Council Tax issue

lloydy84

Hello people. I am not sure if this is the correct forum but I cannot find anything as suitable.

I have an issue with council tax. I moved out of my old address on the 24th of July. At the time I believed I wasn't liable for Council Tax.. I got a letter from the council however stating I owned 61 pounds arreas. After asking about it on these boards it was confirmed that I owed the money, and after calling the Coucil Tax helpline I was informed that it was due to a rcent change in the law about empty properties.

Great I thought. Anyway, I had received a letter about my new council tax payments. They went like this.

12.09 - 25.44
12.10 - 125.00

On the 12.09 I had already paid 150.44 - Meaning my balance should read 125 credit.

My plan was just to top up the amount next Thursday (10th) by the 61 I owed, and all is well.

Today however I received a Court summons for the outstanding amount of 61, with a 52 fine added on top!!!! I can't believe it! They say I didn't pay the amount.

Now I have gone back to look at the bill and I have just noticed that the 61 was to be paid and I was to quote a separate reference number. This never crossed my mind as being an issue, I just thought it went onto my account.

That and that fact I have never had a letter since stating I owned money made me think I was fine.

Am I in the wrong here? I think its plain confusing that there are different account numbers for different payments..

Thanks for any help

CIS

I think its plain confusing that there are different account numbers for different payments..

It's a different council tax account so it will be given a different reference - it wasn't it would be impossible to administer it (its bad enough to manage when each account has an individual reference number).

lloydy84

CIS wrote: »

It's a different council tax account so it will be given a different reference - it wasn't it would be impossible to administer it (its bad enough to manage when each account has an individual reference number).

I received one letter on the 31st of July stating that I was 102.05 in credit. (this was to my new address but address of property was old address).

I then received another on the 28th of August stating that I owed 752.49 for the year, minus the 102.05 credit = 650.44

After this I then received a letter stating that I owed 61 from my old address.

So either

1) The account never changed, nor did the references before sending me the final letter. On seeing I still owed 61, they created a new account for me to pay.

2) They removed credit from one account into another, expected me to pay into the first account but I paid into the second.

Either way it's frustrating, and you'd think if they can transfer credit once they would use their head and do it again? Or someone would actually see I have money sat in one account? Or failing that that they could contact me?

CIS

2) They removed credit from one account into another, expected me to pay into the first account but I paid into the second.

Most council's will transfer the credit from one acct to the next but the council tax bill for the new account would have shown the payments then required.