I am not a solicitor so take anything i say with caution. This seems a desperate situation due to time factor. The lender obviously has got a court order and given it to the sheriff for execution. Has the person any cash available for the arrears? Suggest contact a solicitor preferably someone who specialises in this area first thing on Monday and have available all documentation your friend received. He/She may consider contacting the lender in a last ditch effort to stall matters and may also inform the sheriff of this. Is your friend's mental capacity OK as it is difficult to understand how matters were ignored. I know this can happen but some people just "lose" it. Sorry i cannot be more specific