TunbridgeWells Borough Council & House Tax.

bigbulldog

Am I the only one to have nothing but trouble with this local authority as a good citizen I pay my House tax every month maybe only a couple of days late,but still every month anyway Saturday post arrived and to my horror I have to go to court 28/6 or pay the full amount minus what I have already paid plus a fee of £48 for issuing the summons are they allowed to do this however what really annoys me is the amount of people that get away without paying there this and are never penalised.:mad:

I dont entend to pay the full amount or the extra charge for the summons and I am willing to go to court and fight my corner,but I wonder should I bill them for the loss of earnings I will incurr for the day.

PS,Sorry moderators,but I'm not sure if this is in the right place....

Mark7799

You are given a date to pay it by and you miss the date. The LA (well ours does) allow monthly instalments for people who then stick to their side of the deal - i.e. paying on time. Why should the council pay for your loss of earnings when you can't pay within their timescale?

Why can't you set up a direct debit?

bigbulldog

Mark7799 wrote: »

Why can't you set up a direct debit?

We did,but they never ever took the right amount ever and I take it you must work for the local council,because when I say late I'm talking of a day maybe two,but thats it.

dmg24

Mark is right, it may only be 'a day maybe two', but you are still paying late.

pinkshoes

If work paid your salary a day or two late, i'm sure you'd be fuming?!?!

If they didn't take the right amount on the direct debit, then complain on the phone, get them to re-send the bill with the correct monthly payments written, then set the direct debit up again.

EVERYONE hates paying council tax, but it's just one of those crappy things you have to do.

Mark7799

bigbulldog wrote: »

We did,but they never ever took the right amount ever and I take it you must work for the local council,because when I say late I'm talking of a day maybe two,but thats it.

I do not work for a local authority but I am aware of the significance of paying bills late. As has already been said, if your salary or benefits were a day, maybe two, late how would you feel?

Biggles

To be fair, I've never noticed any local authority I've dealt with in the past being too picky about the exact date monthly payments arrive.

To accept late payments month after month (apparently) and then get a summons for doing what they've previously found acceptable seems a bit much.

Unless you've had a warning about late payments in the past?

Bunnie1982

http://www.tunbridgewells.gov.uk/section.asp?catid=538

Link to the Enforcement and Recovery procedure for Tunbridge Wells Borough Council.

CIS

You must have missed the dates for the instalments regularly or not paid an instalment that was requested. Our system tends not to pick up instalments if less than a week or so late.

I deal with this issue daily and the problem is that Councils need to maximise revenue and therefore are usualy hot on recovery.

You'll not get anywhere by fighting it and refusing to pay, as long as the standard process leading to summons has ben followed then its lawful. Going in front of the magistrate can only get the case thrown out in very few instances, usualy only if your not the liable person.

Try ringing the Council and see what they can do, depending on circumstances I can often withdraw summonses. You may be able to negotiate getting it withdrawn, but in anycase as long as you come to a payment arrangement then you'll usualy just be worse off for the costs and nothing else.

girltuesday_2

Yes, you should pay on time, but to issue a summons without any previous warning letters etc seems a bit strong....

CIS

Before a summons is issued then legislation states that a person will have received at least one reminder which warns that action will be taken if the account is not brought up to date.

Not saying so in this case, but if I had a £1 for every person who has not received a bill, and not received a reminders but always manages to receive a summons I'd be worth a fortune.