What bailiffs do when there is nothing to take

How “nothing to take” comes about

Three separate rules narrow down what an agent can take control of, and for many households they leave very little.

• Protected goods. A cooker, fridge, washing machine, beds, heating, a phone, clothing, anything needed to care for a child, and work equipment worth up to £1,350 in total cannot be taken. The full list
• Other people’s goods. Only goods belonging to the person who owes the debt can be taken. The rules on someone else’s belongings
• Goods on hire purchase or rental. These belong to the finance company or the owner.
• Goods that would not cover the cost of selling them. Court guidance to creditors says agents “will only remove goods if they think they will make enough to pay something towards the warrant after the cost of removing and selling them at auction”.

The same guidance says agents will not usually take “second-hand furniture or electrical items if they are not likely to fetch very much at auction”.

What the agent does at the visit

An agent who comes in and finds nothing they can take will usually ask for payment or propose an arrangement. They cannot list protected goods in a controlled goods agreement, because an agreement can only cover goods that could lawfully be taken.

The visit still has a cost. The £247 enforcement stage fee is added from the first attendance, whether or not anything is found and whether or not anyone answers the door.

Can they keep coming back in?

Not freely. Once an agent has been inside and decided there are no goods, or not enough, to pay what is owed, regulation 24 limits when they can enter again. A second or later entry is allowed only where:

• the agent has reason to believe that more of the debtor’s goods have been brought onto the premises since the last entry, or
• something could not be taken the first time because it was in use and taking it was likely to cause a breach of the peace.

Separately, the power to take control of goods runs for 12 months from the Notice of Enforcement. How long bailiffs can pursue a debt

Rather talk it through with someone? Request a call

What happens to the case

The enforcement firm reports back to the creditor. For a county court warrant, official guidance puts it plainly: if there are no goods, “the agent will not be able to take any more action on the warrant”.

That ends the bailiff stage. It does not cancel the liability order, fine or judgment behind it, and the creditor still has its other ways of collecting.

How often goods are actually removed

In a small share of cases. Firms accredited by the Enforcement Conduct Board reported receiving almost 3.7 million cases in January to June 2025. Goods were taken away in 2,624 of them, most often a clamped vehicle.

What happens far more often, with a car or without one, is cost. Of the cases that ended in payment in that period, 64% were paid at the enforcement stage or later, after an agent’s first visit had added the larger fee. The average fee collected on a case paid in full was £201, on the lower fees then in force.

Common questions