Able Investigations: Which Company Number Is Yours?

Who are Able Investigations and Enforcement?

The company operating as Able Investigations is Able Investigations & Enforcement Solutions Limited, registered at Companies House under company number 07309056, incorporated on 8 July 2010, classified under SIC code 80300, investigation activities, with its registered office at 1 Riverside Business Park, St Annes Road, Bristol, BS4 4ED. The firm's own site, checked directly rather than assumed, states its registration in the footer as "Company Reg: 07309056," which is the confirmation this profile relies on to name the correct entity out of three.

Three similarly named companies at one address

Companies House holds three currently active, Wood-family-controlled businesses at this Bristol address: Able Investigations & Enforcements Limited (08193035), Able Investigations & Enforcement Services Limited (12674408) and Able Investigations & Enforcement Solutions Limited (07309056), the one the operating website's own footer names. If you hold a letter quoting a different one of those three numbers against the same trading name, it belongs to a related but legally distinct company, and any dispute about that letter should be pursued against the number actually printed on it, not against 07309056. In practice, this usually only matters when checking a company's history or a complaint, since day-to-day statutory powers and fees do not depend on which of the three names is used.

A long personal history, a newer company

The firm's own marketing states enforcement and investigation work "since 1993," decades before this particular company was incorporated in 2010. That gap is normal where a family business restructures or adds new corporate vehicles over time, but it means the 1993 date describes the trading history of the wider Able name and the people behind it, not the filed history of Able Investigations & Enforcement Solutions Limited itself, which Companies House shows running from 2010, unless a reader specifically checks the incorporation date rather than relying on the marketing claim.

Where Able Investigations sits on the registers

The HCEOA member directory lists Able Investigations under Frank Whitworth's entry, alongside other business names sharing that certificated High Court Enforcement Officer as officer of record; this reflects which HCEO acts for each firm, not common ownership, and is the same pattern found elsewhere in this directory. Checked directly in August 2026, Able Investigations does not appear on the Enforcement Conduct Board's accredited firms register or CIVEA's published member list.

Three different lines of work

Able's own site separates investigations, enforcement and public order work, and only one of those carries statutory taking-control-of-goods powers.

Investigation services, debtor tracing and status enquiries, involve no legal power to enter property or seize anything; they establish facts, typically an address or a status, which a creditor then uses to decide its next step. Enforcement services cover High Court and civil enforcement of money judgments and CRAR, using Schedule 12 of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007. Public order enforcement, described on the firm's site as a dedicated team, covers traveller eviction and similar site-clearance work under writs of possession, a different legal framework again, with its own notice and force rules and none of the fee scale below.

The High Court and CRAR route

A County Court judgment of £600 or more can move up to a writ of control under article 8 of the High Court and County Courts Jurisdiction Order 1991. A commercial landlord can separately instruct CRAR once a lease is evidenced in writing under section 74 of the 2007 Act and at least seven days' rent is unpaid under section 77 and regulation 52 of the Taking Control of Goods Regulations 2013.

What each enforcement stage costs

The regulated High Court scale applies, unchanged by which of Able's brands is named on the letter: £79 covers the compliance stage before any visit; once an agent has attended and taken control of goods, £200 becomes payable plus 7.5% of any amount recovered above £1,200; a second enforcement stage, where its own conditions are separately met, adds £520; and removing and selling goods adds £550 plus the same 7.5%. Instructions from 1 May 2026 sit on this scale, with older cases potentially still on the previous one. Regulation 11 of the 2014 Fees Regulations allows the £79 charge once per writ but caps the enforcement and sale charges at a single occurrence where several writs can reasonably be handled together.

Force entry, across all three lines of work

Not into a home on a first visit under a writ of control: entry must be peaceable, through a door voluntarily opened or already unlocked, and there is no penalty for keeping it closed. Paragraph 19A of Schedule 12 permits forced re-entry only once a signed controlled goods agreement has been broken. Public order and possession work is governed by entirely separate rules concerning land rather than a private home.

Exempt goods and vehicles

For a money-enforcement case, only the named debtor's own goods can be taken into control. Regulation 4 of the 2013 Regulations protects clothing and bedding, essential household equipment, medical and care items, pets, assistance dogs and a vehicle displaying a valid disabled badge whatever the debt, with tools of trade protected up to £1,350 in total. A leased, financed or family member's vehicle needs its ownership evidenced quickly, before rather than during a visit.

If you are vulnerable, or the debt is disputed

Put vulnerability in writing as soon as it becomes relevant; the correct outcome is a change in how the case is conducted, not a change to the debt itself. Where the underlying judgment or its amount is disputed, raise that with the original claimant and the court, not the enforcement team, and ask in writing for the writ reference, issuing court and a full fee breakdown. An instalment arrangement on an open writ usually means signing a controlled goods agreement, and checking every listed item is genuinely yours before doing so.

Confirming the right company, and complaints

Confirm the exact company number on any letter against the three listed above, and verify contact details independently rather than relying on a number printed only on the letter. Complaints begin with the firm's own procedure; since it is not on the ECB's register, an unresolved conduct complaint about a certificated agent goes to the county court that issued their certificate instead.