A rogue bailiff called a disabled resident ‘a waste of life, a loser, scum’.
The shocking incident was highlighted by York Outer MP Luke Charters in Parliament.
He secured a Westminster Hall debate on the regulation of the bailiff sector.
Mr Charters told MPs: “I will begin with a story. A vulnerable disabled person answered a knock at the door.
“He placed the chain on before opening it slightly, only for a bailiff to force their way through. The bailiff treated him, in his words, ‘like a waste of life, a loser, scum’.
“Worse still, the bailiff went on to wrongfully seize equipment supplied by the local authority to help with his disability.
“That is not an isolated case.”
Mr Charters is calling on the government to introduce an independent regulator for the enforcement sector.
He said that the Enforcement Conduct Board voluntarily regulates approximately 95% of the bailiff sector. He added. “However, the 5% who refuse to sign up are responsible, in my view, for the vast majority of the worst abuses.”
There was a strong link between mental health issues and debt, the MP said.
“Debt does not exist in a vacuum; many people facing bailiff action are also dealing with illness, relationship breakdown or mental health struggles.
“A woman recounted how a bailiff laughed and mocked her when she mentioned her mental health struggles.
“And Molly, whose name I have changed, was falsely threatened with prison if she did not grant entry to a bailiff – not a permissible threat, by the way. The stress triggered flashbacks of domestic abuse that she had suffered.”
Mr Charters said a vulnerable customers charter was needed, setting out minimum standards of care.
He added children were often the innocent victims of rogue bailiffs.
One victim told him: “It’s like the Wild West.”
Mr Charters called for a bailiff registration service and a centralised register, which would help the public to verify all bailiffs’ credentials, reducing fraud and ensuring accountability.
Replying, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice, Alex Davies-Jones, said: “I reassure the House that we are considering all the issues that have been raised today.
“We are also considering how best to engage with stakeholders to inform decisions about whether further legislation is necessary and, if so, what such legislation should in fact do.”