Thomas Hannah & Co: what a letter means and what to do

Thomas Hannah & Co acts for a wide range of creditors, so the letter could be about council tax, a loan, rent or a court case. What it means depends on the document, and the most time-critical one is a charge for payment, which gives you 14 days. This page covers Scotland only.

Who are Thomas Hannah & Co?

Thomas Hannah & Co describes itself as a firm of messengers-at-arms and sheriff officers based in Edinburgh, serving all six Scottish sheriffdoms. It says it was established about half a century ago and is independently owned, with no controlling corporate group.

Companies House lists THOMAS HANNAH LLP, number SO307193, an active limited liability partnership registered in Edinburgh on 22 March 2021. Its two designated members are Robert Ian Runciman and a company, Mansfield Management Ltd, and each is listed as a person with significant control.

The firm is a member of the Society of Messengers-at-Arms and Sheriff Officers (SMASO). SMASO lists one office, in Edinburgh, with two officers: Ian Runciman, a messenger-at-arms and sheriff officer, and Patrick Dooley, a sheriff officer.

Is it connected to Hannahs?

Not as far as the records show. Hannahs is a separate SMASO member firm in Glasgow, with different officers, and none of them is a member of Thomas Hannah LLP.

Why are Thomas Hannah & Co contacting you?

The firm says its clients include solicitors, national and local government revenue departments, high street banks and finance houses. Its services include serving court papers, enforcing decrees by arrestment, attachment and inhibition, enforcing judgments from elsewhere in the UK, serving notices to quit and notices to leave for landlords, enforcing eviction orders, repossessing property and vehicles, and tracing.

So your letter will usually be one of these:

• Court papers or a notice, such as a summons, a simple procedure claim or a landlord’s notice to leave. This is not enforcement. Note any deadline and get advice.
• A charge for payment after a decree or summary warrant. It gives you 14 days to pay if you are in the UK. A summary warrant is most often for council tax, granted without a hearing, with a 10% surcharge added.
• An arrestment of your wages or bank account, or an inhibition. While an inhibition is in force you cannot sell your property and keep the profit, and it can last 5 years.
• Eviction under an order already granted by the sheriff court or the First-tier Tribunal.

What can Thomas Hannah & Co do, and what can they not do?

Sheriff officers can only enforce a debt once there is a decree, summary warrant or other document with a warrant for diligence. Our guide to what sheriff officers can do in Scotland covers each step. The key protections:

• The first £1,000 in a bank account cannot be arrested, and frozen money goes to the creditor after 14 weeks unless something stops it.
• Wage deductions under an earnings arrestment follow statutory tables that the firm cannot change.
• Goods inside your home can only be attached under an exceptional attachment order from the sheriff.
• Fees are set by the Court of Session, and a new fee scale applies to work done from 25 September 2026. The firm says this is why officers cannot compete on price.

What should you do now?

1. Identify the document and note its date: papers to answer, a charge, an arrestment or an eviction notice.
2. Check the debt: your name, the creditor, the amount and what it covers. Ask the creditor for a breakdown if anything looks wrong.
3. Contact Thomas Hannah & Co or the creditor, using the details on your paperwork, with an offer you can afford.
4. If you have a charge, act within 14 days. For most debts under £25,000 you can ask the sheriff court for a time to pay order.
5. Get free money advice, and housing advice if eviction is involved. See where to get free debt advice. A money adviser can apply for a 6-month moratorium on diligence.
6. If your debts are more than you can repay, compare debt solutions in Scotland, including a Protected Trust Deed. IVAs are not available in Scotland.

How do you complain about Thomas Hannah & Co?

1. Complain to the firm first, in writing.
2. Complain to the creditor, council or landlord that instructed it. For a council, the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman is the final stage.
3. Complain in writing to SMASO, which has no disciplinary powers but can pass a serious complaint to the judge responsible.
4. Complain to the sheriff principal through your local sheriff court. For a messenger-at-arms, conduct is investigated by a Court of Session judge.

Our guide to dealing with debt collectors covers your rights before a debt reaches this stage.

Is the letter really from Thomas Hannah & Co?

Check the firm and the officer’s name against the SMASO member directory, and use contact details from your paperwork or the creditor’s official website. Be wary of anyone pressing you to pay at once into an account you do not recognise. This page does not list the firm’s contact details.