How to stop Equita chasing you

Who are Equita?

Equita are a long-established firm of certificated enforcement agents working for local authorities, and part of the wider Marston Holdings group. They collect on behalf of councils rather than chasing their own debt.

What debts do Equita collect?

Equita mainly handle local-authority debt, including:

• Council tax arrears
• Business rates
• Parking and traffic penalties (PCNs)

How Equita make contact

Equita work through the standard enforcement stages, making contact several ways first:

• A Notice of Enforcement by post (at least 7 clear days)
• Texts and emails with a payment link or online portal
• Phone calls and a payment line
• A doorstep visit by an enforcement agent
• A team for vulnerable customers

None of this means you've done anything wrong, or that you have to deal with it alone. The important thing is not to ignore it — and to understand what they can and can't actually do.

Is Equita legitimate — and how do I know a letter or text is genuine?

Equita is a genuine, certificated enforcement company, not a scam. Their agents are certificated by a county court and listed on the public Certificated Enforcement Agent register. They’re an established name in local-authority enforcement.

That said, fraudsters do impersonate well-known enforcement firms by text and email, often with a payment link and a sense of urgency. Before paying anything, check the reference against the original creditor or council, look at the notice date and stage, and if in doubt phone the company on the number from their official website rather than one in a message. If you're unsure what you actually owe or whether you should be paying at all, it's worth getting independent advice first.

What Equita can — and cannot — do

Equita's agents work under the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 and the Taking Control of Goods Regulations 2013. That gives them real powers, but also strict limits that many people don't realise are on their side.

Can they force their way in?

For the everyday debts Equita usually handles — such as council tax, parking and penalty charges — an enforcement agent cannot force entry on a first visit. They can only enter peaceably, for example through an unlocked door, and you do not have to let them in. You're within your rights to keep your door locked and talk through it or by phone.

What can they take?

If an agent does gain peaceable entry, they can only take non-essential goods of resale value. Protected items include:

• Essential household items — cooker, fridge, washing machine, beds and basic furniture
• Tools, equipment or vehicles you need for work, up to a total value of £1,350
• Anything that belongs to someone else, or is on finance

The fees they can add

Enforcement fees are fixed by law — not set by the company — and are added at each stage:

Acting at the compliance stage — before an agent visits — is almost always cheaper and less stressful than waiting.

How to stop Equita chasing you

The debt behind Equita's contact almost always started somewhere else — usually unpaid council tax, business rates or a parking penalty. Dealing with that underlying debt is what actually stops the chasing, and you have more options than you might think:

• Engage early. Responding at the compliance stage keeps fees down and visits away.
• Ask about a payment arrangement. Agents can accept instalments, though they're not obliged to and a plan doesn't tackle the wider picture if you owe several creditors.
• Look at a formal debt solution. If the underlying debt is part of a bigger problem, a formal solution can deal with it properly — and give legal protection that a casual arrangement can't.

How an IVA can help

An Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) is a formal agreement with your creditors. Once it's approved, the creditors included in it are legally bound: interest and charges are frozen, they must stop contacting you directly, and they can no longer pursue enforcement action such as bailiffs for those debts. You make one affordable monthly payment, and any qualifying debt you still can't afford at the end can be written off.

Council tax arrears, business rates and parking penalties are normally qualifying unsecured debts an IVA can include. That's exactly why free, tailored advice matters — so you know which of your debts an IVA could cover and whether it's the right fit before you commit to anything.

Common questions about Equita

Free, independent debt advice is also available from MoneyHelper, StepChange, National Debtline and Citizens Advice.