ridiculous council tax payment

tartanarm1

I was a student up in aberdeen and lived in a rented flat with 4 other students. We were therfore exempt. apparently according to the council my course finished in june (even though I graduated in July). They claim I have to pay hundreds of pounds because I wasn't a student from june until september (the end of my flat lease). I didnt even stay there I handed my keys in on the day of graduation in july.

This seems really unfair bearing in mind I have to pay council tax where I stay now (4 hours away). Just newly qualified and because I went home early and didnt stay out my lease I have to pay council tax twice? I didnt even start employment until August 1st. (Even more proof I couldnt have been living in aberdeen).

I cant pay it...its like 300 quid..morally im outraged as well and really dont feel I should.

I phoned but the guy on the phone didnt care he just read from his computer screen.

I should have just milked the benefit system for two months before my job started....the system is ridiculous.

Any help?

tartanarm1

Oh and the other 3 r continuing students so its all on me according to the guy

sulphate

This sounds in order I'm afraid.

You are considered a student from x date to x date, the council tax exemption form that your university gave you gives the official dates of your course. Outside these dates you are eligible to pay council tax (you should however receive a 25% discount if all the others are students). The date that you dressed up in a hat and gown is irrelevant, as is the fact that you moved out before your lease/contract ended.

tartanarm1

Ridiculous system...I'm so angry. well I cant pay that kind of money so I guess I'm snookered.....I could pay about 5 pound a month and im not kidding.

McKneff

It isn't ridiculous, it is what happens.


I would do your best to clear it as soon as possible to be honest, other wise your credit will be trashed.


Council tax debt never goes away, deal with it as soon as you can otherwise you will also have court costs on top of it too.

agrinnall

Does your Council Tax demand have the single occupancy discount applied already? If not, then request that and it'll cut what you owe by 25%.

Voyager2002

Your university will have provided a letter and/or forms stating that you were a student and exempt from paying council tax: check the dates on that carefully.

Otherwise, decide whether you want to ask for time to pay, or for clemency from the council. If the former, the collections team working for any council are used to the situation and should be able to agree a payment plan that you are likely to be able to meet. If the former: all councils do have a limited budget enabling them to write off Council Tax debts under exceptional circumstances. In moral terms you do have a strong argument that it is unreasonable to charge you. Personally I would contact a councillor in order to put that case, and in my experience the SNP councillors are better at responding to concerns than are those representing the ruling parties (Aberdeen is run by a Labour-Tory coalition, which perhaps explains why it is run so badly.)

If you fail to pay and do not make any arrangement: it would not affect your credit rating, but would eventually go to a magistrate's court ... in theory that could lead to a brief prison sentence as well as possible arrest and a criminal record.

CIS

If you are no longer resident in a property as your 'sole or main residence' and someone else is then you cannot be held liable for that period.

supersaverkerry

If you didn't live there you aren't liable to pay I don't think. I ended a tenancy early once and I wasn't liable for the full tenancy term because I didn't live in the house any more!

If you moved somewhere else and paid council tax somewhere else then I can't see why you would be liable on 2 properties.

But what others have said is correct about being liable for some sort of council tax because your course end date is the date they use not your graduation date.

Viberduo

I would be interested to know to since a few years ago I moved back in with parents not as a student though but because father was ill, well its a even more complicated one with me because officially I was living there but council decided that I moved out so I lost housing and council tax benefit but at same time decided since my tenancy didnt end till 3 months later I had to pay council tax even if I didnt live there!

CIS

Viberduo wrote: »

I would be interested to know to since a few years ago I moved back in with parents not as a student though but because father was ill, well its a even more complicated one with me because officially I was living there but council decided that I moved out so I lost housing and council tax benefit but at same time decided since my tenancy didnt end till 3 months later I had to pay council tax even if I didnt live there!

That's correct if it was an unoccupied property to which you held the tenancy but the OP's case is different in that the property was occupied after he left.