Good morning everyone. Apologies for my ignorance and/or silly questions in the following passage, this was my first court experience so I'm not used to this sort of thing!

I was caught speeding on the M1 in late 2010 and in September 2011 this went to the local Magistrates' court. I pled guilty by post and was requested to attend court as they were considering a ban. Thankfully I wasn't banned, but was given points and a £210 fine. The letter I was given said to pay the fine "forthwith", and as I left the courtroom (slightly shaken!!!) the usher told me to pay it as soon as possible.

Unfortunately I'm a student, and £210 is quite a lot of money for me, so "as soon as possible" was on my next payday, just under three weeks after the hearing. I paid the fine in full on the internet and thought no more of it.

However, when I returned to London (where my car is kept and therefore registered) after a month away studying, I had a pile of backdated letters from the court ordering the fine's immediate payment, and another indicating it had been passed to a bailiff who would be gaining entry by force to obtain their £85 fee. I immediately rang the court and explained the circumstances, and they said there was nothing they could do as it had been passed to the collections agency so was out of their hands. They said I could appeal the "distress warrant", and have called off the bailiffs for 28 days while I arrange for this to happen.

So my question is, legally what does "to be paid forthwith" mean? I haven't tried to do anything wrong or avoid paying up, I was told by the usher to pay the fine "as soon as possible" and I thought that meant I had a little time to find the money. Is there any point of me appealing this, or should I just stoop up the extra £85? And is there any obligation on the court to at least ask if I needed time to pay?

Apologies again if any of these questions are stupid or obvious, I just found the instructions a little ambiguous. Thanks in advance for any help

Make your own copy of what you have received.
Scoop a copy of everything you have received into an envelope.
Put a note in with them saying how and when you paid the fine.
Send it to the courts service who are attempting to recover the fine.
They will deal with any recovery agent they have engaged.

The instructions you received were certainly not helpful!

You should have been asked to pay immediately and when you indicated that was not possible, asked to speak to the courts fine officer, either on the day or the next, to arrange a payment plan. To send it out to bailiffs to collect after only three weeks is frankly ridiculous.

I agree with norahl's advice, but I would add in the note that you asked an usher what "forthwith" meant and he gave you the misleading advice that it meant ASAP not immediate, and did not direct you to the courts fines officer. You therefore feel it unjust that you should be asked to pay the bailiff's fee, as you paid after less than three weeks and in accordance with the directions you had received.

This may not be of much help, but so much of NZ law is based on the UK.

After a guilty verdict in court (in NZ) you have 28 days to pay or appeal - the always unhelpful court staff try to say that the fine needs paying as soon as you leave the court room and don't like being told they are wrong.

However, how long do you have to appeal the sentence in the UK?, because that should be the same timescale for paying the fine.

Obviously whilst you hadn't paid you were considering an appeal, hence the reason for not paying sooner.

21 days.

I don't think you have much to worry about as the courts service is at present trying to recover what you have already paid.
As long as you can show you have paid by sending in your receipt, I don't think you will hear any more about it.

Thanks for all the replies guys, I'll start posting more specific questions when I start the appeal of the order.



Is there statute/an authority that you could point me towards for this..? Thanks!

Don't allow yourself to be distracted with regard to the appeal issue. Concentrate on the facts you have to hand.

On the basis of your post it would seem that the court instituted enforcement action at about the three week point which seems very quick although courts are under pressure to collect fines promptly. Procedures also differ from court area to court area with some not commencing any action until after a final demand letter, for example, whilst others pass matters direct to bailiffs before bringing the matter back to the court. That aside it seems that you paid at more or less the same time as enforcement was commenced. and should have had the opportunity to download a recipt or been provided with a payment reference. In the worse-case scenario you should have evidence of the payment in your bank statement.

As it would seem that bailiffs are already involved then the fines office will not accept payment if a distress warrant has been issued. If it transpires that your payment did not actually go through then you will have to pay the bailiff - which will include paying his fees. If this occurs after they have distrained on goods then the fees could be significant.

What you need to do now is to check that the payment went through and if it did then write immediately to the court fines office (the address and your case reference will be shown on the notice of fine you were given/sent), enclosing as copy of your receipt/details of the payment reference asking that they cease any further enforcement action immediately.

If your payment did not go through then your are going to have to arrange paying the bailiff. This might require some nimble footwork and you should realise that your car - if you keep it on the street or an open car park where it can be readily identified - is at immediate risk of being seized (distrained against) by the bailiffs. You may wish to take some action to reduce this risk. With regard to the nimble footwork I suggest that you subscribe to www.bailiffadviceonline.co.uk as sson as possible - if it transpires that you payment did not go through. This will cost you £10 but the advice is detailed and to be trusted. (I might add that I have no connection with the site, am not on a retainer nor do I have any other involvement other than simply being an interested external observer)

Part 63 Criminal Procedure Rules 2010.