Council Tax - Direct Debit Guarantee?

Victors_Bruvver

I have moved home and when I queried with the local authority what to do with the direct debit I have with them for the council tax, I was told to cancel the direct debit and any monies owing would be paid back.

I moved at the beginning of June, actually the 8th, the date I told the council. Since then all the council can do is issue yet another invoice for the "unpaid" part of the annual council tax and tell me to ignore it as it is the system that generates it (no humans involved?) and wait for a further letter.

Today the letter arrives; three pages of which one is an invoice, one tells me that their records show I am in credit and the third a form to complete to get my 19.29 back!

Now I thought the DD arrangement guaranteed any overpayments to be immediately paid pack into the account it was first taken from - yes? Well I don’t know and wondered if anyone here can advise please because BACS cannot help and all they tell me is if I want to ask about guarantees etc I have to contact the clearing bank (on a 0870 number) and ask them.

Can anyone advise please?

KTF

Have you spoken to the council since the three new letters have arrived?

liuhut

The direct debit guarntee is only to cover if a payment is taken incorrectly - wrong dat, wrong amount. As you are in credit with them and its not a duplicate payment or one that they took in error, I would just fill the form in and do it that way as I'm sure that the bank will not take it up for you.

Victors_Bruvver

Thanks, I suppose the only way is to complete the form and send it back. It just niggles me to think that an easy way out by crediting the excess back to my bank account is turned into a form filling exercise by the local authority bureaucrats.

oldwiring

liuhut wrote:

The direct debit guarntee is only to cover if a payment is taken incorrectly - wrong dat, wrong amount. As you are in credit with them and its not a duplicate payment or one that they took in error, I would just fill the form in and do it that way as I'm sure that the bank will not take it up for you.

liuhut is absolutely correct:D