Charging Orders - The Charging Orders (Orders for Sale: Financial Thresholds) Regulations 2012
November 28, 2013
The Ministry of Justice issued a Consultation Paper in 2011 on the use of charging orders and whether to increase the threshold at which an Order of Sale could be secured.
This was at the time when the Government was concerned about creditors with relatively small debt pursing Orders of Sales and people losing their home.
Prior to April 2013, there was no financial threshold in place and an application for an Order of Sale could be pursued for any level of debt. The Government policy was to try and keep people in their homes and were therefore considering whether to introduce a threshold of up to £25,000.
Initially, it was thought that LA debts would fall within this regime, which would make this route almost redundant. For LAs
However, the Government introduced a threshold of £1,000, on the basis that increasing the threshold to £25,000 would encourage more parties to pursue Bankruptcy , which would have a bigger impact on the debtor. Please note that this threshold only relates to agreement regulated under the Consumer Credit Act 1974, LA debts would not usually fall within this regime.
“The Charging Orders (Orders for Sale: Financial Thresholds) Regulations 2012 came into force on 6 April 2013. The Regulations introduce a financial threshold of £1,000 for the enforcement of Charging Orders by an Order for Sale, where the Charging Order relates to a debt owed under an agreement regulated under the Consumer Credit Act 1974”
The House of Commons Library has issued a standard note on the above, which provides a simple breakdown of the remedies available through the County Court, I have also attached a guidance note on the use of Bailiffs.
Charging Orders
Bailiff
Regards
Andrew Lavender
