What changed for bailiffs on 1 May 2026

Before and after

1. Twice the notice

A Notice of Enforcement must now be given “not less than 14 clear days” before goods can be taken into control. Sundays, bank holidays, Good Friday and Christmas Day still do not count.

2. A 28-day period where a debt adviser steps in

Where a debt advice provider submits a request on someone’s behalf before the notice period expires, the minimum “must be extended to a minimum of 28 clear days”. It does not apply to business debts that are outside the Breathing Space scheme. The explanatory note describes it as applying to “a non-business debt”.

3. The notice itself has to mention help

Every Notice of Enforcement must now state “the availability of free advice from a debt advice provider and the contact details for such providers”, and “the possibility of obtaining an extension of the minimum notice period”. The prescribed form was replaced to match.

4. Fees up by about 5%

The House of Commons Library describes this as the first uplift since 2014. The percentage itself stays at 7.5%, but it now starts at £1,900 for ordinary enforcement and £1,200 for High Court writs.

The higher threshold works in the debtor’s favour on mid-sized debts. On a £1,800 council tax debt the old scale added £23 at the visit stage on top of the fixed fee. The new scale adds nothing.

The full fee scale and a calculator covering both scales.

5. A brake on High Court escalation

Under a High Court writ there are two enforcement stages. The amended rules say that where “no initial contact is established during the first attendance at the premises”, the officer “will not proceed to the second enforcement stage until the debtor has been given another opportunity to make payment in full or enter into a repayment arrangement or a controlled goods agreement”.

Where the debt is paid in full, or an arrangement is made and kept, only the £200 first-stage fee can be recovered. The £520 second-stage fee applies only where that does not happen.

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Which cases the new rules apply to

The regulations came into force on 1 May 2026. Regulation 1(3) preserves “any enforcement action taken prior to” that date. The House of Commons Library’s reading is that the changes apply to enforcement action commencing on or after 1 May 2026, and that existing cases continue under the previous fee structure.

What has not changed

• The hours: 6am to 9pm, any day of the week.
• The ban on forced entry to a home for most debts.
• The list of protected goods, and the £1,350 limit for work equipment.
• The 12-month time limit for taking control of goods.
• The rules on children and vulnerable people.

Other changes around the same time

• Court fees went up on 13 July 2026. An application on notice now costs £321.
• Council tax in Wales. Since 1 April 2026 a household has at least 62 days after a missed instalment before the full year’s bill can be demanded, up from 14. Bailiffs in Wales
• Council tax in England. On 15 April 2026 the government said it would cap liability order costs at £100, extend the period before a missed payment makes the whole year’s bill due, and let households spread payments over 12 months automatically. It described the reforms as a programme for this Parliament and gave no start dates. Council tax bailiffs
• Vulnerability standards. The Enforcement Conduct Board published new Vulnerability and Ability to Pay Standards in March 2026. They take effect in January 2027.

What may come next

The government consulted in June and July 2025 on creating an independent statutory regulator for the enforcement sector. The House of Commons Library reports that the responses will inform legislation “as soon as parliamentary time allows”. At present oversight by the Enforcement Conduct Board rests on a voluntary accreditation scheme, which the Board says covers around 97% of the private market.

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