Although figures for the Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency are not available, the following table shows the number of mortgage and landlord possession orders made in Bromley, Dartford, Gravesend and Woolwich county courts from 2001 onwards.
The civil procedure rules state that all claims for the repossession of land must be commenced in the district in which the land is situated.
Obviously, Bromley, Dartford, Gravesend and Woolwich county courts also cover areas other than Bexleyheath and Crayford and therefore not all possession actions at these courts will relate to this constituency.
Court level statistics on mortgage and landlord repossession actions from 1987 to 2007 are available on the Ministry of Justice website at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/mortgatelandlordpossession.htm.
These figures do not indicate how many homes have actually been repossessed. Repossessions can occur without a court order being made, while not all court orders result in repossession.
Bromley Woolwich Dartford Gravesend Total 2001 327 132 291 89 839 2002 406 215 268 89 978 2003 555 214 290 86 1,145 2004 599 349 404 131 1,483 2005 1,047 642 552 202 2,443 2006 1,131 911 719 216 2,977 2007 1,062 1,044 939 — 3,045 2008 (Jan-Oct) 956 668 780 — 2,404
Bromley Woolwich Dartford Gravesend Total 2001 1,641 1,401 618 193 3,853 2002 1,709 1,356 560 206 3,831 2003 1,412 1,259 461 252 3,384 2004 1,264 1,223 458 195 3,140 2005 1,361 1,373 489 195 3,418 2006 1,266 1,026 492 155 2,939 2007 1,307 990 704 — 3,001 2008 (Jan-Oct) 937 763 706 — 2,406 1 Mortgage possession data include all types of lenders whether local authority or private. 2 Landlord possession data include all types of landlord whether social or private. 3 Includes orders made through both standard and accelerated procedures. 4 Includes outright and suspended orders, the latter being where the court grants the claimant possession but suspends the order. 5 The court, following a judicial hearing, may grant an order for possession immediately. This entitles the claimant to apply for a warrant to have the defendant evicted. However, even where a warrant for possession is issued, the parties can still negotiate a compromise to prevent eviction. 6 Gravesend county court closed in November 2006 with cases redirected to Dartford county court. Note: Figures for 2008 are provisional. Source: Ministry of Justice