Colin Ross Wilks: what a letter means and what to do

Papers from Colin Ross Wilks mean a creditor is using a sheriff officer in Scotland, either to start court action or to enforce a debt it already has a decree or summary warrant for. If you have a charge for payment, you have 14 days to act. This page covers Scotland. For the detail on each type of enforcement, see what sheriff officers can do in Scotland.

Who is Colin Ross Wilks?

The Society of Messengers-at-Arms and Sheriff Officers (SMASO) lists Colin Ross Wilks as a member firm with one office, in Kilmaurs near Kilmarnock, and one officer, Colin R. Wilks, who is a messenger-at-arms and sheriff officer. SMASO does not list a website.

We found no Companies House entry for the firm. A sheriff officer working as a sole trader or in an ordinary partnership does not have to register there. We found no published information on which creditors the firm acts for, so we do not name any.

Sheriff officers are officers of court employed privately. Each is commissioned by a sheriff principal and regulated by the Court of Session, and all must belong to SMASO, which has no disciplinary powers over them. As a messenger-at-arms, he can also act on Court of Session orders.

Why is Colin Ross Wilks contacting you?

mygov.scot says sheriff officers deliver court documents and make people pay debts, such as council tax under a summary warrant. In practice, papers usually fall into one of these:

• Court papers, such as a simple procedure claim form or an initial writ. The creditor is asking the court for a decree. Respond by the date given, or the court will usually grant it.
• A charge for payment, served after a decree or summary warrant. It gives you 14 days to pay if you are in the UK.
• An arrestment or attachment after an unpaid charge.

For council tax, a summary warrant is granted without a hearing and adds 10% to the arrears. See council tax arrears.

What can Colin Ross Wilks do, and what can he not do?

The rules are the same for every sheriff officer:

• After the charge expires, you are treated as “apparently insolvent” in law, which a creditor owed £5,000 or more can use to petition for your sequestration.
• Earnings arrestment: deductions from your wages follow statutory tables. Nothing is taken from net pay of £750 a month or less.
• Bank arrestment: the first £1,000 is protected, and frozen money goes to the creditor after 14 weeks unless something stops it.
• Attachment: only goods kept outside your home, unless the sheriff grants an exceptional attachment order. A vehicle you reasonably need worth up to £1,000 is protected.

Fees are set by the Court of Session, not the officer. A new fees Act of Sederunt applies to work done from 25 September 2026.

What should you do now?

1. Identify the paper and the deadline. Court papers need a response to the court. A charge gives you 14 days.
2. Check the debt is yours and the amount is right. Most debts in Scotland are extinguished after 5 years without a relevant claim or acknowledgement; a decree lasts 20 years.
3. Contact the creditor or its solicitor with a realistic offer, using the details on your paperwork.
4. Consider a time to pay order. For most debts under £25,000, the sheriff court can let you pay by instalments and stop further diligence while you keep to it.
5. Get free money advice. An adviser can apply for a 6-month moratorium on diligence, or set up a Debt Arrangement Scheme programme. See where to get free debt advice.

Scotland has no IVAs or debt relief orders. Debt solutions in Scotland explains trust deeds, DAS and sequestration.

How do you complain about Colin Ross Wilks?

We found no published complaints procedure. mygov.scot says you can complain to the firm that employs the officer, to SMASO, or to the sheriff principal through your local sheriff court. The sheriff principal can investigate an officer’s conduct. You can also complain to the creditor or solicitor who instructed him.

Is the letter genuine?

A genuine charge for payment names the creditor and the decree or warrant it relies on. Confirm with the creditor using contact details from its official website or your own records, not from an unexpected text, email or call, and never pay into an account you cannot verify. For wider rights, see dealing with debt collectors.