Council Tax Arrears - DRO / BR

Handsome_DJ

Hi guys, looking for some advice please.

I am saving up the fees for BR, and my partner is about to apply for a DRO.

I was planning to include all of our joint council tax arrears in my BR but don’t quite have the fees saved up, however we received a visit from a council tax bailiff today whilst we were out.

Because I cannot yet afford BR, I want to know if my partner can include a share of the council tax arrears in her DRO? In reality she was not earning enough to contribute but in theory we could replace other living costs in her SoA with council tax.

Also, would I be pursued for her share of council tax whilst saving up the BR fees?

I just want to avoid any more visits from the bailiff, and it would seem to make sense to include at least half of the arrears on her DRO.

Thanks

National_Debtline

Hi there

You need to understand the principle of "joint and several liability" here. It means that a debt in joint names cannot be "halved" between you. You (HDJ) are liable for 100% of the debt - let's say it is £100 for argument's sake. Your partner is also liable for that full £100, so if one of you goes insolvent tomorrow, the other party can still be chased for £100.

Once your partner's DRO has gone through (which should list her full liability for the council tax, not half), the council and bailiffs will not be able to take any action against her - meaning that none of her belongings can be listed or seized. Obviously you should not be letting the bailiff into your home anyway, whoever is being pursued. Any cars you own should be parked securely away from the property to ensure that the bailiff can't identify them as belonging to you. There's more info on bailiff powers in this fact sheet:

http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/england_wales/factsheet.php?page=02_bailiffs_and_council_tax

Hope this helps

Dennis @NDL

Handsome_DJ

Hi Dennis

That's a massive help thank you very much

Paul