What happens if bailiffs have nothing to take?

Bailiffs By Council Tax Helpline, 10 September 2026

In short

Many things cannot be taken at all, including essential household items, your clothes, and anything that belongs to someone else.
If there is nothing of value they can take, the bailiffs usually return the case to your council.
Your council can then take money from your wages or benefits, and in England, in rare cases, ask the court to consider prison.
Fees already added can still be owed, so the debt can be higher than when it started.
An arrangement you can afford, agreed early, stops all of this.

Bailiffs, officially called enforcement agents, can only take goods that belong to you and that the law does not protect. In many homes, especially rented ones, that leaves very little of value. So “what happens if I have nothing for them to take?” is one of the most common questions people ask.

The short answer: the bailiffs cannot make money out of nothing, but your council can still collect the debt in other ways.

What bailiffs cannot take

The law protects a long list of things. Bailiffs cannot take:

Household essentials, such as your cooker, fridge, washing machine, beds, bedding, table and chairs, and a phone
Clothing and things needed for heating, lighting and medical care
Items you need for work, study or training, up to a total value of £1,350
Anything needed to care for a child, or an elderly or disabled person in the household
Pets and assistance dogs
A vehicle displaying a valid disabled person’s badge
Anything that belongs to someone else, such as a partner, parent or flatmate, or a car on hire purchase

See what bailiffs can and cannot take for the full list.

What happens next

If a bailiff visits and there is nothing they can take, or nothing worth selling, one of three things usually happens.

1. They try to agree a payment plan. Most bailiffs would rather be paid in instalments than go away with nothing. They may ask you to sign a controlled goods agreement listing whatever they can take, even if it is worth little.

2. They come back. Bailiffs have 12 months from the notice of enforcement to take control of goods. They may visit again to see whether anything has changed, for example a car parked outside.

3. They return the case to your council. This is often called a “nulla bona” return, Latin for “no goods”. It is the most common outcome where there is genuinely nothing to take.

What your council can do instead

Once the bailiffs have returned the case, your council still has its liability order, and it has other ways to collect:

Taking money from your wages, through an attachment of earnings. The amount is set by law and depends on what you earn.
Taking money from your benefits, such as Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Jobseeker’s Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance.
A charging order on your home, if you own it and owe £1,000 or more.
Bankruptcy, if you owe £5,000 or more. This is rare.
Committal to prison, in England only. Once bailiffs have been unable to collect, your council can ask the magistrates’ court to consider it. The court must look at your finances first, and can only send you to prison if it finds you have wilfully refused or culpably neglected to pay. Not being able to afford it is not a reason to send you to prison. See can you go to prison for council tax.

In Wales, prison is no longer possible for council tax. In Scotland the process is different altogether: see sheriff officers.

Do the fees still count?

Usually, yes. The £79 compliance fee is added as soon as the bailiff firm gets your case, and the £247 enforcement fee is added once they visit. Those fees can still be owed even if nothing is taken, so the debt can end up higher than it started.

If you are vulnerable, for example because of illness, disability or caring for young children, the enforcement fee cannot be charged unless you were given a proper chance to get help first. See bailiff fees explained.

Do not move or hide your things

It is tempting, but it rarely helps and can make things worse. Once goods are listed in a controlled goods agreement, moving or selling them is a criminal offence. And a bailiff who suspects goods are being hidden is less likely to agree an affordable arrangement.

Will bailiffs just give up?

Sometimes they return the case, as above. But that is not the same as the debt going away. Your council still has its liability order, and in most cases it simply moves to the next method of collection. There is no time limit on enforcing a liability order once it has been made.

The better route: get ahead of it

If you know there is nothing for bailiffs to take, the best thing you can do is say so early, and offer what you can afford:

Tell the bailiff firm and your council in writing what your income and essential outgoings are, and what you can pay each month.
Ask your council to take the account back from the bailiffs and agree a special payment arrangement.
Check you are not paying too much. Council Tax Reduction and discounts are often missed. See Council Tax Reduction.

If your debts are so large you could never pay them, a Debt Relief Order may write them off. It includes council tax arrears, and it stops the bailiffs.

Where are you with the bailiffs?

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