That's screwed up for multiple reasons.

Definitely should be illegal. Next thing you know the pizza guy, then your hydro meter reader , mailman etc,etc.

Bailiff, wack his pee pee.

That’s called impersonating a law enforcement officer and it is a felony.

I'm pretty sure impersonating a police officer is, in fact, illegal

In my area the bailiffs are part of the Sheriffs dept

There should absolutely be legal action taken - against both the eviction firm and the landlord.

I don’t know londons laws, but there should be something that covers this horrifying scenario.

Or people could, get this, just pay their rent.

So horrifying. /s

Ok? Weird take. Civil problems require criminal reactions?

Those are some good ideas!

Bailiffs do things outside the courtroom?

Same. Title didn't make a lot of sense at first.

If they didn't have any identifying marks on their clothes saying they're police and didn't identify themselves as police I'd find it hard to believe they'd be arrested for wearing a tactical vest and pants.

It's not like the police have unique uniforms for the most part, especially when they wear tactical gear.

This is in the UK. Bailiffs are different there.

https://www.gov.uk/your-rights-bailiffs#:~:text=A%20bailiff%20(%27enforcement%20agent%27,that%20bailiffs%20will%20be%20used.

you didnt read the article. The attempted eviction was also illegal

By-law people in my city dress and look like cops. Right down to the bullet-proof vests they wear. Had some show up at our house last spring but no one was home. Thought they were cops from the doorbell cam. Was a few anxious days wondering why they had been here until they showed back up again.

(Our street facing backyard fences were too high. We had just moved in to the house and our neighbors called for some fucking reason.)

This is in the United Kingdom. It's a summary offense there.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/16/section/90/2004-07-01#:~:text=(1)Any%20person%20who%20with,a%20term%20not%20exceeding%20six

And Bailiffs do go to homes for various reasons:

https://www.gov.uk/your-rights-bailiffs#:~:text=A%20bailiff%20('enforcement%20agent',that%20bailiffs%20will%20be%20used.

The landlords seem to be the ones truly breaking laws here.

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But dude, just imagine: You just ordered from Pizza Police. It's been about twenty minutes, and you hear a siren in the distance...

In the Netherlands, even wearing an outfit that could be mistaken for a police uniform is illegal.

Collection agencies and such also just love threatening with eviction or seizing of property to pay your debt. Which has been made kinda illegal a few years ago.

A long time ago, my late FIL(he was a fiscal advisor and had his own video rental business in the 90's) told me that unless the collection agents are accompanied by actual police and bear a letter that starts with "in the name of the king", they can't do anything.

And, no, its not like the actual king issues those letters, its legalese wording that means its a court order.

What a sad state of affairs when city code enforcement can't crawl up your ass for petty shit without worrying about getting shot.

What's even more ridiculous about it, is that this is in Canada.

Didn't expect that. Do you think they're in any legitimate danger, or just hoping to look like cops to be taken seriously?

They were definitely trying to appear tough to be taken seriously. They acted like cops... Knocked on the door then back off the porch while hooking their thumbs into their vest straps like they were waiting to be aggressively confronted. I looked the one guy up and by his education and stuff, he looked like he had flunked out of more serious policing/security work. Totally made sense after the fact. He pretty much leads by-law in our town and they have absolutely taken on a more aggressive "policing" form of enforcement. It's actually kind of embarrassing seeing these guys driving around in their police like vehicles and telling people their lawns can't be 5" and must be only 4.5"

Our fence was 9ft tall and the city by-law dictated 8' 5"

Fyi, in Canada, legally speaking they are police they just don't have the right to carry guns.

Tbh these are all more respectable and dangerous jobs than being a police officer.

Ya where I am it was weird. The court baliffs got bodycams before the police or sheriffs department by a few years.

Lick those boots. Maybe your landlord will see this post and give you a good scritch behind the ears for being such a good boy.

Build dirt up around the base. Magically in compliance now!

You assume there are no cases of tenats being harassed when they do pay their rent? Sure.

From the UK here, I believe it.

Bailiffs are scum of the Earth. Had some turn up to my home after my grandmother passed, explained she wasn’t home because… well… and they refused to leave, threatened to take my possessions. Had to end up paying them so they would leave, I don’t think we ever got the money back in the end either.

>hooking their thumbs into their vest straps like they were waiting to be aggressively confronted.

I know it looks like that, but is actually done out of comfort. I use vests and do that all the time, it's a way to rest your arms.

Still, dressing like going to a war zone in suburbia is the most ridiculous shit people do..

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Okay, sorry, I'm still lost here (USA), even after reading those links and the articles. From wiktionary, the UK meanings of bailiffs still show that they have law enforcement powers.

I don't understand what would make them more scary if perceived as "police officers" and what rights they could falsely dupe someone into believing, as police officers, that they would not be able to if correctly perceived as bailiffs.

Can you explain that part?

Edit: Like, from me, this reads as, "Drug Enforcement Agency agents impersonating FBI agents to confiscate drugs." Like, what? The agents have the same powers, and they'd be able to seize drugs as DEA already.

Wiktionary probably isn’t the most useful source of information here.

Bailiffs in the UK do not have ‘law enforcement’ powers in any meaningful sense. Specifically, they do not have powers of arrest and their powers to enter homes are very, very constrained. Except in very limited circumstances, and as a last resort, they cannot use force to enter your home and you don’t have to let them in.

If they are presenting themselves as police officers then it is very much to their advantage to do so, as people are much more likely to let them into their home, and generally to do what they’re told.

>Wiktionary probably isn’t the most useful source of information here.

Okay but neither was the original parent.

From their link:

>Bailiffs are allowed to force their way into your home to collect unpaid criminal fines, Income Tax or Stamp Duty, but only as a last resort.

> If you do not let a bailiff in or agree to pay them:

> - they could take things from outside your home, for example your car > - you could end up owing even more money

That sounds like law enforcement powers.

It sounds like the difference is:

> If they are presenting themselves as police officers then it is very much to their advantage to do so, as people are much more likely to let them into their home, and generally to do what they’re told.

Which would have been nice to be told in the original comment so I couldn't figure out what subtlety distinguishes bailiffs from police officers.

You can get away with looking extremely close to a cop and driving essentially a cop car depending on the law. Look up Jeremy Dewitte. He's never been convicted of impersonation because of the laws and even got a cop fired over the accusation.