Can You Stop an Attachment of Earnings Order?
An Attachment of Earnings Order or AoE is an option creditors have in some cases to recover money you owe. When an AoE is granted by the court, some of your earnings are deducted before you're paid, and this is used to pay back your debt. The deduction is made by your employer, who is legally obligated to do this once the order has been granted.
If you're faced with an attachment of earnings order, can you do anything to stop it?
Prerequisites for an Attachment of Earnings
Firstly, an AoE can only be granted once a County Court Judgement (CCJ) has been made, and you have fallen behind with at least one payment on this judgement. The sum you owe has to be more than £50, or an AoE is not available.
AoEs can only be issued on people who are in employment (not self employed), while debtors who are in the army, navy, air force, or merchant navy can't have an order issued against them.
Court Forms
If these conditions are met, the court will send you a form to fill in, giving details of your income and expenditure, which will be used to decide how much of your earnings will be deducted. You can still stop the attachment of earnings order at this point if you can pay off what you owe.
If you don't send back this form, a bailiff can be sent to your home to re-issue the form by hand, and if you still don't return the form a warrant of arrest can be made, entitling a bailiff to take you to court to fill in the form there.
Avoiding the Order
If you are a low wage earner, or have other extenuating circumstances, the court may decide not to grant the order. Otherwise, you can ask for the AoE to be suspended, which if allowed will mean that your employer will not be contacted, and you will have to make repayment arrangements direct with your creditor. If you break these arrangements, the attachement of earnings order can be re-issued, and it is unlikely that any request for a further suspension will be granted.
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Site is for information only and does not constitute financial advice. E&OE.
