Help bailiffs and council

scattycat69

Hi
My friend has had a visit from the baliffs sent by the council.
They have given her five days to make an offer to pay or then they will remove goods to value.
The debt arises after an ex-boyfriend failed to pay the council tax which she was unaware of, then she moved and had notified the council of her new address, but she was not informed of the debt and did not receive any communication until the baliff arrived.
She is not familiar with the laws etc being Polish and is not sure what she can do.

She appreciates she has to pay the debt, but does she have to pay both her and her ex-boyfriend's which is over £2,000.

If she makes an agreement with the baliff does this effect her or should she be making the offer to the council?

What sort of amount should she agree to pay. She earns £150 per week before tax.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

HappyMJ

If she wants to make an offer it must be an amount she can manage. What benefits does she get? What expenses does she have? If her essential expenses equal her income and benefits then she can't offer anything? Have the bailiff's made a levy? What assets does she own? If a deductions from earnings order is made the deduction would be about £7 p/w. It'll take 5 years to pay back at that rate but that's all they can take.

monstermoo

Hi

Firstly, she needs to see if she is named as a joint and severally liable party on the bill. If she is then the Council can ask her to pay the whole bill, as it is not split.

Secondly, the Council would have sent her letters re this before the bailiffs are instructed as they have to. She must have told the Council that she left one address and moved to another. She can ask for copies directly firm the Council.

If the debt is with a bailiff best to make the offer with them. They have their own fees which a Council doesn't usually include in their balance. However, as the LA who your friend has her CT bill with.

hope it helps and your friend gets it sorted out

Hannah_10

She can get face to face advice at the citizens advice bureax. http://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/

NorthernLas

Has she let the bailiffs into her house? If she hasn't tell her not to let them in. If she has already let them in, then they can come back and take goods.

I would suggest she speaks to the council, to find out
- why she did not receive any letters on this bill;
- to confirm she is liable;
- to confirm how much the liability order is for. This is so that she can check that the amount being charged by bailiffs is correct (it will be the order + their fees).

She needs to ask the bailiff's for a breakdown of the debt and their charges. She should only pay what she can afford and she should not take out additional debt to pay this. CAB should be able to help with this.

More info can be found on http://www.bailiffadviceonline.co.uk/counciltax.htm

michmcc79

Tell her not to panic!! This happened to me 7 months ago. Luckily I didn't let the beggars in, but I did go straight to the council who refused to take back the debt from the bailiff. However, they did agree to negotiate a repayment plan with the bailiffs. Originally, the bailiffs would probably have been told to recover the debt within 3 months but with a little bit of help from the council this was extended to much longer and now pay it off at £110 month. They will always take in to account her income and outgoings and will ask her to provide proof of this. Get her down the council straight away and see what they can do. Wish her the best of luck...xxx