21 year old council tax bill

christieb_2

My mum who is now elderly and lives on pension credits has just recieved a council tax bill for 1990/91. This is the first we have heard about it. Now, after 21 years, the council has informed her that the benefits she was on at the time only covered 80% of the bill and she has to pay the rest. Can they do this after all this time?

Zeitgeist

No, they only had six years to claim this amount in. And now it's too late.

(Yes, I realise that I've ended a sentence with a preposition. And started a sentence with a conjunction.)

davetrousers

Is it genuinely from the council?

intranicity

Not sure thats true, depends if they have sought a liability order? This sounds unlikely though if she has been with the same council all this them as they would have know where she was?

The Limitation Act 1980 DOES NOT apply to Council Tax

Council Tax is subject to its own limitation period under reg 34(3) Council Tax (Administration & Enforcement) Regs 1992. The local authority may not apply for a liability order after 'the period of six years beginning with the day is becomes due'.

If the Council Tax was due more than 6 years ago then the council are unable to ask the Court for a Liability Order (a liability order allows the council to deduct the Council Tax debt from your wages or benefits). However, it is unlikely that the council will have allowed this to happen, and they will usually have obtained a Liability Order before the 6 years are up.

melbi_uk

I heard that some people are receiving such letters and it is bogus to try and get your bank details. I'd ring the council and see what is going on.

sue1953

Council Tax did not start until April 1993. Between 1990 and 1993 (up to 31/03/93) you paid the Community Charge. As far as I can remember Community Charge Benefit only covered 80% of the liability.

PS I believe Community Charge started one year earlier in Scotland ie 1989.

elmer

In my LA we are still collecting community charge arrears and send out a statement every April for any outstanding amounts, so this is perhaps what your Mum has received.

elmer

Mojisola

Contact the council but check that any numbers given on the letter really get you through to the council and not some scammer.

sardine

elmer wrote: »

In my LA we are still collecting community charge arrears and send out a statement every April for any outstanding amounts, so this is perhaps what your Mum has received.

elmer

They are what?????? After all this time! Surely it must have cost them a lot more to collect this over that period of time than the debt was.

I cannot believe that councils are still chasing a debt which is upwards of 20 years old.

On that basis, I can't see me getting away with the bit I owe them from 1998/9! It still appears on the annual CT bill - '£853.23 is subject to court proceedings and is still outstanding'
They have a liability order which was granted in late 1999, but I refuse to pay it. I suppose they might send a bailiff round at some time in the future, we will have to wait and see.

Wee_Willy_Harris

sardine wrote: »

They are what?????? After all this time! Surely it must have cost them a lot more to collect this over that period of time than the debt was.

I cannot believe that councils are still chasing a debt which is upwards of 20 years old.

On that basis, I can't see me getting away with the bit I owe them from 1998/9! It still appears on the annual CT bill - '£853.23 is subject to court proceedings and is still outstanding'
They have a liability order which was granted in late 1999, but I refuse to pay it. I suppose they might send a bailiff round at some time in the future, we will have to wait and see.

I think the idea is that if it became common knowledge that councils just wrote off these debts, fewer people would feel compelled to pay in the first place.

dseventy

sardine wrote: »

They are what?????? After all this time! Surely it must have cost them a lot more to collect this over that period of time than the debt was.

Are you for real? Sending out an invoice once a year for 20 years is going to cost more than £800+ ?

Am I the only one that is glad they still chase these debts? It is questionable whether the OP owes it, but you do and make no bones about it!

Forever make your credit applications sour and knocks on the door fearful.

D70