we paying it today or not? | 0:44:18 | 0:44:20 | |
Because they're literally ten minutes away. | 0:44:20 | 0:44:22 | |
Once it turns up, they're just going to hook it up. | 0:44:26 | 0:44:29 | |
All right. | 0:44:33 | 0:44:34 | |
OK, we'll have to remove it, then, | 0:44:34 | 0:44:36 | |
but we'll leave all the paperwork for you, all right? | 0:44:36 | 0:44:40 | |
You'll get it back in the same condition it is now if you pay the | 0:44:40 | 0:44:43 | |
full bill, plus the storage costs, plus the removal fee for today. | 0:44:43 | 0:44:46 | |
If it's not, then obviously you can take them to court for damages. | 0:44:46 | 0:44:51 | |
Mr Akbar seems to have given up any hope of hanging onto his car today | 0:44:51 | 0:44:55 | |
and as the tow truck arrives to take it away, hands over his keys. | 0:44:55 | 0:45:00 | |
Are you going to get it back? Are you...in seven days? | 0:45:00 | 0:45:03 | |
-No? -Do you want to take your stuff out first? | 0:45:03 | 0:45:05 | |
Have you got any personal stuff in there, yeah? | 0:45:05 | 0:45:07 | |
Yeah, get your stuff out, mate. | 0:45:07 | 0:45:09 | |
Tommy removes the clamp. | 0:45:09 | 0:45:11 | |
Job's a good'un. | 0:45:14 | 0:45:16 | |
And the car's driven onto the back of the truck. | 0:45:16 | 0:45:18 | |
So, yeah, at least he's given the keys up. | 0:45:18 | 0:45:21 | |
Makes it a lot easier, both for himself and for us. | 0:45:21 | 0:45:24 | |
If it does go to auction, then at least they've got the key to it, | 0:45:24 | 0:45:27 | |
which increases its value. | 0:45:27 | 0:45:29 | |
Yeah, it's seven days and then they | 0:45:33 | 0:45:36 | |
have to put it into a public auction. | 0:45:36 | 0:45:38 | |
You can. | 0:45:40 | 0:45:41 | |
Suddenly, it seems Mr Akbar wants to buy his car back at auction, | 0:45:41 | 0:45:45 | |
though it'd make a lot more sense to pay now, | 0:45:45 | 0:45:48 | |
and just as the truck prepares to drive off, | 0:45:48 | 0:45:51 | |
that's exactly what he starts talking about. | 0:45:51 | 0:45:53 | |
If you've got the full balance now... You need it this second. | 0:45:56 | 0:46:00 | |
It's gone. | 0:46:04 | 0:46:05 | |
Mr Akbar has missed his chance. | 0:46:08 | 0:46:11 | |
The sheriffs leave their paperwork. | 0:46:11 | 0:46:13 | |
-There you go, my friend. -All right? | 0:46:13 | 0:46:15 | |
Take it easy. Take care of yourself, yeah? | 0:46:15 | 0:46:17 | |
-Ta-ra. -See you later, mate. -And their work is done. | 0:46:17 | 0:46:20 | |
He tried his best to negotiate his way out of... | 0:46:20 | 0:46:22 | |
us not taking the vehicle today by trying to transfer ownership. | 0:46:22 | 0:46:25 | |
Even by his own admission, he said, "You've got to try it." | 0:46:25 | 0:46:28 | |
But, unfortunately, it didn't work this time. | 0:46:28 | 0:46:30 | |
Yeah, it's just a classic case of | 0:46:30 | 0:46:32 | |
don't bury your head in the sand, because we won't go away. | 0:46:32 | 0:46:35 | |
The sheriffs are on their way. | 0:46:35 | 0:46:38 | |
Later the same day, Mr Akbar paid the balance in full | 0:46:38 | 0:46:41 | |
and his car was subsequently returned. | 0:46:41 | 0:46:45 | |
Back in Shoreham, Kate Killick has finally got the money she was owed. | 0:46:45 | 0:46:49 | |
It's just really, really nice to know | 0:46:49 | 0:46:52 | |
that the law is there to help people out. | 0:46:52 | 0:46:55 | |
I couldn't be happier. | 0:46:55 | 0:46:56 | |
You know, it was quite a long process. | 0:46:56 | 0:46:58 | |
It's been over a year, but we got there in the end. | 0:46:58 | 0:47:01 | |
The sheriffs are often called upon to visit companies | 0:47:12 | 0:47:14 | |
with cash flow problems who are struggling to pay their bills. | 0:47:14 | 0:47:18 | |
Jobs like these can be tricky, | 0:47:19 | 0:47:20 | |
as the sheriffs are tasked with getting payments for their clients, | 0:47:20 | 0:47:24 | |
but they'd rather not put anyone out of business in the process. | 0:47:24 | 0:47:28 | |
This morning, enforcement agent Lawrence Grix is visiting | 0:47:28 | 0:47:31 | |
a company in Kent. | 0:47:31 | 0:47:33 | |
We're in the Garden of England today, just near Tonbridge. | 0:47:33 | 0:47:36 | |
Going to a company called MetCon Sustainable Building Systems. | 0:47:36 | 0:47:40 | |
MetCon Sustainable Building Ltd has been taken to court | 0:47:40 | 0:47:43 | |
by a supplier which sold them some steel. | 0:47:43 | 0:47:46 | |
They didn't defend the case, and so a default judgment was awarded. | 0:47:46 | 0:47:50 | |
MetCon now owes £5,934. | 0:47:50 | 0:47:54 | |
It is a trading address. | 0:47:57 | 0:47:59 | |
And it's a limited company, | 0:47:59 | 0:48:01 | |
so hopefully there'll be some assets there | 0:48:01 | 0:48:03 | |
and we'll be able to get this resolved. | 0:48:03 | 0:48:06 | |
But as he pulls up outside the premises, Lawrence is disappointed. | 0:48:06 | 0:48:10 | |
First impressions, it doesn't look like they've got a lot here, | 0:48:11 | 0:48:14 | |
to be honest. | 0:48:14 | 0:48:15 | |
There's a pick-up that's sign-written. | 0:48:16 | 0:48:18 | |
Lawrence, however, is never one to prejudge a situation, | 0:48:23 | 0:48:27 | |
and heads inside in search of a manager. | 0:48:27 | 0:48:29 | |
Hello there, sir. Is this MetCon Sustainable Building Systems? | 0:48:33 | 0:48:37 | |
Lawrence is ushered through to a warehouse... | 0:48:37 | 0:48:39 | |
Who's in charge at the moment? | 0:48:39 | 0:48:41 | |
..where he explains to the staff the purpose of his visit. | 0:48:41 | 0:48:44 | |
I'm asking who's in charge here at the moment. | 0:48:44 | 0:48:47 | |
I've got a High Court writ against this company. | 0:48:47 | 0:48:50 | |
Pretty soon he's handed the director on the phone. | 0:48:51 | 0:48:54 | |
Hello, sir. | 0:48:54 | 0:48:55 | |
The director, it seems, knows all about the debt. | 0:48:55 | 0:48:58 | |
He says the company owes money to a number of people and is | 0:48:58 | 0:49:02 | |
trying to agree a repayment plan. | 0:49:02 | 0:49:04 | |
You've sent a proposal for a company voluntary arrangement? | 0:49:04 | 0:49:06 | |
That's a legally-binding agreement which helps a company with | 0:49:06 | 0:49:09 | |
cash-flow problems gradually pay off its debts while continuing to trade. | 0:49:09 | 0:49:14 | |
Such an arrangement would prevent Lawrence enforcing today. | 0:49:15 | 0:49:19 | |
But it has to be approved by 75% of the company's creditors first, | 0:49:19 | 0:49:23 | |
and that hasn't yet happened. | 0:49:23 | 0:49:25 | |
Now that you've told me that, it actually doesn't put you | 0:49:26 | 0:49:29 | |
in a better position, it puts you in a worse position. | 0:49:29 | 0:49:31 | |
It means I've got to act today to secure this debt for our claimant. | 0:49:31 | 0:49:36 | |
The company may owe money to a number of parties, | 0:49:36 | 0:49:39 | |
but Lawrence is working for only one of them. | 0:49:39 | 0:49:41 | |
What I'm going to do, because there's so much stuff here | 0:49:41 | 0:49:44 | |
and it's difficult to remove, I am now going to call a locksmith | 0:49:44 | 0:49:47 | |
and I'm going to secure the premises. | 0:49:47 | 0:49:49 | |
I'm going to change the locks, | 0:49:49 | 0:49:50 | |
secure the premises and take control of goods on the premises. | 0:49:50 | 0:49:54 | |
That's my only option. | 0:49:54 | 0:49:56 | |
Unless, of course, the director is able to pay instead. | 0:49:56 | 0:49:59 | |
The amount due is £5,934.69. | 0:49:59 | 0:50:06 | |
If I end up having to secure the premises, | 0:50:06 | 0:50:09 | |
basically there's going to be another £1,800 plus VAT | 0:50:09 | 0:50:12 | |
go onto that. | 0:50:12 | 0:50:13 | |
OK, then, sir. Thanks, bye-bye. | 0:50:15 | 0:50:18 | |
Apparently he'd sent a letter to our creditor | 0:50:19 | 0:50:22 | |
proposing an arrangement last Friday. | 0:50:22 | 0:50:24 | |
But they've sent the same letter to all the different creditors, | 0:50:24 | 0:50:27 | |
which basically, from my point of view, escalates it, | 0:50:27 | 0:50:30 | |
because it now means that I've got to protect our creditor's interest. | 0:50:30 | 0:50:36 | |
And that means getting paid first before anyone else | 0:50:36 | 0:50:39 | |
gets a slice of the pie. | 0:50:39 | 0:50:40 | |
I got the gentleman here to phone the director again, | 0:50:40 | 0:50:43 | |
and he said, "Give him another 15 minutes." | 0:50:43 | 0:50:45 | |
It's been another 15 minutes, he's trying him again now. | 0:50:45 | 0:50:48 | |
He's also tried to get a shareholder, | 0:50:48 | 0:50:51 | |
who apparently is the money man, | 0:50:51 | 0:50:53 | |
but he's not answering his phone at the moment. | 0:50:53 | 0:50:56 | |
Not been able to get him, no? | 0:50:56 | 0:50:58 | |
Although the company seem keen to pay, | 0:51:01 | 0:51:03 | |
Lawrence is once again forced to consider his options. | 0:51:03 | 0:51:06 | |
But while he could carry out his threat of securing the premises, | 0:51:06 | 0:51:10 | |
he's not confident it would result in getting his claimant's money. | 0:51:10 | 0:51:13 | |
There's not much in the way of assets here, | 0:51:13 | 0:51:15 | |
it's mainly raw materials. | 0:51:15 | 0:51:16 | |
There is a machine for folding the steel, folds it into a | 0:51:16 | 0:51:21 | |
three-quarter box, which apparently they're about £200,000 new. | 0:51:21 | 0:51:25 | |
But obviously this isn't new, | 0:51:25 | 0:51:27 | |
and unless there's somebody who specifically wants to buy it, | 0:51:27 | 0:51:30 | |
we'd probably be looking at scrap value for it. | 0:51:30 | 0:51:32 | |
But then, finally, Lawrence gets another call, | 0:51:32 | 0:51:35 | |
-this time from the company's shareholder. -Hello, sir. | 0:51:35 | 0:51:38 | |
I have got to execute this writ to its fullest NOW. | 0:51:38 | 0:51:43 | |
If this isn't paid, I'm going to be pulling the shutters down | 0:51:43 | 0:51:46 | |
and changing the locks. | 0:51:46 | 0:51:47 | |
It doesn't matter where you are in the world, sir, if you've got | 0:51:47 | 0:51:50 | |
the funds to make a payment, it can be done from anywhere. | 0:51:50 | 0:51:53 | |
It seems the message has sunk in. | 0:51:53 | 0:51:55 | |
So he said he's not in a position to actually deal with it himself | 0:51:55 | 0:51:59 | |
but he's going to phone his daughter. | 0:51:59 | 0:52:01 | |
I'm a bit more confident there's going to be some money coming now. | 0:52:01 | 0:52:04 | |
He apologised for the delay. | 0:52:04 | 0:52:06 | |
I'll give him a few more minutes | 0:52:06 | 0:52:08 | |
just to make a couple of phone calls. | 0:52:08 | 0:52:10 | |
Hopefully it's going to get resolved shortly. | 0:52:10 | 0:52:12 | |
It does. Lawrence soon confirms with his office | 0:52:14 | 0:52:17 | |
that a payment has been made. | 0:52:17 | 0:52:19 | |
Brilliant, cheers. Bye. | 0:52:19 | 0:52:22 | |
I shall issue a receipt. | 0:52:24 | 0:52:26 | |
There you go. Thanks very much. | 0:52:26 | 0:52:28 | |
I'm pleased, certainly for the guys here, that I didn't have to... | 0:52:28 | 0:52:32 | |
didn't have to lock the doors. | 0:52:32 | 0:52:34 | |
Cheers, mate. See you later. | 0:52:34 | 0:52:35 | |
And you. | 0:52:37 | 0:52:39 | |
Lawrence is on his way, | 0:52:40 | 0:52:42 | |
and the steel supplier who hadn't been paid has now got its money. | 0:52:42 | 0:52:45 | |
MetCon Sustainable Building Systems Ltd's application | 0:52:47 | 0:52:50 | |
to enter a company voluntary arrangement with its creditors | 0:52:50 | 0:52:53 | |
has now been successful. | 0:52:53 | 0:52:55 | |
Today, enforcement agents Tommy and Craig | 0:53:06 | 0:53:08 | |
have been working in the Midlands, and in the middle of the afternoon, | 0:53:08 | 0:53:11 | |
their third call of the day leads them into the city. | 0:53:11 | 0:53:15 | |
Off to a limited company called Zebra Worldwide Machinery Ltd. | 0:53:15 | 0:53:21 | |
It's run by a Simon Graham Winter-Moore. | 0:53:21 | 0:53:23 | |
The claimant is a customer who wasn't happy with a lathe he bought. | 0:53:23 | 0:53:27 | |
He took the matter to court and won a judgment against the company, | 0:53:27 | 0:53:31 | |
but he didn't receive his money. | 0:53:31 | 0:53:33 | |
Two months down the line, | 0:53:33 | 0:53:35 | |
the sheriffs are hoping to collect £5,834. | 0:53:35 | 0:53:39 | |
The sheriffs park up and ring the bell. | 0:53:42 | 0:53:44 | |
DOORBELL RINGS | 0:53:44 | 0:53:47 | |
Big old place, isn't it? | 0:53:47 | 0:53:49 | |
It's a huge unit, but the shutters are down | 0:53:49 | 0:53:52 | |
and there's no sight or sound of heavy machinery. | 0:53:52 | 0:53:56 | |
Can't hear any noise. | 0:53:56 | 0:53:58 | |
Just when they're beginning to suspect this visit is a lost cause, | 0:54:00 | 0:54:04 | |
the door opens. | 0:54:04 | 0:54:05 | |
Hello, sir. Trying to get in contact with Mr Simon Graham Winter-Moore. | 0:54:07 | 0:54:11 | |
My name's Mr Wild, I'm a High Court enforcement agent. | 0:54:12 | 0:54:15 | |
OK, so I need to leave the door open. | 0:54:17 | 0:54:18 | |
Yes, I have to. No, sir. | 0:54:18 | 0:54:21 | |
It's a commercial property. We can force entry if we need to. | 0:54:22 | 0:54:25 | |
-Yes, we have. -We've got a court order to come in. | 0:54:27 | 0:54:30 | |
Are you Mr Winter-Moore? | 0:54:30 | 0:54:32 | |
I'll wait here. | 0:54:32 | 0:54:34 | |
The door needs to stay open. We need to speak to him. | 0:54:34 | 0:54:36 | |
Otherwise, we'll have to force entry and get the police. | 0:54:36 | 0:54:40 | |
-No, we won't, sir. -We'll stay here until he comes down. | 0:54:40 | 0:54:42 | |
That's fine. | 0:54:42 | 0:54:44 | |
The last thing the sheriffs want is to get locked out. | 0:54:44 | 0:54:47 | |
Although they could legally force entry if they needed to, | 0:54:47 | 0:54:50 | |
it's a situation they'd rather avoid. | 0:54:50 | 0:54:53 | |
We weren't going to let the door be shut on us. | 0:54:53 | 0:54:56 | |
We'll be polite to these people as much as we can, | 0:54:56 | 0:54:58 | |
but we are here with the authority of the courts to do our job. | 0:54:58 | 0:55:02 | |
For now, they are happy to wait at the entrance | 0:55:02 | 0:55:04 | |
where they've got a decent view of the assets. | 0:55:04 | 0:55:07 | |
This lot, they're lathes, aren't they? | 0:55:07 | 0:55:09 | |
They're pillar drills. | 0:55:09 | 0:55:11 | |
That looks like a guillotine cutter. | 0:55:11 | 0:55:13 | |
That's a scrubber, a floor polisher thing. | 0:55:13 | 0:55:16 | |
Meanwhile, a man emerges from the office upstairs. | 0:55:16 | 0:55:20 | |
-Hello, sir. -Hello, sir. | 0:55:20 | 0:55:21 | |
-Mr Winter-Moore? -Can I help you? Hold on, that's a camera crew. | 0:55:21 | 0:55:24 | |
It is indeed the company boss, | 0:55:24 | 0:55:27 | |
but on spotting our camera he's less than pleased. | 0:55:27 | 0:55:30 | |
We're asked to leave and it's left to Tommy and Craig inside | 0:55:30 | 0:55:33 | |
to explain that it's time for Zebra to pay its debts. | 0:55:33 | 0:55:37 | |
The answer isn't exactly what they expected. | 0:55:37 | 0:55:40 | |
The boss says he's already paid and produces proof | 0:55:40 | 0:55:44 | |
of a recent bank transfer. | 0:55:44 | 0:55:46 | |
On closer inspection, it appears he's made a payment | 0:55:46 | 0:55:49 | |
direct to the claimant's solicitor, | 0:55:49 | 0:55:51 | |
but it's only for the amount owed | 0:55:51 | 0:55:53 | |
before the case was transferred to the High Court. | 0:55:53 | 0:55:56 | |
The director is not happy at all because he's saying | 0:55:56 | 0:55:58 | |
the payment he made, he thought it was going to resolve the case. | 0:55:58 | 0:56:02 | |
Obviously, court action has been taken | 0:56:02 | 0:56:04 | |
and that's why we're here today, | 0:56:04 | 0:56:06 | |
and he needs to deal with us, but he's not happy at all. | 0:56:06 | 0:56:09 | |
Because he didn't pay to begin with, | 0:56:10 | 0:56:13 | |
Mr Winter-Moore now owes another £868. | 0:56:13 | 0:56:16 | |
He's not happy. | 0:56:18 | 0:56:20 | |
Nevertheless, he reaches for his credit card, | 0:56:20 | 0:56:23 | |
and the sheriffs are soon on their way, | 0:56:23 | 0:56:25 | |
satisfied they've carried out the Court's wishes. | 0:56:25 | 0:56:29 | |
Got a bit fruity on the door with one of the employees | 0:56:29 | 0:56:31 | |
but managed to put the foot in the door, secure the access. | 0:56:31 | 0:56:36 | |
The director produced evidence that he paid direct | 0:56:36 | 0:56:38 | |
to the claimant's legal representation, just under £5,000. | 0:56:38 | 0:56:43 | |
So we've checked that out, that's come off the bill, | 0:56:43 | 0:56:45 | |
leaving a short balance outstanding | 0:56:45 | 0:56:47 | |
which we have just collected in full. | 0:56:47 | 0:56:49 | |
It didn't come to listing down the company's goods, | 0:56:51 | 0:56:55 | |
but aside from the valuable machines they first saw, | 0:56:55 | 0:56:57 | |
there was one asset inside that made quite an impression. | 0:56:57 | 0:57:00 | |
Oh, yeah, the zebra head. | 0:57:02 | 0:57:03 | |
There was a zebra head mounted in his office. | 0:57:03 | 0:57:06 | |
-Huge. -Quite impressive. | 0:57:06 | 0:57:07 | |
But for now, the boss's machines and taxidermy are safe. | 0:57:07 | 0:57:11 | |
The sheriffs are leaving with payment in full | 0:57:11 | 0:57:14 | |
and the claimant has got their money back. | 0:57:14 | 0:57:16 | |
Mr Winter-Moore told us... | 0:57:18 | 0:57:20 |