New secondary legislation regulating all bailiff firms a “strong stepping-stone”
28 August 2026
The Government has announced it will be introducing secondary legislation which will place all bailiff firms under the purview of the Enforcement Conduct Board (ECB), the existing voluntary regulator for the sector.
The ECB was formed in 2022 to provide oversight for the enforcement or ‘bailiff’ sector, after years of campaigning from advice organisations. Individual bailiff firms can opt to sign up to the ECB, and whilst over 9 in 10 bailiff firms have done, there is no legal obligation for them to do so, nor are they legally required to pay the associated levy or maintain their membership.
This change, whilst falling short of giving the oversight body comprehensive statutory powers, is a welcome step that will ensure that all bailiffs can only work for or with enforcement firms accredited with the ECB.
This will effectively require enforcement firms to sign up to ECB accreditation to operate. The largest not-for-profit debt advice charity has branded this a “strong stepping-stone” to a full statutory regulator, stronger consumer protections, and has welcomed the move. A full statutory regulator will need primary legislation, which the Government can introduce in the next session.
Vikki Brownridge, Chief Executive Officer at StepChange, said:
“This welcome announcement marks a strong stepping-stone towards a full statutory regulator – a reform which will help drive up standards in the sector, challenge bad practice, and ensure StepChange clients and those facing bailiff action have access to legal recourse and support where necessary.
“With one in ten StepChange clients facing bailiff enforcement action, rising to one in three for those in council tax arrears, ensuring bailiff firms are subject to ECB oversight makes sense in the first instance and is welcome for our clients and those we seek to represent.
“Crucially, this step brings the ECB closer to the enforcement legal structure, and the next step should be to introduce primary legislation which will give the ECB full legal powers to ensure higher standards of consumer protections.”