A Southampton taxi driver's family was left scared and in shock when bailiffs wrongly forced their way into his home demanding £2,000.
Habib Ahmadi, 39, was at the gym on Monday when he received multiple calls from his panicked wife saying enforcement officers had forced their way in.
The taxi driver rushed home to his Violet Road address and found his family terrified by the men, who he claims, refused to leave the property.
Mr Ahmadi paid the full amount of £2,027 on a credit card to get the men to go away but later realised the court order had been incorrect.
The debt relates to a number of unpaid parking charges which he received while living near City College previously.
In 2021, the case was taken to court where an agreement was made between him and the parking company, One Parking Solutions Limited, that the debt would be paid at the rate of £5 a month.
READ MORE: Council owed more than £20 million in unpaid council tax
But despite keeping up with these payments, the debt collection company still attended more than three years later, threatening to seize property if it wasn’t paid upfront.
He said: “This is absolutely reckless. I am a poor guy. I haven’t got money, I am a taxi driver but I am well regarded in the community.
“When I came out of the gym I saw the missed calls from my wife she was struggling to talk to me. She was terrified.
“When I came home I tried to talk to the guy and he didn’t want to know anything. He said if you don’t pay me now I will get the other guys with the truck to get your stuff.
“I just wanted to get rid of him. I was absolutely shocked. It just came from nowhere.
“I was having my peaceful life. The next two days I could not go to work.”
The father of four, who is originally from Afghanistan, has been working as a taxi driver since 2010.
Habib Ahmadi with his taxi outside his Southampton home (Image: NQ)
He said it is against his family’s religious beliefs that a man should go into a home with a woman without their husband present.
In an email seen by the Echo, Direct Collection Bailiffs Ltd (DCBL) apologised, accepting there was already an agreement in place and claiming a full refund is being processed.
But now Mr Ahmadi has said he is concerned as to how the company managed to obtain a High Court order in the first place when a payment plan had previously been agreed before a judge.
He added: “They took me to court and agreed that I would pay in instalments. There was no need. It was far too extreme.
“Why did they get a High Court order without knowing anything?
“My daughter, 10 years old, she was scared as well. What happened was a big shock to the whole family. It could have been easily avoided.”
In an email sent by the Baliffs company on Friday, it said: “It has been confirmed with our client that DCBL were instructed in error due to the fact that you were already in an agreement to repay the monies owed.
“Therefore, this email is to confirm that a full refund of £2,027.35 has been processed for you this morning and should reach you within 3-10 days.
“I am very sorry for the inconvenience this has caused you and I hope the above is satisfactory.”
Mr Ahmadi said the tickets were racked up whilst living in an area where there were only 15 parking spaces for 35 homes.
He said he was aware of the tickets and had agreed to pay the debt at court.
He added that originally, debt collectors demanded £1,500, but this was increased due to the 15 minutes it took him to return from the gym and sort it out.
The Echo has approached DCBL and One Parking Solutions Limited for comment but did not hear back.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel