Repossessions by county court bailiffs increase 1,611%

Latest figures from the Ministry of Justice have shown that mortgage and landlord possession statistics (April to June 2022) have indicated that repossessions by county court bailiffs increased from 45 to 770 (1,611%).

Mortgage claims, orders, warrants and repossessions have also increased significantly when compared to the same quarter in 2021. Compared to the same quarter in 2021, mortgage possession claims increased from 2,499 to 3,476 (39%), orders from 400 to 2,382 (496%), warrants from 525 to 2,419 (361%) and repossessions by county court bailiffs increased from 45 to 770 (1,611%). These figures are between 50% to 60% of pre-covid baselines.

Landlord possession actions have also all increased significantly. The pattern is repeated for landlord possession actions. When compared to the same quarter in 2021, landlord possession claims increased from 6,997 to 18,201 (160%), orders from 5,431 to 14,319 (164%), warrants from 3,786 to 7,728 (104%) and repossessions from 1,582 to 4,900 (210%).

Mortgage and Landlord possession claims, and repossession rates have risen across all regions. Increases in possession claims have been recorded in all regions. Landlord claims remained concentrated in London (with 9 of the highest 10 claim rates).

Mortgage median average time (from claim to repossession) has increased The median average time from claim to mortgage repossession has increased to 110.1 weeks, up from 106.7 weeks in the same period in 2021. It should be noted that the Q2 2021 figure was based on only 41 cases.

Median timeliness for landlord repossessions has increased when compared to 2019 and 2020 and decreased when compared to 2021. The median average time from claim to landlord repossession has decreased to 23.4 weeks, down from 60.1 weeks in the same period in 2021.