APD Civil Enforcement: A Bilingual Welsh Bailiff Firm

One company, several names

The firm is a single legal entity, company number 12426482, incorporated on 27 January 2020, with its registered office at Suite 202, Conwy Business Centre, Junction Way, Llandudno Junction, LL31 9XX. Its registered name has changed more than once: it began as Gwasanaethau APD Services Cyf, moved through a run of names combining M-PATH and APD Services, and settled on APD Civil Enforcement Services Limited in 2025. All of these are the same company. If a letter, a register entry or an old judgment uses one of the earlier names, check it against company number 12426482 rather than assuming it is a different firm.

It has been accredited by the Enforcement Conduct Board since October 2023, where it is still listed under the Welsh name. It is not a member of CIVEA or of the High Court Enforcement Officers Association.

Dealing with APD in Welsh

The firm presents itself bilingually and offers a Welsh-language enquiries route, so you are entitled to correspond with it in Welsh if you prefer. Whichever language you use, keep dated copies of everything you send and receive, because a clear written record is your best protection in any enforcement matter.

Is APD a bailiff or a debt collector?

It does both. Where it is chasing a debt before any court stage, it is collecting, with no power to enter or seize. Where a court or council has made an order and instructed it to enforce, it acts as a certificated enforcement agent under Schedule 12 of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007. Our page on bailiffs and debt collectors shows how to read which stage you are at.

A broad service range means reading your paperwork carefully

Unlike a firm that only does council tax, or only does High Court work, APD advertises the full spread: council tax and penalty charge enforcement for local authorities, commercial rent recovery under CRAR, County Court Judgment enforcement, High Court writs, process serving and traveller eviction. Because the rules differ so much between these, the type of order named on your documents matters more than the APD letterhead.

Council tax and penalty charges

For council tax, a council must first hold a liability order. Under regulation 34(3) of the Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992, the six-year limit governs the council's application for that order, not the enforcement of one already granted. In Wales, the earlier recovery steps a billing authority takes before that stage are not identical to England's, so a Welsh account can arrive at enforcement on its own timetable; check the dates on your liability order. For a penalty charge where you never saw the original notice or were not the vehicle's keeper, the answer is a statutory witness statement, covered in PE3 and TE9 forms. Our council tax bailiffs guide covers the process.

CRAR and High Court work

CRAR applies only to a business tenant under a written lease with at least seven days' net unpaid rent outstanding, tested at notice and again when goods are first taken control of, under sections 74 and 77 of the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 and regulation 52 of the Taking Control of Goods Regulations 2013. For a High Court writ, the transfer thresholds in article 8 of the High Court and County Courts Jurisdiction Order 1991 apply, and because APD is not itself an HCEOA member, a writ it carries out must be authorised by a named High Court Enforcement Officer. Ask the firm to identify that officer and confirm them on the HCEOA register before treating the writ as properly held.

Can APD force entry?

Not into a home on a first visit for council tax or a penalty charge. Entry must be peaceable there. Paragraph 18A of Schedule 12 permits reasonable force onto business premises the debtor trades from where the debt is not a traffic penalty, and paragraph 19A permits re-entry after a broken controlled goods agreement, with paragraph 17 supplying the force only once one of these applies. Only goods of the debtor may be taken under paragraph 10, and regulation 4 exempts essential household items, pets and assistance dogs, a disabled person's vehicle, and work equipment up to £1,350. See when bailiffs can force entry.

What certificated enforcement costs

For council tax, penalty charges, CRAR and County Court warrants, APD charges the standard certificated scale in force from 1 May 2026: £79 at compliance, £247 once an agent attends, and £116 on sale, with 7.5% added above £1,900. A High Court writ runs on the separate High Court scale once one is properly in place. A Notice of Enforcement must give at least 14 clear days, extendable to a minimum of 28 clear days unless the debt is a non-eligible business debt on a recognised debt adviser's request.

Affordability, vulnerability and disputes

If you can pay part but not all, ask APD to record an arrangement, and check any controlled goods list is accurate and free of exempt items before signing. Tell the firm and the creditor, in Welsh or English, if illness, disability, bereavement or caring responsibilities apply. Send disputes about the underlying debt to the council or creditor, since APD cannot rewrite the account. National Debtline, StepChange and Citizens Advice give free help, and Welsh speakers can also seek advice in Welsh through national debt charities.

Complaining about APD

Use the firm's own complaints procedure first, then the council or creditor that instructed it. Because the company is ECB-accredited since October 2023, listed under its former Welsh name, the Enforcement Conduct Board can consider an unresolved complaint about its enforcement conduct, and where a High Court writ is involved the authorising officer's conduct can be raised with the HCEOA. A challenge to a certificated agent's certificate goes to the issuing County Court.

What to do next

1. Match any earlier name against company number 12426482 to confirm it is APD.
2. Identify the order type: council tax, penalty charge, CRAR, CCJ or High Court writ.
3. On a High Court writ, ask for the authorising HCEO and verify them.
4. Check any goods fees against the standard scale above.
5. If the underlying debt is wrong, write to the council or creditor today.
6. If you are vulnerable, say so now, in writing, in whichever language you prefer.