Council tax - summons to court

Ruby789

Hey all,

I screwed up and didn't pay the council tax. I've recieved a court summons. They say I ignored a reminder but I didn't get one. :mad:

I know it's my responsibility to pay it and I'm going to pay it, but i'm so annoyed it's in the courts now when there was no reminder.

I just want to know from a credit file perspective, even if I pay now will my credit file be wreaked? Can the council cancel the summons so it doesn't appear on my file if they accept that we didn't get a reminder?

I'd be grateful for advice so I can call them tomorrow and use the right words to get this resolved satisfactorily.

Thanks for the help.

CIS

They say I ignored a reminder but I didn't get one.

To be honest its very unlikely a reminder wasn't issued as the systems are specifically designed to prevent a summons being issued without a reminder being issued first- providing the council correctly stamped, addressed and posted it then the onus is on you to prove beyond reasonable doubt that it wasn't received.

I just want to know from a credit file perspective, even if I pay now will my credit file be wreaked?

Council tax isn't recorded on your credit record.

Ruby789

We definately didn't get a reminder and don't know how we can prove that? We owe two months. Its a flatshare and none of us have seen any reminders at all.

Can't believe this mess.

CIS

We owe two months

How did you miss two months ?

fermi

Ruby789 wrote: »

I just want to know from a credit file perspective, even if I pay now will my credit file be wreaked? Can the council cancel the summons so it doesn't appear on my file if they accept that we didn't get a reminder?

Council Tax liability orders do not show on your credit files at all.

Billthebricky

If its any consolation Im in the same boat.

someone was saying since the council tax benefit has been scraped there are record numbers not paying their CT.

Many did not even think that they had to pay, it was not clear.

so there is a back log and they cant cope with the numbers. In the end they never took me to court (YET) they keep giving me another 14days. But I still really do not have that much money. I can only make token payments.

CIS

Many did not even think that they had to pay, it was not clear.

Certainly made clear in our area - they were notified at least twice that they had to pay before the first payment was due and this was after they had already been told the system was changing.

In many of the cases I have dealt with so far people have openly admitted they read the letters and ignored them (and the reminder) until the summons dropped through the door.

Billthebricky

CIS wrote: »

Certainly made clear in our area - they were notified at least twice that they had to pay before the first payment was due and this was after they had already been told the system was changing.

In many of the cases I have dealt with so far people have openly admitted they read the letters and ignored them (and the reminder) until the summons dropped through the door.

You sound like you have first hand experience. Can you tell us an idea of the numbers involved nationwide? Can the courts cope with such numbers?

I have been put back again and again someone said it is because they can not cope with the demand of summons for council tax benefit claimants finding they now have to pay it all of a sudden.

I have been given another 14 days, but I still can not pay all that they are asking, just a token payment at a time, but it is building up now. I will have to move soon.

CIS

You sound like you have first hand experience. Can you tell us an idea of the numbers involved nationwide? Can the courts cope with such numbers?

Don't know about nationwide but the figures in my area haven't been too bad - certainly enough to be able to deal with the cases reasonably well and I've not had a massive increase in my caseload.

Billthebricky

CIS wrote: »

Don't know about nationwide but the figures in my area haven't been too bad - certainly enough to be able to deal with the cases reasonably well and I've not had a massive increase in my caseload.

Is it really correct if you go for a DRO then you don't have to pay council tax for the entire year?

Maybe this is why the official numbers of council tax defaults look so low.

fermi

http://www.i-m-a.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Intermediary-guidance-Version-11-0-APRIL-2013-2.doc

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Council tax[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Each District Borough Council levies and collects a tax, called a council tax which is payable in respect of dwellings in its area. The occupiers of the dwellings have joint and several liability for council tax.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Council tax is charged on a yearly basis from 1 April each year but the liability to pay council tax is determined on a daily basis. The billing authority is required to make a demand for payment of the council tax separate to the notification of the amount of council tax and the tax becomes due when that demand is made but most council tax payers agree a statutory monthly payment scheme for payment of council tax. [/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman, serif][FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Any amount due and unpaid under the instalment agreement prior to the insolvency order is an unsecured debt in the proceedings. If the debtor’s council tax is up to date under the instalment agreement at the date of the debt relief order, no amount can be scheduled in the order as it relates to future occupation of the dwelling. [/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]A recent High Court decision R (Mohammed) v Southwark LBC [2009] EWHC 311 (Admin) the Administrative Court concluded “that if a resident to whom a demand for a payment on account of council tax is properly addressed fails to pay an instalment on time, or fails to respond quickly enough to a reminder notice, or a final notice, he may become liable to pay the whole balance of the estimated amount of tax for that financial year within a short period, normally 7 days. The council will then be entitled to seek a liability order against him for that amount if it is wholly or partly unpaid”[/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman, serif][FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Therefore when applying this judgement to Debt Relief Orders, if the debtor has defaulted in respect of a reminder notice the whole of the amount is due and payable and therefore a qualifying debt (whether or not the council has obtained a [/FONT][FONT=Arial, sans-serif]liability order[/FONT][FONT=Arial, sans-serif]), if the debtor has maintained their instalment agreement in accordance with the demand notice, or no reminder notice has been issued only sums accrued and unpaid up to the DRO are a ‘qualifying debt’.[/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Where a liability order has been obtained by the council, prior to the debt relief order being made the whole debt as notified within the liability order becomes due and it is therefore a qualifying debt.[/FONT]