Exactly one year after the Ministry of Justice announced that it would legislate to make independent regulation of bailiffs mandatory, the existing (non-statutory) body that oversees the industry has called out the Government for its failure to act on its commitment.
The enforcement industry receives over 7m cases for enforcement every year, and collects over £1bn. The ECB is the independent body that sets standards for fair enforcement, takes action where breaches are identified, and provides an independent complaints service for members of the public who feel they have been treated unfairly by an enforcement firm or agent.
It is not currently a statutory requirement for enforcement firms to be authorised by the ECB and some companies have refused to sign up to the ECB’s standards or oversight. As a result, hundreds of thousands of people every year are currently experiencing enforcement action by unregulated providers.
This unfairness prompted the Ministry of Justice to commit, on 9 June 2025, to introducing mandatory, statutory regulation of all enforcement (bailiff) services. There has been no visible progress since then on delivering this change.
The ECB has warned that enforcement in England and Wales is now divided along deeply unfair lines. Firms that have signed up to ECB oversight are held to robust standards — including on how they support vulnerable people, handle complaints and agree payment arrangements. But those that have refused oversight can simply opt out, sidestep these protections, and continue operating without proper scrutiny.
Chris Nichols, CEO said:
“Regulation of enforcement (bailiff) services must be mandatory so that everyone who experiences enforcement has the same protections. It cannot be right for companies to simply refuse to comply with our standards for fair enforcement.
“Statutory regulation is supported by the public, debt charities and the majority of the enforcement industry itself.
“Government has rightly committed to act – but a year on from announcing this, there is still no clear plan.
“Every year hundreds of thousands of people are receiving enforcement action from unregulated providers. This is not fair and Government should now address this.”
ENDS
Notes to Editor
- The Enforcement Conduct Board (ECB) is the independent oversight body responsible for overseeing the enforcement industry. Our mission is to ensure that everyone who experiences enforcement action is treated fairly. Find out more about our work here: Who we are – enforcementconductboard
- The Ministry of Justice’s consultation on regulation of the enforcement sector was published on 9 June 2025 and can be found here Regulation of the debt enforcement sector – GOV.UK
- We set robust standards for firms and agents, ensuring everyone subject to enforcement action is treated fairly. All accredited firms must agree to meet our standards of practice. Standards – enforcementconductboard
- The ECB runs a complaints handling service for those who feel they’ve been treated unfairly by an enforcement firm or agent. The service was launched in January 2025. If we find an agent or firm has breached our standards, we recommend avenues of redress for the complainant, which accredited firms agree to comply with.
- Our 2026 Insight Report brings together data from our complaints and oversight work, giving a comprehensive overview of how the industry is working. The full report is here ECB-Insight-Report-2026.pdf