Case 2600437/2024 · Employment Tribunal
Mr G Rainford v Stepnell Limited — 2024
- Case reference
- 2600437/2024
- Decision date
- 2 August 2024
- Jurisdiction
- England & Wales
- Judge
- Employment Judge Phillips
- Venue
- Nottingham
Parties
2 namedClaimant
Mr G Rainford
Respondent
Key findings
Tribunal's reasoningEmployment Judge Phillips, sitting alone at Nottingham on 2 August 2024, dismissed Mr Rainford's claim of unauthorised deduction from wages against Stepnell Limited. The Respondent had deducted sums from the Claimant's wages following an attachment of earnings order issued by Leicester Magistrates Court dated 22 August 2023 in respect of a debt of £754, having first verified the order with the court before making deductions.
The Tribunal found as fact that a valid attachment of earnings order had been received, that deductions totalling £754 were made between 7 September 2023 and 9 November 2023, together with £1 administration charges permitted under the Attachment of Earnings Act 1971, and that the Respondent was obliged to comply with the order. Applying section 13(1) of the Employment Rights Act 1996, the Judge held that the deductions were authorised by a statutory provision and therefore not unlawful.
The Judge noted that the Claimant had made significant efforts to research the law but had conflated the civil process for obtaining an attachment of earnings order with the position where such an order is made pursuant to a Magistrates Court fine. The claim was found not to be well founded and was dismissed.
Claims and outcomes
1 finding recorded| Claim type | Issue or finding | Outcome | Protected characteristic | Award |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unlawful deduction from wages | Tribunal found the deductions (totalling £754, plus £1 administration charges) were made pursuant to a valid attachment of earnings order from Leicester Magistrates Court and were therefore authorised by statute under sections 13 and 14 of the Employment Rights Act 1996. Claimant's heads of loss for £4,900 injury to feelings and £100 administration charge had been ruled out at the earlier preliminary hearing as not matters that could be considered in an unauthorised deduction from wages claim. | Dismissed | — | — |
Legal tests applied
3 references- s.13 Employment Rights Act 1996
- s.14 Employment Rights Act 1996
- Attachment of Earnings Act 1971
Official outcome judgment PDF
Gov.uk primary recordThe official judgment PDF on gov.uk contains the tribunal's outcome, reasoning, and any remedy details. Where this page does not yet show extracted outcomes for every claim, use the PDF as the authoritative source.
Published on gov.uk under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
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