Colin Naylor, Co-Chairman of CIVEA (the Civil Enforcement Association) and Managing Director of Dukes Bailiffs, has welcomed the publication of the updated National Standards, but says the public should be aware these are the industry's own standards, not something simply being imposed by Government.

"All the signatories to these standards are members of CIVEA and already committed to the practices and standards contained in this document" he says. "It's most welcome that the Ministry of Justice has been the catalyst for formalising and publishing the guidelines because this gives them substantial additional weight, however, it would be wrong to suppose that they have been imposed on the industry by Government".

He goes on to point out that CIVEA and most of its members already publish similar creeds of professional behaviour, against a difficult set of market conditions which include more demanding contracts particularly in the public sector, a largely sceptical media environment and a small but significant nucleus of committed and often serial debt "evaders" who will do anything but pay up.

"Neither bailiffs nor their clients are interested in pursuing people who haven't the means to pay and may well have fallen into debt through unfortunate and unforeseen circumstances", he comments, pointing out that, quite apart from any ethical issues, there is no practical value in chasing that which doesn't exist.

In supporting both the objectives and the detail of the updated standards, he nevertheless says that a note of reality must be struck when customers are looking for both competitive prices and good recovery rates. Best value, he observes, is not exactly the same thing as cheapest option.

"If you look at the standards", he says, "it uses words such as 'discretion' and 'duty of care'. Bailiffs, through experience and training, can soon recognise where and when to encourage payment without undue distress to debtors. They also know that a high proportion of the complaints which surface about bailiff activities are either a deliberate or vexatious smokescreen raised by the debtor who has no intention of paying."

According to Colin Naylor, clients and bailiffs need to agree a sensible tariff of payment for professional services, recognising that accuracy of information, knowledge about debtor history and the due processes of notification and recovery cannot be pursued without time and money being expended.

"We must have commitment and resource to do our jobs properly", he says.

Colin Naylor believes that no great revolution is required in the professional practices of most bailiffs, though he does sound a warning about the unregulated and sometimes maverick "freelancers". He contends that all the regulation in the world won't change the approach of someone whose only interest is commission.

Reiterating his overall support for the new National Standards, to get the very best from the bailiff industry he says requires three elements:

· Recognition from the consumer media that debt recovery is an entirely legitimate activity and that those who do not pay ultimately are being subsidised by those who do

· A universally adopted set of regulations and a fully transparent fee structure

· A realistic acceptance, particularly by local authorities, that effective, professional services cannot be   provided without cost.