Can bailiffs break in?

No they cannot break in.

Simple answer is No. We had the same issue with DD2’s first flat - I rang the Agency, explained when we’d bought the flat and gave them the name of the estate agent who handled the sale and added that we had no forwarding address for the previous owner.

We heard no more.

Bailiffs typically cannot enter your home without your permission, but there are some exceptions:
No force: Bailiffs cannot force their way into your home, such as by pushing past you.
Hours: Bailiffs cannot enter between 9 PM and 6 AM.
Entry points: Bailiffs cannot enter through anything other than the door.
Vulnerable people: Bailiffs cannot enter if only children under 16 or vulnerable people are present.
Court permission: Bailiffs can apply to the court for permission to use reasonable force to gain access.
Magistrates Court fines: Bailiffs can use force to break into a debtor's property if they are collecting for a Magistrates Court fine in respect of a criminal conviction.
Unpaid tax: Bailiffs employed by HMRC can force entry if the debt is unpaid tax.
Trade or business premises: County Court bailiffs and High Court enforcement officers can force entry to trade or business premises.
If you're expecting bailiffs, you can make it difficult for them to enter by keeping your doors and windows locked.

But the most obvious and sensible way of stopping them is by contacting them to tell them that the person they're looking for is no longer at that address. You can do that either by letter (I recommend using Recorded Delivery) or email. You may then be asked some questions, such as when you purchased the property and who lives there, but once you've updated them, your address would be removed from their records.

Grunty

Bailiffs typically cannot enter your home without your permission, but there are some exceptions:
No force: Bailiffs cannot force their way into your home, such as by pushing past you.
Hours: Bailiffs cannot enter between 9 PM and 6 AM.
Entry points: Bailiffs cannot enter through anything other than the door.
Vulnerable people: Bailiffs cannot enter if only children under 16 or vulnerable people are present.
Court permission: Bailiffs can apply to the court for permission to use reasonable force to gain access.
Magistrates Court fines: Bailiffs can use force to break into a debtor's property if they are collecting for a Magistrates Court fine in respect of a criminal conviction.
Unpaid tax: Bailiffs employed by HMRC can force entry if the debt is unpaid tax.
Trade or business premises: County Court bailiffs and High Court enforcement officers can force entry to trade or business premises.
If you're expecting bailiffs, you can make it difficult for them to enter by keeping your doors and windows locked.

But the most obvious and sensible way of stopping them is by contacting them to tell them that the person they're looking for is no longer at that address. You can do that either by letter (I recommend using Recorded Delivery) or email. You may then be asked some questions, such as when you purchased the property and who lives there, but once you've updated them, your address would be removed from their records.

This! I would actually ring, then follow up with both an email and registered letter.

I had this happen to me some years back when I had just bought a house. I initially sent back all post marked "no longer at this address" but predictably, bailiffs eventually called. I answered the door, showed them the paperwork which proved my recent purchase, proved my own identity and that was the end of it.

The problem most of is have is that we are honest, and assume that because we say we are not Mrs X who owes money, the bailiffs will believe us!

Had a problem like this several years ago after moving. Replied to several different companies who sent threatening letters to the previous occupant! Most were fine but one company kept sending bailiffs to call! The only way we could get rid of one man who kept putting his foot in the door every time we tried to close the door was to fetch our Alsatian dog! The gentlest dog ever till you pulled his tail! So we pulled his tail & made him bark & growl! Man moved very fast & did not turn up again! Our lovely boy got lots of cuddles & treats to make up for it!

I have nothing constructive to add here - but you’ve had some very excellent advice. Just wanted to give you a ‘virtual’ hug as this must be so frightening 🤗!

A recent case was when a bailiff said he would call a locksmith which would he added to the value of the debt. I think this is permitted in certain circumstances

Write or call them just sending letters back won’t stop the procedure anyone could write that. They will ask for copy of your council tax bill to proof who lives at that address.

When working I was an Outreach Support Officer and encountered this several times. We made a phone call and explained and I suppose as I was a ''professional' it was taken on board. Just have proof that you are the new owner/occupier and they should leave you alone.

If informing the bailliffs that the person they want no longer resides at the address and that you are the legal owner of the property, have a solicitor write to them,

They have no right to break in but some can be very heavy handed in their approach. My eldest son has been a thorn in his lovely partner's side for many years. Gambling, affairs, borrowing money, lies; her and I have had it all. Although they are no longer a couple she still gets mail and bailiffs around the door as he uses her address. She always has her council tax and mortgage paperwork to hand to shown he no longer lives there and they leave without any problem.

www.citizensadvice.org.uk/debt-and-money/action-your-creditor-can-take/bailiffs/stopping-bailiffs/stopping-bailiffs-at-your-door/

From experience (masses of debts incurred by the former owner of a flat) both returning to sender, and writing ‘No longer at this address’ are equally useless.

If you have no forwarding address (I didn’t) you are entitled to open mail. I eventually had to write around 12 explanatory letters, with copies of my council tax bill, to various companies and debt collectors, and they did all back off.

The former owner evidently had returned to his country of origin, leaving over £20k of debt.
And yet I’m quite sure that he could come back tomorrow and absolutely nothing would happen to him. 🤬

NO they cannot, you have to let them in, but do not let them over the doorstep.

If they do turn up then you will just have to show them some ID. To be fair they are lied to and phoning or emailing does not prove that the previous person has left the address.

I phoned the bailiffs they told me to send proof. I told them my name and the estate agents I had bought from. They asked me to send proof but I said they needed to check for themselves or continue wasting their money sending bailiffs. I never heard from them again.

We had bailiffs turn up at the door early one morning a few years ago.
They were very polite and had obv been watching us for our movements as to when we would he home as knew the car my husband drove (he'd already left for work very early).
Chap said there had been letters sent to us (there hadn't), which we'd ignored, hence them turning up unannounced.

Transpires that they had the wrong house !
We lived at 150
The house they should have been at was 156 and whoever had written the address down quickly on a scrappy bit of paper had written the 6 so it looked like a 0.

Extreme apologies all round.

We had this recently. We opened the letter, the second time one came, it was for unpaid car parking fine. We had to prove we lived here by sending a copy of our latest council tax bill. We did have a bailiff come. We explained that we had moved to this address last year and he took a copy of our council tax bill. We received an email to say we wouldn't be bothered again. I was annoyed that we had to prove we lived here. I really didn't see why they couldn't look on the Land Registry to see themselves the house had changed ownership. We gave them the address of where the last owners had moved to but they didn't seem to be interested.

I would suggest you contact the local Citizen's Advice Bureau asap

I had this when someone fraudulently used my address to get a fuel card. I’m afraid I got on my high horse initially and argued that I shouldn’t have to prove that I had lived here for nearly 40 years, told them to go and check council tax records and the electoral roll but eventually I had to show my council tax bill just to get rid of them!

Open the letter & should be contact details, explain the situation & they can remove you from their files.
We had this from a catalog company, it was always left on our answer machine - asked if the person owed money & explained the person they were after had given a false address, they never phoned again.

I think they can with a court order and police in attendance

I’ll just throw in here that apparently it’s advisable to put “return to sender” envelopes directly into a sorting office mailbox, to ensure it will be redelivered back to the sender, rather than in any old postbox.