D89 form: ask a court bailiff to deliver the papers
Form D89 asks the court for a county court bailiff to deliver papers to the other person by hand (personal service). It is used in divorce, dissolution and separation cases when other ways of serving have not worked, and in domestic abuse cases so that you do not have to serve the papers yourself.
Fill in the D89 form with Wren
How Wren helps with the D89
Official forms are written for lawyers. With Wren you do not have to decode this one on your own, and you still follow the court’s procedure.
- Plain questions, one at a timeEach part of the D89 becomes short questions in everyday words. Answer at your own pace and come back to it.
- Help beside each questionWhat the question is asking and what the official guidance says about it, in plain English.
- The official form, filled inYour answers go into the official D89. You check it, sign it and send it yourself. Nothing goes to the court for you.
- What comes next, kept with your caseWhat usually happens after you send it, with the dates worked out from the published rules.
Time and money
- On your own
- A day or more
- With Wren
- About an hour for most forms
- Solicitor for this form
- £740 to £1,2403 to 5 hours
A solicitor’s time for the D89 can run to £1,240. With Wren it is part of £19.99 a month, and it takes about an hour for most forms rather than a day or more.
Times and hours are Wren’s estimates for a typical case, not quotes. Solicitor costs are those hours at £247 an hour, the courts’ guideline rate for a solicitor with over four years’ experience, outside London (GOV.UK, Solicitors' guideline hourly rates (in effect from 1 January 2026)). The guideline runs from £200 to £295 an hour outside London depending on experience, firms set their own rates, and VAT is added on top.
Key facts
- Official title
- Request a court bailiff to deliver papers: Form D89
- Edition
- 08.26 (8 pages). GOV.UK says to use this form only if the court issued your application on or after 6 April 2022.Source: official page (external source, opens in a new tab)
- Fee
- £47 for bailiff service of any document. There is no fee for bailiff service of an application for a non-molestation, occupation, domestic abuse protection, forced marriage protection or FGM protection order. Help with fees may be available.Source: official page (external source, opens in a new tab)
- Where
- Bailiff service of a divorce or dissolution application is only considered at an address in England and Wales.Source: official page (external source, opens in a new tab)
- Evidence
- Send evidence that email and postal service were tried and failed, or explain why post is not appropriate. A request will rarely be granted if you have a solicitor.Source: official page (external source, opens in a new tab)
- Kept from the other side
- The top of the form says it is for internal use only and is not to be served on the parties.Source: official page (external source, opens in a new tab)
Who uses the D89
The person who needs the papers served, usually the applicant. In a divorce, most people apply online and the court serves the application by email or post, so D89 is only needed if that does not work.
When it is used
In a divorce or dissolution, the court normally considers bailiff service only after email and postal service have been tried, when no acknowledgement of service has come back and you believe the other person still lives at the address. In a domestic abuse case, you can ask the court to serve an FL401 application or order on form D89.
Before you start
- The case number and the documents to be served.
- The other person's address, and the best time to find them there.
- A description of the other person, and a recent photograph if you have one.
- Anything the bailiff should know for their safety, such as violence, threats, animals or weapons.
- Proof that email and postal service were tried, in a divorce or dissolution.
How to fill in the D89
Open each part for what it asks and how to answer it. In Wren, each part is a few plain questions, and your answers fill in the form.
Page 1: the case
You give the court, the case number and the names of the applicant and respondent, and say which documents are to be served.
Questions about the person
You describe the person to be served, say when they are likely to be at the address, and give any vehicle details. You can enclose a photograph.
Safety questions
You say whether the person has been violent, made threats, has animals, mental health issues or access to firearms, so the bailiff can plan a safe visit.
Statement of truth and fee
You sign a statement of truth and say how you will pay the fee, or that you have applied for help with fees.
Prepare your D89 with Wren Family
Wren Family turns official forms into short, plain-English questions you can answer at your own pace. You check everything before you send it: nothing goes to the court for you.
Get startedFree for 14 days, no card. Then £19.99 a month, with your money back within 14 days if it’s not right.
What happens after you send it
A bailiff tries to hand the papers to the person. If the bailiff cannot serve them, the court tells you. You may then be able to ask the court for service by another method or at another place, or, if the person cannot be found at all, to dispense with service on form D13B.
Common mistakes
- Asking for bailiff service in a divorce before email and postal service have been tried.
- Giving an address outside England and Wales.
- Leaving out the safety answers the bailiff needs.
- Trying to serve domestic abuse papers yourself instead of asking the court to serve them.
Common questions
Do I need this form if I applied for my divorce online?
Usually not. The court serves an online application by email or post, and if the other person does not respond, the court contacts you and tells you what you can do. Follow what it tells you in your account.
Is there a fee in a domestic abuse case?
There is no fee for bailiff service of an application for a non-molestation or occupation order, or a domestic abuse protection order.
Will the other person see what I write?
The form says it is for internal use only and is not to be served on the parties.
Where these facts come from
These are the official rules and pages this page is based on. They are listed so you can check a detail for yourself; you do not need them to use Wren. They are outside Wren and open in a new tab.