Local councils have told bailiffs to target families who are just £3 in debt, openDemocracy can reveal.
In one case, a local authority in London called in bailiffs after a family accidentally received £16.36 too much in housing benefit and failed to repay it.
With warnings about rising debts amid the cost of living crisis and cash-strapped councils doing all they can to balance their books, bailiffs are cashing in. The surge in demand for their services has seen the income of the country’s biggest enforcement agencies rise by up to 3,800% in a single year.
