In order to transfer a possession order yourself, then when issuing a writ, you will need to either name the Authorised High Court Enforcement Officer or address it to the “Authorised High Court Enforcement Officers of England and Wales. If you select the latter, the writ will be assigned to a High Court Enforcement Officer through the cab rank system called NICE Sheriffs operated by Registry Trust.
Trespassers
If the Order of Possession is in respect of trespassers, the application is made using the form N293a. You must complete part 1 and 2 and send these to the County Court where the judgment was made. If you do not complete it fully, the court may have to return it to you. You must state the date of judgment and the details of order of possession, including any additional costs allowed by the court since judgment; the total of any interest that has accrued on the judgment and, if appropriate, the daily rate. There are notes on both sides of the form, which you need to read to ensure you have completed the form correctly.
You can submit the completed form with the Writ of Possession Form 66 together so the court can process as a bundle, but you must complete Part 3 of the form, and include the Writ issue fee of £80.
Landlord and Tenant
For a Landlord and Tenant Order for Possession, the process is different, and if leave to transfer has not already been obtained, will need an application for an Order under Section 42 Leave to transfer from the County Court to High Court for the purpose of Enforcement. It is usually best practice to include this as part of the original possession claim if possible.
The application under Section 42 is via the general application notice (N244) with the additional court fee of up to £275. Before applying you must write to the named judgment debtor and “The Occupier” warning them you are applying to transfer to the High Court for Enforcement. When applying the application must be supported by a witness statement giving good reason as to why you wish to transfer and this should include.
- Typical delays with the County Court Bailiff of X months, or a statement documenting how you have tried to contact the County Court Bailiff but have been unable to find out what those delays might be.
- The impact of the delay, in that it will increase the amount of debt owed at the rate of £xx per month in addition to £xx already outstanding at the time the application is made,
- The wider financial impact of this growing debt, e.g. is it causing you financial difficulties and meaning that you are increasingly unable to meet other financial commitments and/or falling into debt yourself,
- Any social impacts that the tenants might be causing, such as has been confrontational or violent towards you or anyone on your behalf, caused damage to property, being a nuisance to neighbours, or perhaps you have another tenant waiting to move in, etc.
This witness statement might look something like the below
“I want to transfer the Order for Possession to the High Court due to the delay I have found when enquiring at the County Court as to when any enforcement might be able to take place through the County Court Bailiff of X months, and the accruing outstanding rent of £xx per month, and that as a result of this I am experiencing financial difficulties including XYZ…..”
NB: The granting of any transfer request is at the discretion of the court, and only where there is a justifiable good reason to transfer will the transfer be granted, so it is important to research any delays and detail what the impact of any delay is upon you or your business and any family members/dependants as a result.
Once you have an Order for Possession and an Order under Section 42, you can make an application for a Writ of Possession to the relevant District Registry of the High Court.
You need to complete two forms to make the application:
- A PF92a form, which is the request to issue the Writ
- Form 66, which is the Writ of Possession itself.
The court fee of £80 must be paid at the same time the forms are submitted.
Thanks, but I’d rather instruct a High Court Enforcement Officer to do this for me.
