The Civil Procedure Rules 1998

[F1 Procedure for a debtor making a claim to exempt goods E+W

85.8.— (1) A debtor making a claim to exempt goods must, as soon as practicable and in any event within 7 days of the removal of the goods, give notice in writing of the claim to exempt goods (“notice of claim to exempt goods”) to the enforcement agent who has taken control of the goods or relevant enforcement officer and must include in such notice—

(a) their full name and address and that address is their address for service;

(b) a list of all those goods in respect of which they make such a claim; and

(c) the grounds of the claim in respect of each item.

(2) On receipt of a notice of claim to exempt goods, the enforcement agent or relevant enforcement officer must within 3 days give notice of such claim to—

(a) the creditor; and

(b) any other person making a claim under rule 85.4 or 85.6 to the goods subject to enforcement (“any other claimant to the goods subject to enforcement”).

(3) The creditor, and any other claimant to the goods subject to enforcement, must, within 7 days after receiving the notice of claim to exempt goods, give notice in writing to the enforcement agent or relevant enforcement officer informing them whether the claim to exempt goods is admitted or disputed in whole or in part.

(4) The enforcement agent or relevant enforcement officer must notify the debtor in writing within 3 days of receiving the notice in paragraph (3) whether the claim to exempt goods is admitted or disputed in whole or in part.

(5) A creditor who gives notice in accordance with paragraph (3) admitting a claim to controlled goods or to executed goods is not liable to the enforcement agent or officer for any fees and expenses incurred by the enforcement agent or officer after receipt of that notice by the enforcement agent or officer.

(6) If an enforcement agent or relevant enforcement officer receives a notice from a creditor and from any other claimant to the goods subject to enforcement under paragraph (3) admitting a claim to exempt goods the following applies—

(a) the enforcement power ceases to be exercisable, and the right to execute conferred by any writ of execution ceases to have effect, in respect of such exempt goods;

(b) as soon as reasonably practicable the enforcement agent or relevant enforcement officer must make the goods available for collection by the debtor if the enforcement agent or officer has removed them from where they were found.

(7) Where the creditor, or any other claimant to the goods subject to enforcement to whom notice of claim to exempt goods was given, fails, within the period mentioned in paragraph (3), to give the required notice, the enforcement agent or relevant enforcement officer may seek—

(a) the directions of the court by way of an application; and

(b) an order preventing the bringing of any claim against them for, or in respect of, their having taken control of or seized by execution any of the goods or their having failed to do so.

(8) An application under paragraph (7) must be made to the court which issued the writ or warrant conferring power to take control of controlled goods, or the writ of execution or, if the power to take control of controlled goods was conferred under an enactment, to the County Court hearing centre which is the debtor’s home court.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Pt. 85 inserted (6.4.2014) by The Civil Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2014 (S.I. 2014/407), rule 2(3), Sch. (with rule 41)