Council tax arrears

MISCHKASMUM

Hi folks - hope someone can advise me here. This is the first time I've posted on this Forum, so I don't even know if I'm in the right place!

Anyway, I received a letter in the post Friday morning, opened it and nearly had a heart attack. My local Council are demanding I pay £824 for arrears they SAY I owe at my previous address. The thing is, I've been at THIS address for ELEVEN years (from 1999) and I literally moved right next door from my OLD address. Apparently this debit is actually going back to 1993!

The letter was actually from a debt collection agency, and the very first paragraph - and centre heading - reads:

"ENFORCEMENT OF SUMMARY WARRANT

Despite contacting you on numerous occasions, you have not responded to any of our requests to settle your outstanding Council Tax arrears".

I have NEVER in all the years I've been at THIS address, received ANY form of communication from SLC with regards to this supposed debt. Not ONE!

These days, if I'm even ONE day late with my payment, within the week I have a letter telling me that if I don't pay the instalment, the full amount will become due. So WHY couldn't they have contacted me before now?

Can anyone tell me what I should do in these circumstances? Problem is, I was so upset, first thing I did was pick up the phone and call SLC then the debt colleciton folk, then back to SLC again. I'm fighting this tooth and nail anyway. There is no WAY they are getting away with threatening me with arrestment of bank accounts etc. The guy at the debt collection place told me he can offer me their minimum payment of £20 per month over four years. I told him politely what he could do with that as neither myself or my husband are working just now and it's taking us all our time to pay the Council Tax we're paying!

Any and all advice will be gratefully received.

Tixy

Hi

Do you think there may have been some old arrears from way back in 93? (just because it will affect how you might try to fight this claim).

Its quite possible that this debt could be statute barred but it will depend on whether they took out a court liability order for this debt years ago or not. If they didn't go to court within 6years of when the council tax bill was due then the debt would be statute barred and you could write to them to this effect. If they do have a liability order from years ago then you would need to be asking them why you have had no previous notification from them, depsite them having had an address for you within their own district at all times.

There is a small section on statute barred council tax here - http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/england_wales/factsheet.php?page=25_liability_for_debts_and_the_limitation_act#chapter8 and it might also be worth contacting national debtline for some additional advice.

MISCHKASMUM

Thanks for your response.

I did have arrears - but I made arrangements to pay them. I can distinctly remember going into town to pay and the clerk always stapled the receipt to the card. I got fed up travelling into Glasgow so started sending in PO's but still got card back same way. Eventually, the card was so packed with receipts I could hardly get it into an envelope! I'm pretty positive I paid my debt off before I moved to my present address. The point is, I've been here for ELEVEN years and heard not one word from this lot. I'm going to see a CAB advisor today with regards to this. I also spoke to my Housing Officer at the Coop and she is of the mind that the arrears will be nulled - eventually. As she says, the COUNCIL are going to have to PROVE that they sent letters, etc to me. And the fact that I only moved NEXT DOOR and not out of the area is also going to count.

There's one big fly in the ointment here though. If these arrears are anything to do with the hated POLL tax, then they can whistle Dixie as far as I'm concerned cos I ain't paying. I'm quite sure when Mrs T used Scotland as a guinea pig for this, it was against the Constitution. Still not paying anyway - they can clap me in the nick for a couple of months if they like, I don't care!

Rossy.

MISCHKASMUM wrote: »

Thanks for your response.

I did have arrears - but I made arrangements to pay them. I can distinctly remember going into town to pay and the clerk always stapled the receipt to the card. I got fed up travelling into Glasgow so started sending in PO's but still got card back same way. Eventually, the card was so packed with receipts I could hardly get it into an envelope! I'm pretty positive I paid my debt off before I moved to my present address. The point is, I've been here for ELEVEN years and heard not one word from this lot. I'm going to see a CAB advisor today with regards to this. I also spoke to my Housing Officer at the Coop and she is of the mind that the arrears will be nulled - eventually. As she says, the COUNCIL are going to have to PROVE that they sent letters, etc to me. And the fact that I only moved NEXT DOOR and not out of the area is also going to count.

There's one big fly in the ointment here though. If these arrears are anything to do with the hated POLL tax, then they can whistle Dixie as far as I'm concerned cos I ain't paying. I'm quite sure when Mrs T used Scotland as a guinea pig for this, it was against the Constitution. Still not paying anyway - they can clap me in the nick for a couple of months if they like, I don't care!

If you owe it.. pay it... SIMPLE

No-one likes paying council tax and what have you but it's law and must be paid. No arguing just get on with it.

You state neither you or you're husband work.. Is it a cant work or won't work? I take it i'm funding your place of residence, your food,drink,fags,car? with my TAX contributions..

I always feel people on benefits live better than us work folk and it's wrong.. Extremely wrong[/QUOTE]