Bailiffs recover more than £30m for councils

Bailiffs recovered more than £30 million after councils sent them into homes and businesses in the West Midlands – visiting 100 people daily, it can be revealed.

Figures obtained by the Express & Star show councils have sent in the debt collectors more than 110,000 times since 2009.

Walsall Council relied on the bailiffs more than any other authority in the Black Country and Staffordshire, using them 28,038 times to get unpaid council tax since 2009 and 2,214 cases of unpaid business rates.

It secured £4.7m of council tax and £1.5m of business rates using bailiffs.

Business rates are sent to central government but councils have to collect it.

Sandwell Council, which sent in the bailiffs a total of 20,926 times, recovered the most unpaid tax – £8.4m.

Figures show the use of bailiffs has begun to decrease since 2009.

Wolverhampton, Dudley and South Staffordshire Councils also revealed they used bailiffs to recover unpaid parking fines.

Wolverhampton sent them in 2,667 times, Dudley 2,976 times and South Staffordshire 21 times since 2009.

Bailiffs can only go in once councils have secured court orders. Authorities stressed they had not paid bailiffs because their costs were awarded by the courts.

Cannock Chase Council revealed bailiffs were bringing in around £50,000 a year.

Wolverhampton City Council spokeswoman Rita Rich said: "Any bailiffs' fees incurred are recouped directly from the debtor by the bailiff." The council recovered £4m in council tax and business rates since 2009. Dudley Council recovered £6m. Stafford Council recovered £2.7m in 9,183 cases and Wyre Forest recouped £1.2m in 3,222 visits.