Help - attachment of earnings

loinerlufc

We applied for Housing benefit and Council tax benefit in June 2010 as I had just received a backdated DLA award.
We received the benefits in October 2010.A letter was received dated 13th January 2011 confirming that my wife would have an attachment of earnings on her wages.
But the date of the court issuing the attachment was June 2010.
We were not notified of this at the time.Surely this is maladministration.
Another thing is our benefits have been calculated before this happened and surely they should have been updated at this time?
Any idea folks?

Tixy

Loinerlufc

Is the attachment of earnings in relation to your council tax?

What period of council tax arrears does the attachment of earnings cover?

When you received notification of being granted council tax benefit in October 2010 when was it backdated to? did you receive 100% council tax benefit?

(this would be better in its own thread - I'll see if a board guide will move it for you)

Red_dog_Sam

The Council will have acted within its legal powers and obligations and just based on what you've said so far there is nothing to suggest any maladministration.
This seems to be quite an old issue you're raising so I wonder if something has happened that makes you want to post now? Have things changed?
In general terms, the initial summons is likely to be for a full years charge but the amount due would be reduced if benefit was subsequently awarded for the same period. The Council will send a summons, a notice of liability order and then an attachment of earnings letter. You must've received some notification as you will have given the Council employer details which they only ask ask for when taking enforcment action - how else, after all, could they make an attachment of earnings? Why the delay between June and January? Difficult to speculate - perhaps you had been paying instalments so they didn't bother with the attachment? Did it go the bailiffs then get returned? Not really enough information to answer that. An attachment is a better option than bailiff or committal action at least.

loinerlufc

Finally caught up with all this.
They took my wife's employment details from our housing and council tax benefit details.The HB section told us to disregard the summons.Then six months after they obtained a liability order they have taken 11% of my wife's wages without relating it to our benefits.So they have not spoken to their own benefits dept and not looked at our earnings which is also available on our benefits statement.
So we never received details of the original liability order and were not allowed to give evidence of our earnings ,which they already had in the benefits section

CIS

Then six months after they obtained a liability order they have taken 11% of my wife's wages without relating it to our benefits.

The % taken is set in law, not by the council tax section. There is no 11% rate - the rates are 3,5,7,12 and 17% (and 50% at a high enough earnings level)

They can apply for an AOE irrespective of the amount of Council Tax Benefit you receive - providing there is a balance which is covered by a Liability Order then an Attachment Order is an option for the council. The rate taken considers you level of earnings only.

not looked at our earnings which is also available on our benefits statement

Not quite sure what you mean by this ?

So we never received details of the original liability order and were not allowed to give evidence of our earnings

The regulation 36 notice (Request For Information Form) would have been sent out to your address after the Liability Order was granted and before further action was taken - its not a legal requirement to send this but I don't know any authority who doesn't.

Prior to the Liability Order you would have received a Court Summons, a Demand Notice and at least 1 Reminder Notice.

I'm assuming you mean you weren't able to give a breakdown of your income and expenditure to make an offer of payment ? - if so then there is no requirement for the council to allow you to do so nor is their any requirement for them to accept any payment arrangement.