Does Breathing Space Stop Bailiffs, Court Action and Eviction?

Breathing Space is a free government scheme that stops most types of enforcement, and also stops most creditors applying interest and charges, for 60 days¹. If bailiffs are already involved, the protection is real: a creditor cannot start bailiff action against you while you are in Breathing Space, and a bailiff cannot take control of goods². It also pauses most court enforcement, and it can pause an eviction for rent arrears³.

It is not a blanket shield. Some debts, such as magistrates' court fines, are not usually included, so Breathing Space will not stop bailiffs collecting those⁵. It does not stop a landlord evicting you for reasons other than rent arrears, such as anti-social behaviour⁶. And it lasts 60 days, not indefinitely.

You cannot apply for it yourself. A debt adviser enters you into the scheme, which is why the protection is tied to getting advice. This page sets out what Breathing Space stops, what it does not, how to get it, what it costs and what happens on day 61.

Breathing space pauses most enforcement, including bailiffs

The core of the scheme is a stay on enforcement. During the 60 days, creditors included in your Breathing Space must stop collecting the debts, must not contact you, and must freeze interest and charges on eligible debts². In practice that means the letters, calls and doorstep visits stop for the debts listed.

For bailiffs specifically, the rules are firm. A creditor will not be able to start bailiff action against you while you are in Breathing Space, and a bailiff cannot take control of goods². Creditors cannot charge further interest, fees or charges on the debts listed, take any enforcement action, or instruct enforcement agents or bailiffs¹⁰. The same protection applies to mental health crisis Breathing Space, where creditors must stop most enforcement action, such as court action or the use of bailiffs, for a debt that is included¹¹.

There is one limit worth knowing before you rely on it. Goods a bailiff had already taken before the Breathing Space began can still be sold, though no storage charges can be added during or after the Breathing Space². So if a bailiff has already removed items, Breathing Space does not get them back.

The protection also covers debts in joint names. If any of the debts you have included are in joint names, the other person named on the agreement will also be protected against enforcement action, but they are not added to the register². A guarantor, by contrast, is not protected unless they are also on the Breathing Space scheme¹².

What breathing space does and does not stop: court action, eviction and council tax

The court's own role is set out in official guidance. In a Breathing Space the court will not issue a money claim or process a help with fees application, process a default judgment, issue any form of enforcement application, continue with any enforcement application already issued including evictions, or proceed with a debt where a bankruptcy petition has started⁴. That is a wide pause, and it covers enforcement already in train, not just new action.

Eviction is covered, but only for rent arrears. In most cases your landlord will not be able to start court action to evict you for rent arrears while you are in Breathing Space⁷, and it can pause the eviction process if your landlord is evicting you for rent arrears¹³. Shelter's example is a secure council tenant with rent arrears: the council cannot evict during the 60 days³. What it does not do is stop a landlord giving notice or taking eviction action for other reasons or grounds, for example anti-social behaviour⁶.

Council tax arrears are among the debts that can be included, along with personal loans, credit card arrears and missed payments on utility bills¹⁴. Once a council tax debt is in the Breathing Space, the council cannot use a bailiff to seize goods, start a County Court claim for the arrears, or petition for your bankruptcy during the period⁷. The same list of covered debts, including council tax arrears, missed utility bills, personal loans and credit cards, applies to mental health crisis Breathing Space¹⁰.

The gap is debts that cannot be included at all. Some types of debt, such as magistrates' court fines, are not usually included, and so Breathing Space will not stop bailiffs collecting such debts⁵. If a bailiff is chasing a fine rather than a consumer debt, the scheme does not help.

Getting breathing space through a debt adviser

You do not apply for Breathing Space. A debt adviser makes the application and enters you into the scheme, which is why the protection is described as time to get specialist debt advice without the pressure of formal action being taken against you¹⁵. The adviser notifies the creditors included, and the 60 days run from there.

For mental health crisis Breathing Space, the application can be made on an online portal¹⁰. That version has its own conditions: the debt adviser will end the Breathing Space if they cannot get confirmation that you are still getting crisis treatment¹⁰, and it will also end if your debt adviser does not get confirmation from your Nominated Point of Contact that you are still in crisis treatment¹⁶.

Creditors are not entirely without options. They can accept payments, ask your debt adviser to cancel the Breathing Space if they feel you are not eligible, or apply to the court to cancel it¹⁰. Up to day 25, the people you owe can ask for it to be stopped¹². That is the window in which a creditor can challenge the protection, so the first three weeks matter.

If you need to tell a creditor directly, free template letters exist, including one to tell a creditor that you are in Breathing Space and to stop collection of the debt¹⁷. You can also read more about how Breathing Space works and the separate mental health crisis Breathing Space route.

What it costs: free advice and no fees for a debt management plan

Breathing Space is a free government scheme that stops you being chased for debts⁸. There is no fee to enter it and no fee to the adviser for arranging it. The scheme is free in England and Wales⁹.

Debt advice itself is free too. There are free advice services that can help¹⁸, and you do not need to pay for debt advice¹⁹. That matters because the paid end of the market exists alongside the free one, and the free services are the ones the official guidance points to.

If you move on to a debt management plan after the Breathing Space, cost depends on who runs it. Organisations like StepChange Debt Charity offer free debt management plans²⁰, and the charity offers free, flexible debt advice based on a comprehensive assessment of your situation, with practical help and support for however long it is needed²¹. Fee-charging providers also operate in this market; the difference between them is set out in free debt charities or fee-charging companies.

One protection point is worth stating plainly. Debt management plans are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, which does not cover debt advice²². So money you pay into a plan is not protected by that scheme if the provider fails. The protection you have is the provider's own arrangements and its regulator, and complaints can go to the Financial Ombudsman Service where the firm is regulated²³.

After breathing space ends: debt management plans, IVAs and other options

Breathing Space is a pause, not a solution. When the 60 days end, the debts are still there and enforcement can restart. What the period buys is time to put a longer-term arrangement in place, and the options are the standard ones.

A debt management plan is an informal arrangement: you pay what you can afford, usually monthly, and the provider distributes it. A token payment plan is a lighter version, typically for people with very little spare income, where small payments are made while the situation is reviewed²⁴. Both sit alongside the formal solutions.

Formal options include an individual voluntary arrangement, a debt relief order and bankruptcy, each with its own eligibility rules and consequences. One rule matters here: you cannot get Breathing Space if you have a debt relief order, individual voluntary arrangement or bankruptcy order in place¹⁶. So the scheme is for the period before a formal solution, not alongside one. The full range is compared in debt solutions across the UK, with detail on debt management plans, IVAs, debt relief orders and bankruptcy.

If your problem is rent or mortgage arrears rather than unsecured debt, the priority is different. Rent and mortgage arrears are priority debts, and there is separate help with rent arrears and for homeowners in arrears. If a possession warrant has already been issued, suspending a warrant of possession is the route to look at.

Will applying for breathing space affect my credit score?

Breathing Space is not recorded on your credit file, and the credit reference agency is not told you are in it². So the scheme itself does not appear as a marker to future lenders.

What does appear is the underlying arrears. Any missed payments with creditors will be recorded in the usual way². If you were already behind before the Breathing Space started, that history is already on your file and the pause does not remove it. If you keep up payments during the pause, the position does not get worse.

There is a related protection for people on benefits. The Breathing Space scheme pauses some deductions and other debt repayments while you get help²⁵. That can matter if Universal Credit deductions are eating into your income; the rules on those are covered in how much can be deducted from Universal Credit.

Where to get free help across the UK

Breathing Space operates in England and Wales⁹. It is a statutory debt respite scheme already operating in England and Wales, and the Northern Ireland Executive has legislated to extend a version there²⁶. Scotland has its own arrangements rather than this scheme, and free advice services operate across the UK¹⁸.

The practical starting point is a free debt adviser, because they are the ones who can enter you into Breathing Space. Free, impartial help is available from national debt charities and from local advice services, and the same advisers can look at whether a debt management plan, an IVA or another solution fits better. Our guide to free debt advice sets out where to go and what happens at an appointment.

If you are in arrears on essentials rather than being chased for unsecured debt, the priority order is different. Which bills to pay first explains why rent, mortgage, council tax and energy come before credit cards, and budgeting for repayments explains the Standard Financial Statement that advisers use to work out what you can afford.