Bassetlaw: Repossession Orders and Small Claims
Justice
John Mann (Bassetlaw, Labour)
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice
(1) how many county court claims, where the defendant lived in a Bassetlaw postcode area, were scheduled to be heard at (a) Worksop court and (b) Mansfield court in the last six months;
(2) how many court repossessions of private houses there were in Bassetlaw constituency in each month of the last five years.
Jonathan Djanogly (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (HM Courts Service and Legal Aid), Justice; Huntingdon, Conservative)
There were 17 county court claims, where at least one defendant lived in a Bassetlaw postcode area, that were scheduled for a trial or small claim hearing at Worksop court between April and September 2011, the latest period for which data are available. The equivalent figure for Mansfield court was 14 claims, and there were a further two claims that involved a trial or small claim hearing being scheduled at both Worksop and Mansfield courts.
The following table shows the number of claims leading to orders being made for the repossession of property by mortgage lenders and landlords in Bassetlaw constituency in each month of the last five years. The Ministry of Justice does not hold information on the total number of repossessions of property (including where keys are handed back voluntarily).
These figures represent the number of claims leading to orders being made. This is more accurate than the number of orders, removing the double-counting of instances where a single claim leads to more than one order. It is also a more meaningful measure of the number of home owners who are subject to court repossession actions.
These figures do not indicate how many properties have actually been repossessed. Repossessions can occur without a court order, such as where borrowers hand the keys back to the lender. Also, not all possession orders result in repossession. Many orders are suspended and if the borrower or tenant complies with the repayment arrangements set out in the suspended order, the property will not be repossessed.
Claims leading to orders figures for all regions and local authority areas in England and Wales in 2011 were recently published on
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statistics-and-data/civil-justice/mortgage-possession.htm
Claims leading to orders figures for all parliamentary constituencies in England and Wales will be placed on the above website by
| Number of mortgage (1) and landlord (2, 3) possession claims leading to orders made (4, 5, 6) for properties in Bassetlaw constituency (7, 8) , 2007-11 | ||||||||||
| Mortgage possession | Landlord possession | |||||||||
| 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | |
| January | 20 | 20 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 10 | 10 | (9)— | 10 | 15 |
| February | 20 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 10 | (9)— | 10 | (9)— | 10 | (9)— |
| March | 15 | 20 | 10 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| April | 20 | 25 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 10 | 10 | (9)— | 15 | (9)— |
| May | 15 | 25 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 10 | 15 | (9)— |
| June | 15 | 30 | (9)— | 10 | 20 | 10 | 15 | 10 | (9)— | 20 |
| July | (9)— | 20 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 15 | 10 | (9)— |
| August | 25 | 25 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 15 | 15 | 10 | 10 |
| September | 20 | 25 | 10 | 25 | 15 | (9)— | (9)— | 20 | 15 | 15 |
| October | 15 | 25 | 10 | 10 | (10)10 | (9)— | 10 | 10 | 10 | (10)— |
| November | 10 | 20 | (9)— | 10 | (10)10 | 20 | (9)— | 15 | (9)— | (10)10 |
| December | 15 | 15 | 10 | (9)— | (10)— | 10 | (9)— | 10 | 10 | (10)10 |
| Total | 210 | 270 | 135 | 150 | (10)140 | 120 | 125 | 120 | 120 | (10)110 |
| (1) Includes all types of mortgage lenders. (2) Includes all types of landlord whether social or private. (3) Landlord actions include those made under both standard and accelerated procedures. Landlord actions via the accelerated procedure enables the orders to be made solely on the basis of written evidence for shorthold tenancies, when the fixed period of tenancy has come to an end. (4) The number of claims that lead to an order includes all claims in which the first order, whether outright or suspended, is made during the period (5) The court, following a judicial decision, may grant an order for possession immediately. This entitles the claimant to apply for a warrant to have the defendant evicted. However, even where a warrant for possession is issued, the parties can still negotiate a compromise to prevent eviction. (6) Includes outright and suspended orders, the latter being where the court grants the claimant possession but suspends the operation of the order. Provided the defendant complies with the terms of suspension, which usually require the defendant to pay the current mortgage or rent instalments plus some of the accrued arrears, the possession order cannot be enforced. (7) All figures are rounded to the nearest five. (8) Data up until the first quarter of 2010 (January to March) will reflect Bassetlaw constituency boundaries as fixed at the 2005 general election and for the rest of 2010 and 2011 the re-fixed boundaries as of May 2010. (9) The figure is not provided as the number is either seven or less. (10) All period figures are based on provisional data. Source: Ministry of Justice. | ||||||||||