Attachment of Earnings Order

An attachment of earnings order is a legal document issued by a court which requires an employer to deduct a set amount of money from an employee’s wages each month and transfer it to a creditor. This order is typically used when an individual owes a debt to someone else, such as a bank or loan company, and has failed to make payments. The court order requires the employer to collect the money from their employee and forward it to the creditor. The employer is not responsible for any disputes between the employee and creditor. The attachment of earnings order is a legal way for creditors to collect debts from individuals who are not making payments.

Seek Debt Advice Sooner Rather Than Later

If you are experiencing financial difficulties you should seek debt advice sooner rather than later. This can help you to address the issues and come to a resolution with your creditors before the situation escalates. The longer you leave it, the more likely it is that your creditors will take legal action and apply for an attachment of earnings order from the courts. An attachment of earnings order means your employer will be required to take a portion of your wages and pay it to your creditors. This will reduce the amount of money you have available to cover your essential living costs and can be difficult to manage. Seeking debt advice earlier can help to prevent this from happening and can help you come to an arrangement with your creditors that allows you to keep up with your repayments.

Here is a Notice of Application for Attachment of Earnings Order .

Included should be a reply form for you to complete. There should be a tick a box to ask for the order to be stopped if it will cause you hardship, you would also need to state what hardships this will cause you. Perhaps your inability to bill, even that this may cause you to loose your job. Also inform the courts that you are getting debt advice. This is called a ‘suspended attachment of earnings order’. It is also worth noting that you should tell the creditor that you will be applying for a Suspended Order and also tell them why. If you are seeking debt advice, also tell them about that. It is also possible to come to an agreement with the courts without your employer being contacted.

N245 Can Stop an Attachment of Earnings Order

In order to halt an attachment of earnings, you’ll need to use a specific court form known as Court Form N245. This form is titled “Application to vary or discharge an order for attachment of earnings or an order for payment by instalments.” With this form, you can request the court to:

• Cease an attachment of earnings order
• Adjust the amount deducted from your monthly wages
• Extend the time granted to settle the debt
• Annul the debt entirely

It’s crucial to submit Form N245 within a month from the date the attachment of earnings order was issued. You have the option to file the form online or in person at the court that issued the order.