Her Majesty's Courts Service (HMCS) is an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice. It is committed to delivering justice effectively and efficiently to the public. One of its objectives is to ensure that orders and financial penalties imposed by the court are complied with and enforced, and that defaulters are dealt with swiftly and effectively.

Marston Group has over 30 years experience in enforcing distress and arrest warrants on behalf of the magistrates courts. Our first contract was awarded in 1978, and since then we have aligned our processes and procedures to support its evolving business strategy.

A recent example of an initiative developed in partnership with HMCS was the 2007 proposal to rebalance the enforcement fee structure, and to eliminate discretionary charges applied by enforcement agents at the doorstep. Following ministerial approval of the proposal in November 2007, the amended fee structure was implemented on 1 January 2008.

The revised fee structure provided transparency to debtors, and engineered out the capacity for incorrect charges to be applied by enforcement agents. As a result, the proportion of debtors meeting their obligations without the need for a doorstep visit has increased, overall fine recoveries have increased, and there have been no complaints made in relation to incorrect charging.

Marston Group is now at the forefront of a campaign to implement a similar fee structure across all civil enforcement. For further information go to fee reform.

In July 2009, Marston Group was appointed as primary contractor for the Northwest, Southeast and the Southwest regions, and the first reserve contractor for the London and Midlands regions. These new contracts are of three years' duration, with the possibility of two one-year extensions, and commenced on 1 December 2009.

Our services to HMCS included the enforcement of:

  • distress warrants - unpaid court fines
  • arrest warrants - bail, no bail, breach and committal
  • compensation and confiscation orders
  • clamping orders